CubsWin

Take it PMs at this point or start a new topic. Title it "Is Nico Hoerner Fast?" or something. I mean, for Pete's sake, check the horse every now and then to see if it's still breathing...

And getting rocked. I was disappointed with FB velocity only being in the 94-96 range in a short burst. And thought his infield defense could’ve helped limit some of that damage. Yeah he was throwing some heat but not well commanded tonight. Almost threw two over the mitt of the catcher who had to jump up and make nice athletic plays to get them. He also left several FBs over the heart of the plate that got hit hard. He's been better. Maybe had some butterflies.

And getting rocked.

Yeah, and Statcast isn't perfect either. I mean that guy isn't running in a straight line out there. How are those computers supposed to tell? You simply cannot accurately identify the speed of a two different moving objects. Baseballs are round and small. Human beings are a completely different shape and much, much larger when you measure them.

Don't know what the FO is thinking, but I'd have no problem that.

Yeah, what is he talking about? He hurt his arm and has to rehab? What? I'm pretty sure he's fully healthy now. The only mention of this injury to Alzolay has ever been a lat strain. This spring he did injure his ankle which got him off to a delayed start in Iowa. For those interested in why Adbert is highly thought of, here's an excellent rundown of Alzolay's stuff with plenty of video from Cubs blogger Michael Ernst. http://www.chicagonow.com/cubs-den/2018/09/end-of-season-prospect-review-adbert-alzolay/

Phil's announcement must have been a little late. Simon and Jaramillo we knew about. Both played in the DSL this summer, but Montero's new.

Austins Upshaw and Fillere sure fell off the map the season. Still not sure what the Cubs have in Erick Leal, but the numbers sure are encouraging. That AA rotation next year should be fun. Lange, Abbott, Miller, Leal and Clark could all be in that rotation. Due to the logjam in Iowa (assuming not cuts/trades), the Cubs could holdover Swarmer and Thompson pushing Clark and Leal to the pen to start the season.

I'm planning on watching Little start later tonight to see if he was doing anything different or just got lucky in his 5 inning shutout start today. I wonder about what the Cubs do with higher draft pick arms at the lower levels. There's somewhat of a pattern here that I want to look into. Probably nothing.

I guess it's time to rank Delvin Zinn higher than I thought I would on a post-season top 30 list. .333/.419/.410 in 78 August at bats with 11 BB against 18 Ks. The walks have skyrocketed in the last month. In 174 second half ABs he's .299/.351/.345 with 12 BB and 32 Ks. I know he was thought of as a defense first guy when he was drafted in the 23rd round in 2016. (Cubs drafted him in 2015 as well, so they must've liked what they saw.) He's played, 2B, SS and 3B about the same amount this season. Could be a Ronny Cedeno type utility man if he can keep hitting and add a little pop.

Aaaand Lange just gave up a HR...

Lange looking good in the first 2 innings with 1 hit, no runs, no walks and 3 Ks. When his change up is on, it's good... [tweet] [/tweet]

Danis Correa (92-94, T95-96 according AZ Phil) pitched in his 2nd game tonight after being shut down due to an undisclosed injury after ExST. Too bad the season ends tomorrow. We never did get to see Estrada. Correa: 2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K. Hopefully, he'll stay healthy and participate in instructs.

LOL, Velazquez must've put quite a charge into this one. I love how, off the bat, the pitcher points up as if it's a pop up and the ball winds up going over the scoreboard! [tweet] [/tweet]

Myrtle Beach facing Tyler Thomas today. Rough 'em boys!

I think we hope he becomes what we were hoping for from Chatwood I'd take a solid BOR from an 11th rounder for sure.

Riley Thompson in August: 11.1 IP, 10 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 5 BB, 14 K, .244 BAA

Love it. Now we can finally get a look at him on video. Follow one high-performing teenager with another.

