Maybe it’s because he’s been passed on the starting pitching pecking order and in the hearts of Cubs’ fans by Mark Prior and Carlos Zambrano or maybe it’s because we’re tired of watching his “comeback” starts, but Kerry Wood turned in an impressive performance yesterday, and most of us just yawned. Six innings, two hits, one run, nine strikeouts, two walks and “only” 91 pitches? Hey, that’s pretty good.
And yet, most of us were underwhelmed.
You want to know why? Because we need to see it a few more times before we believe it. The Cubs would have you think that they’ve “fixed” Kerry’s pitching mechanics. They gave him a slightly longer leg kick to force him to stay over the rubber longer and to keep him from flying open, and they’ve been trying to convince him that he’s one of those rare, gifted, specimens who can throw 95 MPH with relative ease, and that the harder he tries to throw the ball the wilder and slower it really goes.
If it all takes, Kerry Wood has plenty of time to become the pitcher he’s shown us in those all-too brief flashes that he can be. But consider us skeptical for a while. Hopeful, because it’s not like we don’t like Kerry, but skeptical.
On the day he came back, the Cubs said goodbye to the antithesis of Kerry. While Kerry’s career has shown him to be uniquely talented with some brief, but tantalizing moments of unhittability, Joe Borowski’s only unique talent is his ability to stick with it. Sure, when he’s right he can throw a fastball in the low 90s and most people can’t do that. But most Major Leaguers can. His slider’s good, but nothing special. He’s kicked around from minor league town to minor league town, and he even served a stint in the Mexican League. He perservered and for two full seasons he was the best relief pitcher the Cubs had. In 2003 he backed into the closer’s role and did it with more efficiency than we had a right to expect from him.
He got the biggest outs in the biggest season we’ve seen in these parts. He was on the mound when the Cubs became the first Chicago baseball team to win a postseason series in 86 years. We like Joe because he just seems so…normal.
I can’t think of any player over the past…well, ever…that we’ve wanted to see do as well as we do Joe. How many players sign a two-year, $5 million contract and the reaction of people who make less than a hundreth of that is, “Hey, good for him. He earned it.” That was the reaction when Joe finally got paid, and finally got more than a one year deal after the 2003 season.
We don’t know if things would have worked out differently if he hadn’t broken his hand in spring training. Maybe that set him back to the point where he just wasn’t really ready when he came back up. But we knew, and he knew, it was over a few weeks ago. Even when he was getting outs they were hit very far and very loudly.
And at the end of his days as a Cub, he did just what we knew he’d do. He stood there and he answered every question and thanked everybody as he left. That’s just who Joe is. And that’s why we’ll miss him.
The Cubs four game winning streak has pulled them to within a game and a half of the Wild Card lead in the National League. But for a month now, the standings take somewhat of a back seat to the trade rumors in baseball. They’re flying already and we’re still 32 days from the deadline.
The Denver Post says the Rockies want Todd Wellemeyer, Ronny Cedeno and another prospect for Preston Wilson. I’m sure they want that. They’re not getting it though. I can see why they want Cedeno, but not Wellemeyer. Not that I don’t think Todd’s got talent. He does. But his talents would seem to be a horrifically bad fit for Coors Field. A highfastball-changeup pitcher a mile in the sky? Woof.
Ken Rosenthal says that the Reds have officially put slugging outfielder Adam Dunn on the market and that two NL Central teams, the Cubs and Astros (Adam’s from Texas, so the Astros like their chances of re-signing him when he becomes a free agent in a couple years) have enough talent to entice the Reds. Rosental even says that the Reds are looking for a Josh Beckett or Kerry Wood-type talent. Hey, they can have the real thing if they want. I’d trade Kerry for Dunn in a heartbeat. But if they want a Beckett-Wood clone, how about Angel Guzman? He’s talented and always hurt, too.
I find it interesting that there are people who are down on Dunn because he strikes out so much. Actually that part isn’t interesting, it’s when they say things like, “He strikes out more than Corey Patterson does!” as if Adam’s strikeouts make him the taller, paler Corey.
That couldn’t be farther from the truth.
The average big league player, at least one with an everyday job will bat 600 times, and even the best of those will make 400 outs. Adam Dunn struck out 195 times last year. That’s a lot. In fact it’s the most, ever.
Corey Patterson struck out 168 times last year. He’s on pace this year to fan 162 times.
But here’s the thing, Dunn walked 108 times in 2004.
108 walks. That’s a lot. Sure it is. It’s more than Corey Patterson has walked in his CAREER.
Corey’s on base average is .107 points lower than Dunn’s this year.
This is the long way of saying that the only way Dunn and Patterson’s offensive approach is similar is that they both swing and miss a lot. But Dunn makes up for it by swinging and missing good pitches, while Corey swings and misses…uh…everything.
The key to having a productive offense is to have guys who get on base. I know Dusty seems to think they just clog things up, but on many things, Dusty’s just daft. While Dunn strikes out a lot, he’s on base a ton. You can even argue that in many situations, like a runner at first and one out, a Dunn strikeout is less harmful than a Todd Hollandsworth grounder to short.
Give me eight Adam Dunns and I’ll score a crapload of runs. Give me eight Corey Pattersons and I’ll just take them to the bar and hit on the chicks who follow them around.
We had one of the weaker trade rumors yesterday when a poster said his sister hear on the radio that the A’s and Cubs were talking about Jason Dubois and The Meat Tray for Mark Kotsay. Weak, because of the second and third-hand nature of the source, but not weak in the amount of sense it would make for both teams.
