The 2016 Cubs: SPLOOGE SPLOOGE SPLOOGE

[Saul Goodman]

Clayton to the DL. Warren to AAA to be stretched out for a start before the ASG

Spencer Patton and Gerardo Concepcion up

Jed: So, you think we should make some trades to fix our shitty bullpen?
Theo: Before we do that, let's see if our shitty guys in AAA are better than our shitty guys in Chicago, cool?
Armando Rivero: I'm not as shitty as either of those guys. 

True, Theo only has his wealth of scouting data, input from coaches, and the most advanced proprietary statistics on the planet to determine who to call up. Pen has an MilB app on his phone. He'd know.

Not having to give Pen a hard time (||) anymore is so freeing. The birds are chirping. The air is crisp. What a time to be alive.

[Saul Goodman]

They've allowed 193 runs and have a +171 run differential. Jebus.

They might double up their runs allowed before this weekend ends.

If they sweep, they'll be 30 games over .500, and 15 games ahead of St. Louis in the standings.

All before July.

Hope you're happy with yourself.

[R-V]

http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-cubs-pitchers-are-making-their-own-luck/

[SKO]

http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-cubs-pitchers-are-making-their-own-luck/

I'm glad someone wrote that, I've seen quite a few people try to say "there's just no way their staff is that good", which is probably true, especially in Hammel's case, but I don't see any reason why the other four can't keep this up given how rarely anyone is actually squaring them up at this point. Hendricks has managed contact better than almost any pitcher in the league somehow.

[PenFoe]

Clayton to the DL. Warren to AAA to be stretched out for a start before the ASG

Spencer Patton and Gerardo Concepcion up

Jed: So, you think we should make some trades to fix our shitty bullpen?
Theo: Before we do that, let's see if our shitty guys in AAA are better than our shitty guys in Chicago, cool?
Armando Rivero: I'm not as shitty as either of those guys.  

True, Theo only has his wealth of scouting data, input from coaches, and the most advanced proprietary statistics on the planet to determine who to call up. Pen has an MilB app on his phone. He'd know.

Concepcion back to the minors, Cubs trying out 40-year old Joel Peralta to see if he sucks any less.

[SKO]

Clayton to the DL. Warren to AAA to be stretched out for a start before the ASG

Spencer Patton and Gerardo Concepcion up

Jed: So, you think we should make some trades to fix our shitty bullpen?
Theo: Before we do that, let's see if our shitty guys in AAA are better than our shitty guys in Chicago, cool?
Armando Rivero: I'm not as shitty as either of those guys. 

True, Theo only has his wealth of scouting data, input from coaches, and the most advanced proprietary statistics on the planet to determine who to call up. Pen has an MilB app on his phone. He'd know.

Concepcion back to the minors, Cubs trying out Joel Peralta to see if he sucks any less.

You call his secretary to tell him about Rivero?

[PenFoe]

Clayton to the DL. Warren to AAA to be stretched out for a start before the ASG

Spencer Patton and Gerardo Concepcion up

Jed: So, you think we should make some trades to fix our shitty bullpen?
Theo: Before we do that, let's see if our shitty guys in AAA are better than our shitty guys in Chicago, cool?
Armando Rivero: I'm not as shitty as either of those guys. 

True, Theo only has his wealth of scouting data, input from coaches, and the most advanced proprietary statistics on the planet to determine who to call up. Pen has an MilB app on his phone. He'd know.

Concepcion back to the minors, Cubs trying out Joel Peralta to see if he sucks any less.

You call his secretary to tell him about Rivero?

Can I access her phone number from my MiLB app?

[Shooter]

Clayton to the DL. Warren to AAA to be stretched out for a start before the ASG

Spencer Patton and Gerardo Concepcion up

Jed: So, you think we should make some trades to fix our shitty bullpen?
Theo: Before we do that, let's see if our shitty guys in AAA are better than our shitty guys in Chicago, cool?
Armando Rivero: I'm not as shitty as either of those guys.  

True, Theo only has his wealth of scouting data, input from coaches, and the most advanced proprietary statistics on the planet to determine who to call up. Pen has an MilB app on his phone. He'd know.

Concepcion back to the minors, Cubs trying out 40-year old Joel Peralta to see if he sucks any less.

SPOILER ALERT: He doesn't.

