Cubs (Imanaga) v s Yankees (Warren): 7/13/25, 12:35pm

[gflore34]

I watched the game yesterday, didn't realize the big bad Yankees had just two hits and only, I believe, three base runners the entire game.  That was 2024 Shota, don't know what turned on but, if the Cubs get that version for the remainder of the 2025 regular season.  I wouldn't feel uneasy about Shota starting a playoff game. 

[CubUgly]

2 hours ago, gflore34 said:

I watched the game yesterday, didn't realize the big bad Yankees had just two hits and only, I believe, three base runners the entire game.  That was 2024 Shota, don't know what turned on but, if the Cubs get that version for the remainder of the 2025 regular season.  I wouldn't feel uneasy about Shota starting a playoff game. 

I was honestly underwhelmed with their lineup.  Judge is a generational freak, but Stanton and Goldie are absolutely both past their primes and Chisolm looked lost at the plate most of the time, Volpe is hitting worse than Shaw and they keep throwing him out there.  Belli is a good fit for that park and has hit well lately after a very rough start but, I ain't gonna lie, even after the 3 HR game he really does not strike fear in me when he comes to the plate, really liked the guy here but we know what he is.   The other guys not even sure who they are. 

[BKHoo]

The tigers have a true ace, the Cubs don’t.  That is so so huge when it comes to the playoffs. 
 

[gflore34]

1 hour ago, CubUgly said:

I was honestly underwhelmed with their lineup.  Judge is a generational freak, but Stanton and Goldie are absolutely both past their primes and Chisolm looked lost at the plate most of the time, Volpe is hitting worse than Shaw and they keep throwing him out there.  Belli is a good fit for that park and has hit well lately after a very rough start but, I ain't gonna lie, even after the 3 HR game he really does not strike fear in me when he comes to the plate, really liked the guy here but we know what he is.   The other guys not even sure who they are. 

I feel the same way, when facing the Yankees it's don't let Judge beat you.  When necessary, pitch around him, the other guys aren't going to consistently beat you.

Edited July 14, 2025 by gflore34

[Derwood]

1 hour ago, BKHoo said:

The tigers have a true ace, the Cubs don’t.  That is so so huge when it comes to the playoffs. 
 

21-6, 2.83 ERA

That's Shota's career with the Cubs. Is that not "ace" material?

[Brian707]

I think the Tigers record is over inflated due to the crap division they play in. They won't make the WS

[BKHoo]

2 hours ago, Derwood said:

21-6, 2.83 ERA

That's Shota's career with the Cubs. Is that not "ace" material?

I love the guy but we would be a decent underdog in a playoff game 1 matchup to all the big teams - Philly, LA, Detroit, Houston, etc and our guy has zero playoff experience. 
 

I just don’t consider him a playoff game 1 ace. 

[Rcal10]

16 minutes ago, BKHoo said:

I love the guy but we would be a decent underdog in a playoff game 1 matchup to all the big teams - Philly, LA, Detroit, Houston, etc and our guy has zero playoff experience. 
 

I just don’t consider him a playoff game 1 ace. 

Who do they have to get RJ fit your criteria? Or are they just going to be underdogs when an opposing team pitches an ace? 

[Derwood]

[Stratos]

6 hours ago, BKHoo said:

I love the guy but we would be a decent underdog in a playoff game 1 matchup to all the big teams - Philly, LA, Detroit, Houston, etc and our guy has zero playoff experience. 
 

I just don’t consider him a playoff game 1 ace. 

Imanaga and Boyd can go toe- to-toe with any pitcher in baseball IMO.   With our offense and pen i like our chances in those games.

With Steele out we do need at least 1 more above-average SP.  

In Oct if our hitters are swinging well it's big trouble for the league.

[CubUgly]

8 hours ago, Stratos said:

Imanaga and Boyd can go toe- to-toe with any pitcher in baseball IMO.   With our offense and pen i like our chances in those games.

With Steele out we do need at least 1 more above-average SP.  

In Oct if our hitters are swinging well it's big trouble for the league.

My concern is if Boyd can make it to October, not having pitched over 100 innings since 2019?  I mean, I know they measure things differently these days in monitoring how many pitches and innings a pitcher can go, but I can't help but be concerned that when you have already exceeded a number you have not hit in 6 years, how much will you have left in September?  

[Rcal10]

8 minutes ago, CubUgly said:

My concern is if Boyd can make it to October, not having pitched over 100 innings since 2019?  I mean, I know they measure things differently these days in monitoring how many pitches and innings a pitcher can go, but I can't help but be concerned that when you have already exceeded a number you have not hit in 6 years, how much will you have left in September?  

That is a valid concern. That is why they need 1 for sure playoff starting pitcher with a good chance to add a second who can be a 3rd starter. Also, I realize Boyd is 34, but being out as long as he was, is it possible he still has a lot of innings left for his career? Is he a guy that can pitch to 38? Again, his inning have been limited throughout his career, until now. 

[gflore34]

Was anyone else shocked when Dansby hit that HR?  Honestly, I sat there stunned, no reaction, just a few moments of stunned silence.  Given Dansby recent struggles with RISP, I expected the worst.

[Bertz]

9 hours ago, Derwood said:

This bears out if you look series by series too.  We have the rest of the AL East left, both series against the Braves (far enough out that they might be healthy by then), @ San Fran, and the Mets at Wrigley.  That's the scariest stuff left.

Everything else is either bad teams or the NL Central.

[Stratos]

9 hours ago, CubUgly said:

My concern is if Boyd can make it to October, not having pitched over 100 innings since 2019?  I mean, I know they measure things differently these days in monitoring how many pitches and innings a pitcher can go, but I can't help but be concerned that when you have already exceeded a number you have not hit in 6 years, how much will you have left in September?  

This is true.  He and Horton have little mileage built up on their arms.  If they're still pitching in Sept/Oct their risk of injury increases significantly.

Arm injuries in the MLB spiked dramatically in 2021 due to COVID shortened 2020.  They've been decreasing every year since, but are still high historically obviously.

At the MLB level i wouldn't call the Cubs conservative on pitcher usage.  I hope they're mindful with these 2.