Baseball Musings
Baseball Musings
October 05, 2008
Lovable No More

The Cubs choked. This wasn't a typical Cubs bizarre defeat. There was no unprecedented come back, no fan knocking the ball away. It wasn't even a hard fought set of games in which luck just went the other way. The Cubs simply stunk in a series in which they should have dominated.

The Dodgers out-walked the Cubs 14-6. During the regular season, the Cubs drew 636 walks, the most in the NL, while the Dodgers took just 543. good for tenth. I was fairly unconvinced about the Cubs early in the season, but their walk rate turned me around. This was a selective team that worked the counts and was willing to lay off pitches they couldn't hit. That put them on base more, and had the side effect of improving their hitting as well. Getting better pitches, their BA went up seven points versus 2007, and their slugging percentage rose 21 points. Chicago did everything well on offense.

Then, for three games, they threw the playbook out the window. They flailed at first pitches and reached for balls in the dirt. Instead of working the count, they let the count work them. Even during the regular season, the when the Cubs hit poorly against the Dodgers, they still drew three walks a game.

The pitching also kept them in those regular season games, in which the Dodgers hit even worse. Los Angeles changed, however. Not only did the Dodgers add Manny's big bat, but they finally decide to play the youngsters. Kent, and Pierre barely touched a bat in the series, while Jones and Garciaparra were not seen at all. This was a better hitting team.

Still, the Cubs put three aces on the hill against them! Dempster and Harden were lights on. Zambrano was hurt more by his defense than his own pitching, but didn't exactly shut down the Dodgers either. Everyone on that team was hittable.

So the best squad in the National League, maybe the best team in baseball doesn't hit well, doesn't pitch well, doesn't field well and gets swept by a Los Angeles team that barely finished over .500. What is so lovable about these losers? There are no excuses this time:

  • This was an experienced playoff team.
  • There were no major injuries.
  • The manager won a World Series and guided a 116 win team in his career.
  • They cruised to the best record in the league, so had plenty of time to prepare and rest players for the series.
  • They were a great home field team with the home field advantage.

Will people still swarm to Wrigley to watch this team? The Cub Reporter:

You follow a baseball team for six months, 161 games, and just about every play of every inning and then they go and just tear your heart out. The one time you really needed them, the one thing you ever wanted out of this relationship and they can't even be bothered to show up. For six months they were the best girlfriend a guy could imagine - not only did you have that special spark with them, but they had all the fundamentals as well. They were the kind of girl that you needed more than she needed you, but still would bring you lasagna at work...just because it was a Wednesday.

And then it's the big weekend corporate retreat with your promotion on the line and she ends up forgetting to take her anti-depressants and sleeps with your boss.

Bleed Cubbie Blue:

Eventually, I will post a recap of this utter disaster, but it may take me a day or so. Until then, I want this post to stand alone on the front page as a monument to the worst performance I have seen in 45 years as a Cubs fan.

Exactly. There was nothing redeeming about this loss, no wait until next year moment. On the 100th anniversary of their last championship, the Cubs teased their fans with greatness, only to go down without a fight. This was Foreman-Frazier, except the Cubs got knocked down just three times.

No gimicks can erase this series.

The only good thing that might come out of this loss is a conviction that Alfonso Soriano should not bat leadoff.


Posted by David Pinto at 09:28 AM | Team Evaluation | TrackBack (0)
Comments

Just another reminder that the postseason is a crapshoot. The team with the best record and run diff in the NL crashed out 0-3 to the team with the worst record and run diff in the playoffs.

A dirty little secret: the 1927 Yankees twice lost three straight, too - to the A's and the Indians. If it had happened in a league division series - yes, I'm imagining a hypothetical series, of course - they probably wouldn't be remembered as the greatest of all time.

Posted by: Casey Abell at October 6, 2008 09:33 AM
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