World Series Bound

Neifi Perez Part II

admin — Sat, 13 Jan 2007 18:35:11 +0000

Just when I thought he was gone for good, it appears as if the Chicago Cubs have signed a new “Neifi” clone, Tomas Perez. Neifi part two is another utility man who hits in the low 200s, plays all infield positions, and would qualify for a starting job if he just had Dusty Baker in the managerial spot instead of Piniella.

5 Things you Didn’t Know About Ryne Sandberg

admin — Fri, 12 Jan 2007 06:41:50 +0000

I just came across some interesting information on Sandberg….

5) He was a dual - sport athlete. Apparently Sandberg was recruited to play quarterback by several NCAA division I schools and actually signed a letter of intent for Washington State University. As we all know ( and thank God for it ), he chose to play baseball instead after he was drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies.

4) His nephew, Jared, played some third base for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, hitting 18 home runs in 102 games.

3) Ryno’s last game at Wrigley was also the last time Harry Caray sang “Take me out the the ballgame”, as Caray passed away during the offseason.

2) He was a former baseball columnist for Yahoo sports and an ESPN Radio 1000 analyst during the 2004 season.

1) During the search for a managerial replacement for Dusty Baker this offseason, Sandberg actually met with Jim Hendry for dinner to lobby for the position. Lou
Piniella was hired instead as Sandberg was a long-shot, but Ryno was offered and accepted the position with the Peoria Chiefs ( the Cub’s Class A farm team ).

Reactions from the National Championship game

admin — Wed, 10 Jan 2007 03:42:49 +0000

I hate the Florida Gators .. but I should give credit where its due. They put on a show last night, completely dominating Ohio State. Apparently a few of the Gators were surprised at how easily they won, saying that OSU wasn’t even close to the best team they played all year. In fact, there were about four teams in the Southeastern Conference this year that nearly beat them. Its true, SEC speed beats Big 10 power.

McGwire in the Hall of Fame ?? Seriously ?

admin — Tue, 09 Jan 2007 05:56:21 +0000

I’ve never been a Mark McGwire fan, and today’s episode of Cubscast just cemented it for me. Now I truly understand why I never cared for him. The hosts of Cubscasts ( an excellent podcast, by the way ) were pondering the fate of McGwire, and one of the hosts, probably Sneetch, brought up the point that the former Cardinals home run king went over ten years without hitting a triple. Ten years!! He then immediately declared that no way would he ever cast a hall of fame vote for a guy who spanned ten years without a triple. I couldn’t help laughing out loud at that one and then it dawned on me why I really disliked McGwire so much.

Are you kidding me? Ten years? I have long held a strong aversion to super jocks who appear as if they are major league baseball players BUT in actuality are only softball players. I’m serious .. softball players. Its ALL about the long ball. Softball players swing for the fence each at bat and ease into second if they mess up and hit a double. Maybe they’ll trot down to first if they accidentally hit a single or turn slowly back into the dugout if they flyout.

Mark McGwire is a major league “softball player” in the mold of Pete Incaviglia or Rob Deer. He just happened to juice up a little more so that his drives to the outfield carried further. Even Sammy Sosa ( who isn’t my favorite player either ) had more tools .. he had the speed and athleticism to at least hit a triple once in awhile.

Andre Dawson, who hit his home runs “the natural way”, deserves to be in the hall of fame. He’s got my vote !

7 Reasons for Soriano to be Pumped

admin — Mon, 08 Jan 2007 05:16:59 +0000

Comparing Soriano’s current off season to last years, he’s got every reason to be happy. I mean, he SHOULD be ecstatic with an eight-year $136 million contract, but the upcoming season has some new reasons for him to be enthusiastic.

7 - He’s not being asked to switch positions. Well, sort of. There’s talk about him moving to center or right field. But hey, he’s an All Star outfielder now. He’s stoked. Besides he sucked at second ( averaged 21 errors per season ).

6 - He’s playing in the friendly confines. What more can you ask for ? Wrigley field is hands-down the best field in baseball.

