back2backjax

I really wish Miles had touched more on the job done by John Stockstill and Oneri Fleita. For every Theriot, Soto and Marshall, there's a Mark Pawelek, Ryan Harvey, Bobby Brownlie, Felix Pie, Corey Patterson, etc. When was the last time a first or second round prospect matched the expected potential of being drafted that high? It's funny how the only teams we can trade prospects to are the Pirates and Orioles because whenever a discussion occurs about a big name player that's looking for prospects at the deadline, mention of the Cubs involvement quickly fades away.

Guess I'm just wondering if someone else sees something I don't. Wouldn't be the first time.

Can the Cubs, as currently constructed, catch the Cardinals if Holliday continues his recent surge in the second half? My initial thought is that at this point we pretty much know what Theriot, Fontenot and Fukudome are going to bring to the table, so to answer the question "yes", it involves a lot of 'ifs' - if Bradley starts hitting, if Soto rebounds from a poor first half and injury, if Soriano starts hitting, if Ramirez rebounds from an injury, if Lee stays hot, etc. I don't know what help is out there, but that seems like a lot of 'ifs' to feel very confident about making the playoffs. If the answer is "no", what possibilities exist for help?

Gracias!

What worse about the fact we've scored just one run on four singles (two of which were softly hit) is that the home plate ump has such a narrow strike zone. He's not giving that Avery/Glavine/Maddux footlong corner from the 90s, so Moyer has to bring that weak stuff over the plate. How about a gapper here!

with a chance to win $1 million if you could get a hit, would you not choose Moyer?

That's what I'm saying. You know he can't overpower you with anything so why take anything close to the plate? He HAS to throw strikes to be effective and can't make mistakes, so just go up swinging. Me if I replaced Von Joshua for today's game only: "Guys, Moyer's fastball tops out lower than today's temperature. He may try to come inside occasionally, but mostly he's going to stay away. Look to take the ball to the opposite field, but whatever you do, go up there swinging!"

Can anyone imagine Albert Pujols - or any other elite first baseman - taking four pitches that close to the plate and not exceeding 81 mph the way Lee just did?

the lineup should stay the way it is, with the exception of substitutions, until the team starts losing. i'm sick of our $18 million a year superstar having to be coddled and bat leadoff like the spoiled rich kid on a little league team. johnson does what a leadoff hitter is supposed to do. so does theriot. so does cedeno. so does fukudome. soriano is a slugger, not a hitter, and doesn't do any of the things you want out of a leadoff hitter. johnson/theriot fukudome lee ramirez soriano derosa soto johnson/theriot

doesn't it seem like soto has made solid contact at almost every AB this season?

hell yes

time for a fly to the warning track

man, soriano is so much more effective leading off.

matt murton's approach at the plate would be very helpful right now since everyone else thinks that mile high pop-ups are the way to go.

what are the odds that piniella will ever turn in the following lineup? theriot fukudome lee ramirez soriano derosa soto pie are the odds of that happening correlated to the odds of soriano not whining about not leading off?