GAME 63 PREVIEW
FLORIDA MARLINS (32-29) at CHICAGO CUBS (33-29)
Wrigley Field, 7:05pm CT, TV: FSFL, WGN
SP Sergio Mitre |
SP Josh Beckett |
CF *Juan Pierre |
SS #Neifi Perez |
2B #Luis Castillo |
CF *Corey Patterson |
LF Miguel Cabrera |
1B Derrek Lee |
1B *Carlos Delgado |
RF *Jeromy Burnitz |
3B Damion Easley |
3B Aramis Ramirez |
C Paul Lo Duca |
2B *Todd Walker |
RF Juan Encarnacion |
LF *Todd Hollandsworth |
SS Alex Gonzalez |
C Michael Barrett |
Pitcher's spot |
Pitcher's spot |
Could Dusty perhaps do us a favour and get Corey out of the two spot? Honestly, there's just absolutely no good reason for it. Making outs, especially on the basepaths, with Derrek Lee coming up behind you really isn't the greatest way to help Lee's chances of getting enough RBI to win that triple crown. Todd Walker is the perfect two-hole hitter, and I personally couldn't care a less that Todd's in no hurry to break the 100m world record anytime soon.
What else could be done to shake things up a bit? Well, I'm past wondering whether or not Cliff Bartosh deserves a spot on the roster (the conclusion I've come to is no), but I am now starting to wonder if Joe Borowski shouldn't be joining Bartosh on his way somewhere else, preferably quite far away. Borowski's fastball, as far as I've seen, is topping out at an extremly hittable 87-89mph, and his slider is equally unimpressive. And he's duly getting smacked as if it's 2004 all over again. Borowski's given up 3 home runs in his 8.1 innings, and unless his stuff magically improves, I'm not sure his results will either.
As for Bartosh, I'm even less happy about that trade now than I was the day it when down (and I was pretty unhappy back then, let me assure you, because Bartosh was a day or two from going through waivers). Bartosh doesn't have the same problem with stuff as Borowski, but his results have been underwhelming to say the least, and I'm bitterly disappointed since I actually thought he'd be okay. Instead he's given up 5 home runs and walked 11 in 18.2 largely irrelevant innings. And largely irrelevant right now sums Bartosh up pretty nicely. Meanwhile, Bear Bay, who we squanderously gave up to acquire Bartosh, has taken promotion to High-A comfortably in his stride - on Sunday he threw seven innings of one-run ball while striking out 10, and his line on the year now is 66.2 IP, 62 H, 9 HR, 14 BB, 73 K and a 3.11 ERA.
And in Iowa meanwhile Ben Grieve, Mike Fontenot and Jerome Williams, all ready right now to improve upon what we have at the major league level, at least in my view, are being left to fester. Great, just great.
Oh. Go Cubs!
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