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40 players are on the MLB RESERVE LIST (roster is full) 

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11 players are MLB Spring Training NON-ROSTER INVITEES (NRI) 

Last updated 3-17-2024
 
* bats or throws left
# bats both

PITCHERS: 17
Yency Almonte
Adbert Alzolay 
Javier Assad
Jose Cuas
Kyle Hendricks
* Shota Imanaga
Caleb Kilian
Mark Leiter Jr
* Luke Little
Julian Merryweather
Hector Neris 
Daniel Palencia
* Drew Smyly
* Justin Steele
Jameson Taillon
Hayden Wesneski 
* Jordan Wicks

NRI PITCHERS: 5 
Colten Brewer 
Carl Edwards Jr 
* Edwin Escobar 
* Richard Lovelady 
* Thomas Pannone 

CATCHERS: 2
Miguel Amaya
Yan Gomes

NRI CATCHERS: 2  
Jorge Alfaro 
Joe Hudson 

INFIELDERS: 7
* Michael Busch 
Nico Hoerner
Nick Madrigal
* Miles Mastrobuoni
Christopher Morel
Dansby Swanson
Patrick Wisdom

NRI INFIELDERS: 3 
David Bote 
Garrett Cooper
* Dominic Smith

OUTFIELDERS: 5
* Cody Bellinger 
Alexander Canario
# Ian Happ
Seiya Suzuki
* Mike Tauchman 

NRI OUTFIELDERS: 1 
* David Peralta

OPTIONED:
Kevin Alcantara, OF 
Michael Arias, P 
Ben Brown, RHP 
Pete Crow-Armstrong, OF 
Brennen Davis, OF 
Porter Hodge, RHP 
* Matt Mervis, 1B 
Keegan Thompson, P 
Luis Vazquez, INF 

 



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Rusch vs. Arroyo: This Time It’s Personal

GAME SIX IN-GAME DISCUSSION THREAD [PARACHAT] CINCINNATI REDS (4-2) AT CHICAGO CUBS (4-1) WRIGLEY FIELD, 1:20 CDT, TV, RADIO: CSN, XM 186
Glendon Rusch, LHP 0-1, 9.00 ERA, 2 BB, 2 K, 2 HR, 4.0 IP 2B Ryan Freel SS #Felipe Lopez CF *Ken Griffey Jr. 1B Rich Aurilia LF *Adam Dunn 3B Edwin Encarnacion RF Austin Kearns C Dave Ross P Bronson Arroyo Bronson Arroyo, RHP 1-0, 4.05 ERA, 0 BB, 7 K 2 HR, 6.2 IP CF *Juan Pierre 2B *Todd Walker 1B Derrek Lee 3B Aramis Ramirez C Michael Barrett RF *Jacque Jones LF Matt Murton SS Ronny Cedeno P *Glendon Rusch
Griffey: 5/23, 217/296/652, 3 HR, 3 BB, 7 K vs. Rusch Dunn: 8/23, 348/348/913, 4 HR, 7 K vs. Rusch The rematch we've all been waiting for, the chance to avenge our sole loss of the season. Glendon Rusch tries to bounce back from his disappointing opening outing while trying to keep the torrid bat of Bronson Arroyo in check. The Cubs will try to keep the ball rolling and look to extend their winning streak to 4 games today. The weather is a bit nicer than over the weekend, temperatures in the high 60's, hopefully it'll warm up Aramis' bat. And of course Derrek Lee can start earning his contract today with a nice 3 HR performance. As they say, GO CUBS!!!

Comments

Here's to Rusch keeping Arroyo in the park.... Seriously, Rusch had better show us something special. There are a lot of kids on the farm who seem able to easily put up similar, if not better, numbers to Rusch.

Nice to see reasonably consistent line-ups so far.

Nice to see our entire lineup hit in the first week of the season, except Jones....maybe he'll awaken today.

Two hits I was very excited about, even though one was hardly well-hit. Before his Sunday performance, he looked horrible. He needs to demonstrate some grasp of the art of hitting for me to believe he has turned any sort of corner. Sunday does not make up for the four other games in which he looked absolutely lost.

I am truly on neither side of the Dusty fence, neither overly critical or a part of his "Dusty Drives Chevy" fan club. If I had to say I leaned one way, I'd side with the folks that say he is overly loyal to aging position players, and generally lets his young arms face one batter too many. That said, I have supported every last move Dusty has made in this young season aside from Neifi's lone appearance in the two hole. While I think starting the exclamation point 1-2 times a week certainly is defensible, batting him directly in front of the $65 million dollar man certainly is not. I look forward to a pleasurable season if my only questioning of the man making the lineup cards is the once-a-week starting of a gold-glove quality infielder. Rob G. said it well in the last thread that there is essentially no advantage to locking up Dusty for the time being -- there is not going to be a bidding war over a 4 million dollar manager with a couple questionable notches under his recent belt. Is this possibly a double-standard with the recent Hendry signing? Probably, but it's one I'm okay with.

Actually, for me anyway, Jones' performance on Sunday completely made up for the problems he had in the other four games last week. He hit an important home run on Sunday. I take that as a sign that he is coming out of what was a very mini-slump. And he has played solid defense for the most part. I don't think Jones has anything to prove. He just needs to go out and relax and have fun and he will be fine.

well, according to gameday, the wind is blowing 17mph out to left. Expect homeruns. Our offense better show up because odds are Rusch is gonna give up at least 2. Prove me wrong Rusch

Cincy has a solid offense as well, could be a long day for Cubs' pitching...

also, it is way to early to crucify jones. Murton and Ramirez aren't exactly tearing the cover off the ball either. Slumps happen and they all hit them first few games. Remember they had good springs. (don't remember jones spring, but the other 2 did well)

Anyone notice they no longer play "Jump" to start the home games? About frickin' time they got rid of that!

1st 2 plays on Yahoo's gamechannel: Freel flied out to DEEP center Lopez flied out to DEEP right Oh boy....

