This required zero work on my part...all stats brought to you from baseball-reference.com

Batting Average Theriot .307  
On-base % Theriot .387 
Slugging % Soriano .532
OPS Ramirez .898 
Games Lee 155 
At Bats Lee 623 
Plate Appearances (approx.) Lee 698 
Runs DeRosa 103 
Hits Lee 181 
Total Bases Lee 288 
Doubles Ramirez 44
Triples Theriot 4 
Home Runs Soriano 29 
RBI Ramirez 111
Bases on Balls Fukudome 81 
Strikeouts Soto 121 
Stolen Bases Theriot 22 
Singles Theriot 154 
Adjusted OPS+ Ramirez 130 
Runs Created Ramirez 111 
Adjusted Batting Runs Ramirez 26 
Batting Wins Ramirez 2.5  
Extra-Base Hits Ramirez 72 
Times on Base Theriot 254  
 Offensive Win% Ramirez .667 
Hit By Pitch Johnson 12 
Sac. Hits Dempster 19  
Sac. Flies DeRosa 8 
Intentional Walks Soriano 11  
Grounded into Double Plays Lee 27 
Caught Stealing Theriot 13  
Power/Speed Number Soriano 23.0 
At Bats per Strikeout Theriot 10.0
At Bats per Home Run Soriano 15.6
Outs Lee 475

ERA Dempster 2.96 
Wins Dempster and Lilly 17 
Won-Loss % Dempster .739
BB + H per IP (WHIP) Dempster 1.210 
Hits Allowed/9IP Dempster 7.58
Bases on Balls/9IP Lilly 2.81 
Strikeouts/9IP Dempster 8.14 
Games Marmol 82
Saves Wood 34 
Innings Dempster 206.7 
Strikeouts Dempster 187
Games Started Lilly 34 
Comp. Games Dempster and Zambrano 1  
Shutouts Zambrano 1 
Home Runs Allow. Lilly 32 
Bases On Balls Allow. Dempster 76 
Hits Allowed Lilly 187
 SO to Walk Lilly 2.88 
Losses Lilly and Marquis 9  
Earned Runs Allow. Lilly 93 
Wild Pitches Marquis 8 
Hit Batsmen Marquis 8
Batters Faced Lilly 861 
Games Finished Wood 56 
Adjusted ERA+ Dempster 152

Ok, so I dont understand a few things here and if anyone can answer my questions that would be great. What is the difference between something that is adjusted and its regular stat (adjusted batting runs? adjusted OPS? adjusted ERA?)? What exactly is the offensive win% for a hitter account for, how is the power/speed number calculated, and is runs created the same thing as runs scored.

Things I found interesting. At the beginning of the season people would have never predicted Theriot to lead in BA, OBP, Singles, Triples, Stolen Bases, Caught Stealing, Times on Base, and at bats per strikeout (just sayin'). It is also interesting that in the pitching categories Zambrano is scarce with an exception of Comp. Games and shutouts. Without that no-hitter, Zambrano would be absent from our team leaders. And for some reason, my favorite stat is Dempster leading the team in sacrafice hits... he really knows how to win a ballgame and in my opinion our main reason for being as good as we are this year. Soriano leading the team in HRs after his injuries deserves an honorable mention as well.. GO CUBS!! LETS WIN THIS NLDS!

Who is this guy?  It says he is a veteran, but I have never heard of him.  Espn broke the story just a little bit ago.

This had officially, if it weren't already true, made the NFC North the saddest QB division in all of the NFL.  Aaron Rogers is pretty damn good, but he has only started 2 games and he is FAR better then "Ortossman", "Freroackson" and who is Detroits starter?  Kitna?  Who cares, they shouldn't exist anyways.  Thoughts?

Frerotte has completed 54.2 percent of his passes during his career for 19,134 yards and a 74.3 quarterback rating. He's 37-44-1 as a starter.

ESPN Story

Big Carlos Alberto Zambrano wins player of the week after his more then stellar performance in Milwaukee against Houston last night. This comes after a 12 days hiatus from the pitching rubber due to tendinitis in his throwing arm. In case you didn't know the stat line from the game, it is easy enough to remember. He put together a complete game no hit shut out with 1 walk and 10 stikeouts, passing his apparent 90 pitch pitch count. This was enough to solidify Big Z's name in the history books as well as on the MLB Player of the Week award for September 8-September 14.

