eBook
Available on Compatible NOOK devices, the free NOOK App and in My Digital Library.
Related collections and offers
Overview
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781633197282 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Triumph Books |
| Publication date: | 09/01/2016 |
| Sold by: | Barnes & Noble |
| Format: | eBook |
| Pages: | 128 |
| File size: | 30 MB |
| Note: | This product may take a few minutes to download. |
About the Author
Read an Excerpt
Let's Go Cubs!
By Daily Herald
Triumph Books LLC
Copyright © 2016 Paddock Publications, Inc.All rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-63319-728-2
CHAPTER 1
Bash Brothers
Bryant/Rizzo Combo a Dream Match for Cubs
By Matt Spiegel | May 21, 2015
Watching Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo hit back to back in the late innings once recently, I longed for context. What do the Cubs have here?
As an opposing manager, I would hate the sight and thought of them. Consecutive excellent hitters (one from the right and one from the left) would get mental bullpen wheels turning rapidly.
Rizzo's remarkable progress against left-handed pitching has simplified things; it doesn't matter if you strategize with handedness against him. His excellence against lefties the last year and change has brought his career splits almost even.
But despite a decreased need to burn relievers, where do these two stand among the most daunting back-to-back LH-RH combos in the game?
We'll wait for a larger sample to base it on numbers alone. But I spoke to a pro scouting source from a current MLB team to get his opinions. He put Bryant and Rizzo up there with the very best.
As Joe Maddon stays consistent in batting his pitcher eighth (he's done it every game), batting second and third is the new third and fourth. The best guys hit there, ideally with the ninth hitter and leadoff man on base more often than other teams.
Based on the average number of plate appearances by lineup position in a National League season, this should add 40 or 50 PA combined by the end of the year.
Bryant and Rizzo are hitting second and third nearly every game now. As of Thursday, Rizzo had started 10 games in the 2-hole, and 29 in the 3-spot. Bryant started 17 times at cleanup, but has hit second 11 times, and third 3 times.
Jorge Soler hit in one of those spots for 22 combined games, but has settled into fifth or sixth.
Cubs' batters are the worst in the eighth slot, by far. Other than pinch hitters (usually one of the catchers) it has all been pitchers. Their collective On Base + Slugging (OPS) of .289 is more than 200 points worse than any other team.
Meanwhile, their ninth-place hitters are leading others in almost every statistical category, though not by as wide a margin as the eighth hitters trail. That production from the ninth position should grow if Addison Russell stays there and delivers on his promise.
At leadoff, Dexter Fowler has been good. Cubs No. 1 hitters are second to Miami (and amazing Dee Gordon), in OPS and most other categories.
So the table is being set for one of the most fearsome hitting combos of 2015.
The scout and I tried to keep current health and current production in mind, and we tried to be as specific as possible about where certain hitters are at this point in the season. Guys such as Troy Tulowitzki, Chris Davis and Robinson Cano would not get votes based on past performance.
He requested anonymity, and ranked the best RH/LH back-to-back hitters this way:
1. Matt Carpenter/Matt Holliday, Cardinals
2. Joey Votto/Todd Frazier, Reds
3. Bryant/Rizzo, Cubs
4. Howie Kendrick/Adrian Gonzales, Dodgers
5. Yunel Escobar/Bryce Harper, Nationals
6. Mike Moustakas/Lorenzo Cain, Royals
7. Prince Fielder/Adrian Beltre, Rangers
8. Nelson Cruz/Kyle Seager, Mariners
9. Alex Rodriguez/Mark Teixeira (S), Yankees
10. David Ortiz/Hanley Ramirez, Red Sox
Pretty good company. He almost went with Ryan Zimmerman over Escobar, and the truth is that Harper plus anyone is a good answer.
The Cubs now stand seventh in the NL in runs scored, sixth in OPS, second in walks, and second in stolen bases. Part of that high walk rate is because they take a lot of pitches.
Rizzo is pretty well established as one of the game's best lefty sluggers. It's possible the league will find a weakness in Bryant and word will get around, but odds are this continues to be the kind of pair a team dreams of having.
CHAPTER 2A Sign of Things to Come
This End Only Beginning for Cubs
By Barry Rozner, dailyherald.com | October 22, 2015
The morning after clinching a playoff berth, Theo Epstein talked of making the most of this opportunity despite the long odds the Cubs had already overcome.
Yes, it was great to arrive ahead of schedule, but once you're in it's important to take advantage because you never know when the next chance may occur.
And when you look at it objectively, the Cubs got all they could have out of this postseason.
The Cubs were swept out of the 2015 postseason by the better team and it ended unceremoniously at Wrigley Field with an 8-3 drubbing, a thorough beating from the Mets to finish the NLCS in the minimum number of required games.
The Mets scored first in every game, scored in the first inning of every game and outscored the Cubs 21-8 for the series — and it could have been worse.
As the Mets recorded the final out in the bottom of the ninth, the Cubs and their fans were forced to watch the Mets' celebration on a field that has seen so many celebrations this year, during what felt like the rebirth of a franchise.