Ya, someone watching the game live, how "deep" are thse fly ball outs?

Aurilia flied out to DEEP Right Butterball is about to sign his ticket to the bullpen

3 balls to the warning track and a Long HR? This is un-good.

Jones saves a triple Rusch is a disgrace. A fat slob who showed for spring training pregnant.

That last out looked pretty deep too, according to Gameday...

While we're going to pick on people for having slow starts, juan pierre only has .304 OBP to start the season, and that's before he grounded out to start the cubs 1st.

Oh man...Cubs are all grounding out, and the Reds are flying out to the deep warning track...

Jordan -- that's because arroyo knows to keep the damn ball down. rusch isn't going to make it three innings unless he starts doing the same.

Sup dudes. how was the first run scored. Just got back from the vet

This is going to be a long game. Can we get a starting pitcher to go longer than 4 2/3 innings, please?

Rusch is a disgrace. A fat slob who showed for spring training pregnant. -- It's not like he gained that weight in the offseason. He packed on the pounds as last season was wrapping up. He actually looks a little lighter than at the end of last season. But he's still out of shape, and the Reds are a horrible match up for him. He almost gave up 4 hr's last inning. Jerome Williams and Mike Wuertz will get a lot of work today... and now Dunn hr's, so Rusch could have easily allowed 5hrs so far.

dbt, that's why I commented on it. The fact that Rusch is going to have a hard time keeping the ball in the park...and the fact that Arroyo isn't, means we're not in for an arms race with the wind blowing out today.

I don't think I've ever seen 6 hitters to start a game hit warning track flies or hr's.

Umm... maybe hendry should be calling the Marlins GM

Jesus, how deep was that Dunn HR? Gameday made it look like it hit the scoreboard.

Encarnacion flied out to deep left this is going to be ugly, Can Jerome pitch today? At least he generally keeps the ball down...

The problem is when the winds blowing out, the Cubs hitters get swing happy

Jesus, how deep was that Dunn HR? Gameday made it look like it hit the scoreboard. It hit just above the new restaurant/skybox in CF, just below the handicapped seating area. It would have hit near to top of the bushes last year.

I just paid the 14.95 for MLBTV, umm.. its worse than last year... how is that not interferance on orroyo

if you're watching, do us the privilege of describing what you're talking about...THANKS!!!

Pop fly towards the reds on deck circle. Orroyo got right in the middle of Lee and Barret. Should/would have been caught

f***ing A, my MLBTV has rebuffered 5 times in the last minute

sounds like mlb is skimping on the bandwidth to their server.

Arroyo actually ran from the on-deck circle to right in front of the Reds dugout entrance, directly where the ball landed. Barrett and Lee gave chase and had to give up at the last second because Arroyo was standing there. Barrett complained to the ump but the ump walked back to home plate and threw a new ball to Rusch.

thanks for the info, that does sound like interference, ah well. No harm done....

Well, I saw Rusch from five feet away in spring training Fred, and it was gross. He was the oddball in camp. Everyone else showed up in fantastic condition.

Is it me, or have the Reds given us fits for the last two years, continuing into this year?

Jones connects well on fastball. first solid contact all day, right to kearns.

Isn't Kearns the one Hendry has been drooling over for the past year and a half.

Well, I saw Rusch from five feet away in spring training Fred, and it was gross. He was the oddball in camp. Everyone else showed up in fantastic condition. ---- I agree he's fat, and was fat in spring training, but I thought he actually lost a little weight from the end of last season. He really blimped out last year, I was surprised at the time nobody was talking about it.

Rusch sucks.

Arroyo just homered onto the street on an 0-2 pitch down the middle. WTF? Throw the next pitch into the Reds dugout and drill Arroyo in the head.

Arroyo with his second career homer...

Void his contract.

Thigh high fastball down the middle of the plate on an 0-2 count to Arroyo. Rusch sucks. I'd still bean Arroyo.

Arroyo is 2-2 on the season, two homers, both off Rusch, two different games. His OPS is like 4.750

leadoff hitter extraordinaire Freel gets on base once again... Is anyone warming up? Or does dusty think this is going to be one of those 10-8 affairs and is going to ride Rusch a few more innings?

Call up Guzman, before the 3rd inning if possible

Nobody is warming, although they woke up Rothschild a minute ago and he came out and told Rusch he could have a donut if he doesn't allow another run this inning. Jacque with a nice catch against the rf side wall in foul territory, just past the bullpen.

i mean seriously...is there any defense of his getting another start over a young guy?

Glendon Rusch: 2 year contract Hands down the worst signing of the Hendry era. And if Jerome Williams isn't warming up by now, why is he even on the team?

Arroyo hit it onto Waveland Avenue? Did they throw it back into the park? (that's gotta be harder now with the bleacher's higher)

I think I'd rather see Jerome in there today and call up Guzman or Hill for Saturday (probably Hill as his next start would be on Sat and PNC is pretty friendly to lefties)

One of my criticisms of Barrett, despite his improving at catcher, is he doesn't seem to have a feel for when to go talk to a pitcher. He hadn't been out there at all yet until Rothschild came out. I think Blanco or another vet catcher would have gone out after the second or even third hr, but Barrett sometimes seems like a fan watching the game.

Williams is tentatively scheduled to start on Saturday I believe, I'm not sure if he's available Did Freel get picked off?

Arroyo hit it onto Waveland Avenue? Did they throw it back into the park? (that's gotta be harder now with the bleacher's higher) They may have thrown it back, but I didn't see it, and I think Len and Bob were both amazed and maybe pissed off over the pitch by Rusch.

Amazing, Rusch came into the game with an ERA of 9.00 and he's given up a run in each inning so far to keep pace.

Rusch breaks up the no-hitter, come on 2 out hit Pierre

rusch broke up the nono with a double. I guess we can call this a "pitcher's duel"

This is hilarious. Someone be sure to do a GO/FO ratio of Rusch after the game alright?

