Bleed Cubbie Blue

The Yankees Probably Aren't For Sale And Other MLBullets

2012-05-25T11:29:09Z

The latest from around MLB...

The New York Yankees are for sale, according to a New York Daily News story, which was, of course, vehemently denied by the Steinbrenner Family. Unnamed sources told the Daily News that, following the Dodgers' sale for $2.15 billion, the Steinbrenners were "enthused" about that price, and got to wondering just how much the Yankees might sell for. Hal Steinbrenner is painted as an uninterested owner and chairman, who doesn't really care about baseball (again, something that's been denied). My thought? Aren't sports franchises one of the toys you buy when you have billions of dollars? If so, what do you do when you sell one for three or four billion? Buy a country? There's only so much you can do with gigantic sums of money in your life, and owning a team like the Yankees seems like one of the coolest.

From the injury ward: Emilio Bonafacio is going to miss four to six weeks thanks to thumb surgery, and the Marlins are looking for help in the outfield. John Danks is headed to the disabled list with shoulder tightness, and Austin Jackson is headed to the DL with a left abdominal strain.
Thanks to a loss-and-injury-filled few weeks, the Cincinnati Reds have pulled ahead of the Cardinals for first place in the NL Central.
Speaking of first place teams in Ohio, the Cleveland Indians just swept the Detroit Tigers, putting the latter six games behind the former in the AL Central. The White Sox are in the middle, 3.5 games behind the Indians.
Juan Carlos Oviedo - the artist formerly known as Leo Nunez - has reportedly received his visa to return to the US and resume his baseball career, after he serves an eight week suspension, that is. (Update: According to Oviedo, himself, he hasn't quite yet received that visa, but is in the process.)
FanGraphs wonders how much Cole Hamels is worth on the open market, and concludes, among other things, that he isn't worth as much as Zack Greinke.
Roy Oswalt's free agency continues to be a moderately interesting story, with the Baltimore Orioles now joining the pursuit. If candidates for trade become more valuable mid-season after injuries intrude on otherwise good seasons (I'm not sure if I buy that, by the way), then the same should be true for a free agent marketing his services to a number of suitors. Oswalt could clean up for a half season of work.

Brett Taylor is the Lead Writer at Bleacher Nation, and a Contributor here at Bleed Cubbie Blue.

Cubs Minor League Wrap: May 24

2012-05-25T03:43:20Z

The Chiefs celebrated the tenth anniversary of the opening of their ballpark tonight. They also won, making them the only Cubs team to win since Tuesday. I think if everyone lost tonight I'd just make up better news.

Iowa Cubs

The Iowa Cubs fell down the Tacoma Rainers (Mariners), 7-2.

Chris Rusin started and took the loss after giving up four runs on seven hits over four innings. One of the runs was unearned. Rusin walked four and fanned two.

Shortstop Luis Valbuena had two doubles in a 2 for 4 game. Valbuena scored once and had one run batted in.

Center fielder Brett Jackson was 2 for 4. DH Ty Wright was 2 for 3.

They kept first baseman Anthony Rizzo in the park today. He was 1 for 4 with a double and a run scored.

Tennessee Smokies

The Tennessee Smokies fizzled against the Mobile BayBears (Diamondbacks), 3-2.

Starter Dallas Beeler turned in a decent start, but got no support. He pitched six innings and allowed three runs on five hits. He was wild, however, as he walked five and hit one batter. He did strike out five as his record dropped to 1-4.

Center fielder Jim Adduci hit a solo home run in the third inning to tie the game at one. He now has four home runs on the year. Adduci was 1 for 3 with a walk.

Shortstop Junior Lake was 2 for 4. He now has a six game hit streak.

Daytona Cubs

The Daytona Cubs lost to the St. Lucie Mets, 5-2.

Ryan Searle put the Cubs in a hole early and took the loss. He gave up three runs on six hits over 3.2 innings. He walked one and struck out two.

Third baseman Greg Rohan homered in his third straight game tonight when he went deep in the sixth inning. Rohan was 3 for 4 with just the one run scored and the one RBI. He now has hit eight home runs for Daytona this season.

