Bruce at it again....

[ryno-mvp23]

great article

 

http://www.dailyherald.com/sports/beatwriters.asp?column=miles&id=206739

[Electron Blue]

Pretty good, except for:

 

For example, why is the Tribune Co. spending $94 million on player payroll when the Boston Red Sox are at $120 million?

 

If you're saying what I think you're saying, I disagree Bruce. Our payroll, in and of itself, is not the problem. We've given too much money to the wrong people, I know . . . but spending $26 million more isn't going to make problems go away, especially if you're just trying to catch an AL team in the Payroll Standings.

 

But, really, other than that, great article.

[Tracer Bullet]

great article

 

http://www.dailyherald.com/sports/beatwriters.asp?column=miles&id=206739

 

I agree, that is until the last few paragraphs. Michael Barrett is in no way one of the 5 biggest culprits for this season. I just can't even begin to believe that. He OPS'd .860 in April, near .800 in May, and over 1.000 in June - he's been solid all year. He didn't disappear when Lee went down.

 

Yes, he punched AJP in the face. At that point, the Cubs were already out of it. They had a 5 game losing streak when he was gone for 10 - true. But they lost 6 in a row earlier while he was playing. Not only that, but during the 13 games Barrett was out for his back & the suspension, Blanco played the best offensive baseball of his life. He OPS'd 1.055 in June (over 15 games, 13 of which were during Barrett's absence). What are the chances Barrett plays any better than that 1.055 during those 13 games? I'd say pretty frickin small. So whatever we lost by having Barrett miss 10 games for punching AJP, we gained by Blanco having a career 2 weeks.

 

Finally, I think a different team would use that punch as a rallying point. Barrett was clearly frustrated and got pissed and showed he wasn't giving up on the year. I was hoping the team would rally behind him and run off a string of Ws. Didn't happen, but I'm still ok w/ the punch. Not a great idea, but certainly not one of the reasons behind our team sucking.

[mul21]

great article

 

http://www.dailyherald.com/sports/beatwriters.asp?column=miles&id=206739

 

I agree, that is until the last few paragraphs. Michael Barrett is in no way one of the 5 biggest culprits for this season. I just can't even begin to believe that. He OPS'd .860 in April, near .800 in May, and over 1.000 in June - he's been solid all year. He didn't disappear when Lee went down.

 

Yes, he punched AJP in the face. At that point, the Cubs were already out of it. They had a 5 game losing streak when he was gone for 10 - true. But they lost 6 in a row earlier while he was playing. Not only that, but during the 13 games Barrett was out for his back & the suspension, Blanco played the best offensive baseball of his life. He OPS'd 1.055 in June (over 15 games, 13 of which were during Barrett's absence). What are the chances Barrett plays any better than that 1.055 during those 13 games? I'd say pretty frickin small. So whatever we lost by having Barrett miss 10 games for punching AJP, we gained by Blanco having a career 2 weeks.

 

Finally, I think a different team would use that punch as a rallying point. Barrett was clearly frustrated and got pissed and showed he wasn't giving up on the year. I was hoping the team would rally behind him and run off a string of Ws. Didn't happen, but I'm still ok w/ the punch. Not a great idea, but certainly not one of the reasons behind our team sucking.

 

I had the same thought while reading that. I think a better #5 culprit would be the hitting coaches and their crap approach to teaching plate discipline. Or actually their lack of ability to teach plate discipline.

[goonys evil twin]

I'd replace Barrett with MacPhail. It is MacPhail's "contend within the division" mantra that creates an environment of striving for above averageness. When above average is your goal, failure isn't too far below you. Andy is much more interested in the stability of mediocrity than the rollar coaster ride of attempting to achieve greatness. Yet they've dealt with all the lows of the coaster with none of the peaks.

 

 

I'd also like to throw the coaches in with Dusty. Rothschild keeps getting the praise of being the best, but he's yet to do anything to justify that title. Pitching has been a disaster the past two years, despite the immense talent of the players. The Cubs only have 3 guys who have pitched for them this year with an ERA below 4.00. The guys in charge of the offense are obviously not having a positive effect either.

