It's time for some of that famous Cubs magic. Oh, nevermind. I guess they'll just have to win the old fashioned way.
Lineups
Mets
Curtis Granderson, RF
David Wright, 3B
Whatever Murphy, 2B
Yoenis Cespedes, CF
Lucas Duda, 1B
Travis d'Arnaud, C
Michael Conforto, LF
Wilmer Flores, SS
Jacob deGrom, P
Cubs
Dexter Fowler, CF
Kyle Schwarber, LF
Kris Bryant, 3B
Anthony Rizzo, 1B
Starlin Castro, 2B
Jorge Soler, RF
Miguel Montero, C
Kyle Hendricks, P
Javier Baez, SS
Comments
First
JonKneeVQuote Reply
Nice tag. /reundiscredited
mylesQuote Reply
It’s looking bad for the Jays.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
Rizzo the Rat,
If the Cubs can somehow come back against the Mets, can you imagine Jon Lester against the Royals? I’m hoping for perfect game.
dmick89Quote Reply
????Too Many Murphs????
berseliusQuote Reply
Let’s fucking do this. To continue the last thread, may the baseball and babip gods be kind to the Cubbies tonight. Go Cubs Go!
WaLiQuote Reply
dmick89,
This Spring Training, Cubs pitchers will have to alternate between throwing to the catcher and the first baseman.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
Don’t tell me what to do.
Mark DeRosaQuote Reply
Rizzo the Rat,
I’m not even sure they need to alternate. Just throw to 1st all spring.
dmick89Quote Reply
dmick89,
Based on umpiring trends this postseason, some of those might even be called strikes.
berseliusQuote Reply
Rizzo can throw to the batter. He needs to work on his pitching anyway.
PerkinsQuote Reply
berselius,
(dying laughing)
dmick89Quote Reply
Not sure how I feel with Hendricks on the mound and the wind blowing out.
uncle daveQuote Reply
uncle dave,
Better than Dan Haren
dmick89Quote Reply
Cubs win.
andcountingQuote Reply
This is my favorite lineup, though I’d move Soler up ahead of Castro. Minor quibble.
andcountingQuote Reply
(dying laughing) @LaTroy.
andcountingQuote Reply
I think I prefer Coghlan to Soler against RHP.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
That’s because you’re a bad person.
Smokestack LightningQuote Reply
Okay, Cubes, I’m back in Chicago now so you can start winning again please. Otherwise this vacation’s going to be a lot less exciting.
fang2415Quote Reply
I’ll admit that Soler has an upside that Coghlan doesn’t, though. And that Coghlan is terrible against LHP.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
I like him better at this point against righties too. It brings up an issue I have with with Maddon that I didn’t expect. He likes to play the hot hand despite evidence against an expected increase in performance. I’d probably have both LaStella and Coghlan in the lineup.
dmick89Quote Reply
He has groundball tendencies, at least.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
uncle daveQuote Reply
Rizzo the Rat,
I guess. Recency bias from the game against the Cards, maybe?
uncle daveQuote Reply
The Royals are so confident, they’re letting Butera get an at-bat.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
(dying laughing)
ceruleanQuote Reply
early runs, please
dmick89Quote Reply
????
berseliusQuote Reply
Oops.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
i miss Russell.
dmick89Quote Reply
Montero!
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
Montero did something!
fueledbyvinylQuote Reply
Montero and Castro picking up Javy there.
PerkinsQuote Reply
Well that CS was extra huge now (dying laughing)
berseliusQuote Reply
Hendricks called ‘cerebral’ *drinks*
berseliusQuote Reply
????????
berseliusQuote Reply
This series isn’t as much fun as the last one.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
Behind again. This gets old.
ceruleanQuote Reply
Jesus, Schwarber.
berseliusQuote Reply
Schwarber did not play that well.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
Damnit, Cubes.
PerkinsQuote Reply
Schwarber making it *interesting*.
ceruleanQuote Reply
For every Bartman reference, finish your drink.
PerkinsQuote Reply
Your wish is the Mets’ command
MylesQuote Reply
????????????
berseliusQuote Reply
Goddamnit. DeGrom needs an expanded strike zone like I need cirrhosis of the liver.
PerkinsQuote Reply
Cubs should try to intentionally walk the first batter in the second, maybe it will be called a strikeout.
berseliusQuote Reply
SCHWARBOMB
berseliusQuote Reply
SCHWARBOMB
PerkinsQuote Reply
Schwarber!!!!!!