[Eli]

Clayton to the DL. Warren to AAA to be stretched out for a start before the ASG

Spencer Patton and Gerardo Concepcion up

Jed: So, you think we should make some trades to fix our shitty bullpen?
Theo: Before we do that, let's see if our shitty guys in AAA are better than our shitty guys in Chicago, cool?
Armando Rivero: I'm not as shitty as either of those guys.  

True, Theo only has his wealth of scouting data, input from coaches, and the most advanced proprietary statistics on the planet to determine who to call up. Pen has an MilB app on his phone. He'd know.

Concepcion back to the minors, Cubs trying out 40-year old Joel Peralta to see if he sucks any less.

Oh, geez, he actually is 40. I thought you were kidding.

[SKO]

Clayton to the DL. Warren to AAA to be stretched out for a start before the ASG

Spencer Patton and Gerardo Concepcion up

Jed: So, you think we should make some trades to fix our shitty bullpen?
Theo: Before we do that, let's see if our shitty guys in AAA are better than our shitty guys in Chicago, cool?
Armando Rivero: I'm not as shitty as either of those guys.  

True, Theo only has his wealth of scouting data, input from coaches, and the most advanced proprietary statistics on the planet to determine who to call up. Pen has an MilB app on his phone. He'd know.

Concepcion back to the minors, Cubs trying out 40-year old Joel Peralta to see if he sucks any less.

Oh, geez, he actually is 40. I thought you were kidding.

I guess "Joe Maddon demands a tryout for a 40 year old reliever he liked five years ago in Tampa" is gonna be an annual thing

[CBStew]

Clayton to the DL. Warren to AAA to be stretched out for a start before the ASG

Spencer Patton and Gerardo Concepcion up

Jed: So, you think we should make some trades to fix our shitty bullpen?
Theo: Before we do that, let's see if our shitty guys in AAA are better than our shitty guys in Chicago, cool?
Armando Rivero: I'm not as shitty as either of those guys.  

True, Theo only has his wealth of scouting data, input from coaches, and the most advanced proprietary statistics on the planet to determine who to call up. Pen has an MilB app on his phone. He'd know.

Concepcion back to the minors, Cubs trying out 40-year old Joel Peralta to see if he sucks any less.

Oh, geez, he actually is 40. I thought you were kidding.

I guess "Joe Maddon demands a tryout for a 40 year old reliever he liked five years ago in Tampa" is gonna be an annual thing

That's when the Polaroids were taken.  Geez, is that joke dated!

[WTB...A RING FFS!!]

Holy shit, actually 2 out hits, with a run off of one.

[D. Doluntap]

Got the classic Borowski hard hit double play. That's experience.

[SKO]

I was wondering how much more valuable the bench has been this year and so I added up the fWAR of the guys I considered to be bench players last year vs the bench this year to do a comparison. I used 30 PA as the minimum threshold to exclude guys like The Fed and Teagarden who only appeared in a handful of games, and I counted Ross as a bench player for 2015 but since he and Miggy have been a straight platoon this year more or less I counted them as starters this year (Willson as a bench player for now).

Basically, the 2015 Bench: Denorfia (0.8), Baez (0.5), La Stella (0.2), Jackson (0.2), Ross (0.1), Baxter (-0.1), Szczur (-0.2), Lake (-0.3) Buckets (-0.4) and Mendy (-0.4) was worth less than 1 entire win combined at 0.4 fWAR, and Baez/La Stella/Jackson were all basically non-factors before September, so things were ugly.

The 2016 Bench: Baez (1.0), La Stella (0.6), Willson (0.5), Albert (0.3), Szczur (0.2), and even Coghlan (0.2) have combined for 2.8 wins less than halfway through the season.

That has definitely mitigated the damage done by the injuries to Schwarber/Fowler/Soler and Heyward's ineffectiveness in a way they couldn't have done early last year. A real testament to how Theo has built a team that's as deep as it is loaded with high end talent at the top.

[Quality Start Machine]

The other thing I love about this team (and the plan in general) is that when prospects like Almora or Contreras show up, they're not being asked to be saviors. Contreras' bat has been too good to not have him in the lineup, but if he had come in to be a role player it would have been fine.

Almora is strictly a role guy, and he'll be back in Iowa once Fowler and/or Soler are back, and he has been able to accept and execute the role he was given.

Nobody needs to come up and destroy guys like Bryant did last year. I'm guessing the players are finding it easier to adjust to the bigs when there aren't expectations*.


Standing ovations for Contreras notwithstanding