Outshined_One

I know you weren't, but I was killing two birds with one stone. :P I think what was critical for Guzman this season was for him to pitch a full season without sustaining any season-ending arm injuries. He's already over the 100 inning mark; it's clear the Cubs have been babying him all season due to his recent troubles. I can understand why the Cubs have yo-yo'd him. They want to keep an eye on his pitch count, which can easily be done down in AAA. Let's face it, Mike Quade's not sitting on any hot seats and won't be likely to make his starters throw 150 pitches in an outing because the starters "felt fine". I think Marmol has a good chance of becoming an effective starter in 2007. He's shown potential and has some good major league outings under his belt. Give him some more time and development; he'll be fine.

I'm well aware of the differences. However, both are rookies with limited experience in the big leagues. The Cubs are going to get inconsistent outings from both at this point; neither is a guarantee to go out there and pitch 6 good innings. However, if we go into next season with a rotation of Z-Schmidt or Zito-Prior-Young Guy #1-Young Guy #2, I'm not liking the Cubs' chances. Health problems could inevitably lead to one or two more rookie SPs coming into the rotation at some point. I like the potential and the depth the Cubs have at SP right now, but we don't know what to expect out of those young guys in terms of consistency. Getting a halfway decent #3/#4 guy along with some one like Zito or Schmidt would go a long, long way. While the offense has had its share of problems, getting a strong pitching staff would make life a lot easier for everyone involved.

I think you have to be very careful with that line of thinking. While confidence can definitely help a hitter's approach at the plate, overconfidence can be a killer. If you go up to the plate every time with the mentality that you're getting a hit on the first seemingly good pitch you see, that will lead to plenty of swings at bad pitches resulting in strikes or outs. By the way, I'll probably have my rebuttal up in the EPatt thread in the next few days. :P

Guzman really should be the one getting those starts. I don't know if it really matters though, I guess. Six in one, half dozen in the other. This is why the Cubs absolutely have to sign/trade for two veteran starting pitchers in the offseason. Just getting Jason Schmidt or Barry Zito won't be enough, imo.

Marmol was brought up way before he was ready for the bigs. I give him credit for his performances so far, but the fact remains that he has plenty left to work on before reaching his potential.

Apparently with DirecTV, I can watch CSN...except for Cubs games. Okay then.

As of August 15th... Overall (AVG/OBP/SLG): .246/.281/.430 Harvey's BABIP by the month: April: .184 May: .217 June: .333 July: .351 August: .444 Harvey's offensive numbers (AVG/OBP/SLG) by the month: April: .179/.238/.385 May: .167/.224/.211 June: .257/.265/.396 July: .305/.327/.642 August: .360/.400/.560 Park Adjusted (AVG/OBP/SLG): .237/.275/.397 If you want more, go here. He was victimized by bad luck earlier in the season, but I'm just seeing red flags galore with his numbers. A guy at High A with his numbers (especially plate discipline) just screams red flags galore. Let's face it, he hasn't lived up to his billing at the 6th overall pick in a draft that featured some of the best young players and prospects in baseball today. At the rate things are going, I don't think that is going to change.

Do I detect sarcasm? Nope.

Boston and New York have baseball teams? Huh...who knew?

There is something to be said for whether or not Corey would be procuding like this in Chicago due to Dusty and his merry band of idiots continuing to wreck him. Cripes, I bet CPatt has nightmares of Gene Clines teaching him how to pick up a high four seam fastball.

