Cubs 6, Padres 5

In Postgame by berselius181 Comments

OSS: Cubs pen tries to give one away, Padres defense gives it right back.

Three up:

  1. Anthony Rizzo hit a grand slam in the third inning to give the Cubs a 4-3 lead, which was obviously the biggest hit of the day. I was surprised to hear on the broadcast that it was his first homer in over a month. The lack of HR power hadn’t hurt his numbers though, as he had a .431 wOBA in July going into this game. With that home run the Cubs now have four players with 20+ home runs, and Contreras is currently sitting on 19.
  2. Javier Baez also homered, increasing his team lead to 23 HRs.
  3. The Cubs retaking the lead had more to do with the Padres defense blowing it, but it still took some heads up baserunning to take advantage.

Three down:

  1. Lester didn’t look too sharp in what I saw of his outing, but given that it was a billion degree heat index and the wind was blowing out, I guess he limited the damage a little bit. Still twelve hits in six innings is not great.
  2. Pedro Strop gave up the tying run with a homer in the eighth. Strop has been great with the Cubs but hasn’t looked the same since coming back from his injury this year, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see him miss more time unfortunately.
  3. Russell and Bote combined to go 0-8 with 6 Ks, and those two non-strikeouts were the Padres fielding errors that led to the winning run.

Next up: Q takes on Joey Lucchesi at 1:20 PM CT.

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  1. Rizzo the Rat

    I have a feeling Kimbrel’s control is going to drive me crazy even if he pitches effectively for the Cubs.

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  2. andcounting

    Rizzo the Rat,

    It looks like Javy can read where the trajectory of the incoming throw will come closest to intersecting with the runner’s path and manages to catch the ball at that exact point to make his tag as quick as possible, which he envisions before the actual tag so he needn’t look.

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  3. Author
    berselius

    To-day’s base ball squadron

    LF Schwarber
    SS Baez
    3B Bryant
    1B Rizzo
    2B Garcia
    RF Heyward
    CF Almora
    C Maldonado
    P Cyle

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  4. andcounting

    Rizzo the Rat,

    Jesus. This is one of those times when controlling my response feels particularly impossible. I feel like social media trains us into believing the only acceptable reaction is outrage and disgust. And traditional patriarchy has pretty much taught us to always question the validity of the accusations. I don’t feel any of those things, and when I see them expressed (often together…”if this turns out to be true, he’s a piece of shit”), it seems foreign, like some culture I feel totally removed from has taken over.

    It’s really sad, what has happened between these two people and what awaits them. I’m ashamed to admit the bulk of my instinctive reaction is curiosity at how people will handle seeing someone they respect and admire on an intellectual and cultural level being guilty of doing the same things as someone they’ve regarded as a disposable piece of human trash whose previous contribution to their lives was almost solely athletic.

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  5. dmick89

    andcounting: I’m ashamed to admit the bulk of my instinctive reaction is curiosity at how people will handle seeing someone they respect and admire on an intellectual and cultural level being guilty of doing the same things as someone they’ve regarded as a disposable piece of human trash whose previous contribution to their lives was almost solely athletic.

    I hadn’t thought of that, but I’m not sure it will be the same as the way party supporters tend to be less harsh toward those who have committed the horrible acts when their ideologies align with your own.

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  6. andcounting

    dmick89,

    Yeah, I don’t expect it to be like that, although I would hope it might temper the way some people react to stuff like this in general. There’s such an understandable battle against the bro defenders who go with misogyny first and ask questions never, that people lose sight of the humanity of the situation. We can have outrage toward a behavior and still hold onto the possibility of supporting people through stages of confession, recovery, restitution, and growth. I’d hope to see something like that offered to anyone willing to accept it and not just my favorite athletes and writers. If for no other reason than that I suspect most domestic abuse/assault/battery/etc. never gets reported. I’m certain it’s more prevalent than we know and I would guess many people never come forward or get help because of the fear of what will happen to their partners if they do.

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  7. dmick89

    andcounting,

    Reminds me of the outrage recently at that judge who decided to try that juvenile as a juvenile. Yeah, it was a ridiculously stupid reason (he’s from a good family) and he should be called out for that of course, but the guy who committed the alleged crime (rape, I think) is a juvenile and should be tried as a juvenile. Stupid horrible reasoning by the judge, but ultimately the right decision.

