brinoch

I deleted the pictures. Not only was it not particularly topical, but it was unnecessarily graphic.

Am I missing something here? Mauer's been having some real problems staying healthy because of leg injuries from catching. In particular, according to BP's Will Carroll: If Mauer just physically can't take catching day in and day out, the smart thing to do is make him a DH. With Mauer's bat, keeping him in the line-up is more important than keeping him behind the plate.

This is a nice analysis -- thanks, Truffle. I think the Cubs have a realistic shot for .340. Without thinking about the pitcher, I was thinking a .350 team OBP because that's pretty much the basement for what I'd look for in a player.

And, they'll be in solid contention, yes? In the last few years, there's been at least one or two teams that have been at or near .350 in the NL. Obviously, with the pitcher in the lineup, that makes things a little tougher. (I'd actually be interested in the adjusted OBP for each team from '03-'06, but that's neither here nor there.)

I like visiting other teams boards and having intelligent discussions based on observation and statistical analysis. I have never been a troll and like to just talk baseball. If I feel that I can add something to a discussion, I might chime in, but not usually on another team's board. However, it is comments like these that I have a hard time with. The Brewers have been clearly a better team than the Cubs this year. The Cubs have won some games against weak opponents just like the Brewers have done lately and have climbed over .500 playing some good baseball. However, the Brewers have been and are the better team as of 5/6/07. Now could that change. Of course. I would hope the Cubs would be more competitive than they were to begin the season based on talent and payroll alone, but you have to give credit where credit is do. The Brewers are the better team right now. Now I will return to the woodwork. I think there's a distinction between saying the Cubs are just as good as the Brewers and saying the Cubs have won as many games as the Brewers(obviously false). For example, fan favorite Neifi Perez went 2 for 4 with a 2B and a HR today. Aramis Ramirez went 0 for 4 with a walk. No one questions Neifi performed better today, but to extrapolate that he's better isn't correct for a multitude of reasons. Likewise, the Brewers have won several more games than the Cubs to this point, but peripheral factors(run differential, analysis of the players/teams prior to the season) indicate they are very close to each other in overall ability. So while no one questions that the Brewers have won more games, that doesn't necessarily mean they've improved on the whole from where they were thought to be at the beginning of the year. They are who we thought they are. Just crown their !

If the Cubs can get the team OBP to .350, I rather think they'll be in solid contention this season. The pitching's there, and if the hitting keeps at this clip, I like our chances.

I think they should move Mauer to DH for the season. Over the course of the next year, they should also see if they can convert him to another position -- 3B or OF.

I don't blame Victorino for trying, but that was a pretty bad call, imo. He was clearly going for Vizquel, and not trying to get to a base. He should have been out. And we all know that Joe Morgan is a moron. :)

Seriously, how are you a mod? ?dennab neeb ton uoy evah woh ,ylsuoireS

Bulls games 7th Heaven. I'm a hardcore fan. Heh heh. 7th Heaven and hardcore in the same post. That's funny.

It was two doubles. At once. Because Lee is that good.

I love DLee.

He's terrible at this point.

Frankly? I think Lou lies.

This is exactly what I feared would happen when we signed Sweet Lou. More veterans in the lineup; lots of young players fetching coffee. Look at what he did in TB and you'll see what I mean.

Well, not if you want guys on base so Soriano can drive them in.

He's posting an .897 OPS. That's better than anyone we have in our outfield, and Sosa's more than .100 ahead of any Cub outfielder other than Soriano. As compared to Soriano's .853, Floyd's .747, Jones's .721 and Murton's .688. Why is Jones on this team, again? Sammy might be old, his defense may have regressed, and there may have been hard feelings, but he can still hit the ball.

This is from MLB's Gameday: Washington Nationals 1. Lopez, SS 2. Belliard, 2B 3. Zimmerman, 3B 4. Church, CF 5. Kearns, RF 6. Young, 1B 7. Schneider, C 8. Castro, LF 9. Bergmann, P Chicago Cubs: 1. Soriano, LF 2. Floyd, RF 3. Lee, 1B 4. Ramirez, 3B 5. Barrett, C 6. Jones, CF 7. DeRosa, 2B 8. Izturis, SS 9. Zambrano, P

I thought he looked Ri-DIC-u-lous, actually.

awesome link, but think you meant this for another thread :lol: Soon you thread nazis are going to want everything posted where it is being talked about and not in random threads in different forums. It disgusts me. I hear OMC and Sulley were debating again in Social/Rants.

My suggestion is to hope the Cubs have a good May -- something they are very capable of doing -- and then we can re-evaluate the situation come June 1. Yes, the Cubs had a terrible April. They lost several games in true Cub-like fashion, leading to much frustration in Cubdom. It's still early, and if the Cubs can get on a roll, and they seem to be on right now, I think they can really make some headway.

Let's worry about getting to .500 before worrying about what place they are in. :)

True, but they won this one. Now let's go win the second one. This could be a key day for the Cubs.

I agree that you have to do what you have to do to win the first. I just think it's pretty clear this will affect Dempster, and kind of ridiculous to suggest there is no difference. Fair enough -- we're in agreement.

Is there really a significant difference between asking him to get three outs or four? Magic 8-ball says not likely. Actually yes. Dempster had to warm up to pitch this inning. He threw 5 pitches. He will warm up again next inning, then throw how ever many pitches. Considering that the vast majority of the time Dempster will warm up and throw one time a day. I don't see him being expected to come back 3-4 hours from now and pitching again. You'll have to forgive me if I disagree that it will make a difference. I think it'll make a difference, and Dempster will likely be unavailable for the second game. But I think trying to lock down the first game is more important than perhaps needing Dempster for the second game. Wuertz is available, and he's more than capable. But, what is "it"? If he is unavailable later, I think it's because he closed out the first game and Lou doesn't want him pitching more than once in a day. I don't think it makes one bit of difference whether he went 1.0 or 1.3 to get the save. That's just silly, IMHO. The number of pitches he throws, cumulatively, will probably preclude Dempster from coming into the second game. He's at 15 now, plus warming up in the 'pen and before this inning. Not a good idea to tax him with another outing much later in the day.