Rich Harden
Game 135 Thread / Phillies @ Cubs (2 of 4)
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SP | Joe Blanton | SP | Rich Harden |
(NL) | 1-0, 4.03, 27 K, 15 BB, 38 IP | (NL) | 4-1, 1.47, 70 K, 14 BB, 49 IP |
SS | #Jimmy Rollins | LF | Alfonso Soriano |
CF | #Shane Victorino | SS | Ryan Theriot |
2B | *Chase Utley | 1B | Derrek Lee |
1B | *Ryan Howard | 3B | Aramis Ramirez |
LF | Pat Burrell | CF | *Jim Edmonds |
RF | Jayson Werth | 2B | Mark DeRosa |
3B | *Greg Dobbs | RF | *Kosuke Fukudome |
C | Carlos Ruiz | C | Henry Blanco |
P | Joe Blanton | P | *Rich Harden |
A few aftershocks from last night's game...the come from behind win was the 38th for the Cubs this season, second to the Yankees 39. It was their 19th win when trailing in the seventh inning or later, best in baseball ahead of their current foe - the Phightin Phils.
Today, ex-teammates do battle as Rich Harden and Joe Blanton take the mound. I'm sure a steak dinner at Morton's is on the table for the winner.
Some more game notes fun after the jump...
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Harden, C.C., and Sut
Rich Harden's brilliant effort Tuesday night followed yet another complete-game win for the second-place Brewers' C.C. Sabathia the evening before.
Through last night's play, here is what Harden and Sabathia have done for their NL Central teams, alongside the contribution of another mid-season acquisition, who, once upon a time, made a huge impact when he joined the Cubs from the American League:
GS | CG | IP |
H |
K |
BB | ERA |
W | L | |
C.C. Sabathia |
9 |
5 | 73 |
60 |
69 |
15 |
1.60 |
8 |
0 |
Rich Harden |
7 | 0 |
42 |
26 |
59 |
14 | 1.50 | 3 |
1 |
Rick Sutcliffe (thru 8/19/84) |
13 | 1 |
94 |
87 |
93 |
32 |
3.26 | 11 |
1 |
(Note: Sabathia's first start for the Brewers was on July 8, Harden's Cub debut was on July 12, and Sutcliffe's first game for the Cubs was on June 19, 1984.
Thoughts after the jump...
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Game 125 Thread / Reds @ Cubs (1 of 3)
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Samardzija May Get First Start
UPDATE: Looks like Lou made up his mind after the first game and it will be Sean Marshall getting the start on Sunday versus the Marlins.
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Game 119 Thread / Cubs @ Braves (1 of 3)
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SP | Jason Marquis |
SP |
Charlie Morton |
7-7, 4.73, 67 K, 47 BB, 123.2 IP |
3-5, 5.70, 32 K, 22 BB, 53.2 IP | ||
LF | Alfonso Soriano |
RF | *Gregor Blanco |
RF | *Kosuke Fukudome |
SS | Yunel Escobar |
1B |
Derrek Lee | 3B | #Chipper Jones |
3B |
Aramis Ramirez | C | #Brian McCann |
CF | *Jim Edmonds | 1B | *Casey Kotchmann |
2B | Mark DeRosa | LF | Omar Infante |
C | Geovany Soto | CF | *Mark Kotsay |
SS | Ryan Theriot | 2B | *Kelly Johnson |
P |
*Jason Marquis | P | Charlie Morton |
UPDATED UPDATE: Marquis will start the first game in today's day/night doubleheader with our man Harden going in the nightcap. Otherwise the lineup remains unchanged from last evening.
UPDATE: Nevermind, the game has been called.
The Cubs try to stay North of the standings as they head South to play the Braves and Marlins on a six game road trip. Fresh off a 6-3 homestand, where they managed to lose a game and a half in the standings, the Cubs will look for their sixth straight road win tonight.