Your first, natural, reaction when you heard that the Mets and Yankees weren’t going to talk about a Mike Cameron for Gary Sheffield trade was that a) the Yankees are as scared of Sheffield as we are and b) that it was bad for the Cubs because the Yankees will be after Kotsay as their top target now. However, the Yankees apparently were going to try and get Cameron and Kotsay not either or, so the odds didn’t really change much.
Me for Dunn? You’re drinking your breakfast again.
I have to agree with Kerry. I mean, I have a lifetime average of .249, I’ve never hit higher than .266 and only never struck out fewer than 170 times in any full season and I’m on pace for about 170 this year. I do have an OPS of .900 in my career, which is good but have you seen me play the outfield? Whoo boy! I need a batting helmet and a bushel basket out there. In other words, I’m Preston Wilson with a better OBP, less speed and no glove. And while you can have Preston for spare parts you have to give up a “Kerry Wood type” talent for me. That’s not something you should do in a heartbeat.
“Greg Maddux 1, Tony Womack 0”.
Brilliant.
what the hell is a muffler belt?
Jay, it’s that belt your little gay lover smacks you on the ass with every night.
I got another winning lineup for today, dudes.
Li’l Jerry 2b
Corey cf
D Lee 1b
E-ramis 3b
Barrett c
Dewboy lf
Ronny ss
Macias rf
Greggie p
If it weren’t for me, Adam Dunn would be playing first full-time. You can go ahead and trade Kerry Wood within your division if your so convinced he’s the pathetic bust you assume he is. He’ll be the best pitcher on this team since Jose Rijo – the face of this franchise for 15 years. And Adam Dunn will be Dave Kingman with thicker thighs.
Boy, you guys are just as dumb as a bag a hammers if you do this deal.
At least he’s got Corey bumped down. I wouldn’t mind if he did that every day, bumped him down a spot until he wound up where he belonged. Sure, it’d mean he bats third tomorrow, but he’ll eventually be in the #8 hole by Wednesday game vs. Atlanta.
And the Gremlin in right with Dubois in left? I actually feel sorry for Strut today. He’s going to have flashbacks to last year, only it’ll be worse.
Is that lineup serious? And if so, why is Baker worried about Burnitz facing Capuano (the lefty/righty matchup, I assume) that he’s willing to play Macias there, but not so worried that he’s batting Patterson 2nd?
I’m praying that Roger Cedeno Jr. goes 4-5 and maybe gets a shot to play most days. I appreciate what Nefi’s done early in the season, but his regression to the norm has been about painful as we anticipated and one of the many things Dust Bag doesn’t seem to comprehend.
That’s the real lineup, dudes. I can’t have Todd Walker in there cuz Capuano’s a crafty lefty. I gotta have one lefty in there, though, and if you put Todd Walker and Corey Patterson in a dark room and you send Capuano in there, I’m thinking he’s reaching for Patterson, dudes, so I think Patterson has got the edge.
I meant CESAR Cedeno Junior. Roger would be too young to have a major-league son. I mean, he’s not Eric Young.
Don’t trade Kerry Wood for me. It’s not like I’m 25 with a career .900 OPS or anything, and I don’t light up Wrigley Field like it’s a pinball machine. Oh, and it’s not like your minor league system is deep in pitching and woefully inept of corner outfielders or anything. Nah. Couldn’t use me.
Do I exist today?
He knocked her up so really what choice did he have?
http://www.eonline.com/News/Items/0,1,16853,00.html?fdfour3
Actually, dudes, if you put Todd Walker and Corey Patterson in a dark room, I’d still be able to see Walker.
Mike D., you have stolen the clarificational follow-up post from BC’s playbook. I’m going to have to run you. You’re outta here!
When I clicked on the link for the Affleck-Garner wedding the banner ad on E! was for Trojan.
We are like assholes. Everybody has us. Except for the Cubs because they had theirs removed last winter. It was painful, being seperated from one’s butthole and it really caused a buildup of excrement in the early going. But the build up is not so deep and so serious that it warrants trading away the one strength the team truly has, starting pitching, for something that could be had elsewhere without the cost of sending Kerry by God Wood to a division rival. That’s the type of thing the Reds would do and it’s precisely why they are in their current state of disaster.
Hey, is that lineup serious? If so, where did you get it?
We’ve been saying that’s the lineup for a few hours now.
We needed to rest today after winning the game yesterday.
See ya in the 9th!
Other than Macias being alive, and Patterson batting second, that lineup is all right.
Hell, it’s almost great by Dusty standards. I’m just amazed he didn’t put Patterson and Macias at 1-2.
That dumbass church boy put charcoal in a gas grill because it was out of propane.
I kept furiosuly barking at him that he was an idiot, just order some Subway sandwiches instead. Would he listne to me? Noooo.
And now I’m dead. Thanks, guy. See you in hell.
No prob. I can win with that.
Ummm, Andy.
20 minutes unitl game time. Where’s our afternoon-wasting Gamecast setup? We may have to, you know, do WORK today, otherwise.
Brave!!!
Dunn has an OPS of .940. The LFers he would be replacing have OPSs of .700 and .800. Oh and by the way, Dunn is younger than both of them as well.
As for Cubs fans irrational fear of strikeouts, yes strikeouts are bad. But focusing on eliminating only strikeouts, is accepting other ways of making outs. All outs are bad. As pointed out, in certain situations, strikeouts aren’t even the worst result a batter can have (double plays). So we should be looking for people who do not make outs.
Adam Dunn does not make an out about 38.4% of the time. Our left fielders currently do not make an out 29.9% and 31.3% of the time. And considering that Adam achieves this while still maintaining his power (slugging .558 versus .393 and .489), he would be a huge improvement for our offense.
If we can get him, while trading from out strength (our pitching), I say go for it. Sure I would prefer to see prospects sent instead of major leaguers, but the only arms I would consider off limits are The Franchise and Big Z.