Marmol to close

Marmol

Hmmmm.... I wonder what it would take to get Billy Wagner from the Mets? Stoke THAT fire Bruce.

do you really think Soriano will change and try?.......even if he tried he's still on the downside....same with Lou, he is what he is........yes we need a butt kicker......with his bloop singles, weak short fly outs, and injuries, i wonder, was he ever on, is he off now, any kind of drugs......since he arrived his numbers have gone down, leg injuries, hmm..

it's not just him, Soto coming in fat, Bradley over rated, never really hit well left handed, Dempster over paid, Zambrano admits he's lazy, Fontenot over rated, Gregg a bust, marol can't throw strikes, Lou to this day keeps reading the baseball cards, etc.

I know that frustration levels are quickly rising in Cubbie-land and even I've had thoughts about giving up on this team. So, what I would like this team to do for the rest of the season is simple. Play hard. That's it.

I'm not worried about wins/losses as I'd just like to see the guys play hard for nine innings. That means running into the gaps for fly balls, running out ground balls and playing smart, fundamental baseball. Maybe relax a little bit and get back to doing things right.

Right now I feel like this team could go two ways. One, it could sink and cause problems for the next 2-3 years as the organization sits in a general malaise as contracts expire. Two, Lou and the players could re-commit themselves to playing the game the right way and getting the mindset of the team closer to what it was last season. Obviously I prefer option two.

I can get behind a .500 team as long as I feel like they are giving maximum effort. I don't want to see this team give up and fall into even worse habits than they already have in the month of September.

So can we all just move on to focusing on the wild card? Unless the Cardinals suffer a string of injuries, the schedule does NOT favor the Cubs. The Cubs COULD make it interesting if they were to win all the games in hand, but I don't see that happening.

Cardinals have 13 games left vs teams above .500 (9 at home). They have 41 games left (with 21 at home, and 24 against the division)

-@La, @Sd (4), vs Hou (3), vs Wash (3), vs Mil (3), @Pit (3), @Mil (3), vs Atl (3), vs Fla (3), vs Cubs (3), @Hou (3), @Col (3), @ Cin (3), vs Mil (3).

Cubs have 12 games left vs teams above .500 (1 at home....the Sox). They have 45 games left (24 at home, and 24 against the division)

-@Sd, @La (4), vsWash (3), vs Mets (3), vs Hou (3), vs Sox, @Mets(3), @Pit(3), vs Cin(3), vs Mil(4), @Stl (3), @Mil (3), @Sf (4), vs Pit (4---assuming this is the make up date), vs Ari(3)

Time to focus on the wildcard. The Cardinals ARE NOT folding, and the Cubs need to go on a run and pray that the Giants and Rockies beat up each other, and that the Dodgers help out the Cubs as well. Catching San Fran will be tough with Cain and Lincecum pitching well.

At this point, I'll be shocked if the Cubs win more then 84 games. When that happens, things better change, and Hendry or the new the GM, better go to some of these guys and ask to see what teams they would consider approving trades to. When that doesn't happen, the same horror show will go on next year, with the results even worse thanks to age and decline in performance. When you curse this team for the forseeable future, remember it was the great Jim Hendry who did this. This is his baby.

The window has closed. Now it's just a matter of seeing how fast and how hard this team will plummet, and if you are still holding out "hope" look no further then the past 2 nights. The worst team in the NL outside of Washington, rolling out a F lineup, and no name pitchers handled a team that is supposedly fighting for their playoff lives. The Cubs can say whatever they want, but they have given up.

September 13th the Bears start, followed by the Hawks and Bulls. Hopefully the remaining seats that are available go unsold and everyone sends Cubs management a stern message.

The Cubs Organization needs to hire someone to find any kind of loop-hole in Soriano's contract that could turn him into a Wrigley Field Peanut Vendor @ $11.73 an Hour for the remainder of his contract!!!!!

It seems to me that the compromising pictures that Neifi Perez had of someone high in the Cubs organization have been passed on to Aaron Miles!!!!

13 million dollar bust.

I think major league GMs constantly make this mistake. If a player is not good enough to be a full time major leaguer, then he should be paid very little money. Scales, Fox, Fontenot, Baker, even Andres Blanco are more productive than Aaron Miles, yet he makes more money than all of them combined. This should be what the minor leagues are for. Fill the holes and provide depth. Even career minor leaguers can generally play acceptable defense and occasionally get hits.

If the Cubs want to win, they should disregard contract numbers and play the best players. Scales or Blanco should be up and Miles should be on waivers.

Marmol has thrown pretty good the last couple games he's pitched in. If he pitches like the Carlos of last season and not the majority of this season, then the Cubs should be o.k. However, that 1.47 WHIP scares me. I still think Guzman would be the better choice this year. But as you wrote, "...when he (Marmol) throws strikes, nobody hits him."

now's the time for a set line-up......if he can abuse Hill for what, 25-26 straight games without rest he can have a set line-up for 10-15 games...break....so on......with defensive adjustments late in games.....just to see if another approach works V his......so is it going to be Grabow, Guzman, and Marmol?

I think the Cubs attempt to turn him into their full time 2nd baseman has exposed his weaknesses. He's best as a super sub, or in stints/small spurts.