ENOUGH!

by NittanyCub on Apr 15, 2007 4:14 PM CDT Comment 41 comments

I don't post here as often as my daily visits to this site(mostly in part of the NBA playoffs looming ahead, with the Bulls rocking house), but I can't help but notice the comments in the Game Threads for this 2007 season of baseball. And how ridiculous some of those comments has been.

I'm not one to put harsh criticism on the value of some comments, while looking at mine in retrospect, but there comes a point where constructive criticism to our beloved Cubs is one thing, and plain out saying phrases like "THIS TEAM IS HORRIBLE, 2006 ALL OVER AGAIN WHY AM I HERE CUBS SUCK!!1!" is another. And it seems to happen more and more from being 10 games into this season.

So, if I may offer my two cents, here goes: calm down. It's 10 games, stuff happens. Jones is gonna be craptastic from time to time, and Howry is gonna suck also. People start off slow(Soriano), but then again, they might reverse their patterns and start off hot(Ramirez). And hey, I'm pretty sure everyone likes to hear what could be done to make it better, or what happened that issued the L. But saying that they're worthless, sucky, crappy, and all the other vulgar words of the English language makes us Cubs fans look like freakin' idiots. Something I know we're not.

But that's only how I've been feeling. Maybe it's only been me, and I should go back into my semi-lurkingness of this site. Maybe I'm still mad that Briggs is still acting like a retard. I dunno.

All in all, it doesn't matter where the Cubs are in April, but where the Cubs are in September.

but most importantly..

LETS GO CUBS!

This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of SB Nation or Al Yellon, editor-in-chief (unless it's a FanPost posted by Al). FanPost opinions are valued expressions of opinion by passionate and knowledgeable baseball fans.

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Well stated. My thoughts exactly.

n/t

Go Cubs!

by Neifi Puppy on Apr 15, 2007 4:16 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Agreed (mostly)

While I'm pretty frustrated with this team, it does get kind of old to try and follow game threads where every other comment is "This team sucks" (of course, it's true, but that's besides the point).

On the other hand, I think it does serve some purpose. It's a good place for people to vent their frustration before they do something they regret, like yell at their pets, throw things across the living room, or, worst of all, root for the White Sox.

"Don't think; it can only hurt the ball club."

by Jesse Guam on Apr 15, 2007 4:27 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

that's why i do it.

i can't help. i see something stupid, get really mad, look for something to throw, and instead yell into the computer. it is stupid. when i played competitive golf, i used to break clubs over my knees a lot. maybe i should dust off the titleists.

I don't care about a world series, just be competitive thru September.

by buckmulligan on Apr 15, 2007 4:33 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Here's better

It's probably better to take your anger out here. Cheaper too.

"Don't think; it can only hurt the ball club."

by Jesse Guam on Apr 15, 2007 4:37 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

So how long

will Lou wait to make some changes? Does he go with the same results another week, 2 weeks a month? I have to say I'm disappointed in the play of some of our new aquires and some of our staples. Maybe it's just that this group has not jelled as a team yet.

If Soriano was promised by Hendry he would be the leadoff man can Lou change that or will Hendry fight him on that? Just wondering.

TheEman is jealous of my sigs.

by sue369 on Apr 15, 2007 4:41 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

How long does he wait?

I'd give it at least till the end of April. Keep in mind, as was pointed out elsewhere in this thread, that the team is without one of its best hitters, Aramis Ramirez.

If he's out for any length of time, then we are in trouble.

4-7 is bad, but no reason to panic. Last year's team was 7-4 after 11 games. Was that reason to celebrate?

"That's my opinion and if you don't like it, well, I have others." ~ Groucho Marx

by Al on Apr 15, 2007 4:52 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I'm optimistic Al.

Always have been and always will be. It's just the way I am. I was just wondering how long Lou will wait. He knows some changes need to be made if things son't improve but will he be allowed by Hendry to make those chnages?

TheEman is jealous of my sigs.

by sue369 on Apr 15, 2007 6:18 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I don't think...

