Marmol, Gregg getting WHIPPed good
Go ahead and blame Aaron Heilman all you want for giving up the winning run tonight in Atlanta in the 12th inning. But the real culprits were the Cubs two supposedly best relievers, Carlos Marmol and Kevin Gregg.
Marmol continued with the command problems that have plagued him since spring training. He walked a pair of batters and hit one in the bottom of the eighth, helping the Braves climb out of a 5-0 hole. Marmol has pitched 24 innings this year, giving up 13 hits and allowing 23 walks. That translates into a high WHIP of 1.50.
To put that into perspective, Marmol pitched 87.1 innings last year, giving up 40 hits and 41 walks for a WHIP of 0.93.
Gregg isn’t so hot in the old WHIP department, either. He’s pitched 22.1 innings, giving up 24 hits and 13 walks for a WHIP of 1.66.
That won’t get it done in the back end of a bullpen.
The Cubs are now 25-25. Poor Randy Wells saw his ERA fall from 1.80 to 1.69 with a sterling 7-inning performance in which he gave up 2 hits and 2 runs (1 earned). He had only 83 pitches when Lou pulled him in the eighth, after Garret Anderson homered and D-Lee dropped Theriot’s throw for an error.
On top of it, who knows how long Milton Bradley will be out with the strained right calf the Cubs say he suffered after he tried to beat out a high chopper in the fourth. Bradley missed much of the second half of April with a groin strain. Lou seemed to get frustrated after awhile that Bradley couldn’t play until he was “100 percent.”
There’s more “on top of it” stuff. A published report coming out of Atlanta tonight said Carlos Zambrano missed yesterday’s charter flight, apparently without permission of the Cubs. Zambrano already is under suspension by MLB for his inexcusable antics on the field last week. He’s scheduled to start Thursday.
As I blogged last week, Lou and GM Jim Hendry really need to get a handle on things before they get really out of hand. I’m sure they’ll fine Zambrano. I don’t know what else they can do other than impose a team suspension, forcing him to miss 1 more start. The only way to get to high-priced players these days is to withhold playing time, but I doubt the Cubs would do it.
Always something.
braves just got McLoud from pittsburgh our farm team...bats lefty, with power, gold glove...center fielder
I said it last week, looks like Lou is bored....just like in tampa but worse cause he had a good job with espn.......he's older, the fire he thought was there isn't.......you don't fix what ain't broke.....97 wins and hendry makes major moves because Lou wanted more left handed batters.....he hasn't lost the team, he's given up.....he wants out.....no matter who the new owners are, he won't be back......
Trammel could take the reins for the rest of the year.
We are Cubs fans now stranded in Atlanta. We went to the game. It was painful—Bartman game painful.
I really wish SOMEONE would hide Lou’s Xanax! The umpire was brutal as the game wore on—and Theriot was even PO’d. Lou sat there. He just suits there--his Aquafina persona would back his players up at least now and again.
D Lee is as worthless as ever. He makes really nice plays and drops a ball in his glove (see Rey Sanchez) —and opened the floodgates—Bartman painful.
Wells was wonderful—Lord knows why a solo shot to break up the no-hitter—after which any manager or pitching coach with a brain goes out to talk with his young pitcher who just lost his no-hitter—and an error by an idiot at 1B should require that Wells be pulled—
Marmol was the evil Marmol once again. Larry was dumb--or dumbfounded--as always.
If Lee does not drop the ball -- even Gregg’s with putting out fire with C-4 performance is not fatal—we win by a run.
Geo drop a third strike—Bartman painful.
This team needs a shakeup—I said it before and I stick by it—they need Lou to wake the hell up—lose it—they need to fire Larry—he cannot fix Gregg—he cannot save Marmol for his flare-ups—he cannot harness Z—
And Hendry needs to undo his stupid moves—get rid of Gregg—NOW—Who will close? I have no idea--
Get rid of Miles—he cannot hit--keep Scales—teach him to bunt—better yet-stop giving up outs!
Disable Bradley—and find a place for Reed Johnson—and put Micah and Fox at first—bench Lee and let him think about his future--better yet see if McPhail will take him even up for Rick Kranitz!
Yes—Lee actually hit a solo shot and a double yesterday—even a blind mouse finds cheese every once in awhile—
I am sick and tired of hearing about injuries—a good GM has a solid bench and farm system—we have neither—so, when we miss the playoffs—we can blame injuries—nice--
OH—and Braves fans are the least hospitable fans in baseball. And know as little about the actual game as any fans in baseball—they are both xenophobic and myopic!
They do not support their team—and when they win—they are abusive to anyone not wearing their gang colors.
They are robots who need to be told when to chop—and clap—and make noise—it is pitiful-- BTW--the Chopping with all the voices--is recorded--it is not actually as loud as you think. AND--it is not spontaneous. We call it the "corporate chop!"
We have been treated better in Boston and New York (by Yankees and Mets fans) —Houston and St. Louis.
2 more nights of this!!
