OSS: Chase Anderson no-hits the Cubs into the eighth inning, nearly completes the shutout.
Three up
- Jason Heyward is still a member of the No Homers Club, but he picked up his first one in the ninth today. Now that that monkey is off his back* maybe we’ll see more power out of him.
- Kris Bryant went back to back with Heyward in the Cubs ninth inning teaser rally.
- Kyle Hendricks looked pretty good for the first five innings, allowing just one walk and two hits, one of which was an infield single that could have gone either way. The other was a Lucroy HR that was so long that it might have landed in Detroit. Still, I can’t really fault Maddon for letting him hit in the fifth and sending him out in the sixth, where it all fell apart. This felt more like a “shit happens” instead of an obvious mistake, though I might be in the minority in this one.
Three down
- Since Ron Coomer sprained both wrists tipping his cap to Anderson in this game, I’ll jump in and tip it for him again. Anderson didn’t get the no-hitter or the shutout, but somehow still managed to drop his HR/9 on the season despite giving up two bombs.
- Pretty much the whole offense had a lousy day, which is what usually happens when you’re nearly no-hit. Dex was the ‘leader’ in negative WPA, mostly due to striking out to end an inning in one of the Cubs rare runner in scoring position situations.
- Unrelated to this game, but there are rumors of mass fish die-offs in the Ohio River. Early analysis seems to point to large amounts of salt in and around Pittsburgh’s locker room and the Cincy press box leaking into the water table.
Next up: Lackey v Nelson, 7:10 PM CT
*I can’t wait to eat that monkey
Comments
Leaving Hendricks in was almost certainly the wrong decision. The Cubs needed offense, Hendricks can’t hit at all, and Hendricks is also a poor pitcher the third time through the order. That said, the pitch count was low, and nearly all managers would have done the same, so I really can’t get angry at Maddon here.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
Rizzo the Rat,
Who the hell knows what to do with Hendricks? I agitated and bitched up a storm when he was yanked what I thought was early last week and Strop blew the game. This week Joe leaves him in (maybe to prove a point) and Hendricks promptly puts the game out of reach. So, I think I’m done opining about how long to leave Hendricks in. Yanking him as soon as he hits 5 or 6 is probably the right call most of the time.
Smokestack LightningQuote Reply
if maddon pulled hendricks, i would have been pissed. i’ve been thinking that in his last few starts, his leash was way too short. turns out i was wrong.
EnricoPallazzoQuote Reply
Rizzo the Rat,
I think you’ve got to leave Hendricks in even if the math says it is the wrong call, which I agree that it probably was. He hadn’t thrown many pitches and the Brewers weren’t looking like they’d do a whole lot against him. As much as I hate talking about how it could affect someone’s confidence and how that can affect performance, I think this is an example where the risk isn’t worth the reward.
dmick89Quote Reply
Yeah, I don’t know. I was fine with leaving him in. Yank him if they start getting runs against him, which is what happened. As potent as the Cubs offense has been, it’s hard not to count on them to pick you up if you do have a weak inning.
joshQuote Reply
The Cubs 3rd Order Winning Percentage is still .811 (30-7).
dmick89Quote Reply
josh,
Yeah, this. Also it’s not like the base-out situation when Hendricks came to the plate really screamed for a pinch hitter. A slow runner on first with one out is eh, I’d rather trust that the Cubs offense would break through eventually against a guy who doesn’t have a good track record and the shifty Brewers pen.
berseliusQuote Reply
I still figured the Cubs would win when they were down 1-0. I wasn’t worried.
dmick89Quote Reply
dmick89,
Yeah, I can’t ignore the human element. But leaving him in to get shelled probably doesn’t do much for his confidence, either.
Rizzo the RatQuote Reply
dmick89,
Even 4-0 didn’t seem insurmountable in the 8th, though I started losing hope in the 9th.
joshQuote Reply
josh,
and then there was briefly hope after back to back home runs. Nice to see Heyward finally go deep.
dmick89Quote Reply
dmick89,
Hopefully a sign of his reawakening.
joshQuote Reply
I know you got soul. If you didn’t you wouldn’t be in here.
Suburban kidQuote Reply
Nice little site you have here.
Rice CubeQuote Reply
Hello.
MillertimeQuote Reply
The Cubs were unable to Chase Anderson from the game. Try and downvote this! I am not a robot!
