Tag: Chicago Cubs (Page 23 of 23)

      Bullz-Eye baseball prediction from 2007 looking eerily prophetic

      August 21, 2008 /

      When we assembled our annual piece on the year in sports for Bullz-Eye, the piece was coming along really well, but something seemed a tad off to me. It was too…serious. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, mind you. John and Anthony dissect sports as well as anyone. But one section of our year-in-review piece is dedicated to predicting what we think will happen. For me, that is a golden opportunity to let loose with the craziest idea you can think of, have a laugh, go all Onion on everyone.

      After hearing that the Tampa Bay Devil Rays were changing their name, this is what I thought of.

      God anoints the ‘Devil’-free Tampa Bay Rays His new favorites; team wins World Series

      No song with the word “Devil” in the title has ever made it to Number One on the pop charts, and the Almighty has the same rules when it comes to baseball. (This mandate clearly does not apply to hockey, though that makes sense now that we think about it.) When pitchers and catchers report for spring training, God will hold a press conference, admitting that He had been punishing Tampa Bay for their transgression. “I really like that Crawford kid, and the way they stole Kazmir from the Mets…that was sweet,” God will be quoted as saying. “It actually bothered me to give them the smackdown year after year, but now that they’ve cleared their name, as it were, I see big things for this team.” The Rays will win the Series in a thrilling Game 7 comeback against the Chicago Cubs, who will have a 3-2 lead with two outs and the bases empty in the bottom of the ninth, then proceed to walk in the tying and winning runs.

      It is now late-August, and with the Cubs’ win today, they have the best record in baseball. The Rays are a game behind them in the win column. Incredibly, this World Series match-up still has a chance of happening. Indeed, my joke prediction has come closer to fruition than some of our more right-minded declarations (see: “The Detroit Tigers will win the Al Central”). That scream you just heard, by the way, was Cubs Nation telling me to shut the hell up for jinxing their team. Anyone who saw Game 6 of the 2003 NLCS knows that my ‘walking in the winning run’ scenario is not that outrageous.

      Anyone wanting to know what tomorrow’s lottery numbers will be, give me a call. I’m feeling lucky.

      Bullz-Eye Sports Channel, MLB

      Sunday MLB roundup: Andre Ethier puts Dodgers in first place

      August 18, 2008 /

      -Dodgers’ Outfielder Andre Ethier hit a two-run walk-off homer on Sunday against the Brewers in a wild 7-5 game. The home run came in the bottom of the ninth after an error-filled top of the ninth that saw the Brewers come back from a 5-1 deficit. The win has put the Dodgers into a first place tie in the NL West with the Arizona Diamondbacks, who were shutout in their game at Houston. Roy Oswalt was masterful, going eight innings, and allowing just one hit. The Astros scored all of their three runs in the first inning, and it was more than they needed.

      –The Cubs went on a hitting spree against the Marlins. They scored seven runs in the eighth inning, and were able to extend their lead over the Brewers in the NL Central.

      -Speaking of hitting sprees, the Baltimore Orioles were one of five teams in the American League Sunday to score in double figures. They managed to put 16 runs on the board. The Twins (11), White Sox (13), Yankees (15), and Blue Jays (15) round out the rest of the double-digit scorers.

      MLB

      Top 10 Active MLB Control Artists

      August 17, 2008 /

      Show me a pitcher who doesn’t walk many batters, and I’ll show you a pitcher that wins games. Plain and simple, if you don’t hurt yourself by putting guys on base, you’re going to be in games and win a good portion of them. Here, we take a look at those active pitchers with the best control, i.e. those hurlers who yield the least amount of walks per nine innings. Interestingly, the Top 10 consists of all starting pitchers……

      1. Carlos Silva, Seattle Mariners (1.634)–Okay, so Carlos Silva has lost more games than he’s won (59-60), but he’s pitching for the pathetic Mariners this year. What I’m saying is, 4-14 for a team that is 46-75 isn’t bad. And check this out…in 2005 with Minnesota, Silva pitched 188 1/3 innings and walked only nine batters. That’s just sick.

      2. Jon Lieber, Chicago Cubs (1.725)–Journeyman Jon Lieber has been in the bigs since 1994, and has never walked more than 51 batters in a season. There’s no doubt his career ERA of 4.26 would be much higher if it weren’t for his excellent control.

      3. Greg Maddux, San Diego Padres (1.803)–What, you expected not to see Mr. Maddux on here? Control is to Greg Maddux’ game what hot sauce is to Buffalo wings.