The only other Cub to earn the player of the week award this year was Alfonso Soriano for the week of May12-May18. During this phenominal week, Soriano put together 16 hits with 6 multi hit games, raising his batting average from a dismal .223 to .296. He cleared the fences 7 times helping him gather 14 RBI's. 3 of those HR's were leading off the game. Altogether in May, Soriano hit .345 with 10 HR, 28 RBI's, an OBP of .386, OPS of 1.058 and SLG of .672. 

The only player of the month award the Cubs have is for Rookie of the Month of April from no other then Geovanny Soto. Soto hit .341 with 5 HR, 8 doubles and 20 RBI's while posting a OPS of 1.059 during that span. Maybe Z can put together another insane start or 2 and earn a player of the month award as well!  Thanks to conversation in the game thread it was pointed out that Geovanny Soto was also the rookie of the month for August.  During that span he hit 355 (27-for-76) with three homers, 21 RBI, five doubles and a triple, including 7 multi-hit games.  The game that Soto performed best in during the month of August was on the 26th where he knocked in 7 runs.  (Thanks, sorry I overlooked that one!)

Genius baseball stat of the day courtesy of MLB.com (note sarcasm): Zambrano was the first player to have their last name start with "Z" to throw a no-hitter!

If there are any other notable awards from this year, please discuss for the purpose of happy memories!

reference: mlb.com and baseball-reference.com

As I was looking over ESPNs most recent power rankings posted on August 15, I thought it would be interesting to see the week by week comments and rankings from the start of the year:  An interesting view on the progress of this years Cubbies!

 Week 2: April 4: Ranking: (6) Record: (1-2) Larry Rothschild's new responsibility: make sure potassium-deficient Big Z eats a banana, some nuts or some dried fruit before taking the mound.
 Week 3: April 11: Ranking: (2) Record: (6-3) The biggest surprise about Kosuke Fukudome? His bat. He has a team-best 13 hits and six RBIs in his first nine games.
 Week 4: April 18: Ranking: (2) Record: (9-6) At least Ted Lilly made it through six innings in his latest start. Lilly, who won 15 games in '07, is 0-3 with a 9.16 ERA.
 Week 5 April 25: Ranking (2) Record: (15-7)  Geovany Soto leads all major league catchers in batting (.352), on-base percentage (.447) and slugging (.606).
 Week 6: May 2:  Ranking: (3) Record (17-11) Imagine if Ronny Cedeno (.378/.462/.578) were playing this well in an Orioles uniform. Good thing the Brian Roberts deal was never consummated.
 Week7: May 9:  Ranking: (9) Record (19-15) Carlos Marmol leads all major league relievers in strikeouts, with 28 in 21 innings.
 Week 8: May 16: Ranking: (2) Record: (25-16) Ted Lilly is flowering in May: The left-hander is 3-0 with a 3.60 ERA and has walked just four while striking out 25.
 Week 9: *May 23*: Ranking: (1) Record: (28-19) Can the Cubs' offense keep it up? They lead the NL in OPS (.814) and the majors in runs scored (267).
 Week 10: *May 30*: Ranking: (1) Record: (33-21) Carlos Zambrano has won six straight decisions and collected 12 hits in 29 at-bats since April 16.
 Week 11: *June 6*:  Ranking: (1) Record: (39-22) Jim Edmonds is warming up. The 37-year-old center fielder has nine hits (six for extra bases) and seven RBIs in his past five games.
 Week 12: *June 13*:  Ranking: (1) Record: (43-24) No wonder the Cubs have won 29 of 37 at home. They're averaging 6.5 runs per game at Wrigley Field.
 Week 13: June 20:  Ranking: (3) Record: (45-28) The injuries are starting to pile up. First Alfonso Soriano, now Carlos Zambrano. Could the injuries be catching up to them?
 Week 14: June 27:  Ranking: (4) Record: (49-30) Ryan Theriot leads all NL shortstops in batting (.317) and on-base percentage (.391).
 Week 15: July 4:  Ranking: (8) Record: (51-35) Welcome back, Big Z: Since Carlos Zambrano's last outing June 18, the Cubs have gone 6-8.
 Week 16: July 11:  Ranking: (3) Record: (55-37) Newly acquired right-hander Rich Harden: a second ace or the second coming of Mark Prior?
 Week 17: *July 18*  Ranking: (1) Record: (57-39) Of Derrek Lee's 15 home runs, 11 have been solo and 13 have come at Wrigley.  
Week 18: July 24:  Ranking: (3) Record (60-42) Welcome to the bullpen, kid. Jeff Samardzija averaged a little more than a strikeout an inning at Triple-A.
Week 19: August 1:  Ranking (2) Record: (65-44) Numbers for the Cubs' starters in the four-game sweep of Milwaukee: 1.61 ERA, 31 K's, 5 walks, 23 hits in 28 innings.
Week 20: *August 8*:  Ranking: (1) Record: (69-46) Alfonso Soriano is batting .348 (23-for-66) with six homers, 14 runs and 15 RBIs since returning to the lineup on July 23.
 Week 21: *August 15*:  Ranking: (1) Record: (74-47) Rich Harden is 2-1 with a 1.80 ERA in his first six starts with the Cubs. He has 49 strikeouts in 35 innings pitched.
 Since these rankings came out on August 15, the Cubs have posted a 2-1 record, leaving us at (76-48)

