Dempster's Injury Could Force a Move
For a Canadian and die hard hockey fan you have to think that Ryan Dempster has jumped over the boards before. What happened here? Check out the young Cubs fan who sure found it funny before he knew Dempster was injured.
I know Dempster's injury was a freak thing but he has to be smarter than that knowing how important he is to the club. He was a 17 game winner a year ago and he is one of the leaders of this club off the field and to have him out really hamstrings the pitching staff.
If Hart is not able to adequately fill in then the next option is Sean Marshall which would leave the Cubs with exactly no left handed set up man to use in a key situation in the latter innings of a close ballgame.
The series that begins tomorrow at Wrigley Field between the Cubs and Cardinals will conclude the first half of the season. Prior to today's games a look at the NL Central standings finds them very jumbled with five teams within 3.5 games.
Also, the Cubs have played 5 less games than the Cardinals and 3 less than the Brewers at the conclusion of today's games. So while we all look at this Cubs team and think that they are playing bad baseball we do have to keep in mind that there is a ton of baseball left to be played and as of this morning the Cubs are 1 loss behind division leading St. Louis in the loss column.
I was amused to hear that Alfonso Soriano was upset at not knowing he was going to be rested again yesterday and only found out when he looked at the lineup card when it was posted in the clubhouse Wednesday morning.
Based on his horrific performance so far this season Soriano shouldn't be surprised when Lou Piniella sits him in favor of Jake Fox who is hitting much better in far more limited duty.
That said, it was a curious move by Piniella not to play him after he had 2 hits on Tuesday night and after having struggled so mightily for so long perhaps he was starting to feel a little more comfortable at the plate.
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4 Comments
spraytanfan said:
Yes, Dempster's injury is a freak thing and pretty stupid of him to do, but injuries happen. Frankly, I'd rather have him break his toe than hurt his shoulder or elbow.
The problem isn't that Dempster hurt himself, its that the current roster is inflexible, not because the current players aren't performing, but because there are players on the 40-man who serve no purpose.
Chad Fox: How many more times do we have to hear this loser's sob story? He is old and he can't pitch anymore. Hell, he's been old and unable to pitch from the day Hendry signed him. Why are those two the last two to realize this? I don't care about your personal story and how many times you've come back from injury. He has even referred to his own elbow as a "clouded mess" and said that at this point rehabbing and trying to come back could be hurting his quality of life. Release him.
David Patton: What a huge disappointment it would be if the Cubs were to release him and he went back to the Rockies. Oooh, they get their 25-year old Single A pitcher back with a plus 5 ERA. You know what they'll do with him? DFA his ass, that's what. And you know why? Cause they didn't care about him before and they sure as hell don't care about him now. On the other hand, they may want to keep in around for all those mop-up duty games they'll see in the second half. Remember, they have Jason Marquis, too? Let him get on with his life of being a sleepy career minor leaguer, and let us get back to watching a team that brings 25 major league players to the park every day. David Patton is not good. At baseball. That's a problem.
The answer is not putting Marshall into the rotation. Have you realized he hasn't given up a run in a month out of the pen? He can get righties and lefties out, and right now he is very valuable out of the bullpen. He's shown that he is sub-par as a starter and that he has finally gotten used to pitching in pressure situations on back-to-back days. He can make a great career for himself this way. So let him.
So ask him about the two above guys,Fox and Patton, Kap.
Or ask him to list the positives of signing Aaron Miles. Give him 60 seconds to answer that one, although he shouldn't need it. Then follow up with: but what if instead of Miles, we had just gone with 24 players on the active roster, sans Miles, and let Ronny Woo-Woo onto the field once a game to warm up Soriano before an inning?
spraytanfan said:
And you can save your pizza. Deep dish is for the Iowan standing outside your window with his jean shorts, Cubs jersey and disposable camera.
Jarrett said:
I like Dempster. I think he's a class act and he's been through a lot this season. I feel bad for what he has to go through with his daughter. Nobody deserves that.
However, he's a professional and he's paid big money. I know he's only human and accidents happen, but "Come On". Yes, this will hurt the Cubs, having a solid starter out for an extended period of time.
Its the story of the 2009 Chicago Cubs !! I know its early and many games to play, but the season is slowly, slip, slippin away !!
Curt from Naperville said:
Both ESPN.com and MLB.com are reporting that Kevin Hart has been sent back to Iowa, with a corresponding move to follow tomorrow. Too early to pick up B.J. Ryan, who was only released yesterday, so perhaps something else is going on.
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