Several players stayed a few minutes in the dugout, watching the winning team dance toward the World Series, wanting to pocket that wretched feeling for use somewhere down the road.
The fans, so loud for so many months, filed out slowly and quietly into another October night, still waiting for the year that ends in the biggest "W" of all.
It's a cruel finish for the Cubs after a remarkable season, but nevertheless a sweet tease for what the future holds for a very young and talented group.
"I don't know how you can be disappointed in anything our players have done this year," said manager Joe Maddon. "Our players have done nothing but make me proud this year."
Those without any vision – who can't see past their own cynicism – will label this season a failure, forgetting they probably picked the Cubs to finish last in 2015.
The same old people will say the same old things about the Cubs not doing enough at the trade deadline, being too cheap to spend money and failing miserably at the management level.
They'll forget the Cubs won 97 games when they were supposed to be — essentially — a .500 club.
Of course, these are the same people who have trashed Epstein's plan at every turn, unable to see it coming together.
And now after embracing it for a few weeks, it will be the same story again.
They'll not acknowledge a huge step forward and that every moment the Cubs experienced in the postseason will help them in the future, up to and including their inability to compete in the NLCS.
How bright is the future?
The Cubs have six more years — at worst — of Anthony Rizzo, Kris Bryant, Kyle Schwarber, Addison Russell and Javier Baez.
Six more years — and that doesn't even include Jorge Soler, who will be here at least another five.
"I often look out on the field and I look at short, third, and left field," Maddon said. "I'll see KB, Addison, and Schwarber, and I think, 'Wow, to think about the level of experience that these guys have had to this point and where they've gotten us already, that's pretty impressive.'
"You look in right field, you might see Soler out there. You might see Baez at second base. I think we played five rookies in one game this year in Milwaukee. So that's not lost on me by any means.
"This is just the beginning. This is just the beginning for these guys. As our guys learn the game even better ... that's going to be really exciting to watch over the next couple of years."
Most of those players just got here. Some of them are already very good. And they don't know a thing yet about how to compete at the big league level.
Imagine how good they'll be in two or three years.
"These guys have done a great job," said veteran starter Jon Lester. "They play well beyond their age and well beyond their years in this game, and that's only going to help us in this organization for years to come."
But they weren't good enough this year and it had nothing to do with curses or ghosts, fouls balls or goats. They simply didn't have the pitching to compete with New York, pitching Epstein had intended to pursue this off-season even before they fell short against the Mets.
They will have to think more in terms of manufacturing runs and better defense in October, balancing that with a desire to play long ball at a time when big bats are increasingly hard to find.
Unlike defeats of the past, however, this is merely the end of the beginning, rather than the beginning of the end.
The Cubs didn't take one shot with backloaded contracts and terrible deals. They didn't mortgage the future or waste their capital by giving up on young players to acquire someone who would help for a single October.
They built a team from scratch, arrived a year early and fell eight victories short of finishing it off.
Not bad for a start.
CHAPTER 3Key Pieces
Chicago Cubs Make Sense in How They're Spending Their Dollars
By Mike Imrem, dailyherald.com | December 8, 2015
Baseball money has become mind-boggling, and there's enough to go around.
All any of the 30 major-league teams needs to contend for a championship is to allocate their considerable assets wisely.
The Chicago Cubs appear to have done that by agreeing to a couple of so-called bargain contracts with a couple of so-called bargain free agents.
Veteran pitcher John Lackey: two years, $32 million. Versatile position player Ben Zobrist: four years, $56 million.
Yes, those are bargains in this affluent era of the game.
The Cubs also sent the $40 million left on Starlin Castro's contract — another bargain figure, right? — to the Yankees for lower-priced pitcher Adam Warren and a player to be named.
Major Leage Baseball is swimming in cash due to new-age revenue streams pumping into the game.
No team needs a $300 million payroll to win a World Series. The Dodgers have operated like that's what it takes and failed miserably.
The Royals won a World Series for considerably less. Anything above $100 million should be enough, and the Cubs will be well above that.
The Cubs' latest moves indicate that they have a winning mix: Money and brains.
Maybe luck, too.
Cubs president Theo Epstein and general manager Jed Hoyer caught a break when ace pitcher David Price turned them down to sign with the Red Sox.
Let's round off what the Cubs offered Price to $200 million, though it likely was a bit less.
Price was more of a luxury than a necessity for the Cubs, considering that they already have Jake Arrieta and Jon Lester at the top of their rotation.
The Cubs needed a No. 3 as much as a No. 1 and that turned out to be Lackey, close to ancient but coming off an outstanding season with the Cardinals.
Lackey is one tough guy. He isn't afraid to hit a batter. He isn't afraid to take the ball every fifth day. He isn't afraid to go deep into a game.
Gritty pitcher to have on a team like the Cubs.
Then there's Zobrist, a player who can play every position on the field and maybe even pitch long relief if Cubs manager Joe Maddon asked that of him. They prospered together in Tampa Bay, Maddon and Zobrist did, and should be comfortable with each other in Wrigley Field.