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
That should have been a 2 run blast.
PerkinsQuote Reply
Fixed.
ceruleanQuote Reply
Yep. But as long Hendricks is getting that call, I’m okay with it.
ceruleanQuote Reply
Schwarber’s so good his HR didn’t even kill a rally.
berseliusQuote Reply
Castro with a nice piece of 2-strike hitting.
MylesQuote Reply
Working that pitch count.
berseliusQuote Reply
Glad Jorge’s getting a better zone here.
PerkinsQuote Reply
Maybe stop with that insta bat flip on borderline pitches, fellas.
berseliusQuote Reply
Would have been nice to see more runs, but I didn’t hate that inning.
PerkinsQuote Reply
29 pitches. Great patience, but we have got to score more than that.
ceruleanQuote Reply
I like how schwarber got maybe 80 percent of that ball and it went out.
MylesQuote Reply
cerulean,
One run per inning is OK in my book.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
Hendricks is really scaring me with these pitches down the middle
fueledbyvinylQuote Reply
Russell probably makes that play.
PerkinsQuote Reply
Glad to see the brutal strike zones are continuing.
JonKneeVQuote Reply
Anybody else see that that StateFarm commercial and automatically fill in the next logical scene after “I’m never letting go”—or is it just me.
ceruleanQuote Reply
The movement on his fastball tonight though is encouraging. Seems like he’s getting more movement than he’s had.
JonKneeVQuote Reply
You’re not alone.
PerkinsQuote Reply
That was a strike.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
These umps are real bad.
MylesQuote Reply
Not with Hendricks not getting calls.
ceruleanQuote Reply
Whew.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
That was a surpassingly stressful at-bat against an opposing pitcher.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
This home plate ump is just brutal. Just brutal. We need Jason Motte to get tossed giving the ump shit.
JonKneeVQuote Reply
That would be awesome.
MylesQuote Reply
Myles,
Nothing will ever top Angel Hernandez ejecting the seventh inning stretch singer back in 2001.
berseliusQuote Reply
When did the strike zone data on Brooks Baseball stop being available in real time? My eyes are telling me the Mets are getting calls the Cubs aren’t.
PerkinsQuote Reply
Did the umpire bet on the Mets?
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
(dying laughing)
MylesQuote Reply
It’s pretty bad. Terrible. I don’t like to complain about that kind of stuff, but it seems obviously skewed toward the Mets.
dmick89Quote Reply
I’m just waiting for the inevitable ejection when Maddon has to blow up over the strike zone. The zone tonight is dildos.
PerkinsQuote Reply
Hendricks is getting swings and misses. Like.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
You’ve got to be kidding me.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
Fucking Murphy.
PerkinsQuote Reply
What. The. Hell.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
I’m just glad the hero of the postseason is a bigot.
JonKneeVQuote Reply
Good shit there, Fowler.
PerkinsQuote Reply
Murphy is already my least favorite player ever.
MylesQuote Reply
I hope he tears both ACLs while running the bases. Fuck that guy.
PerkinsQuote Reply
Isn’t the book on Murphy to throw the hard stuff? I know Hendricks isn’t a fireballer, but aren’t all his homeruns (at least against the Cubs) of the off-speed variety? I’d think he pitch him hard inside and soft outside.
I mean, this guy is 30 years old and had a .770 OPS during the season with 14 HRs. This doesn’t just happen.
JonKneeVQuote Reply
Kris Bryant is due for some good ol’ fashioned ISO.
JonKneeVQuote Reply
Daniel. Fucking. Murphy.
Come on. I’d drill him next time.
dmick89Quote Reply
dmick89,
I dunno. Leave that shit for Matheny.
uncle daveQuote Reply
uncle dave,
I’m sure Matheny thinks Murphy is a stand up guy.
dmick89Quote Reply
My buddy tweeted that deGrom looks like a cocker spaniel. (dying laughing) that is spot on.
JonKneeVQuote Reply
Stoopid babip this series ugh
fueledbyvinylQuote Reply
Soler Power!!!!
JonKneeVQuote Reply
WHOOMP there it is
WHOOMP there it is
WHOOMP there it is
WHOOMP there it is
WHOOMP there it is
uncle daveQuote Reply
JORGE!!!!
fueledbyvinylQuote Reply
Soler power!