Our win streak should continue....

• This is going to be 25 year old RH pitcher, Jeff Karstens, National League Debut. 
  
• Karsten's career record is 3-5 in 15 games while playing for the 2006 and 2007 NYY. In 9 games as a starter: 5.93 ERA.  In 6 games as a relief pitcher: 4.72 ERA.
  
• Karstens only has 57.3 innings of work put into the big leagues with an E.R.A. of 5.65 over his two years of work.  In 2007 he posted an 11.05 E.R.A. in 7 games and 14.7 innings pitched. 
  
• In 2000, Karstens was drafted by the Montreal Expos in the 45th round but didn't sign a contract until he was drafted in 2003 by the NYY in the 29th round. 
  
• If he is still on the NYY contract, he is only making a minimal $389,495 (although it is more then most of us could imagine making in a year).
  
•  At first glance over the batters he has faced, I did not notice any current Cubs, so we get our first look at him today.
• Karstens v. LHB: .273(avg)/.326(obp)
• Karstens v. RHB: .304(avg)/.361(obp)
• Karstens has been about the same at home as he has been away: 5.54/5.74
• Hitters have been most effective (.667/.500) against Karstens when he falls behind the batter to a 2-0 count.

The Cubs enjoy playing the Pirates, and it is pretty clear in their .750 winning percentage (9-3) against them, 5-1 at Wrigley, and this is WITH Jason Bay.  Now that he is gone this should be enough for Jason Marquis to post a "CUBS WIN" on the historical Wrigley Field "Marquis".  Get it?!?  LETS GO CUBBIES!!!!!

And the 4th pitcher we face against the Brewers is the not so intimidating Dave Bush.  I like having the numbers in front of me, so I hope you have benefited from my boredom as well.  I am going to continue doing this until we lose, and then I will do it only when it is a big series, i.e. against the Cardinals or the Brewers.  The numbers are definitely in the Cubs favor today! 

• David Bush: 29 year old 6'2, 205 lb, RH made his debut in July of 2004 for the Toronto Blue Jays and joined the Brewers in 2006
• In Bush's career Lefties have batted .260 and Righties .269
  
• At home Bush is better with a 2.85 E.R.A. compared to his away E.R.A. of 6.95 (This year) in his career: 3.74/5.42
  
• Unfortunately, Bush is better during day games as well with a 2.54 E.R.A compared to 5.18 away.
• Bush is currently 5-8
• The last time the Cubs faced him: April 03: We chased him out in the 5th after knocking him for 6 ER and drawing 5 walks to his 4 SO.

