Here's a preview of today's game. I'll add info on the rest of the series later tonight. Pitching Matchup Matt Garza, RHP (-,-,-,3.63) vs Wandy Rodriguez, LHP (3.25, 125, 3.99, 3.73), 6:05 PM CT Garza is finally back! He looked sharp in his rehab outings, capping it off with a six strikeout, zero walk six-inning shutout in Iowa his last …
OV Daily Facepalm 5.21.13
Matt Garza returns tonight Garza is back and ready to go tonight, bumping Villanueva to the bullpen. The Cubs say Villanueva will be used in long relief, but given how their late inning options have sucked lately I'd rather see him in the late inning mix with Fujikawa and Transformed Kevin Gregg. Suddenly the Cubs pen doesn't looks quite as …
Series Preview: New York Mets (15-23) at Chicago Cubs (17-23)
The Mets have lost seven of their last ten games, including a sweep by the Pirates and a near-sweep by the Cardinals. Luckily for the Mets, they have the Marlins in their division so it will be difficult to drop into last place. I was surprised to read that they've placed foruth in the division for four straight years – …
JOT Minor League Recap 5-16-13
Tucson Padres 0 @ Iowa Cubs 1 Matt Garza’s final rehab start was a fantastic one. He threw 6 innings and allowed 4 hits and a run. He didn’t walk anybody and struckout 8. The question now is who is he going to replace in the Cubs rotation? Brooks Raley threw the final 3 innings and allowed 2 hits and …
Series Preview: Chicago Cubs (13-21) at Washington Nationals (19-15)
The Nats have had a bit of a streaky season so far. They've swept the Mets, White Sox, and Tigers and have been swept by the Braves and Cardinals. They're currently riding a four game winning streak. Inconsistent offense has plagued the team this year (sounds familiar). I'm wishing I was back home this weekend, as just about everyone I …
Series Preview: Cincinnati Reds (15-14) at Chicago Cubs (11-17)
The Reds got off to a hot start, but have been scuffling a bit recently. A big reason is the lack of production from their two best players. Ace Johnny Cueto hit the DL with a lat strain in mid-April, and Joey Votto is hitting .231/.273/.357 dating back to the last series with the Cubs. Team Overviews 2013 NL Ranks …
JOT: Cubs Minor League Recap 5-1-13
Round Rock Express 1 @ Iowa Cubs 0 Chris Rusin had a very good start. He went 7 innings, allowed 6 hits and a run. He walked none and struckout 5. Hisanori Takahashi struck a batter out and allowed a hit in the 8th. Zach Putnam struckout 2 and allowed a hit in the 9th. Logan Watkins was 3-3 with …
Cubs Groundball Rate: Snorting Bosio’s Magic Sinker Dust
Prior to the season, I was set to write about how the Cubs were gradually amassing a bunch of fly-ball heavy pitchers. I never ended up getting around to it, but I'm not one to let a mediocre (or wrong) idea die, so I'll give you the condensed version: From 2010 to 2012, among pitchers with at least 280 innings pitched, …
Obstructed View Daily Facepalm 4.28.13 – The Matt Garza Trade Revisited
A look at the Matt Garza trade, Tony Campana doing Tony Campana things, Injury updates, Anthony Rizzo’s Swing, and The Hawk is disappoint
Another Matt Garza setback and what to do with Scott Feldman
Matt Garza's rehab start was scratched the other day due to soreness in the arm. It's being called dead arm, which is common for players. It's especially common for those coming back from an injury. Most pitchers go through it at some point during the season. The Cubs are saying it's only muscular, which is good news. Garza recently has …