7/7 Gm 1 Chicago (Prior 5-2) at Atlanta (Ramirez) 12:00 CST

[johnnyba99]

That AB by Hairston was the best of the game by a cub. It perfectly illustrates why we will never be a great team under Dusty. AB's like that (even when they end in an out) are productive for SO MANY reasons, NONE of which Baker endorses.

 

Occasionally our first-pitch approach will be successful, but never consistently. Any pitcher (Davies, Colon, Eischen, Ramirez) can easily take advantage of it.

 

This is maddening.

 

Here's what I don't get about the obsession with the number of pitches a player sees per AB. Nomar has been one of the best hitters in the league over his career, and yet swings at everything, if Neifi Perez takes 2 pitches before he makes his out it's still an out. Fact is he just can't hit, so does it matter if he grounds out on pitch 1 or 8? I'm not convinced it does. I do however think that several players swing at a bunch of bad pitches and they are not good enough hitters to make up for poor pitch selection.

 

 

If a hitter sees 8 pitches in an AB, thats about 1/12 of a normal pitch count. If 12 guys see 8 pitches, even if NONE of them get on base, the starter will have 96 pitches by the end of the fourth inning. I'm also pretty sure it's easier to hit a pitcher when he is fatigued, and worried about walking guys.

 

There are other advantages in long AB's, such as seeing a pitchers entire repertoire so he can't suprise you in the fifth inning, giving your pitcher more time to rest, etc.

 

Nomar is one the modern era's best hitters, so he has gotten by prettu well with his approach. If you notice, though, he has thrived in a lineup that has always had other hitters who work the count.

 

I understand exactly what you're saying, but with the hitters on this team (excluding Lee, Aram, and Walker) it doesn't matter if you bring in a 15 year old in the 5th inning they just CAN'T hit. I'm just very frustrated with the whole team at this point. I guess my point was not about your theory in general, just applying it to this team. If the Red Sox, Cards, Angles, Rangers, etc. used your approach (and they probably do) it would be successful, the Cubs are a different story.

[JonnyRed]

Can Dick Pole possibly be a worse manager than Dusty? Hell, can anyone for that matter? He is terrible at gametime decisions and he is terrible at managing his players... what is it that he IS good at? And there are better options out there. Just a couple days ago, there was an article in a Philly newspaper quoting Jim Leyland saying that he wanted the job of Phillies manager this year... I'm sure Chicago would interest him as well.

 

Mizzou, Let's have a little perspective, can we? Dusty does have 9 winning seasons in his 12 years as a manager, so he must be doing something right. He was also managing the Cubs when they had back-to-back winning seasons for the first time in my lifetime. Now, don't get me wrong, I can't stand his decisions as times, but there are plenty worse managers in the game. In fact, many have sat in the Cubs dugout at one time or another.

 

What I would ask of our enough group is, instead of just asking for Dusty's head, make a suggestion of who should replace him.

[CaliforniaRaisin]

Heh, Dusty is going nowhere during the season. And Dusty isn't the sole problem and firing him isn't going to solve everything. Heck, it probably won't solve anything if you fire him midseason.

[Flames24Rulz]

Heh, Dusty is going nowhere during the season. And Dusty isn't the sole problem and firing him isn't going to solve everything. Heck, it probably won't solve anything if you fire him midseason.

 

it worked for the Marlins in 03 and the Astros in 04...why not us?

[AR-Baseball-Fan]

A prediction : Should the Cubs put forth another lackadaisical effort while losing Game 2, Baker gets fired tonight.

Let's hope your prediction comes true. I for one would celebrate if that happened.

 

There's the post of the year. Hoping for a Cub loss. I hate Perez, but I don't hope he goes 3 for 55 just so he might sit. Hoping for a loss is just as bad as players quitting.

Hoping for one loss which would cause Baker to be fired would be a godsend for the fans and players of this team.

 

I don't really think so - I bet if they ran a poll on "should Dusty be fired" on chicagosports.com he'd still get a majority of support. I do think his firing would make a very vocal minority happy - and I think it'd make the generally silent majority roll their eyes less at the vocal minority, who the majority would wish would stop obsessing over Dusty, at least in postal form.

 

As far as the players, they are definitely Dusty fans. They would be very upset if he was fired and no manager could come in and get them to play great this year.

 

I wonder if all of the players are still Dusty fans. As frustrated as the fans are with the varied line ups and game decisions, are the players losing confidence in Dusty's ability to put the team in a position to win day in and day out?

[XZero771679666304]

firing baker would not solve anything unless a lot of other changes took place. this team has two, count em two hitters. they lack a lead off man unless you count hariston which i'm not sure i do. the so called stength because of injuries or some other reason is preforming poorly. i would rather see hendry go, after all he put this team together. it is hendry who stated in the tribune he wanted veterans for the bench, not baker. today he played the 3 board favorites, combined 0 for ll and a misplayed fly ball.these players may not be the answer either. hendry cannot continue to sit on his hands and watch the team crumble around him. either trade one of your big three pitchers for a top hitter and bring up hill, nolasco, etc. other teams do it. what about murton, pie sing mcghee or theriot. they might perform as well as many of our other players. it is time to find out. if you get rid of baker and continue with the same players i feel their will be no improvement and maybe even worse performances since the players apparently like baker.

 

Would you have said any of same things to the Marlins in 03, or the Astros when they fired their manager and went on a tear?

 

Me thinks not. Teams have been known to turn around when managers get fired, and I'm sure the team is sick of Dusty's moronic lineups he trots out their daily. They might fight better for a manager with at least half a brain.

 

Come on. Do you really think the Astros would've won had they not gotten Beltan and if the Marlins didn't bring up Cabrera? In 2003, we won the division because Houston choked and because we got Lofton and Ramirez who were better than playing Goodwin and Harris. So, no, the manager alone won't make a difference.

 

No the manager alone won't make a difference, but the problem is that even if we get the right players, Dusty may not play them. He doesn't even play the players he should that we do have.

 

I have in the past defended Baker, but this team can't win with him. Multiple changes are in order, but Baker is the major catalyst that has exacerbated the problems this year. When you don't have a surplus of talent, you have to maximize it, and Baker minimizes it. Plus he has had a couple of players openly wondering what the hell he is thinking, and with good cause. What we have now is a total mess, and extreme measures are called for.

 

Any list of changes that have to be made must start with Baker's removal.

[mhuber92211]

so What's up with Corey's new look bat. He normally uses a dark one but now he has the all naturel one. Is it a different length and weight or wood? Or just a replacement bat?

[mhuber92211]

Also can anyone give me a game recap? I would rather not read through the Dusty posts!

[mhuber92211]

errr...i think this is the longest I have seen between posts in a game thread

[XZero771679666304]

errr...i think this is the longest I have seen between posts in a game thread

 

This game ended hours ago. Recap: Prior sucked, Ramirez shut us out.

[mhuber92211]

oops :oops: wrong game thread!