... wholesale roster changes are necessary right now, do you?

But I think I'd give Murton a start or two, at the very least.

And don't you think the Cubs could have swept the series with a healthy Aramis Ramirez in the lineup?

"That's my opinion and if you don't like it, well, I have others." ~ Groucho Marx

by Al on Apr 15, 2007 6:44 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Every team has injuries

Good teams win anyway, especially when they have a 5-0 lead in the 5th in one game and when they only give up two hits in another. Ramirez or not, the Cubs should've swept.

by cubsbak on Apr 15, 2007 7:04 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I don't think

wholesale changes are needed and I would like to see if Murton could make a difference. He may or may not but we won't know unless he's given a chance. They definitely miss Ramirez. They need him back ASAP.

TheEman is jealous of my sigs.

by sue369 on Apr 15, 2007 7:07 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I somewhat agree...

but it really wears on me to watch this team make the exact same mistakes they made last year, this year. I'll say this, if we have Ramirez in the lineup today we do not lose 1-0. With ramirez in we have lee batting third and aram 4th instead of jones batting 3rd and lee 4th. Jones does not have much value to this team, he went up there and was going to swing at any type of pitch, end of story. Lee felt the pressure to deliver and took some questionable strikes from Lohse. I haven't completely lost all hope, I still believe the team should win every game but its very frustrating when the two supposed strengths of this team, the offense and bullpen, are costing us games this early. Theres no way that we shouldn't have been able to sweep the reds in this series but instead we lose 2 of 3, if there isnt some change in this teams approach next week we might very well be 6-12. All that aside, im hoping we win all of them

by CubsBall2202 on Apr 15, 2007 4:45 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

You know

this is why we all a difference of an opinion.
As stated prior, I have been around this Cub team for 37 years, solid, knowledgable fan.
This team is very similar to the rest. Does not hit with runners in scoring position, and gets dominated by 4 and 5 starters consistently. They have no patience at the plate, and there OBP is horrible.

I can count, Cubs are 4-7, after getting schooled by yes Kyle Loshe. If Loshe wins 8 games this year. I will walk from Delaware to Cinncinati and by him a beer.

As I mentioned in other posts, losing is habit forming. Until this team wins one run games, knocks in runs with two outs, and for heaven sakes SCORES with runners in scoring position with LESS THAN two outs, your looking at 77-85 team.

My patience is over, WIN GAMES. PERIOD. This my friend is getting old.

by Johnny Callison was a Cub on Apr 15, 2007 4:50 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

I couldnt agree more

The plate approach of this team right now is horrible. Every time were up it seems like the count is 0-1, 0-2, 1-2. Were swinging at balls and taking strikes and when we do get strikes to hit were not driving the ball. Reds take there only walk of the day today and turn it into a run. This is why we outhit teams and still lose, because we cant get guys on base with walks because we fail to work the count. This is why we desperatley need murton in the game to get on base, the kid knows how to hit

by CubsBall2202 on Apr 15, 2007 4:55 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Murton

I'm not understanding why Floyd is getting so much playing time this homestand. He doesn't seem to be on fire. Is it part of some devious Lou Piniella plan? If anybody has any ideas, please let me know.

by Rev Gunia on Apr 15, 2007 6:37 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Good question.

I'd like to know too.

TheEman is jealous of my sigs.

by sue369 on Apr 15, 2007 7:08 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Yeah, so would I.

Lou said they wouldn't platoon Floyd & Murton, but in fact, that's just about what has happened so far.

That's just wrong.

"That's my opinion and if you don't like it, well, I have others." ~ Groucho Marx

by Al on Apr 15, 2007 7:34 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Y eah, I'm replying to my own post

Another commenter in the Jaque Jones thread said that Floyd is playing because he's a lefty in a righty-dominated lineup. That's some good thinking. I'm frustrated by the move, but it's good thinking.

by Rev Gunia on Apr 16, 2007 2:24 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

All it took......

was 37 years?

RAMIREZ!! PRIOR!!

by PriorandAramisfan23 on Apr 15, 2007 4:52 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

I use to

have patience, a lot of it.

