Game 60- Foggy Hijinks

The game was foggy my friends and a weird one.

Both starting pitchers did great for the first 4 innings (yes even Darvish, I am giving you credit!). Then the wheels started falling off.

The Cubs scored 3 runs in the 5th and the teams combined to score 8 runs in the 6th inning. What was a 0-0 game ended up being a 9-8 Cubs win.

The hero of the game clearly was David Bote. 4 for 4 with 7 RBIs will put anyone into hero status. It was basically Bote vs. the Rockies and thankfully Bote came out on top.

News broke during the game that the Cubs signed Kimbrel as the lockdown reliever over the next 3 years. Given that the bullpen gave up 5 earned runs last night, this signing needed to happen.

Cubs Games Watched: 9.5
Cubs Games Listened To: 35
Cubs Games BCB'd: 15.5

Game 53- Bad Pitching Beats Homers

The Cubs had 5, count em 5!, home runs in the game against the Stros. Bote was a maniac with 2 blasts with 3 RBIs and making some great defensive plays. Game ball to him.

Who should NOT get the game ball is anyone on the Cubs pitching staff. Lester gave up 7 earned runs and only started the 6th inning because Joe desperately needed to give his bullpen yet another rest. Yes, let's keep trotting out a guy who clearly didn't have it because THERE WERE NO OTHER OPTIONS!

Then let's throw Brach out there to give up another two runs.

At the end of the day if the pitching can't stop anyone then it doesn't matter how many homers the Cubs hit. Plus, this could be a World Series preview. Sure the Astros are historically great offensive team but if Lester and Brach had kept the damage to a minimum the Cubs coulda won this. Instead the Cubs own pitching beat the rest of the team for this one.

Cubs Games Watched: 9.5
Cubs Games Listened To: 33
Gave Up, Read BCB: 10.5

Game 31- Volleyball Hijinks

I think we are getting to the point where Contreras is getting into Mike Piazza territory. Great bat (home run in the second), very good offense (even throwing out an attempted steal!) and overall one of the true leaders on this team. Wilson is making an early All-Star case for sure.

The Cubs also looked great on defense, Zobrist had two great defensive plays and Baez was doing Baez things on sharply hit ground balls. Bote also had some great plays as well (Addison who?) and the Cubs really had the diamond on lockdown.

Q looked good as usual and Kintzler thankfully got out of a jam.

The Cubs kept dinking and dunking hits coupled with aggressive base running and bim bam boom the Cubs won 13-5. It didn't feel like a wipeout quite like the score indicated until KB stepped up and hit his grand slam but it was a great win nonetheless.

The Cubs have now come all the way back and are top of the division. Crazy times.

Cubs Games Watched: 7.5
Cubs Games Listened To: 17.5
Gave Up, BCB: 6

Game 5- Not Enough

Lester gave the Cubs a chance. 6 innings, 2 earned runs, 7ks. Respectable.

The offense gave the team a chance with 4 runs. The current MLB median is 4.25 runs a game by the Twins. BTW, the Braves are currently 10th in the MLB with 4.75 runs a game.

The relief pitching did NOT give the Cubs a chance. Let's revisit the parade of horrors shall we?

Kintzler pitched 1 inning and looked great, a clean sheet. Fine, fine, wait where is he going????

Cishek comes in and can't get anyone out giving up 3 earned runs and taking the L. (ERA 16.50 BTW).

Then Rosario comes in and gives up ANOTHER earned run.

Brach wasn't any better. 1 hit plus 2 walks. Sure why not? At least he didn't give up a run.

Montgomery comes in to close out the side. Yeeeeeeeeeesh.

The Cubs can sign the David Botes of the world to all the extensions they want but if they aren't actively working RIGHT NOW to get this bullpen better, then this will be a lost season. KB and Baez are going to walk in free agency, Lester and Hendricks are going to age out and that is it.

Sure, are we 5 games into the season and I am pushing the panic button? Yes but c'mon what have we seen this season that doesn't lead to this very darkest of timelines?

Watched Cubs Games: 1.5
Listened To Cubs Games: 3.5
Ignored everything and read Bleed Cubbie Blue's recaps: 0

Spring Training Game 9

The Battle of Chi-Town, Cubs vs White Sox. Yet all of this is taking place in Arizona of all places. The White Sox are slowly trying to build a "window" for winning but a few of their hot rookies have unfortunately been getting hurt. The Cubs meanwhile have a few draft picks making meaningful contributions to the squad but have mortgaged the rest of the farm for a win now "window".

This lineup is the closest we have seen to a MLB lineup so far. So given that, it no surprise that the Cubs won 13-4 scoring 10 runs in the first 3 innings. The Cubs were led by KB going 2-2 with 3 RBIs and Bote was no slouch either, with 3 RBIs.

Darvis looked really good throwing 3ks in 2 innings and said afterward that he was feeling really good and sharp. Good, this is exactly the type of game the Cubs needed after the Brewers loss. Explosive offense mixed with great pitching, well that is a recipe for success for any team.

Spring Training Game 5

The Texas Rangers play at Surprise Stadium, a baseball stadium that seats over 10,000 people! Sloan Park, home of the Cubs, can seat 15,000. These numbers are just crazy to me but speak to baseball's enduring popularity that for one month out of the year there will be 10-15,000 people watching a baseball game that doesn't really matter.

In any event, the Cubs traveled to Surprise to play the Rangers. How did they fare?

Looking at this lineup, I was most intrigued how Happ and Bote would make out, considering their quiet-ish Spring so far and of course, how Hamels looked.

Cole was an absolute revelation last year and singlehandedly kept the pitching staff afloat after being traded from the Rangers. Sure his final record was 4-3 with a 2.36 ERA but he was crucial I tells ya.

Hamels picked up where he left off pitching 2 innings of shutout baseball scattering 2 hits. Sure is he 35 years old and just one of several aging pitchers on this staff? Yes but I think he is going to be very solid going forward.

Happ once again did next to nothing in this game going 0-3 but Bote had his breakout game, going 2-3 with 2 runs scored. And yes Contreras had a great game with a homer and other Cubs played well in the 9-5 win but I am intrigued by Bote who had a great season last year and seems to be a jack of all trades on the field (something very valuable in Maddon's defensive schemes).

In any event, another day, another win and the Cubs offense seems to be alive this preseason. Whether that translates into the regular season, we will see.