    I can understand the rage though because, as you say, so much of the violence goes unreported so when it is reported, it’s important that the person who committed the violence be held accountable.

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  8. Author
    berselius

    He is a catcher, so some handicap there I guess. I think Willson would have barely beaten that throw.

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  9. BVS

    berselius,

    I think even Rizzo would have beaten it.

    Seems like I heard Deshais or a national broadcast say Rizzo was faster than 62 other major leaguers. Assume Caratini is in that group.

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  10. andcounting

    I say this with no exaggeration, keeping Descalso in the game to pitch would have been a better move than allowing Edwards to come in with runners on.

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  11. Author
    berselius

    Apparently I need to go back to Spain for the Cubs offense to be good again. Accepting donations.

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  12. andcounting

    dmick89,

    (dying laughing). If only CJ had the same response I would have had when the call game down to the bullpen: you do realize I literally do not know how to throw strikes, right?

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  13. Rizzo the Rat

    It’s kinda mind-boggling how bad the Tigers’ offense will be after Castellanos gets traded.

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  14. dmick89

    It’s crazy to think that the Tigers are probably going to end up getting about 0-2 WAR total out of Cabrera after he signed that huge deal a few years ago. He’s probably a hall of famer, but man he really sucks at this point.

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  15. Rizzo the Rat

    Teams are really dumb when it comes to long-term deals with aging first basemen (Howard, Pujols, Davis).

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  16. Rizzo the Rat

    Votto’s contract is already starting to look like an albatross, but I’m not writing him off just yet.

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  17. Smokestack Lightning

    Brandon Woodruff ——————-> IL

    Oblique. Could miss a few weeks. Could miss the bulk of the rest of the season.

    Considering he’s been worth about as much fWAR as the rest of their starting staff combined, I’m thinking this might be kind of a big loss for the Beers.

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  18. WaLi

    dmick89:
    andcounting,

    I’d rather you be in the Cubs bullpen than. Edwards. Not joking. At least Joe would know to only use you when you’ve got no shot of winning. No offense. (dying laughing)

    As soon as Brach came in yesterday I figured Maddon was thinking 2 out of 3 ain’t bad.

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  19. Ryno

    berselius,

    Shawn Domagal-Goldman, Goddard – for physical models of exoplanets

    Big deal. So he went to some exoplanets and found some models who were exceptionally physical. I’m sure any of us with the resources to go to those exoplanets could’ve also found the physical models. Probably even faster than shawn did.

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  20. Smokestack Lightning

    WaLi: As soon as Brach came in yesterday I figured Maddon was thinking 2 out of 3 ain’t bad.

    My biggest frustration with Brach, other than him being not very good at sports, is not being able to figure out more to do with the obvious Breaking Bad/Braching Brad puns. Seems like there should be more there, but it requires a better mind than mine.

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  21. Smokestack Lightning

    BVS: Joe may be a good manager, but with the bullpen options Theo has given him, he’s Braching Bad.

    Yeah, that’s all that’s really there, I guess. Feels like there’s a potential gold mine, though. And that’s a difficult feeling to shake. The sooner he’s DFA’d, the better.

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  22. Smokestack Lightning

    Toss Jarrod Dyson’s name into the Cubs trade target mix.

    Not nearly as impact-ish as Nicholas Alexander Castellanos III, but I’m up for anything that gets Almora closer to 0 PAs the rest of the season.

    Get ’em both, Theo.

    Or don’t get ’em both. I can’t tell Theo what to do.

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  23. andcounting

    Smokestack Lightning,

    I’m not in total disagreement, but wasn’t he the only Cubs pitcher not to surrender a run yesterday?

    Maddon’s options in the bullpen are pretty bad, but I’m particularly aghast at the CJ use yesterday. I don’t see how anyone can fail to see his psychological shortcomings. I don’t know who could have possibly foreseen a positive outcome of bringing him into a high-leverage situation with runners on base.

    Putting Brach in? Dumb, but what other choice do you have? Keeping Brach on the team? Dumb, but again, what better options are there in the system? Using CJ in that situation? Descalso literally had a better shot at getting out of that inning.

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  24. WaLi

    Smokestack Lightning,

    I didn’t realize how bad of a hitter Almora is. It looks like he’s always been horrible too so no real chance of him turning it around even though he’s still somewhat young (25).

    When Contreras comes back I wonder if we will see more Caratini behind the plate and Contreras in right.