Riley Thompson: 1st inning - 1st 2 FB velos were at 91, later 93 and finished the inning with a swinging K on a 95 mph FB on the outside corner. Couldn't get the curve going leaving them all up without much break. Seemed to not have a feel for it. 2nd inning - 2 fastballs at 94 to the first batter which ended in another swinging K. Still missing badly up with the curve. 3rd inning - Finally found his curve ball. 4 out of 5 were good 12-6 breakers for strikes. Hit 95 twice. 4th inning - Curve continuing to look much better and consistent. Some start out high (his arm slot looks pretty much straight over the top) and break straight down with a big loopy break. Others look flatter to start with sharp break at the end. Hit 95 again. Got the last guy looking on a good curve. 1-2-3 inning. 5th inning - Left his only 2 curveballs up again. Got the last batter on a high fastball, check swing but he clearly went around. Notes: Riley was on a set pitch count, as most younger pitchers are in the Cubs system. He retired his last 8 in a row and looked strong when taken out after 72 pitches. Because of his high arm slot, his FB looks like it going straight down which likely leads to his solid 1.44 GO/AO. In the first couple innings (in which he gave up two walks and two hits), he was bouncing some FBs, but once he found his release point, he was fairly consistently at the knees and had good placement of it on the inside corner to left-handers. When he had his curve going, it was quite effective, but that was inconsistent in this game. He's listed at 6'3", 205 lbs., but looks quite slender. It seems like he has the frame to add some upper body muscle especially around his shoulders. I'm not the best at diagnosing a delivery (or a swing for that matter), but it seems his main issue is consistency of release point on both the FB and curve. Again, take that with a grain of salt.

Riley Thompson with another good start. HIs August numbers are very solid. I'll watch the game later and see if any velocities and such are given.

I like the year long stats, too. A healthy 110 IP, 90 H, 8 HRs, 36 BB, 128 K, .224 BAA, 1.15 WHIP, 2.62 ERA. He's got the 2nd round draft pedigree, decent size at 6'2", 210 lbs., and is age appropriate at 22. I was thinking about how next year's starting pitching will look at the given levels. The depth of pitching the Cubs have amassed and developed is readily apparent. AAA - Alzolay, Mills, Clifton, Underwood, Robinson, Rucker, possibly Hatch, Farrell and Tseng AA - Swarmer, Thompson, Lange, Miller, Steele, Abbott A+ - Uelman, Clark, Moreno, Assad, Little, Camargo A - Marquez, Richan, Carrera, Ramos, R. Thompson, possibly Remy and Albertos SS A - Estrada, D. Correa, Y. Cruz, E. Nunez, J. Tejada and possibly K. Franklin, Y. Perez, C. Ocampo and others Rookie - R. Gallardo, S. Vazquez, L. Rodriguez, J. Remon, A. Hernandez, M. Garcia, L. Devers There's very few TOR candidates in there but plenty of depth. I believe in the notion that from volume some quality will emerge and 1 or 2 may surprise well beyond expectations. The Cubs don't look great pitching wise, but they do seem well positioned to produce some quality major league contributors with consistency over the next 3-5 seasons.

That was nice to see. Now he needs to repeat that next time out. And the time after that...

So with Yu, Chatwood and Montgomery on the DL, who's the Cubs 5th starter now? Another trade coming? I hope so because the remaining options are Luke Farrell, Duane Underwood, Alec Mills, Jen-Ho Tseng or adding Trevor Clifton or Kyle Ryan to the 40-man roster. I see that Mills is pitching tomorrow, but that likely won't do going forward.

I run a fantasy league that is designed to be as close to a real NFL GMs experience as possible. We are look for one more owner. -Salaries and contract lengths up to 5 years -Incoming rookie draft with slotted salaries. -Free agent auction for the returning players not on a roster -PPR scoring with points taken away for fumbles, interceptions, etc. -1/2 point return yardage It's been in existence for 7 years now, and we had an owner drop out. We have two owners from NSBB already. Would love a 3rd... PM me or quote this and respond. Thanks!

Love the Godwin pick in the 14th. Like him better than Parker. Good move picking up AP. Given the rest of your team, your QBs should be fine, but yes, picking up a 3 QB would be smart. Are any of the rookie QBs still available? Someone with upside who could play in the 2nd half?