Box Scores Iowa lost 7-4 Box Score CF F. Pie 4/5, 2 R, 2B (29) 2B F. Bynum 1/4, BB, RBI LF M. Restovich 1/4, 2 RBI, 2 K 3B C. McGehee 1/4, 2B (25) RF B. Coats 0/3, BB, 3 K, CS (4) C G. Soto 1/4 PH J. Reyes 0/1 SP R. Wells 4 IP, 7 H, 5 ER, 3/5 K/BB, 4-5 GO-FO West Tenn lost 5-2 Box Score CF C. Walker 1/3, 2 K 2B R. Lewis 0/4, K 3B S. Moore 1/4, RBI, K, SB (12) 1B B. Sing 0/2, 2 BB, 2 K RF M. Negron 1/4, K, CS (4) PH J. Fox 0/1 SP F. Baez 5.1 IP, 6 H, 5 R, 4 ER, 0/4 K/BB, 2 HR, 4-12 GO-FO RP A. Mendez 2 scoreless, 2 H, 0/2 K/BB, 3-3 GO-FO RP T. Atlee 1 perfect, 1/0 K/BB, 2-0 GO-FO Daytona lost 5-4 Box Score 2B N. Spears 2/5, 2 R, 2 K SS J. Simokaitis 0/3, BB, K, HBP 1B M. Craig 2/4, R, 2B (32), 2 K RF R. Harvey 2/4, 2 RBI C J. Muyco 0/3, BB, K SP M. Holliman 6 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 5/0 K/BB, HBP, 3-10 GO-FO Peoria lost in a no-hitter 12-0 Box Score CF D. Gregg 0/3, BB, 2 K 2B F. Tirado 0/4, 3 K LF J. Valdez 0/3 DH R. Norwood 0/3, 2 K 3B R. Malone 0/3, E (10, throw) 1B A. Garcia 0/3, K SS K. Reynolds 0/1, BB, K PH/SS R. Chirinos 0/1 RF Y. Carter 0/2, BB SP F. Jimenez Angulo 4 IP, 6 H, 8 R, 6 ER, 1/2 K/BB, WP, 3 HBP, 9-2 GO-FO, E (1, pickoff) RP J. Yepez .2 IP, 2 H, 4 ER, 1/3 K/BB, 0-1 GO-FO, E (3, missed catch) Boise won 5-1 Box Score CF M. Camp 3/4, 3 R, RBI, 2 2B (8) LF T. Colvin 3/4, 2 RBI, 2B (11) 1B R. Canzler 0/4 RF A. Joseph 0/4, K 3B E. Puello 0/1 3B J. Lansford 0/1 SS P. Lopez 1/2, R, K, SB (2) 2B S. Clevenger 2/3, BB, RBI, CS (2) DH DJ Lewis 1/2, 2B (14) C M. Mercedes 0/3 SP W. Muldowney 4 scoreless, 2 H, 3/3 K/BB, 4-4 GO-FO RP K. Kopach 1.1 hitless/scoreless, 0/2 K/BB, HBP, 1-3 GO-FO RP A. Maestri 1 hitless/scoreless, 2/1 K/BB, 1-0 GO-FO Mesa won 8-1 Box Score 3B V. Heredia 1/4, BB, 3 K, 2 SB (24) SS N. Samson 0/4, BB, R, RBI, K RF C. Andersen 1/4, BB, R, K LF C. Gilbert 2/5, 2 R, 4 RBI, 3B (1), HR (4), 2 K C C. Perez 2/4, R, K, SB (2) CF W. Inoa 0/4, 2 K DH L. Rosario 3/4, 2 R, RBI, K, 2 SB (9) 2B C. Valentin 1/3, BB, RBI, K SP J. Ceda 4 scoreless, 2 H, 6/4 K/BB, 1-4 GO-FO RP R. Hernandez 3 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 1/0 K/BB, WP, 5-3 GO-FO OVERALL: 2-4

...wow. That's one impressively bad metaphor.

My other problem is that they gave up CPatt for a whole lot of nothing. Granted, his trade value wasn't very high at the time, but neither prospect the Cubs got for him will likely amount to much...if anything.

We're currently at the "Padding the ol' resume" phase of Dusty's tenure here.

