Why bother with call-ups?

[louisvillecub]

Dusty again rationalizing why he won't play any young'uns....because he "owes it to baseball" to play the regulars...

 

Give us a break..... :roll:

 

http://chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/cs-050920cubsbits,1,4871807.story?coll=cs-cubs-headlines

[CUBZ99]

Dusty again rationalizing why he won't play any young'uns....because he "owes it to baseball" to play the regulars...

 

Give us a break..... :roll:

 

http://chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/cs-050920cubsbits,1,4871807.story?coll=cs-cubs-headlines

 

With Murton already playing everyday and Cedeno shelfed for the rest of the season, there is really no point in playing the rookies. I don't have a problem with him trying to win.

 

BTW which rookies do you think deserve playing time? or will contribute next year?

 

I can only think of JVB, Hill, and Mitre, but i'm sure I am missing some.

[Derwood]

Well because you don't want to make it too easy for West Tenn to compete in the Southern League Finals. Think they could've used Theriot?

[gus_dog]

Well, based on how his 'regulars' did this season, the Cubs might actually have a better chance of winning if he played the kids.

 

JMHO.

[louisvillecub]

Dusty again rationalizing why he won't play any young'uns....because he "owes it to baseball" to play the regulars...

 

Give us a break..... :roll:

 

http://chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/cs-050920cubsbits,1,4871807.story?coll=cs-cubs-headlines

 

With Murton already playing everyday and Cedeno shelfed for the rest of the season, there is really no point in playing the rookies. I don't have a problem with him trying to win.

 

BTW which rookies do you think deserve playing time? or will contribute next year?

 

I can only think of JVB, Hill, and Mitre, but i'm sure I am missing some.

 

If they've been called up, then to me that means that management thinks they deserve some playing time.

 

With Barrett out for a couple of days, wouldn't it have been a good opportunity to see Soto play? How about giving Theriot some playing time?

[USSoccer]

Theriot has PH quite a bit, JVB was used out of the pen a bit, too.

 

The only ones not playing are Mitre, Hill and Soto. They don't really need Soto except in an emergency, and Mitre are known quantities. That leaves Hill, who is likely to start a couple times before the year is done.

[Derwood]

That leaves Hill, who is likely to start a couple times before the year is done.

 

But not for Maddux, whose quest for 15 wins is horrifyingly similar to McGriff's quest for 30 HR at the expense of Choi

[louisvillecub]

Theriot has PH quite a bit, JVB was used out of the pen a bit, too.

 

The only ones not playing are Mitre, Hill and Soto. They don't really need Soto except in an emergency, and Mitre are known quantities. That leaves Hill, who is likely to start a couple times before the year is done.

 

I realize Theriot has PH several times. How about giving him a game in the field?

 

If you don't need Soto, then why bother bringing him up?

[USSoccer]

Theriot has PH quite a bit, JVB was used out of the pen a bit, too.

 

The only ones not playing are Mitre, Hill and Soto. They don't really need Soto except in an emergency, and Mitre are known quantities. That leaves Hill, who is likely to start a couple times before the year is done.

 

I realize Theriot has PH several times. How about giving him a game in the field?

 

If you don't need Soto, then why bother bringing him up?

 

Because it's common for teams to bring up a 3rd catcher to help in sim games, bullpen, etc. I'm not worried about stunting Giovanni's growth.

 

Theriot, I have no clue what position he plays, to be honest, but given that Baker resisted playing Cedeno who was hitting .380 at AAA and .300 here, I am just happy that he's giving him a shot to PH. Maybe they view him as a Macias replacement in 2006 and want to see how he handles irregular AB's.

 

As far as Maddux getting to 15 wins, I don't really care if they run him out there every day from here on out. He's vested, so oh well. I'd rather see Hill start for Prior or especially Z, given age and importance to the future of the club.

[Backtobanks]

You might want to use a callup as a pinch runner or in long relief of a blowout game.

[Balsa]

I think you guys are taking this out of context. What Baker said is that he's gonna play the best team he can against the Astros because he doesn't wanna throw the games and give them any more success than they deserve. I can agree with that. If we can knock out the Astros from the race I'd be very happy.

[goonys evil twin]

I think you guys are taking this out of context. What Baker said is that he's gonna play the best team he can against the Astros because he doesn't wanna throw the games and give them any more success than they deserve. I can agree with that. If we can knock out the Astros from the race I'd be very happy.

 

I can't agree with that. It's the dumbest thing he can do. Who gives a crap about the freaking Marlins and Phillies? Dusty's first priority should be the well being of the Chicago Cubs. Putting Neifi at leadoff does nothing for the Chicago Cubs. Letting Rich Hill sit on the bench for 14 days, then making him relieve on back to back days, stretching him on the 2nd day, then relegating him back to the end of the line does nothing for the Cubs. Refusing to give a breather to Zambrano, and extending his pitch counts repeatedly in meaningless September games does nothing for the Cubs. Now that he's completely screwed up the 2005 Cubs, Dusty's only obligation is to think about the 2006 Cubs. He has to give starts to some of the younger guys. He has to minimize the risk for injury to Zambrano and Prior. He has to give the kids a taste of the big leagues.

