Jeff Samardzija transformed. We heard about it all spring. We were to believe the transformation began in the second half of last season in which he threw about 40 or so innings. We had to put all our faith in those numbers that were as a reliever and a scout or two, which was a little silly to me as …
Series Preview: Chicago Cubs (8-15) at Cincinnati Reds (11-11)
I'm swamped with work deadlines so this is going to be relatively short. After a slow start to the season Cincy finished April strong, winnign series against NL central foes St. Louis, the Cubs, and the Astros. Jay Bruce is the hottest hitter in the NL right now, and has hit HRs in his last 4 games. The Cubs splitting …
Series Preview: Chicago Cubs (6-13) at Philadelphia Phillies (9-10)
The Cubs finally got their first series win of the year! Things are looking up….except that they just barely avoid having the worst record in the NL (mostly due to opportunity – the Padres are 6-14). It already feels like forever since the last Cubs game. The series was the Cardinals was a nice reminder that not every game will …
Series Preview: St. Louis Cardinals (11-5) at Chicago Cubs (4-12)
Well, at least the Cubs aren't the worst team in baseball right now. That honor goes to the Royals, who are 3-12 and have lost ten games in a row. But at least they have a farm system percolating its way into the bigs, provided they're not blocked by the multi-year-dealed Jeff Francouers of the world. The Cardinals are coming …
Jeff Samardzija is a better pitcher
I wasn't buying it, but I'm now convinced that Jeff Samardzija is indeed a better pitcher. Samardzija had not started since midway through the 2010 season when he made 3 starts. He had a 6.19 ERA in those 3 games. Compare that to the 5.71 ERA he has through the same number of games this season. Much to my surprise, …
Series Preview: Chicago Cubs (3-7) at Miami Marlins (4-6)
The Cubs stumble into their next opponent having lost all three series so far this year. They'll face the Marlins and their hideous HR structure. Thank DeRosa that this series is being played in Miami and not Chicago – the media firestorm with Ozzie's return after suspension from his recent comments and the mere existence of Carlos Zambrano would be …
Series Preview: Chicago Cubs (2-5) at St. Louis Cardinals (5-2) and Mini-Daily Facepalm
Yesterday's game Before the game I said all they had to do was beat the Brewers best pitcher, and they did. I was stuck in a tedious meeting for most of the game but I surreptitiously checked the score towards the end and was glad to see the Cubs up 8-0. Then I checked the box score and saw that …
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, …
Brewers at Cubs Game Thread
The Cubs have begun the season with 3 very good starts from Ryan Dempster, Matt Garza and even Jeff Samardzija. It's hard to believe, but Samardzija's was the most impressive of all of them. Chris Volstad gets the ball tonight against the Shaun Marcum and the Brewers. Gameday | B-Ref Preview Brewers Lineup Rickie Weeks, 2B Nyjer Morgan, CF Ryan …