Coleman Solid as Cubs Offense Stymied

Battling for a 2012 roster spot and possibly his major league career, Casey Coleman (3-9) threw five and two thirds innings, allowing just two runs. His effort was not enough, however, as the Cubs offense was shut down by San Diego starter Mat Latos (9-14) who allowed just two hits in seven innings.

Coleman, who has struggled with his command at times this year, walked two batters against seven strikeouts. Reports out of the Cubs organization are saying that he has made a few mechanical changes and that his velocity is up. Coleman, though, faltered in the bottom half of the sixth inning allowing a lead-off Home Run to Padres left fielder Will Venable on a four-seam fastball. He then gave up a double to Jesus Guzman before recording a strikeout of Padres catcher Nick Hundley. The next batter, Cameron Maybin, doubled on an 0-1 pitch, scoring Guzman and ending Coleman’s night. Cubs reliever Rafel Dolis retired Chase Headley to end the inning.

But the show on Monday night was all about San Diego Padres Ace Mat Latos, who like Coleman, has also struggled this year.

Latos (9 K’s, 1BB) baffled Cubs hitters all night. He mowed down the first twelve batters he faced before allowing a lead-off walk to Carlos Pena in the top half of the fifth inning. Latos’ no-hit bid was not to be, however, as he allowed a one out triple to Cub’s starter Casey Coleman in the Cubs’ sixth. Cub’s All-Star shortstop Starlin Castro added his NL leading 202^nd base hit of the season leading off the seventh inning. He stole second, before eventually being stranded as Pena and Coleman had been earlier in the game.  Padre reliever Chad Qualls recorded a perfect eighth inning before Padres All-Star closer Heath Bell came in and recorded a perfect ninth inning for his 43^rd save of the season.

Up Next: Cubs ace Matt Garza (9-10, 3.35ERA) battles Padres rookie Anthony Bass (2-0, 1.66ERA). First Pitch is scheduled for 9:05CT. Broadcast will be on WGN 720AM and Comcast SportsNet. 

After an extremely long delay, The 2nd String Utility Outfielder returns.

I have reinstated myself as chief editor and will now be updating the page on a regular basis. Frankly, Cubs fans, we did not miss a whole lot this season, as this has been one of the worst Cubs teams in recent memory.

A couple of points to highlight that summarize the Cubs season:

- Starlin Castro is the only real positive to come from this season. He leads the NL with 202 hits and is batting over .300 for the second consecutive season. He has also developed some 2nd half power that is sure to improve in future years.

- Also, Jeff Samardzija has developed into a reliable option in the bullpen and will likely contend for a position in the 2012 rotation

- Carlos Zambrano is still a 5 year-old and will likely never again don Cubbie Blue. And I'm more than Ok with that. Though Zambrano's contributions to the team are definite, he never lived up to his potential while a member of the Cubs. His career in Chicago was always overshadowed by his emotional breakdowns, both on and off the field. His latest antics caused his immediate suspension by General Manager Jim Hendry and likely the end of his Cubs Career.

- Speaking of Jim Hendry, he is no longer the General Manager of the Cubs. Though this does not come as a surprise to me or other Cubs fans as his recent track record has been questionable at best, we all still owe Jim Hendry a debt of gratitude. He was probably the most successful GM in Cubs history and he led the team to three Central Division Titles.

- Mike Quade likely will not be back. The only General Manager in Baseball willing to give Quade an opportunity to manage is no longer here. He has been ejected 9 times this year, which in my opinion is awesome, but we will not even delve into some of his very egregious managerial decisions.

More to come in the next few days, as we mercifully wind down the 2011 season, one which I think most of us would prefer to forget about.

Where Have I Been for so long?

That is a fine question. I spent this summer working for the Lake County Fielders of the North American Professional Baseball League. I began the summer as a Baseball Operations intern and finished the season as the Manager of Baseball Operations.

The team struggled through many ups and downs, details may or may not be disseminated in future posts, but I was grateful for the opportunity to make a name for myself in the baseball industry and the experience that I gained.

The Bullpen Gospels: Dirk Hayhurst

I just finished reading The Bullpen Gospels by Dirk Hayhurst. Hayhurst is a pitcher, currently in the Tampa Bay Rays organization. The book details his career as a minor league pitcher. It focuses mostly on his time spent between the High-A Lake Elsinore Storm and the Double-A San Antonio Missions during the 2007 season, with a few other season sprinkled in.

The books main focuses are on the daily grind of minor league baseball, what it means to be a Professional Baseball Player, and what baseball means to Dirk Hayhurst relative to life. He writes about his desire to quit pro-ball multiple times, his relationships with his teammates, a tumultuous and frustrating family life, living on an air-mattress at his grandmothers house, locker room hi-jinx and many other interesting and unexpected aspects of his life.

