Decent outing by Jeff Samardzija Monday night—5.2 innings, no runs, six hits, four walks, and one strikeout. Good enough to pace the Cubs in a 5-1 win against a division rival.
Samardzija appeared more in control of his pitches with the new delivery. He battled Pujols and Holiday well, too. Made tough pitches, made smart pitches.
It’s been a long road back for Jeff. He hasn’t made an appearance since April 19. But tonight, he earned himself another turn in the rotation.
I’ve been tough on Samardzija since last year. The guy wouldn’t throw strikes and couldn’t control his breaking pitches. But credit ...
The Dodgers’ main trade piece in return for Ted Lilly & Ryan Theriot is Blake DeWitt, a 24-year-old, left-handed batting second baseman selected by the Dodgers in the first-round of the 2004 amateur draft.
He debuted with L.A. in 2008 as a third baseman batting .264 with 9 HR and 52 RBI in 117-games.
Against Chicago in the NLDS, DeWitt went 3-for-11, scoring two runs and recording one RBI.
In 2009, however, DeWitt bounced between Triple-A and Los Angeles six times backing up All Star Orlando Hudson. In 33 games with the Dodgers, DeWitt hit just .204 with 2 HR & 4 ...
It’s scary how quickly Carlos Marmol falls apart. And yet, remarkable how often he escapes his own jams.
The guy’s made an art form out of walking the bags full, then striking out the side.
But Marmol has to be more efficient and more accountable than he was Saturday in the season’s second half.
Although unlikely, it’s still possible for our Cubbies to make a little run at the division title.
The starting staff continues to lead the majors in quality starts , and the offense is clicking as well as it has all season.
But sustaining aspirations of a second half run means the ...
Nothing against Soriano’s home run, but this win belongs to the bullpen.
A pen, mind you, that’s come a long way since its April ERA of 5.37.
Ever since late April, however, the relievers have collectively lowered its ERA each month to a very respectable 2.44 come July.
Twice Saturday night the Cubs wiggled out of late inning bases loaded jams. But, that’s been the norm lately.
Of the pen’s last 20 inherited runners, just a single one has scored! That’s big time!
While the Cubs’ top priority is scoring more runs, second on that list is keeping a rock solid bullpen.
That’s hugely important down ...
