Cubs Will Win Tonight

I have been very very quiet lately, but I am going to come out and yap during the playoffs. I missed writing yesterday, but I won't miss any more days before games during the Cubs playoff run.

Last night the Cubs looked overwhelmed out there. It was almost as if they were camera-shocked. I think Big Z will shine tonight, though in his last 8 starts besides the no-no, hasn't been that good. I also think Mr. Soriano will have a much better night at the plate. Hopefully Big LOU put Fukodome lower in the order, but I do like him out in RF as he plays decent fundamental defense in right field.

The key for the Cubs, is Zambrano throwing strikes. Dempster last night couldn't get out of the fifth due to the lack of control he had out on the mound and while I know it is easy to second guess, maybe Lou should have taken him out 2 batters earlier and put in either Marshall or Marquis at that time. There is no reason to carry them if you aren't going to use them in situations that your starter is struggling.

My prediction Cubs 5 LA 3.

Time to Re-Group

Well I was being quiet because they Cubs were on a streak and I didn't want to do anything that would change their luck, but that seems to have happened without me writing.

What has gone wrong? Well with Zambrano and Harden both out with injuries and hopefully with Harden they were just being on the safe side or if they weren', if the Cubs make the postseason it will be a short run. Also Fukudome has lost all confidence in his swing and looks like a Single A player at the plate. Hopefully the Cubs are letting him regroup and working with him, he needs to stop trying to pull the ball and lay off the curve ball (easier said then done).

I am hoping Carlos Zambrano injury is not serious, but I have a feeling the truth isn't all coming out. Why would he miss his MRI? What makes me more worried is that he hasn't looked good since July and already had his start delayed due to a "dead arm" and we all know the Cubs honesty with pitchers and their injuries.

Tonight the lost to the Cardinals in the bottom of the 9th on a close play at the plate. I was sitting on the couch and told my wife when Mr. Pujols was coming up with men on, why not walk him, he is only batting .360 and always kills the Cubs. Well we all know what happened next. I am not saying walking him, would have let to the Cubs winning, but it seems that when you are struggling you don't let the best hitter in league beat you.

The only good thing is that the Brewers keep sucking and losing to teams that they probably should be beating. As they lost tonight 5-4.

Cubs acquire Harden

Cubs today acquired 2 pitchers that will help solidify their playoff quest. Today they acquired Chad Gaudin and Rich Harden for only Matt Murton, Sean Gallagher, Eric Patterson and Josh Donaldson. I can't begin to start to say how happy I am. I know Harden has a history of being as brittle as a 95 year old's bones, but hey when he is healthy (and he is currently) he is a top of the line pitcher. With Chad Gaudin the Cubs get a good swing man who will be more dependable than Jon Lieber is.
I have no idea why the A's would do this deal, except that Mr. Hendry must have some good pictures of Billy Beane doing things he isn't suppose to. While I was worried the Cubs would not be able to hold off CC and Ben Sheets, with this acquisition I think the Cubs might be able to. They still could use a dependable lefty in the pen (though Neal Cotts has improved lately) and one more bench player.

GO CUBS!!!

Cubs keep on trucking

When the Cubs lost Soriano earlier this month once again due to a pitch that hit him in his hand and then lost their Ace Carlos Zambrano due to a sore shoulder, one would think that things would start falling apart, but no. Minus the awful series the Cubs played in Tampa Bay, they have been winning and looking like a contending team. Dempster has been unbeatable at home, Edmonds this month has been a God-send (Stop hating on him Rob George) and while not spectacular Eric Patterson has done well since his last call-up.

So what does this mean for the Cubs? It should bring them the extra confidence they need that they can overcome the bumps in the road and still succeed. The players know that Soriano will be back after the All-Star break and hopefully Carlos will be back soon too. If they continue to play well with the addition of both of them, the Cubs hopefully can start to pull away from the Cardinals and the Brewers.