5 - He gets to wear a little cubby bear on his sleeve. I’m not sure its a good thing, because really — how intimidating do you feel as a hitter with the pretty little icon on your uniform? But hey, he’s a Cub .. life is good.

4 - Soriano’s going to be a legitimate lead - off hitter with pop! Kinduv like Ricky Henderson — with a larger strike zone.

3 - He gets to play for a team that actually has a fan base! There’s legions of Chicago Cubs fans spread across the world.. Do the Nationals have enough fans to fill their stadium ?

2 - Angel Soriano, Alfonso’s son was born earlier this year .. that’s gotta put a little extra bounce in his step.

1 - Um, that $136 million contract.

2007 Rotation

admin — Sat, 06 Jan 2007 20:26:36 +0000

Unlike past years, when we’ve won ( or at least thought we’d win ) on the strength of our pitching, this year is different. The Cubs, once again, are going to be a lopsided team. Only this time, the batting lineup is going to have to carry us.

Pray for someone on the pitching staff to step up, because after Carlos Zambrano, we’ve got two very average and very overpaid veterans in Lily and Marquis, injury question marks in Prior and Wood, and then the 2nd year players who are still unproven.

These second year arms, I believe, is where the fate of the 2007 Cubs is going to lie. Hopefully, one or two of them will have a break out season … I really liked Marmol last year — he came up with what I thought looked like a live arm and a lot of composure. His stats at the end of the season, though, surprised me. 5-7 with a 6.08 ERA? I guess he had some good outings mixed with some where he got shelled.

So what the crap is the problem with Cubs hitters?

admin — Sat, 06 Jan 2007 07:45:40 +0000

Why can they never take a walk? It seems as if the Cub’s lineup is perpetually brimming with liberal swingers .. i mean, for the love of all that is good .. take some pitches! What have we heard from Steve Stone ( and subsequent color commentators ) throughout the years ? “You know, its always the walks that come back to haunt you.” or “You can’t beat a good team by putting men on base.” Why not us ? Why can’t we draw some free passes ? Its been maddening to watch Cubs batters chase ugly pitches .. we need more Mark Grace’s in the lineup! Now, that guy knew how to wait for his pitch.

Maybe this year will be different .. although I seem to remember hearing that Soriano is somewhat of a free swinger as well..

Hairston sighting

admin — Sat, 06 Jan 2007 07:08:32 +0000

What happened ? He’s out of the majors ? How is my fantasy team going to make it without him… Looks like our favorite utilityman Jerry Hairston, Jr. has agreed to a minor league contract with the Rangers. I wonder if he’ll make it back …

Speaking of former light-hitting middle infielders, Neifi only hit .179 in 39 games with the Tigers and he’s still in the majors ..

Speaking of managers …

admin — Sat, 06 Jan 2007 06:58:01 +0000

Dusty Baker had a good run, didn’t he? I mean in his first season, the cubs claimed their first divisional title in about 10 years. Unfortunately, the 2003 National League Championship Series “incident’ marked the beginning a slow decline… The next year the Cubs dropped out of the wild card race late and then 2005 and 2006 just pretty much stunk. I guess you could blame injuries for the 2005 campaign, but 2006 just seemed to be mismanaged.
So, out of curiosity, what’s Baker up to for 2007? Last I heard, the Padres were interested .. or maybe he’ll spend more time with ESPN .. or maybe he’s done for good ?

Lou Piniella ?

admin — Sat, 06 Jan 2007 06:36:08 +0000

When I think of Lou Piniella, I really can’t get past the flashbacks of him going NUTS — throwing hats, spitting, kicking bases, kicking dirt…

I saw a clip once of him jerking his head back and forth while spitting profanities at a blank-faced umpire. And A-Rod and Palmeiro laughing at him from the opposing dugout…

Now picture Lou’s fury in a Cubs uniform doing the same two-year-old tantrum. Do we really want to see him throw bases around Wrigley. Do we really think we can win with this guy? Have you seen his career record ? Its just hanging around .500. I’m not convinced…