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Game 114 Thread / Astros @ Cubs (2 of 3)
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Game 109 Thread / Cubs @ Brewers (4 of 4)
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SP | Rich Harden | SP | Dave Bush |
(NL) | 0-1, 1.04, 30 K, 8 BB, 17.1 IP | 5-8, 4.51, 71 K, 26 BB, 111.2 IP | |
LF | Alfonso Soriano | 2B | Rickie Weeks |
SS | Ryan Theriot | 3B | *Craig Counsell |
1B | Derrek Lee | LF | J.J. Hardy |
3B | Aramis Ramirez | 1B | *Prince Fielder |
RF | *Kosuke Fukudome | LF | Ryan Braun |
RF | Mark DeRosa | RF | Gabe Kapler |
CF | *Jim Edmonds | CF | Mike Cameron |
C | Geovany Soto | C | Jason Kendall |
P | Rich Harden | P | Dave Bush |
Two Cubs trade rumors from this morning - the first comes from CBS Sportsline:
The Chicago Cubs, who already made a big splash with pitcher Rich Harden, are exploring deals to add a lefty-hitting right fielder. The Cubs have inquired about Seattle's Raul Ibanez, San Diego's Brian Giles and Kansas City's David DeJesus, according to sources.
I think pretty much any left-handed hitting outfielder is going to be associated with the Cubs over the next few hours. Lo and behold, we have some rumblings from the cubs.com board that Jim has asked the Rangers about Milton Bradley.
As Robert Ripley would say - Believe it or Not!
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Czech, please!
Game 106 Thread / Cubs @ Brewers (1 of 4)...how's that for a good bluff, Rob?
From Stripes:
John Winger (Bill Murray): C'mon, it's Czechoslovakia. We zip in, we pick 'em up, we zip right out again. We're not going to Moscow. It's Czechoslovakia. It's like going into Wisconsin.
Russell Ziskey (Harold Ramis): Well I got the shit kicked out of me in Wisconsin once.
=================
After a glorious 6-4 win in the opening game of this key Milwaukee series, I wanted to take a minor detour and reflect on my recent travails, aka, life following the Cubs in central Europe including the Czech Republic.
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Recent comments
Dolorous Jon Lester (view)
Phil, will the call up for a double header restart that 15 days on assignment for a pitcher? Like will wesneski’s 15 days start yesterday, or if he’s the 27th man, will that mean 15 days from tomorrow?
I hope that makes sense. It sounds clearer in my head.
Charlie (view)
Tauchman obviously brings value to the roster as a 4th outfielder who can and should play frequently. Him appearing frequently at DH indicated that the team lacks a valuable DH.
TarzanJoeWallis (view)
Totally onboard with your thoughts concerning today’s lineup. Not sure about your take on Tauchman though.
The guy typically doesn’t pound the ball out out of the park, and his BA is quite unimpressive. But he brings something unique to the table that the undisciplined batters of the past didn’t. He always provides a quality at bat and he makes the opposing pitcher work because he has a great eye for the zone and protects the plate with two strikes exceptionally well. In addition to making him a base runner more often than it seems through his walks, that kind of at bat wears a pitcher down both mentally and physically so that the other guys who may hit the ball harder are more apt to take advantage of subsequent mistakes and do their damage.
I can’t remember a time when the Cubs valued this kind of contribution but this year they have a couple of guys doing it, with Happ being the other. It doesn’t make for gaudy stats but it definitely contributes to winning ball games. I do believe that’s why Tauchman has garnered so much playing time.
Arizona Phil (view)
Miles Mastrobuoni cannot be recalled until he has spent at least ten days on optional assignment, unless he is recalled to replace a position player who is placed on an MLB inactive list (IL, Paternity, Bereavement / Family Medical).
And for a pitcher it's 15 days on optional assignment before he can be recalled, unless he is replacing a pitcher who is placed on an MLB inactive list (IL, Paternity, or Bereavement / Family Medical).
And a pitcher (or a position player, but almost always it's a pitcher) can be recalled as the 27th man for a doubleheader regardless of how many days he has been on optional assignment, but then he must be sent back down again the next day.
That's why the Cubs had to wait as long as they did to send Jose Cuas down and recall Keegan Thompson. Thompson needed to spend the first 15 days of the MLB regular season on optional assignment before he could be recalled (and he spent EXACTLY the first 15 days of the MLB regular season on optional assignment before he was recalled).
