Cubs Leveling Off

Well, you had to know that the Ted Lilly start was going to signal the end of the Cubs' torrid bout of hitting, but they came out this afternoon and bounced back to beat the Pirates without a whole lot of run support. Lilly is awful and Jon Lieber, despite serving up a Ken Griffey Jr. homer yesterday, should be moving into the starting rotation to take his place. Rich Hill, the pitcher most likely to be looking at Lieber over his shoulder, gave up only one run today despite letting a lot of Pirates reach base. Cubs are now a game back of St. Louis, who can't start getting bitten by the injury bug early enough for this Cubs fan's liking.

Derek Lee struggled for the second straight game as a six-game hitting streak came to an end after looking like Ted Williams out there for a little while. Reed Johnson has stepped into the roll of hit-machine over the past two. He's looking like he'll be a great fit for the Cubs. He's got that old-school air of effort in everything he does. Now if he'd only shave that stupid beard. Felix Pie is going to have to find some other way to get into the lineup besides mopping up in the late innings for Johnson. He didn't even get an at-bat today and the point of his demotion to the bench was supposed to be for him to improve his hitting. I hope that practice time trying to shorten his swing is paying off. Weird is the only word to describe Mark DeRosa's approach to left field, with his circling and shuffling underneath the ball like a cartoon character before finally making the catch and eliciting a collective gasp of relief from the Wrigley crowd. But he's getting the job done. Mike Fontenot's has been doing a solid job at second and, yesterday notwithstanding, hitting pretty well too. Eric Patterson stepped in at second today. Lou does like to shift things around. I just hope he can shift Pie in somewhere where he can get some ABs.

Kerry Wood is looking better as a closer every time out. That is definitely encouraging. Hopefully he'll stay healthy. Carlos Marmol threw 40 pitches today in two innings and is becoming an imposing middle reliever. Tomorrow Jason Marquis will try once more to justify his whining to get into this year's rotation against Tom Gorzelanny. Let's see if Lee can get off the schnide.

Go Cubs!

Cubs Need to Save Some Hits for Later

Well as Bob and Len awkwardly realize they've brought into the family conversation the murder of a cougar, the Cubs have been seeing beach balls at the plate all night. Derek Lee looks ready to make a serious run for MVP this year. He already has more home runs this year than he had until June of last year. Zambrano is a much happier man when he can fake-hammer Mike Fontenot into the ground. Oh yeah- and when he leaves the game with a nine run lead. What can't Big Z do? He went 3-3 on the night and even legged out a double while he was up by nine runs. Sure, dumb things like that are what keeps you out for two seasons with a torn achilles tendon, but who cares? It's hilarious, and it's great to see that kind of passion for the game. Somebody make Ted Lilly hang out with Zambrano a little. Maybe Big Z will rub off on Big Monotone.

Felix Pie made another graceful run out it center to field a long fly by Corey Patterson, a.k.a. the guy I really hope he doesn't become. Pie is clearly the best defensive outfielder on the Cubs roster and apparently he's now working with the hitting coach and Lou on "shortening up his swing." He'll be our lead-off hitter in no time. Eric Patterson is even getting in on the action in this one.

These last two games have been quality entertainment. Let's just hope the Cubs aren't setting themselves up for a dry spell. I'd like to see 'em put up a 12-spot on Santana. Then we'll know they're real for sure. Ted Lilly's starting tomorrow in what appears to be a sure recipe for a sweep-destroying outing for the Cubs in the final game of their series with the Reds. Go Cubs!

Cubs Keep it Steady

Phase 1 is complete. It's mid-April and the Cubs are still in contention. That's about as much as you can ask for from a Cubs team this time of year. Last night's slugfest against the Reds exercised some Dusty demons although it looks like we've lost Alfonso Soriano for what appears to be some significant time. Damn that little hop. You're making $17 million a year. Learn how to field a can-of-corn without looking like a schoolgirl. In any event, last night was entertaining and Soriano's injury will either make way for Matt Murton to come back up to the bigs or for Felix "what brick wall?" Pie to get quality time in the lineup. Seriously Felix, I love the commitment and that gallup out to the warning track was reminiscent of the earlier days of a certain member of the opposing team who now occupies right field. Any day now, something is going to click and you are going to, as Lou Piniella put it, "learn to decipher balls from strikes" and you are going to be the next great homegrown Cubs star. Believe it. Onto the greater picture

Everything that went right in the Pittsburgh series went wrong against the Phillies, but the Cubbies still made it out of the Keystone State with a 4-2 record and stole the final game in Philadelphia. Seeing as how every blogger and sports columnist has their own crazy, knee-jerk reaction to something. The player they want to trade after every outing. The GM that needs to be fired as soon as their off-season acquisition strikes out. For me, that thing is Ted Lilly. This guy is about as enthusiastic as a sloth. Sometimes that's alright. Coolness and collectedness are not bad attributes for some guys. They can't all break bats over their knees, but a little fire never hurt anyone who was having trouble getting out of the first inning every time out. Show us you care that you're pitching horribly at least. If there's anything a Cubs fan can forgive, it's futility, but it would be nice to know it was bothering you. Jon Lieber is breathing down your neck. That goes for you too Rich Hill.

