That Ross/Szczur rundown was great. Love watching other teams make little league fuck ups. Glad it's not us anymore. On another note, Laz Diaz shouldn't be allowed to call balls and strikes.
Javier Baez is such an athletic freak. That tag he had last night was insane. He's made a number of ridiculous tags already. He's got such quick hands. Actually, he does everything quick. He's so damn fun to watch, especially when he's not horrible at the plate.
Anyone have a decent stream? Game is blacked out on MLB Network and the local channel apparently decided to show Modern Family or some bullshit instead last minute. Edit: nevermind found one.
This Russell/Baez combo could be the best double play duo in the league right now. Even at 3rd he's outrageous. And as I go to hit post he fires a dart across the diamond to get Freese.
I mean Javy Baez is pretty much Nolan Arenado, Omar Vizquel, and Brandon Phillips all wrapped up into one player.
#Cubs +89 run differential equals avg. win by 3.56 runs per game. 7 teams in #MLB don't even score 3.56 runs per game.
So Javy has become something I never thought he would: good. My lord, he doesn't even need to hit to be useful, with all the other stuff he does at a high level. His defense is absurd -- his range, his arm, everything. He's a plus defender at any position you put him at. He's fast as hell, beating out infield singles, stealing bases. He's making more contact than when he was bad. He's incredibly fun to watch.
I just never thought he would make enough contact to make it. And I have a pretty strong personal bias against hackers that chase pitches. Boy, was I wrong, though. I feel stupid.
Think it wasn't until late last season that people realized his defensive prowess. I still don't know what kind offensive player he will be, but his impact is not in doubt. Crazy how little we heard about his defense as he progressed through the minors. It was usually always centered around his bat speed and power and all or nothing approach at the plate.
Yeah, it turns out he's a fucking machine made to play defense at any position that you place him. I mean some of these tags he's made have been insane. His hands are so quick. He's always on top of things. He doesn't just have a great arm; he's also incredibly accurate with it. And, I mean, he's fucking making 95 mph throws after bare-handing balls, and throwing across his body while still on the run. It's absurd. He turns DPs like it's nobody's business. I can't believe how fast he is at getting rid of the ball. And, then you look back on his minor league power numbers and that's when you start to drool thinking about the potential here. He's finally settled in at the plate, to a point that he isn't just getting embarrassed. He hits liners all over. Wait until he starts tapping back into that power swing, though. If he can get more loft out of his swing, without sacrificing his improvements in making contact, and you factoring in his value with his glove, arm, and speed...
And one of the things that young players generally improve upon is plate discipline. As players get older, they generally get a better feel for the zone and they also make more contact, especially on balls in the zone. If Javy can just find his groove in that regard and wait for pitches he can drive... I know this has been said about him his whole life. But, back in the day, it was like, "This dude has to do that." Now it is evident that he provides enough value elsewhere that this would just be icing on the cake.
Watching the game on mlbn last night with the pirates announcers was pure comedy. They were so defeated immediately. And sorry PregnantGorilla didn't mean to blow you off last night. Hope you enjoyed SB.
Fowler has just been incredible this year. It seems almost every game he leads off with a hit or walk.
It's like clockwork with this team. Only through three batters and Nicasio is already at 19 pitches and one walk.
GoCubsGo My goodness 1-8 in the lineup and often times even the pitcher can just drive runs in. Never know who it's gonna be.
David Cameron @DCameronFG 7m7 minutes ago OBPs of the hitters in the Cubs batting order today: .478, .390, .393, .393, .380, .390, .356, .341. That’ll do.
I noticed before the game while our team average was only .243 our .OBP was second at .358. The way we approach each at bat is going to be a terror for any team's rotation we face in playoff series because their bullpen is going to be decimated by game four.
Yeah, I'm gonna bring this up. The 1927 Yankees had a season run differential of +375. After 26 games (roughly 16% of the season), we have a +93 differential. We're on pace for a (roughly) +558 season. We might be a decent team. Might.