[Bruce Miles]

Pretty good, except for:

 

For example, why is the Tribune Co. spending $94 million on player payroll when the Boston Red Sox are at $120 million?

 

If you're saying what I think you're saying, I disagree Bruce. Our payroll, in and of itself, is not the problem. We've given too much money to the wrong people, I know . . . but spending $26 million more isn't going to make problems go away, especially if you're just trying to catch an AL team in the Payroll Standings.

 

But, really, other than that, great article.

 

I've always said you have to spend wisely. But for an outfit such as the Tribune Co. to self-impose these type of limits is indeed a problem.

[thedaymen]

 

I had the same thought while reading that. I think a better #5 culprit would be the hitting coaches and their crap approach to teaching plate discipline. Or actually their lack of ability to teach plate discipline.

 

I know he mentioned him earlier in the article, but if Dempster was playing like the Dempster of last year, the Cubs would only be 10 games out....pretty much where they were last year as far as the standings go.

[Bruce Miles]

great article

 

http://www.dailyherald.com/sports/beatwriters.asp?column=miles&id=206739

 

I agree, that is until the last few paragraphs. Michael Barrett is in no way one of the 5 biggest culprits for this season. I just can't even begin to believe that. He OPS'd .860 in April, near .800 in May, and over 1.000 in June - he's been solid all year. He didn't disappear when Lee went down.

 

Yes, he punched AJP in the face. At that point, the Cubs were already out of it. They had a 5 game losing streak when he was gone for 10 - true. But they lost 6 in a row earlier while he was playing. Not only that, but during the 13 games Barrett was out for his back & the suspension, Blanco played the best offensive baseball of his life. He OPS'd 1.055 in June (over 15 games, 13 of which were during Barrett's absence). What are the chances Barrett plays any better than that 1.055 during those 13 games? I'd say pretty frickin small. So whatever we lost by having Barrett miss 10 games for punching AJP, we gained by Blanco having a career 2 weeks.

 

Finally, I think a different team would use that punch as a rallying point. Barrett was clearly frustrated and got pissed and showed he wasn't giving up on the year. I was hoping the team would rally behind him and run off a string of Ws. Didn't happen, but I'm still ok w/ the punch. Not a great idea, but certainly not one of the reasons behind our team sucking.

 

It's precisely because of Barrett's strong numbers that I cited him. It doesn't matter if the Cubs were out of the race or not. His act was ill-timed and selfish. It also cost the Cubs a roster spot, forcing them to play with 24 men.

[goonys evil twin]

Pretty good, except for:

 

For example, why is the Tribune Co. spending $94 million on player payroll when the Boston Red Sox are at $120 million?

 

If you're saying what I think you're saying, I disagree Bruce. Our payroll, in and of itself, is not the problem. We've given too much money to the wrong people, I know . . . but spending $26 million more isn't going to make problems go away, especially if you're just trying to catch an AL team in the Payroll Standings.

 

But, really, other than that, great article.

 

I've always said you have to spend wisely. But for an outfit such as the Tribune Co. to self-impose these type of limits is indeed a problem.

 

I'm a little disappointed with the payroll, but is it the Trib, or Hendry and his annual "we're saving some for the trading deadline" talk? The trib has raised the payroll substantially for several years, until this year. And now that the team is playing so poorly, there's no reason to raise it higher to get more players. Has the trib gone gun shy after seeing the results of Hendry's poor spending habits? Or have they made the funds available and the Cubs powers that be just haven't decided to spend them yet? I'm thinking it's a little bit of both.

[Bruce Miles]

I'd replace Barrett with MacPhail. It is MacPhail's "contend within the division" mantra that creates an environment of striving for above averageness. When above average is your goal, failure isn't too far below you. Andy is much more interested in the stability of mediocrity than the rollar coaster ride of attempting to achieve greatness. Yet they've dealt with all the lows of the coaster with none of the peaks.

