I hate that they drop ‘The Bear’ as a binge, because it’s too good to devour so quickly like that. Apropos of the subject matter, you want to take your time to appreciate just how incredibly well-crafted it is. The first episode of season three was unbelievable – arresting, quiet, confident. Not sure how many shows could do that in a season premier and pull it off, but they did.
It was nice to watch something so beautiful …
I don’t know that a sweep in Milwaukee would be the final nail or anything – the playoff situation was already bleak before the Cubs even left San Francisco – but I think it would make arguing in favor of hope all the more difficult. It’s just getting harder by the day to look at the situation and feel like, yes, a massive run is possible. And if the next two days go like last night, the last vestiges of optimism are really gonna feel squashed.
Yuuuup:
Cody Bellinger got doubled off of first base on a relatively routine fly ball to the outfield, and although he was going with the pitch, it seems like he would’ve had time to get back if he’d picked up the ball right away and realized the situation:
I think whether it’s directly related to the manager and staff or not, this is something that at least merits a conversation, because it’s bizarre:
The Cubs have been pretty solid overall in terms of baserunning (by the advanced metrics anyway), but the outs on the bases are just so egregious. And I don’t *feel* like I’ve noticed the Cubs doing a ton of super-aggressive and SUCCESSFUL things on the bases (i.e., that the explanation for the volume of outs on the bases is just that the Cubs are the most aggressive team in baseball and it’s mostly been worth it – the math might say that’s the case, I am just saying it hasn’t felt like that).
Random other Cody note because it just kinda was on my mind: since May 21, he’s running an .086 ISO. His overall numbers aren’t miserable because he doesn’t strike out and gets a lot of singles, but the Cubs need at least SOME power production from him. And for over a month, he’s been a pure slap singles hitter.
Keegan Thompson’s rib fracture apparently happened while he was just doing some post-game shoulder maintenance work. It just sucks so much, because this guy finally looked like he had his feet back under him, was an effective reliever again (after returning from a bad illness, too), and now this.
Craig Counsell on Taillon’s outing and the latest Cubs loss:
Jorge Lopez had a successful debut inning with the Cubs, and spoke before the game about his well-discussed exit from the Mets:
PCA had a couple like this last night, where you really wouldn’t know it was an outstanding catch because of how easy he made it look:
Cubs pitching prospect Nazier Mule is working his way back from Tommy John, and the stuff is really starting to pop:
In Mule and Jaxon Wiggins, the Myrtle Beach Pelicans have a couple really compelling starting pitching prospects on the return from TJS.
Down in Arizona, Cubs outfield prospect Joan Delgado fell a single shy of the cycle yesterday – rare that it’s the single that keeps you from getting it.
In that same game, reliever Ben Leeper made his first rehab appearance following Tommy John surgery number three. Incredible that he even has gotten to this point.
Another legend has passed:
The Mets are having a lot of fun right now:
People are beefing about this:
Counterpoint: it is hilarious. Hilarious things are entertaining. Baseball exists to be entertaining. Ergo, this is good. Keep doing these.