The Worst 20 Cubs Performances in 2012

In Commentary And Analysis by dmick89126 Comments

I already looked at the 20 best, as measured by WPA,so it only seems appropriate to look at the 20 worst. I'll be using WPA again, but it's by no means the only metric you could use to create a similar list. I'll be doing so without any commentary this time and will be breaking it down into pitchers and position players because late-inning relievers are easily going to have had the most negative impact on the game (think Carlos Marmol blowing a 32 run lead by walking 36 straight).

Of course Koyie Hill would be in this list. I'm actually surprised Joe Mather isn't in it more frequently. Soriano and Castro each made the list 3 times, but when you play as many games as those two did, that's going to happen. Not surprisingly, the Cubs closer led the way with 4 times on the list. That's probably true of almost every team.

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  5. WaLi

    @ mb21:
    Think Baez has a chance of skipping AAA like Castro did? It wouldn’t make sense contract wise, but it would put fans in the seats.

    I guess I could see it if he would be an improvement and we have a shot at being a good team. The chance of us having a good time anytime soon though is somewhere between slim and none.

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  9. josh

    @ Rice Cube:
    I looked all that up after I heard him. You get so used to hearing guys with thick Dominican accents that it really struck me as unusual that a guy with such a distinctly Hispanic name (an accent AND an enye!?) would have no accent at all.

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  13. josh

    @ Rice Cube:
    True, but he has a detectable accent, just a hint. Seriously, Raul sounds totally neutral. Players never sound like I expect them too. Strange, b/c you spend so much time staring at them, but have no idea what their voice even sounds like.

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  17. mb21

    @ WaLi:
    Baez was pretty bad in his short stint at high a ball. He’ll go back there and spend most of 2013 with a potential promotion to AA late in the season if he’s had a good year. Then in 2014 he’ll go back to AA and at that point he could get called up if he’s hitting the shit out of the ball. So yeah he could skip AAA but that won’t be happening until 2014 at the earliest.

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  18. WaLi

    @ mb21:
    At which point he will almost be 22 – if he’s just cracking the MLB roster at 22 then may as well consider him a bust and trade him. All the cool kids are getting in younger than that.

    /Harper’d, Trout’d, and Castro’d

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  57. Rizzo the Rat

    I’m kinda rooting for the Tigers because my happiness is directly correlated to how often I see Verlander pitch.

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  64. Suburban kid

    @ Rice Cube:
    Yeah, I got all excited that they knocked the dreaded Nards out of it, then quickly realized there was one more game to play (dying laughing)

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  67. Rice Cube

    Perhaps Mr. GorillaCock could verify this when he is able. I got this from Cubs Fan Report:

    A Message From Tom Ricketts

    Dear Season Ticket Holder –

    With the 2012 season having drawn to a close, it’s time for all of us at the Chicago Cubs to thank you for your support and provide an update on the progress we’ve made toward building a championship-caliber organization. You are a vital stakeholder to this franchise and an important partner in our transformation.

    Despite this year’s results in the standings, we are confident the Chicago Cubs are heading in the right direction. Our players, coaches, management and front office have approached their jobs with professionalism, effort and unity, which has created a winning atmosphere inside the organization. It’s our responsibility to turn that effort into additional wins on the field. Our number one goal is to reward loyal generations of Cubs fans with a World Series and we’re reinvesting every dollar spent by our fans into the franchise to achieve that goal.

    To achieve our goal, it was clear the team needed a long-term strategy. Over the past year, we recruited new baseball leadership to create and execute a plan for building a consistently-competitive ballclub. We now have a long-term strategy in place and a baseball organization focused on delivering a championship to Wrigley Field. That team is communicating openly and honestly about implementing a proven model for sustained success.

    As part of that strategy, we are developing a core of young players at the major league level. This season provided an opportunity for homegrown and acquired players to gain valuable experience and establish themselves as potential long-term contributors to the club.

    Our minor league system improved in 2012, as the Cubs acquired, drafted or signed a significant wave of new talent into the organization. We welcomed a strong 2012 first-year player draft class into the system, building on a franchise-record investment in draft signings in 2011. Many of these players made immediate positive contributions. In fact, five Cubs prospects were included in MLB’s recently-released Top 100 Prospects list; a total topped by only three other teams in the league. A number of our newly-acquired players excelled in both the minor and major leagues and look to contribute further in 2013 and beyond.

