vance_the_cubs_fan

And to be fair, I've said if we want to talk about firing Hendry, that's a topic for the offseason or end of the season. Firing him now makes little sense. It doesn't change things for this year, and if anything, will do more harm than good.

That gets you *into* the post season, but it is not a measure of you belonging there. 97 wins. You belong in the post season. A bad three game stretch notwithstanding.

Furthermore, as bad as it seems right now, it's not over yet. Even after losing 7 in a row, the Cubs are still at 500 and only 4 games out of first. We could be buried, but the team has played well enough in spurts to, at this point at least, withstand a 7-game losing streak without being buried. We do need to turn it around. Firing the GM or manager isn't going to do that. In fact, those moves likely signal the end. I'm not ready to wave the white flag yet.

And so far Hendry is barely above even in that department, despite having a top 5 NL payroll his entire tenure. Teams that belong in post season play show up for at least one inning. Teams that lead their league in wins belong in post season play. That's the measure of it. I understand the goal is to win a championship. However, the best way to get one is to put together a team that wins in the regular season. Hendry has done that.

I think it's time to let go of the 97 win thing. It was a failure. That was a team that got absolutely destroyed in the playoffs and wasn't worth the dinner expenses. They proved in 2008 that they simply did not belong in MLB post season play. You can work hard and stupid, too. Like or not, but the best thing a GM can do is put together a team that wins in the regular season. The playoffs are a crapshoot. Hendry has put together a team that won 97 wins and made the post season two years in a row. You can discount that because of the resources he had available, but he did his part. They won 97 wins. They did belong in post season play. Your failure to understand an issue of sample size is baffling.

Players tend to press and become more impatient when they are struggling, especially when the entire team is struggling with them. Gerald Perry has the right approach. Also, he's done an excellent job over the past two seasons. I'd prefer to wait a while longer before deciding whether he's to blame for the struggles of the offense or not.

:-)) And that's what the recent attitudes seem to amount to. I'm angry, so I want someone to pay for making me angry. It's comical to think that we're more upset than the team, manager, and GM. I'm sure they are just as frustrated...actually moreso, than we are. Cub fans just watched their team lose 7 games in a row in pathetic fashion. Why wouldn't the fans be angry? Should they be sending the Cubs condolence cards? I would be more concerned if the fans didn't care. Sure there is some over reaction, but having angry fans, means having a fan that actually give a rip about what is going on with the team. These angry fans are generally the fans that go to ballgames, introduce their kids the Cubs, buy Cubs merchandise and post messages on websites that are dedicated to the Cubs (like NSBB). Sure you have a right to be angry, but calling for the firings of managers, GM's, hitting coaches, bullpen catchers, etc. is ridiculous and actually counter-productive to the team's performance for the remainder of the season. Be angry...be frustrated....I surely am. But also use some insight or perspective when thinking about what should be done.

What's the point of making fun of someone because they are fat? What does it really add to what your saying? The only thing I can see that it does is try to imply that his weight has something to do with his ability to do the job. It's a ridiculous assertion. You're better off making the argument without it. But once again, why fire the GM now? If it's not going to improve the team in the short term, why make a reactionary decision. Hendry is coming off a 97-win season and assembled a team that has made back-to-back playoff appearances. He's earned the right to finish this one, unless you think a new GM can make changes. As for the draft, it's unlikely a new GM will make any changes in the decisions that Wilken and his staff will make. Anyone we hire mid-season would likely be promoted internally or be someone who is currently out of work. Those people will not have time to do their own research and greatly change decisions that will be made on months if not years worth of scouting. Changing GM's right now is a short-sighted, dumb, and over reactionary move. And really what's worse? Looking down on people who make fat jokes or making fun of people who are fat? Really?

:-)) And that's what the recent attitudes seem to amount to. I'm angry, so I want someone to pay for making me angry. It's comical to think that we're more upset than the team, manager, and GM. I'm sure they are just as frustrated...actually moreso, than we are.

fat jokes aside, which are quite enjoyable...maybe, just maybe, what hendry is doing isn't what is best for this team/organization maybe someone else can do a better overall job i don't think anyone is suggesting that getting rid of hendry will make the team win the world series right now, but why wait to get a new line of thought and approach in this organization? First of all, the biggest criticism against Hendry is that he has made a shambles of a 97-win team. On the other hand, it was Hendry who assembled the 97-win team. Can his moves this offseason be questioned? Certainly. On the other hand, what good would a change right now do for the 2009 team? Probably nothing. It would signal a panic to the team. It would in essence send the message that the bosses don't think the team can win this year as assembled by the GM. The new GM isn't likely going to make any changes that Hendry wouldn't make. He's going to still be bound by Lee's contract. He's still going to have the same bullpen options. He's still going to be bound by the same payroll restrictions. Now, if the idea is to go ahead and rebuild for the future, then making a change could be supported. If it's a reactionary move to a 7-game losing streak, it's not productive in the least. There's also little a new GM will do during the season that would change the future direction. The only key thing that a new GM could do to change the future would be what they could get during a fire sale...and even with a new GM, I don't think that happens, or they could impact the future by what is given up to try to get back into contention. If Hendry is to be replaced, it is best to do so at the end of the season. At that point, the powers can better evaluate his job in light of a full season and not just a quarter of it. And back to the fat jokes...hell, I have plenty of them...but when they're used to show that Hendry must not be doing his job, they actually weaken your stance rather than improve it. It's pure propaganda. I mean, do you really think that just because someone is overweight they must be lazy and not good at his job? From all indications, Hendry is an extremely hard worker...in fact, workaholic would be a good descriptor of him. Now, you may not like the decisions he makes, but it is completely false to assume he's just sitting around eating cake and laughing about how bad this team is. That kind of attitude whether in jest or not could not be further from fact. So, if you like filling posts with falsehoods, be my guest...but it discredits the rest of your ideas. Because if someone blatantly uses lies to further an agenda, I assume they may play loosely with all facts.

