I don't have much time today, so this will be a short preview. The Brewers are in bad shape, with several players (Chris Narveson, Mat Gamel, Marco Estrada, Alex Gonzalez, various catchers) out, Aramis Ramirez and Ryan Braun banged up, and others (Weeks) underperforming. The Cubs might be looking ahead to their next series with the Twins, who are in …
Series Preview: Chicago Cubs (18-32) at San Francisco Giants (27-24)
The Cubs start a ten game road trip with a visit to Pac Bell Park (or whatever the hell they're calling it these days). At least this series, unlike most west coast series, will only have one super late game (tonight's). Unfortunately the Cubs will miss Tim Lincecum, who seems to have transformed into a lesser pitcher. Maybe Jeff Samardzija …
Daily, er, Monthly Facepalm – 5.31.12
Cubs slip from last place The Cubs sweep of the Padres puts them one game behind in the race for the #1 pick. The Cubs are tied with the Twins for the second pick. Buried in this Hobbitton Times article about the sweep was a nugget about Ryan Dempster putting a hole in the wall next to his locker after …
Series Preview: San Diego Padres (17-32) at Chicago Cubs (15-32)
Will the Cubs complete the hat trick of being swept by some of the worst teams in the NL? This time they have the additional challenge of getting swept at home. Team Overviews NL Rank in parens Padres Cubs wOBA .278 (15th) .296 (14th) UBR -4.4 (15th) 4.1 (1st) UZR -1.7 (9th) 9.9 (5th) DRS -7 (9th) 6 (5th) …
Today in cognitive dissonance
Brad at Cubs Stats and Tom Loxas at Cubs Den both put up interesting posts today discussing criticism (and merit thereof) of the Theo Epstein/Jed Hoyer era. They're both great reads, and were prompted by Notorious Douchebag Paul Sullivan's appearance on Chicago Tribune Live the other day. They made many good points about looking at the long term plan but …
Series Preview: Chicago Cubs (15-29) at Pittsburgh Pirates (20-24)
The surging Cubs could extend their streak to 12 in a row in a series against the Pirates. At least they'll get to lose in a beautiful ballpark. The Pirates are coming off a series loss at home to the Mets, and just DFA'd former future face of the franchise Nate McLouth. Team Overviews NL Rank in parentheses Cubs …
Series Preview: Chicago Cubs (15-26) at Houston Astros (18-23)
We knew that the Cubs would stink this year, but seeing the Pirates and Astros above the Cubs in the standings still takes some getting used to. At least we have the Hope Monster to remind us that the Cubs are only seven games back!!! It's gonna happen! The rest of the NL Central kind of stinks right now. The …
Castillo has MCL Sprain, Koyie Hill returns to Cubs
Welington Castillo has a MCL sprain and will get an MRI today. He could be out 4-7 days. Carrie Muskat reports on twitter that the Cubs acquired Koyie Hill from the Reds for cash considerations, and he'll be in uniform for tonight's game.
Series Preview: Chicago White Sox (18-21) at Chicago Cubs (15-23)
Last I checked, the White Sox were doing pretty well in the AL central and there was talk of contention. They have a losing record now, but it's only a half game back from the heavily favorited Tigers and the surprising Indigenous Peoples. Much like the Cubs they have a solid rotation with a shaky bullpen and a bunch …
Q & A With Phillies Blog "That Ball's Outta Here"
We were contacted by Phillies blog "That Ball's Outta Here" to do a Q&A, and you can read our answers to the Cubs questions over at their site. Ethan was kind enough to answer a few questions of our own about the Phillies 1. What can the Phillies do to improve their offense? Watching a few Tom Emansky hitting videos …