I’ll try to temper my shit eating grin as much as possible as I say this. It’s unbelievable how this season played out for you guys. All that freaking talent....I don’t watch them day in day out and I’m sure there are plenty of specific examples of horseshit play you guys can cite, same as I would if my team didn’t pull the collective head out of it’s ass. Pretty similar fuckery going on with both teams a lot of the season and it really could’ve ended up going the other way. As much as I probably couldn’t handle the stress, I really wish it was the Brewers that fell on their face.
Could’ve been a pretty amazing race if you and the Brewers didn’t get bit hard by the injury bug.
I’ll try to temper my shit eating grin as much as possible as I say this. It’s unbelievable how this season played out for you guys. All that freaking talent....I don’t watch them day in day out and I’m sure there are plenty of specific examples of horseshit play you guys can cite, same as I would if my team didn’t pull the collective head out of it’s ass. Pretty similar fuckery going on with both teams a lot of the season and it really could’ve ended up going the other way. As much as I probably couldn’t handle the stress, I really wish it was the Brewers that fell on their face.
Could’ve been a pretty amazing race if you and the Brewers didn’t get bit hard by the injury bug.
Indeed. This entire series was indicative of the Cubs whole season. Just never quite being able to seal the deal. We had leads in the 9th for the last 3 games of the series and lost them all. We had the tying run on base in the 9th in game 1. Series could have been a sweep either way, but the Cards got the job done and the Cubs caved at the most crucial moment every time. Really is their 2019 leitmotif. A team with our run differential should be in the postseason. Problem is they can win all the 15-3 games in the world, but can't win the 4-3 games.
Injuries absolutely killed us all season long. I think the last time we had Rizzo, Baez, Zobrist, Bryant, Heyward, Schwarber, & Contreras on the field at the same time was Spring Training. Every starting pitcher spent time on the IL. Half the bullpen spent time on the IL and the other half just flat out sucked.
Just not the year. I'm more mad about finishing behind Milwaukee than the Cards winning the division. (You just kinda expect St. Louis to pester you every year). I wouldn't be able find any sum of Cardinal players in franchise history to dislike more than I hate Ryan Braun alone.
Maybe Ed could tell Theo and Jed that if they are going to tank the season for a better draft pick, it is best to do so earlier in the season....like in April.
What a miserable clubhouse they must share right now. I really don't see any way this team keeps Maddon. I give it zero chance. Additionally, if they try to sign Castellanos, I would think they will have to trade Schwarber. Unless the DH will be in the NL in 2020. But what other changes could/would they make? Zobrist & Hammels will be gone. Almora? Russell? KB? Caratini?
"A smart monkey doesn't monkey around with another monkey's monkey" - Darwin's Theory
Hope KB stays. It’s not impossible to keep him. Maybe if the Ricketts don’t make some bullshit fucking excuse like “we don’t have the money” but oh... OHHHHHH... when it comes to Trump’s fucking campaign the checking account suddenly has fucking funds. Fuck Tom Ricketts for making Jed & Theo go bargain shopping for fucking Daniel Descalso and a bunch of other bums every offseason.
I really don't want KB gone. The dude is a consummate professional. I think about the only thing he lacks is hitting in clutch situations. Those who were Sosa fans can relate here. Hopefully that can come around. Solid AF defensively.
As for bums like Descalso, I totally understand. But the season prior, they did bid against themselves to get Darvish. This year, they did get the funds for Irish (or is it Scottish?) Strop.
"A smart monkey doesn't monkey around with another monkey's monkey" - Darwin's Theory
I look at the glaring problem last night which has been a problem since 2017. We had Kyle Hendricks on the mound, flirting with a no-hitter more than halfway thru the game. And yet, he gets 1... ONE... run of support from his team of All-Stars caliber bats against a pitcher with an ERA over 7 and a team that's barely won 20 games since the break. This is a coaching issue. I understand there are going to be games where a shitty pitcher stymies a powerful offense. But with the Cubs, it's every. fucking. time.
I don't know if Girardi is a good fit for this team. I'd rather stick with Maddon and have the front office not be a bunch of fucking cheap asses this off-season. Say, does anyone have a pitcher with an ERA floating in the 6.30-8.50 range? We'll fucking sign 'em! Oh and then we'll spend all season wondering why our bullpen is complete ass, as if we didn't know from signing a bunch of guys with ERA's higher than Barry Bonds career slugging pct.
