RegulusBlue

Yea of course like when he was in yesterday and they lost LOL, he had three hits. Enjoy having no idea what you're talking about.

Grace and whoever the other DBacks announcer is are brutal. Grace is just hanging out, but the play by play guy is on par with the Brewers TV guys. Atrocious.

This team is better when Murton starts.

But then we would hear it even worse every time he gets a hit with his new team. You better believe it. I plan on being unbearable. You'd also have to get used to it, because he is going to be a very good player for somebody. Sadly, it looks like it won't be the Cubs more and more every day.

We'll see, Warren. This move costs us the playoffs when Craig starts over Murton constantly, and drives Pie out of the rotation. Soriano doesn't fix anything, either, because then his starts move to CF. We'll be too far down the drain when it becomes obvious to the Cubs that picking low-OBP guys from other teams' waste heaps isn't the way to run a team. If you have any faith at all that he'll be used properly (as if there is a way to do that with a career .303 OBP guy), then it won't hurt as much. This is Lou Piniella we're talking about here. Another terrible manager, although I'll admit that there is no such thing as a good manager.

Sadly, this is Matt Murton's replacement. Even this year, which has been pretty bad for Matt, he's bludgeoning Monroe's numbers. Killing them. Murton 2007: .251 .327 .369 Monroe 2007: .222 .264 .373 Murton Career:.291 .360 .441 Monroe Career:.257 .303 .448 Murton Age: 25 Monroe Age: 30 In three seasons, Murton has an 8.6 WARP3 in 774 AB. In seven seasons, Monroe has a 17.4 WARP3 in 2400 AB. One of these players is younger, better at the plate, and better defensively. Throw in the fact that Monroe is the worst possible option against RHP, and they both cream lefties, and you have yet another example of the Cubs not knowing what their strengths and weaknesses are. This move (Monroe replacing Murton) WILL cost us at least two games the rest of this season and the playoffs.

I hope you're not the Pman from the IlliniBoard, because if so, I just lost respect for you in a huge way. No ballplayer on the entire earth can decide when in the game he gets his hits, and you're also forgetting what has to happen to create the vaunted RISP situation. Here's the answer: someone has to be on base first! Murton's ability to do that makes rallies and RISP situations happen more often. Also, on a team as OBP light as ours, runners on base is a rarity, so our batters do not get as many chances with runners on as others do. Sometimes you don't get the chances even if a great OBP threat is present before you in the lineup. For instance, Murton has hit two bombs in 2 games now. Lee bats ahead of him, with his muscular OBP, but Lee wasn't on base either time he hit them. Even if Matt hits them to start an inning, Lee still made the previous third out to rob Matt of the opportunity to hit with a man on base. So you see, its really the Cubs' responsibility to be on base for any particular hitter to generate RBIs, including Matt Murton.

I could easily get by with a Pie/Murton/Patterson OF. I could care less about Floyd starting, and I actually hate Jones and Pagan, so its easy for me. Somebody mail Floyd to another continent.

Wow. What a terrible article. What a higher than thou article. The national nightmare? We just watched a great hitter hit more homers than everyone ever has. History is history. He hit the bombs. I don't like Barry, but I'm not taking anything away from what he did.

By the look of our offense, Soriano's hurts a lot. He is one of our only power threats. And even that is just a threat, based on his complete lack of bombs this year.

Get used to it. This team is poorly run, poorly constructed, and its showing. This ship's taking on water, boys.

This team is what we bought. You should remember it from the beginning of the year when it was this way as well. Lou is a terrible manager, and the results are finally showing up.

We need more HRs. Steroids, anybody?

PLEASE PLAY MATT MURTON AS WELL. I know it won't happen. Also, what is up with Pie? I thought he was badass recently.

Not hitting in the majors does not = big league success either. Just ask most of the Cubs roster. I can see your point when talking about Soto, but what do we have to lose? As for Murton, he's proven it already with 550+ ABs.

a) you're speculating on Soto's ability to hit major league pitching (see: Dubois, Pie, etc.) b) it's never going to happen anyways, so I guess we're screwed a) Yes I am. b) Didn't we know that coming in?