Just wondering why Jim Hendry has made it his number one priority to completely remake the bullpen every year he has been the GM? Aside from Howry I didnt really think the pen was that bad last year. I think the Derosa trade may still pan out. The three pitchers we got for him are all pitching quite well in the minors when I last checked. But the bullpen and the bench have always been Hendry's issues. Daryle Ward? Aaron Miles? Paul Bako? Kevin Gregg? Neil Cotts? What about all the money we gave to Fukodome? No way he is worth his pay. Injuries are a part of the game but good teams with depth and experience (both of which are lacking) can overcome them, but when you combine that with very poor relief pitching it results in the current state of affairs on the North Side. Bruce, are there any minor league pitchers ready to make the jump? And from what you hear does Mr. Hendry have anything working at all as far as trades?
Analogy to '07 doesn't work. Brewers over-achieved in building that big, early lead. They had a bad D, questionable pitching, very young team....and were going to come back to the pack. There's no over-achiever ahead of Cubs in '09. It's all irrelevant to the current task at hand. We may have to win 91 games to get into the playoffs, which would mean improving from 25-25 to 66-46. After not taking advantage of May, most favorable month on schedule. With this pen. With no A Ram for six more weeks in an optimistic scenario. With who-knows-what from china dolls Harden, Bradley. It's not early, people. The heat is on, and our chances already have gone from decent to unlikely.
There are only 26 games against what I consider good teams; PHI, LAD, NYM, MIL, STL.
I think there is PLENTY of time to make up some ground; and are we all forgetting that the Cubs are only 4 games back on June 3rd?
We just don't know what Hendry will be allowed to do.
I do appreciate the optimism, but I still contend that this team is an average to below average team. You can't look ahead to a schedule because you don't who will still be around, who will be playing loose, who will have added pieces, or who will be on the DL for the Cubs.
Your two best hitters will be banged up the rest of the way in Ramirez and Bradley. Bradley can't go 30 days without pulling something, and the Cubs can't afford to only play him 4-5 days a week right now with Ramirez out. That's the only way Milton Bradley can sniff 120 games. He needs breaks constantly, or DH spells, which the Cubs can't do.
Ramirez? What do you expect when he returns? They are already talking surgery in the offseason, so to expect this guy to perform at a high level is a HUGE mistake on anyone's part.
Lee...well....his better days are behind him. Always an excuse when he sucks. His neck, his back, his wrist, his daughter, etc. The guy is past his prime and on any good team he'd be hitting 6th. Instead he's batting 4th. Look at Ortiz on Boston. A clubhouse leader, is batting lower in the order, but yet we roll out Lee in PRIME spots, because why?
So that leaves Soto, Soriano, and Fukudome. Soriano will be streaky all year long, but Soto may have been a flash in the pan. 1 bad month? Fine. However, this is getting old, and how does he reaggravate a wrist injury from last year before the season started? Why not fix it in the offseason?
Too many holes to count, and when this offense actually does something, the starters walk the world, or the bullpen melts down. Who do you trust right now out of that pen?
Like I said, they may win the Central, because the division is a joke, but they are VASTLY inferior to the Mets, Philies, or Dodgers. Not to mention they are becoming a whiny bunch of spoiled b--ches.
It's only June 3rd and I'm already looking forward to the Hawks or Bears.....
I've RARELY been called optimistic about the Cubs. Almost always its that I'm too pessimistic, "let's wait til the season gets here before assigning Hendry any blame"....etc, etc.
but its just two full months into the season. that leaves 4 months. *Plenty* of time.
Listening to Cub fans cry out about how bad this season has been makes me wonder if they've ever watched baseball before. Is it that uncommon for a team to play bad and make a 2nd half run? Is it that uncommon that a player can't hit for 2 months and then figure things out? Is it that uncommon that a pitcher(s) can't find the plate and then rediscovers his form?
No. It's not.
And to top it off, Cubs are FOUR games back on June 3rd despite how poorly they've played. What that tells me is that once they start playing like they're capable of, they are going to take control of the division.
Again, I'm no optimist. this team isn't nearly as good as last October and I've said it since the moves began. But I also said that it doesn't mean the team isn't good enough to win the WS.
Aram: no idea how he'll be when he comes back. No one expected Chase Utley to be this dominant coming back from his injury. Arod the same. I know those are hip injuries, but the same reservations were held about them as we do for Aram. Time will tell; just as it will for the bullpen. I really don't expect Marmol to keep walking a batter an inning and I love the way Guzman looks.
And I'm tired of the Lee bashing. He's been the best hitter on the team for over a month now yet people just look at his overall numbers and call him washed up ignoring the fact he's on pace for 23 homers and 35 or so doubles. Not MVP numbers like Cub fans seem to expect, but good enough.
Soto is my biggest worry. And not getting offense out of a catcher isn't all that rare. Hopefully he turns it around.
The only thing that really pisses me off is poor fundamentals; that kind of complaining I can take and dish. but complaints about the lineup, the bullpen, etc...just irritates the crap out of me cuz its like people have never seen a team struggle before.
It happens. Its baseball.