Has anyone noticed how tiny Pierre's head is? His helmet barely fits. I'm jealous, I would really like a little head.

Can we bring the Cardinals back into town? We seem to play much better against them....

and end of 3 - Ground outs-fly outs: Arroyo 5-2, Rusch 0-6.

I'd be fine with Rusch giving up 3 more homers if he gets sent down. R.A. Dickey, anyone?

me too, all my fitted hats kinda make my head hurt. Especially my old school cubbie bear one

OMG -- Rusch just stashed a ham sandwich and a Snickers bar behind the mound where the rosin bag should be

All the Dunn lovers can come out today, another hr, just made the left center basket.

For the love of all things holy.....get the hook...

That's four... Come on Glendon, two more, big guy.

Good news, bob brenley sucks bad news, he's still the cubs announcer

Wow, Larry is finally on the phone to get Jerome up. Meanwhile, Encarnacion singled to left, someone in the Reds dugout will get on him for that.

Guess they ran out of food in the clubhouse, Jerome is warming up

How would raining be worse? An random 8 hour thunderstorm would be perfect right about now...

Thank god J-will is warming up! Though if had had to give 4 Homers nice to see 2 of them were to Dunn as he is on my fantasy team.

Good news -- it's starting to pour down rain here! Bad news -- I'm in Texas

Yes, I think we've established that this is the "pray for rain" portion of our rotation.

I sit corrected.

screw your fantasy team. You should be ashamed for gloating.

on pace to lose 9-0 on 9 solo homeruns....GO CUBS!!!

Hey, what are you guys complaining about? I'll take a strikeout for every home run!

"I'd be fine with Rusch giving up 3 more homers if he gets sent down. R.A. Dickey, anyone?" Andrew, At least with Dickey he had the excuse that the wind was making his knuckler into a BP change-up.

We finally get Matt Morris' snide grin out of the division and we get Arroyo, who looks like a stoned surfer, actually he looks a little like Brad Pitt in True Romance.

Don't you all follow the fantasy rule that you don't start anyone playing against the cubs?? I can't stand the mixed emotions. I also avoid having any cardinals on my team if I can help it. (and cubs for that matter)

what do you all think of the current lineup. (batting ORDER) to be more specific

Don't you all follow the fantasy rule that you don't start anyone playing against the cubs?? Umm..no. I stand by the fantasty rule of winning at all costs. It's not like having a player in my lineup will change anything. It's not like I root for the guy to get a hit, but if he does, so be it....

I'd like to see Murton batting 2nd, and if walker is claiming to be more patient, let him prove it in the bottom of the lineup to help turn it over

At least with Dickey he had the excuse that the wind was making his knuckler into a BP change-up. Yes, ChiFan, I know. Even more reason to send Rusch packing. And, as CWTP, f*** your fantasy team.

yeah, got arroyo out, freel works another 3-2 count but mercifully grounds out.

I'm not saying the "no cub opponent rule" works for my fantasy team, it just works better for my psyche/heart

And, as CWTP, f*** your fantasy team. Should be "as CWTP said"

I agree with Andrew whole-heartedly. I'm willing to sacrifice this game for the good of the team and have Rusch banished from the rotation. Nice play by CedeÒo, by the way.

1-2-3 inning by Rusch... on 3 GBs! Why did it take him 4 innings to figure out how to keep the ball down?

sacrifice, shmacrifice. gotta beat teams like the reds at home if you're going to make the playoffs...esp since the reds haven't beat st louis in about 5 years.

Cublogger, Dunn V. Rusch with the wind blowing out was to tempting to pass up. Plus I am in a 10 team NL-only league so if I sat Dunn(I also have Kearns) I would have to go with Augilla (FLA) and Hairston instead. Cedeno is my team hopefully he can get a 2-run HR if Murton can get on.

Who's on-deck? tell me rusch is not going out to face griffey and dunn again...

Mabry is on deck.

ChiFan, No one gives a damn about your fantasy team. I hope John Mabry hits here.

Dusty told Mabry he'll pinch hit later, and Mabry said he was spent, he already did his "secret warm up method" in the clubhouse.

Why? We can use Bynum later for speed. We need power here.

I agree, Andrew, I would have hit Mabry there. Bynum struck out. We needed to roll the dice on getting back in the game.

we have got to find out what that super secret warm up routine is... maybe like the dude from major league, he needs to sacrifice a chicken

Junior hits a routine pop up to Aram, who camps under it, and then out of nowhere Cedeno runs in as the ball starts to carry a few feet towards the outfield and Aram seems to have been called off and they let the ball drop for a hit. The replay didn't pick it up early enough to see if Cedeno did call him off, but it should have been caught. Now Barrett misses a pitch right to him for a passed ball and the runners advance.

Now the D is going to hell! Hopefully Z and Maddux can pitch good the next 2 days.

no sense using mabry now when you're down 4 in the 5th inning. if it's close later, you'd rather have mabry available than bynum.

Hopefully Z and Maddux can pitch good the next 2 days. I don't know, man, we don't want to hurt your fantasy team.

no sense using mabry now when you're down 4 in the 5th inning. if it's close later, you'd rather have mabry available than bynum. normally I'd agree but it felt like the game was getting away from them and they needed a spark. Encarnacion just hit a grand slam, 8-0

I'm done

Kearns hr's on the first pitch, Ohman had a horrible day and is getting yanked, along with booed.

Okay, that's six homers. Technically, Glendon only gave up four but can we just blame the other two on him anyway?

"I don't know, man, we don't want to hurt your fantasy team." Andrew, Funny, But is not like I am rooting for them to hit HR's. Anyways why was Ohman in there to face two righties.

Why in the f*** are people booing?!? Yes, he had a bad outing, but let it go! We don't need to start getting in the heads of our own players! This is what Yankee and Philly fans do and it's sickening. I'm really starting to loathe the Cubs fan base.

