The Cubs can win a series today in Milwaukee (avoid the escalators), which is obviously a positive outcome. The Cubs are going to NEED some sweeps over the next month if they are to avoid a sell-off, but taking a series on the road against a first place team is a good outcome.
I won’t claim to know in advance that yesterday’s win, following Justin Steele’s explosion of energy and frustration and trying to pump his team up, will be the turning point. But we all know how freaking fun it would be to look back and say that it was. “Hey, remember when Justin Steele told everyone to WAKE THE F*** UP, and then they did?!?!” Please stay awake, Cubs.
Craig Counsell on how good Justin Steele has been (despite the lack of “wins”), and on Hector Neris’s escape job:
There were scouting reports that suggested Porter Hodge’s fastball was uniquely extreme back when he was in the minors, and it’s fun now to have the data to prove it:
Wow, dude has saved a lot of games in Milwaukee:
In all seriousness, it was another drama-filled outing for Neris, and I still don’t know how Craig Counsell could trust him as the closer. That said, at least he’s had three scoreless outings in a row since he got a bit of a forced break. We think a lot about Cubs relievers coming back from injury making an impact, or Cubs prospects coming up from Iowa making an impact, but Neris become Neris again would perhaps be the biggest impact of all.
Luke Little, Porter Hodge, Hector Neris – if everyone is rested, is that going to become the back-end trio? At least until Mark Leiter Jr. is back? It was yesterday, in a pretty traditional “starter goes six, next three each get an inning”-type setup. I don’t know that Craig Counsell feels he needs to have a set trio like that at the back of the bullpen, but it sure would be nice.
Ken Rosenthal is wildly more optimistic than most Cubs fans:
Bob Nightengale picked the Cubs as his biggest first half disappointment in the NL:
“They sure don’t have David Ross to blame anymore, do they?
Ross is sitting home this summer, collecting his paycheck, and watching his resume look a whole lot better with the Cubs falling off a cliff.
The Cubs spent money, have gotten tremendous value out of rookie sensation Shota Imanaga, and somehow find themselves in last place.
The only category this team leads is having players thrown out stealing: 35 and counting.”
I assume an adjustment period is coming at some point … right? RIGHT?! Because this guy:
Outfield prospect Brennen Davis hasn’t played in almost three weeks, and it turns out it was his back again:
It just makes me so sad. This guy is so talented, and he was showing it this year after a couple injury-filled seasons, and then this happens. Again.
Interesting read on the biomechanics of throwing extreme velocity, and different ways of trying to quantify just how fast a human could theoretically throw a baseball:
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