PerkinsQuote Reply
Shut me right up.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
dmick89,
(dying laughing) yeah, I suspect they share some views on life.
uncle daveQuote Reply
I don’t like pulling Hendricks this early.
JonKneeVQuote Reply
Granderson’s Eddie Gaedel impersonation is starting to annoy me.
uncle daveQuote Reply
JonKneeVQuote Reply
JonKneeV,
(dying laughing)
uncle daveQuote Reply
Good shit. Sit the fuck down, Murphy.
PerkinsQuote Reply
Thank goodness for that double play
fueledbyvinylQuote Reply
Daniel Murphy cannot make enough outs the rest of his career to satisfy my rage.
Smokestack LightningQuote Reply
JonKneeV,
Why not? Pitchers get worse reach time through the order and pinch-hitters are much better than pitchers at hitting
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
I don’t either. He was solid. Don’t see how switching to Richard was an upgrade for that inning.
Smokestack LightningQuote Reply
Might as well pull every pitcher after 4 innings then.
Smokestack LightningQuote Reply
Smokestack Lightning,
If the pitcher isn’t very good to begin with, yes.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
Rizzo the Rat,
At least in a close game, and especially in a playoff game.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
This ump man what the fuck
fueledbyvinylQuote Reply
Rizzo the Rat,
You’re using maybe your best pinch hitter with 2 outs and none on. Hendricks was pitching pretty well and Joe is going to have to expend his bullpen today, when he’s probably also going to have to do it tomorrow.
JonKneeVQuote Reply
That was predictable.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
You must be shitting me.
uncle daveQuote Reply
Fucking dropped third strike.
PerkinsQuote Reply
I personally don’t like the stopped third strike rule.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
What. The. Fuck.
PerkinsQuote Reply
How many times do runners have to steal third until Cubs pitchers start holding runners on second?
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
I hate this series.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
Unreal
dmick89Quote Reply
DeGrom hitting with 2 RISP. There’s a gift.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
Cubs got really lucky there.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
Hey, a break.
uncle daveQuote Reply
Yep
dmick89Quote Reply
Looked like the Cubs would get deGrom out relatively early, but he’s going to end up going 8 innings.
dmick89Quote Reply
I have tickets to a game 5 that wont happen.
MylesQuote Reply
I don’t know if I can even get mad at this series. It’s like all the bad things that could possibly happen (short of injuries) have happened. Worst possible sequencing of baserunners when Arrieta and Lester are pitching? Check. Lots of balls hit hard straight at defenders? Check. Good starting pitching from the Mets? Check. Weird shit happening (thinking that dropped third strike and Daniel Fucking Murphy)? Check.
About the only thing I can get objectively pissed off about is the gigantic strike zones. And that’s been a feature of the entire season.
PerkinsQuote Reply
So assuming the Cubes lose tonight, what are the odds Lester starts on short rest tomorrow?
PerkinsQuote Reply
Murphy again.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
How many infield hits can you give up in three games? Jesus.
uncle daveQuote Reply
shitty fucking defense tonight.
dmick89Quote Reply
The difference between the Mets and Cubs BABIP has to be enormous.
JonKneeVQuote Reply
Almost 0. Why bother at that point?
dmick89Quote Reply
Yup.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
dmick89,
Agreed. You need four games and will only get him in one. Might as well have him go on regular rest.
uncle daveQuote Reply
Misplays by Baez, Montero, Bryant, Soler, and Schwarber. All in one game. That’s not how you win baseball games.
JonKneeVQuote Reply
And again.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
This doesn’t look like a 97-win team.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
Here’s something I didn’t expect to say: I’m a lot happier about the 2003 NLCS than I am this one.
dmick89Quote Reply
I’ll probably skip watching the World Series this year. They’re more fun when they’re the Giants vs. some random AL team.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
This one feels like such a wasted opportunity. Even if you think the Cubs were playing with house money this year, they have been fucking good. And they convincingly beat the only two teams better than them in the first two rounds of the postseason.
What’s irritating is that the NL Central will probably be similar over the next few years, while the East and West don’t project to have more than one (maybe 2) strong teams each. So the Cubs will already have a tougher road. Barring injuries or dramatic production drop-off, the Pirates and Cardinals will probably be pretty damn good for the next few years. I don’t think the same is true of the Nationals or the Giants.
