Doesn't anybody play hurt anymore?

While I believe it is prudent to shut down Zambrano for the year, when we are holding down last place in the NL, I think we should be questioning the way the Cubs routinely DL every player who has a hangnail. We started this year with a rotation of Wood/Prior/Maddux/Zambrano and Rusch. We are ending the year with the Iowa Cubs starting rotation.

We are going to finish the year with zero complete games. While I know the pitch count fetishists will approve of this, I can't help but thinking that the mindset of this organization is flawed when it comes to expecting players to play.

I am tired of the bizarre injuries. I am tired of Remlinger's rocking chair, Jones' tear duct, and multiple "oblique" strains. Did Bob Gibson or Nolan Ryan ever have a strained oblique?

I am tired of every time a Cubs pitcher has a hangnail, we bring up some slug from Des Moines to serve as a sacrificial lamb. I am tired of Johnnie Baker and Larry Rothschild trotting out 5 or 6 pichers every game. I want our highly paid players to play.

The Cubs should expect our players to play. Sometimes that means playing through an injury. This is a concept which has disappeared.

If we can't keep our players healthy, then fire the manager, the pitching coach, and the training staff.

Shut down the Des Moines-Chicago shuttle. Shut down the mentality that players will not be expected to play with some pain. I rejoice in the empty seats that have been apparent yesterday and today. In the final analysis, empty seats are the only thing that will catch the attention of the Tribune suits.

I am 42 years old, and have been a Cubs fan since the days of Kessinger/Beckert/Williams/ Hickman/Santo/Banks/Hundley/Phillips/Jenkins. Those players routinely played 150+ games a year.

I am not suggesting that we return to the good old days of these every day players. But I am also damn sick and tired of watching the Iowa Cubs play at Clark and Addison.