    An OF of Schwarber/Heyward/Contreras and IF of Bryant/Baez/Garcia/Rizzo/Caratini wouldn’t suck in terms of batting.

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  25. Smokestack Lightning

    WaLi,

    Almora was on my shit list well before this year’s offensive cratering, but now he can’t even muster passable numbers against lefties. I don’t give a shit how good he is defensively. If you can’t hit a baseball, you better be able to pitch. If you can’t do either, go be a shitty hitter with a good glove on a bad team. He has no business being on a contending one unless he’s the 25th man.

    Granted, Dyson isn’t that great of a hitter either, but he’s many strides better than Almora against RHP, can take a walk, and doesn’t give anything away on defense. And he gives Joe more quality options, especially if Theo lands Castellanos as well. If both, you can trot out the late-inning OF defense of death: Almora, Dyson, and Heyward. Almora might be somewhat of an asset at that point, especially when rosters expand here in a few more weeks.

    Also, there’s room for hope with Dyson, as Chase Field with the humidor has become a pitcher’s park. His numbers away from home are pretty good against RHP.

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  26. Smokestack Lightning

    andcounting: I’m not in total disagreement, but wasn’t he the only Cubs pitcher not to surrender a run yesterday?

    The DFA was partly a joke about me not being able to come up with better Braching Brad puns.

    But it was mostly not a joke. He’s not been good. I’d prefer not-good players not be on the Cubs.

    I’d also be fine if Edwards never threw another pitch for the Cubs again too. He also has not been good. And he’s certainly been given enough time to become good.

    But as you said, a team has to field a pitching staff so… maybe he can stay. Brach too. So long as they’re never anywhere near games the Cubs have designs on winning.

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  27. dmick89

    I’d be okay with the Cubs going after Dyson, but I don’t want them to give up any prospects. Almora isn’t as good, but he’s controlled longer and he’s still just 25 so I’d consider dealing Almora for Dyson if the Cubs also got something else in return (preferably something that can help this season).

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  28. dmick89

    Castellanos would be really nice, but I don’t see that happening. The Cubs don’t have much in the farm system to get that kind of deal done.

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  29. andcounting

    Smokestack Lightning,

    I don’t know why I’m so intent on everyone sharing my anger about CJ, but the rage is real. (dying laughing)

    It’s weird, because I like him. I just think he’s in Rick Ankiel territory in terms of psych issues.

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  30. dmick89

    andcounting,

    I’ve been fairly upset at seeing him pitch for awhile so my rage has subsided a bit. It was still among the dumbest things Joe could have done. The only time CJ should have seen game action at the MLB level is when the Cubs were getting blown out.

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  31. Smokestack Lightning

    dmick89:
    Castellanos would be really nice, but I don’t see that happening. The Cubs don’t have much in the farm system to get that kind of deal done.

    I dunno. He’s been solid with the bat this year, but not earth-shattering. He can’t field anything hit at him at all. And he’s in his walk year. Maybe some sort of bidding war ensues as he’s one of the few available bats that can make a moderate difference, but barring that, I would think the price tag would be at least semi-reasonable.

    But maybe the Cubs don’t even have something semi-reasonable to offer… (dying laughing).

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  32. andcounting

    Smokestack Lightning: But maybe the Cubs don’t even have something semi-reasonable to offer… (dying laughing).

    Given his rental status, is it beyond ridiculous to think the Tigers would let him go for Almora? It seems like it could save them $3 million and give them a guy with at least some potential upside. I don’t think it’s been particularly helpful for Almora to be sitting so much. If the Tigers had scouts who think his tools are better than his stats, I could imagine that deal happening. Maybe.

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  33. BVS

    Smokestack Lightning,

    I think Aramis Ademan for Castellanos would be fine. Ademan is now where Torres was when we traded him for Chapman but not as good. But Castellanos isn’t as good as Chapman. You can throw in Cam Bellegos to be Rashad Crawford, and Zagunis to be Billy McKinney.

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  34. Author
    berselius

    I fell asleep on the couch in the top of the eighth, so I think this still counts as an official Cubs win.

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  35. Author
    berselius

    andcounting,

    I still miss the old days, when I would actually defend twitter as the ‘good’ social media platform. IMO when they added threading it pretty much destroyed the character of the site. Though maybe the fire was always burning in the dumpster from the start, and it just hadn’t gotten big enough for me to smell it yet.