With the Philly series behind them and the Cincinnati series off to a nice, wind-assisted start, and with Pittsburgh coming into town for three before we take on the Mets, the next few games are a chance to solidify a winning record for April and put the Cubs in the driver's seat in the NL Central. We won't get a crack at the first-place Cardinals until the big early-May weekend series in St. Louis, but I firmly plan on the Cards showing their true, faded colors by mid-season, and a quality April record spent taking care of the cellar in the Central will help the Cubs down the road. There's still a lot of coming around to do on the part of the guys the Cubs will be relying on down the stretch- Lilly, Hill, Aramis Ramirez, Jason Marquis and of course, Soriano, assuming he doesn't lose multiple weeks to this calf injury. Mike Fontenot and Ryan Dempster are picking up the slack, but I'm not sure if they're starting MVP and Cy Young campaigns this season. The big guys, other than Derek Lee (who is averaging more than a hit-and-a-half per game), need to get it together. If they do and everyone else keeps playing their part, the Cubs can rip off about 20 straight games from late May into lat June this season and demoralize the Brewers.

Pictures

Since this blog is pretty bare bones right now and since it could be a couple of weeks before I figure out how to make it at all visually stimulating, I'm gonna add this slide show of pictures my mom and I took at games last year (both of which were blowout Cubs victories if you're superstitious and want to give us your season tickets). Enjoy!

Oh, hey, I didn't even see you there

Well I kind of flaked last year on this blog after I got back home and was actually able to go to some Cubs games, but I'm back with a regular schedule and a program that lets me watch all the games on my computer this year, and I'd like to talk Cubs baseball. First of all, I can't remember the last time I was this excited for a season. And despite the fact that they have more men on base at the end of an average inning than the U.S. Army, they've gotten off to a pretty good start. Even the losses haven't been that bad. But the errors... oh, the errors. Every time a ball is bobbled or overthrown I flash forward to an October 2008 catastrophe that could make fans long for the days when it was Bartman who cost us... though now, apparently, it wasn't. I'm keeping all my fingers and toes crossed that the miscues are just off-season rust that has yet to shake off. All and all though, it's been fun to watch as the Cubs have found all sorts of ways to win. They have already put together a five-game streak, which they hadn't done since last year's stellar run in June.

A few observations thus far

Derek Lee, despite his struggles over the past two games, appears to be ready for a monster season. He looks focused and patient at the plate and his power numbers are likely to get a boost from last year. It's a good sign that when a guy is 0 for 5 in a game he's still got enough game IQ and patience to get himself a couple of bases on balls, as Lee did in the wee innings of a 15-inning marathon against Pittsburgh the other night. Had Lee not taken the walk in the 14th, Adam LaRoche's two-run shot in the bottom half of the inning would have won it for the Bucs.

Kosuke Fukudome, already a fan favorite, is exactly the type of player the Cubs needed. He is even-keeled and unflappable. There might not be a more fundamentally sound player in baseball. He's smart, fast, and he's an on-base machine. He's got a rocket arm from right. Perhaps most importantly though, he's a virtual stranger to the culture of the curse and, as they say, ignorance is bliss. It certainly can be when you're playing lights out baseball in total oblivion and contravention of 99 years of tragic history. Fukudome will be the guy that hits in the playoffs when no one else is. He will keep rallies and hope alive. He will be the motor.

Resilience. Cubs teams of yore would have folded like a paper airplane after blowing a seven-run lead, as they did on Monday. Giving up a two-run home run bottom 14 after they blowing a ninth inning lead and finally taking it back with a two-run Ramirez shot in the top of the 14th would have been a death knell in the past. But, somehow, they won both. They didn't hang their heads and they kept plugging away. These are games they're winning now that are going to mean they won't have to make a 20-game run at the end of the season, and it's a good sign.

