jersey cubs fan

It's only become normal relatively recently for the Cubs. It's good to see a healthy franchise, even if it actually hurts the Cubs chances. I still don't see how a Milwaukee fan can justify hating Cubs fans, their willingness to prop up the attendance up there the past ten years practically kept that franchise afloat.

I was hesitating to post this article because it's just so GD stupid.

Gooz gets Howry's spot first. Am I the only one who doesn't trust Guzman to be an effective reliever? Do you trust him less than Howry? I don't think anybody is investing anything into Guzman beyond hoping that he does prove to be an effective reliever over the next few weeks, because that would be a nice way to round out our bullpen and replace Howry. I don't think people necessarily believe he will, but I, for one, believe he can and hope he will... Yeah, I don't trust that we have Marmol II waiting in the wings, but I trust him to be more effective than Howry, and that's all that matters.

I got a 3 year subscription to the magazine on ebay for $4, so I get that inside scoop on the site for free. both are pretty worthless Just curious...have there been any Cubs features in any of the issues this year? I always like that kind of stuff, no matter how worthless the content usually is. I honestly never open it. it either goes straight to the trash or my nephew takes it. For some reason I open it, leaf through it in 5 seconds and just put it aside. I don't even think they have any features on anybody, other than BMX guys.

Based on the caught stealing or other Theriot-like stupidity? It's pretty disappointing that after multiple years of working on it, he doesn't seem to have translated that speed to baserunning ability.

It never made sense. That draft was so weird. They were so proud of their SB run and so cocky that it seemed they were just drafting for depth and completely ignoring the need to constantly build for the future.

I can't believe we re-signed Booker.. I didn't have a problem with it, back when I was hoping they'd do more to shore up the line and give the offense a fighting chance in 2008. Booker is a good enough possession receiver to warrent some playing time. But with the roster as it currently stands, I would be pissed if he made the team over a younger guy with more upside.

I hate the Philly matchup. The Cubs do not play well against them. They were lucky to get 1 win in Philly this year on the bad DeRosa HR call (which was foul), and they've been sub .500 every year since going 3-3 in 2004 (the year they traded for Nomar minutes after losing to Philly at home). And in 2003 they were 1-5 against them. Philly just gives the Cubs fits. Abreu and Burrell have killed them, now that Abreu is gone Utley has killed them as well. As much as I've grown to expect them to win every home series, if not every game, I can't help but think I'd feel relieved to just get a split out of this matchup. The rains are on their way, hopefully it will clear out by tonight.

LeGere from the Daily Herald wrote the same article Haugh wrote yesterday and also predicted Hanie to the practice squad and only 2 QBs on the roster. I notice he does not like Mark Bradley. I know he hasn't produced much of anything in the NFL, but as far as I can tell, it's because he never plays. They kept letting Moose dog his way through the entire 2007 season, and never gave Bradley any time. When I have noticed him on the field, he looks decent enough. It would be a shame if he was cut in favor of the "has no future" Marty Booker. Booker didn't do much in Miami and hasn't done anything in the preseason. He's career is probably nearing a close, and I see no reason why they'd rather go with him over Bradley. I still say IR Williams, cut Wolfe and go with 6 WR. They should use this season to see what they have out there among the young guys.

I've been to Colorado a lot, and I don't think that's true. That place is loaded with ex-Chicagoans and Cubs fans, and by and large Rockies and Cubs fans get along very well. Cubs fans are not hated in NY. They are sort of grudgingly respected for dealing with the crap they deal with, and I've heard several teams NYers say they'd like to see the Cubs win. Boston is similar. Atlanta and Florida don't count, since they don't have any fans. The game I went to at Shea, the Mets fans were way too busy hating the Mets to pay attention to the Cubs. They hate the Yankees first, Mets second, and themselves third. Everybody else falls near the bottom.

I've been to Colorado a lot, and I don't think that's true. That place is loaded with ex-Chicagoans and Cubs fans, and by and large Rockies and Cubs fans get along very well. Cubs fans are not hated in NY. They are sort of grudgingly respected for dealing with the crap they deal with, and I've heard several teams NYers say they'd like to see the Cubs win. Boston is similar. Atlanta and Florida don't count, since they don't have any fans.

The Cubs are the best team in the NL and Philly is not, so yes, of course they can. Will they? That might depend on how well they pitch to Burrell.