Catcher Micah Gibbs was responsible for the other D-Cubs run when he hit his first home run this season in the eighth inning. Gibbs was 1 for 4.

First baseman Richard Jones and second baseman Ronald Torreyes were both 2 for 4.

Peoria Chiefs

The Peoria Chiefs toppled the Clinton LumberKings (Mariners), 4-3.

Kyler Burke has had the best ERA on the Chiefs this season, and tonight he finally got his first win of the season. He only allowed one unearned run over six innings. He only gave up two hits, but he was wild as he walked four, hit a batter and had two wild pitches. Burke also struck out four LumberKings.

Yao-Lin Wang got the save tonight, but it wasn't easy. After getting the first two batters out in the ninth without much trouble, he gave up four straight hits to get the LumberKings to within a run. He finally nailed down the save with a ground ball comebacker to the mound. Wang pitched 1.1 innings and allowed two runs on four hits. He did not walk anyone and struck out two for his third save of the season.

Right fielder Oliver Zapata went 3 for 4 with a double. He scored once and had two runs batted in.

Center fielder Taiwan Easterling was 2 for 4 with a double and a walk. Shortstop Marco Hernandez was 2 for 3 with a walk.

Cubs Lose Again, Have Longest Losing Streak In 10 Years

2012-05-24T12:20:06Z

Here's a list of Cubs pitchers:

Trachsel, Foster, Mulholland, Gonzalez, Tapani, Trachsel, Rojas, Mulholland, Gonzalez

Here's another list of Cubs pitchers:

Cruz, Bere, Borowski, Lieber, Wood, Cruz, Bere, Clement, Lieber

To those lists we can now add:

Dolis, Camp, Volstad, Samardzija, Dempster, Maholm, Garza, Wood, Samardzija

Those are the losing pitchers in the most recent nine-game losing streaks by the Cubs, the first in 1997, the second in 2002, and the third, after Wednesday night's 5-1 loss to the Astros. (It should be pointed out that the "Wood" in the 2002 list and the "Wood" in the 2012 list are different pitchers... and that the "Cruz" in the 2002 list is still pitching as an effective setup man for the Pirates.)

The unfortunate thing is that the third list can, and very probably will, get longer, as the Cubs visit Pittsburgh beginning Friday. Since the Cubs' last pennant in 1945, the team has lost 10 straight four times (1948, 1954, 1962 and 1994), 11 straight twice (1954 and 1973), 12 straight twice (1970 and 1981), 13 straight twice (1982 and 1985) and 14 straight once (the club record, in 1997).

All of those appear in reach, even though the Padres are the Cubs' Wrigley Field opponent beginning Monday and San Diego currently sits just one game ahead of the Cubs.

For the second straight game, the Cubs' only scoring was provided by a solo home run. Wednesday, Reed Johnson homered in the first inning and gave the Cubs their first lead in 60 innings.

Yes, you read that right -- 60 innings, more than six full games' worth of innings. Before last night, the Cubs had last led 2-1 going into the fifth inning on May 16 against the Phillies.

Wednesday night's lead lasted three innings, until the bottom of the fourth. Naturally, something Lou Piniella might have called a "Cubbie occurrence" gave the Astros the lead. With two out and two runners on base, J.D. Martinez hit a sinking line drive into right field. Darwin Barney and David DeJesus converged on the ball; it was actually in DeJesus' glove before a collision with Barney knocked it out. Both runners scored and Martinez wound up with his first career triple (and Martinez has little speed; it might wind up as his only career triple).

It's the Cubs. A catchable ball, which, if caught, would have ended the inning, the Cubs leading 1-0. Instead, it's 2-1 Astros and you knew, just knew, that was the last lead the Cubs were going to have in this game.

Earlier this year, many of us felt Rafael Dolis was getting hit hard because he was getting too much work, too many back-to-back outings. What's the story now, bench coach and temporary one-game manager Jamie Quirk?