Dolorous Jon Lester (view)
Indeed they do TJW!
For the record I’m not in favor of solely building a team through paying big to free agents. But I’m also of the mind that when you develop really good players, get them signed to extensions that buy out a couple years of free agency, including with team options. And supplement the home grown players with free agent splashes or using excess prospects to trade for stars under team control for a few years. Sort of what Atlanta does, basically. Everyone talks about the dodgers but I feel that Atlanta is the peak organization at the current moment.
That said, the constant roster churn is very Rays- ish. What they do is incredible, but it’s extremely hard to do which is why they’re the only ones frequently successful that employ that strategy. I definitely do not want to see a large market team like ours follow that model closely. But I don’t think free agent frenzies is always the answer. It’s really only the Dodgers that play in that realm. I could see an argument for the Mets too. The Yankees don’t really operate like that anymore since the elder Steinbrenner passed. Though I would say the reigning champions built a good deal of that team through free agent spending.
Childersb3 (view)
The issue is the Cubs are 11-7 and have been on the road for 12 of those 18. We should be at least 13-5, maybe 14-4. Jed isn't feeling any pressure to play anyone he doesn't see fit.
But Canario on the bench, Morel not at 3B for Madrigal and Wisdom in RF wasn't what I thought would happen in this series.
I was hoping for Morel at 3B, Canario in RF, Wisdom at DH and Madrigal as a pinch hitter or late replacement.
Maybe Madrigal starts 1 game against the three LHSP for Miami.
I'm thinking Canario goes back to Iowa on Sunday night for Mastrobuoni after the Miami LHers are gone.
Canario needs ABs in Iowa and not bench time in MLB.
With Seiya out for a while Wisdom is safe unless his SOs are just overwhelmingly bad.
My real issue with the lineup isn't Madrigal. I'm not a fan, but I've given up on that one.
It's Tauchman getting a large number of ABs as the de factor DH and everyday player.
I didn't realize that was going to be the case.
We need a better LH DH. PCA or ONKC need to force the issue in about a month.
But, even if they do so, Jed doesn't have to change anything if the Cubs stay a few over .500!!!
TarzanJoeWallis (view)
Totally depends on the team and the player involved. If your team’s philosophy is to pay huge dollars to bet on the future performance of past stars in order to win championships then, yes, all of the factors you mentioned are important.
If on the other hand, if the team’s primary focus is to identify and develop future stars in an effort to win a championship, and you’re a young player looking to establish yourself as a star, that’s a fit too. Otherwise your buried within your own organization.
Your comment about bringing up Canario for the purposes of sitting him illustrates perfectly the dangers of rewarding a non-performing, highly paid player over a hungry young prospect, like Canario, who is perpetually without a roster spot except as an insurance call up, but too good to trade. Totally disincentivizing the performance of the prospect and likely diminishing it.
Sticking it to your prospects and providing lousy baseball to your fans, the consumers and source of revenue for your sport, solely so that the next free agent gamble finds your team to be a comfortable landing spot even if he sucks? I suppose that makes sense to some teams but it’s definitely not the way I want to see my team run.
Once again, DJL, our differences in philosophy emerge!
Dolorous Jon Lester (view)
That’s just kinda how it works though, for every team. No team plays their best guys all the time. No team is comprising of their best 26 even removing injuries.
When baseball became a business, like REALLY a business, it became important to keep some of the vets happy, which in turn keeps agents happy and keeps the team with a good reputation among players and agents. No one wants to play for a team that has a bad reputation in the same way no one wants to work for a company that has a bad rep.
Don’t get me wrong, I hate it too. But there’s nothing anyone can do about it.
On that topic, I find it silly the Cubs brought up Canario to sit as much as he has. He’s going to get Velazquez’d, and it’s a shame.
TarzanJoeWallis (view)
Of course, McKinstry runs circles around $25 million man Javier Baez on that Tigers team. Guess who gets more playing time?
But I digress…
Sonicwind75 (view)
Seems like Jed was trying to corner the market on mediocre infielders with last names starting with "M" in acquiring Madrigal, Mastroboney and Zach McKinstry.
At least he hasn't given any of them a Bote-esque extension.