7/29-D'backs(Vasquez) at Cubs (Prior) 1:20 CT, WGN

[Marco4]

Good work by Blanco. Playing well he is.

[dalgreen]

 

You mean a better lineup how? On paper? Or by results? I don't know....we had a good lineup out there yesterday and was shutout. We had many crappy lineups last year that scored 5+ runs.

 

You can't predict results, but the responsible thing to do is to field a lineup that satistically gives you the best chance of winning. Dusty rarely does this.

 

I see no difference in fielding a D+ vs. a D lineup, which is basically what the lineups you were comparing.

[jaydee]

Baker is an expert at blowing games. Prior and Zambrano - 2 of 3 games both will not get a win and could of gotten a loss because he has absolutely no ability to manage.

[mhuber92211]

the team is playing like they are tired. As they should be. They have played 15 straight games.

 

I always wonder how tiring it is to play baseball when you are at home and the other team has been traveling. The team has no excuse for its lackluster efforts as of late.

 

Err...this 18 game stretch included a road trip to Pittsburgh & St. Louis and then they travelled home ALL without a day off. You work your job 18 straight days with 3 travel days included and see if you are tired at the end of it. Sheesh

[jdelaney5150]

OK, we've been pretty solid ourselves in the 8th inning the last week. 2-3-4 coming up; let's go get the lead back!

[dalgreen]

Baker is an expert at blowing games. Prior and Zambrano - 2 of 3 games both will not get a win and could of gotten a loss because he has absolutely no ability to manage.

 

Great call. Our bullpen is the best in the league and they have shown great ability to hold one-run leads. What team have you been watching?

[TripJ]

that's 2 times in 3 days that baker has completly F$$%ED up. Why bat than pitch prior in the 8th inning. There is no point. This is getting ridiculous. There is no defending baker .

 

And again with the second guessing. MrWood is the only one that said to pull Prior after the 7th. In this situation, Dusty's hands are tied. There is nobody trustworthy in the pen except Dempster and we need him for the 9th. Yesterday and today are both products of not having a decent arm in the pen. Also, you cannot expect to win too many games when you only score 2 runs at home.

 

You can't expect your starters to throw complete games every day.

 

No, but in a close game, a tiring Prior couldn't be much less effective than our trainwreck of a bullpen, could he? That's not Baker's fault.

 

I have no problem with Prior coming out for the 8th. I do have a problem with Dusty leaving him in there after he gave up two hits to start the inning.

 

You'll get no argument from me on that. But freaking out because Dusty sent Prior out for the 8th (not you, X, but others did) seems a little over the top. Dusty has many faults, and has made many mistakes, but given what he has to work with right now, it's perfectly acceptable to me to try to squeeze one more inning from Mark.

[BleedCubbieBlue81]

Funny how quickly the vibe shifts in the game threads after the Cubs lose the lead. There are now a lot of angry posters in here...

[IowaCubsFan]

If there's one thing this game proves, it's that the Cubs are not a playoff-caliber team. There's no point in trying to shore up the bullpen or pick up an extra bat, because it will not help as long as Dusty is still managing.

 

The fact that this team has struggled against the Memphis Redbirds, the Giants and the D-Backs is enough proof to show that Jim Hendry should either do nothing at the trade deadline or start unloading veterans. Regardless, he should make a statement by firing Baker NOW.

[XZero771679666304]

the team is playing like they are tired. As they should be. They have played 15 straight games.

 

Teams with heart don't let that affect them.

 

So please provide these amazing "heart" stats. Just silly. Being Tired effects EVERYONE no matter how big your heart is. Apparently Prior has no heart cause he threw 115 pitches and gave up the lead cause he was tired. Oh well, the "heart" beats us again :roll:

 

I am getting sick to death of people thinking that if a player or team isn't performing, it must be because they aren't playing with enough effort or intensity. It's total BS.

[bukie]

Baker is an expert at blowing games. Prior and Zambrano - 2 of 3 games both will not get a win and could of gotten a loss because he has absolutely no ability to manage.

 

Great call. Our bullpen is the best in the league and they have shown great ability to hold one-run leads. What team have you been watching?

 

7 innings from a starter is all one can feasibly expect. If the entire 6-man pen can't throw 1 inning a game and hand it over to Dempster, then find guys who can.

