Throughout the season we'll be publishing our NL Power Rankings. We won't do this each week and maybe not even every other week, but we figured there's going to be little to talk about with regards to the Cubs so we needed as many alternatives as possible. We also plan to invite someone each time to take part in it. …
Daily Facepalm 3.1.12 – Expanded playoffs edition
Expanded playoffs have arrived I thought this had already been decided, but the extra wild card has been approved. I'm kind of surprised that MLB would do this so close to the start of the season. Given the glacial pace at which MLB moved, I figured they had just decided that they were going to do it at some point, …
Carroll’s Team Health Reports
For several years now Will Carroll has published Team Health Reports. He previously did so at Baseball Prospectus and now does so at SI. I've never been the biggest fan. It seems far too random. Let's take a look at this year's. 2B Darwin Barney Darwin Barney doesn't sound like a 2B, but he sure played like one last year. …
Daily Facepalm 2.29.12
Cubs go from maybe thinking about extending Garza to thinking about extending Garza. Or possibly cloning him. It's not clear. Hoyer (via Orange Guy): “We have a good relationship with Matt,” GM Jed Hoyer told Comcast SportsNet. “We need more Matt Garzas. We’ll sit down to talk to him about a deal. We’re hoping to get something worked out, but …
Projecting the 2012 Cubs: Shortstop
Shortstop is the last infield position we have to look at it and it's without a doubt the most exciting position. If you look at Starlin Castro's fWAR you can't help but be impressed, but if you look at his rWAR he looks much less impressive. Whereas UZR sees Castro as a well below average fielder, Total Zone sees him …
Kate Upton Dancing and a Cubs Bunting Tournament Update
I know everyone (particularly MO) is deeply concerned about how the bunting tournament is progressing, so here are the results as of a few minutes ago. I'd link to where I got the results, but I had to piece it together from various tweets and stories from Carrie Muskat, Bruce Miles, whoever is running the Cubs coverage at ESPN Chicago …
Daily Facepalm 2.28.12
Cubs start deciding who will start the games to start Spring Training. Rodrigo Lopez pitches Sunday, Dempster on Monday, and Garza on Tuesday. Sunday's game is on mlb.com radio broadcast, presumably with Len Kasper, and the latter two games are on WGN radio with Pat Hughes. The first WGN TV game is next Saturday. Is there a Cubs game today? …
Cubs Want to Get PAID For the Rights to Televise Them Lose Games
I've been a bit distracted lately as I've been thinking about cats again, but as we all know (I'm assuming), Spring Training is here! With the bunting tournament in full half-swing and Kerry Wood drilling Castro on the wrist today, we're starting to see news on a more regular basis coming from the beat reporters. I am, of course, using …
Daily Facepalm 2.27.2012 | Still No Games
Bunting Brackets Busted Tony Campana was beaten by Steve Clevenger. Not in a brutal nanosophobic assault, but in a bunting contest. You could easily take this news with dismay that the guy whose only hope of reaching base is for the ball to come to rest too far in front of the defenders was ousted in the first round …
On Ryan Braun’s overturned suspension
I’m not here to exonerate Ryan Braun or declare that he’s definitely clean. I have no idea if he used steroids or not, just like I have no idea if Roy Halladay has used steroids or whether Dee Gordon has used steroids. – Dave Cameron, Fangraphs This is nonsense. Let me first say that I am not even close to …