Transmogrified Tiger

the embed crops the full picture

Adbert since Memorial Day: 28.2 IP, 23 H, 8 R, 36/4 K/BB, 2 HR

I think the plan was for Leiter + Merryweather to get 7 outs given where the lefties are in the order, but when it took Leiter 3 hitters and 15 pitches to get 1 out they decided it wasn't worth it to try and squeeze a little more out of him and went to Cuas.

Awareness is a big problem in that neck of the woods

amazing how appealing a product looks when it follows the Pooph commercial

Nico swinging like he promised a sick kid 2 HR tonight

how did he lose his bat and hit the ball in fair territory

Vlad Jr isn't gonna play first the rest of the year at this rate

I think it's more because he looks like someone put Rowdy Tellez through a can crusher

Yes Seiya, he missed the first curve that didn't hit the spot but didn't let him get away with it again

He went 83 pitches last time on 4 days rest, and today he's on 5 days rest, so I imagine it'll be more dictated by performance how close he gets to triple digits.

This is something I didn't realize until a couple years ago, the Jays are Canada's team and they travel very well. Living in Washington you'd hear grumbles because when the Jays go to Seattle they basically take over the stadium despite being thousands of miles from Toronto.

McGwire was more encouraging than his overall line too considering he was perfect through 2 with 4 Ks Hope starting his pro career 6 for 16 with a HR and 5/4 BB/K definitely has my attention.

Shaw and Ballesteros both with HR

Not sure I've seen two different outfielders overrun a ball on consecutive at bats before.

Shaw is in RF tonight, that's interesting

If only we had a power hitting lefty 1B with a sub-20 K% in AAA to use as a PH in these situations, amirite

I hadn't seen anything, but yeah that's what it says: https://chicago.suntimes.com/cubs/2023/8/9/23826866/cubs-comeback-falls-short-despite-seiya-suzukis-breakout-vs-mets-ben-brown-ryan-jensen It's just ambiguous enough that I'm not 100% certain it's a typo, but I'd still bet that's what it is.

There's lots of long tail possibilities that make it difficult to reduce to an absolute probability. For one example, like you mention Madrigal is more likely to beat out a DP turn than many, but the Mets may be more aggressive in trying to get the runner at 3rd on a ground ball to the pitcher or left side.

Maybe there's a secret clause in the contracts of Leeds defensive midfielders that obligates them to be sold to mega clubs to languish on the bench. Chelsea's still hot after Caicedo too, on top of being a picture of dysfunction and Adams not being a particularly clean fit for Pocchetino ball.

Ross's full quote mentioned they pitched around Nico and that brings up Happ(one of the best OBP options on the team) with the bases loaded, which is a matchup they like and will absolutely take.

Welcome! They announced yesterday that Smyly is going to the bullpen for now and Assad is starting in his place next time through.

Tyler why

The Cubs are 6th in SB and SBA, and 4th in BsR, the idea that not trying to steal third base with Candelario(who was a whisker from getting picked off 2nd on the first pitch) is emblematic of them being overly conservative and leaving runs on the table on the bases is absurd to me. He has never attempted a steal of 3rd as a big leaguer. With his mediocre speed (56th percentile sprint per Statcast) Candelario's SB are basically all crimes of opportunity, taking advantage of neglectful pitchers and defenses. That's the opposite of the current situation, because even if they don't suspect Candelario of trying to steal, they're going to be not only positioned to hold his lead to play Madrigal but they want to keep him from getting a head start since they hope a poor bunt gives them a shot at the force at 3rd. I said it in the game thread, but that plate appearance posed the choice of either hitting Madrigal or a catcher, a DP is a real risk and given Madrigal's bat control, probably greater than that of a failed bunt. Yes, Morel isn't the paragon of contact behind him, but you're still lowering the bar for both him and Hoerner/Happ to tie the game and take the lead. I can accept that some people might prefer some other permutation of decisions for various reasons, though I do think fans of a certain age have overcorrected on bunt hatred when teams *must* have one run as opposed to old-school managers bunting with their 2 hitter in the 1st inning. But stealing 3rd is not a high percentage play, bunting is certainly not an objectively bad one, and letting Madrigal or a catcher swing away gives you a most likely outcome of Morel stepping to the plate needing to do even more than he needed last night, at which point he's still the point of failure for the inning's success and not the decision in the previous PA.