Random Thoughts

• Whose side is Dale Sveum on?  Last night, the Cubs claw back to within one run of the Reds in the top of the eighth.  Granted that Chapman is warming up for the save, but, come on, Sveum leaves Rondon in to give up two more runs when he has Fujikawa, Marmol, and Gregg available.  Almost a reprise of Tuesday's loss when Sveum went to the scrubs instead of major leaguers after Garza' brilliant start.

• Sveum and the Cubs are baffled by their apparent inability to perform against left-handed pitching.  This has been a perennial problem for the Cubs.  Even guys who are acquired because they kill lefties, viz., Scott Hairston, stink in this regard.  A few years ago, during the Piniella era, it was revealed the Cubs had no left-handed batting practice pitcher, so they never took BP against lefties.  It appears they now have a left-handed BP pitcher, but they don't feel comfortable with that routine.  Sveum says things like, well, you know, they have a routine, and so on.  OK, they have a routine and a comfort level, but it doesn't work, so maybe they should change their routine or else they don't play.  When Castro was questioned about how badly he was hitting against lefties, he said he had the same approach to hitting against everyone, that he doesn't change his approach, and he does not intend to change it.  That's why he is having a bad year.  Ultimately, these things are not just player issues, they are management issues and management needs to be judged at least equally responsible for failure and lack of progress.

•  I happened to be listening to the early part of the broadcast yesterday.  Len and JD discussed the fact that the Reds had nearly ninety more walks than the Cubs thus far in the season.  That's more than two more men on base per game.  So it is no wonder these guys do not score runs.  The Reds have scored 232 runs to the Cubs 183.  They have 15 more hits thus far.  The difference is in the walks.  As a general rule, teams can expect to score about a third of their base-runners.  So if you consistently have numbers like this, you are going to average around 600 runs a year.  Winning teams score 800 times.  As long as the Cubs recruit and obtain and nurture brainless, impatient hitters, they will continue to lose.

•  If I remember correctly, the Cubs hit the skids around this time last year and then everybody was OK with trading away any veteran talent that might fetch even a minimal return.  There is already a drumbeat to trade Garza and Feldman and DeJesus and just about anyone who is perceived to have value in exchange for low-level prospects.  The Cubs should make some trades, but so far their strategy is just non-productive.  Last year they traded Maholm, Dempster, and Johnson at the deadline in return, essentially, for Aroldys Vizcaino and several marginal low-level prospects.  Trading Dempster was justifiable. He was an aging free agent whom the Cubs were unlikely to sign at a reasonable price.  Trading Johnson was relatively meaningless, though it should be noted that his replacement, Hairston, acquired as a free agent, is a complete bust.  Trading Maholm, a solid pitcher with four or five more seasons in his future and who is performing well for the Braves, was a mistake.  They just had to replace him with similar free agents in the off-season and received no immediate return (Vizcaino).

• The Cubs off-season moves have not been earth-shattering either, though they have added useful talent.  The biggest trades were Marshall for Wood and Cashner for Rizzo, trades that gave up talent for equivalent or more useful talent.  I've got no problem with these deals.  Nor do I really have issues with the mid-level free agents.  By and large they have been useful additions, especially the pitchers.  Their one major foray, Earnest Jackson, is so far a bust.

• The Cubs should either trade Castro while he still has perceived value or send him to the minors until he starts focusing.  I know this is controversial and it is a cardinal tenet of Cubs fans belief that Castro is a major talent, but this just isn't the case at all.  Castro may have all the talent in the world, but he has actually regressed since he was promoted to the majors.