We Got The Whole 9

feels like one team was prepared for this game and the other was not

I thought I might have a virus on my phone but it's literally the only site I get this crap from

Doesn't seem to help on mobile

Random 2-pronged question for you guys 1) does Fangraphs crash constantly on you with stupid claim-the-prize traps? 2) did you pay the money to become a member?

Damn Rucker with another rough go. The swings and misses appear to have gone away quite a bit the last couple starts. Schwarber has a double, K, and BB

Surely. It sure seemed like it that inning though. I am clearly frustrated at the lack of getting em over and getting em in and leadoff runners generally getting stranded at the base they originally reached. So I commented on it. However, if I (paraphrased) say, damn I wish Bryzzo wouldn't have tried to tie it with 1 swing and nobody out, and somebody says, so you want them to go completely against the approach they've used their whole careers... they deserve a smartass reply. It's as if there's no middle ground and people just want to invent reasons to talk sideways. As I posted this Bryzzo put together a couple excellent ABs In general, the tolerance here for people expressing their frustrations in the form of thinly sourced judgements of the team is pretty low. I don't think that means you're wrong, but I don't think that (lack of tolerance) is bad either. I don't really have a problem with it as long as the words aren't twisted to try to make someone look stupid or make their self look witty. That's just cheap most of the time. Anyway I have also not given up on the season unlike many other ninnies in here and I will continue to support them through the ups and downs but I'll still have grievances like everybody else and air em out from time to time.

You guys are damn geniuses. The Cubs should be trying to hit the ball in the air no matter the situation. It is, how they were raised, after all. I would like to submit that your(and my) ability to discern what a major league hitter is trying to do in a given at bat is wayyyyyyyyy lower than you think it is. Surely. It sure seemed like it that inning though. I am clearly frustrated at the lack of getting em over and getting em in and leadoff runners generally getting stranded at the base they originally reached. So I commented on it. However, if I (paraphrased) say, damn I wish Bryzzo wouldn't have tried to tie it with 1 swing and nobody out, and somebody says, so you want them to go completely against the approach they've used their whole careers... they deserve a smartass reply. It's as if there's no middle ground and people just want to invent reasons to talk sideways. As I posted this Bryzzo put together a couple excellent ABs

We already knew, man. You guys are damn geniuses. The Cubs should be trying to hit the ball in the air no matter the situation. It is, how they were raised, after all.

This crack me up at how easy it was to him

But he went totally outside of the approach that is apparently ingrained into his entire being. See, I can do that dumb horsefeathers too.

Hahaha of all people

So does the approach of constantly trying to tie it up with 1 swing when a runner is on. So you want Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo to completely change the approaches that gave them all their big-league success? Oh please. It's called adaptation. You try to be able to adapt to any situation. And those guys have had plenty of success in their careers when they don't hit high fly balls.

Rays are putting on a clinic on situational hitting and the Cubs aren't learning a horsefeathering thing.

Well it'll be 3-0 shortly.

So does the approach of constantly trying to tie it up with 1 swing when a runner is on.

Man Ian that's a horrible pitch to swing at

Judging by Blake Snell's pic he looks like he puffs the cheeba

Not to replacement level. I mean they're different for everybody. Some rise up and some don't. But KB should be markedly better than a 296 wOBA 80 wRC+. Do you think clutch is an attribute? I don't really think it is, especially for a polished hitter like KB. It seems like more a matter of luck and sample size to me but I'd be willing to consider arguments if they are valid. No I don't really consider clutch an attribute but I think some players are able to clear their heads more than others and dictate the direction of the PA and pounce on mistakes while protecting their weak spots. From what I see with Kris he definitely is able to slow down the game and he keeps a keen eye, but pitchers pound him inside and he quite often doesn't get good extension and gets jammed a lot. A lot of weak pop ups and ground balls. His prime directive is to get the ball in the air and I think he tends to force that on pitches that probably aren't conducive to the results he's striving for. See, that's all I want. More runs would be good. It's what we need. We need our MVP to rise to the occasion and this is inarguable. I understand what he did in a few postseason HLS but that's in the past. It's a new year. Yea, real stupid to complain about a lack of runs from the guys we expect to produce them at a high level when our offense is suffering and sputtering.

God it would be awesome if he went back to his 370 wOBA self (or better). The offense really needs an injection. Last year we had 4.5 (half season of Willy) guys well above average and this year we've had 2.5 (half for Happ). I'm actually encouraged by his batted ball direction; it shows a more disciplined approach.

His career wOBA in high leverage situations is 296 and his K% is pushing 30. He has 3 HR and 8 2B in 180+ PA. Nowhere near the type of hitter he is, and the team would benefit greatly if he started performing there more often. He's one of their leaders and should be relied on to drive in runs at a high level consistently. Especially when the offense is struggling as much as it has this year, they should be able to rely on their MVP to pick up the slack. I know those numbers aren't great, but would it be a safe assumption that most guys high leverage numbers are a little lower than their career avg/norms? In high leverage spots, aren't hitters more times than not going to be facing elite level relief pitching which will/should suppress output numbers offensively? Not to replacement level. I mean they're different for everybody. Some rise up and some don't. But KB should be markedly better than a 296 wOBA 80 wRC+.

He's certainly a guy who I can complain about, no matter how well he is laying his path to the HOF. This is pretty much my favorite Cub ever but he's not immune from criticism. No player is. And talking about their weaknesses shouldn't be as taboo as you guys make it out to be. His career wOBA in high leverage situations is 296 and his K% is pushing 30. He has 3 HR and 8 2B in 180+ PA. Nowhere near the type of hitter he is, and the team would benefit greatly if he started performing there more often. He's one of their leaders and should be relied on to drive in runs at a high level consistently. Especially when the offense is struggling as much as it has this year, they should be able to rely on their MVP to pick up the slack. Do you not agree with the simple statement that KB should have more RBI given the opportunities he's had?

And...? He's hitting .285/.396/.526 over that time. It's almost as if he had a guy hitting .150 batting in front of him for a lot of that time period. Yeah, his wOBA with RISP this year is 300. He's had plenty of opportunities. He's been abysmal.

Just gonna throw this out there Bryant has 74 RBI over the last calendar year of regular season baseball

Probably not a popular opinion but I agree

Fire the horsefeathering morons directing this game