Game 9 Recap - Casey with the Bat

Box Score | Highlights

  1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9   R H E
Cubs 2 1
 1
 0
 0 0
 1
 0 0
   5
 11 0
Brewers 2
 0
 2
 0
 0
 0 0 2
 0   6
 11
 0

The Gist: I didn't watch anything of the game, so not much to add. It's disappointing the Cubs couldn't get the win after getting to Yovani Gallardo, but disappointment and the Cubs go together like fire and gasoline. The bullpen blew it's second lead of the season, this time Kerry Wood being the culprit, leaving a fastball over the plate with Soto set up low and inside. Aramis and Byrd had the big days with the bat. Fukudome left after a few innings with a mild hamstring strain and is listed day to day. The Mendoza Line has been activated for Carlos Pena.  I think I've found my new nickname for him.

 

Hitter Results for April 10
Name Level Pos AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SO BB SB CS
Michael Burgess                          
Welington Castillo A+ DH 5 1 1 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 0
Matthew Cerda A+ 3B 5 1 3 2 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
Ryan Flaherty AA LF 4 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0
Reginald Golden                          
Brett Jackson AA CF 4 2 2 0 0 1 4 2 1 0 0
DJ LeMahieu AA 2B-3B 5 1 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Marquez Smith AAA 3B 4 1 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0
Matthew Szczur                          
Josh Vitters AA 3B-1B 5 0 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0

 

 

Pitcher Results for April 10
Name Level IP R ER H 2B 3B HR SO BB
Christopher Carpenter                    
Jay Jackson                    
Austin Kirk                    
Kenneth McNutt AA 2.2 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 2
Christopher Rusin                    
Hayden Simpson                    

McNutt left his game early with a blister problem. Brett Jackson seems eager to be in the majors.

Scores...

Tags: 
Cubs Organizational Recaps
Submitted by Rob G. on Sun, 04/10/2011 - 9:03pm
Return to Homepage

Comments

Submitted by WISCGRAD
on Sun, 04/10/2011 - 9:29pm

Byrd and Ramirez had good days at the plate, but Byrd's CS in the 9th hurt. And Ramirez still can't seem to throw the ball. He was saved by Pena at least once and cost the team a DP in the 1st - Fielder should have never even come up that inning.

Submitted by Rob G.
on Sun, 04/10/2011 - 9:37pm

as I said, didn't watch the game. I assume that's Q-Ball's fault, can't imagine Byrd has a full-time green light. Why would you ever run in front of a power hitter that's already 3/4 on the day? That's absurdity wrapped in over-managing.

Submitted by Paul Noce
on Sun, 04/10/2011 - 9:52pm

Byrd and Q's post game comments seem to back up that it was Byrd who decided to run. Byrd snapped at reporters while Q said he didn't order Byrd to run, unless somehow Q made a mistake (according to Q).

It was stupid.

Submitted by Paul Noce
on Sun, 04/10/2011 - 9:53pm

I posted in the previous thread that the Cubs signed P Ramon Ortiz and he will start at Iowa on Monday night.

Submitted by Rob G.
on Sun, 04/10/2011 - 10:02pm

apologies to the Q-Ball family then....

I shall forever refer to him as Byrd Brain now.

Submitted by Paul Noce
on Sun, 04/10/2011 - 11:01pm

From the Tribune, maybe Byrd is claiming he got the sign to run:

"Marlon Byrd cut short an interview after being asked about trying to steal second base in the ninth inning with no one out and the Cubs trailing by a run..Quade labeled the decision "miscommunication" without specifying what happened, though he conceded he didn't want Byrd to run.

"We have to deal with that (Monday)," he said. "Make sure that I didn't screw the damn thing up … and I might have. But I didn't care for that situation to be running."

Byrd was reluctant to discuss the attempt, though he denied there was any miscommunication.

"I look at the third base coach," he said, referring to Ivan DeJesus.

So was he given the steal sign?

"Did I go?" he said. "OK. End of question."

After repeating himself several times, Byrd cut off the questioning.

"Done," he said. "Beat it. I respect you guys all the time, and we lose a close game like that and that's the question you ask? Forget it. Beat it."

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball...

Submitted by Rob G.
on Sun, 04/10/2011 - 11:26pm

Cubbery then

Submitted by Charlie
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 12:46am

Byrd certainly seems a little miffed. Maybe he feels blamed--but maybe he should be thankful he's got a manager who is willingly to say that it might have been his fault and not Byrd's. It's also possible DeJesus messed up. Overall, I'd be much happier if Byrd just missed a sign than if Quade really thought that was a good time to run.

Submitted by Ryno
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 7:41am

Okay, I understand that; it was probably a miscommunication... or something. But seriously, who says "beat it" anymore? I haven't heard anyone use that phrase for at least 10 years.

