Pirates (Heaney) vs Cubs (Taillon): 6/12/25, 7:05pm

[cubfansince77]

11 minutes ago, Tryptamine said:

Not sure what Pressly did to get the closer role back, but that clean appearance was only his 2nd in his last 12. 

I hear you, but Palencia did himself no favors by imploding against the Phillies the other day. I'd say they can share the role for now which is probably about what Counsell will say after the game. Anyone have an update on Hodge? He's a nice option when healthy too

[Banedon]

Turner got a little nutty with his celebration of Seiya's homer.

[Bertz]

Division lead up to a season high 5.5.  Cards now in 3rd place after getting manhandled by Jake Misiorowski in his MLB debut.

[JHBulls]

45 minutes ago, Jason Ross said:

I know he's not hit great, but this is the kind of horsefeathers Turner does behind the scenes for why he won't get DFA'd.  I'll also say this: he'll probably manage at the MLB level at some point. He seems to really get the "culture" aspect of this whole thing,

First time ever watching Cubs game on TV with my Mum (we also went to WF in 2018 for a game) and that happens. Wtf? 

I did see that footage but never noticed anything else. I would like to think to mum didn’t notice either lol. 

[Geographyhater8888]

what percentage of PCAs homers have been out of the zone this year? We want him to take more walks, how necessary is it if he’s homering off of fastballs 8 inches above the plate neck high and or golfing curves less that a foot off the ground into the outfield stands? 
his bat extension and plate coverage has defied my loft 24 home run prediction that he’s on pace to blow away.

Edited June 13, 2025 by Geographyhater8888

[CubinNY]

1 hour ago, Geographyhater8888 said:

what percentage of PCAs homers have been out of the zone this year? We want him to take more walks, how necessary is it if he’s homering off of fastballs 8 inches above the plate neck high and or golfing curves less that a foot off the ground into the outfield stands? 
 

It's necessary because those are not sustainable. He's not Vlad. 

[Rcal10]

10 hours ago, UMFan83 said:

I think Craig just wanted Palencia to face the heart of the Pirates order, though looking at their individual OPSs there doesn't seem to be a huge difference in OPS for 2-3-4 and 5-6-7

 

This was my thought as well. However, to the question of what has Pressly done to warrant the closer role again, he has done something like 13 appearances without giving up a run. His strike out rate has increased. His FB velocity has gone up over 2mph and he has pitched very well. Even innings where guys have gotten on have been mainly with ground balls that found holes. While I do not think he is now the official closer again, I think Counsel really wanted Palencia for the better part of the line up, I do think he has earned his place in the circle of trust. 

[Derwood]

49 minutes ago, CubinNY said:

It's necessary because those are not sustainable. He's not Vlad. 

I agree, the Vlad comparisons are weak. We can't anoint anyone who hits golf ball shots out of the park as the next Vlad. In Guerrero's prime, he was only striking out around 60-70 times a season

Edited June 13, 2025 by Derwood

[Bertz]

2 hours ago, Geographyhater8888 said:

what percentage of PCAs homers have been out of the zone this year? We want him to take more walks, how necessary is it if he’s homering off of fastballs 8 inches above the plate neck high and or golfing curves less that a foot off the ground into the outfield stands? 
his bat extension and plate coverage has defied my loft 24 home run prediction that he’s on pace to blow away.

It looks like 4 are out of the zone, 2 way out of the zone ("Chase" pitches as defined by Statcast).

I'm personally a pretty firm believer in lineup diversity, so I wouldn't change him at all.  You don't want a lineup with 9 guys swinging this recklessly, but I do think you want one or two.

[CubinNY]

33 minutes ago, Bertz said:

It looks like 4 are out of the zone, 2 way out of the zone ("Chase" pitches as defined by Statcast).

I'm personally a pretty firm believer in lineup diversity, so I wouldn't change him at all.  You don't want a lineup with 9 guys swinging this recklessly, but I do think you want one or two.

Mostly agree. I'd like "very aggressive" in the zone, but the best version of PCA is one who gets on base 35% of the time. 

[Brian707]

1 hour ago, Rcal10 said:

 I think Counsel really wanted Palencia for the better part of the line up, I do think he has earned his place in the circle of trust. 

Yup- And Coomer mentioned this on the Score this morning. That was a smart move

[Rcal10]

38 minutes ago, Bertz said:

It looks like 4 are out of the zone, 2 way out of the zone ("Chase" pitches as defined by Statcast).

I'm personally a pretty firm believer in lineup diversity, so I wouldn't change him at all.  You don't want a lineup with 9 guys swinging this recklessly, but I do think you want one or two.

I’m not sure “you want one or two” is totally accurate. I think it is more, it is fine if you have a few free swingers, especially if they can hit a ball out of the zone with authority. But I don’t think you actively look for a guy who swings at everything because you think your team needs one. PCA is one and he is good at it. Don’t try changing him. 

[Rcal10]

Cubs can get this one. Skenes has not been dominate against the Cubs. He has one quality start against them in 5 appearances and never worked into the 7th. They can wait him out and let him throw a lot of pitches. If they can get him out early enough they can also get to their pen. We need Cade to throw a good game and show why he was a top 50 prospect. But the Cubs can definitely win this one. 

[Transmogrified Tiger]

I do think you want to tune the dials a little bit, PCA doesn't need to have a 12% walk rate but I question how consistently good he can be if it's under 5 like it is now.  Some of that will happen as pitchers get more afraid of him, but I do want to see him develop a touch more selectivity.

[Bobson Dugnutt]

13 hours ago, Banedon said:

Turner got a little nutty with his celebration of Seiya's homer.

[Geographyhater8888]

4 hours ago, CubinNY said:

It's necessary because those are not sustainable. He's not Vlad. 

He’s not a never will be Vlad. He’s sustained this power since last August with 25 homers in his last 120 games and already on pace for over 40. My question is how much of his plate aggression is a result of his confidence in getting a hold of a bad pitch as much as it is or less so bad plate discipline where he’s capable of improving in that area.