Does Lou start resting the regulars now?

[mdwilla]

Will Lou start resting the regulars with an 8 game lead and the Cubs so close to clinching or does he wait till we clinch? I'm worried about Geo getting some days off he's on pace to catch 150 games in his first full season . With Hill/Blanco on the roster Lou should be able to give Geo an extended break . Theriot/Derosa/Lee/Ramirez are some others they could use some extra days off before we hit the playoffs. It would also be nice to see Lou give Dempter/ Marmol a breather before we hit OCT.

[Sammy Sofa]

Everyone just got 2 days off. Clinch and then rest.

[Little Slide Rooter]

The thing is though, do you really want to rest the regs for the Mets series? Chances are, we'll be clinched by then, but theres a good chance we'll run into them in the playoffs, and it would be nice for our regualrs to get a good look at their starters, especially Johan. Its been a while since weve seen him, and I recall he dominated s last we saw him some years ago.

[UMFan83]

Yeah, Geo is the only regular I'd start resting. Have him catch every other game until we clinch and then give him 2 days off before playing him a bit before the season is over so he's not rusty.

[Soul]

The thing is though, do you really want to rest the regs for the Mets series? Chances are, we'll be clinched by then, but theres a good chance we'll run into them in the playoffs, and it would be nice for our regualrs to get a good look at their starters, especially Johan. Its been a while since weve seen him, and I recall he dominated s last we saw him some years ago.

 

I'm sure we can find a way to creatively get some exposure for our regulars to the Mets without having to overwork players that could use some rest. Provided we really have clinched by then, of course.

 

I'd put a priority on resting Z & Harden now, and then others like Soto & Lee once we clinch.

[hardcorecubfan]

Lee, with that homer and a hit may be coming out of the slump so I keep him going and throw Fuku back in to see if he can work his way out of it. work Edmonds so he can be hot for post season.

 

 

Maybe skip Dempsters next start after the MIl. series

Rest Geo

[jersey cubs fan]

Will Lou start resting the regulars with an 8 game lead and the Cubs so close to clinching or does he wait till we clinch? I'm worried about Geo getting some days off he's on pace to catch 150 games in his first full season . With Hill/Blanco on the roster Lou should be able to give Geo an extended break . Theriot/Derosa/Lee/Ramirez are some others they could use some extra days off before we hit the playoffs. It would also be nice to see Lou give Dempter/ Marmol a breather before we hit OCT.

 

I wouldn't think Theriot needs time off. He just took yesterday off, and has played once in 4 days. Hopefully that is enough to get him back on track though, because he's really struggled for the past month: .261/.330/.318 past 28 days.

 

I think Lou can rest Soto here and there starting today. But I don't think he should do anything but give an occasional day to one guy at a time until they actually clinch. The day after they clinch they will go all scrubs, then they can rotate guys back in to regain some consistency and hopefully clinch home field advantage. Harden, Dempster and Zambrano should be monitored though, and at this point, there's no reason to be throwing Wood and Marmol too much.

[Roast]

I play everyone until they clinch. At which point I begin giving guys regular rest - especially soto.

[CubinNY]

Clinch and then rest.

That's what she said.

[rynefan]

Everyone just got 2 days off. Clinch and then rest.

 

agreed

[rawaction]

I play everyone tonight and tomorrow night. Win or lose, I'd rest at least 1/2 the starters for the day game on Thursday (Soto, Ramirez, Lee, Edmonds). If haven't clinched by then, I'd probably go all out on Friday, with the possible exception of getting Derosa and/or Soriano a day off. After that, I'd play everyone until they clinch.

 

Monday vs. the Mets with Niese on the mound, and if the Cubs have clinched, I would rest everyone. Cubs won't see Niese in the playoffs, so batters don't need to face him. Marquis scheduled for the Cubs that day, and the Mets won't see him in most playoff circumstances. After that, it looks like Santana, Perez and Pedro. I'd probably get the starters 2 ABs each of those 3 games, but I don't want the Mets to see Zambrano, who they would see in Game 1 if they meet in the NLDS.