Before the Astros broke things open with a three-run ninth off closer Rafael Dolis (which Quirk blamed on "rust" from his not pitching enough)

Such is the story of the 2012 Cubs. Pitchers give up too many runs because they're overworked, so they get less work, and then they give up too many runs because they're rusty. At least this game won't start for calls for Quirk to replace Dale Sveum (who missed this game to attend his son's high school graduation in Arizona); that might have happened if Quirk had guided the Cubs to a win.

Instead, I had to dredge up losing streaks from decades ago to see how many more games it'll take for the Cubs to match up to bad teams from the 1970s, 1960s and 1950s... it won't be long, it seems. Perhaps Sveum could bring a pitcher or two back from his son's high school team. How much worse could it be?

Enjoy the off day. It's the only day this week we can be assured the Cubs won't lose.

Cubs Minor League Wrap: May 23

2012-05-24T04:12:05Z

I know this is the last thing any of you want to hear tonight, but everyone lost today,

Iowa Cubs

The Iowa Cubs couldn't climb the Tacoma Rainiers (Mariners), 8-3.

Brooks Raley made his Triple-A debut and had some problems, giving up runs in four of the five innings he pitched. Raley allowed five total runs on six hits, although two of the runs were unearned. Raley walked three and struck out four.

First baseman Anthony Rizzo hit a solo home run in the sixth inning; his 16th of the year. Rizzo was 2 for 4.

Third baseman Josh Vitters was 3 for 4 with a double that just missed leaving the yard. Vitters had one RBI.

Tennessee Smokies

The Smokies had their picnic baskets stolen by the Mobile Bay Bears (Diamondbacks), 8-6.

Nick Struck had a rough start tonight, giving up six runs in only three innings. Struck gave up eight hits, including one home run, and walked two. He added to his misery with two wild pitches. Struck fanned three as his record fell to 4-5.

Left fielder Rebel Ridling hit his fourth home run in four days with a man on in the first inning. It was his fifth home run this year. Ridling was 2 for 5.

Jae-Hoon Ha didn't start for the Smokies tonight for only the second time this year, but he came off the bench to pinch-hit his first home run of the year. It was a solo home run in the seventh inning. Ha stayed in the game and went 1 for 2.

James Adduci was 2 for 5. He scored once and batted two in. First baseman Justin Bour was 2 for 4 with an RBI. Shortstop Junior Lake went 2 for 5 with a double and a run scored.

Daytona Cubs

The Daytona Cubs sank against the St. Lucie Mets, 8-7.

Frank Del Valle pitched the first five innings and gave up five runs on five hits. Two of the hits were solo home runs and another run scored when Del Valle fielded a ball and threw the ball away so badly that the batter was able to circle the bases. I guess that's a "Little League Home Run." (EDIT: What happened was that Del Valle threw the ball away and it got stuck in the tarp. Torreyes, instead of throwing up his hands to stop the play, reached in to get the ball. This is the ivy ground rule at Wrigley. Cubs manager Brian Harper thought a ball in the tarp was automatically a dead ball, but the umpires disagreed.) Besides that run which the rules say is "unearned," Del Valle allowed a second unearned run when Ronald Torreyes dropped a pop-up. Del Valle walked three and struck out six.

Tony Zych took the loss when he allowed one run of his own and one inherited runner to score in the eighth inning. Zych pitched two innings and gave up three hits. He did not walk anyone and he struck out two.

First baseman Greg Rohan hit a three-run home run in the fifth inning. It was his seventh of the season. Rohan was 1 for 4 with a walk.

Second baseman Ronald Torreyes went 3 for 3 with a walk and a double. He scored once and had two runs batted in.

Shortstop Arismendy Alcantara was 2 for 5 with a run scored.

Peoria Chiefs

The Peoria Chiefs were clear-cut by the Clinton LumberKings (Mariners),11-0.

You don't really want me to recap this one, do you?

All right. Jose Rosario allowed nine runs over 3.2 innings, thanks to nine hits, three of which went over the outfield wall. Rosario walked two and struck out five.