Box Scores Iowa lost 6-1 Box Score CF F. Pie 2/4, RBI, 2B (28), K 2B F. Bynum 0/4, 2 K LF M. Restovich 0/4, 2 K 3B C. McGehee 1/4 RF B. Coats 1/4, K C G. Soto 2/4, 2B (19), K PH L. Montanez 1/1 SP S. Marshall 5.2 IP, 4 H, 6 ER, 6/4 K/BB, HR, 3 WP, 5-6 GO-FO RP J. Williams .1 perfect, 1-0 GO-FO West Tenn lost 6-5 Box Score CF C. Walker 1/4, R, 2B (19), K, CS (18) 2B E. Patterson 0/3, K LF R. Lewis 1/4 C J. Fox 1/4, R, K 1B B. Sing 2/3, BB, 2 R, 2 RBI, HR (7) 3B S. Moore 1/4, R, K, E (19, throw) RF M. Negron 2/4, 2 RBI, 3B (4) SP I. Pavlik 5 IP, 9 H, 3 ER, 6/2 K/BB, 4-4 GO-FO RP T. Atlee 1 IP, 3 H, 3 ER, HR, 1-2 GO-FO Daytona lost 5-4 Box Score DH N. Spears 1/5, RBI, 2B (13) SS J. Mota 0/5, R, E (15, fielding) 1B M. Craig 1/3, RBI, HBP RF R. Harvey 2/3, BB, R, RBI, 2B (23) 2B J. Simokaitis 1/3, BB, R, K, E (13, fielding) C J. Muyco 1/4, RBI SP J. Berg 3 IP, 1 H, 2 R, 0 ER, 1/3 K/BB, 2 WP, HBP, 7-0 GO-FO (Rehabbing) RP M. Phelps 2.1 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 2/2 K/BB, 1-3 GO-FO Peoria won 7-2 Box Score 2B F. Tirado 1/5, R, 2B (1), 3 K 3B R. Lilly 2/5, K CF J. Valdez 1/3, BB, 2 R, HBP 1B R. Norwood 1/2, 2 BB, 2 R, RBI, 2B (23), K DH R. Malone 1/4, R, 2 RBI, 3B (2) LF A. Garcia 1/2, BB, R, 2 RBI, HR (4), K SS K. Reynolds 1/4, RBI, K RF Y. Carter 0/4, 2 K SP M. Atkins 6 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 12/2 K/BB, HR, 1-5 GO-FO Boise wins 7-6 in 12, Box Score SS M. Matulia 2/5, BB, R, RBI, 2 K, 3B (4) LF T. Colvin 1/5, R, 2 RBI, 3B (5) 3B J. Lansford 1/5, R, 2 RBI, 2 K 1B R. Canzler 1/6, RBI, 2B (16), E (9, throwing) RF A. Joseph 0/4, 2 BB, CS (2) DH E. Puello 3/4, R SP M. Pawelek 4.2 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 1/3 K/BB, WP, 6-7 GO-FO RP J. Papelbon 2 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 4/2 K/BB, HBP, 1-1 GO-FO RP R. Roquet 1.2 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 4/1 K/BB, 1-0 GO-FO - blown save in the 9th RP M. Cooper 3 shutout IP, 2 H, 4/2 K/BB, 3-2 GO-FO Mesa lost 6-2 Box Score 2B V. Heredia 1/4 SS N. Samson 2/4, R, K CF D. Rundle 0/4, 4 K RF C.Andersen 2/4, 2B (5) DH C. Gilbert 1/4, SB (1) LF W. Inoa 0/4, 4 K, Assist (Home) 1B L. Murphy 0/2, BB, K SP R. Dolis 2 IP, 3 H, 3 ER, 1/1 K/BB, 3-2 GO-FO RP O. Bernard 2 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 0/1 K/BB, 4-2 GO-FO

Kottaras is the top prospect in the Padres' system and a very good prospect at catcher, especially considering he might get a crack at the starting job in 2007. It'll take a lot to pry him away from them.

Box Scores Iowa lost 6-3 Box Score CF F. Pie 2/5, R, RBI, 2B (27), HR (12), K 2B F. Bynum 0/3, K (FEAR HIS WRATH!) LF L. Montanez 0/1 3B/2B C. McGehee 0/3, BB, R, K LF/RF M. Restovich 1/4, K RF/2B B. Coats 2/4, R, 2B (18), Assist (2B) C J. Reyes 0/4, K, E (1, throw) SP W. Miller 6 IP, 7H, 3 ER, 7/1 K/BB, 2 HR, 2-8 GO-FO West Tenn won 4-1 Box Score CF C. Walker 0/4, 2 K 2B E. Patterson 1/4, 2 R, K, SB (38) RF R. Lewis 2/4, R, RBI, 2B (15), K 3B S. Moore 1/2, R, 2 RBI, HBP 1B B. Sing 3/4, RBI, 2B (7) PH J. Fox 0/1 SP C. Shaver 5 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 3/1 K/BB, 5-6 GO-FO RP L. Holdzkom 3 perfect, 5/0 K/BB, 2-2 GO-FO RP A. Mendez 1 perfect, 3/0 K/BB Daytona won 5-4 in the 12th Box Score 2B N. Spears 1/5, BB, K SS J. Mota 2/5, R 1B M. Craig 3/6, RBI, K, E (8, throw) RF R. Harvey 3/5, BB, 2 R, RBI, HR (19) PH/DH J. Simokaitis 0/2 C J. Muyco 0/5, 2 K SP D. Veal 5.2 IP, 3 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 5/3 K/BB, HBP, 4-6 GO-FO Peoria won 9-5 Box Score CF D. Gregg 0/4, BB, 2 R, K SS R. Lilly 3/5, 3 R, RBI, 2B (4), HR (3) LF J. Valdez 1/4, BB, R, SB (10) 1B R. Norwood 2/4, BB, R, SB (5) SS R. Chirinos 0/3, BB, RBI 2B R. Malone 1/3, 2 BB, R, RBI, K DH A. Garcia 1/4, 2 RBI, 2B (19) RF Y. Carter 0/4, 2 K C M. Reed 0/4, R, K SP J. Santo 5 IP, 7 H, 5 ER, 5/2 K/BB, HR, 4 WP, 2 HBP, 3-6 GO-FO RP M. Avery 1 perfect, 1/0 K/BB, 0-2 GO-FO Boise with a day off. Mesa lost 2-0 Box Score 3B V. Heredia 1/4, K SS N. Samson 0/4, K CF D. Rundle 0/4, 3 K, E (2, throw) LF C. Andersen 0/3, K C C. Perez 1/3 2B L. Rosario 1/2, K SP T. Parker 5 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 1/1 K/BB, 11-3 GO-FO OVERALL: 3-2