    We’ve welcomed new talent in the front office as well. Perhaps no operation bears more responsibility for advancing our organizational plan than scouting and player development. After a season of evaluation, our scouting and development teams have been reorganized to procure and develop the best amateur, professional and international talent available. Our scouts and coaches have been equipped with state-of-the-art analysis tools and equipment to enhance the club’s analytical capabilities.

    In addition to personnel investments, we’ve made significant upgrades to our facilities. We are currently building a new baseball academy to serve our Latin American players in the Dominican Republic. The facility, open year-round, will span 50 acres with baseball fields, training facilities, player housing and an education center, making it the largest academy in the country. Additionally, we broke ground this season on a new Spring Training facility in Mesa, Ariz., that will be one of the premier training facilities in baseball, as well as a more enjoyable venue for watching a Spring Training game. We continue to make improvements to Wrigley Field’s facilities for our players and fans, with larger scale investments coming down the road. All of these improvements will enhance your fan experience and bolster the club’s ability to attract and develop elite players throughout the world.

    Lastly, we continue to invest in the Chicago community to help deserving children and families. The Cubs and Chicago Cubs Charities will support a team-record $4.5 million of donations to worthwhile nonprofits and programs across Chicagoland this year. We’re honored to support the people and organizations that make our city a great place to work, live and play baseball.

    In the end, we are fans and our goal is to win. We’re committed to building an organization you can be proud of and we’re committed to building a champion the right way. This franchise has embarked on a path that will present challenges along the way, but the destination is promising.

    We deeply and sincerely appreciate your ongoing support.

    Tom Ricketts
    Chairman, Chicago Cubs

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  94. mb21

    I was thinking that Swisher would look pretty good in a Cubs uniform too. Also wouldn’t mind the Cubs exploring a trade for Phil Hughes. Shouldn’t cost all that much and he’s still flashed quite a bit of potential at times. Maybe a move to the NL would help him our. Plus, he could always become a really good late inning reliever for the Cubs. They should also have the Yankees throw in Robinson Cano in any trade for Hughes.

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  99. mb21

    I know the people who did this ivy double check commercial with Kerry Wood thought it would be funny to find Andre Dawson in the ivy, but I find it much funnier that he found a fucking french horn in the ivy. That’s easily the best part of that commercial. I can kind of see how you might find Dawson in the ivy. I can’t think of a single damn reason why you’d find a french horn though.

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  100. Rice Cube

    @ mb21:
    Those old dudes who play music usually stay in the main concourse so unless a drunken fan threw one of their instruments in the ivy…

    Although I don’t think any of them actually plays the french horn.

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  112. WaLi

    So it’s pretty exciting that all the division series games got to a game 5.

    Unfortunately I only enjoy watching shitty baseball.

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  116. mb21

    Rice Cube wrote:

    Do they assign WPA to the defender if they make a really stupid error, rather than the pitcher?

    I don’t think Fangraphs does as far as I know, but they should. WPA on Fangraphs helps poor fielders and hurts good fielders. That said, it’s not a big deal because I don’t think anyone is going to use it for hardcore analysis.

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  117. WaLi

    @ mb21:
    How do batters accumulate -WPA? Coming up with bases loaded and one out when down by one and then hitting into a double play? I see it a lot easier for a pitcher to accumulate -WPA and a batter to accumulate +WPA

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  118. Mish

    @ mb21:
    Yeah Fangraphs WPA is just for hitters and pitchers (I assume base running is in there too as it should be easy). I sometimes enjoy WPA for a single game analysis, but I don’t think I’ve ever meaningful used it in analysis unless I’m telling people that there are better “context-dependent” stats than RBI.

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  120. SVB

    So far, I’m quite happy with the results of the play-offs. Let’s have a Tigers–Nationals World Series!! Seems that RtR and I am the only ones happy about the Tigers.

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  123. mb21

    @ WaLi:
    Exactly like that. Any out is going to be negative WPA (it decreases their chances of winning the game). An 0-4 in which you strand 9 runners is going to really hurt, especially if the game is close.

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