This was a hilarious book and is one of my immediate favorites. It is a must read for every baseball fan.

Silva Leaves, Much the Same as Milton Bradley

Carlos Silva's brief tenure as a member of the Chicago Cubs ended today when the veteran pitcher was released after he failed to make the 25 man roster and refused an assignment to Triple-A Iowa, stating that he did not want to be kept around simply for insurance purposes.

On his way out of town, Milton Bradley Silva took some parting shots at the Cubs brass. Specifically, he did not like the way that new pitching coach Mark Riggins went about telling Silva there was not a spot for him on the pitching staff, stating that Riggins has to realize that he is in the major leagues now.

Cubs GM Jim Hendry retorted this morning with remarks that were similar to ones he directed at Milton Bradley after the beleaguered outfielder and the Cubs parted ways:

"Obviously, we're dealing with a man that at this particular point in his career is not willing to face the facts that what he's done the last years -- except for a two-month period -- is well below Major League standards.

"He seems to make a continual [habit] of blaming everybody but himself,".

What this means: Andrew Cashner will be the cubs 5th starter despite failing to make it past four innings in any of his starts this spring. Marcos Mateo will be the last man to make the bullpen. Mateo appeared in 21 games for the Cubs last season.

Most importantly, this roster move shows that the Cubs will play players based on their baseball abilities, not on their contracts. Carlos Silva's salary for this season was $11.5 million ($3.5 payed by Seattle) and they are completely walking away from him. This means that players like Darwin Barney and Tyler Colvin should get opportunities should higher paid players like Kosuke Fukudome falter. 

Silva Unimpressive in Second Spring Outing

To say that Carlos Silva was unimpressive in his second outing of the spring would, frankly, be the understatement of the century. Silva allowed eight runs, all earned, on ten hits in just two and one thirds innings of work. He also hit a batter while striking out none. Incredibly, Silva allowed the first seven batters of the third inning to reach base. He then recorded a line drive out before allowing the double that would end his day. There was only one error, on right fielder Tyler Colvin.

This start marks the second consecutive performance in which Silva, who is on the record as saying that he does not feel that he needs to prove himself in order to make the rotation, was underwhelming at best. Sure the Cubs made three errors in his first go-round, but he also gave up two long balls and then proceeded to fight Aramis Ramirez in the dugout. This time, it appears Silva was throwing batting practice.

Silva, who came over in the Milton Bradley trade before last season was excellent in the first half last year, before his season was derailed by injuries. However, I am a firm believer that unless you are a bona-fide ace (see Zambrano, Dempster, or Garza) nothing should be guaranteed, including Silva's spot in the rotation. With Randy Wells pitching as well as he has thus far, it is looking more likely that he will be in the rotation as the 4th starter. That would leave Silva, Andrew Cashner, Casey Coleman, James Russell, and possibly someone like Todd Wellemyer or Jay Jackson to battle it out for the 5th spot in the rotation. And while none of these pitchers has set themselves apart as of yet, I like Todd Wellemeyer for the spot. In two games so far, he has a 2.25 ERA in four innings of work, allowing one run on four hits while striking out four batters. The one thing Silva does have going for him is a ridiculously inflated contract, though some of the money is being paid by the Mariners.

Todd Wellemeyer: Wellemeyer returns to the Cubs for his second stint of duty after spending last season with the world series champion San Francisco Giants. He has made 75 starts in his eight year career. His best season of record came in 2008 with the St. Louis Cardinals when he started 32 games and pitched 191.2 innings. He finished the season with a 13-9 record and a 3.71 ERA. Wellemeyer previously pitched for the Cubs from 2003-05. He was drafted by the Cubs and remains the on Cubs pitcher to record a save in his Major League Debut.

Cubs Win First Televised Game of Spring

Who said there can't be dramatics in Spring Training?

The Cubs beat the Los Angeles Dodgers in the first televised game of the spring on a 2-Run, Walk-Off Home Run in the bottom of the 10th inning off the bat of second baseman DJ LaMahieu. After blowing three-one run leads, the Cubs edged out the Dodgers in a game that probably would have ended in a tie had runs not been scored in the bottom of the 10th.

Cubs starter Ryan Dempster pitched a solid four innings, allowing three hits and one earned run. Dempster struck out three batters, walked none, and faced just 15 batters. Esmailin Caridad, who was expected to be a key member of the Cubs bullpen last year before spending the season on the Disabled List picked up the win. He pitched a perfect top of the 10th.

