Top Play (WPA): Think anyone is busy writing Kris Bryant service time stories now? The Cubs’ superstar third baseman hit a two-run home run in the fifth inning (+0.252) off of Cardinals starter Michael Wacha—one of six the Cubs hit on the night, setting a new major-league record—and helped the Cubs go up two games to one in […]
Tag: Playoffs
Playoff Prospectus: Cubs Do Simple Better — NLDS Game 2 ($)
This piece, by BP Wrigleyville’s Rian Watt, first appeared at the Baseball Prospectus main site and is exclusively available to BP subscribers. We’ve posted a sneak preview here. It was 54 degrees on October 3rd in Milwaukee, and the Cubs were bunched around the batting cages, working on their bunting. Manager Joe Maddon, who spent […]
On Eve of History, Momentum on the North Side
Editor’s Note: This piece, by BP Wrigleyville’s Stan Croussett, isn’t the kind of thing you’ll usually find on the site—you’ll see no numbers here. But we think it captures this moment in a way that numbers can’t, and we hope you enjoy. Look up your favorite Cardinals blogger or columnist and take a deep breath. Now […]
Breaking down the NLDS Roster Decisions
Now that the we know that the Cubs are headed to the NLDS to face the Cardinals, we asked some of our BP Wrigleyville writers to put together their ideal roster for that series. There was quite a bit of consensus with regards to the lineups, with Chris Denorfia and Quintin Berry battling for the last […]
Grounded: Coghlan Might Be Neutralized Throughout Playoffs
At the beginning of this season, I was a staunch advocate of accelerating Kyle Schwarber’s ascendance to the Cubs’ big-league roster and everyday lineup. Schwarber put up monster numbers in the minor leagues, making even Kris Bryant’s dominance look pedestrian at certain developmental mile markers, and while there was an argument for allowing his defensive […]
Playoff Prospectus: NLDS Preview—Cubs vs. Cardinals ($)
This piece, by BP Wrigleyville’s Editor-in-Chief Sahadev Sharma, first appeared at the Baseball Prospectus main site and is exclusively available to BP subscribers. We’ve posted a sneak preview here. The Cubs knocked Pirates ace Gerrit Cole out of the Wild Card game after just five innings, while their own dominating ace did what he’s done for […]
Now Scouting: Jon Lester versus the St. Louis Cardinals
Give me the (four-seam) fastball and I watch what I do with it — Lil Bow Wow, paraphrased On Opening Night, Jon Lester struggled to find a rhythm against the St. Louis Cardinals. In failing to make it through five innings, Lester allowed eight hits, all on his four-seam and cut fastballs, while Cardinals left-handed […]
The Beer List: Cardinal Weakness Edition
This is The Beer List. It’s an opportunity, once every two weeks, for the staff here at BP Wrigleyville to get together (virtually, of course) and respond briefly to one small, usually quite open-ended, question. Despite the strenuous efforts of certain members of the writing crew to make it so, it has nothing to do […]
Been There Before: The Brilliant Postseason Consistency of Jon Lester – Playoff Experience on the 2015 Cubs, Part II
Part I of this series focused on the rest of the Cubs roster. This piece, which looks at Lester’s postseason career in general, will set up Part III: a preview of Jon Lester’s Game One start in St. Louis, which will run tomorrow. October legends are created a myriad of ways—in a few signature at-bats (David Freese and Reggie […]
Joe Maddon and the Potential for a Bullpen Game in the NLDS
Joe Maddon has recalibrated our understanding, as Cubs fans, of a manager’s ability to run a baseball team. For every stroke of statistical savant, there’s the nurturing development side that Maddon facilitates. He rides his bike, keeps it loose, and keeps baseball in perspective. The fans expected Maddon to reach the .500 mark in Year One. […]