LATEST TEAM INFO (by Jeff Brown): 14-27, Fifth in National League Central.
Three weeks ago, May 2nd looked like a turning point for the Chicago Cubs as they won five-of-six games to turn around a pitiful month of April.
What wasn't known at that time was that "turning point" was actually a U-turn. Sunday's extra-inning 5-4 victory at Milwaukee ended a horrid nine-game losing streak that saw the Cubs shut out once and held to one run twice while averaging just 2.5 runs per game over the last 10 games.
Sammy Sosa (.324), who ended an 0-for-10 streak Sunday and hasn't had an RBI in the previous 10 games, and Patterson (.322) are the offense for the Cubs. The offense is SO bad, that Jon Lieber is the team's third leading hitter (.278) over 12 other position players.
In addition to that, after a great April by the starting pitching staff, Kerry Wood is the only starter with an ERA under 4.50 for the month of May as Lieber has joined Jason Bere, Matt Clement and Juan Cruz under the heading of undependable. Not to put even more pressure on him, but it will be good to see Mark Prior in the rotation this week.
Rotation:
Kerry Wood has been phenomenal through the month of May. Wood has gone 2-1 in four appearances with a 2.25 ERA and a WHIP of 0.86. After having great offensive support in his first two appearances of the month (14 runs), Wood has only received five runs to back his steady performances in his last two appearances.
Jon Lieber, who was amazing in April, with a 1.73 ERA and .87 WHIP, has struggled mightily in May, as his ERA has ballooned to 5.00, as did his WHIP (1.30). After a strong outing on May 1st resulted in a loss, Lieber allowed 11 hits and five ER in seven IP in a no-decision. Lieber followed that with another five-ER outing, this time in six innings on eight hits and a walk as he earned the loss. The righthander did bounce back somewhat on Saturday, allowing one earned run on eight hits in six IP, but two unearned runs, and no offensive support, has saddled Lieber with three losses in four appearances this month.
Matt Clement bounced back from the bruised bicep to notch a fine good 1.19 WHIP, but a 4.50 ERA. After a no-decision at Los Angeles when the injury knocked him out of the game, Clement's next performance was a struggle, as he allowed four runs on five hits and four walks in six IP in another no-decision. Clement picked up a loss in last start, having gone six innings and allowed six hits, three walks and four runs.
Jason Bere has looked just pitiful this month as he has chalked up three losses in three appearances, posting a 1.78 WHIP and a 6.06 ERA, while the stress is showing on the face, and in the performance, of young Juan Cruz , as he ran up a 2.21 WHIP and a 7.71 ERA.
Bullpen:
The story's not much better in the bullpen. Antonio Alfonseca has pitched well all season. He has made six appearances this month, but only one in a save situation, posting a 1.20 WHIP and a 1.35 ERA.
Joe Borowski continues to pitch strong, with a win, loss and a hold, a 0.92 WHIP and 1.50 ERA in nine May appearances. Even Jeff Fassero has shown some life. He was 0-1 with a hold in eight appearances while holding his ratio down to 0.50 and ERA to 1.12.
But it's the trio of Ron Mahay, Pat Mahomes and Scott Chiasson and has proven deadly for the bullpen this month. The trio is 0-2 in 13 appearances with a 12.02 ERA and a 1.50 WHIP.
Infield:
Offensively, the infield, as a whole, has stunk it up this month, hitting a combined .131 for the month of May. The best the infield can do -- Fred McGriff, .233 BA, 3 HR and a nice 14 RBI. Bobby Hill has been up about 10 days, but is not over the Mendoza line yet. The hit leader of the infield in April, Alex Gonzalez, is on the DL with a pulled hamstring. It's just bad.
Outfield:
Corey Patterson has proven to be the Cubs' most consistent player so far this season. Patterson has hit .306 for the month and is still perfect on the basepaths (10-for-10 on the year)
Sammy Sosa had increased his BA from .297 to .345 on the road trip out west at the first of the month, but his average has dipped to .324 over the last two weeks. He also not only had a home run since May 10th, he hasn't driven in a run, either.
And Moises Alou hasn't gotten started, having hit .175 for the month, with just 1 HR and four RBI.
INJURIES (Jeff Brown):
Tom Gordon, Todd Hundley and Kyle Farnsworth -- Nothing new. All three are still in rehab in Arizona.
Alex Gonzalez -- On the 15-day DL (retroactive to May 10th) with a hamstring pull.
LOCAL PERSPECTIVE (Jacob De Young) :
Cubs slowly look as if they are going to give their young kids a shot.
There has been a lot of talk about dumping Don Baylor. He has a reputation of being bad with young players (lately with former Cub starter Ruben Quevedo and current OF Corey Patterson). Names such as Buck Showalter have been mentioned.
Mark Prior is set to start on Wednesday the 22nd. He will help you in K's and WHIP, but won't get much else.
There have been a lot of trade rumors going around. Some involve players such as Scott Rolen and many catchers. The rumor that makes the most since to me is Javy Lopez for a few Minor Leaguers. Although Javy isn't young he is a proven catcher which the Cubs need, but most importantly can handle young pitchers. The Cubs have plenty of young starters and Todd Hundley won't do a good job and Joe Girardi won't be around much longer. Also, from what I hear, the Braves are very high on Henry Blanco so this is a trade that could happen.
ON THE FARM (Jacob De Young):
Class AAA Iowa
Hee Seop Choi (1B) - He leads the team with 9 homers and 29 RBI. He isthe only one of the 'big 3' (Prior, Hill, and Choi) left in the Minors. And if the Cubs keep losing he'll be up sooner than later.
Chris Gissel (SP)- He is a strikeout pitcher. He leads the club with 49 K's. His ERA isn't too hot, but with the revolving door that is the Cub bullpen he may get a call up. He will be looked at for long/middle releif. You could possibly get a few holds from him.
Ivanon Coffie (SS)- He isn't a power hitter. But if given the chance could help out with a decent batting average. If Delino DeSheilds gets hurt, Coffie could get the callup.
Class AA West Tennessee
Dave Kelton (3B/1B) - He was experimented with at 1B. This will eventually probably be a permanent move. He has made a few errors but his offense has kept up. It's looking like the organization will have to choose between Kelton and Choi. Can you say Grace or Palmeiro?
Nic Jackson (OF) - The center fielder is hitting with 3 homers and 20 RBI. He looks to be the next Cub left fielder (if they don't move Patterson to left). He has put up good stolen base numbers with 8 on the year. He is still a year or two away, but when he does come up expect a Patterson-like slump for a year or two.
Ryan Gripp (3B) - Ryan is as proven a run producer as anybody in the Cubs’ minor league system. He is only hittin a measly .220 this year. But he is part of the reason Kelton might move to 1B. Give him a couple years and a chance and he could become one of the better Cub players.
QUICK VIEW (Jeff Brown):
HOT:
Kerry Wood
Corey Patterson
NOT:
The rest of the offense
The rest of the pitching staff
LATEST TEAM INFO (by Jeff Brown): 13-18, Fifth in National League Central.
Though the record hardly shows it, improvement abounds for the Chicago Cubs recently. Mark the date, May 2, as the beginning of the new season.
The Cubs, at their lowest point of the season, at 8-17, saw their season begin to change in this final game of their three-game stint in San Diego. Not only did Chicago end a five-game losing streak, and a 3-10 run, with a 6-1 victory over the Padres that day, it sparked a string of five wins in six games that saw not only a spark from the Cub bats, but a blend of solid pitching with solid hitting and defense. The culmination came May 6th and 7th - first, in the Cubs' second one-run victory in 11 tries, as Alex Gonzalez's walk-off home run with one out in the ninth gave the Northsiders a 6-5 win over St. Louis, and second, in Kerry Wood's complete-game four-hitter as Gonzalez's bases-loaded triple sparked the Cubs to a 8-0 victory over the Cards.
During this six-game run, the Cubs have hit at a .265 clip, up from their .254 BA for the first three weeks of the season, while the Cub pitching staff held its opponents to a .236 BA. Also highlighting this six-game set is the combination of 17 innings of scoreless ball pitched by the Cub bullpen, and, after a rash of errors marred the first month of the season, the defense committed only four errors in six games, which resulted in just one unearned run.
Rotation:
The make-up of the Cubs' rotation for the next few months (barring injury) is becoming a bit more clear.
Juan Cruz still can't shake that monkey off his back, as he is the owner of an 0-5 record. After a run of hard-luck performances, the strain appeared to begin to take its toll on the young righthander in his last performance. For the first time, on May 3rd, Cruz had a poor outing - not horrendous, but it's the one nick in the rotation's armor that Mark Prior watchers are pining for. Cruz allowed seven hits, two walks and three runs in a five-inning stint at Los Angeles, a game that the Cubs' bats came to life late in the game for an 8-3 win and a no-decision for Cruz. Despite this set-back, Cruz still maintains a fine 2.81 ERA, but saw his WHIP raise a bit from 1.48 to 1.56. Chances are the 23-year-old will be moved into the bullpen once Prior arrives.
The other name mentioned in the rotation worries is Jason Bere, who lost his fourth game in five starts the next night. However, Bere did pitch well as it was an unearned run that made the difference. Bere scattered nine hits, but walked just one, and allowed two earned runs in five IP. But despite a 6.00 ERA and a 1.63 WHIP, the veteran would be the one most likely to retain his spot in the rotation.
Jon Lieber, surprisingly, is the Cubs' starter that has been the most unsteady of late. Lieber pitched eight innings May 1 against San Diego, having allowed only six hits and one walk, but allowed four runs in the 4-3 Cub loss. Then, on May 6th, Lieber allowed 11 hits (but no walks) and five runs in a seven-inning outing against the Cardinals that became a no decision. That win was, surprisingly the first in 16 Lieber starts for the Cubs at Wrigley Field. Despite the last two rough starts, Lieber has seen his ERA rise slightly to a very respectable 3.08 and his WHIP to 0.98.
Kerry Wood, who was shelled in his last Wrigley start, has sparked the Cubs' recent run. On April 26th, while the Cub bats were held to one hit by Odalis Perez, Wood allowed five hits and walked seven as he allowed five runs in a 5 1/3-inning stint in the 10-0 loss to the Dodgers. On May 2nd against the Padres, however, Wood regained his form, as he allowed just one run on three hits and three walks in six IP in the 6-1 victory. Wood followed that up with the four-hit gem May 7th in which he walked just two and struck out nine in the 115-pitch effort. Wood's ERA is a starting staff-leading 2.51, while his WHIP dropped to 1.33.
The Cubs had quite a scare on May 5 as Matt Clement took a 93-MPH Kevin Brown fastball off the inside bicep of his pitching arm, knocking him out of the game after four innings of no-hit ball against the Dodgers. While it wouldn't be a surprise if Clement missed his May 10th start, due to having a knot the size of a golf ball in his bicep, Clement has been quoted as saying regarding missing that next start, "Somebody would have to pull me off the mound, like they did (May 5th). I'm planning on going back out there. There's no other thought in my mind." That was the third straight no-decision for the Cub righthander, but he had improved his ERA to 3.34 and his WHIP to 1.17. As long as the huge bruise doesn't cause a problem, Clement should still remain a strong play
Bullpen:
The string of 17 scoreless innings by the Cubs' relievers is a prime reason the pitching staff's ERA has dropped from 4.47 to 3.60, while maintaining a consistent 1.31 WHIP.
Antonio Alfonseca has continued to pitch very well, having converted all five save opportunities while dropping almost two runs off his ERA (2.19) and lowering his WHIP (0.89).
Joe Borowski continues to be the star of the Cubs' middle relief. In 16 appearances, Borowski has picked up a win and a save, plus two holds, while lowering his miniscule ERA to 1.66 and maintaining a strong 1.11 WHIP.
Ron Mahay took Jesus Sanchez's roster spot when he was sent down to AAA and has responded by picking up two big wins in Los Angeles in his five appearances with a 0.52 WHIP and without allowing an earned run.
Carlos Zambrano (3.72 ERA, 1.55 WHIP) and Donovan Osborne (6.91, 1.74) have had their ups and downs, but it's Jeff Fassero (6.91, 1.53) that continues to plague the Cubs in the late innings. Although credited with the win May 5th, Fassero is the only reliever with two losses and a blown save.
Infield:
The "new addition" to the Cub infield was the return of third baseman Bill Mueller May 6th. He responded with a 2-for-4 night and his first home run of the season. Mueller's return solidifies the team's defense as well as provides a proven No. 2 hitter behind Corey Patterson.
Alex Gonzalez's bat had cooled off on the six-game road trip, but once the Cubs returned home, he responded with two extra-base hits and five RBI. His BA has dropped to .272, but if he keeps it above .270, the Cubs will be happy with that.
Mark Bellhorn has semi-unofficially been handed the second base job, with spot starts by Augie Ojeda and Delino Deshields. Bellhorn, who had been spending most of his time at third, has been hitting the ball well, hitting four HR and 12 RBI thus far in the season.
Fred McGriff's BA is still pitiful (.213), but the first baseman has added two HR and 10 RBI in the last two weeks, so hopefully the BA will come around.
Todd Hundley was placed on the DL when Mueller came off due to his thumb injury. Joe Girardi and Robert Machado's contributions are not those that help out in fantasy ball.
Outfield:
Moises Alou has finally seen day-to-day action in left field, but with a .158 BA, it hasn't been very effective action. He does have two HR and eight RBI.
Corey Patterson continues his upward ascent. That ascent matches the one he took up the batting order. Cubs manager Don Baylor wanted to keep the pressure off of the young centerfielder by starting the season with him in the eight hole. Soon, Patterson started blossoming in the No. 2 spot, and since moving to lead-off, Patterson has seen his batting average raise from .290 to .327. In the last two weeks, he has added three doubles, a triple and his first home run of the season, while still maintaining a perfect 7-for-7 mark in stolen base opportunities.
Sammy Sosa exploded on the west-coast road trip, as he usually does. His batting average rose from .297 to .345, and he hit seven of his 13 HR and drove in 11 of his 20 RBI in the last two weeks. Sosa even stole his first base since 2000.
INJURIES (Jeff Brown):
Tom Gordon - Nothing new. His rehab schedule has him looking for a June return to the Cubs.
Todd Hundley - On the DL as of May 6th. Will see a hand specialist on the 8th. It was also a convenient move for the Cubs as Mueller came of the DL on the same date.
Kyle Farnsworth - Farnsworth threw from flat ground May 6th for the first time since breaking the bone in his foot, throwing 30 times from up to 45 feet. Still no idea when he will start throwing from the mound, but it is still hopeful that he will make his return to the Cubs by the end of May.
Corey Patterson -- Missed a couple of games due to being hit square on the knee with a pitched ball, but has returned to the line-up. May slow his basestealing numbers a bit for a while.
RUMOR MILL (Jacob De Young) :
No trade rumors to speak of at the time. But if the Cubs stay out of the race don't be surprised if they try to trade veterans to get the young guys up (i.e. Hee Seop Choi instead of McGriff)
Don Baylor's head is being called for in the media. This actually may have a positive fantasy impact on your Cubs. Because the new manager will probably not change the line-up as much. It won't affect Prior and Hill coming up as that was a management decision. Juan Cruz is having extra pressure with Prior's rise to AAA. This doesn't make much sense because Cruz (0-5) is pitching decent, but the Cub offense is terrible.
Late news: The rumor is that Baylor is increasingly disgusted by the performance of his catchers, and the Cubs are realizing the need for a healthy, veteran catcher. One team that could fit into the mix is Seattle, a team that is looking for starting pitching. For a Jason Bere/Matt Clement type, the Mariners may part with one of their catchers - Dan Wilson or Ben Davis. A few other names mentioned include Ivan Rodriguez, Brent Mayne and Sandy Alomar.
ON THE FARM (Jacob De Young):
Class AAA Iowa
Bobby Hill (2B)- He's the speedster 2nd basemen. He's hitting .197 for the Iowa Cubs. But is 13 for his last 45. This could slow his progression to the big club. Hill does have 6 stolen bases. Bobby will still probably be up before the end of the year, but don't expect great stats right away.
Hee Seop Choi (1B)- The slugging 1st basemen is tied for the team lead with 5 homers. He also has a very respectable 17 RBI's, but again a less than impressive .247 batting average. Rumor has it McGriff will be traded (although I don't know why anyone would want him) and if that happens Hee Seop will put up good enough numbers to warrant a back-up role in deep leagues or NL only leagues.
Jayson Bass (OF)- He's not what you would call a young prospect at 28. But his 5 homers and .316 average deserve mention. He has also hit in 10 of the last 12 games. Not a big deal, but he may be called up since Moises Alou is made of paper.
Mark Prior (SP)- In AA there are a few hot prospects. One of them goes by the name of Prior. He has just been called up to AAA. He took the no decision in his last outing. This keeps his record at 4-1. He has a 2.22 ERA. If you think it's wise reserving your #1 waiver spot for him isn't a terrible idea. He will be up in the bigs by June or July at the latest barring any kind of injury.
Late News: In his first AAA start at Iowa, Prior allowed just three hits, two walks and one unearned run while striking out 10 in 7.2 IP May 7th as the Iowa Cubs defeated Tucson, 6-1. To add to his stellar night on the mound, Prior also hit two home runs to help his cause.
Class AA West Tennessee
Dave Kelton (3B)- Is doing pretty good with 3 homers and 13 RBI on the young season. You probably will only see him in AA/AAA this year, but next year take a chance on him towards the end of a keeper league draft.
QUICK VIEW (Jeff Brown):
Add:
Matt Clement - Be wary of his next start, but he's still a strong play.
Corey Patterson - Is blossoming in the lead-off role. Once the bruise on his knee is no longer a factor, watch out!
Joe Borowski and Ron Mahay - If your league has holds or favors having a good middle relief guy on your team, these two are pitching very well.
Bill Mueller - Off the DL. Hit well on rehab assignment and hit a homer his first game back with the Cubs.
Hold:
Jason Bere, Jon Lieber, Kerry Wood, Mark Bellhorn, Alex Gonzalez, Fred McGriff, Sammy Sosa, Moises Alou, Antonio Alfonseca.
Drop:
Jesus Sanchez - In AAA.
Joe Girardi - Hitting way below his weight.
Jose Cruz - Despite pitching well, will be the odd-man out of the rotation soon.
Jeff Fassero - You still don't want him anywhere near your starting line-up.
Todd Hundley - On the DL.
Kevin Farnsworth - On the DL.
Delino DeShields and Chris Stynes - Odd men out with the return of Mueller.