      4. Ben Sheets, Milwaukee Brewers (1.960)–Sheets has never won more than twelve games in a season, but part of that is because he can’t stay off the disabled list. Sheets has nearly four times as many career strikeouts (1181) as walks (303) in seven-plus seasons.

      5. Curt Schilling, Boston Red Sox (1.962)–It’s too bad that if we play word association, I’ll say “Curt Schilling” and you’ll say “bloody sock.” Then again, that also sums up the grit and determination of this guy. If I need to win a game, he’s one of maybe five pitchers I’ll give the ball to.

      6. Mike Mussina, New York Yankees (1.987)–If you can see the concentration in a pitcher’s eyes, you know he’s focused on putting the ball over the plate and trying to get the hitter out. And how about this? In 18 seasons, Mussina has only hit 58 batters and thrown 71 wild pitches. Also, his 265-151 career record shows that my theory above has a bit of validity.

      7. Mark Buehrle, Chicago White Sox (2.060)–Though he’s only won 117 games in almost nine seasons, Mark Buehrle is a workhorse (has never pitched less than 200 innings in a full season) who keeps his White Sox in games.

      8. Roy Oswalt, Houston Astros (2.084)–Do you get the feeling Roy Oswalt hasn’t yet reached his potential? The guy is 122-62 since breaking into the majors in 2001, with a 3.20 ERA and 1286 strikeouts. And his control (360 walks, 16 wild pitches) isn’t too shabby, either.

      9. Paul Byrd, Boston Red Sox (2.119)–I’m not sure that Byrd throws harder than 80 miles per hour, but there’s no doubt he can still get hitters out, which is why the Red Sox just obtained him from the Indians. And he gets better with age….in 2005 with the Angels, Byrd walked 28 batters in 204 1/3 — that’s 1.2 batters per game.

      10. Roy Halladay, Toronto Blue Jays (2.127)–With a 124-64 record over 11 seasons with mostly mediocre Toronto, Roy Halladay has consistently been one of the game’s best pitchers during his career.

      Source: Baseball Reference

      Fantasy Baseball, MLB

      Mark Cuban wants to own the Cubs

      August 4, 2008 /

      It died down for a while, but the Mark-Cuban-wants-to-own-the-Chicago-Cubs chatter has resurfaced. But once again, the talk has mostly centered on whether or not MLB wants to let Cuban into their owners’ fraternity.

      Cuban is loud, passionate and opinionated. He’s a media creature comfortable on multiple platforms, and he turned the once-comatose Mavericks into a perennial winner (though they have not won it all, just like the Cubbies, at least not since 1908). He has amassed nearly $1.7 million in fines, mostly for criticizing N.B.A. referees. As penance for insulting the chief of referees as incapable of managing a Dairy Queen, he spent a day at the chain serving up a promotional bonanza.

      Colangelo, who also owned the Arizona Diamondbacks, said baseball and basketball owners were different breeds. “Basketball is a little more cutting edge, and baseball has been stodgier,” he said. “Some people say it’s difficult to see him as a baseball owner, but times change, circumstances change and he’s done an incredible job in basketball.”

      The Cubs have always been owned by a company that cares more about putting fans in the seats than a winning team on the field. And the only reason they’ve won of late is because the Tribune Company wants to sell the club, so they’ve been willing to spend more to dress up their product.

      Cuban would be great for both the Cubs and baseball because he’s a passionate owner who wants to win. If baseball were lucky enough to have 30 owners who are as passionate about winning as they are turning a profit, than MLB would be a league to be admired. (Instead of being viewed as a “how to” on how not to run a league into the ground.)

      MLB

      Proof that Jay Mariotti reads TSR and Bullz-Eye

      May 8, 2006 /

      While perusing Jay Mariotti’s latest inflammatory article in the Chicao Sun-Times (the man is nothing if not a lightning rod), the lastest target being the lowly Chicago Cubs, I noticed that Mariotti made the following statement regarding Cubs GM Jim Hendry’s offseason moves:

      Hendry left them two bats and two arms short.

      Which is funny, because in late March, I wrote the following in my BE Baseball Preview:

      …they did make some good moves, getting a legitimate leadoff hitter in Juan Pierre and bolstering the bullpen with Bobby Howry and Scott Eyre. But they’re still two bats and three arms short of being competitive…

      I’m flattered, really. But would it kill you to give credit where credit is due, Jay? But I’m not one to throw stones, so I will simply say, you’re welcome, Mariotti. Now quit copying off of my test.

      Bullz-Eye Sports Channel, MLB

      Newer posts »

      © 2026 The Scores Report – The National Sports Blog

      Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