Submitted by The Joe
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 7:56am

"But seriously, who says "beat it" anymore?"

Guys with biceps bigger than my thighs.

Submitted by big_lowitzki
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 8:12am

Guys with biceps bigger than my thighs.

So basically you are saying that pretty much every one says, "beat it" these days?

Submitted by The Joe
on Tue, 04/12/2011 - 2:23am

Burn!

Oh, now I'm sad.

Submitted by Paul Noce
on Sun, 04/10/2011 - 9:53pm

I see Welington hit a hr tonight, hopefully his thumb is healing.

Submitted by Rob G.
on Sun, 04/10/2011 - 10:03pm

I need to pay closer attention. Is Reggie Golden staying at Fitch Park or is he injured?

Submitted by The Real Neal
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 9:19am

Does 32% body fat count as an injury? If so, he's hurt.

Submitted by Hagsag
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 9:03am

I have a question for our top talent evaluator Az. Phil, can you give me a scouting report on Frank Batista? He seems to be off to a good start at Peoria.

Submitted by Rob G.
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 11:41am

found this on Christian's personal blog

"After the third such incident, Duquette ventured down into the locker room. “I said, ‘Manny, let me ask you something. I was just wondering why you get back in the batter’s box after ball four.’ He said, ‘I don’t keep track of the balls.’ He said, ‘I don’t keep track of the strikes, either, until I got two.’ Then he said, ‘Duke, I’m up there looking for a pitch I can hit. If I don’t get it, I wait for the umpire to tell me to go to first. Isn’t that what you’re paying me to do?’ "

Submitted by Paul Noce
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 4:05pm

That's from a 2007 New Yorker article. And they make it sound like Manny was high all the time, which would account for most of his behavior.

http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2007/04/23...

Submitted by Paul Noce
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 4:07pm

Manny Ramirez named both of his first two sons Manny Jr.

That's in the article linked above.

Submitted by crunch
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 4:12pm

manny was one of those rare few who could roll out of bed and play pro baseball.

roids aside, he coasted a long time in the game on being able to perform awesome while his idea of training was not to become a fatass and to take his work in the batting cage.

it's not that i think people were jealous of the guy, but his attitude and his lack of working on being even better sure did rile some. it's hard for some people to watch a guy who's one of the best in the game coast along on those skills when he could actually be so much better if he applied himself.

pedro martinez showed you can be a happy-go-lucky guy and apply/work to be better than the already great talent you can coast on.

Submitted by Paul Noce
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 4:36pm

I forgot the Red Sox put Ramirez on waivers in 2003 and nobody claimed him.

Submitted by Rob G.
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 11:47am

http://www.baseballamerica.com/blog/prospects...

Castro the youngest MLB player (and already a year under his belt, crazy).

Vitters 10th youngest in Southern League (total bust though, just cut him now, there's no hope here)

Jae-Hoon Ha 10th youngest in FSL

Submitted by navigator
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 12:18pm

He's being pushed through the system far faster than his skills development merits. And while that's nothing new for a Hendry organization it reeks of desperation--also not new for the Cubs.

78 games at Daytona, a .257 batting average and an OPS around .700 got Vitters a promotion to AA where he hit .223 .292 .383 .676

blah

Submitted by Rob G.
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 12:19pm

yup, cut his ass, he's crap

if we only had Matt Wieters

Submitted by The Real Neal
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 1:04pm

Just to put the facts into proper perspective, Vitters was hitting .291 at Daytona last year following a year in which he was named a A - star and named to the AFL All-Prospect team.

Had he stayed at Florida all year he would be in... AA Tenessee this year.

Submitted by Dusty Baylor
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 1:22pm

Well put Neal...I hope they let Vitters have a full season in AA.

Submitted by The Real Neal
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 3:38pm

I am OK with them moving him up - but not after just one or two hot weeks like the case with his previous two promotions.

If he is hitting HR's and not K'ing a lot, they can move him up, though Smith probably blocks him moreseo than anyone has previously.

Submitted by The E-Man
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 2:02pm

Yep. We could have had who you and MIKE C had been pining for, Matt Wieters.

He is below the Mendoza line so far this year after shitting his pants last year too. .192BA and OBP of .276. This from a player who one would think got the benefit from college - when Vitters did not.

I am still glad Tim Wilken is making the decisions on bringing in youngsters rather than you.

Jim Hendry, however, that's another matter...

Submitted by crunch
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 2:36pm

wieters not finding his power stroke is weirding people out. last year it became concerning and this year it seems baseball pundits have finally soured on his power actually showing up.

people expected at least 20+hr out of the guy and he's looking like a low-average 10-15HR guy.

Submitted by The Real Neal
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 3:33pm

He's still only 25, though.

I wonder if it's time for him to dump switch hitting. He really stunk as a RH hitter last year, and switch hitting and major league catching has got to be a lot on one guy's plate. Sure, if he was a natural like Koyie Hill he could do it, but he's just not that kind of ballplayer.