[Sammy Sofa]

Clench and then rest.

That's what she said.

 

Fixed.

[forbez18]

Will Lou start resting the regulars with an 8 game lead and the Cubs so close to clinching or does he wait till we clinch? I'm worried about Geo getting some days off he's on pace to catch 150 games in his first full season . With Hill/Blanco on the roster Lou should be able to give Geo an extended break . Theriot/Derosa/Lee/Ramirez are some others they could use some extra days off before we hit the playoffs. It would also be nice to see Lou give Dempter/ Marmol a breather before we hit OCT.

 

I wouldn't think Theriot needs time off. He just took yesterday off, and has played once in 4 days. Hopefully that is enough to get him back on track though, because he's really struggled for the past month: .261/.330/.318 past 28 days.

 

I think Lou can rest Soto here and there starting today. But I don't think he should do anything but give an occasional day to one guy at a time until they actually clinch. The day after they clinch they will go all scrubs, then they can rotate guys back in to regain some consistency and hopefully clinch home field advantage. Harden, Dempster and Zambrano should be monitored though, and at this point, there's no reason to be throwing Wood and Marmol too much.

 

Isn't that pretty much what you were expecting out of Theriot going into the season? I would not say that he has struggled all that much, and he should be the least of the Cubs concerns. Leave him in the 2 hole and let him move runners over by hitting the ball to right field.

[jersey cubs fan]

Will Lou start resting the regulars with an 8 game lead and the Cubs so close to clinching or does he wait till we clinch? I'm worried about Geo getting some days off he's on pace to catch 150 games in his first full season . With Hill/Blanco on the roster Lou should be able to give Geo an extended break . Theriot/Derosa/Lee/Ramirez are some others they could use some extra days off before we hit the playoffs. It would also be nice to see Lou give Dempter/ Marmol a breather before we hit OCT.

 

I wouldn't think Theriot needs time off. He just took yesterday off, and has played once in 4 days. Hopefully that is enough to get him back on track though, because he's really struggled for the past month: .261/.330/.318 past 28 days.

 

I think Lou can rest Soto here and there starting today. But I don't think he should do anything but give an occasional day to one guy at a time until they actually clinch. The day after they clinch they will go all scrubs, then they can rotate guys back in to regain some consistency and hopefully clinch home field advantage. Harden, Dempster and Zambrano should be monitored though, and at this point, there's no reason to be throwing Wood and Marmol too much.

 

Isn't that pretty much what you were expecting out of Theriot going into the season? I would not say that he has struggled all that much, and he should be the least of the Cubs concerns. Leave him in the 2 hole and let him move runners over by hitting the ball to right field.

 

Yes, it is about what I expected, but he outperformed that level for half the season and has struggled recent to partially drag down his numbers. If he stays at that level, I would not want to keep him in the 2 hole.

 

Moving runners over is no accomplishment.

[Choonch]

I'd really like to get Geo some rest, with Ramirez close behind. Ramirez has had very few off days this year. Quite a contrast to past years.

 

As has been mentioned, I'd also keep Harden, Z, and Dempster from throwing in the Mets series. Let any of Marquis, Marshall, Lilly, or even Guzman start those games.

[kujay]

Clinch division and HFA before taking the foot off the pedal.

[rynefan]

Clinch division and HFA before taking the foot off the pedal.

 

True dat.

[Fro]

Clinch division and HFA before taking the foot off the pedal.

 

Agreed 100%. That's a must.

 

Personally, I'd keep the foot on the pedal until next Friday, except for setting the rotation up however Lou wants it.

 

If you give the position players and relievers too many days off we'll be pretty rusty going into the playoffs.

[halplm]

The rotation is the key thing, and we have time to set it up, no doubt.