 

 

But no, Dusty's moronic theory is to make sure Neifi gets as many plate appearances as possible before the season ends, and once again try and help an aging breaking down veteran achieve a meaningless milestone.

[CubfaninCA]

They won't do it cause Philly and Florida will get really ticked, but I'd like to see them sit Prior and start Hill.

[tgk]

It's not often that I say this, but I've got to side with Dusty on this one. I know there is no rule that says it and that the team's only responsibility is to itself, but the Cubs should be trying their best to win, that includes placing the best line-up possible on the field. Now you may disagree with what Dusty thinks is the best line-up, but that is another argument already taking place in several other threads.

 

Remebmer 2003? Milwaukee went into Houston on the last weekend and beat them enough that no only did the Cub win the division, they had a day to rest the starters. If the Brewers had sat Richie Sexon and didn't pitch Ben Sheets everyone on this board would have been crying foul. It's the same situation, we're just on the other side of the equation.

 

As for the meaningless milestone arguement, McGriff and Maddux are two completely different situations. McGriff was going for another season of 30 homeruns and needed several starts to do so, basically playing the entire month to get there. Maddux is going for another season of 15 wins, and really needs only 1 extra start to do so, and that is only if he wins the two games leading up to that. You are probably talking about 6 innings of work, which i hardly think ins robbing a youngster of a chance to develop.

 

Remember, while we like our young players and want to see them get a decent chance, we also want free agents to sign with the Cubs too. Giving Maddux the extra start and continung to play veterans while mixing in kids may not augment the chances of signing free agents in the future, but a reputation for sitting veterans and not allowing a chance a meaningful personal milestones could be a deterrent for some players in the future.

[Tim]

But the other teams have a book on the veterans. I say that playing the kids who have no books on them gives us the best shot!

 

Can we at least get a little consistency in the palaber?

[Transmogrified Tiger]

We're not talking about swapping out Derrek Lee for McClain here. It's Cedeno for Neifi, and Murton for Hairston/Patterson. There's no dropoff there, but Dusty has said ever since the beginning of the month that we owe it to other teams to try to win, like Murton or Cedeno are scrubs. It's the same rhetoric before and after Murton had success and Cedeno got hurt. Now there's no one really worth playing, except maybe Theriot on occasion. This fact doesn't change the fact that Dusty's whole mindset is beyond dumb, and hurting the ballclub.

[goonys evil twin]

but the Cubs should be trying their best to win, that includes placing the best line-up possible on the field.

 

Perhaps they should have tried that their first 5.5 months of the season.

 

Remember, while we like our young players and want to see them get a decent chance, we also want free agents to sign with the Cubs too. Giving Maddux the extra start and continung to play veterans while mixing in kids may not augment the chances of signing free agents in the future, but a reputation for sitting veterans and not allowing a chance a meaningful personal milestones could be a deterrent for some players in the future.

 

What a load. All that talk of kissing up to potential free agents has achieved absolutely nothing. Great free agents don't sign with teams based on how much the manager bends over for them. They sign with the team with the best combination of money/chance to win. It is completely hypocritical, and in my opinion moronic, to try and pound into the heads of the kids the need to play for the good of the team and ignore individual statistics, and then repeatedly sacrifice the opportunity to give some experience to the young kids so veterans can get a chance to achieve meangingless goals. There is absolutely no excuse for Mitre and Hill failing to each get at least 3 starts in September.

 

Remember Dusty's stupid excuse for not playing these guys is a lack of experience. You can't get experience until you are given a chance to play. But the Cubs never give these guys chances. I'm not talking about starting a guy on fan appreciation day when you play all 30 guys. I'm talking about giving serious time to legit prospects who need to go through the struggles and learn.

[CubinNY]

But the other teams have a book on the veterans. I say that playing the kids who have no books on them gives us the best shot!

 

Can we at least get a little consistency in the palaber?

 

Ah but there is the rub Tim. If a rookie plays in meaningless games then the teams will get the book on the rookie. Now if they already have the book on the wily veteran then it doesn't matter as much. However, the wily veteran may known that the teams has the book on him and may cross them up.

 

It's all a matter of ball bearings and not going against a Sicilian when death is on the line.

[Transmogrified Tiger]

You have a truly dizzying intellect.

[gus_dog]

Inconceivable!

[JC]

You keep saying this word. I do not think it means what you think it means.

[imb]

not princess bride again.

[imb]

I cant wait till 2020 when Darren Baker makes it to the big leagues, and dusty sits him for a 50 year old Matt Murton, and then Darren kills them both with the laser bats that they will use in the MLB in 2020.

[katway]

You have a truly dizzying intellect.

 

"Truly, you have a dizzying intellect." Pricess Bride... great movie.

 

Anyway, Dusty is partialy right. You don't rollover at the end of the year, but you also want to see what the kids bring to the table and give them a start here and there to reward their good play in the minors. It's a delicate balance that Dusty has had trouble grasping during his managerial career.

[JC]

not princess bride again.

 

You never had it so good.