The Cubs offense scratched out nine hits in total, four of which went for extra bases. Marlon Byrd, who was 3-3, added two doubles and Steve Clevenger added a double to go with LaMahieu's home run.

Most importantly, this game marks the second in a row where the Cubs did not make an error.

The other half of the Cubs squad was wiped out by the Cincinnati Reds today by the score of 10-0. Players in this game included many starters such as Blake DeWitt, Starlin Castro, Tyler Colvin, Alfonso Soriano, and Carlos Pena. They managed just two hits against the defending NL Central champs, and also made no errors.

Todd Wellemyer started and gave up one run in two innings of work. Casey Coleman gave up three runs, Trey McNutt gave up four runs, and Scott Rice and Kyle Smit each gave up one run apiece.

Spring Training Sparring Match

After Randy Wells' strong spring debut on Monday, Carlos Silva needed to come out and compete Wednesday if he wants to set him self apart from the other pitchers vying for a spot in the Cubs rotation. Though the defense played poorly yet again, Silva did not help himself out by allowing 2HR's.

He then proceeded to make matters worse. It is unclear what exactly transpired after the inning, however, it appears that Silva channeled his inner Carlos Zambrano circa the 2010 All-Star Break. Reports are saying that Silva and Aramis Ramirez, who committed one of the Cubs 3 first inning errors got into a heated exchange before it was broken up by teammates.

I personally think that this type of fire early on in the season is a good thing. The Cubs do not really have a chemistry, so to speak, that could be broken up at this point in time. This is completely different than if a fight were to occur during the regular season (see Zambrano v D-Lee or Zambrano v Michael Barrett). This shows that players on the team actually care about whats going on on-field, and that maybe they are willing to step it up a notch to change things.

To this point, the Cubs have made 14 errors in four Spring Training games. And its not like the no-name rookies are committing errors. It is regular season starters who are having the miscues. We all knew coming into this season that the Cubs were not going to be a strong defensive team. But, 14 errors in four games might be something to worry about.

For his part, Cubs skipper Mike Quade said that he does not expect either player to be disciplined and that the sloppy play in the field cannot continue if the Cubs want to contend in the NL Central.

Rotation Battle Officially Underway

Rotation Battle: Though it may have actually began when they started throwing bullpen sessions at the beginning of camp, the battle for the fourth and fifth spot in the Chicago Cubs rotation officially began today when candidate Randy Wells started against the Milwaukee Brewers. And it went pretty well for Wells. Though nothing is guaranteed, Wells, who pitched two scoreless innings, is almost a lock for one of the two spots. After being something of a revelation in by winning 12 games with a 3.09ERA in his rookie season of 2009, Wells stumbled to just an 8-14 record with a 4.26ERA in 2010, his first full season in the Bigs.

Other Notes: Reed Johnson was 2-3 in his return to the Cubs. Johnson who spent 2008-2009 with the Cubs returns after spending the 2010 season with the Los Angeles Dodgers. He is signed to a non-guaranteed Minor League contract. Also re-debuting for the Cubs was Kerry Wood. Wood who spent the last two season with the Indians and Yankees returns to the team where he spent the first ten years of his baseball career. Wood, who burst onto the national scene in 1998 after striking out 20 Houston Astros won the 1998 NL Rookie of the Year Award. However, he was never quite the same, save for the 2003 season when he took the Cubs to the NLCS. He gave up two runs on three hits in one inning of work while striking out two and walking none.

Looking Ahead: The Cubs face the 2010 World Series Champion San Francisco Giants on Tuesday followed by another match-up against the Milwaukee Brewers on Wednesday.

Cubs Spanked in Spring Opener

Though there were several positives in the Spring Opener today against the Oakland Athletics the Cubs were downed 15-7. Here are some of the particulars.

Positives
Carlos Zambrano: Big Z threw two hitless innings, striking out two while walking one. Zambrano is hoping to build on the strong finish he had last season. After a tumultuous first half that included a stint in the bullpen and a suspension, Zambrano was superb down the stretch and started his spring of on a good note.
Alfonso Soriano: 3-3, Double, 2RBI. Soriano, known as a streaky hitter is coming off a season in which he played in 147 games, his most since 2006. After signing a mammoth contract with the Cubs, he has not lived up to the billing. Though relatively productive, injuries have hampered his time in the Windy City. Soriano is hoping to turn things around in Chicago and a hot start would be nice.
Starlin Castro: After a great rookie campaign, the young gun was 2-3 with a run scored. The big thing for Castro this season will be correcting some of the problems that deterred him on defense.
Offense in General: The Cubs offense exploded for four runs in the bottom of the first against potential AL Cy Young candidate Trevor Cahill. The Cubs racked up 16 hits, and showed glimpses of a potentially explosive offense.