Lackey and Zobrist fill needs at a combined commitment of $88 million, dozens of millions of dollars less than Price would have cost.
The Cubs then saved those 10s of millions — baseball would call them a pittance these days — in the Castro transaction.
It always made more sense to go after two pitchers, a No. 3 and No. 4, than to wind up with Price only.
Right now the Cubs' rotation lines up with Arrieta, Lester, Lackey and two from among Warren, Jason Hammel or Kyle Hendricks.
The Cubs still should have cash left over for a center fielder, bullpen help and more starting-pitching depth.
Maybe the Cubs would have had enough dollars for other reinforcements even after signing Price, but better that they didn't have to prove it.
Nothing is guaranteed now, of course. Lackey has to remain ageless. Others have to remain healthy. Everybody has to remain motivated.
Then the Cubs have to prove they're a team rather than just a big batch of talented individuals.
If they weren't before, the Cubs certainly are 2016 World Series contenders after Tuesday's flurry of activity.
All because they're turning dollars into sense.
CHAPTER 4Right on Time
Cubs Ready to Go from Good to Great
By Bruce Miles, dailyherald.com | December 16, 2015 Timing.
Think about the timing for both parties involved: Jason Heyward and the Chicago Cubs.
One year ago to the day in the same room of Spiaggia restaurant in Chicago, the Cubs were introducing their big free-agent prize, pitcher Jon Lester, as they expressed hope they could win in 2015.
This time, it was this year's free-agent prize, outfielder Jason Heyward, whom the Cubs are hoping can help take them to the next level after they advanced to the National League championship series in 2015.
"It's easy sometimes to sit back on the heels of a surprising 97-win season and be content with what you have and try to go out and do it again and contend again," said team president Theo Epstein, who also praised the business side of the Cubs' operation for making this winter's big financial commitments.
"But there was a real effort to go from good to great this winter and to capitalize on a moment in time when we have a lot of young, cost-controlled position players. We have Jon Lester and (ace pitcher) Jake Arrieta.
"(Business president) Crane Kenney and his people were great partners in trying to find creative ways to push some of the postseason money into this year's budget. We came up with some creative contract structures to allow us to add now because this is the right time strategically, with next year's free-agent market not being quite as deep as this year's."
The Cubs introduced the 26-year-old Heyward to Chicago after signing him to an eight-year contract worth $184 million. The timing works out pretty well for Heyward, too, as he can opt out after three years while still in his prime as a player.
Included is a $20 million signing bonus, which reports say is deferred, helping the Cubs financially until they get an expected huge TV deal at the end of this decade.
Epstein likened the Heyward signing to adding another "core" player to the one the Cubs already have with Anthony Rizzo, Kris Bryant, Addison Russell, Kyle Schwarber and Jorge Soler (who remains a Cub amid continuing trade speculation). The only member of the "core" the Cubs lost was Starlin Castro, whom they traded to the New York Yankees for pitcher Adam Warren.
Heyward took less money to come to the Cubs as opposed to staying with the St. Louis Cardinals – for whom he played only one year — or going to a team such as the Washington Nationals.
Being part of a young group was a main attraction, according to Heyward, a right fielder who is penciled in as the Cubs' center fielder unless or until Soler is moved.
"The St. Louis Cardinals are always going to be a great organization," said Heyward, who played for the Atlanta Braves from 2010-14. He was on the losing side of this year's National League division series against the Cubs.
"For me, and I keep hitting on this, being 26 years old, the fact that my contract will probably put me in any clubhouse longer than most people there, you've got to look at age. You've got to look at how fast a team is changing and how soon those changes may come about."
Heyward cited Cardinals veterans such as Yadier Molina and Matt Holliday "introducing" him to the St. Louis organization but that he could "look up in three years and see a completely different team," given the ages of those players and the contract status of others.
"Chicago really offers an opportunity to come in, be introduced to the culture." he said. "It's a young group of guys, but grow up with them and watch them grow up but still watch myself grow up and have some fun with some familiar faces for a long time."
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Let's Go Cubs! by Daily Herald. Copyright © 2016 Paddock Publications, Inc.. Excerpted by permission of Triumph Books LLC.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
Table of Contents
Contents
Introduction,Bash Brothers,
A Sign of Things to Come,
Key Pieces,
Right on Time,
Jake Arrieta,
The Right Mix,
Surprise,
Anthony Rizzo,
Addison Russell,
Jason Heyward,
John Lackey,
Joe Maddon,
Joe Cool,
Theo Epstein,
Dexter Fowler,
Kyle Schwarber,
Championship Digs,
Jake the Great,
Clean Sweep,
David Ross,
Leading to the Top,
Ben Zobrist,
Travis Wood,
Impact D,
Contreras and Almora Take the Big Stage,
Bryant Hits It Big,
All-Star Game Bound,
Kris Bryant,
Kyle Hendricks,
New York Nixed,
Game Changer,