   1. Soriano: 22 PA,.333 Avg.
   2. Theriot:  10 PA,.300 Avg.
   3. Lee: 19 PA, .211 Avg.
   4. Ramirez: 24 PA, .333 Avg., 2 HRs, 8 RBI's (Ramirez should have a great game!)
   5. Fukudome: 3 PA, 1 official AB, 1.000 avg. with a double.
   6. Derosa:  12 PA, .364 Avg., 1 HR, 4 RBI's
   7. Soto: 3 PA, only 1 official AB, .000 Avg.
   8. Edmonds: 9 PA, .375 Avg, 5 RBI's
  10. Johnson: No at bats
  11. Cedeno: 15 PA, .214 Avg., 1 HR
  12. Fontenot: 4 PA, .250 Avg
  13. Blanco: 9 PA, .000 Avg.
  14. Ward: No at bats

HEY CHICAGO WHADDYA SAY?!  THE CUBS WILL SWEEP THE BREWERS TODAY! GO CUBS GO!

Manny Parra is 25 years old and made his debut as a major leaguer in July of 2007 on the Brewers.  He was drafted in 2001 in the 26th round!  There is not much to be said about this guy, although he posted a perfect game in June of 2007 for the minor league affiliate Nashville Sounds.  This is probably what pushed him into the major leagues.  Below is a tidbit on Parra, like I said, not much to be said as you will see in the numbers below against the members of the Cubs.  Derosa is the only player to record a hit on him.  Well I believe it is time to welcome him to the 2008 Chicago Cubs and make those numbers jump off the page!!!  GO CUBS GO!

• Manny Parra was drafted in 2001, but it seems he has only been in the big leagues since last year, also on Milwaukee.
  
•  In 2007, Parra pitched in 9 games (0-1) for a total of 26.3 innings and posting a 3.76 E.R.A. 
  
• In 2008, so far Parra has posted a 9-3 record in 21 games and 113.7 innings pitched with a 3.72 E.R.A.  Parra has pitched in 21 games as a starter and 8 games as a reliever.  

   1. Soriano: 2 PA, 0-2 with 2 strikeouts (hopefully that changes tonight)
   2. Theriot:  2 PA, 0-2
   3. Lee: 2 PA, 0-2
   4. Ramirez: 2 PA, 0-0 2 walks
   5. Fukudome: No at bats
   6. Derosa: 2 PA, 1-2 with 2 RBI's
   7. Soto: No at bats
   8. Edmonds: 1 PA, 0-1
   9. Dempster: No at bats
  10. Johnson: No at bats
  11. Cedeno: No at bats
  12. Fontenot: No at bats
  13. Blanco: No at bats
  14. Ward: No at bats

• Sheets has pitched against the Cubs 24 times with a 10-7 record. 
• He has pitched 155.2 innings against us, which is the third most only to the Astros where he has pitched 172 innings and STL where he has pitched 156.1 innings. 
  
• Sheets E.R.A. vs. the Cubs is 3.76 and he has let up 21 HR to the Cubbie franchise. 
  
• According to his past, Sheets is most vulnerable during the 4th inning, allowing batters to hit .284, which is the most compared to any other inning. 
  
• He has a 3.51 ERA at home compared to a 3.98 ERA away in his career. 
• Now everybody seems to always talk about lefty v. righty and its importance, but in Sheets career there isn't much of a contrast.  Against RH batters he is letting up a .254 BA compared to LH batters hitting .258!

Just thought I would play with some numbers against Sheets in anticipation of this big game.  The following is a list of how our team has fared against the 6'1 195lb right hander.

1. Soriano: 12 Plate Appearances, .273 BA, 0 HR or RBIs
2. Theriot:  13 Plate Appearances, .154 BA
3. Lee: 51 Plate Appearances, .327 BA 6 HRs, 12 RBIs
4. Ramirez: 61 Plate Appearances, .192 BA, 1 HR, 8 RBIs
5. Fukudome: 6 Plate Appearances, .400 BA,
6. Derosa: 22 Plate Appearances, .286 BA
7. Soto: 5 Plate Appearances, .333 BA
8. Edmonds: 59 Plate Appearances, .204 BA, 3 HR, 6 RBIs
9. Zambrano: 14 Plate Appearances (the most AB against any pitcher) .357 BA, 5 hits, 2 RBIs
10. Johnson: 7 Plate Appearances, .200 BA, 1 hit, 1 RBI
11. Cedeno: has never faced sheets
12. Fontenot: 4 Plate Appearances, .250 BA
13. Blanco: 8 Plate Appearances, .000 BA (Ouch)
14. Ward: 36 Plate Appearances (the most against any pitcher), .206 BA, 1 HR 4 RBIs

LETS GET EM CUBBIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  BEAT THE "SHEETS" OUTTA THE BREWCREW!