Negatives
Tyler Colvin/Blake DeWitt: A personal favorite of mine, Colvin was 0-3 at the plate and left three men on base while DeWitt was 0-3 with five men left on base. The pair accounted for all three Cubs fielding miscues, with DeWitt making an error at second and Colvin making two in the outfield.
Matt Garza: Making his spring debut for the Cubs, Garza surrendered five runs on five hits while walking one and giving up a grand slam. Nothing to worry about here. Garza did however collect his first hit in professional baseball of any kind.
Pitching in General: The Cubs used eight pitchers in the spring opener and half of them gave up runs. Garza-five, Jeff Samardzija-one, John Grabow-two, and Justin Berg-7.

The Verdict: Some Good, Some Bad. It's way too early to jump to any conclusions but this-It's Baseball Season. 

Pre-Season Predictions

This post will be the first of many predictions this spring training. We will cover both individual and team predictions. I figured there was no better way to get this started than with the biggest individual awards, AL and NL MVP. So without further ado...

AL: The AL MVP for the 2011 Season will be Alex Rodriguez. I am in no way a New York Yankees fan, but he is bound for his 14th consecutive (15th Overall) 30HR/100RBI season. After a down season for the New York Yankees (by their obscene standards) this team will come back healthy, led by their All-Star Third Baseman. After slimming down (his body fat is down 3% according to recent media reports) A-Rod has declared that he will have a better season than last (30HR/125RBI). 2010 AL MVP Josh Hamilton had 32 HR and 100 RBI. If Rodriguez actually follows through on his plans to improve, he could win the award in a land slide.

Honorable Mention: Evan Longoria, Adrian Gonzalez

NL: The NL MVP for the 2011 Season will be Albert Pujols. He has finished 1^st or second in each of the last 7 seasons in MVP voting, and not that he ever needs any extra motivation, but he is officially set to become a free agent after the summer of 2011. Precedent has been set for players to have big seasons in contract years. Adrian Beltre and Alfonso Soriano come to mind. If Pujols were to have an “extra-big” season (2010 Season: .312BA, 42HR, 118RBI) there is no doubt that he will win the award. 

Honorable Mention: None, Pujols will win the award unanimously. 

Cincinnati Reds Overjoyed by Division Rival's Injury. Everyone else, not so much.

Jonny Gomes, the man who once drank tequila out of his Jock Strap is proving yet again that he is lacking in the class department.

Apparently, when news broke of Adam Wainwright's elbow injury this morning, Reds outfielder Jonny Gomes walked into the clubhouse giddily singing about Wainwright's misfortune, according to Hal McCoy of the Dayton Daily News.

Reds Manager Dusty Baker, leading by example, was also apparently in a very chipper mood, though one would wonder why. Though I won't blame him for Edinson Volquez's elbow problems, Dusty was the manager of the Cubs during the Mark Prior and Kerry Wood era and many also attribute Jason Schmidt's when he was in San Francisco. So, he should know a thing or two about these types of situations.

As my roommate reminded me, the Reds are the same team that were involved in a fight with Cardinals at the end of last season. A fight in which Johnny Cueto kicked Chris Carpenter in the back with his cleats on and another player-or possibly Cueto- ended Jason LaRue's career with a kick to the head.

As a die hard Cubs fan, I understand that this is catastrophic to the Cardinals organization and significantly enhances their opponents' chances in the division. But come on, you do not root for or celebrate injuries, regardless of whether you're a fan, coach, or an All-Star. Its unacceptable. Period.

I know I said that I don't like to unnecessarily rip into people, but really...really.

I was at Adam Wainwright's start last season against the Milwaukee Brewers when he hurled his first career complete game shut-out, and he was dominant. Here's wishing him a speedy and smooth recovery, because even though I'm a Cubs fan, he is an awesome pitcher and he is fun to watch... except for about 3 or 4 starts per year.

About Myself

My name is Jake. I am a 2011 graduate of Indiana University's Sports Communication program. I have been involved in baseball my entire life and am very passionate about the game. I played in High-School, and as you probably guessed by the title of this blog, I was a stocky, slow, but fundamentally sound back up outfielder. After I finished playing (the aforementioned qualities do not translate to playing past High-School) I decided I would still stay involved in baseball. I have spent the last five seasons as a youth baseball coach, and also work at my father's baseball and softball training facility.

This blog is a baseball blog dedicated to the Chicago Cubs, but will discuss other topics related to baseball.

I hope you enjoy this blog. First post to come shortly. I have a mid-term tomorrow morning that I have to study for so it will probably be tomorrow afternoon.

If anyone ever has an idea for a post please drop a comment.