SB Nation User Blog: CalDeano

Here come the Gregg Apologists...

CalDeano — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 05:21:47 -0000

I'm ready to be shown, statistically, how Gregg is "not really having that bad of a year", how he actually "compares well stat-wise to other closers", and how "we have much worse problems than Gregg".

i said it early on this season - this guy is not a closer, or not an effective one. He doesn't intimidate. His stuff isn't good enough to get big outs. His control is fragile at best, and he simply doesn't have a strikeout pitch to get that 0-2 or 1-2 strikeout.

As a result he ends up throwing lots of pitches, having 0-2 and 1-2 pitches fouled off again and again, letting the hitters see more pitches and get more comfortable, drive the count up and jump on him.

And blown saves, in big games, take their toll on the team in many ways.

I will agree, we do have bigger problems. But that doesn't mean we shouldn't deal with this one. Unfortunately, my hope all along was that Marmol would end up closer, but that doesn't appear to be an option. And I had been wondering if Dempster could move back, given our strong starting pitching (until the injury bug hit).

So I don't know what the solution is, but I do know, leaving Gregg in there is not it. And if the argument is, it's too late, he's our guy the rest of the season for better or worse - well we saw tonight, it will be for the worse.

Is that it?!?

CalDeano — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 19:59:57 -0000

I'm know I'm certain to draw the ire of many of you with the timing of this post, but as of now it's 4:03 and it seems the deal with the Pirates is the only deal the Cubs will make. To which I say...

Is that It!??

Look at all of the other division leaders - Cards, Dodgers, Phillies, and the moves they made. Ours looks pathetic in comparison.

I understand we have a lot of guys under-performing, but to think most of them will magically turn it around, and that others will not take their place on the slump-list, is just ridiculous.

And I'm not buying the "our hands are tied" by the ownership situation either. 101 years should mean the team should do whatever it takes to win, and anyone who needs convinced of that, should not be running the team or taking over the team in the near future.

I think it's more incompetence and lack of vision by management. And clearly they got out-executed by the other teams' management.

Shame on you.

Rain Delay DeRosa and Wood interviews

CalDeano — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 18:14:17 -0000

make it even more obivous how bad it is to let these guys go.

Winning is about more than numbers. Listen to DeRosa - its about liking the other guys, rooting for your teammates, caring who is up and who "steps up" day in and day out. 162 games is a marathon, and 25 guys spending 7 months together become a familiy.

These are clearly two guys who love this team, love this town, and "get" what it means to be a Cub. And oh, by the way, the performed well, better than the guys in their place.

Great job, Jim.

via cache.daylife.com

"We beat up on terrible pitching, but make mediocre pitchers look like Cy Young candidates"

CalDeano — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 04:35:43 -0000

I said it in this post. Many of you questioned it and ridiculed me, saying we are supposed to do worse against better pitching.

Well in today's recap, Al said

"The Cubs made Anthony Swarzak look like Greg Maddux today"

Sound familiar? This is now the MO for this team. If we face a pitcher who is simply no good, or a decent one struggling, we pound him. Anyone else - a half decent pitcher, a barely decent pitcher, a fully decent pitcher - we struggle.

I have a son playing little league, and this is a familiar pattern. There are kids who crush the ball in BP, but simply can't hit live pitching, when the velocity is up a bit and the pitcher is actually trying to get them out. Usually the cause is a hole in the swing or other swing mechanics issues. But it's obvious who those kids are. And most of the Cubs - including but not limited to Mr. "helicopter swing" - are those kids.

I think Perry needs to go and get a fresh approach in here. I'm not saying it's all his fault, but rather that a fresh set of eyes and advice could help. Or maybe Kosuke and the others just need to fix their swings. Whatever it is, something needs to done to try to fix it, or this season will be gone.

Accountability

CalDeano — Fri, 01 May 2009 19:38:22 -0000

We can argue over whether the moves made this offseason were the right ones, and talk about the injuries, the matchups, whatever.

But how this team, with this payroll, after the year they had last year, can look this bad is incomprehensible. I'm at a loss, completely.

It's basically the same question I was asking myself in the NLDS - how a team that looked so good in the regular season, could look so bad in the playoffs.

We beat up on terrible pitching, but make mediocre pitchers look like Cy Young candidates. And when we face actual Cy Young candidates, we might as well not show up. And guess what kind of pitching you see exclusively in the playoffs?

We have no leader. We have no fire. We have no emotion. We have, maybe, one clutch hitting. We have no fun. So far, we have no accountability.

At some point, blame has to start falling, and not on the players we *dont* have, but the players we do.

Just Pathetic

CalDeano — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 03:17:31 -0000

I got flamed pretty badly last night. And I'll be the first to say that my tone was affected by my frustration.

And while I won't use the "g" word again, I will stick to my general assertion. This team doesn't have what it takes to win a championship.

You can call it "finding ways to to lose", "head not in the game", whatever you want. But going 3 for 30-something with RISP...your game 1 starting pitcher walking 7 in 4.2 innings...or your 3 time gold-glove first baseman booting a ball and circling around looking for the ball..there is no silver lining here.

For all of you who said "they just had a bad game" last night, and tonight after the 2nd inning were probably saying "they just had a bad inning", I think the implication (or hope at least) , was they would bounce back strong as they have done all year. Maybe even get mad. Maybe show some fire. But they didn't. They look terrible and have managed only 2 hits.

Something has to be done, and I'm not sure what. IMO we need to swap out some of the DNA and try some new blood. You can see what Manny and Blake have brought to the Dodgers - well we need some of that next year. I don't know where you get it, and who you give up. But I hope they find a way.

Pathetic and Gutless

CalDeano — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 04:01:46 -0000

Dempster was pathetic. Sitting watching Lester mow down the Halos, Dempster is no Lester. And he can forget about ever being in Beckett's league.

Soriano was pathetic. Show up or sit down.

DPLee as usual. Where is the guy that beat us and won the WS in 2003?

The crowd - beyond pathetic. No f#$%ing excuse. Not the ticket prices, not nervousness. I was embarrassed to be a Cubs fan during that game.

I'm a lifelong (37 year) die-hard fan. And I've maintained to all of the encouraging comments people have made during the year, that this team lacks the killer instinct. They are not a championship team. They can't relax, they don't have fun even winning, not like the Rays, Red Sox, and Angels.You can call it tempering my expectations, planning for the worst so as not to be let down.

But they proved me right tonight.

Will they step up, or fade into the same first-round loss obivion as last years team?

"No guts, no glory."