DH Yaniel Cabezas was 2 for 3.

First Pitch Thread: Cubs vs. Astros, Wednesday 5/23, 7:05 CT

2012-05-24T00:05:05Z

Go get 'em, Shark.

Chicago Cubs vs. Houston Astros Preview, Wednesday 5/23, 7:05 CT

2012-05-23T22:00:09Z

With their eighth loss in a row Tuesday night, the Cubs equalled a losing streak they have posted seven other times since the club-record 14-game losing streak to start the 1997 season.

Since that record streak, they have lost more than eight in a row two other times:

Nine in a row from July 24-August 1, 1997
Nine in a row from May 8-May 18, 2002

So, unless they can pull out a victory tonight, they not only get swept by the Astros, but will have their longest losing streak in 10 years.

Such is the state of the Chicago Cubs in 2012.

Incidentally, if you missed the .gif version of the photo at the top of this post, that I posted courtesy of Grant Brisbee at Baseball Nation in the comments to yesterday's recap (and again in this fanshot), here it is again:

And here's another angle:

Cubs lineup:

DeJesus rf, Johnson cf, Castro ss, Soriano lf, Mather 3b, Baker 1b, Barney 2b, Hill c, Samardzija p

Same ol' same ol'. (sigh)

Astros lineup:

Altuve 2B, Lowrie SS, Buck RF, Lee 1B, Bogusevic CF, Johnson 3B, Martinez LF, Castro C, Rodriguez P

Today's Starting Pitchers


Jeff Samardzija Cubs	vs.	Wandy Rodriguez Astros

4-2	W-L	3-4
3.00	ERA	2.24
53	SO	40
16	BB	15
4	HR	3
vs. Hou	--	vs. Cubs

	W-L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	BS	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
2012 - Jeff Samardzija	4-2	10	8	0	0	0	0	51.0	43	19	17	4	16	53	3.00	1.16

	W-L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	BS	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
2012 - Wandy Rodriguez	3-4	9	9	0	0	0	0	60.1	51	19	15	3	15	40	2.24	1.09

Jeff Samardzija has never faced the Astros as a starting pitcher and the only Astros hitter who has more than four career AB against him is Carlos Lee (2-for-6, one home run). In short, what can we expect from Shark tonight? Who knows?

Wandy Rodriguez, on the other hand, has tons and tons and tons of experience against Cubs teams -- 19 career starts with a 3.99 ERA. He's off to a good start this season -- 2.24 ERA, 1.09 WHIP -- and that will probably have him at the top of the "who's getting traded at the deadline" list this year. Current Cubs are hitting .246 against Wandy with four home runs. But if you take out the numbers of Geovany Soto, who is on the DL, against Wandy, that drops to .216 with one home run. Clearly, we are doomed.

Today's game is on WGN. Here is the complete MLB.com Mediacenter for today.

MLB.com Gameday

Baseball-reference.com game preview

SB Nation game preview

Please visit our SB Nation Astros site Crawfish Boxes.

Today's first pitch thread will post at 7:05 p.m. CDT and the overflows at 8:05, 9:05 and 9:50 p.m. CDT. If you need more overflows due to extra innings, post them in the fanshot section.

Discuss amongst yourselves.

Cubs Have Worst Record In Baseball After 2-1 Loss To Astros

2012-05-23T12:30:12Z

What would you have done?

Sixth inning. Cubs and Astros in a 1-1 tie game. Travis Wood had pitched very, very well after giving up a home run to Jose Altuve on his third pitch of the night.

But Wood had thrown 97 pitches. After Wood retired the first two hitters he faced in the sixth, he walked Justin Maxwell. The next scheduled hitter was Carlos Lee.

Lee has been a Cub-killer since... well, pretty much forever. But he's not the hitter he once was, and this season, including his first two at-bats Tuesday night, he was 7-for-34 against lefthanders.

It's not the easy call it appears to be at first glance. Dale Sveum decided to take Wood out and replace him with Shawn Camp, who has been one of his more reliable relievers (never thought I'd write those words).