Jacque just walked to the infield, talked to the trainer and Dusty and then left the game for Pagan. It didn't appear to be a double switch.

What a blowout today...The Cubs had BIG problems with Rusch last year and I don't know why they renewed / extended his contract...They should have gone shopping for some new talent...Arroyo is pretty amazing and he's showing the Cubs what he can do today...The Cubs had a great start to the season going considering that Prior and Woods are not healthy. We'll see if they can do better with Maddux and Zambrano as this series progresses.

If Jones goes on the DL do you think we will see Pie called up the way he has been tearing AAA?

Dusty said before the game that they would not disappoint today. He was talking about breaking a 9 game win streak... *sigh*

That first place thing was pretty tits while it lasted...

Andrew, I totally agree with what you said about loathing the Cubs fan base. I find this sort of booing to be despicable. And we wonder why the Cubs sucked at home last year?

The Cubs starting pitching is pretty bad. I know if I were there I would give a boo or two. As for Pie, I don't see him coming up unless the Cubs completely fall apart. Jones signed a 3 year deal, and should be getting the benefit of the doubt.

If Jones goes on the DL do you think we will see Pie called up the way he has been tearing AAA? I would hope so, but they might feel he could use more time in AAA since he didn't play there last year. If so you could see someone like Restovich get called up, or Theriot. But judging by how he was walking he looked ok. Maybe his right shoulder is sore from when he jumped into the wall for the final out in the first inning.

The fantasy talk reminds me of a blurb that was buried in at the end of an earlier post. Did anyone read "Fantasyland" and the mention of "The Transaction Guy"?

I think the people who don't boo, should jump in a time machine, go back to the early 80's, and grab a sit in the bleachers. That way the Cubs can be terrible all day, and you guys can cheer them on with a big smile. I think that people who don't show there discontent with the Cubs are the fans that make me sick. They are fans that have enbolden the Cubs management to put trash on the field, and know that the fans will flock like lemmings.

Phil -- What was the mention of T Guy in Fantasyland? I haven't gotten a copy of the book yet...

Too bad there's not a button you can push to just Boo hendry and his lack of Starting Pitcher Signage over the winter

I know if I were there I would give a boo or two. Why? Because you feel this great need to let the pitchers know they did a bad job? They might know that already. Booing is reserved for continuously horribly bad players, like Korey. Or for bad calls by the umps. Or for jerks, like Bonds. But not because your upset that your afternoon at the park isn't what your yuppie heart wanted it to be.

Hey Christian, he doesn't specifically credit you (sorry), but he says in describing all the things he's amazed to see on the net, that there's a blog where each transaction is analyzed - has to be you!

You know, that new handicapped section in CF just above the skybox makes me wonder if the greedy Tribsters got rid of the regular handicapped section behind home plate. It was small, but I can see them thinking about how those seats would bring $60 per game. If they did that it's sad because I've sat near there many times and most of the handicapped patrons are older people or severely disabled persons who probably wouldn't be able to see the game very well from CF.

That way the Cubs can be terrible all day, and you guys can cheer them on with a big smile. I think that people who don't show there discontent with the Cubs are the fans that make me sick. They are fans that have enbolden the Cubs management to put trash on the field, and know that the fans will flock like lemmings. I couldn't disagree more. Being a fan is about supporting the team that's out there, whether you favored its construction or not. If you want to truly show your discontent, don't go to the game. The Trib and the Cubs don't give a damn about your boos as long as you fork over the dough. Or where you referring to yourself as a lemming also?

frankly, I've always thought that booing is for men who lack genitalia. they get to express their impotent rage in a socially acceptable way.

Len just said Jacque strained his right hammy. At least he wont be in the line-up vs. two LHP the next couple of days. Pagan and Bynum will probably play RF wed and thursday.

This is a good day -- look at it this way. In 2006 the Cubs will have several games where they score very few runs (0 or 1). And they will have several games where they give up a ton of runs (9 or more). And the Cubs should lose all those games. Today both things happened, but we'll only lose once! It's like two losses' worth of bad performances, but only one tally in the Loss column! Fantastic!

This is a good day -- look at it this way. In 2006 the Cubs will have several games where they score very few runs (0 or 1). And they will have several games where they give up a ton of runs (9 or more). And the Cubs should lose all those games. Today both things happened, but we'll only lose once! It's like two losses' worth of bad performances, but only one tally in the Loss column! Fantastic! - 433, I like the way you talk.

I referred to the lemmings at Wrigely Field, not that all people who go to Wrigely Field are lemmings. So, by your logic, if the Cubs have one or two bad plays, I should stay away from all games to show that I'm upset? No, that doesn't really make sense. If a player makes a bad play, it is the fan bases progotive to show there un-happiness. Just as much when a team does well, we should show our appreciation. These players are highly paid, professional athletes who should be able to handle critism when they do a terrible job. Saying that being a good fan can only be accomplished by sitting on one's hands during awful play is just plain silly.

Haha, need a magnifying glass for that silver lining, 433? Seriously though, I actually agree. As long as no one's competitive spirit and confidence is crushed after this game, it's fine. This kind of game can 1) demoralize a team or 2) embarass them and make them work harder. Like the Reds after they lost to the Cubs 16-7. They won 4 straight. Plus, it's much easier psychologically to get crushed than to come up just short.

Booing is also for people who never played sports before. Do you honestly think it helps a player come out and play better the next day when he's worried that if he messes up he's going to hear it from the fans? For the most part, these guys are trying their best out there, and sometimes it doesn't work out. Don't be an asshole and make him feel worse about not doing his job. I do feel booing is ok for guys who don't try their hardest. I'd have no problem booing ARam when he jogs to first base on every groundout, or when a guy decides to airmail the cutoff man.

BackinTime, I understand what you are saying but we have been through the old "to boo or not to boo" argument many times. It's too tiring to rehash here, but here's a quick summary: your opinion is wrong.

Boy, when these guys are bad, they are BAD. Its painful enough to watch on gamecast, I can't even imagine being at Wrigley.

