Sean Gallagher
When They Pull a Knife, You Pull a Gun
UPDATE 4:56 CST: One of our readers tipped us to this fantastic piece on Rich Harden's mechanics (with video) by Carlos Gomez at The Hardball Times. Can't recommend it enough....
I've had a little time to digest the trade since my initial reaction and a little time to actually write about it now. I don't think there's too many warm-blooded Cubs fan out there who aren't happy about the deal...other than maybe a Chicken Little or two that are never happy with anything the Cubs do.
We all know the risks. Rich Harden has all the durability of a roll of toilet paper caught in a rainstorm. He was called up half way through the 2003 season, proceeded to make 31 starts in 2004 and has battled injuries ever since. The list is too long and complicated for me to dive into, so we'll wait for the good Dr. Hecht to chime in on that side of the trade. Harden's 13 starts this year are his highest total since 2005 and he spent almost a month of this year already on the disabled list. But in those 13 starts, he's gone 5-1 with a 2.34 ERA, 10.75 K/9, 2.97 K:BB and 0.58 HR/9.
He once had a fastball that could hit 100, although he seems to have dialed it back a bit this year. He compliments that fastball with a fantastic change-up and that's pretty much it. He'll occasionally throw a slider in there, but seems to have scrapped it for the most part this season. A quick and dirty comparison with some of the best in the game using career numbers:
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Peter Angelos Finally Agrees to Roberts Trade
THIS JUST IN...
Game 86 Thread / Cubs @ Giants (4 of 4)
Game Chat | Press Pass | BR Preview
SP | Sean Gallagher |
SP |
Tim Lincecum |
3-3, 4.36, 47 K, 20 BB, 53.2 IP |
9-1, 2.38, 114 K, 43 BB, 109.2 | ||
LF |
Reed Johnson |
LF |
*Fred Lewis |
RF |
*Kosuke Fukudome | 2B |
#Ray Durham |
1B |
Derrek Lee | RF |
#Randy Winn |
3B |
Aramis Ramirez | C |
Bengie Molina |
CF |
*Jim Edmonds | CF |
Aaron Rowand |
C |
Geovany Soto |
1B |
*John Bowker |
2B |
Mark DeRosa | 3B |
Jose Castillo |
SS |
Ryan Theriot | SS | #Omar Vizquel |
P |
Sean Gallagher | P | Tim Lincecum |
In roster moves, Reed Johnson was activated today with Eric Patterson getting sent down. Matt Murton thanks you Eric Patterson for your defensive ineptitude. Proud papa Aramis Ramirez is back in the lineup as well.
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Game 68 Thread / Cubs @ Blue Jays (1 of 3)
Game Chat | Press Pass | BR Preview
SP | Sean Gallagher |
SP |
A.J. Burnett |
3-2, 4.42, 31 K, 13 BB, 36.2 IP | 5-6, 4.98, 78 K, 38 BB, 81.1 IP | ||
SS |
Ryan Theriot | RF |
Alex Rios |
1B |
*Micah Hoffpauir |
DH |
*Matt Stairs |
DH |
Derrek Lee | 3B |
Scott Rolen |
3B |
Aramis Ramirez |
CF |
Vernon Wells |
RF |
*Kosuke Fukudome | 1B |
*Lyle Overbay |
C |
Geovany Soto | C |
Rod Barajas |
CF |
*Jim Edmonds |
LF |
*Brad Wilkerson |
2B |
Mark DeRosa | 2B |
*Joe Inglett |
LF |
*Eric Patterson |
SS |
David Eckstein |
Can the Cubs reach 20 games over by mid-June? They have a chance by winning tonight or this series, and it would be the first time since late 2004. But they'll be on the short-end of the pitching matchups for the most part. By ERA, Gallagher is outperforming Burnett at this point, but Saturday's matchup is Roy Halladay(3.07) vs Jason Marquis(4.54) and Sunday is Jessie Litsch(3.42) vs. Ted Lilly(5.13). Burnett might also have the added motivation of trying to audition for his next team, as he's one of the names certain to be bandied about during the trade deadline in connection with the Cubs.
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Game 62 Thread / Cubs @ Dodgers (2 of 4)
Game Chat | Press Pass | BR Preview
SP | Sean Gallagher |
SP |
Hiroki Kuroda |
3-1, 4.55, 25 K, 10 BB, 31.2 IP | 2-5, 3.93, 37 K, 23 BB, 71 IP | ||
LF |
Alfonso Soriano |
LF |
*Juan Pierre |
SS |
Ryan Theriot | RF |
#Delwyn Young |
1B |
Derrek Lee | 2B |
Jeff Kent |
3B |
Aramis Ramirez |
1B |
*James Loney |
RF |
*Kosuke Fukudome | CF |
Matt Kemp |
CF |
*Jim Edmonds | 3B |
*Blake DeWitt |
2B |
Mark DeRosa |
C |
Danny Ardoin |
C |
Henry Blanco |
SS |
Chin-Lung Hu |
P |
Sean Gallagher | P |
Hiroki Kuroda |
A win tonight and the Cubs are the proud owner of a winning road trip. They will aslo be the first team to 40 wins this season, a seemingly insignificant milestone that reader "JohnBeasley" shows is at the very least, a marker of good things to come.