Continuing on with my merging of music and the Cubs, my two favorite things in life, I decided to break it down with a verse from Dave Matthews Bands True Reflections - written by Boyd Tinsley from DMB and recorded on his solo album - but the song is more popular from the live DMB album - "Listeners Supported".

You think life is like a movie/Where it all works out in the end - Well, for the most part, the Cubs only movieesque theme would be Sosa's HR battle with that guy Mark something from St. Louis, or a documentary on the 100 year drought of one of the oldest teams in sports.  Or maybe even something on Tinkers to Evers to Chance (that is how it goes right) - BUT NOW the Cubs are in the process of testing out the waters for a new flick - and it could be 1 of 2 - a depressing film called "Bust" that would portray every Cubs fans heart breaking in half and Cubdom burning to the ground after such an unreal start, but a Metsesque fallout. The film would include references to a similar season in I believe 1969.  Or it can all work out in the end as seen in an upcoming fantasy film called "CUBS WIN CUBS WIN", but Ill leave that one for our imaginations so I don't add an extra curse to this franchise and be personally responsible for jinxing this team. 

I think life is like a dessert/Where does it go where does it begin - Everyday is a new day, we don't know what to expect.  We were sitting there drying up in the dessert of Arizona, almost dehydrated to the point of passing out (of first place), but we came across a watering hole and have re hydrated ourselves once again with Soriano's return, clearly revitalizing the team.  Where does this season go from here?  Are we beginning another amazing half of baseball?  Goodbye Arizona, hello Friendly Confines. 

When you look into a mirror/Do you like what's looking at you - Was this game the game that shows the Cubs true identity, our "true reflection" for 2008, rather than our true reflection of the last millennium?  I don't think Lou Piniella looked in the mirror with his Cubs uniform on for the first time and liked what he saw, in terms of who the Cubs WERE, but rather gave this team a makeover with his partner Jim Hendry - a new identity - new hope - new excitement - NEW SEASON.  So Cubdom - when we look at our fan base and our team, do you like what your looking at?

Now that you've seen your true reflections/What on earth are you gonna do - Well the Cubs played like their true selves again.  Soriano has returned, most everyone is healthy (except Wood - go figure, but hell be fine) and we didn't get swept, which is an accomplishment in itself considering the poor quality of play the Cubs have partaken in since the All-Star Break.  Reed Johnson with a grand slam!  He comes in and does his job. Theriot has found out his job... hit singles.  Ramirez knows his true reflection - clutch hitting in the late innings. DLEE will hopefully see his old reflection and come back playing consistent baseball again, Fukudome's job is to build up the pitch counts and provide some timely hitting. Soriano is the "whatever we need you better do" guy, considering the amount of money he is making. Big Z has played his role as the Ace pretty much perfectly, Harden provides a 1-2 punch with Big Z as they both work well as slump stoppers.  Fontenot is baby ruth, or the wonder hamster as people like to call him, "Hello Soto" is  the surprise guy that most every team under looks as he drives the ball into the gaps consistently while maintaining a peace amongst the pitching core of our beloved Cubbies.  Soto is catching for the only team with 3 pitchers with double digit wins - that says a lot for a rookie.  Dempster is seeing what may be his true reflection as a dominant home starting pitcher and our bullpen, specifically Marmol, is showing glimpses of his flat out dominant sliders, I just hope those ears continue to distract the hitters.  Overall, yesterday showed what I believe is the Cubs true reflection, much like the first half of the season with drawing all those walks and scoring all those runs... so what on Earth are they gonna do with all this talent - They hopefully will just hold on to that 1st place spot because I cant handle a heart attack at the age of 22.

I have been listening to a lot of Pink Floyd lately and have, as always, followed our Cubbies almost pitch by pitch all year, so I thought it would be fun to combine the two in - Cubdom as defined by a verse from "Breathe" off Dark Side Of The Moon.