Ugh, what a horrible turn of events for the guy. From the Q&A we had and from what I've read, he seemed like a really classy guy. I really wish nothing but the best for him in his recovery!

Um, one problem with that argument. The US suffers in the WBC because there are a number of rule changes that go against the US' strengths in basketball. The problem is, the NBA has been hell-bent on getting their name players and coaches in there. We saw this when Larry Brown was in Athens and completely botched everything by not playing his promising young players and sticking to a poor coaching plan. We saw this when a bunch of the me-first ballhogs and egomaniacs were selected to the teams (and continue to be, I'll add), which resulted in a number of no-look passes going flying into the fifth row and tons of low-percentage shots taken. It's an exhibition during the offseason to these guys; I don't think many of them take it seriously. The WBC isn't necessarily about talent. It's about putting together the best team to fit the rules. Unfortunately for the NBA, a number of their star players simply do not fit that mold. They do have a number of guys who are average/above average who would thrive in that environment, however. Unfortunately, those guys rarely get the nod thanks to jersey sales and ratings.

Postponed games, double headers, and off days have mucked that up sufficiently.

You also have to factor in medical technology, which has expanded by leaps and bounds in the past few decades. All of the guys who have undergone Tommy John Surgery would have had their careers ended if this were back in the old days. Now, while these advances are a boon for baseball, you also get a lot more guys in the mix who are more injury-prone, as it were. Guys whose bodies can't handle the strain as well as others now can extend their career by a number of years. Yet, they also will become injured again and again during that time because their body simply can't handle the stress on its own. Secondly, the average number of runs scored in a game has risen significantly since the last dead ball era. Whether it's because of steroids, the fact that the ball might be juiced, better hitters, or whatever, pitchers now have to throw a lot more pitches per inning than they did all those years ago. I wouldn't necessarily look at P/PA, but instead something more along the lines of P/IP. That should give a better idea of matters. Finally, two critical things have happened that should not be overlooked. The first one is the fact that the strike zone has contracted. It can be traced to both the way umps call the game and QuesTec, which has been MLB's way of evaluating those strike zone (uselessly, I'll add). Secondly, the mound has been lowered. This had a large effect on pitchers' mechanics, the downward plane of the pitch, and other important things. Also, cubbie, if K'ing were a sin in the old days, then this list shouldn't have as many HOFers from the 50s, 60s, and 70s than it does.

