Maybe it’s the general lack of explosiveness on offense. Maybe it’s the low batting average. Maybe it’s the struggles of the team overall. Or maybe it’s the ankle injury that had some writing him off for far longer than just the two days he actually missed because of it. Regardless of the cause, it seems […]
Category: Articles
Game 84 Recap: Cubs 7, Rays 3
What You Need to Know John Lackey wasn’t terrible, giving up three runs in six innings. Meanwhile, the Cubs couldn’t catch a break with every line drive finding a glove and every deep fly coming just short of the wall. After six innings of BABIP-related frustration, Jon Jay tied the game with a three-run dinger, […]
Could Colonel Happ Be Superior To The Judge?
If you’re having flashbacks to the climactic scene in A Few Good Men, I get you. (And full disclosure, you won’t understand calling Ian Happ “The Colonel” if you’re not an insane Simpsons fan, and even then you might struggle. Anyway, Colonel Leslie “Happ” Hapablap, from the Air Show episode). Usually, I think comparing two players […]
Game 83 Recap: Rays 6, Cubs 5
Things were lining up perfectly today for the easiest recap intro in the history of Baseball Prospectus: Cubs declare independence from .500 mark. It was almost too perfect. And then the Cubs went and declared independence in the wrong direction. It was like fighting the Revolutionary War only to declare “Wannabe” our National Anthem. What […]
Javier Baez: Slight Mechanical Adjustments a Cause for Hope
Javier Baez had a really nice game in Sunday’s series finale against the Cincinnati Reds. The next time the Cubs take the field, Javier Baez might have a not-as-nice game. Such is the life with a player that possesses both enormous upside and fundamental flaws in his approach and his mechanics. Just when you think he […]
Game 82 Recap: Cubs 6, Reds 2
What you need to know: The season is halfway over. I do not know whether to be excited by that or humbled at the results. At 40-41 heading into the game, the Cubs have underwhelmed the masses with poor starting pitching, shoddy defense, and a lack of offense with runners in scoring position. Can it […]
Trent Giambrone: Just Being Trent Is Getting Results
One of the most exciting parts of the minor league season is when the new draft picks begin to play. Last year, Trent Giambrone from Delta State burst onto the scene with the Eugene Emeralds. He played all four infield positions and hit .292 with four home runs and 22 RBI in 51 games. His […]
Game 81 Recap: Reds 5, Cubs 3
What you need to know: Jackson Stephens, a 23-year-old pitcher making his MLB debut, barely outdueled Eddie Butler this afternoon—more with his bat than his arm. In the fourth inning, Stephens delivered a two-out, bases loaded single that gave the Reds a 4-3 lead. They didn’t give it back. Stephens battled through just five innings and […]
Zack’s Sack: A Wrigleyville Mailbag, Vol. 6
This week was possibly the most eventful in Cubdom since the World Series ended, and most of it was… not good. Injuries, visits to the White House, and cutting a key player from the past few years in a pretty gross way—it’s been a rough week for Cubs fans, and I am here to bring […]
Justin Grimm Showcasing More Than A Return To Form
The frustration of fans on the North Side has found its way around the roster throughout this up-and-down 2017 campaign. Almost nobody has been safe from the blame game for a team lingering around .500, including many members of a bullpen that has been a strong element of a largely inconsistent club, ranking third in […]