The Cardinals are good. The Cubs are not. Here's a look at the matchups for this quick series in St. Louis
Monday: Ryan Dempster, RHP (1.02, 2.16, 2.80, 3.83) vs Jake Westbrook, RHP (1.76, 2.79, 3.20, 4.00), 6:05 PM CT
This is a matchup of pitchers who have gotten off to fantastic starts to the year. You have to give the edge to Westbrook though, his 4-2 record says that he just wants to win more than Dempster (0-1). Dempster's had a lot of help from BABIP (.218) and HR luck (3.8% HR/FB) but he's still pitching well enough to put up a 2.80 xFIP. He's going to make a lot of money this offseason. Westbrook has a similarly low FIP (and batted ball luck) but gets most of his outs via the ground ball. He's seen a small uptick in his strikeout rate but he's not that kind of power pitcher.
Tuesday: Paul Maholm, LHP (4.05, 5.17, 4.53, 4.10) vs Kyle Lohse, RHP (2.08, 3.33, 4.10, 3.90), 12:45 PM CT
Unlike rotation-mate Chris Volstad, Paul Maholm has managed to improve on his disastroust start to the season. After giving up 12 runs on 3 HR, 3 walks, and only 4 K (and not very many GB) Maholm finally started doing Paul Maholm things, namely, getting a shitton of ground balls. The Cubs have won his last four starts and not coincedentally he's tallied double digit grounders in each game, and only gave up 3 runs in those four starts.
It's hard to believe that this is Lohse's fifth year with the Cardinals. In my head he's still the fringy starter that he was with the Twins. It's been up and down with the Cards but for the most part he's yet another poster child for the Dave Duncan Transformation
Also, this is back
Ho(dying laughing)oiday
http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2012/05/angels-place-torii-hunter-on-restricted-list.html
I didn’t know a player could just volunteer to be put on the restricted list…or that the team could do that because a relative did something potentially illegal.
@ Aisle424:
THIS. I’ve been beating this drum since Tommy Boy took over. Things get done one way in Chicago.
@ Aisle424:
What else can Kenney fuck up before he gets shitcanned? Firs the stupid priest stunt, then he gets put in charge of the public money boondoggle and shits the bed, so they turn that over to Julian Green, and now we find out that Mr. In Charge of the Business Side of Things forgot to fulfill Priority Number One when dealing with Chicago politicians, i.e. grease the palms of the local bosses. WTF?
@ Rice Cube:
Didn’t Votto request to be placed on the restricted list when he was struggling with anxiety disorder?
@ Mercurial Outfielder:
I do not recall. Perhaps I will learn something new today.
(dying laughing)
(dying laughing)
(dying laughing)
(dying laughing)
Gotta love the Cubs defense
What the shit was that?
@ mb21:
Cubs being Cubs
How is that not an error on Barney?
@ mb21:
Because he has heart.
Yes, let’s keep trying to steal on Yadier Molina
Don’t steal on Molina!
Berselius wrote:
@ mb21:
It was a difficult play. Barney had to range a long way to get to the ball on a dive.
Junior Lake with 3 BB’s so far today. Pretty good sign
Why would anyone still try to steal off Molina? It’s stupid.
@ Rice Cube:
It was apparently a botched hit-and-run.
@ Rice Cube:
Because trying hard counts.
@ ACT:
It was a difficult play, but he fielded it and was in position to make the throw. A halfway decent throw gets him. The idea that an error is about the difficulty of the play irritates me. Imagine a baserunner falls down when hitting a ball deep into the hole between 3rd and SS. The SS makes a spectacular play that nobody thought possible. By this time the batter is up and finally starts running. The SS has the ball, can fire to first and if he throws it away it’s not an error. That’s crazy to me. There are different If at some point the fielder should have made the play then it’s an error. If Barney didn’t come up with the ball on the slide then it’s not an error, but he did and he had time to throw the guy out. To me, that’s an error.
@ Jtsunami1:
He now has 7 on the season in 7 games and 5 strikeouts.
mb21 wrote:
I disagree. It’s not a play he should have been expected to make and, so, not an error.
It’s not a play he was expected to make when the ball was put in play, but when he had the ball and was ready to throw to first it was a play he was expected to make. A decent throw gets him. it’s really as simple as that to me. There’s no reason we can’t expect an MLB player to make a decent throw. When he doesn’t, it’s an error.
The whole point of the error is when you hurt your team by not making a routine play. I don’t see the point of giving an error designation when you make extraordinary effort, but fail to complete the play (plus, I’m not sure the play was so easy with Demp running, but that’s another argument).
ESPN announcers mention Lou Brock. Where’s the mute button?
Damn the Cubs are bad at scoring
Bryce Harper ————> Tied with Albert Pujols in home runs
That’s a base hit too? Why do they even have errors?
@ mb21:
That surprised me, too.
They pitch out and Molina still can’t catch Campana.
Recalcitrant Blogger Nate wrote:
There’s your lead, kid. Now go out there and hold ‘em.
Adam Dunn just surpassed his homer total for 2011.
LaHair!
The Cubs have supplied 3 runs. So, if Dempster doesn’t win, it’s all his fault.
This is an offensive explosion for a Dempster start.
LABOMB!
The Cubs are scoring.
Dempster wanted to win today, apparently
Cubs have made Westbrook throw 100+ pitches already and they’re just barely in the 5th inning.
Rice Cube wrote:
I guess that’s the upside of leaving seven on base (dying laughing).
@ uncle dave:
Always look on the bright side of life.
Harper’s homer: http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=21427633&c_id=mlb
Newtonion shit by WaLi: http://www.obstructedview.net/commentary-and-analysis/soriano-his-bat-and-momentum.html
The longer LaHair continues this streak, the more afraid I become of a drastic and precipitous regression. That 30% K-rate, outlandish BABiP and Pujols-esque ISO haunt me.