Friday, June 04, 2004
A cloudless and radiant early summer day today lent some of its clarity to the Cubs' situation. Mark Prior made his first start of the season this afternoon, and was welcomed jubilantly by a Wrigley crowd that included both Mike Bodnar and myself. He was brilliant, posting 6 strong innings of 2-hit, shutout ball, fanning eight while walking none.
Of course, he did not figure in the decision.
Wins and losses are a lousy way to determine a starting pitcher's worth, but today worked effectively to designate blame for the game's unhappy outcome. Joe Borowski came in to protect a one-run lead and got smoked, surrendering laser beams to almost every hitter he faced and generally projecting an air of total incompetence. When the dust settled, he took his 4th loss of the year, blowing his second straight save and supplying further ammunition to his growing army of detractors.
I feel like I've been behind JoBo pretty much this entire year. I thought he would be able to reduce his walks to a manageable level, and that he would eventually stop giving up line drives on almost pitch his opposing batters swung at. Now I don't think that's going to happen.
The Cubs right now have an awfully high number of players they could release outright without thinking twice about it, especially for a contending team. Borowski has been so awful this year that I feel like his name could be added to the list, along with Rey Ordonez, Mike Wuertz, and Andy Pratt.
I'm just kind of venting.
This game was really a microcosm of the Cubs entire season, including--but not limited to--variations on the following themes:
Great starting pitching
Inconsistent hitting, with poor performance in the clutch
Lousy relief pitching
Great defensive plays by the opposition
Failure to capitalize on opponents' errors
Corey Patterson striking out and failing to produce in the clutch
Derrek Lee striking out and deepening my concern over his ability to play well
Too many AAA players in the starting lineup (Ordonez, Patterson)
Missing injured starters (ironic, but true!)
Poor management (Walker bunting with the runner already in scoring position in the 9th, after he had smoked the ball every time up??? Borowski continuing to come up in critical situations???)
A raucous, sellout crowd
Nice weather
I'm now going to rank the Cubs that played today by my level of hatred for them (more asterisks = more hatred)
Corey Patterson *****
Rey Ordonez *****
Joe Borowski ***
Derrek Lee **
Todd Hollandsworth ** (I want Sammy back, and I'm not ashamed to admit it)
Mike Remlinger **
Kent Mercker **
Aramis Ramirez *
Todd Walker * (in fairness, he could have been 5-5 today)
All other Cubs = no hatred, with Prior, LaTroy, and especially Alou actually getting love (it can't be reverse hatred because that's indifference)
Alou was an absolute stallion today, scoring the Cubs' only run and making a great throw to keep the game scoreless, along with a nifty catch in the 9th that saved extra bases, but was probably overrated because he's so damn slow he made it look more dramatic than it was, which FYI he does that a lot. But I still love him, and run-on sentences. He's playing like 2001 Moises Alou.
Okay, I'm spent. I return to the Confines on Sunday for the wrap of the 3-game Pirates set. I'll probably be drunk by then.
Of course, he did not figure in the decision.
Wins and losses are a lousy way to determine a starting pitcher's worth, but today worked effectively to designate blame for the game's unhappy outcome. Joe Borowski came in to protect a one-run lead and got smoked, surrendering laser beams to almost every hitter he faced and generally projecting an air of total incompetence. When the dust settled, he took his 4th loss of the year, blowing his second straight save and supplying further ammunition to his growing army of detractors.
I feel like I've been behind JoBo pretty much this entire year. I thought he would be able to reduce his walks to a manageable level, and that he would eventually stop giving up line drives on almost pitch his opposing batters swung at. Now I don't think that's going to happen.
The Cubs right now have an awfully high number of players they could release outright without thinking twice about it, especially for a contending team. Borowski has been so awful this year that I feel like his name could be added to the list, along with Rey Ordonez, Mike Wuertz, and Andy Pratt.
I'm just kind of venting.
This game was really a microcosm of the Cubs entire season, including--but not limited to--variations on the following themes:
Great starting pitching
Inconsistent hitting, with poor performance in the clutch
Lousy relief pitching
Great defensive plays by the opposition
Failure to capitalize on opponents' errors
Corey Patterson striking out and failing to produce in the clutch
Derrek Lee striking out and deepening my concern over his ability to play well
Too many AAA players in the starting lineup (Ordonez, Patterson)
Missing injured starters (ironic, but true!)
Poor management (Walker bunting with the runner already in scoring position in the 9th, after he had smoked the ball every time up??? Borowski continuing to come up in critical situations???)
A raucous, sellout crowd
Nice weather
I'm now going to rank the Cubs that played today by my level of hatred for them (more asterisks = more hatred)
Corey Patterson *****
Rey Ordonez *****
Joe Borowski ***
Derrek Lee **
Todd Hollandsworth ** (I want Sammy back, and I'm not ashamed to admit it)
Mike Remlinger **
Kent Mercker **
Aramis Ramirez *
Todd Walker * (in fairness, he could have been 5-5 today)
All other Cubs = no hatred, with Prior, LaTroy, and especially Alou actually getting love (it can't be reverse hatred because that's indifference)
Alou was an absolute stallion today, scoring the Cubs' only run and making a great throw to keep the game scoreless, along with a nifty catch in the 9th that saved extra bases, but was probably overrated because he's so damn slow he made it look more dramatic than it was, which FYI he does that a lot. But I still love him, and run-on sentences. He's playing like 2001 Moises Alou.
Okay, I'm spent. I return to the Confines on Sunday for the wrap of the 3-game Pirates set. I'll probably be drunk by then.
