Season Preview: Chicago Cubs

Well we've got 25 days left until Opening Day, which means it's season preview time. We'll be running it down team by team, with an added new wrinkle this time around: the beer of choice for fans of the team to enjoy whilst watching their team take the field! Nothing like that to help get you through a baseball season, especially if you're from Pittsburgh. Up next: the Chicago Cubs


Lineup: A lot depends on how well Geovany Soto responds to his disappointing 2009 season. He's reportedly showed up 40 pounds lighter to camp - must've found a new way to curtail the munchies! - and if he can return to his RoY form from 2008, then he, Derrek Lee, and a healthy Aramis Ramirez make for a talented middle of the lineup. Alfonso Soriano was terrible last year, and is far from a sure bet to be healthy this year, but since he'll be keeping Sam Fuld on the bench via the power of a bloated contract, he might as well try to hit like a big leaguer this year. Ryan Theriot is a 3 WAR shortstop, which is always a nice piece to have, but Mike Fontenot and Marlon Byrd ensure that he's the only above-average asset that the Cubs have up the middle. Kosuke Fukudome has good OBP skills, but isn't a great hitter, so a platoon with Xavier Nady makes sense. RF could very well be the most productive OF spot on the team for the first time since Sammy Sosa left. 


Rotation: Carlos Zambrano is the nominal ace, but has been trending downward in recent years, perhaps as a result of his enormous workload as a youngster (expect a full post on him shortly). Ted Lilly has been hampered with injuries in Spring Training, and may or may not be fully ready/healthy for the regular season, which would be a severe blow dealt to a group that needs to stay healthy. Ryan Dempster was a bit of a disappointment last year, but that's because his HR/9 normalized (it was an unsustainably low .6 in his banner 2008 season), so Cubs fans should expect more of the same going forward. Beyond those three, who are all potential All-Stars if a few things break right, there's Randy Wells, who was outstanding in his rookie year, but figures to regress a bit this season as the gap between his ERA and FIP was .83 runs,  and then a platter of Tom Gorzelanny, Carlos Silva, and Jeff Samardzija, whom we are convinced was rushed up to the Majors on name only. That was a long sentence. And while Carlos Silva is terrible, he's also the last manifestation of the utter debacle that was the Cubs/Milton Bradley relationship. So hopefully we can close the book on that.


Bullpen: It's really sort of incredible how Carlos Marmol does what he does. He's got an electric fastball/slider combo that neither he nor batters can figure out (11.31 K/9 last year...and 7.91 BB/9). Plus, he hits a ton of guys (an eye-popping 12 in just 74 innings). Essentially, every time he came into the game, he was allowing a baserunner. Fortunately, he's nigh-unhittable, and is one of the elite strikeout artists in the game. Quite the high-wire act, that guy. Angel Guzman, a former top prospect, is hurt again, but he's a valuable bullpen piece if he can make it to the team. John Grabow is a skilled lefty who should be an excellent bridge to Marmol, and Sean Marshall can eat up plenty of innings as a swingman. David Patton can get the K's (just short of 9 per 9 last year) but, like Marmol, has some control issues. But he's a ginger, so don't count on him getting it right. Then whoever doesn't make the rotation out of the Silva/Samardzija/Gorzelanny group will be biding their time in here, which isn't a bad thing. Pretty talented group, this.


Overall: Many people had pegged the Cubs for big things last season (ahem), which made their above-average season seem like a massive disappointment. In reality, and especially considering the injuries to Soriano and Ramirez, the Cubs performed about as well as we should've expected them to...it's just that the Cardinals far overshot expectations and ran away with the division. Anyway, this club is very similar to last year's, with the additions of Marlon "The Very Definition of Your Average" Byrd and Xavier Nady the primary differences. If Soriano can miraculously put together a healthy season and Derrek Lee doesn't fall off too far from his heroic efforts last season, this team should be right back in divisional contention.


Predicted Record: 84-78, 2nd place NL Central


Beer: Not to repeat a joke, but while Old Style seems to be the natural choice here, we're going to go with Lumpy Dog Light Lager. With all the weight loss on this team, a light beer seems fitting. Plus, it's flavorful enough to be interesting despite being a light beer, much in the same way that the Cubs are interesting despite having been lightly competitive in the past century.

MLB Jam: NL Edition

If you somehow managed to miss the first installation of this little feature, you can find it here. Or, you know, just scroll down. Either way. We'll wait.

Ok, now that you've memorized the AL rosters, let's jump in to the NL. Again, these teams are going to be the two individuals on each NL team who would best represent their club in a 2-on-2 basketball showdown.

NL East
 Atlanta Braves:  Tommy Hanson and Yunel Escobar

• Hanson checks in at 6'6'', 220, so he'll be the muscle on the team. Escobar has a reputation for being a bit of a firebrand that doesn't much get along with people, so he'll be the aggressive, Kobe-style player. Competitive streaks like that can mean a lot in 2-on-2. And, yes, we fully expect this team to lose in the first game.