Submitted by crunch
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 3:49pm

the thing is he got a "pass" for getting on-top of too much stuff and pounding it into the ground for a little too long (even during his minors stint). he has a great swing, yet he's horrible at getting the fat of the bat on the ball.

his minor league power is a bit deceptive considering even there he was pounding too much stuff into the ground.

people assumed he'd hit for decent average and have some power to add to it. at this point the power is looking unlikely without his eyes/body coming around to what's pitched to him and the hitting-for-average thing was/is less of a slam dunk than anticipated by many.

Submitted by Rob G.
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 3:23pm

Trevor Cahill and C. Bucholz sign deals.

Lineup:
Castro SS, Barney 2B, Byrd CF, Ramirez 3B, Peña 1B, Soriano LF, Colvin RF, Soto C, Dempster P

I've reread it like 8 times and it keeps showing Soto batting 8th.

-edit-
Astros:
Bourn CF, Sanchez SS, Pence RF, Lee LF, Wallace 1B, Johnson 3B, Inglett 2B, Quintero C, Figueroa P

Submitted by Rob G.
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 3:25pm

Barney sporting the rare lower OBP then BA at this point.

Byrd had a helluva weekend, up to 342/375/474

Submitted by The Real Neal
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 3:36pm

Yes, he managed to get walks and XBH's in the same series - he's moving up. Maybe he'll get hit by 20 pitches again this year.

Submitted by Rob G.
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 4:23pm

speaking of failed prospects

Brandon Wood everybody

http://mlb.sbnation.com/2011/4/8/2097934/maki...

Submitted by Paul Noce
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 4:35pm

Interesting.

Submitted by Ryno
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 4:46pm

Indeed it is. It seems the player's approach at the plate, mental preparation, and swing mechanics might have more to do with translating minor league success to major league success than statistics alone.

Submitted by The Real Neal
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 9:43pm

Yes, and Rick Ankiel is going to win several Cy Youngs before his career is done. The guy is a head case, end of story.

Submitted by Rob G.
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 5:30pm

http://withleather.uproxx.com/2011/04/wally-b...

NSFW language

Submitted by sbwilliams
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 5:56pm

That was hilarious.

Submitted by Paul Noce
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 6:29pm

Maybe that anger problem is one of the reasons he's never actually managed in the majors.

Submitted by crunch
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 6:09pm

typical cubs fan...

http://boston.barstoolsports.com/random-thoug...

Submitted by Rob G.
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 6:23pm

believe it's a joke of some kind, fwiw.

Submitted by JoePepitone
on Tue, 04/12/2011 - 1:12am

Yeah, it is a joke. Justin Kaufmann is the interviewer -- he does segments for a program on WBEZ (Chicago NPR station) that includes spoof interviews.

Submitted by crunch
on Tue, 04/12/2011 - 11:39am

speaking of Bez and jokes...don't do drugs, guys. NSFW, language.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gLAKJiHQcTo

Submitted by Ryno
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 6:25pm

Hahah... what a peach.

Submitted by Rob G.
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 6:28pm

Smokies go up 2-0 early after a Brett Jackson double and Flaherty HR.

Vitters grounds out though in first AB.

Submitted by Rob G.
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 6:53pm

3rd HR for Michael Burgess

Submitted by Eric S
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 8:52pm

4th HR for Burgess in the 7th - Earl Weaver style. Daytona cubbies retake lead 6-4 going into the 8th inning.

Submitted by Rob G.
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 7:22pm

and Vitters homers in his 2nd AB

Submitted by big_lowitzki
on Tue, 04/12/2011 - 12:35am

Vitters for the HOF!

Submitted by big_lowitzki
on Tue, 04/12/2011 - 12:34am

Vitters grounds out though in first AB.

What a bust!

Submitted by Rob G.
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 6:40pm

Sam Fuld HR alert

Submitted by crunch
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 6:44pm

dice-K out alert. that only took 6 runs til the 1st out.

Submitted by Rob G.
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 6:47pm

not true, he got 3 outs the first inning :)

Submitted by crunch
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 6:48pm

sigh...hehe.

Submitted by Eagon
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 8:57pm

Sam Fuld single away from the cycle...

Submitted by Rob G.
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 6:48pm

http://smokiesonradio.com/2011/04/11/trey-mcn...

blister as mentioned, looked particularly bad at first but hopefully now expecting just to miss one start

Submitted by The E-Man
on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 7:34pm

I finally noticed that Gameday 2011 uses graphics from the home team's park.

With all of the bells and whistles for a subscriber ($25/mo., cancelible) it is pretty nice indeed if you've a speedy connection.

X
You may login with either your assigned username or your e-mail address.
The password field is case sensitive.
Loading