jjgman21

I think alot of discussion about 'worth the contract' on here misses the fact that average free agent outfielders get paid 5-6M per year, and average free agent startes get paid 8-9M per year. while I agree both the Maddux and Jones contracts were too long, neither was really overpriced in today's market. Jones isn't average. whatever. he's paid what equivalent players tend to be paid.

I think alot of discussion about 'worth the contract' on here misses the fact that average free agent outfielders get paid 5-6M per year, and average free agent startes get paid 8-9M per year. while I agree both the Maddux and Jones contracts were too long, neither was really overpriced in today's market.

Fire isn't what this team needs. Good players is what they need. How about a fire in the clubhouse? I was going to suggest that earlier when someone mentioned firing guys who left the clubhouse early.

where does one find line drive stats? It doesn't go back very far(2004), but The Hardball Times has them. thanks.

where does one find line drive stats?

here's a fun fact. of the first 16 batters the Cubs have sent to the plate, 10 of them have had a first pitch strike called on them. Maddux? 2 up until this inning.

Jones < Dye Dye was surprisingly good last year and has kept it up so far this year. It was either him or Burnitz in 05... yes. last year. the past three, the past five, whichever you choose, there isn't a whole lot of difference offensively. my reflection was on my thoughts from February. Burnitz was not in the picture.

Buerhle lives and dies on the corners and low in the strike zone as well, if he's forced to get his pitches up, he's little more than a BP pitcher. unfortunately neither our hitters, nor the umpire will force him to do either.

last February or so, I said to myself Z > Buerle Prior > Garcia Wood > Garland Maddux = Contreras Rusch/Williams < Vazquez the bullpen, no question about it, Cubs better Lee > Konerko Walker > Iguchi Cedeno =/> Uribe Aram > Crede Murton > Anderson Pierre = Podsednik Jones = Dye the bench/DH, Sox unquestionably better. hasn't exactly worked out that way

What about down the lines? Wasn't it less than 300 feet? I got a coffee table book about all the old timey (and new timey) baseball parks a couple years ago. many parks back then were very spacious in the power alleys. most were about equal to center as modern parks, and nearly all of them allowed very cheap homeruns down the lines. my guess is the dimensions of the ball parks had very little effect on homerun totals when comparing eras, but that might change with Colorado, AZ, Houston, Cincy and Philly coming along and all of them becoming the friendliest places to hit in baseball, with only SD's new park offsetting it. but the 'house the Ruth built' was just as much the 'house built for Ruth.'

I don't understand how this is pushing him faster than Wood. both threw 45 pitches at a time for a month in various scenerios (bullpen, batting practice, sim games, etc). Kerry with 2 starts in AZ, the plan with Mark apparently is 1. then 2 rehab starts for Kerry, and the plan for Prior is 2 rehab starts. its the same thing, sans one AZ start, and Prior isn't recovering from surgery. a week ago we argued that it wouldn't be possible for Wood to get his pitch count up in 2 rehab starts, and you were right. why do you not have the confidence that Prior can do the same thing?

Yep -- he issued warnings to both teams after the first pitch -- which as you noted was thrown behind Barry. Nothing wrong with how Joe West handled that situation IMO.... Springer threw a SLIDER on said pitch, Wind City. Take it from a former pitcher, if you are TRYING to hit a batter, you don't try to hit the batter with an "offspeed pitch", you use the "Good ol'e #1", the fastball. The warning on the first pitch was BOGUS. Now, any pitch leading up to the HBP---exlcuding the first pitch---I would agree on the warning. But to instantly issue a warning on a SLIDER, is plain stupid. I hit guys with "sliders" a couple of times in college. It happens more often than you would think, because it gives you a built in excuse. I hate umpires more than probably anyone else on this board, but West knew the situation and that there was a history between Springer and Bonds, hence the warning. if anything, Springer should have been tossed long before he was. after receiving a warning on the first pitch, he threw up and in for five more pitches until he finally beaned Bonds. 'oops, it was a slider,' my buttocks.

you really expect him to go from 60 pitches (if it's even 60, I think he's been at about 45 the past three weeks) to 90 pitches in two rehab starts after the way he's been handled up to this point? eatting some crow on this point. very surprised, and very happy, to see Wood throw nearly 90 pitches tonight. would have liked to see similar reports to his first rehab start, though. I wouldn't be surprised if he doesn't make one more rehab start after tonights outting. I don't think you have to eat any crow (I hate that term). Everyone had their doubts. Nevertheless, I'm real happy he is comming along. And not a moment too soon. This team needs a real boost. Even if it just the psychological boost of having one of the aces back. The manager issues aside, there is no way this team is this bad. They are in a funck the likes of which I have never seen. They really need some good things to start happening. Hopefully, this is one of many to come. I think it was necessary because of my insistence earlier in the thread. I was rather forceful and there were more posts than this one. if I were not so insistent and merely making a passing prediction, I wouldn't have bothered. I just think when you rail loudly on a topic, you should be willing to own up once you discover you were wrong.

you really expect him to go from 60 pitches (if it's even 60, I think he's been at about 45 the past three weeks) to 90 pitches in two rehab starts after the way he's been handled up to this point? eatting some crow on this point. very surprised, and very happy, to see Wood throw nearly 90 pitches tonight. would have liked to see similar reports to his first rehab start, though. I wouldn't be surprised if he doesn't make one more rehab start after tonights outting.

Are you kidding? They just do what we're doing for money. none of us are contractually obligated to watch every day, every game, every inning. I personally don't think I could do it. it just hurts too damn much.