First in the majors to 40:
2007: 6/9 - BOS (won World Series) and LAA (made playoffs)
2006: 6/11 - DET (won pennant)
2005: 6/8 - CHW (won World Series)
2004: 6/13 - NYY (made playoffs)Source: BaseballRace.com
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Gallagher's Dirty Dozen
The season here in Des Moines has had a hard time getting started this year. Bad weather, bad team and bad schedule; you're out!
Yesterday was an exception.
Sean Gallagher served up a tasty lunch in a nooner matinee at Principal Park on one of the very few days so far when the elements didn't cross-up the schedule makers.
After seven innings Gallagher had thrown 86 pitches, allowing one run on three hits with no walks and 12 strikeouts. All 12 K's were swinging, most of them on a nasty breaking ball.
His pitch counts by inning were as follows: 11, 13,13, 14, 16, 9 and 10.
They trotted him back out for the eighth, the only frame when he failed to fan anybody. He walked the leadoff man, erased him on a DP grounder, gave up a base hit and called it a day after 101 mostly carveaceous, to coin a word, pitches.
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Recent comments
Arizona Phil (view)
This was Jaxon Wiggins previous "live" BP on 4/5:
JAXON WIGGINS:
ONE INNING (20 pitches - 10 strikes)
one batted ball in play (F-9 by Stevens)
one walk (B. Davis)
one HBP (B. Davis)
two strikeouts (Peralta & Escobar - both looking)
three swing & miss
two fouls
four called strikes
nine called balls
Arizona Phil (view)
Prior to the Cactus League game at Papago Park, three Cubs pitchers threw "live" BP on Field 1 at the Cubs Sloan Park complex, including RHRP Ethan Roberts (June 2022 TJS) and Cubs 2023 2nd round draft pick RHP Jaxon Wiggins (February 2023 TJS).
Wiggins last threw "live" BP three weeks ago before being shut down for a couple of weeks, and this was the first time Roberts has thrown to hitters in almost two years.
JAXON WIGGINS:
ONE INNING:
25 pitches (11 strikes)
no batted balls in play
two walks (Suriel and J. Diaz)
three strikeouts (Carico, Lubo, and Escobar - all three swinging)
six swing & miss
two fouls
three called strikes
14 called balls
one WP
ETHAN ROBERTS:
ONE INNING
15 pitches (7 strikes)
two batted balls in play (G-3 by Carico and L-9 by Suriel)
two walks (Lubo and Carico)
no strikeouts
no swing & miss
two fouls
three called strikes
eight called balls
one WP
Mat Peters was bumped by Justin Steele from his scheduled game work at Giants, so he threw two innings of "live" BP with Wiggins & Roberts.
MAT PETERS:
TWO INNINGS
44 pitches (23 strikes)
five batted balls in play (F-7, L-7, F-7, G-6, G-3)
three walks
two strikeouts (both Lubo and both looking)
six swing & miss
three fouls
nine called strikes
21 called balls
three WP
crunch (view)
wall stole a HR from busch...double. nice to see him destroy a curve ball.
upon further viewing, that might not have been a homer in too many parks...it had a lot of hang time, though.
CTSteve (view)
I’m at the game—woot!
If the streak breaks, it’s not my fault.
Cubster (view)
Brewers lose Wade Miley to Tommy John surgery.
crunch (view)
25 games played with a -85 run differential. insane.
Cubster (view)
White Sox DFA Bailey Horn. I'm thinking the Cubs would love to get him back although they probably won't have a decent chance of claiming him without another swap.
WSox also call up former Cub Rafael Ortega (and additionally Tommy Pham). They are hurting and having a gawd awful April.
Childersb3 (view)
White Sox DFA'd Bailey Horn.
He wasn't producing good results in Charlotte (AAA).
But Jed might bring him back with that open 40man spot. Then try the "sneak him thru waivers" gambit.
Cubster (view)
Oh my, now I will have nightmares of me sitting in the bowels of the Wrigley security detention cell.
Cubster (view)
One more thing...
One of the reasons I come to this site...
...in addition to Arizona Phil, who is, as we all know, a treasure trove of well-written fresh information, honest evaluation, and sneaky-subtle humor regarding the entire Cub organization...
... is CubbyBlue and Tim's fantastic and timely visual takes on the Cubs (to be fair, he does have a much broader Chicago-flavored brush well beyond the Cubs). Thanks for so many memorable images. I am fortunate to own (one of my prize possessions) a print that I framed (55/200) of "The Last Out" with KB's shit-eating grin as he fields the series winning out of the 2016 WS.
https://images.app.goo.gl/WvFQs6P5UvuhgVqS8
Tim, will you visit me if I do the text security thingy and description: Tim S? Or will I find myself in a Cub detention cell.
i.e. "or send a text message to 773-839-**** with the keyword "Friendly" and include your seat location and a description of your issue.