Initial thoughts were that Blake DeWitt would open the year as the Chicago Cubs’ starting second baseman, but that turns out not to be the case. While he could get the job somewhere down the line, according to Toni Ginnetti of the Chicago Sun-Times (click here for the article) Cubs manager Mike Quade “expects Barney and Jeff Baker to platoon some depending on the opposing pitcher.”
So far Quade appears to be sticking to his word for a platoon. Barney got the Opening Day start (2-4, 1 R), though it was Baker who started today in Game No. 2.
Baker has been ...
Cubs Nation, breathe easy. Mike Quade sure is.Opening day 2011 is in the books, and on an afternoon that saw the Cubs fall to the Pittsburgh Pirates 6-3, I know many die-hard Cubs fans are already coming up with reasons to doubt. Their reasons—taken individually—aren't without merit. The Cubs are still without a strong leadoff hitter that can get on base and manufacture runs. They lack a consistently big bat in the middle of the lineup to drive in runs and scare opposing pitchers. There are concerns with the back-end of their rotation. Stop now? Ok, ok. Here's the thing, though. ...
You can't tell a whole lot about a manager or a team from just one game, nor should anyone form any opinions based on such a small sample size. Still, Mike Quade did not have a great managerial debut for the Cubs. For one thing, the Cubs were beaten by the long ball in their 6-3 loss to the lowly Pittsburgh Pirates. The offense contributed its share of hits, but didn't produce the run support that you might expect when facing a team like the Bucs. As a longtime, die-hard Cubs fan and critical observer, I have been squawking about all things ...
Is it next year yet?If today is any indication how the Chicago Cubs season will play out, fans will wait anxiously for the next season to begin.The struggles for the Cubs that plagued them all last season continued in their opening game against the Pittsburgh Pirates.Bad pitching, bad fielding, and bad hitting, all of which are the formula for a bad ball-game.The Cubs had a chance to break the game open against their newest nemesis, the Pirates, in the fourth inning when they had the bases loaded with only one man out. However, the Cubs were only able to scratch across one run when ...
Opening Day is finally here.Aside from the beautiful smell of fresh hot dogs and sausages simmering on an open fire, it is the mark of another calendar year where the Chicago Cubs have another shot at ending their 102 years of championship futility.Every team is hopeful that this year is their year.But for Chicago Cubs players and fans, this slogan has been said so much, that it has lost all of its meaning.However, anything is possible in the crazy wild, wild, National League Central and if the Cubs can put it together, they could raise some eyebrows. Here are the five ...
This article is also available at theperspective.yardbarker.com
The Chicago Cubs have spent the past few years treading water in the middle of Major League Baseball. They haven't been going on tears, but they also haven't been at the bottom of the league.
Although this isn't necessarily a bad thing, it is something that is very frustrating for Cubs fans who want to get some sort of identity out of a team that refuses to give itself one.
That may be changing this year under new, full-time manager, Mike Quade. He is giving a young Chicago Cubs team some fire and might actually get ...
There is a lot that makes a city, a great sports city. There is a lot that makes Chicago the best sports town in America. It's more than championships. It's more than the length a franchise has been in a city.
It's the atmosphere of the city. It's the attitude of the fans in the city. It's the love and passion the fans share for the teams in their city. It's the revenue these teams create for the city.
Let's take a look into what makes Chicago great.
Atmosphere
If you walk through downtown Chicago any day of the year, you will never fail ...
CHICAGO CUBS
Last Year: 75-87, 5th in NL Central
Manager: Mike Quade
PROJECTED LINEUP
C- Geovany Soto (R)
1B- Carlos Pena (L)
2B- Darwin Barney (R)
3B- Aramis Ramirez (R)
SS- Starlin Castro (R)
LF- Alfonso Soriano (R)
CF- Marlon Byrd (R)
RF- Kouske Fukodome (L)
Generating offense was a problem for the Cubs last season. Aramis Ramirez, who really struggled in 2010, needs to have a better season after his OBP dipped below .300 in 2010. He still produces in terms of power, but the Cubs will need a line of .280/.350/.500 in order to contend.
Carlos Pena was brought in to hit behind Ramirez and provide some much needed left-handed power. ...
As a Reds supporter, I love talking to Cubs fans.
See, in Cincinnati, we’re used to losing. We’re familiar with the bruised, aching feeling that follows every season gone bad. We know all too well the dejection of finishing fifth or sixth in the division, with no realistic prospects of hope on the horizon.
Yet, no matter how low a team like the Reds sinks into the vacant, hollow abyss of obscurity, it helps to know that there are Cubs fans out there whose plight makes ours seem like a paddleboat ride down a chocolate river. I know a few guys like ...
I had previously thought that Cubs manager Mike Quade didn't possess a "mean streak." I'm not talking like a Chris Brown/Mel Gibson anti-Semitic streak. Hell, I'm not even talking about the visible anger shown by the young, African-American couple in the State Farm commercial.
I literally thought the "Q-Ball" didn't release his tension on water coolers or overweight Hispanic starters, but Carlos Silva trashed Quade's staff and got shipped out of town faster than a Jansport knapsack full of hate mail. With Silva gone, the Cubs have now freed themselves of all remnants of the ...
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