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  36. andcounting

    berselius,

    I started out loving it. Then I realized it wasn’t good for me, too distracting. Then I took a break from it for awhile but thought it still served a valuable purpose and would use it intermittently for specific purposes, and it seemed mostly fine but occasionally out of control. After a longer break from it, I revisited and found even the aspects I used to like about it to be toxic.

    The illusion of significance, the illusion of accurate representation, and the illusion of effectiveness are what really make it terrible.

    But yeah, I don’t know if it changed at some point or if the illusions it perpetuates make it impossible to see how bad it is while you’re using it.

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  37. Author
    berselius

    andcounting,

    I liked the short character count, it forced you to be pithy and stopped people from just ranting about shit, which is why I stopped using facebook years ago. If you wanted to go on a long rant you were basically screaming into the void because it would be broken up and scattered all over your followers feeds. Now you log on and it’s fucking exhausting as you’re battered by 15 different urgent tweetstorms.

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  38. dmick89

    I’ve never used twitter that much and I can’t remember the last time I checked out my timeline. I have about 25-30 people’s accounts bookmarked in safari and when I check those out throughout the day. It’s been a few years since I sifted through my timeline and I never did much of that anyway. So as far as I use it, I like it. Most of the accounts I have bookmarked are about politics. I realize I could create a list, but then I’d be using the twitter app far more than I want to so this forces me to use twitter in a way that I can take advantage of what twitter is best at: giving voice to intelligent people who don’t have a large platform. Fuck the rest. (dying laughing)

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  39. WaLi

    Where else could you see these hot takes?

    Donald J. Trump

    @realDonaldTrump
    Jul 19

    Just spoke to @KanyeWest about his friend A$AP Rocky’s incarceration. I will be calling the very talented Prime Minister of Sweden to see what we can do about helping A$AP Rocky. So many people would like to see this quickly resolved!

    Never really used twitter before except what you guys linked. Always seemed silly to me, but I think especially now as dm says it probably the best at exporting hate and bullying.

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  40. dmick89

    Twitter’s policies are really weird. Half of what Trump says violates their own stated policies yet they do nothing and they’re reluctant to piss conservatives off too. If they just stuck by the policies, twitter would be a much better place. It’s really not that difficult. It’s like something else mentioned in this thread: trying juveniles as juveniles. It isn’t difficult. It’s made difficult by idiots who think they can better find a happy medium of tolerance. In other words, they’re idiots.

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  41. EnricoPallazzo

    might be time to think about trading descalso you guys. i know that no one wants to see him go, but cubs could get a pretty nice return for him. impact bat and 2-3 top 5 org prospects at a minimum.

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  42. andcounting

    EnricoPallazzo,

    That’s nuts. His projections had him getting about 100 hits this year. He’s got another 90 or so left. You can’t trade that kind of cant-miss potential.

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  43. andcounting

    dmick89:
    berselius,

    I’d want more than Trout. The Cubs would be giving up three players and only getting one in return. No way is that a fair deal.

    Keeping in mind the Cubs can’t afford Trout, the deal is as impossible as it is unfair. It becomes a much better deal for the Cubs if they forget about Trout and go after the guy they should have had all along: Tommy. La. Stella.

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  44. Rizzo the Rat

    It’s so frustrating that even an allegedly forward-thinking manager like Maddon believes in the “don’t use your closer in a tie game on the road” superstition.

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  45. Jesus

    andcounting,

    I was supposed to come back to judge the quick and the dead and all that, but instead I decided to scale things back a bit and stick with coming back and merely commenting on this discredited website.

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  46. andcounting

    Jesus,

    People really went way too far into the weeds on their eschatological theories. It’s all really about the characters, isn’t it?

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  47. andcounting

    berselius,

    Assuming the Contreras injury doesn’t become some nagging long term thing, I’m kinda glad he got additional rest. Same thing with Lester being sick today. I’ll gladly exchange a few stints of deduced win probability during the regular season for slightly healthier, better rested players come October (also assuming they’re not all fishing/golfing in October).

    And Addison pretty obviously needs at least a break. I disagree with the mass calls for his DFA, but I don’t think the intense scrutiny he’s under is something he’s able to rise above right now.

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  48. dmick89

    andcounting: I disagree with the mass calls for his DFA, but I don’t think the intense scrutiny he’s under is something he’s able to rise above right now.

