In Game Six of the 2013 World Series, after Shane Victorino lined a 2-1 four-seam fastball from Michael Wacha off the Green Monster for a bases-clearing, series-clinching double, Tim McCarver made the following observation: “When you fall behind, your pitches become predictable.” As he said this, the broadcast showed the replay of Wacha’s knee-high 94-mph fastball right over over […]
Category: Articles
NLCS Game One Recap: Harvey, Murphy Put it on the Table
A college ambiance accompanied me for Game One of the NLCS as I joined an unsurprisingly, but definitely out of character, raucous Ravenswood scene at a local establishment. Sports bars ride the crescendos of the main event, and if you look back into your memories and squint, you can see yourself manifested as a patron […]
Baez in for Russell: Is He Ready?
Is Javier Baez ready? This was supposed to be the year that Baez “finally” answered that question. After getting a taste of the big leagues in 2014 and struggling mightily, 2015 would be the year he showed the world how his awesome tools would translate into major-league success. Then tragedy struck. His beloved sister passed away and […]
Playoff Prospectus: NLCS Preview — Cubs vs. Mets
This piece, by BP Wrigleyville’s Editor-in-Chief Sahadev Sharma, first appeared at the Baseball Prospectus main site and is available free for all to enjoy. We’ve posted a sneak preview here. Do I have to say it? Are you really going to make me say it? Fine, I’ll say it: These are not the same Mets that […]
Now Scouting: Matt Harvey Versus Cubs Hitters
In 2015, Matt Harvey has been a magnet for controversy and fodder for baseball Twitter’s #HotTake machine. At the risk of piling on, I can bite my tongue no longer: Harvey throws a lot of four-seam fastballs. There. I said it. And you know what? I have no regrets. Harvey, like Michael Wacha in the […]
This Cubs-Mets Series Is Different
This piece, by friend of the site Alex Walsh (@ajwalshCubs), features some great analysis of Jon Lester’s performance against the Mets, past and present. We hope you enjoy. If the announcers for this 2015 NLCS implore you to “throw out the regular season stats” at any point during the broadcast of Game 1, take heed—it’ll be […]
Maddon Throwing Cubs into Stark Relief after NLDS Success
Last week, I made some predictions about how Joe Maddon might manage his bench and bullpen in the Wild Card Game and Division Series, drawing upon his history in Tampa Bay and the composition of the Cubs’ roster in order to do so. With the Cubs now moving on to the NLCS for the first time in 12 years, I thought […]
The Cubs Go Boom: The Top Playoff Homers so Far
WPA, short for Win Probability Added, is a stat we use often here at BP Wrigleyville. It’s really a cool little number, and for the sake of not leaving anyone in the dark, I’ll briefly explain it. WPA is a measurement of the degree to which every play that happens throughout a game changes the team’s […]
Jake Arrieta Is the Right Choice for Game One
Yesterday, my colleague Matthew Trueblood laid out a compelling argument in support of Joe Maddon’s decision to start Jon Lester in Game One of the NLCS. The central argument he made in that piece was that Arrieta (and all modern pitchers) are more accustomed to a fifth day of rest, and that, because Arrieta would be on […]
How the North Siders Created a New Cubs Culture
All we really have as an organization is each other. —Theo Epstein There were moments during Tuesday’s NLDS clincher when things could’ve easily slipped away. The Cubs were down 2-0 before they’d even stepped to the plate and they were opposing a pitcher who’d held them hitless for five innings just a few days before. […]