I'm going to assume no, not this year, but they may think about it during next season or after.

Even if the Cubs do lose a close one (which I don't think they will) it's much, much better than outscoring the other team and only winning one of three, something the Cubs have tended to do in the past. :wink: Probably very rarely, considering how much trouble they've had scoring in the past.

I've never understood getting an update on the game from a message board game thread. If you are on the internet, there are so many better/quicker ways to get that update. If you want somebody who actually saw something to explain a play, okay, but asking for inning/score seems like an odd decision. And getting those descriptions isn't hard.

What exactly happened? I wouldn't blame somebody for getting annoyed and posting something obnoxious after Soriano's gaffe, or Lou's stupid sac bunt. It's not like it takes a considerably amount of time to type out, "you stupid mofo hopping sob!". Talking about the season being over and whatnot would be stupid, but for as long as I've seen people posting on message boards during a game, I've seen people get worked up over annoying things that happen on the field. And I don't see a problem with it. And while the season more likely than not is in the bag, I would hardly call any remaining game meaningless until they clinch, or are ready to clinch a week before the season ends.

Probably the nearest college campus to most of them.

Wouldn't that be like doing practice swings with the donut? Assuming he takes them off for the games he should be fine.

Haugh's been saying this pretty consistently on Tribune Live on CSN too. 6 RB, 2 QB. And it seems like David is right an awful lot. I with you though...keep Hanie, ditch Wolfe. Wolfe isn't ever going to be more than is right now, IMO. Hanie doesn't count toward the 53 man roster because the 3rd QB is "inactive" for the games and can't play unless the first 2 guys get hurt and once they play in a game, the other guys can't come back in. No, you are referring to the active gameday roster, which is 45. The 3rd QB is rarely, if ever, on that list. The 3rd QB does have to be on the 53 man roster.

I'm confused. You talk about strikeouts to hits, but then all you reference is strikeouts per inning pitched. And how do you come up with a 50/50 chance?

i thought the stereotype was that asian people are smart. Nebraska is a vile, filthy state, and people screw up stereotypes all the time. I thought the same thing when I read the article but saw you beat me to the punch.

Not it Koyie Hill outplays him in September :) If things get tight in September, they should go with Kendall's veteran presence.

I was just messing with you. There has been very little worth paying attention to this offseason (and last). It's been all about who should be demoted or cut rather than who is winning a job. I hold onto a small amount of hope that all the low expectations and ignoring of the Bears will actually breed some anger and get this defense to carry them through the season. But I still have a hard time envisioning them repeating last year's win total, let alone surpassing it.

his cap number was ridiculous for his production. plus zach bowman has played really well. Burton, if that comes as a surprise, you've done a bad job following the Bears this preseason (almost as bad a job as they've done playing this preseason). The beat writers have all been saying he was not in their plans this season and was likely to be cut or dealt. http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/cs-080826-david-haugh-chicago-bears-53-man-roster,0,2636657.column David Haugh predicted the final roster today. He uses some weird numbers though. 6 running backs (2 FB, 4 RB), 2 QB - I would be surprised if this team didn't have a 3rd QB on the roster opening day, they use 3 every year. He lists Bazuin, Wolfe and Stelz as guys who are likely to be kept due to their draft status more than their actual ability. Personally, I see no reason to go with 6 RB. Wolfe is worthless. He can't return kicks, can't hold onto the ball and brings next to nothing to the running game. You can't have a screen pass specialist on your roster. I don't get why they would keep Williams active. Sure, you'd like to have him for the stretch run, to improve the line and get him experience. However, the only way the team is in contention in the stretch run is if the line is surprisingly good, in which case you would not be desperate for his help in week 9 or 10. Just get the guy 100% for 2009, and use roster spots for the 2008 team on guys who can play in the first half of the season. Cut the worthless draft picks from recent years, keep Bradley, who has shown ability when given a chance to play but has rarely been given a chance to play. Make sure you have a 3rd QB, either a soon-to-be released veteran or Hanie.

Cot's lists full no-trade protection for Lilly. Nothing of the sort for Marquis, obviously. It says "no-trade protection". I don't know what that means, but others say "full no trade clause". I would imagine protection is something along the lines of a list of 10 teams they can't be traded to without approval.