    I hate to say it, but I think there has to be some analysis done as far as the reward vs. loss in this decision. Is Addison Russell someone, as a human, who deserves to just be thrown away? No, but do the Cubs have to do the rehabilitating? I think the answer here depends on their potential benefit. I don’t think it’s high enough to keep him around, but at the same time, they’re without Zobrist so I don’t see how they can get rid of him either. At the very least he’s passable in a pinch, but beyond this season I don’t see the Cubs as having any need whatsoever for Addison Russell and I hope the Cubs figure out a way so that he’s not on this team next season.

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  49. andcounting

    dmick89,

    I don’t really disagree. I probably feel slightly personally indebted because he was a significant contributor to the Cubs winning a World Series and the degree to which I enjoyed that season. Whatever terrible shit he did, I benefited from him and still feel invested in him. So personally, I hope for good things for him. What anybody else feels toward him is really none of my business.

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  50. Author
    berselius

    andcounting,

    Short bench after Bryzzo left the game for various reasons, I guess Joe wanted to save his position players for possible higher leverage situations. Still a little head scratching though.

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  51. Smokestack Lightning

    andcounting:
    dmick89,

    I don’t really disagree. I probably feel slightly personally indebted because he was a significant contributor to the Cubs winning a World Series and the degree to which I enjoyed that season. Whatever terrible shit he did, I benefited from him and still feel invested in him. So personally, I hope for good things for him. What anybody else feels toward him is really none of my business.

    More or less my thoughts as well. There’s quite a bit of emotion tied up in Russell, starting with the trade that landed him way back when and what a morale boost it was at the time. Then the postseason HRs in 2016. Along with Schwarber (and Soler), he’s kind of the poster child for what this team might have been but didn’t quite pull off.

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  52. BVS

    Back to Shawn Goldman. That’s a really big honor and kudos to him.

    Also explains his lack of presence here in the last few years and his strategic thinking. First, get Pluto demoted to exoplanet status, then when the public freaks out, you are there to save the day as an exoplanet scientist. Kind of like selling the Pirates on Bobby Hill and getting Aramis and Lofton in return, or the Orioles on some 5th rate SP and getting good Jake and Strop.

    Come to think of it, Shawn, please take the next week off and convince the Pirates that Russell, Zagunis, Happ, and Ademan are worth parting with Felipe Vasquez and Starlin Marte.

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  53. andcounting

    .375/.470/.750 in his last 15 games. The Cubs are 10-5 in that stretch. Without Bryant, I’m pretty sure they’d be 0-16.

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  54. Smokestack Lightning

    WaLi: Maybe cut Descalso?

    Hope it’s not because of KB’s knee injury.

    Last I read (not every word, but some of them anyway), KB said the knee was a minor thing, and he expects to be out there Friday.

    This might be more about Happ earning his way back and the pretty stark need for anyone who might have a chance of hitting a baseball off the bench than anything else.

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  55. dmick89

    I think Len said on the broadcast yesterday the Cubs had the lowest winning percentage on the road or something like that. I didn’t bother looking because I didn’t really care if it was accurate. They’ve sucked on the road and that’s really all that matters.

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  56. dmick89

    Rizzo the Rat,

    I know that, but it still doesn’t change the fact that they have sucked on the road. Will they be as bad going forward? Probably not, but up to this point, they’ve been complete shit. I think that’s the only point being made here.

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  57. andcounting

    Rizzo the Rat,

    Whether it bears out statistically I have no clue, but the shittiness of the bullpen this year has made *watching* them on the road absolutely miserable. When it’s a tie game late and the bullpen has to shut the home team down just to survive, those situations feel so hopeless. I guess what I’m saying is, it seems like when the Cubs are on the road in a situation where the home team needs to score only one run to win, there’s been about a 2% chance the Cubs will win. Obviously that doesn’t account for a huge portion of their road woes, but it feels like it, and it hasn’t been fun to follow.

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  58. Rizzo the Rat

    Brailyn Marquez sets a record for strikeouts for South Bend since their affiliation with the #Cubs

    6 IP
    1 H
    0 R
    0 BB
    14 K

    Ended with 8 straight Ks. Worked in the high 90s with his fastball throughout the game. Slider looked terrific. 71 pitches, 53 strikes.

    — Greg Huss (@OutOfTheVines) July 26, 2019

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