If a player makes a bad play, it is the fan bases progotive to show there un-happiness. "fan base's prerogative to show their unhappiness." Don't you think a player knows when he's made a bad play? Of course, he does. What's the use in pointing it out? To make him feel more terrible? If he begins to make the same play over and over and over again, then some kind of expression of displeasure might be warranted. But not just because you were a little tiffed that the player didn't do what you wanted. "Just as much when a team does well, we should show our appreciation." This is indicative of exactly the kind of fickle fan response that I hate. You cheer a guy if he homers, but you boo him the next AB when he strikes out. That isn't the behavior of a true fan, and speaks more of a fairweather fan to me.

Booing is also for people who never played sports before. -- There's a genius statement. By you playing tee-ball when you were 5 years old, you obviously qualify as an expert in everything sports. Thanks for the clarification, sporty. As for helping the athletes, I never said booing was meant to accomplish more than showing the displeasure of the fans. When a game is badly played it is the fan's right to show it. 433, I too believe the subject has been talked to death. I also believe that you have the right to your opinion, no matter how completely wrong it is. I'm done.

Really tiny silver linings: Murton seems to have broken out of his slump, and Wuertz hasn't carried his terrible spring into the regular season.

These players are highly paid, professional athletes who should be able to handle critism when they do a terrible job. That is the most over-used, tired-out argument. They're ballplayers who generally give 100% but don't always perform as they'd like. Their measure of success is winning ballgames and staying in the big leagues, not in how much fan appreciation they get.

I didn't say I would cheer one play, and boo the next. I should showing displeasure for a poor performance, such as Rusch giving up 6 home runs. That is a truly bad game, thus the boo. If a guy strikes out once, I'm not booing. If he strikes out three times in one game, then I might boo.

If a guy strikes out once, I'm not booing. If he strikes out three times in one game, then I might boo. Fine, you be judicious with how you hand out those boos, and I'll hope they don't affect our pitcher's mental states come August and September. By all means, you've earned that right as a "fan".

I'd enjoy sports a lot more if there weren't any fans...

It's the fan's right to do whatever they want as long as they're not profane or violent. On the other hand, several cubs are on record as saying that when players were heckled last year, especially Hawkins, who was a popular clubhouse guy and put in a position to fail last year by Baker, it put everybody off. If you like the idea of pissing off the entire team because one guy is having a bad day, by all means, go ahead and be a prick. but move to new york, will ya?

When the top four candidates to replace him are Jerry Hairston, Angel Pagan, John Mabry and Felix Pie, I almost want to see Jacque get some DL time. Find the best replacement, then trade Jones after May 15 to a team looking for an overpriced rightfielder. Can we please have 2003 Pt. 2 where Hendry injuried propel the Cubs to the postseason again?

Sorry, that last sentence was a train wreck. Let's try again. Can we please have 2003 Pt. 2 where injuries propel the Cubs to the postseason again? Gameplan for the Cubs for the rest of 2006: Avoid people named after Charles Bronson.

"Why in the f*** are people booing?!? Yes, he had a bad outing, but let it go! We don't need to start getting in the heads of our own players! This is what Yankee and Philly fans do and it's sickening. I'm really starting to loathe the Cubs fan base." ...because passion draws a fine line between love and hate. Go to Atlanta for the sterile ballgame experience. That's a safe place for you and your 10 kids. No hardship there. Can't take the heat? ...stop sucking.

Ouch, not gonna catch the Crew playing like that...I hear Tomo Ohka swings a mean bat these days, might wanna give him a free pass. For the record, Arroyo 2 - ARam 1. Good stuff, makes me forget all about the sweet swingning Mark Mulder!

#167 Doug D.: What's the difference between booing a player for not doing his job and booing a player for not running out a grounder or missing the cutoff man?

Hey man, give Rusch a break. He ate a late lunch. They found out later that he ahd a 12 oz. steak caught in his teeth. Must've killed his concentration.

...because passion draws a fine line between love and hate. Go to Atlanta for the sterile ballgame experience. That's a safe place for you and your 10 kids. No hardship there. Can't take the heat? ...stop sucking. My call for the boos to stop has nothing whatsoever to do with fellow fans and their sentimentalities. It has to do with the effect it may have (and has had, if reports are to be believed) on the psyches of individual players and the team morale as a whole. The Cubs just won a huge series by sweeping the Cards in dramatic fashion for the first time in 5 years. Next day, they get booed. This happens, folks, it's a season of 162 games. Yes, every game counts. Yes, the team should play hard every one of those games. But it's baseball, and that isn't going to happen. I don't see the point in becoming jackasses just because the team had an off day.

Cubs are leading 1-0 the last 3 innings. I'll take it as a sign.

Psst, it's Rick White. Let's pound him for a few more runs. Atta boy, Michael!

Of all the pro-booing arguments, "it's the fan's right" bothers me most. Yes, it's a fan's right to boo. But grown-ups draw a distinction between things you CAN do and things you SHOULD do. There are lots of things that you have the "right" to do in this country. You have the right to cheat on your wife. You have the right to start or join a club that discriminates against people based on their race, or their gender, or their age. You have the right to teach your kid that Carl Everett parted the Red Sea. The list goes on and on. None of these things are illegal, but they do have consequences. So to justify doing something because it's your "right" only begins to answer the question. The more important part of this kind of analysis is, SHOULD you do it? I have heard lots of good reasons why you shouldn't boo someone who is trying his best yet not succeeding (e.g. striking out three times in a game). I haven't heard many (any?) good arguments about why one should boo that guy.

Andrew: Can I be friends with you? We can go to Wrigley and snicker to each other when the fans boo. We will feel so good because everyone that boos is a jackass. Is the air up where you living too thin to breathe?

(I should have said, you have the right to start or join a SMALL club that discriminates....)