Air Traffic controller for 25, so I must have some sort of calm, but the Cubs wear me out.

by Johnny Callison was a Cub on Apr 15, 2007 6:09 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

theriot theriot theriot

he needs to be in the lineup daily! izturis is almost a for sure out 80% of the time! floyd was washed up 2 or 3 years ago. murton hit 300 last year and is only getting better. why in the hell is he on the (explicitives) bench! platooning sux!

Here comes the nasty leftie to shut it down in the 9th......Clay Rapada!!!!

by cubsluver22 on Apr 15, 2007 6:37 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

there is venting...

and then there was absolute craziness buy some of you posters today. Many reminded me of that video somebody made of the german kid banging on his keyboard. The subtitles were of him spewing obscenities at the off-season acquisitions, etc. Some of you know what I'm talking about.

Criticism is good but you really look silly typing what's going thru your heads EVERY SINGLE MINUTE!! I'm not totally innocent of venting now and then, but today was too much. It was worse than the actual game, and that's saying something.

I'd take a deep breath and think about how looney that really is.

by cashcowsquirtingsourmilk on Apr 15, 2007 6:57 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

bring pie up

move soriano over and start theriot at ss. theres my 2 pennies

by tbizzle83 on Apr 15, 2007 7:36 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

OK...

... elaborate. Soriano over to where, exactly? And then what do you do with Izturis? And who do you remove from the 25-man roster to put Pie on?

It's not just as easy as you say.

"That's my opinion and if you don't like it, well, I have others." ~ Groucho Marx

by Al on Apr 15, 2007 7:42 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

The Logical Choice

(assuming you do not make a trade).

Call up Pie, send down Murton (he has options left). Move Soriano to LF, play Pie in CF. Try to trade Jones so that eventually Murton can be recalled to play RF. Or, if Murton gets hot in AAA, try to trade him.

It was essentially pre-ordained when Soriano was signed that Murton had to move on. I don't agree with that decision, but now that it has been made, it is the only real option.

by frustratedfan on Apr 15, 2007 7:51 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Then what do you do with Floyd?

I mean, I would agree with you that he shouldn't be playing, that he shouldn't have been signed in the first place.

But he's here, and he's not going anywhere. What do you do with him in that scenario?

"That's my opinion and if you don't like it, well, I have others." ~ Groucho Marx

by Al on Apr 15, 2007 7:55 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

No,

but I would trade Jones, send Ohman down, call up Pie & Pagan.

"Losing is my only fear"

by Unique on Apr 16, 2007 3:10 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

As I said in another thread...

... trade Jones for what?? Just dump him? What's the point of that?

Look, there have been some VERY frustrating losses in the last week, particularly this past weekend. But you are pushing the panic button, and it's not time for that yet.

I do agree that the 12-man staff isn't working (as I knew it wouldn't); get rid of one of the pitchers and bring Pagan back. That would give far more flexibility off the bench.

"That's my opinion and if you don't like it, well, I have others." ~ Groucho Marx

by Al on Apr 16, 2007 4:00 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

and

i dont think thats pushing the panic button if we get rid of jones. there was talk in the off season. we can either trade him for a nice 5th starter and then move miller to the long relief spot. or even try to dump him too. lou isnt going to put up with this kind of baseball again. if we cant get runners in when there is a guy either on 2nd or 3rd with 0 or 1 out, that is not acceptible. i like jones but id like a WS better.

by tbizzle83 on Apr 16, 2007 10:20 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Floyd

He's going to play some RF with Jones, some first to rest Lee, and pinch hit. He's certainly not going to cause Soriano to sit down.

Its part of the problem with both the Floyd and the Soriano signings. It "commits" the Cubs to playing them.

by frustratedfan on Apr 16, 2007 11:59 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I agree with this.

I was against the Floyd signing; it seemed pointless, since there were already starters at all of the positions he can play.