Florida Marlins: Josh Johnson and Sean West

• The Marlins are going to go with the Two Towers approach. Johnson (6'7'', 250) and West (6'8'', 240) are two of the biggest players in this tournament. Hard to beat that kind of size - and that's leaving off 6'8'' Chris Volstad as well.

New York Mets: Gary Matthews, Jr and Mike Pelfrey

• Sarge the younger has (had?) serious hops  and Pelfrey is 6'7''. We felt it important to go with Pelfrey here since there's a decent chance that a team with Matthews and Jose Reyes would lose by default after both players got hurt five points into the first game.

Philadelphia Phillies: Shane Victorino and Ryan Howard

•  The Flyin' Hawaiian runs the point and Howard bangs in the post. Simple enough - but we also feel like Brad Lidge should be tabbed for any and all potentially game-winning shots. 

Washington Nationals: Adam Dunn and Nyjer Morgan

• If we're going to keep up with the admittedly rather absurd notion that strong outfield defense translates to good floor skills on the hardwood, then Morgan is an obvious choice. And Dunn, of course, is the polar opposite. Hopefully for his sake this is a halfcourt game so he doesn't have to move too terribly much.

NL Central
Chicago Cubs: Carlos Zambrano and Sean Marshall

• Big Z could easily turn into a regrettable pick if he starts doing his pointing-to-the-sky thing after every good play he makes, but he's a good, hefty athlete. Marshall is 6'7'', which at this point is starting to seem like an automatic qualification, but there doesn't appear to be much in the way of guard-sized talent on this team. We're sure the Cubs would love to sign Alfonso Soriano up for this with the hope that he'd get hurt and they could void his contract.

Cincinnati Reds: Daniel Ray-Herrera and Willy Taveras

• We've got the Reds going super small here; Ray-Herrera is listed at 5'6'' which means he's probably even shorter, and Taveras is right around 6'0''. But we're hoping for some Bogues/Webb-esque magic from R-H, and Taveras' speed and defensive abilities are a clear plus. They're gonna have to be dynamite on offense, though, to keep up with the teams that are going to score at will in the paint.

Houston Astros: Michael Bourn and Evan Englebrook

• In the interest of transparency, we'd never heard of Evan Englebrook until we checked the 'Stros 40-man roster. But, well, he's 6'8'', so we're going to assume that failing any non-baseball athletic gifts, he can at least stand in the way of, say, a 5'6'' dude. Bourn is on this squad for his excellent speed, much like Willy Taveras, the man he's replaced in center field for Houston.   

Milwaukee Brewers: Carlos Gomez and Yovani Gallardo

• Gomez is fast, and Gallardo gets the nod because the tall guys don't seem like good options and I like him. Whatever. This is an awful team. You can get 1000/1 odds that Paris Hilton will be elected President in 2012 - you've got a better chance of winning that bet than riding these guys for a championship appearance.

Pittsburgh Pirates: Andrew McCutchen and Garrett Jones

• McCutchen is a phenomenal talent, and Jones came out of nowhere to shock the world (OK, maybe just the Bucco fans who noticed) last season. Can he do the same in this tournament? Well, since it'd be a shock to the world if it even happened, we say 'why not?' 

 St. Louis Cardinals: Albert Pujols and Adam Wainwright

• It's just impossible for us to imagine Pujols not being dominant at something, so he's an easy choice. As for Wainwright, guess how tall he is? Did you say 6'6'' or less? Well, then you must not've been paying attention earlier.  

 NL West
Arizona Diamondbacks: Justin Upton and Dan Haren

• Upton is perhaps one of the best athletes in the entire league despite being only 22, so we kinda have to include him. The DBacks don't boast anyone that stands 6'7'' or taller, so we went with Haren, who for some reason, just looks like a guy who has some nice post moves and can hit a jumper. We wouldn't quarrel if you opted for Stephen Drew, though. We would quarrel if you chose Adam LaRoche. 

 Colorado Rockies: Dexter Fowler and Greg Reynolds

• Fowler is a great athlete with speed to burn, which is a nice plus considering that he's 6'4''. Reynolds is the magical six-feet-seven-inches tall, which not coincidentally is also how tall Adam Wainwright is. You know, in case you got it wrong last time.

Los Angeles Dodgers: Matt Kemp and Jon Broxton

• Kemp has a good blend of speed and size, and shares a surname with one of the more infamous power forwards to lace up high tops, so he's like a guaranteed star in this business. Broxton...well, we picked Broxton because we want to watch a 6'4'' 300-lb man play the post. Afford us some small such luxuries, won't you?