Can I be friends with you? I'm friendly with one and all. We can go to Wrigley and snicker to each other when the fans boo. I go to Wrigley to cheer and drink beer, but you can do what you want. Is the air up where you living too thin to breathe? No, just too thin to abide poor attempts at sarcasm.

I just don't get booing at Ohman today. It's not like he's had a bad start - this is his first poor outing. Last year he als pitched pretty well. As far as I can tell, he's not a jerk (Sosa), cheater (Bonds), nor a slacker. Does he deserve to be booed for one bad performance, in which it appears he tried to do his best? As 433 said, there is a difference between CAN and SHOULD. I shouldn't have been surprised, as this society's sense of honor/shame was lost some time ago...

When people use their money to purchase a product they expect a certain level of quality. The Cubs management have said they are supplying a high quality product to the fans and the product doesn't meet that expectation. If it was any other product that you purchased and it didn't meet standards you would complain. Booing is an easy way to do that. It seems quicker than writing a letter to Cubs management.

what is the chance Rusch is in this rotation by the beginning of June?

Can you imagine how the Cub fans felt who had pricey dugout box seats today, maybe for the first and last time, and were looking forward to the experience of being up close and personal? That is like adding insult to injury. Ouch!

what is the chance Rusch is in this rotation by the beginning of June? answer- better than the chances of him being in it by the end of april.

Not that I want to get sucked into the booing debate, but I tend to side with the "boo if you wanna" crowd. I don't boo, generally, except for when guys aren't putting out. I agree with Eric W. This isn't a 2nd-rate baseball town, and it doesn't have 2nd-rate baseball fans. We're passionate and vocal, both when things are good, and when things are bad. This isn't an Atlanta or LA or Toronto or whatever. We care here on the Northside, and when you care you let your team know it. And the fact that some players have mentioned that booing LaTroy got to them a bit just leads me to believe even more that that particular team (esp. 2004) was a bunch of whiney sallies. Professional baseball is a sport, not a pre-school: If you're asked to finger-paint a picture of a smiley-face and the best you can do is a flesh-colored blob, you're not getting any pats on the back or words of encouragement, period. That's just the way it is, and I don't think anyone should apologize for that. Nor should you criticize those that do boo. This is a zero-sum game, after all, and you can't honestly expect those who truly care about the outcome to sit idly by and watch as their team fails to meet their expectations. If the way you handle it is to remain quiet, rock on. But you can't expect everyone to react to things the same way you do. That's arrogant as all get-out. That being said, certainly some fans have taken it a bit too far (booing Jones for having a lousy week? Come on). Booing is exactly like cheering: You do it when it's warranted, and only when it's warranted, or it loses all its meaning. When you boo because an otherwise solid hitter gets into a slump, you come off looking like a douchebag. When you boo because a gold-glove quality defender boots a routine grounder, you look like a jerk-off. But if you boo a guy who's consistently mailing it in, you're showing you care. Tough love, baby. My point is: The Cubs are your team. If your way of showing your feelings for them is to boo, good for you. If you choose to stay quiet in the face of their failings, in the hopes that your silence will help the booed party, more power to ya. But once you start trying to say you're a better fan than me or the booing guy next to me, that makes you one thing and one thing only: A superior son of a bitch. And I won't apologize for calling you on it. Boo to you.

I am kind of glad I missed this game after going through the comments.

Rusch can't seem to locate his fast ball down and away...he's had 2 bad starts now...Maybe Dusty should try Rich Hill for a game...IMO, Rusch should be pulled out of the starting rotation for a while -- he needs to work on the mechanics of his pitching. Oh well, lets hope the Cubs can perform much better with Maddux and Zambrano starting.

When people use their money to purchase a product they expect a certain level of quality. The Cubs management have said they are supplying a high quality product to the fans and the product doesn't meet that expectation. Yes, but a certain level of quality doesn't mean they will win each and every home game. Its baseball, its a long season, and every team has a few games like this where they just get shelled. Certainly fans hope to see a winner everytime they go to the ballpark, but if the outcome of each and every game is the sole basis for determining quality, then go to a college football game, or some other activity where the better team almost always wins. Yes, fans have the right to boo, and I don't have mind when fans boo players who don't give their all or keep making the same mistakes over and over, but booing because of one bad outing just seems to be tacky and classless.

I missed the game today for the most part... what happened to Jaque Jones??

Perhaps its tacky and classless, but some people enjoy it. It's not hurting anyone.

felix is just getting warmed with a new team and new teammates...sure it isnt like taking your SS/2nd/C away from your young crew, but unless jones goes to the DL pagan/mabry should be able to handle RF for a few days...if jones even needs that long. he wasnt exactly limping off the field.

Wrigley Field is no longer the Friendly Confines, not when a bleacher seat costs $40, three beers erases a $20 bill, and expectations are so unreasonably high. That friendly confines stuff goes back to when we used to cheer to cheer them up from our $1 bleacher seats. Wrigley was a place where baseball careers went to die and prospects came to lose all hope. It was usually half empty in the stands and totally empty on the field so the Cubs gave away a lot of tickets to the k-8 grammar schools who bussed kids to the game and sat them in the Bartman seats. The kids didn't know any better so they cheered the Cubs relentlessly. Booed the ump but never the Cubbies. It truly was a great place to be a bad ball player. Long live the friendly confines of Wrigley Field.

