Well the Cubs are doing the same old thing, winning a few games in a row and then going on a three or four game losing streak. Right now they have won a couple games over the Rockies but have a couple of tough games against the Phillies in Philadelphia so anything could happen there.
Who would have thought Carlos Silva would be 5-0 to start the season? Definitely not me as I wasn’t even counting on Silva being a contributor to this team after coming over from the Mariners. I will give Silva credit though as he does have a 3.35 ERA go go along with that 5-0 record.
Tyler Colvin needs to get more playing time. I don’t care if it is in left field or in right field this kid can hit the ball and needs to be in the lineup.
Starlin Castro had some growing pains the first week in the big leagues especially on defense but since then those quick five errors the kid as really settled down and is playing great. Castro currently leads the team with a .350 batting average (only 40 at bats) and has five walks compared to three strikeouts. The kid simply puts the ball in play and makes something happen.
Carlos Zambrano is headed back into the rotation. Big Z pitched the ninth inning on Tuesday night against the Rockies but look for him to be back in the rotation as soon as he can get his arm stretched out and prepared to be a starter once again. The setup man role did not fit Zambrano well but I give him credit for going to the pen and giving it a try.
Aramis Ramirez still isn’t hitting the ball on a constant basis.
The Cubs remain 5.5 games out of first place heading into the Wednesday night game in Philadelphia. They do have a huge upcoming series against the Cardinals at home and that series could be the make or break point in the first half in my opinion. Win that series and pick up a few games on the Cardinals and the Cubs will be right there in the thick of things.
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Starlin Castro has received that call that every minor league ball player hopes for letting them know that they have been called up to the Major Leagues. The question I have to ask is this; Are the Cubs rushing Castro to the big leagues due to the slumps they have been going through? My answer is yes, they are in a win now mentality and will do pretty much anything to get back into contention.
Chad Tracy was optioned to Triple-A Iowa to make room for Starlin on the big league roster.
Castro has been lighting it up at the double-a level where has hit .376 with one home run and 20 RBI. Look for Ryan Theriot to move over to the 2nd base positon while Mike Fontenot and Jeff Baker will keep the bench warm.
Many of us Cubs fans expected Castro to get the call this year but this is a lot earlier than most of us though. I just hope he isn’t being rushed by the management just like they did with Felix Pie and Corey Patterson. Those couldn’t miss prospects didn’t turn out good for the Cubs. Let’s all hope Castro doesn’t fall into that mold.
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Wow, after my last blog post of the Cubs offense sucking and the bullpen not doing a good job things have turned around for the club. After coming back and taking the final three games of a four game set against the Diamondbacks, the Cubs find themselves 7-3 in their last ten to match the St. Louis Cardinals and remain 4.5 games out of first place in the division.
What is it with this team? They will play three or four games and just hit the ball like crazy. (See Alfonso Soriano) and then they will play a couple of down right terrible games and not even make contact. Is it the early season games? Shouldn’t everyone be locked in and seeing the ball well? I don’t know but this next week of games could tell us a lot about this team.
The guys will head to Pittsburgh starting Tuesday night and then will take on the Reds in a weekend series. All six of those games should be wins for the club. Look for the team to get off on the right foot against the Pirates as Ryan Dempster will take the mound. I expect Dempster to have a quality outing and hopefully the offense stays hot and smacks around the Pirates pitching staff.
One guy that still needs to start hitting the ball is Aramis Ramirez. A-Ram is currently batting just 1.55 and will have two full days off before the game on Tuesday night. I don’t care what people say, Aramis needed more at bats during Spring Training. If you are going to the plate trying to hit 4-run home runs with no one on base your head isn’t in the game and you should probably just be on the bench.
The Cubs need to go on a nice run this week and move within a few games of the Cardinals. They can’t get down by 7-8 games as it will be hard to battle back against the Red Birds who look to be very strong this year.
It all starts Tuesday night with Dempster on the mound…
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In a surprising move Wednesday, Lou Piniella announced that Carlos Zambrano was moving to the Cubs bullpen and would be available Friday when the Cubs take on the Brewers in Milwaukee. This is move caught a lot of people off guard as you just don’t see a team move their so called “ace” to the bullpen after just three starts in a season.
“I talked to Carlos [Zambrano] today and told him we really needed him in the bullpen, and that we felt he could do a nice job for us,” Piniella said. “He said he’d do what’s best for the team. I’m very appreciative. He talked about maturing [this year]. This proves it to me.”
“Lou called me into the office today and asked me if I wanted to go to the bullpen and help this team in the seventh and eighth innings,” Zambrano said. “I said, ‘Whatever you want me to do, I’m here for this team and I’m here to help this team. If you want me to go to the bullpen, I’ll go. If you want to keep me in the rotation, I will.’”
They say the move is temporary but who knows how long that means. It could be for a few games or it could be for six weeks. It all depends on how well Z can throw the ball as the setup man and if the starters can continue to throw the ball good and go deep in games. Carlos Silva did just that Wednesday night and the Cubs offense came out of no where to beat the Mets 9-3.
So right now the Cubs has a setup man that has not pitched in the bullpen since 2002 and is also earning $18 million dollars this year. I just hope this move doesn’t mess with Zambrano’s head any more. Can this guy stay calm and enter the game with a couple of runners on base and one or two outs and get out of the jam? For some reason I don’t know if he can get his control issues under control that quick. It could turn out ugly…
