Irrelevant Dude

Joey Cora injured Zambrano's elbow and he was sent to for x rays. Cora hit him with a fungo bat accidentally. You can't even make this stuff up...

Garner should have listened to Baker's advice and replaced Jose Reyes with Neifi. He has only himself to blame.

Ok, the game is over. Is Dusty fired yet?

It looks like the only way he'll play is if the game goes to extra innings. :(

Why does nobody in the media understand the concept that it can stunt a team's long term development to have a manager fighting for his job despite being out of the playoff race? I keep hearing everyone on TV and the radio say that there's no point in firing Baker now and hiring and interim manager, but that the Cubs should just wait until the end of the season and make a change then. Dusty Baker is bad enough for a team, but a lame duck Dusty Baker is even worse!

TT, how do you feel about the idea of signing CLee for LF and platooning MM and JJ in RF? I like the idea of a Jones/Murton platoon, whether it's in RF or even LF if the Cubs can find a power-hitting RF. As much as I like Murton, I don't think he can be an everyday corner outfielder with the lack of power on this team

Because the fact that giving HFA to one league because it's an odd-numbered year instead of an even-numbered year on the calendar is SO MUCH more appropriate?? I think it's cool that the game means something. Frankly, I don't think it hurts a thing. And "This Time It Counts" isn't the promo that they use anymore. That slogan only lives because posters on message boards keep bringing it up over and over again. Give it to the team with the better record. Isn't that why you play the regular season, to determine HFA? Whoever has the better record between the two World Series participants gets the HFA regardless of whether one team won the WC and the other won their division. Best record gets WS HFA. Dan Patrick suggested this on the radio today and it seems to make sense. Give home field advantage to the league that has the best interleague record.

That's right. I forgot that he is the keeper of post-season integrity.

Say what you will about Dusty, but I think that's an unfair statement. Most reporters, specifically sports reporters, will "translate" quotes from managers and players to avoid those sorts of double negatives and other problems with the English language. Is it misquoting? No, because you are quoting the person while just adding conjunctions or clearing up verb tenses. I mean, shoot, look at what the White Sox beat reporters have to do with Ozzie. I think this was a calculated move by Sullivan to make Dusty look even worse. I certainly don't have access to every article in which he quoted Dusty, but I have to imagine he's cut him some slack before in this respect. Dusty doesn't need improper English to sound like an idiot.

I think the smart money would be on Baker lasting until the end of the season, but with that said I would hope that Hendry is smart enough to not let a single 3 game winning streak skew his evaluation.

I can't stand how Baker talks down to people, ending his statements with questions like "Ok?" or "Understand?." While his interviews are somewhat entertaining because of the ridiculous comments and contradictions, it still annoys me to read them. Good job by Sullivan though.

Does anyone else think that ESPN is padding the distances on these Home Runs? There have been seemingly run of the mill home runs measured at 460 feet. Berman is going nuts like these guys are hitting huge shots, but there really hasn't been anything all that spectacular. Typical ESPN overkill...

We were so close to having Dusty fired... I'm depressed now.

This is ridiculous. Dusty will not be fired now. I know. When the talk first came out that Baker would be evaluated over the All-Star Break, I predicted the Cubs would win 4 out of the next 5 games to save his job. Unfortunately it looks like that prediction may come true... :x

Honestly I would have bunted there too.

When's the last time the Cubs won 2 in a row?

After last night's game, the pace has dropped to 309. I predict it will go back up today.

Does anyone know what the July 3 ESPN Insider article under MLB Rumor Central titled "Goodbye Wrigley" was about?

What a bunch of garbage. Someone please put an end to this misery. This has gone well past the point of being a distraction and it's making me very angry listening to the Dusty defenders use the same meaningless baseball quotes over and over. And on top of that, Hendry has backed off his comment about evaluating the coaching staff over the All-Star break...

What about the possibility that he underestimated the Tigers and believed he had a better chance to win with the Cubs?

There are so many severe platoon splits on this team that running guys out there blindly every day is pretty counterproductive. Jones can't hit lefties, for example while Murton can, and vice versa. That's true, but at the same time I believe platoon splits can be self-fulfilling prophecies. A hitter struggles for awhile against left-handed pitching, then is platooned and no longer gets to face lefties, which sets him back further if he has to face them in the future and the cycle goes on and on. And so a career platoon player is born.

As of 7/6, Neifi Perez is on pace for 311 At Bats this season. Stay tuned for daily updates.

Popped it up, Willie Mays Hayes style.

I have to agree with the idea that Dusty isn't playing for the team. If they do something dumb or are ineffective it's on the players. Dusty is responsible for strategic blunders however. That's just BS. The things they do that are dumb and ineffective are a direct result of the manager. It's not like these things happen every once in a while. The mistakes they make are repetitive. Repetitive mistakes are the manger's fault. I am sick and tired I hearing that crap. This is a terrible baseball team BECAUSE Dusty is the manager. It's not BS. The majority of the stupid plays have been committed by veteran players that shouldn't need a manager to hold their hand. This team isn't going to improve JUST BECAUSE THERE'S IS A NEW MANAGER. And these stupid plays have been made by a variety of different veteran players over a number of years. It's not just 1 or 2 guys, it's a lot of them. Why don't other teams have the same problem? I don't know why the manager is the only one in the hot seat when this team was ill conceived. Hendry is to blame for personnel of the field. People keep using Bobby Cox-like analogies of benching players for a lack of hustle but the truth is, he has only done that with young players (not veterans). If a GM acquires a veteran player with a reputation for being lazy there's only so much a manager can do (short of constantly be at odds with the player and or refusing to use him; which ultimately hurts the team if the player has a key role). I'm not being a Dusty apologist but these players are making themselves look bad with their poor play. There's only so much someone can do from the dugout. A change of managers without corresponding personnel changes isn't going to provide improvement. Nobody is absolving Hendry of any blame. He has as much fault as Baker, if not more, but the fact is he already has his contract extension and is not going to be fired. The ideal situation would be for the entire slate to be wiped clean from top to bottom, but since that's not going to happen then the next best thing is to at least get rid of part of the problem (Baker and his staff).

I have to agree with the idea that Dusty isn't playing for the team. If they do something dumb or are ineffective it's on the players. Dusty is responsible for strategic blunders however. That's just BS. The things they do that are dumb and ineffective are a direct result of the manager. It's not like these things happen every once in a while. The mistakes they make are repetitive. Repetitive mistakes are the manger's fault. I am sick and tired I hearing that crap. This is a terrible baseball team BECAUSE Dusty is the manager. It's not BS. The majority of the stupid plays have been committed by veteran players that shouldn't need a manager to hold their hand. This team isn't going to improve JUST BECAUSE THERE'S IS A NEW MANAGER. And these stupid plays have been made by a variety of different veteran players over a number of years. It's not just 1 or 2 guys, it's a lot of them. Why don't other teams have the same problem?