Vegas 93, Vegas 98, Vegas 00 (10 year show), Vegas 03, Vegas 06
VIC 07
EV LA1 08
Seattle1 09, Seattle2 09, Salt Lake 09, LA4 09
Columbus 10
EV LA 11
Vancouver 11
Missoula 12
Portland 13, Spokane 13
St. Paul 14, Denver 14
As much as we under-achieved these last two seasons, Maddon leaving is bittersweet. It’s definitely time for a change, but I’ll always be grateful for Maddon’s time with the Cubs.
Was it really time for a managerial change? A lot of people are saying that (not just here). I beg to differ. Maddon is the best guy for the job. I've seen a lot of blame on Maddon for not taking this team to the postseason. Maddon's fault. If Maddon did this or did that or didn't do this or didn't do that. And yes, I know I too have often been guilty of calling out some of his decisions. Sometimes it's out of frustration because it doesn't work out, or out of pure confusion, but the bottom line is he knows more than any of us who criticize him ever will. I look at this season like this: There's so much "blame Maddon" for not making the Postseason, but really it's just the opposite. Maddon is THE REASON the Cubs were still even in contention up until Wednesday. As inconsistently as the team played all year, streaky players, so many injuries, terrible defense, a bullpen that was absolutely horrid no matter who you put on the mound - the fact that they still had a shot at the division a week ago is nothing short of miracle work.
When your front office trades for & signs guys like Alex Avila, Terrence Gore, Daniel Descalso, Tony Kemp, and a slew of relief pitchers like Justin Wilson, Brian Matusz, Derek Holland with career ERA's hovering over 6.00, exactly what the fuck is Joe Maddon to do? He got the absolute best out of what was given to him. What was given to him just wasn't that good. Jed & Theo have done an asbolutely abhorrent job at acquiring talent thru trades and the offseason, ever since the Chapman trade. Darvish is finally turning it around & Castellanos did rather well for us. But there hasn't been one other player we've acquired since August 2016 that's been worth a fuck. We gave all our best draft picks away for peanuts, kept all the ones that aren't panning out, played discount free agency every year (and yet somehow managed to have the 3rd highest payroll in the league). I think the change needed to be made at the top, not in the dugout.
I really hope Maddon replaces Renteria again and takes over the white sox. I know this season was disappointing for the Cubs, but they sure seemed desperate to get rid of the guy who managed them to the playoffs 4 out of 5 years and a world series.
For right or wrong, professional sport is a performance based business. When a team with as much “talent” and money as the Cubs underperforms two years in a row, someone is going to take the fall.
And while I don’t blame everything on Joe, there are some very fundamental weaknesses with this team that have nothing to do with talent, or lack thereof. For example, not being able to manufacture runs and relying solely on the long ball. That comes from bad coaching, regardless if you have a bunch of “bombers” in the lineup.
Yeah I guess. Front office didn't really help him out much with the bullpen. I'm also a fan of a team who hasn't played a significant game in a decade so the thought of getting rid of a guy who just had a run like Maddon is crazy to me. But yeah, it is surprising that they only won 1 world series with that core.
^ You are right that they didn’t give him any help in the relief pitching dept. That one falls solely on the front office. I also don’t think anyone would have demanded multiple WS wins. I sure wouldn’t. But the late season implosions two years in a row do fall on Joe on some level. Certainly not all of it is on him, but in this business the manager is usually the first to go. Some up and coming team will do well with him. He has a way of working well with young talent.
I will forever blame the 2018 Cubs collapse on Major League Baseball’s total “Hey, let’s completely fuck over the Cubs” scheduling. What was it? 42 games in 41 days without a single day off to end the season? Something like that. Like you really couldn’t have sprinkled some of those make-up games in June or July?
Comments
Could’ve been a pretty amazing race if you and the Brewers didn’t get bit hard by the injury bug.
What a miserable clubhouse they must share right now. I really don't see any way this team keeps Maddon. I give it zero chance. Additionally, if they try to sign Castellanos, I would think they will have to trade Schwarber. Unless the DH will be in the NL in 2020. But what other changes could/would they make? Zobrist & Hammels will be gone. Almora? Russell? KB? Caratini?
Fuck Tom Ricketts for making Jed & Theo go bargain shopping for fucking Daniel Descalso and a bunch of other bums every offseason.
As for bums like Descalso, I totally understand. But the season prior, they did bid against themselves to get Darvish. This year, they did get the funds for Irish (or is it Scottish?) Strop.
Vegas 93, Vegas 98, Vegas 00 (10 year show), Vegas 03, Vegas 06
VIC 07
EV LA1 08
Seattle1 09, Seattle2 09, Salt Lake 09, LA4 09
Columbus 10
EV LA 11
Vancouver 11
Missoula 12
Portland 13, Spokane 13
St. Paul 14, Denver 14