Breathe, breathe in the air - Let us all take a deep breathe today, because our beloved Cubbies showed us that they are in it to win it, AGAIN.  They have proven more often then not this year that they can overcome adversity.  The Soriano injury, the Zambrano injury, the musical chairs of starting and relief pitching, coming back and winning after a 9-1 deficit, and now losing a 7 run lead and still winning after their hearts were torn right out.  It was also a huge breath of fresh air seeing Harden dominate through 6.  Breathe in this winning tradition we are trying to convey and give our hearts a little rest during the all-star break as well.
Don't be afraid to care - On BCB we tend to argue with quick witted comments, and stick to our guys no matter what happens to them, thus causing much debate.  Some will say that we don't need all of this negativity while our team is on top of the world, others will say it is because we care so much and have every right to be critical.  For example, after todays heart wrenching victory, Lou, Marmol and Theriot have become the targets of BCBashing.  Whether this is deserved is up to each individuals interpretation of fandom, cubdom, and how they interact with each other.  There is no problem with that.
Leave but don't leave me - We can leave performances behind us, like the game 3 smashing of Lilly and our bullpen against Cincinnati, as well as the self-imploding 9th inning of our entire team from coach to bench player today, and say that the 2008 Chicago Cubs are a team much better then what they put in front of us in these particular games amongst many others, but the fact of the matter is that these games shape good ball clubs.  How the Cubs respond to poor performances will show how much they are willing to leave on the table.  Leave em in the back of our minds, but don't let it take away from the team and how they respond.
Look around and chose your own ground - I love it.  The Theriot hatters and lovers, the Soriano bashers and supporters, the Jason Marquis disgust and sympathy, the Carlos Marmol escapades, trade rumors etc etc...  BCB is full of knowledgeable baseball fanatics willing to fight until their point is proven or diminished.  Thanks to a great ball-club, although we all chose our own ground, we have the common thread of cheering on a contender, the best team in baseball in the first half of the 2008 season.
For long you live and high you fly/And smiles you'll give and tears you'll cry/And all you touch and all you see/Is all your life will ever be - 100 years, my grandma is 90 and STILL to this day watches or listens to every single game.  My grandpa died at the age of 92 a few months ago and never had the chance to celebrate in the greatest city in the world with the greatest fans in the world, but sure loved his Cubbies.  From walk-off home runs, home run records, winning streaks and losing streaks, goats, black cats, ivy walls, old style, flying the W flag and everything else that has made us cheer or cry over the past 100 years, the Cubs have touched generations and generations of people shaping the Cubdom of our lives right now.  WE ARE THE BEST CUBS BALL CLUB WE HAVE EVER SEEN IN THE FIRST HALF THIS YEAR, Let us embrace this for the 4 days we have off, because the 2nd half is going to make our hearts fight, our eyes will be glued to the television sets and turned away during tight situations and our baseball integrity will be put to the test.  This has been one hell of a ride so far, us fans deserve a break as well.

SO, HEY CHICAGO WHAT DO YOU SAY?

About 10 minutes ago, I posted an immediate reaction that I had to something listed on the White Sox blogging site, and rightfully so it was deleted by Al.  I had a knee jerk reaction that turned me into a hypocrite, and for that I apologize.

BCB is about the Cubs, both love and hate.  This website teaches me more and more everyday about Cubs nation, and provides intellectual arguments about our beloved Cubbies.  I want to put this out there: Don't do what I did a minute ago and bash a team and their fans based off of what they are doing or saying about us.  We are CUBS FANS first, not SOX BASHERS or CARDINAL BASHERS.  That comes after being a strong, loyal, blue hearted fan of our beloved Chicago Cubs.  So thank you Al, for keeping that integrity and respect on the BCB website.  We have enough debate with our Theriot, Soriano and trade rumors posts that keep us busy everyday we come to BCB.