MillertimeQuote Reply
Suburban kidQuote Reply
stupid pictures are banned i see
Suburban kidQuote Reply
Suburban kid,
I thought you just wanted to post a picture of a paper plate in a snow storm.
MillertimeQuote Reply
Suburban kid,
I’ll see if I can get that updated later today or tomorrow.
dmick89Quote Reply
Millertime,
(dying laughing)
dmick89Quote Reply
All hail the glorious future
umbraQuote Reply
login seems to be behaving better today.
joshQuote Reply
So who are the Cubs going to lose to today and forever, never winning another game for the rest of the season?
joshQuote Reply
josh,
I’ve thought so too. I shut down the old site altogether and the DNS should be pretty much taken care of. It’s definitely a lot better today. I’m going to give it a couple more days before I spend much time looking into it since I think it has to have something to do with the DNS change.
dmick89Quote Reply
dmick89,
Fucking domain name systems always fucking us over!!
joshQuote Reply
The Milwaukee Recalcitrant Alcoholics
umbraQuote Reply
I find myself getting disappointed when Hendricks/Lackey/Hammel pitch. I’m spoiled, but I hope Theo can find an upgrade.
JonKneeVQuote Reply
Dylan Bundy has been pitching out of the bullpen for the O’s. I’d love the opportunity to take a shot at him.
JonKneeVQuote Reply
JonKneeV,
Noah Syndergaard and Chris Sale. Make it so Theo. Make it so.
joshQuote Reply
hmmm…sounds exactly like what a robot would say if he was trying to not sound like a robot.
EnricoPallazzoQuote Reply
To-day’s base ball squadron
Fowler
Heyward
Bryzzobrist
La Stella
Russell
Ross
Lackey
berseliusQuote Reply
If anyone gets logged out please let me know. Hasn’t happened to me in a couple hours now.
dmick89Quote Reply
I’d take Rich Hill for a PTBNL
joshQuote Reply
josh,
But I’m not sure he’s any better than Hendricks or 2nd half Hammel.
joshQuote Reply
Hammel and Hendricks are fine. They’re well above average back-end starters. Most teams would be thrilled to have quality like that as their 4th and 5th starters.
dmick89Quote Reply
dmick89,
THEY’RE TERRIBLE AND WE’RE GOING TO LOSE
joshQuote Reply
Losing sucks.
joshQuote Reply
I’ve been logged out a couple times since I said this. (dying laughing)
dmick89Quote Reply
If I look logged out then hit refresh, it goes back to normal.
joshQuote Reply
Everything is just a tiny bit new and different now. I hate it, and blame it on immigrants.
MillertimeQuote Reply
Millertime wants to build a wall and get Suburban Kid to pay for it
MylesQuote Reply
Myles,
Comments like this make me miss the comment rating plugin.
dmick89Quote Reply
josh,
Yeah, it’s not killing the session. It just looks like it is.
dmick89Quote Reply
Millertime’s strident tone can be likened to Mussolini or Hitler. There is no scenario under which SK will pay for this wall. He regrets this plan and can’t agree with this American’s poster’s position.
SKQuote Reply
The Wall just got ten feet higher. Also, Millertime never made that comment. Probably just someone else pretending to be Millertime. Happens all the time. Doesn’t look like a Millertime comment. Non-story.
MillertimeQuote Reply
Hey, I’ve been away for a few days and the whole place looks different. It’s like that time I came back from my business trip and my wife redecorated the house by changing all the locks and putting my belongings on the front lawn.
Wenningtons Gorilla CockQuote Reply
Wenningtons Gorilla Cock,
That happens to you frequently?
joshQuote Reply
No, the wife and I came to an agreement. She kept the house, the car, the kids and most of my paycheck. I kept my old record collection. My lawyer said it was a good deal. Then again, he was also my wife’s lawyer, and I’m pretty sure they were sleeping together.
Wenningtons Gorilla CockQuote Reply
I think if Boegarts stays on his feet he’s safe:
http://m.mlb.com/news/article/178845970/royals-alcides-escobar-makes-fine-diving-play
joshQuote Reply
Wenningtons Gorilla Cock,
Yeah, mine let me keep my car AND all of my debt!
joshQuote Reply
new shit: http://obstructedview.net/cubs-brewers-5-18-2016-game-thread/
dmick89Quote Reply