 

This team is streaky, so I'm very concerned if they all sit too much in the last couple of weeks... if they get cold, it's all over way too fast.

 

I would rather see them playing, and working on specific aspects of their hitting, without any pressure.

[twothousandfive]

Lee, with that homer and a hit may be coming out of the slump so I keep him going

 

I'm not yet ready to say Lee is coming around. As I glance at games log, and compare them to Ramirez (their career SLGs are very close) it seems what has been missing from Lee is multi-Xtra base hit games. I think that sort of jives with the idea that he's not hitting the ball in the air enough (tough to get to second on a grounder) which the GDIPs also support.

 

If two days is a trend, he's going in the right direction, but I'd like to see more success. Then, if it looks as though he is coming around, he should get a couple more days off. Maybe the hurricane break was a real help.

 

Strangely, I like the recent Ks. Maybe he's actively trying to do something different.

[jersey cubs fan]

If you give the position players and relievers too many days off we'll be pretty rusty going into the playoffs.

 

If you give guys multiple days in a row off, maybe there will be some rust. But letting Soto sit a couple times, and rotating off days for some of the others isn't going to hurt them. As for the relievers, there probably isn't any reason to pitch any of them on back to back days at this point. But I don't want to see too many of them going 5 days without work either. Edmonds has been a platoon player since arriving, he should keep getting to rest. Ramirez isn't going to turn into a pumpkin if he sits out 2-3 of the next 13-14 games.

[Cynosure]

The thing is though, do you really want to rest the regs for the Mets series? Chances are, we'll be clinched by then, but theres a good chance we'll run into them in the playoffs, and it would be nice for our regualrs to get a good look at their starters, especially Johan. Its been a while since weve seen him, and I recall he dominated s last we saw him some years ago.

 

This.

 

I completely agree... and if we haven't clinched by then, I might start to get nervous :P

[rawaction]

 

As has been mentioned, I'd also keep Harden, Z, and Dempster from throwing in the Mets series. Let any of Marquis, Marshall, Lilly, or even Guzman start those games.

 

The only one I'd worry about is Zambrano. They aren't scheduled to face Dempster. So, that's not a problem. Zambrano is on tap to pitch the last game of that series on Wednesday. Which means the Mets would see him that day and if they end up with the wildcard, again on Tues/Wed the next week in Game 1. The problem is you either throw Z against the Mets Wed or possibly not at all after this weekend. I'm not sure how the Tue/Wed thing works, but if you push Z on Friday, he can't go on Tuesday because that will be on short rest.

 

I wouldn't worry about Harden, because he most likely won't pitch til game 3 or 4, if what we read is accurate.

[jersey cubs fan]

 

As has been mentioned, I'd also keep Harden, Z, and Dempster from throwing in the Mets series. Let any of Marquis, Marshall, Lilly, or even Guzman start those games.

 

The only one I'd worry about is Zambrano. They aren't scheduled to face Dempster. So, that's not a problem. Zambrano is on tap to pitch the last game of that series on Wednesday. Which means the Mets would see him that day and if they end up with the wildcard, again on Tues/Wed the next week in Game 1. The problem is you either throw Z against the Mets Wed or possibly not at all after this weekend. I'm not sure how the Tue/Wed thing works, but if you push Z on Friday, he can't go on Tuesday because that will be on short rest.

 

I wouldn't worry about Harden, because he most likely won't pitch til game 3 or 4, if what we read is accurate.

 

I still think Harden in Game 1 is a good idea, allowing him to pitch game 5 if need be on 5 days rest, or be ready to go in Game 1 of the NLCS. I don't really understand why all the beat writers are just projecting the rotation from now until the end of the season and carrying that over to the postseason. Lou changes rotations and lineups all the time, why does everybody think he's going to keep this constant for a month?

[Little Slide Rooter]

I wonder if theyd give Shark a start if we clinch soon enough, just see see how it looks. I know you dont want to throw off his routine before the playoffs, but 1 start couldnt hurt.