Little Slide Rooter

Sox just seem to have a better team in every aspect of the game.

This team is absolutely pathetic. Sox look like a team that really wants to win and the Cubs seem content to show up and cash their pay checks. Jim Hendry seems to have really slammed out window shut prematurely, and I hope he pays for it with his job when the new ownership takes over.

I like how Len didnt even do a good job of pretending to care that Miles might be DLd.

Im going to go with 12 runners stranded today.

Chicago Cubs baseball is on the air. Id very much like an easy win. Im sick of thrill rides.

Please be good today Z. We need 8 innings. You too Cubs offense.

I dont know, Lou Piniella does a pretty lousy job at managing a bullpen.

Because Cubs fans never have a beer in their hand.

He doesn't have to. Lou using him for just a full inning when he makes an appearance would be fine. As long as that appearence is the 8th inning, but all of the sudden, uh oh, theres a guy on 2nd and a righty coming up. Who cares if that righty is batting <.200, better go get that loogy out of there.

Really? Carpenter is far better than any pitcher on the Cubs Wainwright is as good as any pitcher on the Cubs Pineiro isn't as good, but is pitched as well as any pitcher on the Cubs Lohse is hurt, but he's a a solid 3rd, good 4th starter Wainwright would have the 4th best ERA on the Cubs. Carpenter would have the best ERA, but he's pitched a grand total of 65 innings. ow has Piniero pitched as well as any starter on the Cubs? Lshe is hurt? Go back to St. Louis. Carpenter's resume is solidified. Nobody on your staff is even close Wainwright over the last 3 seasons has been as good as any Cub starter, and this year he'd be second in VORP on the Cubs behind Lilly, who he is a much better pitcher than. Lilly is basically Kyle Lohse with a few more Ks, but more walks. I didn't say Pineiro was a good pitcher, but he's having a very good season. You worry about Ks, I worry about HRs and BBs. And he's given up 12 walks in 92 innings. That's great. And he's given up 2 home runs. It wont last, but that's not what I argued. Carp >>>>>>>> Zambrano Wainwright > Harden (Should he even count? He doesn't even pitch and when he does, he's awful). Lilly = Lohse Dempster > Pineiro, but that's not saying much Randy Wells? Marshall vs. Brad Thompson. Whatever, they all suck. Go to sleep. If every one of these guys is in top form and on the top of their game Z=Carp Harden>Wainwright Lilly>Lohse Dempster>Piniero Wells/Marshall>The number 5 starter carousel equivelent of Blanco/Miles/Freel.

how do you use it correctly? Marshalls the only guy who can really be trusted. Lou wont even consider taking Marmol out of the 8th inning role. Heilmans crap.I dont know what to make of Hart or Ascanio yet, and Patton may as well not exist. Just send him back to Colordo or Cincinatti or whoever has his rights and audition a few Iowa guys and if that doesnt work out, make a trade. You are right that Lou doesnt know how to use the pen, but he really doesnt have much to work with. Guzman should be the set up man until Marmol figures it out. Heilman isnt crap, he's basically George Sherrill. If Lou knew how to handle Marshall we wouldnt need to use 5 relievers a game. We need to get Guzman back first. I think the transition was about to be made before he went down. Your right that Marshall can put in several innings, but he cant do it every game.

Maybe because he won't have a position to play when Aramis comes back? Unless you can magically turn him into a decent defensive middle infielder, we have no room for him. I understand you'd rather see DLee, Bradley, Fuku, or Soriano traded, but this is not a fantasy world. Well I guess it all comes down to the usual problem - our GM is terrible. Hendry is good with mid season trades. As for free agents, not so much. Any GM on a team with deep pockets can target a guy and throw a ludicris contract at him. The hard part is figuring out whose the right guy for the team.

how do you use it correctly? Marshalls the only guy who can really be trusted. Lou wont even consider taking Marmol out of the 8th inning role. Heilmans crap.I dont know what to make of Hart or Ascanio yet, and Patton may as well not exist. Just send him back to Colordo or Cincinatti or whoever has his rights and audition a few Iowa guys and if that doesnt work out, make a trade. You are right that Lou doesnt know how to use the pen, but he really doesnt have much to work with.

look you just equated chris perez, a guy who can throw 100 mph and struck out 12 guys per 9 IP, to a pitcher with 4.5 K/9 IP and a 1:1 K/BB ratio the past three years. if you don't want to be goofed on, don't do things like that. I was being faitly serious about Ascanio, partially with Hart, and downright bitter and sarcastic about Berg. I know we could have put something better together. However, as much of a bitter pil it is to swallow, our real problem is the pen. The offense seems to be getting it together. The starting hasnt been as lights out as it was when the offense was MIA, but its still damn good, but the pen has been our achilles heal all year, and thats where we really need help. If we could have Fox as the regular 3B until Ramirez is back, Id be OK with Blanco, Font, or Freel as the #8 guy.

(a) chris perez is better than the names you listed. (b) i like how your PTBNL is just a five-letter asset that apparently does not differ from one team to another. He's on a roll. Ive just been served by the not so dynamic duo. whoa is me.

Its bad. fix it. Now that DeRosas off the table, and Aramis' return is seemingly on the horizon, its time to fix the achilles heal of this team, being the bullpen. Clearly, Carlos Marmol is no longer 8th inning material. Sean Marshall is the only capable one of the bunch, but for some reason, Lou doesnt like to use the guy properly. The Orioles suposedly want to move George Sherill. Cubs and Orioles like making trades. Why not make a trade for George Sherill? Huh. Also, may as well just stock up on DFAd relievers and hope to catch lightening in a bottle, because I cant imagine it getting much worse than what we have now.

This might be a good thing. Now that Aramis' return is on the horizon, they can focus on fixing the pen which is a bigger problem.

So basically, we could have had him for Jose Ascanio and a PTBNL. Or Kevin Hart and a PTBNL. or Justin Berg and a PTBNL. Hendry better go out there and make a trade of his own now, because the amount of Hendry hate is about to skyrocket.

So we couldnt have put together something better? Seriosuly, fire Hendry. The piece of trash needs to go.

No use crying over this game when we knew that nobody in the pen is capable of holding on to a 1 run lead, with the possible exception of Marshall, and unfortunately, Lou, who has no idea how to manage a bullpen doesnt know how to use him either. Too bad the Cards, Reds, and Brewers all won.

No one pitched to him in '06. But the Jeffs became light out and Yadi Molina started slapping bombs. The 2009 Cardinals dont have the supporting cast that the 2006 Cards did. Rick Ankiel and Ryan Ludwick are not Jim Edmonds and Scott Rolen.

Seriosuly, if the Cards dont make a significant aquisition at the dealine, if the do make the playoffs, the have no chance to advance, because nobodys going to pitch to Pujols.

Pujols with another 2 run bomb. God these pitchers are stupid.

Wanna bet? 2-0 Cards already. Can't pitch to Pujols. Someday teams will figure this out. 3-2 Twins now thanks the Brendan Harris, but yeah, theres really no point pitching to Pujols when hes surrounded by so much garbage.

Come on Jim, we wont say so much as an I told you so. Just make it happen for that love of all that is good. Knowing Derosa feelings about Chicago, I wondering if Mark is privately hoping the Indians send him back to the Cubs? :-k If you heard what he was saying when at Wrigley for the Indians series, theres really nothing private about it.