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The Nats look to go up two games to none.
So two of the best pitchers in baseball matched up against each other in Game 1.
One of them threw 112 (!) pitches in five innings and seemed to struggle with every pitch.
The other allowed five runs in a game for the first time since May.
Because baseball!
And if things keep up the way they started in Game 1, Juan Soto is going to be World Series MVP. If so, it’ll be a nice birthday present. The Nats left...
Harry Steinfeldt at West Side Grounds in 1908 | Photo by Chicago History Museum/Getty Images
The Cubs got two key pieces of their great 1906-10 teams through shrewd trades at the end of 1905.
Normally, this series will examine trades one at a time. However, in the runup to the 1906 campaign, the Cubs made two colossal trades that deserve to be looked at together. I trust the logic will be apparent. These two linked trades put the Cubs in position to be the National League's top squad for...
Kris Bryant’s longstanding service time saga could be nearing its conclusion. MLB will address Bryant’s 2015 grievance at some point this week, reports David Kaplan of NBC Sports (via Twitter). Bryant’s grievance concerns the date of his MLB call-up: April 17, 2015, one day after the date at which he would have accrued a full year of big-league service. In other words, had the Cubs called Bryant up on April 16 or any day before, he would be scheduled to hit free agency after 2020....
Photo by Nuccio DiNuzzo/Getty Images
Kris Bryant’s performance in spring training 2015 was certainly good enough to make the team. He hit .425/.477/1.175 (1.652 OPS, 17-for-40) with nine home runs (and a 10th homer in a “B” game).
There was little justification for sending him to Triple-A Iowa, but the Cubs did it anyway, saying Bryant needed to work on his defense.
Bryant played seven games at Iowa before Mike Olt (remember him?), the Opening Day third baseman, suffered what was...
Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images
Reports from multiple sources indicate he’s been hired.
UPDATE: Looks like Ross will be the guy. More to come when it’s made official by the team.
Cubs made their decision late yesterday afternoon and the other candidates have been informed they are indeed out. David Ross is the choice. @ESPNChiCubs joins me at 9:25 on @ESPN1000. Story coming on @NBCSChicago and the MyTeams app.
— David Kaplan (@thekapman) October 23, 2019Now, here’s the...
Congratulations, David Ross . You are now tasked with following in the footsteps of the manager who led the Chicago Cubs to their first World Series title since 1908. No pressure...
Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images
The plot thickens.
Earlier this week, Astros bench coach Joe Espada was brought back to Chicago for a second interview for the Cubs’ vacant managerial position. Many thought that might mean Espada was the “favorite” (as if this is a horse race, which it’s not) to be named Cubs manager.
Not so fast!
Not as formally announced as Espada, but David Ross is said to have also had a second interview with the #Cubs. Given his position with the team,...
Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images
The World Series starts and it’s a pitching matchup for the ages. More reaction to the Astros’ scandal.
Congratulations to the Washington Nationals on winning the first World Series game in franchise history and the first for the city since the Senators beating the New York Giants in Game 3 of the 1933 World Series.
Many articles today will refer to the behavior of Astros assistant general manager Brandon Taubman. If you need to know what happened,...
Curse you, Snoopy!
Coombs beats Cubs, Billy to Oakland, Red Baron wins the Cy, and other stories
... on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, Bleed Cubbie Blue brings a you a wildly popular Cubs-centric look at baseball’s past. Here’s a handy Cubs timeline, to help you follow along as we review select scenes from the rich tapestry of Chicago Cubs and Major League Baseball history. The embedded links often point to articles that pertain to the scenes, such as reproductions of period...
The Cubs, in the wake of a 2019 showing that can’t be classified as much other than a brutal disappointment, are now facing several fascinating offseason questions. Among them: Which person should they choose to succeed ousted championship manager Joe Maddon? Should they shop Kris Bryant or any other stars? Should they make a serious effort to re-sign soon-to-be free agent Nicholas Castellanos? There may not be an obvious answer to any of those questions, but there is in regards to the...
Photo by Juan DeLeon/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
The Fall Classic begins tonight!