PerkinsQuote Reply
Think of how different this game would be if the first inning didn’t feature a load of shit.
JonKneeVQuote Reply
I have no interest in whether the Royals or the Mets win the WS. Hope they both lose.
dmick89Quote Reply
Rooting for the meteor as long as it’s when KC has a home game. I live in Queens. (dying laughing)
PerkinsQuote Reply
This.
berseliusQuote Reply
This is probably the first year I don’t watch any of the World Series since 2003.
PerkinsQuote Reply
Cubs lose by losing.
It’s been a few years since that last happened. It’s looking like you’ll be SOL Myles, especially with the Cubs shitty luck and poor play.
ceruleanQuote Reply
It’s moot at this point, but it would have been nice to see Joe get himself tossed over the strike zone.
berseliusQuote Reply
I feel sorry for myles. Even if there is a game 5, which seems unlikely, it would almost suck to have to go.
dmick89Quote Reply
Even the best teams look like shit over a 4 game stretch every season.
It happens. Players can only do their best. They can’t will shit into being.
Smokestack LightningQuote Reply
I’m surprised Maddon didn’t get himself tossed after that. It was nonsense. The ump was better as the game went on, but the damage was already done.
dmick89Quote Reply
dmick89,
I have plans to hit one of the local bars with some of the Cubs fans here, I feel like I should show up in a funeral suit (dying laughing).
berseliusQuote Reply
What’s really going to suck is all the journalistic meathead hot takes we’ve got coming. Nick Fucking Vlahos and his Hendry-fellating leading the charge, no doubt.
Smokestack LightningQuote Reply
This is news to Harold Reynolds.
berseliusQuote Reply
Just about any news at all is news to Harold Reynolds.
Smokestack LightningQuote Reply
Much as I’d like to blame this on bad umpiring, the Cubs were just sloppy today. Just, ugh.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
This is also why I’m not so sure the Cubs are playing with house money. The Cubs will be good, but they probably won’t be any better than those two teams. As GW said the other day, this was more than likely the last NLCS that Jake Arrieta pitches in for the Cubs. A lot of things have to go right to get that far and the odds are against even the very good teams of getting to that point.
dmick89Quote Reply
Smokestack Lightning,
(dying laughing)
berseliusQuote Reply
Agreed, but it sure is rubbing a big pile of salt into that wound. Large grains of salt.
berseliusQuote Reply
Can you imagine how much the Cubs fans would be bashing Kris Bryant if he was Hispanic or black? It would be ugly.
dmick89Quote Reply
I honestly stopped caring about dubious ball/strike calls after the fifth or sixth defensive miscue.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
I’m thinking something a little less destructive (I live an hour from KC so meteor is no good for me either (dying laughing)). I’m thinking more along the lines of another Departure like the one in HBO’s The Leftovers. Not 2% of the population. Just 60 or so people. That’s all. Nothing too earth shattering. They could take half the Royals fan base too. That wouldn’t be so bad. It’s only about 55 more people.
dmick89Quote Reply
It wasn’t too bad after the 1st or 2nd inning in my opinion. By that last miscue, it was game over anyway. I didn’t really care about any of it.
dmick89Quote Reply
I disappeared back to the conference bar after the second inning or so. Probably a wise decision (dying laughing).
berseliusQuote Reply
Sounds like Maddon shot down starting Lester tomorrow.
berseliusQuote Reply
All true, but there’s nothing for it. Not seeing a lack of effort, so there’s really noting to be done. It’s the nature of the playoff beast. Not too hard to find 4 game stretches where the Cubs were unbeatable and the Mets were godawful. This just happened to be one where the Cubs played less than stellar, caught exactly zero breaks, and the Mets were at their peak and even got a little weird variance on their side with the Murphy explosion. I can’t get mad at any of it. I feel like I’ve seen the wizard behind the curtain. Playoffs are bullshit to begin with. I don’t even know if I’ll be that happy if the Cubs win the whole thing anymore. It doesn’t mean to me what it used to because it’s an artificial construct that disregards what a 162-game season is designed to tell us.
Smokestack LightningQuote Reply
Smokestack Lightning,
I’m not saying that. Shit happens over the course of the season. Bad stretches, good stretches and so on. Of course I understand that. I was calming people after the 2007 and 2008 sweeps. Shit like that happens all the fucking time.
All I was saying is that this “house money” stuff I keep reading really isn’t true. Shit doesn’t get any easier for the Cubs next year or the year after that. They are still stuck in a virtual tie (if that) with the Cardinals and Pirates. It’s worse to be those 3 teams than the teams in the West and East, which I think is what you were trying to say.
I also agree with what you say about the playoffs. Nothing this team did in the playoffs was going to take any of the enjoyment I had this year away. It was a great season and they unfortunately played like shit for a few days when it counted. Tough luck.
dmick89Quote Reply
Guys, I’ll be honest with you. I’m starting to get worried.
JoshQuote Reply
Josh,
Too early to panic. They’ve got this. Cubbies 4 ever!
dmick89Quote Reply
dmick89,
You always know just what to say, bro.
JoshQuote Reply
Probably. Sorry. I’m quite a few beers into the evening at this point. (dying laughing)
And yeah, I agree about the “house money” comment. It feels like that because of the expectation level going into this year, but that won’t exist next season and that’s all that matters going forward. From here on until this core breaks up it’s playoffs or bust. And sad to say, it’s always more likely to be bust (though it could go either way).
Man. Playoffs are just cruel. But I can’t get pissed at this team for coming up short. Just the way it goes.
Yep. That and the Pirates play-in game and the Cardinals series. Regardless of how this team fares in the coming years, those are some damn good memories and aren’t tarnished by the finally final result.
Smokestack LightningQuote Reply
That’s the frustrating part. Even with seemingly every advantage, the Cubs have a tougher road to a deep playoff run over the next few years by virtue of their division.
The Nationals lose a lot of talent over the next couple years, and the Giants got old fast. It’s not like there are any powerhouse franchises in the East and the Dodgers should have an easy time of winning the West. So any time a team goes this deep and doesn’t seal the deal, it feels like a wasted opportunity.
PerkinsQuote Reply
On the plus side, maybe Epstein signs an extension over the offseason and a good amount of the front office stays intact for a few more years.
I kind of get the feeling that Theo’s job is done once the Cubs win a World Series, and it’d be kind of nice to see a few more years of the Superfriends running the organization.
PerkinsQuote Reply
Pitching has to be the top priority this offseason. Price would be nice, but Zimmerman is more likely.
dmick89Quote Reply
What? The big mistakes (Rizzo, Bryant, Soler, Schwarber) were well after the sixth and seventh innings. They were huge and mostly happened when the game was within 1 run.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
I didn’t watch the season due to extreme personal turmoil. The postseason was all I had. Fuck you, you god damn losers!
JoshQuote Reply
Star Wars better be awesome or I don’t know what the fuck anymore.
JoshQuote Reply
Sorry, I meant “in the sixth and seventh innings.”
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
They only mistake in the early innings that I remember was the Baez error, which amounted to nothing, since Granderson was caught stealing anyway. The sixth is when the defense (and the game) really went downhill. Most of the mistakes lead to runs scoring (Soler’s misplay being the lucky exception).
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
Part of what pissed me off about those miscues is that they destroyed any kind of righteous indignation I could have worked up about the strikezone. If you give shit like that away, you should lose. I mean, not out of any moral order, but it shouldn’t be surprising and it makes taking any kind of umberage hard to justify.
UrkQuote Reply
Anyway, I found the perfect summation of the Cubs’ season:
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
Truth be told, I think I’d rather watch them get outplayed than get screwed by an umpire (which would just make me angry). Then again, I’d rather they be outplayed by a team that’s playing great, rather than playing poorly themselves.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
Yeah, if those mistakes don’t happen, and the Mets just play amazing ball, that’s a lot more fun.
UrkQuote Reply
I was talking about the umpire. I must have misunderstood your comment that I quoted. I don’t know. And it’s too late for me to care.
dmick89Quote Reply
Gah, and Jesse Rogers and Schoenfield already with the moronic hot takes.
http://espn.go.com/blog/chicago/cubs/post/_/id/35509/trevor-cahill-and-miguel-montero-add-another-play-to-cubs-postseason-lore
Someone needs to inform these fucking tools that miscues and errors happen during the regular season too and they sometimes cost their team a ballgame.
Smokestack LightningQuote Reply
dmick89,
OK, I understand the confusion. I could have been clearer. I was just saying that I didn’t care about umpire mistakes after the Cubs defense made them irrelevant.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
True, but they piss people off a lot more in love he postseason. There’s a reason we remember that each infielder for the Cubs made an error in game 1 of the 2008 LDS.
I don’t care if people are pissed about it, but the dumbasses will draw the wrong conclusions from it. Oh well, I don’t read those guys anyway so I won’t even notice. I got too burned out reading what stupid journalists have to say.
dmick89Quote Reply
Hey you know what else? Everything is shit. That’s what else. Write that down.
JoshQuote Reply
cerulean,
I shit inspiration.
The Cubs are a pot of water that everyone watches in hopes of seeing it boil. If seeing that pot boil is the only real satisfaction you gain from following the team, you’re going to be disappointed. I gave up hope of ever seeing it happen a few years ago and I refuse to let those fuckers trick me again.
RynoQuote Reply
Assuming they lose again tonight, at least the trend says that they will make it to the NLCS again next year (and get swept again).
Therefore I predict the Cubs win the pennant in 2023 and they will win the World Series in 2031 AND 2032.
Suburban kidQuote Reply
That’s more like it.
I haven’t started looking at game footage for this season yet, but Notre Dame’s Jaylon Smith looks amazing at first glance. He’s a lightning-quick tasmanian devil with great instincts. I felt like I was watching Patrick Willis again. UCLA’s Myles Jack and Arizona’s Scooby Wright also stood out to me.
RynoQuote Reply
Ryno,
Which reminds me, I’ll need you Bears fans to tell me about the defense under Fangio and Donnatell. Fangio was a 3-4 guy at Stanford and when he first came to SF, but they switched to mostly 4-3 Under and nickel once Aldon Smith grew into a three-down player. What’s their personnel like this year?
RynoQuote Reply
RynoQuote Reply
Ryno,
Well that was a fail…
RynoQuote Reply
Don’t worry, we’re use to failure around here
WaLiQuote Reply
Ryno,
I’m not the most observant, but it seems mostly 3-4/Nickel, depending on what the offense is doing.
They have some of the pieces to run a 3-4, but not all, and very little depth. The D-line is ok, but they really only have 1 guy to play NT. McPhee has been a solid edge rusher, but their ILB are terrible. The CB are also terrible.
Scheme wise though, they seem to be getting more out of their defense than they have any right to.
MillertimeQuote Reply
What really sucks about baseball is that this might be the furthest the Cubs get for a couple years. They could get eliminated in each of the next two NLDS series. Or lose the wild card game, since they might not even win the division every year.
Maybe this is also what makes baseball awesome, though. Winning a world series seems like one of the most inconceivable sports championships to win, so if they ever do win it, it’s probably going to be due to the most inconceivable shit imaginable. It’s no wonder stuff like this becomes so memorable.
MillertimeQuote Reply
Ryno,
Would you say that NFL teams routinely try to make QB prospects into Tom Brady or Aaron Rodgers or Peyton Manning when pretty much no prospects CAN be one of those players. Instead of developing an offense to the QBs strengths (RG3, Kap, Cutler, etc.).
Re: Bears defense, they’ve been running a 3-4 and a nickel package with 2 down lineman with 4 linebackers.
JonKneeVQuote Reply
WaLi,
RynoQuote Reply
I haven’t checked Matt Trueblood’s twitter yet, but I think his odds for the Cubs winning the series have dropped all the way to 80%
berseliusQuote Reply
Millertime,
I thought Fangio did a good job in SF, though he did have a lot of talent to work with.
Looking at CHI’s roster, it looks like they need help at every level of the defense. They should be in a position to draft BPA and land an impact player early.
RynoQuote Reply
JonKneeV,
I’d say that’s a pretty good assessment of the NFL.
The best analogy I’ve heard about playing QB is that it’s like doing math problems while you’re in a barfight. It’s rare to have a player who’s capable of handling the mental AND physical aspects of the position.
What SF did offensively in 2012 was unique, imo. They used their power-running/play-action offense when Alex Smith was in and then switched to a heavy pistol/read-option approach when they started Kap. Even the WR routes were different conceptually.
You can tailor an offense to fit a limited QB, but it will limit the offense. What SF did with Kap in 2012 worked great. It didn’t work quite as well in 2013 and it was pretty bad in 2014. Kap didn’t develop and defenses learned his tendencies.
So the short answer is that teams don’t typically tailor their offenses because it’s only a short-term solution, imo.
RynoQuote Reply
Ryno,
Can an Aaron Rodgers team win 10 games with receivers pulled out of the stands?
berseliusQuote Reply
What was Rondon upset about? He pitched well and then next thing I saw was him trying to destroy stuff in the dugout.
dmick89Quote Reply
I’m not going to panic. I’m sure Myles will re-run his numbers, and I wouldn’t be surprised if the Cubs odds somehow increased, or something.
MillertimeQuote Reply
dmick89,
I might be going out on a limb here, but it could be due to a night with a frustrating strike zone, a million defensive miscues, and Daniel Murphy turning into Barry Bonds.
berseliusQuote Reply
mylesQuote Reply
I, too, refuse to panic, and will (not-so) helpfully point out that if the Cubs find a way to win tonight, they actually have a puncher’s chance at taking the next two after. Lester vs. Harvey at home should be a slight tilt in the Cubs’ favor. As human as Lester has been at times he is more than capable of shutting down any lineup on a given night. And if Arrieta can summon that Cy magic one last time, might be able to do just enough against Syndergaard to take game 6.
Game 7 is a shitshow on paper, but at that point it’s all hands on deck and you’d have to imagine even Lester would be available for a couple of innings. Hope for chaos, hope panic has paralyzed New York by then, keep it close, and they fumble it away late.
Not gonna happen, of course, but the idea of it should be enough so I don’t mope around all day and it gives a little more meaning to a Cubs win tonight, even though any win at this point is almost certainly just a temporary stay of execution.
Smokestack LightningQuote Reply
Fangraphs has the Cubs’ odds at between 7 and 8% of winning the NLCS, so they have a better than 50% chance in at least a couple of the games.
That said, it’s pretty likely today is the last day of the 2015 Cubs season. I can’t get too pissed off about the result…they won 97 games and thoroughly beat the Pirates and Cardinals in the playoffs. It’s been a hell of a ride.
PerkinsQuote Reply
All I know is if I’m Joe and Theo, I’m making the Cubs watch ’04 Sox-Yankees all fucking day. Fuck batting practice. Fuck…whatever else it is they do before games, I dunno, running around, and make ’em watch games 4-7.
Smokestack LightningQuote Reply
berselius,
If anyone could, it would be him. Even as a 49ers fan, I have to say I don’t think anyone has ever played that position as well as he does. He might be the best ever.
RynoQuote Reply
He found out he’s a Cub.
RynoQuote Reply
New Shit
http://obstructedview.net/its-just-baseball/
mylesQuote Reply
berselius,
You’re saying people don’t like to lose?
JoshQuote Reply
Cubs have had 9 winning streaks of 4 or more games.
Steven Matz has appeared in 6 games in his major league career. Tonight will be his 7th.
In his SSS of MLB work, Matz has a K%, BB%, and FIP very similar to 2015 Kyle Hendricks.
Matz had 90 innings in AAA this year. He had a 27% K%, but also a 8.6% BB%.
Between AAA and MLB, his 2015 FIP puts him somewhere between Lance Lynn and Jason Hammel.
His 45% groundball rate in the MLB puts him close to Michael Wacha.
Matz hasn’t pitched into the 7th inning since July.
In short, I like our chances on offense tonight.
JonKneeVQuote Reply
So, I get that the “playing with house money” thing is a little empty. We certainly can’t depend on any near future team doing as well as or better than this one. But I do think its heartening that this team has (1) a core of talented (mostly very) young players, and (2) increasing rather than decreasing financial flexibility, and (3) a rationally-minded front office that pays attention to resources and data and understands the crapshoot nature of the playoffs and the way that making it there successively increases the chances of getting through them. Does any of this offer any guarantee? Absolutely not. But I’m not sure what else I’d really wish the team to be armed with if I wanted to maximize its chances going forward, short of moving into a different division or just printing their own money like the Dodgers. Rocket launchers maybe? I do think that we are virtually guranteed of having a team worth watching for the near future, and that they have a better chance of ending up in the playoffs again during that time than any team from this organization has had in the last decade or so. That’s pretty satisfying.
UrkQuote Reply
Al Yellon!
wpbcQuote Reply
wpbc,
Albin Bellon gubba beel bad bor abile. Dobe bick ubon Albin Bellon.
Suburban kidQuote Reply