Not only is he not a good ballplayer, but he's also a very dumb ballplayer. He's forgotten how many outs there were at least 3 times this season. That's just unacceptable. He's hit a couple of key homeruns, but that's basically all he's been worth this season. You'd think with his speed that he would be above-average defensively, but he's pretty crappy in the field. He should be used as the 25th man on the team at most. Lou seems to be pretty smart about when to sit a player. I wouldn't be at all surprised to see a change in the next few days. Just like Murton, right? /hijack

Lou will cost the Cubs a postseason bid unless Murton and Soto get to start at least half of our remaining games. Its that easy. When we were hot, we depended on Jones, Pagan, Floyd, and the myriad other shreds of actual baseball players to help us along. It wasn't sustainable. We finish 5-10 games out with Dusty Piniella at the helm. Fontenot is the new Neifi (minus amphetamines).

I love plate discipline, but our top HR hitter on the team is Aramis, and he's second in the MLB in swinging at the first pitch. Its a combo of age, injury/recovery, and suckitude that has caused our power slump. By the way, the Cubs you saw yesterday were the real ones, at least until Murton, Pie, and Soto are allowed out of the basement.

Lou gets a kick out of lying to the fans. He wants 8 midgets that walk all the time. FALSE Murton is the team's starting LF. FALSE Wood will pitch today. FALSE Lou is a liar and a bad manager.

I dislike Bud Selig and his Gestapo.

Did you watch his stint in CF earlier this season? Why do you think he was switched back to LF? So he could look better with the Under Armour sing in the background? His jumps were late, his reach awkward and miscommunication with corner OFs could have cost lives. Whatever the reasons why he started hitting aside, Lou and Soriano himself manifested several times over that stretch that he felt more comfortable concentrating on his bat after the CF 'experiment' was over (edit - disguised through the hamstring injury). Long story short, his defense was not good in CF. I'll leave it up to you to dig up the articles. He had never played there before. Of course there would be an adjustment period. He'd look better in LF because he had a year of experience there. Remember when he kicked the ball around in Washington at first in LF? He had to adjust. Somehow, the Nats stomached a couple of weeks of learning on the job and he became relatively good. The bottom line is we panicked when he tweaked something on a weird play, and threw our OF backup situation into disarray. If he went back to CF, we could play the correct lineups, and we'd be much better for it. But it'd be a matter of time until he gets to switch back. Pie is truly our best CF. Give it a couple of weeks. The way it's going again (with JJones' play and Floyd's nicks), we may finally see our OF of the future very soon and everyday: Soriano, Pie and Murton (order be damned). Thank god for that. We agree on that OF.

Jacque Jones is my least favorite player ever. He is just total garbage. I bet his kids boo him. I have trouble rooting for him at the plate. I just look at him and see everything that has ever been wrong with the Cubs. He's a joke in CF, he can't throw, and he can't take a walk to save his life. What a horrid player.

Jacque Jones is a malignant source of constant sludge on the Cubs. He is a useless fool. I will throw a party when he is gone from this roster. Everyone is invited. But not Jones.

Did you watch his stint in CF earlier this season? Why do you think he was switched back to LF? So he could look better with the Under Armour sing in the background? His jumps were late, his reach awkward and miscommunication with corner OFs could have cost lives. Whatever the reasons why he started hitting aside, Lou and Soriano himself manifested several times over that stretch that he felt more comfortable concentrating on his bat after the CF 'experiment' was over (edit - disguised through the hamstring injury). Long story short, his defense was not good in CF. I'll leave it up to you to dig up the articles. He had never played there before. Of course there would be an adjustment period. He'd look better in LF because he had a year of experience there. Remember when he kicked the ball around in Washington at first in LF? He had to adjust. Somehow, the Nats stomached a couple of weeks of learning on the job and he became relatively good. The bottom line is we panicked when he tweaked something on a weird play, and threw our OF backup situation into disarray. If he went back to CF, we could play the correct lineups, and we'd be much better for it.