On a separate note, can you imagine C.C. Sabathia and Big Z back to back in our rotation?  Imagine having to face those two guys in a playoff series, followed by Dempster.  Who would go to the bullpen?  I realize this is all speculation, but IF, and only IF, this magical 1 2 punch were to occur, what exactly would our bullpen look like IF and WHEN we make the playoffs.  Demote Marquis and Lilly to the bullpen and push out who?  WOW, this is a magical possibility that would push the Cubs a little closer to ending that drought.  If not C.C., what other pitchers should we consider signing to put a good grasp on the NL.

This article  posted on Cubs.com, should not only serve it's purpose of giving our shortstop, Ryan Theriot, the respect he deserves, it should go to show all the Theriot bashing Cubs "fans" that they should have given him a chance while his performance kept up with the rest of the league.  In a previous post titled All-Star Ryan Theriot on April 24th, early on in the season, I made the argument that he could be on the all-star team if it were played right then and there.  Most people disagreed and called me out on everything possible, saying he is over performing and he will never get the votes to be on the NL all-star team at the most stacked position in the league... well guess what? he is hanging tight with the big boys.  I have never seen so many people that are fans of the best team in baseball, bash a player with an over .300 batting average like they have with Ryan Theriot.  Still feeling the same everyone?  It should be a lesson to the criticizing baseball fans that sometimes it takes a couple years to come in to your own, and Theriot is a perfect example.  His fielding needs slight improvement, and if he was our leadoff hitter he would be seeing more pitches and contributing more steals.  Theriot is the man, I will trust Lou Piniella with his decision to play him consistently, like he has, and would like to see him up to bat with men in scoring position.  He knows how to make contact and he gets on base consistently, setting up for the big boys to drive him in. 

What do you think?  Has he changed everybody's mind?

Go Cubs, and vote Theriot!  It would at least be nice to see him come close in the voting behind Steroid Tejada and Hanley Ramirez.  Those are big names to be included with.

I've noticed something over the years of living in the southside neighborhood, Beverly.  It seems as if the Cubs tend to get as much attention as the White Sox.  Yes, this attention is 99% negative.  In one occurrence, the bar on Western Ave., McNally's offered nickel beers if the Cubs swept the White Sox in a regular season series.  Well it happened, and McNally's lost lots of money (HA!).  In High School, most of the "White Sox fans" seemed to know more about a Cubs loss than a White Sox win, which still seems to be true.

Well southside Cubs fans, its time we step it up and open a bar of our own somewhere on Western Ave., or even 111th.  If there are any bar owners or potential bar owners out on the Southside, it seems like it would be a GREAT business move.  Every Cubs fan would flock to your bar with walls of fake ivy, a Cubs marquee at the entrance, and a history of the Chicago Cubs mural painted behind the bar (just a few ideas).  Beer sales on Old Style and Bud, and game day buffets and events. 

Yes, this may cause problems, knowing how Sox fans seem to compose themselves.  They will probably go in there and cause hell, but hey thats business!  While they flock to all the bars that support them, the sole Cubs bar would pull in all the Cubs fans in the area, providing a "Friendly Confines" for all of us.  Perhaps thats even a good name, "The Friendly Confines", or perhaps, "True Blue".  It would only be a matter of time before all the college kids add it to their Western bar crawl and their elders claim their seats at the bar.  Fly the "W" flag on days of a win and blast "Go Cubs Go" in spite of all the hate. 

Lets get some good ideas going for this, and hope maybe someday, just maybe, this fantasy can turn reality.

Recently during a Cubs broadcast, Bob Brenly made a comment about the Cubs playing more day games than anyone in Major League Baseball, which we already know.  He said it in passing, but suggested maybe the history of the Cubs playing day games adds to the history of the Cubs as a loosing franchise.

I tend to somewhat agree with this, in that the Cubs are the team with the 2nd most wins of all franchises just passing 10,000 behind the Giants, yet they just can't get it done in the post season.  Perhaps the long season of waking up early and playing ball wears a player down by October causing the Cubs to falter in the playoffs.  Is it the midday summer heat? Waking up early? Not having a full days worth of proper meals in the system? Long nights at the clubs in Wrigleyville?