Box Scores Iowa lost 8-1 Box Score CF F. Pie 1/4, 3B (6), K LF F. Bynum 2/4, RBI (He's baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack) RF M. Restovich 1/4, 3B (3), K 3B C. McGehee 0/2, 2 BB 2B B. Coats 0/4, 2 K, E (8, throw) C G. Soto 0/3, BB, 2 K SP L. Walrond 5.2 IP, 7 H, 7 ER, 5/5 K/BB, 2 HR, 3 WP, 7-4 GO-FO RP A. Shipman 1.1 scoreless, 1 H, 2/0 K/BB, 2-0 GO-FO West Tenn won 2-1 Box Score CF C. Walker 1/4, R, 2 SB (39) 2B E. Patterson 1/2, 2 BB, R, K 1B R. Lewis 0/4 3B S. Moore 1/4, 2 RBI C J. Fox 3/4, 2B (10), K RF M. Negron 0/4, K SP S. Gallagher 6 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 10/3 K/BB, HR, 2-6 GO-FO RP T. Atlee 1.2 scoreless, 1 H, 2/0 K/BB, 1-2 GO-FO Daytona lost Game 1 of their DH 11-4 Box Score 2B N. Spears 2/4, R, 2B (12) DH J. Simokaitis 0/4, RBI, K 1B M. Craig 2/4, RBI, 2B (31), SB (5), E (7, missed catch) RF R. Harvey 1/3, R, 2 RBI, HR (18), K SS J. Mota 1/3, R SP C. Perez 2.1 IP, 6 H, 6 ER, 1/3 K/BB, 3-2 GO-FO RP G. Johnson 2.2 IP, 6 H, 5 R, 1 ER, 1/1 K/BB, HR, 3-4 GO-FO RP M. Phelps 1 perfect, 3-0 GO-FO Daytona lost Game 2 of their DH 1-0 (Rain-shortened) Box Score 2B N. Spears 0/3, K SS J. Simokaitis 0/0, HBP SS J. Mota 0/2 1B M. Craig 0/2 RF R. Harvey 0/2 C J. Muyco 0/2, K SP R. Bicondoa 5 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 6/3 K/BB, Balk, 5-4 GO-FO Peoria lost 5-2 Box Score CF D. Gregg 1/5, 2B (9), K SS F. Tirado 1/4, BB, R, K LF J. Valdez 1/3, BB, R, K, SB (9), HBP 1B R. Norwood 3/4, RBI, K, HBP DH R. Malone 0/4, BB, K RF Y. Carter 0/3, BB, RBI, 3 K 3B K. Reynolds 0/4, K, E (11, fielding) 2B A. Garcia 2/4, 2 K C M. Reed 0/4, 2 K SP T. Blackford 4 IP, 8 H, 5 ER, 3/0 K/BB, HR, WP, 5-4 GO-FO RP J. Yepez 1.1 scoreless, 1 H, 2/1 K/BB, 1-1 GO-FO Boise lost 7-0 Box Score RF M. Camp 1/4 CF T. Colvin 1/4, 3B (4), K 3B J. Lansford 0/4 1B R. Canzler 0/3, BB, K LF DJ Lewis 0/2, 2 BB 2B S. Clevenger 1/4, K DH E. Puello 1/3 SP M. Billek .1 IP, 7 H, 7 ER, 1/0 K/BB, HR Mesa lost Game 1 of their DH 7-0 Box Score 2B V. Heredia 0/3, 2 K, E (12, fielding) SS N. Samson 0/1, BB, K, HBP CF D. Rundle 1/3, 2B (6), E (1, fielding) LF C. Gilbert 0/2, HBP 1B L. Murphy 0/2, 2 E, (7, fielding x2) DH W. Inoa 1/2 SP C. Huseby 3.1 IP, 8 H, 4 ER, 1/0 K/BB, WP, 7-1 GO-FO Mesa won Game 2 of their DH 7-4 Box Score 3B L. Rosario 0/4, K SS N. Samson 0/2, 2 BB, R, E (3, throw) DH D. Rundle 0/3, BB, R, K RF C. Andersen 2/2, BB, 2 R, RBI, 2B (4), SB (5), PO (2B) 1B L. Murphy 0/2, K LF W. Inoa 1/3, 2 RBI 2B C. Valentin 0/2, BB, K, SB (3) SP M. Carrillo 5 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 7/0 K/BB, 4-3 GO-FO RP D. Walters 1 hitless/scoreless, 1/1 K/BB, 2-0 GO-FO OVERALL: 2-7

Not any more. :P

FYI, Q is the source I mentioned earlier.

My thing with the lineups regarding Yost was based on what I saw of him during my past four years at UW-Madison. Perhaps he has improved on that particular aspect of the game recently, but I remember him putting out some really strange lineups during that time. Sometimes, it had to do with the quality of players he had to work with, but a number of other times, it just didn't make sense. That said, I'd happily trade the Brewers' position players for the guys the Cubs have.