About 10 days ago we looked at what the Cubs have in terms of guaranteed contracts and we also signed Ryan Dempster and Matt Garza to long-term extensions. Since it's been 10 days I'll post the most relevant information here and we can move forward. Our roster We already have $54.3 million committed, but only the following players under contract …
The 45%: When Theo Epstein Is Wrong
During Theo Epstein's introductory press conference, as well as the many rounds he made to various radio and tv shows, there is one line that I remember more than any other. if you do a great job, you're right 55 percent of the time. Of the many hours Theo spent talking with people about the Cubs on that day, I …
A 2013 Cubs Contender, Part 1
RC has been insistent about wondering how the Cubs may contend in 2013. I've been meaning to write something about it for some time, but can't help but think the Cubs are a long way away from contention. 2013 doesn't seem possible, but it's always possible. How can they do it? After thinking about this post for awhile I finally …
Soriano, his Bat, and Momentum
Hitting a baseball is all about momentum. Momentum is a vector describing a "quantity of motion" or in mathematical terms p (momentum) = mass * velocity. In a closed system, momentum is conserved. Conservation of momentum means that the harder you throw the ball, the harder the ball will bounce back. Think in the case of throwing a ball against …
10 Best Games By A Cubs Player So Far
We're only 31 games into the season, but I was curious for some unkown reason who had the best game of any player on the team. Win Probability Added (WPA) is the perfect stat for this. Below are the top 10 WPA's of the season for the Cubs. 10. Matt Garza, April 29th @ Phillies: The Cubs won 5-1 behind …
Bryan LaHair's Fantastic Start
Some Cubs fans entered the season with relatively high expectations for Bryan LaHair. Others weren't optimistic at all. I was somewhere in between. I was fairly certain LaHair's numbers were so damn good at AAA that it indicated he should probably be about a league average ballplayer at the MLB level. To this point we've all been wrong. MLB's best …
Series Preview: Atlanta Braves (18-11) at Chicago Cubs (11-17)
The Cubs just managed to take 2 of 3 from the NL's best team and now face another one of the best teams in the Atlanta Braves. The Braves are a half game behind the Nationals in the NL East, but have won 3 in a row. Pitching Matchups Monday, May 7, 7:05 PM CT, WCIU Tommy Hanson, RHP (3.74 …
Where We Stand Now 5.1.12 – Batters
Now that a month has passed, let's take a look back at what's gone wrong (and a few things that have gone right). First, a look at the batters. Here are the regulars' current slash lines, wOBA, BABIP, and preseason projected wOBAs. I'm only doing Johnson and Mather because they've picked up the most PAs of the bench guys, and …
When will we see Brett Jackson and Anthony Rizzo?
Everyone here has heard of a Super Two player. Here is the necessary criteria for becoming a super two: at least 2, but less than 3 years of service time with at least 86 days of service in the immediately preceding season. In other words, someone who has 42 days of service one year and 44 days the following year …
Daily Facepalm 4.11.12
1000 word recap of Paul Maholm's Cubs debut last night Other comments on last night's game You'd think that conditions like last night's (freezing, wind howling in) would be conducive to pitching, But when you can't locate multiple pitches, you're going to get hammered. Maholm walked two and hit two batters in the first inning, as well as a double, …