The Cubs have 58 remaining day games, 40 of them at the Friendly Confines and 6 TBD. Personally, I believe that the day games only have a negative effect on the team if it is following a night game.  In this circumstance, the Cubs play 25 day games following night match ups.  Most notably, the Cubs travel from playing a night game in Tampa Bay on June 19 to playing a day game at Wrigley against the Chicago White Sox on the 20th, who only travel across town 24 hours after their previous  game.  Also, there is a night game in St. Louis on the 4th of July, and a day game on the 5th.  Yes, I realize this is an away series, but when a team such as the Cubs have a home schedule consisting of a majority of day games, the away games add to the wear and tear of the season.  Let's hope the boys don't spend a night out on town celebrating our nations birthday! We got to beat those Cardinals.

Eleven of the Cubs day games that follow night games are during a home series, 13 of those such games are away and 1 game is a home day game following an away night game.  So, it seems it would be more of a problem during away series because of the consistency of night games scheduled, rather than just having consecutive day or night games.  So is this really a problem to the Chicago Cubs, are their day games really hindering the outcome of the season?

I have been here in Bloomington, IN for four years going on five at Indiana University.  It has always intrigued me to see the many different baseball teams that are supported by its fans in Indiana, a state that is deprived of a baseball team outside of the Indianapolis Indians, a farm team for Cleveland.

In the world of bandwagon fans, when a team wins a world series, it seems their jerseys come flying out of the closets.  The east-coasters have made themselves known the last few years with Boston Red Sox jerseys and hats being sported every where you go while the Yankees jerseys seem to be disappearing.  I remember in 2005, a year I loath, when the White Sox won the world series.  I grew up on the southside, and now being four hours away, I didnt really want to put up with White Sox fans, but the bandwagon made its way down I65 and Highway 37 to Bloomington, Indiana.  Suddenly, pink sox hats and backpacks were all over campus, with one girl saying "My boyfriend is from Palos and I support his team!"  By doing what? Buying a PINK White Sox hat?  Unless its to support breast cancer research I do not support your reasoning.

Small town America has now been introduced to the Japanese phenom, bringing Fukudome hysteria into every lecture hall on campus.  I see Fukudome jerseys everywhere and find myself with a big smile every time I see happy Cubs fans supporting their new star.   WGN  helps, broadcasting Cubs games throughout the country, as well as the national spotlight that is placed on the Cubs organization, but it does seem to me that the bars are becoming more full at places like Yogi's and Sports in Bloomington on game day.  There are Cubs fans and Braves fans everywhere, it is a fact you hatters have to deal with.  TBS and WGN broadcast nationally so there are simply more Cubs and Braves fans in a non-baseball state because of exposure. 

With that in mind, I was wondering what other Hoosier natives think.  My viewpoint is from a southside Cubs fan now living in the Hoosier state.  Do you think that the Cubs have been consistently the most loved team in Indiana?  In the 90's when the Cubs struggled, was there still a huge Cub following that was recognizeable in the streets of Indiana?  The Reds and Cardinals have a good following out here as well. 

Fans from other non-baseball states, what seems to be the beloved team embraced by your states baseball savvy residents?

Somebody bring the tear gas and the rubber bulllets to Wrigley field, a riot has broken out between 2nd and 3rd.
Manning that 90 ft alongside Aramis Ramirez is Ryan Theriot, the most consistent shortstop in a Cubs uniform since, perhaps, Sean Dunston.  It has
become a threat to the National League placing Ryan Theriot, the 5-11 175 pound shortstop, on the field as the Cubs everyday shortstop while
the Cubs find themselves at the top of the division.
Yes, we are only 13.5%% through this season and Theriot is, for the first time, playing as an everyday player in his 4th
season as a major league ballplayer.  This does make me wonder if this is going to continue. Perhaps it does?  Would Ryan "The Riot" Theriot be sporting the
National League All-Star uniform along side leagues elite? If the All-Star game was tomorrow, I would say he would be a reserve, unless the
fans inked in Ryan's name enough to guarantee him a spot. Let's let his numbers do the talking.

Ryan Theriot is currently 4th amongst National League shortstops with a .321 average, behind Hanley Ramirez (.349),
Miguel Tejada (.360) and Rafael Furcal (.398) as of April 23rd.  He is 6th on the list in all of baseball.  Theriot is
3rd amongst major league shortstops with an on base percentage of .384, 4th in runs scored and 5th in fielding percentage.