More of the Same

I haven't blogged the last two games, but you haven't missed anything if you missed the games. A tightly played 3-1 rare victory over the Pirates. The only games the Cubs are in any danger of winning are the ones where they get a good long outing from a starter and are able to use the tandem of Marshall and Marmol to finish it off. In this case though the serious baseball aspect of the game was just not there. Two homers by Soriano clinched the game but you knew that if they hadn't gotten them, it might have been another tough loss, which occurred the following day when they kept trying to knock home runs and swung at everything in a futile effort to break through against mediocre Pirates pitching. The inevitable defensive miscue, this time by Ramirez, sealed their fate.

The Cubs used to be a very patient team at the plate, especially in 2008, but it is clear they have lost that attitude beginning last year, but completely so this year. They swing at everything, especially with men on base, and the consequence is they don't get hits and they don't score runs and they don't get men on base.

Ron Santo made an interesting comment about Carlos Zambrano on the national coverage of Saturday's game against the White Sox. Basically, he observed that you could just tell that Z had lost confidence in himself by the way he carried himself on the mound. The same applies to the entire team. When they come up with men in scoring position, for example, it seems as if they bat with the idea that they are in trouble, that they are under pressure, not the pitcher.

The question you have to ask is why this is the case. Some people think it is the old Cubs curse, or just the notion that things always seem to go wrong for this franchise and that there is a buildup of collective pressure each year. There is something to this, but usually these mass chokes happen in the playoffs. They have been able to put together winning seasons when they play solid ball, and quite recently in fact with the same core players. So what is the answer?

Buzz Bissinger, who I must confess I have never heard of until today, has some interesting posts on Lou Piniella, really Twitter comments. The gist of his tweets is that Lou Piniella is a lazy, incompetent, obnoxious blockhead well past his prime as a manager, sentiments with which I and anybody who has watched this team will, if they are honest with themselves, share.

I think most people will have had the experience of working with such a boss, especially a guy who just seems to sit around glowering at the world and blaming everyone else for the shortcomings of his unit. It is a poisonous atmosphere to live in and sooner or later it gets to you, especially when you come to the realization there is nothing you can really do about it. That's got to be part of the problem here, and is one, just one, of the reasons Piniella must go.

Yesterday, after the game, Piniella came out and said basically that the game that had just ended was a microcosm of the season. It sure was, and so was Lou's commentary. That's the sad part, and Lou doesn't seem to realize it, and why this arrogant bully has got to go. Just coming out and saying your team stinks, but it's not your fault, doesn't really cut it, does it, and it doesn't explain anything at all besides demonstrating you haven't got a clue.

I'm writing this post while watching today's game. It's the 5th inning. It took the Reds rookie, Wood, six pitches to retire the side. He is making his first major league start and has the reputation of being a little wild. The wind is blowing in, but that has not stopped the Cubs from swinging for the fences on the first pitch all day long. Well, anyway, Dusty's boys are hackers too, so at least it will be a fast game. I cannot imagine the possibility of this team scoring a run today.