 

 

I'd also like to throw the coaches in with Dusty. Rothschild keeps getting the praise of being the best, but he's yet to do anything to justify that title. Pitching has been a disaster the past two years, despite the immense talent of the players. The Cubs only have 3 guys who have pitched for them this year with an ERA below 4.00. The guys in charge of the offense are obviously not having a positive effect either.

 

I figured with Hendry and Dusty owning my top two spots, it was time to lay some blame on the players. Too often, we want to blame others for people's failings. Don't get me wrong, the coaches bear their share of the blame around here, but with my totally arbitrary look at five things, I thought 60 percent should go to the players, balancing that by giving Hendry and Dusty the gold and silver medals.

[Bruce Miles]

Pretty good, except for:

 

For example, why is the Tribune Co. spending $94 million on player payroll when the Boston Red Sox are at $120 million?

 

If you're saying what I think you're saying, I disagree Bruce. Our payroll, in and of itself, is not the problem. We've given too much money to the wrong people, I know . . . but spending $26 million more isn't going to make problems go away, especially if you're just trying to catch an AL team in the Payroll Standings.

 

But, really, other than that, great article.

 

I've always said you have to spend wisely. But for an outfit such as the Tribune Co. to self-impose these type of limits is indeed a problem.

 

I'm a little disappointed with the payroll, but is it the Trib, or Hendry and his annual "we're saving some for the trading deadline" talk? The trib has raised the payroll substantially for several years, until this year. And now that the team is playing so poorly, there's no reason to raise it higher to get more players. Has the trib gone gun shy after seeing the results of Hendry's poor spending habits? Or have they made the funds available and the Cubs powers that be just haven't decided to spend them yet? I'm thinking it's a little bit of both.

 

You're right. At this point, there's no sense of throwing good money after bad. Last winter, I believe substantially more money was available than what the Cubs spent. They chose not to spend it.

[Ding Dong Johnson]

You're right. At this point, there's no sense of throwing good money after bad. Last winter, I believe substantially more money was available than what the Cubs spent. They chose not to spend it.

 

And sadly, what they did spend was not spent wisely.

[goonys evil twin]

I'd replace Barrett with MacPhail. It is MacPhail's "contend within the division" mantra that creates an environment of striving for above averageness. When above average is your goal, failure isn't too far below you. Andy is much more interested in the stability of mediocrity than the rollar coaster ride of attempting to achieve greatness. Yet they've dealt with all the lows of the coaster with none of the peaks.

 

 

I'd also like to throw the coaches in with Dusty. Rothschild keeps getting the praise of being the best, but he's yet to do anything to justify that title. Pitching has been a disaster the past two years, despite the immense talent of the players. The Cubs only have 3 guys who have pitched for them this year with an ERA below 4.00. The guys in charge of the offense are obviously not having a positive effect either.

 

I figured with Hendry and Dusty owning my top two spots, it was time to lay some blame on the players. Too often, we want to blame others for people's failings. Don't get me wrong, the coaches bear their share of the blame around here, but with my totally arbitrary look at five things, I thought 60 percent should go to the players, balancing that by giving Hendry and Dusty the gold and silver medals.

 

Then should there be room for Maddux on the list? It's hard to blame an old player with declining skills for getting worse, but he's really laid an egg during the collapse. That ERA near 5 is just not acceptable. And the results by the other pitchers suggest he is not having any sort of magical effect on them (not that I ever thought he would, or that he claims he can, that's just something his biggest supporters claim he brings to the table. And the results don't support it). Some pitchers have to take blame. It's impossible to blame Wood, given his very serious injuries. A case can be made against Prior, but something has been physically wrong with him.

 

I'd say Maddux's disastrous 2 months were a bigger hit to the club than Barrett's very selfish, and very stupid move.

Edited July 11, 2006 by goony's evil twin

[Bruce Miles]

You're right. At this point, there's no sense of throwing good money after bad. Last winter, I believe substantially more money was available than what the Cubs spent. They chose not to spend it.

