cyberstoic's blog

Cubs should pursue Manny Ramirez trade

October 7, 2005 by cyberstoic

FoxSports.com's Ken Rosenthal reported that Manny Ramirez is looking to change agents in an effort to help engineer a trade. The Boston Globe's Gordon Edes follows up with more details.

I think this is a move the Cubs should strongly consider now that they are free of Sammy Sosa's salary. A Lee-Ramirez-Ramirez heart of the order would immediately become one of the best in baseball. Also, it would lessen the need for a Rafael Furcal acquisition at shortstop. With that kind of thunder, a good OBP-guy at the top would be the only requirement and Matt Murton playing in right field could fit that bill.

It's just one thing ...

July 13, 2005 by cyberstoic

... making my swing a little shorter. It got out of whack. It was pretty long. That's really the only thing.

-- Corey Patterson, explaining why he expects to be back with the big-league club sooner rather than later.

My take: Corey, you could have the shortest, quickest swing in baseball, but it won't help you hit balls in the dirt or over your head.

Firing line

June 29, 2005 by cyberstoic

Last night, Corey Patterson went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts batting leadoff for the Cubs. He was booed heavily. Then in the 8th inning he made a fantastic diving catch. He then alertly threw the ball to second for an inning-ending double play. He left the field to a standing ovation.

Patterson is clearly capable of moments of great brilliance on the baseball diamond, whether in the field, at the plate or on the bases. This is what makes his overall terribleness so frustrating to fans. I don't think Patterson's performance is a booing offense, but his slot in the batting order is.

Purple haze

June 8, 2005 by cyberstoic

I thought that Comcast's decision to delay the start of a Cubs broadcast last week so it could show commercials and promote its mediocre late-night sports news program was pretty bad. But last night's performance was even worse.

Bottom of the ninth inning, Cubs trail by two, and -- pfft! --the screen goes ... purple. The Cubs went on to lose uneventfully, and so far as I know the screen is still purple.

Comcast Sports Net has got to get its act together. The Cubs should insist on it.

Channeling my anger

June 1, 2005 by cyberstoic

The Cubs-Dodgers game started tonight at 9 p.m. I settled in with a sandwich and flipped the station to Comcast Sports Net, which is scheduled to carry the game tonight. But it isn't on. Instead, the end of the White Sox game is on.

A message scrolling across the bottom of the screen informs Cubs fans that, if they are kind enough to sit through the end of the Sox game (however long that takes), they'll eventually switch over to the Cubs game. What -- don't we get to watch the Sox post-game?!

Needless to say, I am very unhappy. Paying a princely sum for cable every month to watch the games was bad enough. Broadcasting the game on four different channels throughout the season was even worse. But this is the absolute worst. Not being able to find the game on TV would be torture enough. Knowing it should be there but that the Sox game is being broadcast instead is absolutely galling.

Hope springs infernal

April 4, 2005 by cyberstoic

Once a team makes the playoffs, anything can happen. The 2004 Red Sox are the archetypal example to prove this truism. So there's no point in attempting to divine who will win it all this year, and especially whether the Cubs will do it. But, obviously, they need to be in it to win it. I count eight teams in the National League (Atlanta, Florida, Chicago, Houston, St. Louis, Los Angeles, San Diego and San Francisco) with very good odds of making the playoffs, yet there are only four spots available.

In the Central Division, the Cardinals will come back to Earth somewhat, though even a 10-win dropoff from last year means a 95-win season. They lost Edgar Renteria, but gained Mark Mulder. They're the obvious favorite. The Astros lost Carlos Beltran and Jeff Kent, but essentially gained Andy Pettitte since he was out almost all of last year with an injury. I think they'll be worse than last year, but I think they'll contend.

Turn, turn, turn again

March 14, 2005 by cyberstoic

After all the off-season talk about the Cubs' offensive and bullpen woes, it's all pretty much moot if their starting rotation isn't healthy and effective the entire year. Yes, the Cubs would have made the playoffs last year with a more effective closer. But they would have competed for the division crown had Prior and Wood been healthy the entire year.

And now both are question marks again. Wood is out with a sore shoulder and Prior's out with a sore elbow. The Cubs are, once again, agonizingly trying to downplay the injuries, but until I see Wood and Prior out there on the mound pitching 30 starts in a row without trouble, I'll assume they're damaged goods.