Depth. Everyone is playing their part when they're needed. Soriano, our biggest power man last season, has gotten off to a miserable start, but he'll come around, and in the mean time other guys are picking up the slack. Giovanni Soto has been fantastic, and I think this guy has Mike Piazza-but-with-better-defense written all over him. He's a keeper. Mike Fontenot has stepped in when needed, including a big two-run homer yesterday night to put the game away. Reed Johnson has hit everything since stepping in for a still-struggling Felix Pie. And Pie himself, despite his woes at the plate, was the hero of Wednesday's game with his hands-in, opposite field two-run single. Fukudome is all over the place, keeping the beat. Aramis and Soriano are going to get theirs eventually, but it's nice to know that they and Lee don't have to go it alone. Ryan Dempster has been phenomenal in his two starts. This is a guy who, when he used to come in for the ninth, I had to close my eyes and pray. I guess starting pitching just suits him better. He could be the surprise of the season. Kerry Wood may have blown the save against the Pirates the other night, but he made them look foolish for the remainder of the inning, and he's looked outstanding most of the time.

Some concerns

The errors. We talked about this already. They, of course, have got to stop. Tighten up the screws.

Starting pitching. There's already talk of putting Rich Hill, who many predicted was poised for a breakout season, in the bullpen. He had a rough outing last night and Jon Lieber, who relieved, is breathing down his neck. Lieber has been more than solid so far, but I don't know if he's a long-term starting pitching solution. I like Sean Marshall, but he has been inconsistent. I've never been sold on Ted Lilly myself, but I know that Lou wants to have those lefties in the lineup, and I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. One start does not a season make, but if he blows another multi-run lead, it may be time to look to Kevin Hart for some quality innings.

Felix Pie. I want this guy to be a mega-success. I want him to bust out of quadruple-A status and to start hitting. He's lightning quick and a gifted fielder. He tears pitchers apart down in Iowa, but he just looks miserable up at the plate here. Part of it, I assume, is that he can't get settled in. Lou gives him a handful of games at the beginning of a season, moves him all over the order, and then yanks him. He's a kid. Give him a chance and let him know that he is the future so he doesn't feel Triple-A breathing down his neck all the time.

On the whole, I'm pretty thrilled with how the first week and a half has turned out. The Cubs are finding ways to win even when they don't play that well. It bodes well for when they hit midseason stride and have to put the Brewers away. Until next time, GO CUBS!

Holy Cow!

Save for last night's 15-inning heartbreaker to the lowly Pirates, the Cubs are finally getting it together. Soriano's got his average up to where it should be (even higher actually), the offense is finally showing up and the pitching has been solid. We even got a taste of being above .500 and it feels like- though this is always a dangerous limb to go out on, we'll be getting used to that taste pretty soon. That barring any major injuries of course (crosses every finger and toe, and those of the girl next to him). Let's see here- since the last blog the Cubs record has been... 8-2. Phenominal. Sustain that and they'll be in the playoffs and with the Cards looking weaker all the time, and their best pitcher out for three months, I'll take my chances. Really, what's the worst that can happen? I probably don't even want to know. Zeppelin crash at Wrigley Field? Team plane crash? Lots of crashes come to mind.

For now though let's just sit back and appreciate the success they're having right now. They look like a team that expects to win and that's something you just can't buy in free agency. Props to Lou Piniella for that. His doctor probably told him he wasn't allowed any more tantrums, so he had to figure out a way to get the team winning. Sans the circus that is the Cub outfield, he's done a good job. Might actually be back in Chicago for this next blog- back on the vine for a little while. It's not cheating. Everyone's gotta go back sometimes. I will be attending a game and will try to get some pictures up here to spruce up this god-awful layout. GO CUBS!

Week 3: More of the Same

Alright, we get it. You're struggling. Why? The pitching has been a little inconsistent but not terrible. Rich Hill has been lights out so far. But it's time to get it together. Nobody, least of all the Cubs, can afford to dig themselves into too big a hole to start the season. Comebacks aren't really the Cubs style anyway. Two things stick out so far. The Cubs still aren't scoring runs, which is inexcusable with this lineup and the salaries that come with it. The other thing is that they are giving away close games. By my count, today is the sixth game they've lost by one run- the third in extra innings. That's the difference right now between being 13-6 and being 7-12. Sooner or later it's gotta turn around.

A friend of mine texted me this weekend that he was at Wrigley. I was jealous, but the game was on TV here along with the Bulls playoff game. Both teams won- a Red-letter day for Chicago sports.

Soriano's coming back and moving to left and it looks like Pie, who showed flashes of brilliance but didn't hit particularly well, will be sent back down to the minors to hone his skills a bit longer. That may not be such a bad thing considering the Cubs' depth at outfield. I'm still waiting for Matt Murton to bust out and have a huge couple of games. The redhead's got potential.

I finally hit up a handful of the bars I heard were likely to have Cubs fans in L.A. and was pleasantly surprised. Check out the
website for more. There's Old Style involved.