Add me to the folks who think it's ridiculous to boo anyone today... Booing Korey or Sammy for bad attitudes or stubborness or a prolonged poor play and effort is one thing, a guy has one or tow bad outings and you're booing. Shame on them....

its just the yuppie seats that are that expensive in the bleachers...and if you think beer is high in chicago, stay away from other large cities. the world of the mega-cheap wrigley bleacher seat went with the 20-30m "high end" payroll era. gate attendance isnt a huge deal in most team's bottom line (seriously)...but with payrolls 5x what they were not even 2 decades ago (a generation in baseball years), costs of seats are gonna go up. the powers that be added yuppie bleacher seat sections, but they also expanded the rest of the bleacher section. the only people that were robbed were the people holding the "tradition" of drinking too many old styles and screaming at a RF insted of watching the game. no offense, but even amongst the most praise-worthy bleacher creatures, the scorecard is a lost art on more than a few of them. wrigley bleachers for many years are the only bleachers in baseball where ushers were there to make sure people dont sneak INTO the bleachers from more expensive seats...

what is the chance Rusch is in this rotation by the beginning of June? I think Rusch is not in shape. He's carrying around an extra 30 pounds. When he does get in shape he should be okay. The only question is, will that be anytime soon? Or anytime this year for that matter. At the moment we're seeing the guy who went 1-12 for the Brewers in '03 and 6-15 for KC in '98 .

rusch is throwing well...its just that rusch throwing well isnt all that. he's not hanging much or missing his location or lost a pitch...he's just getting hit...for power. that's the part that scares me...its not like he's got something to work on unless he has a tip/tell in his motion.

Anyone know how much Rusch is being paid...? IMO, Hendry did NOT use good judgement when he re-signed Glendon Rusch -- there are much better pitching prospects out there.

obviously rusch has been pretty bad the last 2 starts, but the reds have the best offense in the NL and the conditions were less than ideal (Great American, 17 mph wind blowing out). Give him at least one more chance versus a much friendler team (Pitt) and place (PNC) before we write him off....

rusch pretty much has to have another chance or more. he's on the club, he's got 2 years of contract...you cant just toss him after 2 starts. besides that, with wood/prior/miller knocking on the door of May and j.williams about to move to the #5 slot...to add a.guzman or ryu to the mix (for what could be only 1-2 starts) more moves would have to be made to the already young roster...and none could send rusch to AAA for all practical purposes. anything could happen, but reguardless the cubs are kinda stuck with rusch no matter what...unless hendry gets over-the-top reactionary, early.

I would say no on that RobG. I kind of wanted Guzman and Marshall break with the team and start. Rusch has showed nothing since he came to camp and Guzman has been pitching pretty well. The only difference is Rusch is on a MLB contract and the Cubs will trot him out much like Shawn Estes just so they get their money's worth.

gate attendance isnt a huge deal in most team's bottom line (seriously)...but with payrolls 5x what they were not even 2 decades ago (a generation in baseball years), costs of seats are gonna go up. - Huh? $40/seat X 3 million seats is a lot of coin. $30/seat X 2 million seats is a lot less coin. I'm not sure how your ability to generate gate revenue isn't a big part of your ability to have a good bottom line. And for the record, the only person I ever booed was Hundley. Flipping off the fans opens you up to that, I think.

well, honestly, the consessions/merch they sell at the game outweighs any average ticket price, but you could argue without those people those consessions would never get sold. its just that when you factor in your tv rights, merch, licensing, etc. etc...the actual gate isnt a groundbreakign number whether you bring in an extra couple hundred thousand or not compared to other revenue streams. oakland has a fun experiment going on this year. they're cutting thier capacity in 1/2 on purpose. they're artificially creating a market of rarity. no longer will there be walk-ups for yanks/a's games...much less other series like sf/a's... this will benefit the A's in a couple years when they get more season ticket sales injecting more money earlier into the club. they dont sell many there...people are just too used to the walk-up. they have the ability to open it up for possible playoffs, but oakland now literally has one of the smallest capacity ballparks in mlb...maybe the smallest.

that is very interesting, especially since they claimed to have the highest Opening Day attendance in club history... There website still claims over 50,000 capacity. Are they doing this for select games?

And when the A's hit the World Series and they open up the nosebleeds, they still won't sell out! LOL

the good: -walker, jerry, mabry and derek got hits today. -barrett is staying productive. -murton got out of his slump (2 hits!). the bad: -jones hammy. -ohmans confidence. -our "#2" starter is a laughingstock silver lining: -some time off for jones can perhaps help him snap out of his hitting funk. -the shellacking given to rusch hopefully getting him out of the lineup (hill has been keeping his walks down lately...hmmm...) also, i strongly agree that barrett should have talked to fatty at some point (preferably after that 6th straight ball hit deep). something to the effect of "theres nobody on base, so just bounce them off the plate for gods sake". oh well, like 433 said, better now the way it happened today then later. call it a mulligan.

It's a full-time change for the 81 games, and yes it does make it the smallest park in MLB.

I wonder if anyone reading Cub Reporter is going to buy "2005 Houston Astros: The Championship Season." I think I'd rather spend a day with Darren Daulton.

I watched most of the game on Gameday... What happened to Jacque's leg and does it look like he'll miss some time?

But that's not a couple hundred thousand dollars, that's $60 Million difference the way I put it up there. In 2005, the Cubs drew 3.1M at an average of $32/ticket, or $99 million. The Royals drew 1.4M at an average of $13.71/ticket, or about $19 million. That's an enormous gap. For reference (2005 #'s): Oakland: 17.66 X 2.1M= $37 million Yankees: 27.34 X 4.1M=$111 million Red Sox: 44.56 X 2.8M=$124 million sources: http://www.stevetheump.com/fan_cost_index.htm and espn.com.

must have misheard the thing about the largest Opening Day attendance, I know the proposed new park is quite small as well. Yeah, whoever is in charge of the advertising on the sidebar is not very in tune with our audience, are they?

im not calling it a couple hundred thousand dollars...im talking fans. some people complain a lot of injuries being hidden and other conspiracies for the sake of selling a few more tickets. and once you pay for parking, food, beverages, merch, etc etc...a lotta fans will outspend their ticket price and then some..especially if you bring kids to the game. a lotta smaller market teams market direct to the family just to get that safe/high-end revenue stream. it drives some of the older fans a bit nuts...our local hockey team has that mentality (carolina hurricanes).