San Diego Padres: David Eckstein and Kyle Blanks

• Kyle Blanks is 6'6'', weighs nearly 300 pounds, and rocks a mean afro. It seems unfair to the other teams to pair him with anyone but The Grand Poohbah of Grit. 

San Francisco Giants: Tim Lincecum and Pablo Sandoval

• Lincecum's manic energy and hair bring hopes that he can be a latter-day Steve Nash Which then raises the question - can someone be the latter-day version of another person who's still active? Sandoval is the only real bat on this team, so he's the muscle to back up Lincecum's small frame. Who cares if he's only 5'11' 240 or so? You can't leave off the Panda. 

So there you have it. We've got all the rosters, so clearly soon it's time for the games to begin.

We really need Spring Training to start soon.
 

Big Z Takes Grounders at 3B, SS

Cubs pitcher Carlos Zambrano has long been a multifaceted player.  Now, it appears the two-time Silver Slugger and All-Star pitcher could, in a pinch, take his talents to the hot corner if injuries demand it.  We say just the hot corner because, come on, no way a guy his size is playing shortstop.  And, further, there's no way a team would let such a commodity as Zambrano - who is already a red flag as injuries are concerned - take on the added injury risk of switching to short.  But the possibility is very exciting to us, and we can't imagine a much better candidate than Zambrano.  Though we admittedly love the way he plays the game with his heart on his sleeve, and so we just want to have him on the field as much as possible.  We've seen him break his bat over his knee when he struck out (video here), so we're naturally curious as to what he might do in the field should he miss a ball.  Rip the stitches out of his glove, maybe?

Anyway, there are, of course, several roadblocks on the way to Zambrano realizing our dream.  Koyie Hill, the weak-hitting backup backstop played third base in college, so he'd probably be the first option there should Aramis Ramirez miss more time than expected with his calf strain, but...well, he's boring.  And his career OPS is less than Zambrano's (.572 to Z's .622) - plus, as Zambrano's 124 OPS+ last year showed, his ceiling as a hitter is higher than Hill's.  Sure, Hill may grab a few more grounders, but we can't imagine he'll be the second coming of Brooks Robinson. We say, forgo what defensive difference may exist - let the Big Z play! 

Yesterday's Players of Note

Every day we're going to mention 5 or so players (we're not much for hard and fast rules around here) whose performance in the day before warrants mention.  They aren't listed in any particular order, and it could be for reasons good or bad; the only caveat is that it has to be on the field work.  Players of Note will not, for example, cover dudes who get trashed and get arrested for peeing in the street (here's looking at you, Jake!).  You know, unless it's a really fun story.  Like we said: hard and fast...not so much.

Justin Verlander:  Yeah, Verlander got knocked around yesterday, to the tune of 8 hits, 8 runs (all earned), and 2 free passes in 3.2 innings, but he also recorded 4 K's.  So, kiddies who aren't much for math, that's a little over a K an inning.  Also, according to the MLB At Bat app (which is pretty awesome), he was consistently working at 96-100 MPH, which is what he was hitting when he was receiving Cy consideration.  And he was even doing it from the stretch, which impressed us all the more.  We consider this a good sign that he is on the way to rebounding from the mechanical disaster that was last year.  Now someone tell him to stop leaving pitches in the zone.

Carlos Zambrano: PNH (post-no hitter), Zambrano was awful in '08.  In the last few starts of the year, like in the first few, he lost his arm angle, velo, and control.  He got knocked around in the playoffs as well, contributing to the Cubs' early exit last year.  On Opening Day, though, he looked solid: 6 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 6 K.  His control isn't all the way back yet, but it's early; we're encouraged by the 90-93 mph sinking fastballs he was hurling.  Big Z needs to get back to the form he showed in his younger days if the Cubs have any real hope of turning this potent team into a champion.

Adam Lind: Besides Travis Snider, Lind is the closest thing the Jays have to a slugger.  He got the job done yesterday, knocking Verlander and the Tigers' 'pen around to the tune of a donger and 3 singles.  Why, if he keeps up that pace, you can forget about the Jays having a weak offense; Lind alone would drive in 972 runs.  Don't you love statistics?

Tony Clark/Felipe Lopez: We're cheating a little bit by including them both, but the duo jacked two unlikely tater tots apiece, so they ate plenty last night.  We say the homers were unlikely because...well, because it's Tony the Tiger and Felipe the...Frolicker?, because Aaron Cook's usually got a better sinker going than to allow the pair of ding dongs that he did, and OHBYTHEWAY they both hit one jack from each side of the plate.  Five (5) round trippers on the day for the D'backs.

Felix Hernandez: The King was outstanding last night, holding an admittedly impotent Twins lineup to 1 run on 5 hits and 3 walks in 8 shutdown innings.  He also K'd 6, including Michael Cuddyer 3 times.  Good start for Felix; hopefully he builds on this and makes a real bid for Cy Young contention.  'Cause lord knows there's not much else for M's fans these days.