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The Chicago Cubs swept the Pittsburgh Pirates today, taking all three games in their short series.
I have a simple response to the Cubs after their strong offensive showing in the Steel City: Thanks!
Thanks for bringing out the lumber in a series that's now meaningless. It was impressive to see how well the offense turned around over and over with names like Fold, Scales, Blanco and Hoffpauir in the lineup.
In fact, Micah Hoffpauir now has 10 home runs and 28 runs batted in to show for only 191 at bats in Chicago this year. Milton Bradley, who was brought in to hit ...
A new year, a new scapegoat. Last year's playoff failure was blamed on the Cubs being too right-handed. Now, at least based on what Cubs manager Lou Piniella recently had to say, the thinking is that the Cubs are too slow.
Lou's need for speed aside, it is true that the Cubs are a slow, plodding bunch. They rank last in the NL in stolen bases. And while the stolen base has not been as popular since 'roided up players starting popping muscles out of their shirt sleeves, it seems to be on a bit of a comeback.
Meanwhile, rumor has it that the Cubs will try to "steal" Chone ...
Milton Bradley and Sammy Sosa have more in common than their uniform number.
Bradley, who this winter signed a three-year, 30 million-dollar deal to patrol what was once Sosa's domain in right field at Wrigley Field, came to the Windy City amidst persistent murmurs about his incendiary past, as well as his fragility over the past three seasons or so. He immediately had to answer questions about how he thought his presence would affect team chemistry, and about what had prompted so many of his past explosions.
During Spring Training, however, as Bradley proceeded to win over the clubhouse and hit over .400 in ...
With postseason hopes falling out of reach, it seems as if the Chicago Cubs are shifting their focus towards the offseason. The Chicago Tribune is reporting the Cubs might have some interest in signing utility man Chone Figgins in the offseason.
Lou Piniella has recently been quoted saying that the Cubs may need to add some speed for next season. The Cubs have the lowest number of stolen bases this season. With a noticeable hole at second base, Figgins would be an obvious candidate.Chicago's offense has struggled mightily this season, and the addition of a bat should help. Figgins is batting .305 so ...
It's easy as a fan to criticize the general manager from your favorite team. But the truth is I often don't think about dollars for dollars. It's easy to say that I would love the Cubs to trade away Alfonso Soriano or Carlos Zambrano to the Giants for prospects. This would free up $17-18 million each of the next few seasons. But I remind everyone, including myself, that baseball, whether we like it or not, is a business.
A more feasible approach might be to do what the Oakland A's did and sign a soon to be free-agent like Matt Holliday. ...
Filed:September 3rd, 2009
Milton Bradley strikes out in the sixth inning to the background of cheering Sox fans (Cubbie Nation)
"When the facts change, I change my mind. What do you do, sir?"—John Maynard Keynes
Shut him down.
And I think we all know who I'm referring to. You can look all over the place to find blame and fault over the Cubs 5-0 loss to the White Sox. Really. Lou Piniella. Milton Bradley. Jake Fox. Sean Marshall. Aaron Miles, who once more came up empty, this time in an eighth-inning pinch-hit appearance.
Really even the entire Cubs offense, for yet again making a previously ...
The Chicago Cubs 2009 season has been one to forget for the most part. Instead of focusing on the bad, however, I aim to shed some light on those players who have come forward for the Cubs organization and have made progress in a big way. Most of these players are paid the bare minimum in baseball standards but yet really have made those veteran millionaires look plain out bad in comparison. The best part about younger players is probably that they show the will and the want and the passion that it takes to win in baseball. Unlike ...
As the season gets ready to start, the Chicago Bears have all the hopes in the world for a division championship.
With Jay Cutler in the fold and Brian Urlacher fully healthy for the first time in two years, the Bears begin their season with aspirations of doing something special.
If they're going to achieve their goals, though, they need to get out of the gates strong.
The Bears open the season in prime time at their archrival, the Green Bay Packers. That game should provide great theatre as two 25-year-old stud quarterbacks, Cutler and Aaron Rodgers, play each other as divisional foes ...
Ernest Lawrence Thayer's classic poem "Casey at the Bat" is perhaps the greatest baseball story of all time. Period.
The only possible criticism one could make of the story is the lack of personality exhibited by the titular titan, Casey. Casey is shown to take the game seriously, but beneath his muscular exterior he is simply a nice guy. And that is really, really, boring.
With that in mind, I humbly submit an alternate version of the story, featuring the most tragically misunderstood player in the history of baseball--Milton Bradley.Begin Slideshow
There's an old saying that goes if it isn't broke don't fix it. Well apparently Cubs GM Jim Hendry hasn't heard that saying. After the Cubs were unceremoniously swept from the NLDS last season the off-season goal became get more left-handed because the Dodgers didn't throw a single lefty at the Cubs during that series. Okay acquire a left-handed hitter to dispel all the right-handed hitters.This team won 97 games for a reason last year, mostly with right-handed hitters, so why mess with what works ? What Hendry proceeded to do in the off-season has left many fans questioning just ...
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