I'll be really pissed if we take a college reliever in the first round. I'd even prefer a toolsy high school outfielder over a college reliever.

I'm as frustrated as anyone about the recent stretch of games. But frankly, there's little to be done right now except hope the team pulls out of the funk. Teams are not lining up to trade us a batter to replace Ramirez. Impactful trades are rarely made at this stage of the season. Firing Lou or anyone else at this stage is an incredibly dumb idea. Yeah, it might make the over-reactionary fan feel better...because hell, someone has to pay for subjecting me to bad baseball. But frankly, those type of firings indicate panic which is something this team does not need right now. Firing Hendry at this point would be giving up. No GM is going to come in here and fix it. If we miss the playoffs and the front office wants to place the blame on Hendry, fine. But no GM will come in mid-year with another guy's team and fix what ails us. He would just run into the same problems Hendry has right now. There aren't guys currently on the trade market which would represent a decent upgrade over what we have at a reasonable cost. Anyone who thinks Hendry isn't trying desperately to make this team better given the resources he has available is either fooling themselves or too blinded by their clever use of fat jokes to realize the truth.

Watch out for the ban hammer. He's still waiting for an opportunity to go Thor on someone's ... you know what. Eh, I'm really not looking forward to using it.

One more pic of anime and someone is getting some time off. I'm testy, so don't push it.

Firing Lou or Perry will do nothing toward helping the team this year. It's a panic move. It would be nothing short of asinine. If there's a valid reason that a change will make the team better, then do it. However, firing Lou or Perry will not accomplish that. Who would replace Lou? The Cubs would end up going with an interim manager. Who would that be? Trammel? Maybe, but I don't see the team performing better under him than they are now. Sandberg? God forbid! Who else? It's just not a move a team that hopes to contend makes. Now, if we fall out of the race and the Cubs want to begin making those changes, that would be fine. Right now, it would be a shortsighted, panic-driven move to make, and makes no sense at all. This is an idea that would make great talk radio fodder, but really isn't an intelligent move at all.

What would you do if you were in a position of power with the Cubs right now, then? Wait it out indefinitely? Honestly curious. Frankly, yes. If I could make a change in the roster via trade that I felt would improve the team, I'd surely do that, but at this point in the season, few teams are selling. Changing the manager or hitting coach at this point is unlikely to bring results. Both Lou and Perry are good at what they do. There's probably few if any people that could be found at midseason who are better than they. Firing the GM at this point does nothing. Right now, the best thing to do is wait it out. Now, if this team flounders all year long, then looking at wholesale changes is a valuable thing to do. It's just that it's pretty pointless at this stage and probably will do more harm than good.

I really don't see the Cubs becoming sellers. If they do, it will be much later in the season. I don't see Lee going anywhere. Bad contract and no trade clause will prevent it. Bradley just signed his deal. I don't see him being moved. There are only a handful of teams who could take on Soriano's contract and Zambrano will be going no where. If the Cubs sell off, they will want to reload quickly for next season. That's another reason that none of the players you named would be moved. The players most likely to be traded if the Cubs become sellers: 1. Harden. He's a FA at season's end. A team looking for a rental ace would have interest in Harden. Under the right circumstances, Harden might land us a decent prospect. 2. Gregg. He's also a FA at season's end. While he's been inconsistent, there are always teams looking for bullpen help. At best, he'd bring us a high ceiling, high risk prospect. 3. Reed Johnson- He'd be a decent bench option for a team looking to add an outfielder. He'd bring a marginal prospect in return.

Making a change just to make a change is never a good idea. That is true in almost any area of life. If there's a reason to justify the change, then it's worth considering. But frankly, it's quite asinine and short sighted just to make a change unless there is a tangible reason to make one.

I wish my wife would go into labor tonight so I could forget about this pitiful effort by the Cubs.

I'm going to let it slide, but posting anime in the game threads is a bannable offense.

You should send this remark to the Cubs dugout somehow. I would if I could...cause I feel as if the Cubs have just lit a flaming bag of [expletive] on my doorstep.

Knock it off, everyone.

ballgame

Fontenot with a hit! :shock:

That was deep.