Floyd, incidentally, has not played 1B in ten years (that's right, look it up, not since 1997). If anyone gives Lee a day off (and I doubt he'll get many, nor does he need many), it'll be Ward, who started a few games there in Mesa, and actually wasn't awful, or Henry Blanco, who played a few games there last year and was surprisingly decent.

"That's my opinion and if you don't like it, well, I have others." ~ Groucho Marx

by Al on Apr 16, 2007 1:15 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Leave Pie exactly where he's at

If there's one thing we as Cub fans have to be patient with, it's our top prospects and I don't think we should be trying to rush him up because he's had a hot start. He's still only 22 and he's showing improvement with BB's and that's a great sign.

IMO I think Cub fans should Just chill out with the "let's bring up Pie" talk for now. The Cubs have wisely been patient with Pie and they need to stick with their patience with Pie. If he continues to show growth over the next couple months, then yes I think the time would be right to bring him up. Ideally on Aug. 1st the day after the Cubs trade Jones for a bag of peanuts.

"What's it all about? Booze, Broads and bullshit." Harry Caray

by lemon17pie on Apr 16, 2007 2:01 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Cubs and Prospects

The Cubs, with the noted exceptions of Wood, Prior and Patterson, do not rush their prospects. Quite the contrary, whether they are out of high school or out of college, the Cubs put all of their prospects on the same slow development track. This is particularly bad for the College Guys, who are closer to being ready to perform, but are left to rot.

Hamilton's playing for the Reds with a LOT less pro ball experience. Pie should have been given a cup of coffee last year in September. He's ready now. But the Cubs are going to hold him back to ensure that he doesn't register a full year of service time for this season, thus delaying his FA by a year.

by frustratedfan on Apr 16, 2007 12:02 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

im going

to try to trade jones for a reliever. move soriano over to left and try murton in right. send oh-man down. izturis can come off the bench.

by tbizzle83 on Apr 16, 2007 10:16 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

pie!!!

why do all of you keep bringing pie up over and over and over again like he is some hero. he's never been a major leaguer nor is he a cant miss minor leaguer YET!! you all keep saying this but playing for the cubs big league team aint iowa. even if he were to come up right now if he was anything less than a superstar he would get massacred by US FANS!!!!!!! he would get picked to death and then everyone would rip lou and hendry for playing him and not trading him. none of us have watched this team when a WS aand with every passing day it gets harder to play for us (fans). let pie continue to develop and maybe when the time is right(next year IMO) he will be what we want him to be as a player.

Here comes the nasty leftie to shut it down in the 9th......Clay Rapada!!!!

by cubsluver22 on Apr 15, 2007 9:04 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Better yet

why bring him up before Soriano's contract is over? By then he'll be old enough to ignore all the stupid fans who are tired of poor decisions. How dare they boo players that can't make excuses for their performance.

Perhaps the fans feel Pie would make the team better. Just maybe they've seen over the years that they've collectively been right much more often than management.

Yeah, that's just stupid.

Players win awards but teams win championships.

by tharr on Apr 15, 2007 9:44 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I've been away for a while.....

and I can't really say why. I've been reading semi-regularly, but this loss today brought me back because I have to have an outlet to vent or I'm going to give myself a heart attack with this bottled up anger. Here goes.

I'm sick of this "don't panic" attitude that I keep hearing everywhere. (I'm trying hard not to swear). Screw that!! I'm freakin' panicking!! I can't believe these sons of bitches are going to do this to me again. Absolutely, positively no heart, no passion, no balls, NO FREAKIN-AYE CLUE how to win games. For all the smack these SOB's talked all spring, let's see some freakin' action. I swear to God I am so freakin' mad at this team right now I could eat nails for breakfast, lunch, and dinner every day for a month.

"Don't complain to me about the stormy weather, boys. Just bring the ship into port." --Steve Stone, September 2004

by ctcoff99 on Apr 16, 2007 12:10 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

by lemon17pie on Apr 16, 2007 1:54 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

thats

not saying much. i dont want to be better than the last 2 years i wanna be better than every team in this division or even good enough to win a wild card.

by tbizzle83 on Apr 16, 2007 10:22 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs