OSS: A most incredibly frustrating 5 run win. Three up: Willson Contreras might be the best player on this team. He hit another homer, his 7th of July which brought his OPS up to .835. Combining his offense, defense, and rookie contract, I don't think there's a more valuable catcher in the game. Ben Zobrist is trying to find himself out of …
Crosstown Cup Open Thread
(note: I have one usable arm at the moment so this is short and sweet) We have pitchers going against their pitchers. Ours are better We have hitters, as do the White Sox. Ours are pretty good and theirs suck I want to see how Yoan Moncada does and thats about it for them We have won a lot lately …
Cubs 3, Cardinals 2
OSS: An excellent pitchers' duel turns into a wild finish. Three up: Jon Lester was fantastic today, taking a perfect game into the sixth until Wainwright poked a single through the left side to break it up. He continued to cruise until he ran out of steam in the eighth, giving up back to back solo shots to Grichuk and …
Series Preview: St. Louis Cardinals (46-49) at Chicago Cubs (49-45)
If the 2016 Cubs truly are back, it's hard to think of a better litmus test than a home series against the Cardinals. Of course, the Cardinals have been disappointing relative to non-BP expectations as well this year. The main thing that has taken a step back is their offense, which trailed only the Cubs in wRC+ among NL teams …
Cubs 4, Braves 3 (7.17.17)
OSS: Cubs manage not to ruin a great start by Jon Lester. Three up: Lester was great tonight, which is especially nice to see after the play about pieces of feces that was his last start before the break. Lester gave up just three hits with one walk and six strikeouts in seven innings, and was cruising along well enough …
Cubs 9, O’s 8 (7.14.17)
OSS: Cubs blow an eight run lead, somehow win anyway Three up: Addison Muscle hit a go-ahead homer in the top of the ninth to put the Cubs over the top in this strange game. Russell led the Cubs in WPA on the day, largely due to that shot. It was one of five on the day by Cubs hitters, …
OV Podcast 22: Emergency Jose Quintana podcast
In this episode, Jeff and Myles discuss The newest member of the Chicago Cubs Playoff odds Guessing whether the remaining Cubs 'prospects' are pitchers or hitters Kyle Schwarber better fucking hit now Ben Zobrist's future with the Cubs 2010 Cubs arcana For those of you who wanted a transcript, here is a one sentence summary: we love this deal. …
Cubs Acquire Jose Quintana for Dylan Cease, Eloy Jimenez (++)
In a blockbuster opening salvo to the 2017 trading season, the Cubs landed one of the best gettable arms for this cycle. First, let's talk about what we've lost. Eloy Jimenez is a hell of a prospect (No. 5 in BA's midseason ranking). He has light-tower power, though it hasn't translated onto the field at quite the same rate. He's …
Where We Stand Now
I'm bringing back this feature from the olden days…if only because we need a new post. I'm stealing this format mostly from the 2015 version of this post, which credits shawndgoldman for the original regular feature. Record: 43-45, 5.5 games back of the Brewers and tied with the Cardinals for second place in this shitshow of a division. The actual …
OV Podcast 21: The Dawn of the Victor Caratini Era
In this episode Jeff and Myles discuss Montero's DFA and the state of the clubhouse. The Kris Bryant injury and revised win predictions. Should the Cubs sell a few pieces? Predicting Jake Arrieta's contract. Being surprised by the Cubs relatively okay home run hitting/preventing capabilities. Guess today's lineup, 2009 edition. There are multiple references to a podcast that Sitrick and …