 

And sadly, what they did spend was not spent wisely.

 

True enough. I've got to spend some quality time with the family, so I'll let you guys have at it. Thanks for reading. I respect all the opinions here.

[Abe Frohman]

Maddux has pitched good enough to win in several of his losses. I would say he has kept the Cubs in most of the games he has started.

[MustangMike]

You're right. At this point, there's no sense of throwing good money after bad. Last winter, I believe substantially more money was available than what the Cubs spent. They chose not to spend it.

 

And sadly, what they did spend was not spent wisely.

 

 

I think a big market team like the Cubs should spend every bit as much as other big market teams such as the Redsox or Angles. Why shouldn't we spend as much or more? 98 years and counting, I'd think we'd be in desperate mode by now to win NOW.

I totally agree that spending money for the sake of spending is wortless as this team has proved, but an extra 15- 25 million a year would change the structure of this team substantially.

[Ding Dong Johnson]

Maddux has pitched good enough to win in several of his losses. I would say he has kept the Cubs in most of the games he has started.

 

He was terrific in April. He was HORRIBLE in May and June. He hasn't been so hot in July so far.

[CuseCubFan69]

What did Hendry have player wise to spend money on last season? He painted himself into a corner by not eating some cash and missing the boat of getting Vlad and Tejada when he had the chance.

[goonys evil twin]

What did Hendry have player wise to spend money on last season? He painted himself into a corner by not eating some cash and missing the boat of getting Vlad and Tejada when he had the chance.

 

He was not completely without options, both with free agents and potential trades for higher priced players.

 

But you are right. His lack of foresight in past years is what really hurt the team coming into 2006. Missed opportunities.

[vance_the_cubs_fan]

It's a good article, Bruce. I agree with most of what was written. I'd have replaced Barrett with Maddux. After his hot 5-0 start, he's stunk it up most of the time.

 

Good call on the payroll. If the Cubs had spent 11 million more than the 94, we could have had Millwood. How much better might we have looked with Millwood pitching in April and May?

 

Furthermore, had the Cubs signed Millwood, we might could have pulled the trigger on Prior for Tejada or Prior for Abreu.

[vance_the_cubs_fan]

What did Hendry have player wise to spend money on last season? He painted himself into a corner by not eating some cash and missing the boat of getting Vlad and Tejada when he had the chance.

 

Hendry could have gotten creative with his money and trades.

 

Had he signed Millwood for example, it would have freed him up to trade Prior in a deal for Tejada or Abreu. Instead he settled for Jacque Jones.

[CuseCubFan69]

What did Hendry have player wise to spend money on last season? He painted himself into a corner by not eating some cash and missing the boat of getting Vlad and Tejada when he had the chance.

 

He was not completely without options, both with free agents and potential trades for higher priced players.

 

But you are right. His lack of foresight in past years is what really hurt the team coming into 2006. Missed opportunities.

 

True. Drew was a possible I suppose and he signed Burnitz. As you said earlier Hendry's misguided passons for the prototypical leadoff hitter helped make the situation even worse.

 

That's in the past...now Hendry has to fix this mess and do it right this time.

[Mark Priors Calves]

Bruce, what are you doing this week with so much time off?

[CuseCubFan69]

What did Hendry have player wise to spend money on last season? He painted himself into a corner by not eating some cash and missing the boat of getting Vlad and Tejada when he had the chance.

 

Hendry could have gotten creative with his money and trades.

 

Had he signed Millwood for example, it would have freed him up to trade Prior in a deal for Tejada or Abreu. Instead he settled for Jacque Jones.

 

True again. He just doesn't seem to be a guy that wants to make that big leap. But, if he did trade Prior a lot of fans would of went nuts on him and that would put more pressure to win. These safe little moves got him an extension.

[YearofDaCubs]

Maddux has pitched good enough to win in several of his losses. I would say he has kept the Cubs in most of the games he has started.

No way. Half of his starts have been quality starts but the other half(9) he has given up 4 or more runs.