I expect the Cubs to look for another experienced bat off the bench, a lefty and maybe another SP before the trade deadline. Doesn't that look familiar? I seem to say that every year, but every year that is what they are looking for. Scott Eyre and Neal Cotts both have been disappointments since joining the organization and I doubt either will be back in 09.

Cubs still winning

Well since my last post when I called Edmonds washed up and the Cubs mediocre, they have played pretty decent ball and Edmonds has refound his hitting stroke somewhat. Also Jason Marquis pitched a beautiful game last night (but I will wait and see if he can repeat before giving him accolades). Another good thing is that Lou has seemed to learned from his mistake earlier this year leaving Soriano out in the 9th inning on defense and has been replacing him with Reed Johnson late in games.
The Cubs still need to find another starting pitcher and another reliable reliever wouldn't hurt either. Off the top of my head I have no idea who they should acquire or who is available, but the sooner they address the problems the better off the team will be.
Note to Ronny Cedeno: Learn to slide into 2nd base and not overslide it..

The best trade not made this year: At the moment the Cub's not acquiring Brian Roberts from the Orioles.

Congratulations Dr. Abcarian

My sister Ariane just graduated from EVMS. Congratulations Dr. Ariane Abcarian.

Ramblings

Sorry it has been so long since I have written. I have been trying to watch the Cubs and decide what I think of this team. At times I think that they look like contenders and could be a real threat, then they go and lose easy fly balls that cost games verses teams like the Pirates. So what I have decided is that they are just mediocre. Unless they make some changes they won't really improve much either. One of those is improving the CF position. I think that without a major trade, the Cubs should put Fukudome in CF and bring Matt Murton up to play RF. Heck Murton is only batting around .350 in the minors and Fukudome has shown that he is fundamentally sound and has the range and smarts to play CF. This then would let Cub fans be out of the misery that is Jim Edmonds in CF. I wouldn't mind him on the team if he was good, but since he sucks now, isn't going to get much better and is a hated Cardinal player, it is just time to release him.
Also the Cub's need to acquire another starter that is consistently good. Ryan Dempster has exceeded all my expectations this season and until he reverts back to old form over and extended period of time, I am not going to use the nickname I have been using for him. Along with Ryan the Cubs have Carlos Zambrano (who is looking better this year) and Ted Lilly (been very below par this year) as their top 3 (in no order). Sean Gallagher has shown ability and if he puts in a few more performances half as good as today's, he will have a believer in me as at least a 5th starter, but what about the 4th? Jon Lieber has sucked when he started and Jason Marquis is too inconsistent and been too awful in the second half of the season throughout his career to depend on him. Who should they get? I am not sure, maybe Greg Maddux back as my dad suggested, but I do know they need someone.
I promise to write more soon.

Cubs' Update

The Cubs are off to a decent start this year compared to last season, but they still have a long way to go. There are a bunch of fundamental mistakes being committed by the team and a bunch of people's heads not being in the games at the right times early. I am hoping that this will pass soon, but these are major league players and it feels like I am saying this about the Cubs every year.

Last night Alfonzo Soriano hurt himself doing his stupid hop, which in the past I have questioned. The Cub's have no one to blame but themselves for this injury as there is no reason for them to continously let him hope without them correcting it. In the past Soriano has said it helped him concentrate on the ball to the glove better, but if a 130 million dollar man has to do that to keep concentration on the ball, well he probably isn't worth 13 million let alone 130 million. This would be a great time to call up Matt Murton, but for some reason I hear the Cubs are going with Eric Patterson. This is stupid and hurts the Cub's. Murton's numbers as a MLB are about the same as Alfonzo's since he joined the Cubs. I don't know why the team doesn't like him, but if they aren't going to bring him up they might as well trade him soon so he doesn't just rot in minors. He has talent and is a good hitter who minus a one month stretch for Dusty has been pretty reliable.

In other news Rich Hill will get another chance to prove he is worthy of being a starter, but I have a feeling if he doesn't perform well, it will be a long time before we see him starting for the Cubs. Though the Cubs should be more worried about Ted Lilly because not only is he getting hit, but his velocity is down and he hasn't been able to get through five innings.