[Coach C]

Safe!

[mhuber92211]

So it took a full swing for Neifi to get a bunt hit :D WTG

[jaydee]

the team is playing like they are tired. As they should be. They have played 15 straight games.

 

I always wonder how tiring it is to play baseball when you are at home and the other team has been traveling. The team has no excuse for its lackluster efforts as of late.

 

Err...this 18 game stretch included a road trip to Pittsburgh & St. Louis and then they travelled home ALL without a day off. You work your job 18 straight days with 3 travel days included and see if you are tired at the end of it. Sheesh

 

I wish my job was to take BP a few hours before gametime, stand motionless in a field for half of 3 hours, sit on a bench for most of the other half, and once in a while swing a bat at a moving ball. That is sooo tough.....

[LoneStarCubFan]

the team is playing like they are tired. As they should be. They have played 15 straight games.

 

Teams with heart don't let that affect them.

 

So when the Marlins collapsed last year in September like the Cubs that means they have no heart? I love when a team's shortcomings get blamed on a completely abstract concept. Objectively, their offense is tired and their bullpen is bad.

 

Ok, championship teams don't let that affect them.

[UMFan83]

cubs have a 2 run lead going into the 8th. Starter comes out to pitch after throwing over 100 pitches. Starter gives up 2 runs and blows the lead. Dusty comes out afterwards cluelessly to finally pull the start.

 

Sound familiar? It should because we've seen it 2 times in the past 3 days

[Coach C]

Lee having trouble trying to keep up with a 95mph fastball.

 

*sigh*

[mhuber92211]

UGH :(

[woodprior04]

well, game over.

[mhuber92211]

cubs have a 2 run lead going into the 8th. Starter comes out to pitch after throwing over 100 pitches. Starter gives up 2 runs and blows the lead. Dusty comes out afterwards cluelessly to finally pull the start.

 

Sound familiar? It should because we've seen it 2 times in the past 3 days

 

FYI it was a 1 run lead.

[YearofDaCubs]

Good job Lee!! Do that DP for the classless fans!!

[Flames24Rulz]

Arizona's pen may suck, but they'll find someway to close the door against our pathetic offense.

[dalgreen]

the team is playing like they are tired. As they should be. They have played 15 straight games.

 

I always wonder how tiring it is to play baseball when you are at home and the other team has been traveling. The team has no excuse for its lackluster efforts as of late.

 

Err...this 18 game stretch included a road trip to Pittsburgh & St. Louis and then they travelled home ALL without a day off. You work your job 18 straight days with 3 travel days included and see if you are tired at the end of it. Sheesh

 

I wish my job was to take BP a few hours before gametime, stand motionless in a field for half of 3 hours, sit on a bench for most of the other half, and once in a while swing a bat at a moving ball. That is sooo tough.....

 

You really can separate the athletes from the non-athletes. I'm guessing you never played competitive sports at a high level. I also bet you were inside air-conditioning last week in the 100+ degree temps last week instead of losing 5-10 pounds playing baseball.

[jaydee]

Baker is an expert at blowing games. Prior and Zambrano - 2 of 3 games both will not get a win and could of gotten a loss because he has absolutely no ability to manage.

 

Great call. Our bullpen is the best in the league and they have shown great ability to hold one-run leads. What team have you been watching?

 

 

Even if a guy has a 4.5 ERA that means there is a good chance he won't give up a run. How many times do you have to see Wood/Prior/Zambrano give up leads in the 8th or 9th to figure out that a tiring starter is not as good as a mediocre reliever. Or how many times do you have to see them go to the DL to figure out they are being overworked

[mhuber92211]

the team is playing like they are tired. As they should be. They have played 15 straight games.

 

I always wonder how tiring it is to play baseball when you are at home and the other team has been traveling. The team has no excuse for its lackluster efforts as of late.

 

Err...this 18 game stretch included a road trip to Pittsburgh & St. Louis and then they travelled home ALL without a day off. You work your job 18 straight days with 3 travel days included and see if you are tired at the end of it. Sheesh

 

I wish my job was to take BP a few hours before gametime, stand motionless in a field for half of 3 hours, sit on a bench for most of the other half, and once in a while swing a bat at a moving ball. That is sooo tough.....

 

So if it so easy then why aren't YOU doing it with much sucess? AGAIN :roll: