Baseball Musings
Baseball Musings
April 24, 2007
Rocky Finish

There was a comment last night asking what happened to all the great nicknames. Well, Rocky Cherry debuted for the Cubs last night. Unfortunately for nickname afficinados, his parents named him Rocky.

And his first appearance ended up more rocky than cherry. Prince Fielder homered to put the Brewers up 5-4 in the top of the twelfth inning, and Cherry took the loss. All four balls in play against Rocky were in the air, something that won't help him when the wind is blowing out of Wrigley.

The good news for the Cubs is that Carlos Zambrano pitched better. He only went 5 1/3 innings, but struck out seven.

The Brewers sit atop the NL Central at 12-7. They're the only team in that division over .500. However, they've only outscored their opponents by four runs so far. The last place Cubs, however outscored their opponents by 10! Based on run differential, the Cubs should be in first place in the division. Close games tell the story. The Brewers are 5-2 in one run games, the Cubs 0-5.


Posted by David Pinto at 07:22 AM | Pitchers | TrackBack (0)
Comments

Sometimes, being lucky is better than being good.

Posted by: Al at April 24, 2007 01:22 PM

Early run diffs are fun to play with - well, if you like sabermetric fun. Of course, the diffs can swing because of just a couple big wins or losses, but big wins or losses are telling at any point in the season.

In the NL Central it's no surpise that the Pirates are sinking fast with a -18 run diff. They're a bad team that's not getting any better. So far, the Brewers and Cubs deserve credit for real improvement over last year's horrendous diffs. Unfortunately, as many have noted, the Cubs are not famous for good luck.

The Cards are the real surprise with a worrisome -12 diff. They only won 83 games last year with a nearly breakeven diff. The early exit polls don't look good for 2007, with a couple of improving teams in the division.

The Reds and Astros are muddling along at -9 and -3, respectively. Houston was around breakeven last year, and Berkman's early slump has prevented any improvement this year. But Berkman won't slump forever, so Houston might have better days ahead. The Reds' pitching has really been okay so far, considering their park. But, again considering their park, the team is not scoring enough runs.

Posted by: Casey Abell at April 24, 2007 02:48 PM

My actuarial conscience forces me to confess that the Reds' run diff is actually -11. It's still the offense's fault, with a 13th-ranked OPS in the NL. Conine and Hamilton are the only guys above .900 and they've been part-timers. Thoiugh I imagine that Hamilton will soon be playing all the time if he maintains anything like his current 1.150. Dunn's at .867, and nobody else cracks .800.

Which won't work at Great American.

Posted by: Casey Abell at April 24, 2007 03:23 PM
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