If you haven’t yet read Sara Sanchez’ guide to watching the World Series, go check it out.
There’s also a World Series guide by Tyler Kepner of the New York Times, which includes this:
The Astros are just the sixth franchise to string together three consecutive seasons with at least 100 victories, joining the Yankees (2002-04), the Braves (1997-99), the Orioles (1969-71), the Cardinals (1942-44)...
Minute Maid Park, home of the Houston Astros | Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images
The A.L. champions are really bad at media and public relations.
This story is something I don’t think anyone could make up. The Houston Astros had just won the American League pennant Saturday night. And during the chaotic scene in the clubhouse, Astros assistant general manager Brandon Taubman did something jaw-dropping. It was written up by Sports Illustrated reporter Stephanie Apstein:
More than an hour...
Altuve walks off the ALCS in game six | Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
Some thoughts on stats, superstitions and sharks
It’s here at last, the World Series begins in Houston tonight at 7 p.m. Central on Fox. The Astros were kind enough to take care of the Yankees and the Nationals have already gone above and beyond by ending both the Brewers and the Cardinals postseason hopes and dreams. We’ve averted the dreaded hate series, so all that’s left to do is watch two outstanding teams...
Getty Images
The Cubs needed to play catch-up. A lot. They still do.
In a recent article on player development, BCB reader Pretzel City asked what has changed in the Cubs draft preferences recently. Just below that, another poster wondered why Theo Epstein didn't start doing in 2011 what he's talking about doing now. The two dovetail only somewhat awkwardly into a recent history of the Cubs pipeline.
To start the process, a look to the state of the pipeline in late 2011 is about...
Photo by Patrick Gorski/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
It was a celebration 71 years in the making.
The 2019 World Series begins tonight, with the Nationals taking on the Astros in Houston. The Astros celebrated their trip to the World Series with a walkoff home run by Jose Altuve.
It was just three years ago tonight that a similar celebration happened in Wrigley Field, when the Cubs punched their ticket to the World Series with a 5-0 win over the Dodgers, winning the National League...
Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images
Cover boy, heart-warming painting, a new type of storm, and other bullets
So little news, so much time. So much quest for relevance in a world where the Cubs have fallen off the edge of the world, except for Javier Baez. I guess I’m going to have to ask Santa for a PS4.
The Cubs should by now have done so much reflecting that they can shave in the dark via persistence of vision. Here on the anniversary of the Cubs’ last pennant-winning game, it’s a...
Based on a number of requests, I am setting up this post for people looking for season ticket partners for 2020.
I’ve already heard that a number of people on the season-ticket waiting list have been contacted by the Cubs ticket office and told, among other things, that they might want to try to line up partners now in case they get the call for season tickets later.
So, here’s your post for searching for partners if you’ve received that call. Or, if you are someone looking to get...
Scott Effross | Larry Kave/Myrtle Beach Pelicans
Some positives and negatives as the AFL finishes their penultimate week.
It’s time for our regular Monday update on the Cubs prospects playing in the Arizona Fall League.
The Mesa Solar Sox, the AFL team that the Cubs share with the Angels, Athletics, Indians and Tigers were 2-4 over the past week. They lost their first four games and were shut out in two of them. They bounced back to win their final two games and Cubs prospects Riley...
Jon Durr-USA TODAY Sports
A look at the final standings for Heroes and Goats and other WPA data.
In 2014, Russ La Croix created Heroes and Goats. He ran this series for three seasons. I’ve now essentially matched that total, starting during the 2017 season. For those of you who have followed along for part or all of those six years, on behalf of Russ, Al Yellon and me, we’d like to thank you for reading. This is a quirky little series based around WPA. It is meant for fun. Due to some...
Four Winds Field, home of the South Bend Cubs | Al Yellon
Teams will lose more than they’ll gain if this proposal goes through.
The adage is to release bad news on Friday. By Monday, when the standard media cycle returns, most of the hostility will have simmered away. With the announcement by Major League Baseball of eliminating up to 42 affiliates over the next 24 months on a Friday, the adage was honored. My frustration lingers. Here is why I'm upset.
Imagine you're in an industry....