Steve, I really like most everything you say in hockey and baseball commentary. But I am loathe to say Soto is a flash in the pan, at least as a hitter. he showed too much hitting ability last year. He did not loose that ability and I think he is fine confidance wise in hitting. The problem nay really be he has trouble applying all ability this year due to injury. We don't really know, but bet Cubs coaches/management has a good idea on this. The issue really comes down to: is this shoulder INj going to be a career altering problem, or something that pops up over the years. Because we can't continue with a catcher who cannot throw out attempted steal of 2b. Soto is a very valid concern, but do we really know if he is a flash in the pan? Not wrong to mention it, but let's not assume that is the case just yet. Anf bth, you can send e-mail to me if you want/will you be at Blackhawks convention?
I'll be there.
rmaloney2@sbcglobal.net
Good to hear from you. Shoot me an email when you get a chance. I hope you are right about Soto, but you have to wonder about guys in year 2 when the league makes adjustments, etc.
Steve, I really like most everything you say in hockey and baseball commentary. But I am loathe to say Soto is a flash in the pan, at least as a hitter. he showed too much hitting ability last year. He did not loose that ability and I think he is fine confidance wise in hitting. The problem nay really be he has trouble applying all ability this year due to injury. We don't really know, but bet Cubs coaches/management has a good idea on this. The issue really comes down to: is this shoulder INj going to be a career altering problem, or something that pops up over the years. Because we can't continue with a catcher who cannot throw out attempted steal of 2b. Soto is a very valid concern, but do we really know if he is a flash in the pan? Not wrong to mention it, but let's not assume that is the case just yet. Anf bth, you can send e-mail to me if you want/will you be at Blackhawks convention?
This is not a panic reaction. You can't win with a bullpen consisting of guys who walk people every inning. Right now, our best reliever is Angel Guzman. Marmol needs to get his butt in gear and pitch like he is capable of. I think Kevin Gregg IS pitching like he is capable of. Why on earth anyone ever thought he was a good replacement for Wood, I don't know. And Heilman......lets just say we would be better off with Howry and Ronnie Cedeno.
Jimbo...this was not your most stellar off season. Every move has backfired, from trading DeRosa, to signing Bradley, to trading for Gregg, to overpaying Miles. There is still time to fix it, but you have to make some moves. Get DeRosa back if he is really on the block. Get us a solid reliever. You can't wait until the end of July to fix this mess.
Thanks to the ownership situation, I doubt Hendry is going to be able to pull off any kind of deal involving anyone significant, unless it's a dollar for dollar deal, much less get DeRosa or any reliever back that will help. He simply overestimated the talent on the 25 man and is paying the price for it now.
I am going to defer to Bruce, but I'm pretty sure Hendry is in a holding pattern. He can't add anyone unless he clears payroll.
EVery move has back fired, and when you constantly hand a guy a blank check this is what you get.
What even aggravates more is, how do you not SHAKE things up when you go 0-6 in back to back postseasons. Regardless of 97 wins, this team proved with this set of guys, it can't win, yet most are back? That is just stupid.
When you have leaders who could care less and don't lead by example, this is what you get: chaos.
I kinda felt this season was like 2007. On June 6 of that year the Cubs were 25-32, 6.5 games back of the red hot Brewers before they got it together. Zambrano was punchng out his catcher. Oh, and for you DeRosa fans, he was bobbling balls and gettng thrown out at 3rd on ground balls. It doesn't have that feeling of impending comeback any more. The roster is weaker, and the injuries mounting. Back then at least they had healthy bodies, even if they weren't doing the job.
Now it feels like 1977. Back then, Bill Buckner said, "We have a great bench. Best in the league. Except they are all in the starting lineup." Too bad they waste great pitching performances.
Bruce, why wouldn't one of the "team leaders" read Zambrano out on his antics? And if Lou is getting frustrated over Bradley not wanting to play until he's pain free (got a little Podsednik in him), did he not know what he was getting when they signed him?
I'm not sure this team can pull an '07, either. The thing saving them is the NL Central. Lou doesn't seem to have it in him to help rally this bunch, as he did in '07. He seems more exasperated and resigned to things. Or maybe he knows the talent isn't there. And look at the number of inexperienced players. I blogged about that last week, with all the players with under one and two years of experience.
As far as Zambrano goes, someone on the team will have to say something. From the reports coming out of Atlanta, his teammates were none too happy. In the past, guys like Bob Howry and Kerry Wood would handle such misbehavior. I'm thinking D-Lee, Soto and Reed Johnson are going to have to step up here.
Pray it's Reed Johnson, because Soto or Lee have nothing to stand on right now. How about Derek Lee live up to his contract? Until then, I don't want to hear to Jack Daniels out of this guy.
Where is a Ted Lilly, or Ryan Dempster?
How does Hendry construct a team full of clowns, with no ring leader, AGAIN, like 2004? Does he NOT learn? Yet, lets defend them and praise them for being competitive.
THis is not 2007. This team doesn't have the leadership, and only so many rah, rah, speaches can work on the same guys.
because once Marmol got into the game I said that Lou should immediately get Guzman warmed up. How things have changed.....
The Cubs are several years late in reining in Zambrano. How they respond to this could be very pivotal.