The Bad: Glendon Rusch and the idiot that re-signed him to this team The Good: This game is over

MORE BAD NEWS: it said in "from the cubicle" at chicagosports.com that aramis grimaced while leaving the batters box and then got lifted for neifi in the 9th. sure enough when i went back to the yahoo game recap it had been updated to read: "Aramis Ramirez hurt a muscle in his bottocks on a swing late in the game." FUCK!!! jacque pulls a hammy and aram pulls his ass. this game was a disaster.

i for one hate these j-v warmup games. anyone know who is pitching for the cubs varsity club tonight?

mark o'neal is reporting the jones hammy isnt expected to be serious.

SF game tonite cancelled...for those of us pissed EI isnt showing the cleveland game scheduled and were waiting on a nightcap.

Recent comments

  • crunch (view)

    SF snags b.snell...2/62m

  • Cubster (view)

    AZ Phil: THAT is an awesome report worth multiple thanks. I’m sure it will be worth reposting in an “I told you so” in about 2-3 years.

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    The actual deadline to select a post-2023 Article XX-B MLB free agent signed to 2024 minor league contract (Cooper, Edwards, and Peralta) to the MLB 40-man roster is not MLB Opening Day, it is 12 PM (Eastern) this coming Sunday (3/24). 

    However, the Cubs could notify the player prior to the deadline that the player is not going to get added to the 40 on Sunday, which would allow the player to opt out early. Otherwise the player can opt out anytime after the Sunday deadline (if he was not added to the 40 by that time). 

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    Today is an off day for both the Cubs MLB players and the Cubs minor league players.  

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    For those of you keeping track, so far nine players have been called up to Mesa from the Cubs Dominican Academy for Minor League Camp and they will be playing in the ACL in 2024: 

    * bats or throws left 

    Angel Cepeda, INF 
    * Miguel Cruz, P
    Yidel Diaz, C 
    * Albert Gutierrez, 1B
    Fraiman Marte, P  
    Francis Reynoso, P (ex-1B) 
    Derniche Valdez, INF 
    Edward Vargas, OF 
    Jeral Vizcaino, P 

    And once again, despite what you might read at Baseball Reference and at milb.com, Albert Gutierrez is absolutely positively a left-handed hitter (only), NOT a right-handed hitter.

    Probably not too surprisingly, D. Valdez was the Cubs #1 prospect in the DSL last season, Cepeda was the DSL Cubs best all-around SS prospect not named Derniche Valdez, Gutierrez was the DSL Cubs top power hitting prospect not named Derniche Valdez, E. Vargas was the DSL Cubs top outfield prospect (and Cepeda and E. Vargas were also the DSL Cubs top two hitting prospects), Y. Diaz was the DSL Cubs top catching prospect, and M. Cruz was the DSL Cubs top pitching prospect. 

    F. Marte (ex-STL) and J. Vizcaino (ex-MIL) are older pitchers (both are 22) who were signed by the Cubs after being released by other organizations and then had really good years working out of the bullpen for the Cubs in the DSL last season. 

    The elephant in the room is 21-year old Francis Reynoso, a big dude (6'5) who was a position player (1B) at the Cardinals Dominican Academy for a couple of years, then was released by STL in 2022, and then signed by the Cubs and converted to a RHP at the Cubs Dominican Academy (and he projects as a high-velo "high-leverage" RP in the states). He had a monster year for the DSL Cubs last season (his first year as a pitcher). 

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    DJL: The only players who definitely have opt outs are Cooper, Edwards, and Peralta (Opening Day, 5/1, and 6/1), and that's because they are post-2023 Article XX-B MLB free agents who signed 2024 minor league contracts and (by rule) they get those opt outs automatically. 

    Otherwise, any player signed to a 2024 minor league contract - MIGHT or - MIGHT NOT - have an opt out in their contract, but it is an individual thing, and if there are contractual opt outs the opt out(s) might not necessarily be Opening Day. It could be 5/1, or 6/1, or 7/1 (TBD).

    Because of their extensive pro experience, the players who most-likely have contractual opt outs are Alfaro, Escobar, and D. Smith, but (again), not necessarily Opening Day. 

    Also, just because a player has the right to opt out doesn't mean he will. 

  • Dolorous Jon Lester (view)

    I love the idea that Madrigal heads to Iowa in case Morel can’t handle third.

    The one point that intrigues me here is Cooper over Smith. I feel like the Cubs really like Smith and don’t want to lose him. Could be wrong. He def seems like an opt out if he misses the opening day roster

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    Childersb3: Both Madrigal and Wisdom can be optioned without any restriction. Their consent is not required. 

    They both can be outrighted without restriction, too (presuming the player is not claimed off waivers), but if outrighted they can choose to elect free agency (immediately, or deferred until after the end of the MLB season).

    If the player is outrighted and elects free-agency immediately he forfeits what remains of his salary.

    If he accepts the assignment and defers free agency until after the conclusion of the season, he continues to get his salary, and he could be added back to the 40 anytime prior to becoming a free-agent (club option). 

  • Childersb3 (view)

    Phil, 
    Madrigal and Wisdom can or cannot refuse being optioned to the Minors?
    If they can refuse it, wouldn't they elect to leave the Cubs org?

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    In my opinion, the biggest "affirmative" mistake the Cubs made in the off-season (that is, doing something they should not have done), was blowing $9M in 2024 AAV on Hector Neris. What the Cubs actually need is an alternate closer to be in the pen and available to close if Alzolay pitched the day before (David Robertson would have been perfect), because with his forearm issue last September, I would be VERY wary of over-using Alzolay. I'm not even sure I would pitch him two days in a row!  

    And of course what the Cubs REALLY need is a second TOR SP to pair with Justin Steele. That's where the Cubs are going to need to be willing to package prospects (like the Padres did to acquire Dylan Cease, the Orioles did to acquire Corbin Burnes, and the Dodgers did to acquire Tyler Glasnow). Obviously those ships have sailed, but I would say right now the Cubs need to look very hard at trying to acquire LHSP Jesus Luzardo from the Marlins (and maybe LHP A. J. Puk as well).