I just start crying and then make them buy me beer. the Cards is one question. with the Sox fans, I simply respond by saying I am a Cub fan this year, I was a Cub fan last year, and a Cub fan the 33 years before that. I don't take a year off. I don't take a decade off. both can be responded to by saying 'go eat your turkey pot pie, surf internet porn, drink a red white and blue, and shine your commemorative Dale Earnhardt license plate holder.'

Reality. Look at the lineup and the starters the Cubs have been throwing out there, and try to say with a straight face that they should be winning consistently. oh, c'mon. look at the lineup, even as pathetic as it has been without Lee, and try to say honestly that that lineup is only capable of scoring a run a game for two weeks. it's not reality. I didn't expect an offensive juggernaut, especially without Lee, but this is bizarr-o world type stuff.

remember the inning we got the leadoff hitter out. wasn't that great.

a rare fun fact by jjgman21 despite being second from last in the league in OBP, only one one thousandths of a point ahead of Pitt, the Cubs have managed to ground into more double plays than any other team in the NL besides San Fran. edit...that wasn't so fun, now was it.

Prior does the same damn thing. I think it is pretty obvious that Rothschild's philosophies focus on getting hitters out on pitches outside of the zone. ridiculous approach when the entire staff is full of 'stuff' pitchers. throw it over the middle of the plate and let the natural movement of the pitch get it off of the sweet spot of the bat.

Remember the "double switch" that he botched a couple years ago when Ramon Martinez belted a double then was called out for batting out of order? Dusty got out of the straight jacket that day. I want to see botched double switch Dusty at some point soon. I was at that game. great game. won on back to back HRs by Sosa and Alou. I was in the bleachers. we had no idea what was going on and showered the outfield with cups the rest of the game. but that is the only time I ever remember Dusty getting the boot as a Cubs manager. when he was sticking up for himself. never, not once, despite some pretty terrible calls during key moments of games the past couple of years, do I remember him getting booted for sticking up for one of his players. that's what I want to see.

you've returned to this a couple of times in the conversation, and it's rather absurd. what is being discussed here is pitches on the corner. painting the black. those pitches that when called strikes, Joe Morgan calls them "acceptable" strikes, aka pitches that are balls, but close enough to being strikes that Questech will register it as the proper call, even though it is not. the pitches...or is it pitch?...called on Bonds was unquestionably a strike. even Bonds knew it, just dropping his head and walking back. you are trying to use one pitch that was rightfully called a strike as evidence that Barry Bonds does not get favorable treatment. we are not talking about never having a strike called. we are talking about a trend we see in officiating, the same trend you see in other sports, but for some reason are unwilling to impute to baseball. furthermore, labeling what people are discussing as a conspiracy is a non-sequitor. nobody said these people got together to plan to give Barry a better strike zone. I've never seen it as a conspiracy. perhaps a bit of group think, but conspiracy or not, it happens. obviously you feel strongly about this, but your arguments, from what you said Questech proved, to using one strike called on Barry Bonds, to screaming 'prove it' like a petulant Missourian, are rather weak.

The weird thing is nobody even thought this could be a problem in the offseason, it totally came out of the blue. I think the problem was recognized, just not addressed properly. that was the purpose of inviting Grissom and Restovich to camp.

That's the only pitch of the game I saw, when it was replayed on Sports Center. That was a devastating pitch. Too bad half the time it won't be called a strike for Zambrano due to his wildness. If it was called on Bonds, who has the strikezone of a midget at the plate, then Z will consistently get it called. I don't think so. Strike zone is a big issue for Zambrano. In a perfect world, I think he has quite a few less walks given strike zone tightness. But when a pitcher is wild to the tune of 4-5 walks per game, umpires generally don't give that guy the close call as often as someone with good command. Fewer walks and border calls go hand in hand. Maddux benefitted for years on an extended zone, which was built on a reputation of minimal walks. It's not uncommon for fans to constantly complain about their teams' pitchers getting squeezed, particularly in a loss. Perhaps it's just my perception, but the complaints about getting squeezed occur more frequently with Zambrano than any other Cubs pitcher. Unconscious movement and a reputation for lack of command will inflate the perception even more. So honestly, I am surprised he got he call, and am generally surprised he gets any close calls right now. I think that is a load of garbage. The umpires don't care who is at the plate or on the mound. I think they do their best to call a consistent strike zone, but they are human. The questteck numbers they have been keeping for the past couple of years bear that out. I think that is a load of garbage. first, stars and control pitchers get better calls. I remember the WBC game with Clemens on the mound against South Africa, and Sutcliffe's comment was something to the effect of "you know Rocket is used to getting that call with Major League umpires." saying otherwise is admirable in the sense that you will accept no quarter, but its pretty damn naive at the same time. furthermore, questech was not designed to measure, and could not possibly be interpreted as determining, what players are getting better calls. it measures the umpires ability to get balls and strikes correct without regard for the players, teams, and situations. in my opinion that has always been the biggest problem with the system.

I agree with the general theme, but "studs" and "big money answers" do not get paid 6M per year. "studs" and "big money answers" are paid 11-16M per year. the "stud" hitters on the Cubs are getting paid "stud" money. Jacque is not and never was intended to be a "stud." he was intended to be part, not a cornerstone, of one of the deeper lineups in the league. if Lee weren't hurt and Aram struggling, and we had a stud in right with Jones platooning in left (presumably with Murton), we wouldn't be "all right." we would be a fricken jauggernaut. Jones is what he is, a middling outfielder getting paid middling money for a year or two too long who signed in a down market for outfielders. there's enough there to criticize without painting both he and the situation as worse than it is.