In a season where virtually everything has gone wrong, something went wrong. Camp's pickoff throw got by Bryan LaHair and Maxwell took second. Perhaps rattled, Camp then walked Lee and J.D. Martinez singled Maxwell in for a 2-1 Houston lead.

So. What would you have done?

Me, I think I'd have left Wood in. And this isn't 20-20 hindsight, either; I was yelling at the TV at the time. Wood was due up third in the next inning, so Sveum had double-switched LaHair into the game. But Wood had earlier doubled, his third hit in four at-bats. Seems like no matter what choice Sveum makes these days, it's the wrong one.

I figured the offensively-challenged Cubs -- who have now lost eight in a row and who haven't even had a lead in 59 innings, since the seventh inning last Wednesday -- wouldn't score again, and I was right. The final score was Astros 2, Cubs 1, the Cubs' eighth loss in a row, dropping them to the worst record in the major leagues at 15-28, half a game worse than the Rockies, Padres and Twins.

The last time the Cubs had the worst record in baseball by themselves, this late into a season, was September 30, 2000, one day before that season ended. The Cubs won their final game of 2000 and the Phillies lost; the two teams wound up tied for worst at 65-97.

That's the kind of season we're looking at, it appears.

Alfonso Soriano hit his fourth home run of the season for the only Cubs run of the day. Apart from that and Wood's double, the Cubs' offense consisted of four singles and a pair of walks.

And then there's this:

Dale Sveum will miss Wed game to attend son's high school graduation in AZ. #Cubs
— Carrie Muskat (@CarrieMuskat) May 22, 2012

Sveum will probably have a much better time there than he would in Houston.

The Red Sox And Yankees Are Cellar Dwellers And Other MLBullets

2012-05-23T11:06:31Z

Bryce Harper or Mike Trout. Who you picking first to start your team for the next 15 years? Or are you picking neither?

The Yankees and Red Sox are still sitting at the bottom of the AL East standings, and Rob Neyer wonders if their place there is actually legit this year. Ultimately, he concludes it is not. "[T]here's also no compelling reason to think that both won't eventually climb the standings and get into the playoffs. Remember, only two American League teams outside the East even have positive run differentials. There's an excellent chance that three teams from the East will qualify for the postseason tournament. The Rays are looking pretty good and the Blue Jays might be a year ahead of schedule and the Orioles might be for real ... But isn't it most likely that the Yankees and Red Sox will do what they almost always do?" Rob has a fair point, and reminds us that, no matter how fun standings-gazing might be in late May, it doesn't necessarily tell us much about how things will ultimately shake out. Well, except, perhaps, in the NL Central...

Orioles second baseman Brian Roberts has missed more than a year following a concussion that he originally suffered back in 2010. He's had a uniquely difficult time dealing with post-concussion problems, and some thought he might never return. Well, he's about to start a minor league rehab assignment, and here's hoping it goes well for him.
The Rangers and Red Sox have worked out free agent Roy Oswalt, who is expected to sign with a team at some point during the season. The Rangers might have a renewed sense of urgency after Neftali Feliz went to the disabled list with right elbow inflammation.
Andre Ethier doesn't want to put an artificial deadline on contract extension negotiations with the Dodgers, but the free-agent-to-be hasn't received a proposal from them yet, either.
Another day, another closer loses his job: the Nationals have demoted Henry Rodriguez from the role (which he was filling for injured righty Drew Storen, who has yet to pitch this year), and will now go with a committee until Storen returns.
Aroldis Chapman celebrated his ascension to the closer's role with the Reds by driving 93mph on a suspended license and getting arrested. Insert your Aroldis-Chapman-changeup-speed joke here.
Bill James tells the story of a baseball-sniffing dog who could tell the difference between a Major League baseball and a minor league baseball. Did you know they were different? James answers a number of questions - baseball-related and otherwise - in the piece.

Brett Taylor is the Lead Writer at Bleacher Nation, and a Contributor here at Bleed Cubbie Blue.