Kosuke should be nothing other than a defensive late inning replacement.
He should get about as many AB’s as Marmol or Wood.
Screw the lefty advantage! If you don’t hit, you don’t hit. Plat Fonty and move DeRo or just play Reed in RF if you are worried about DeRo’s wheels.
The only joy I have right now is that we don’t play tomorrow…

Honestly you’re pathetic. Blue mike, do you do anything but spew idiotic opinions and bother rational Cubs fans? Why dont you just give up or move along? They’re the Cubs, get over it. They’re going to lose in creative ways and its part of this team’s history to do so. Get used to it.

Also, get lost. I’m tired of reading your idiotic opinions and boring old nasty stuff. I get it, you think you know baseball, oh well. You dont. If you did, you’d be getting paid to coach. Instead your on a message board. Give it up, I’m sick of your dark side of baseball.

You have a right to be pissed at the way this team has played the last 2 games.

I think its an obvious choke job, this team just doesn’t have what it takes in the postseason.

I hope against hope that Harden and Lilly can have good games, but THEN we have to score more than 2 or 3 runs AND the bullpen needs to be good. So far not so good on the bullpen.

100% correct.

Every Cubs fan has a right to be pissed off by this team now. This is NOT the team we watched play and compete with fire all season long.

Harden is a dominant shutdown pitcher and Lilly has been masterful the second half and will have the benefit of facing a lefty dominated Dodger lineup in pitcher-friendly Dodger Stadium.

…that Hendry is quoted so much regarding the fans and the silence as a possible reason for the losses. he sounds disappointed in the fans!!!!!!!! He ought to be disappointed with himself and his players first. The excuse making B.S. from this front office is relentless, no wonder Dusty was such an excuse making jackass here, Hendry leads by example.

In life, Hendry, when the opposition gets Manny, and your hampsters can’t hit, you should go do something else.

1. A true leadoff hitter. Someone who can get on base and spark an offense.
2. A real RH power hitter.
3. A major league RF
4. A LH consistent hitter
5. Money players instead of choke artists.

Pick and choose who is expendable. These players are good in a long season where the pressure is less. But obviously, the last two years have proved that this team is not constructed for the postseason. And the worst part is that a couple of those chokers (LF and RF) are so overpaid that the team is left with no options to ubstitute them other than to eat their contracts the way the Yankees did with their injured pitchers (Pavano, Wright).

And I tip my imaginary hat to Mark De Rosa. That guy is a leader and didn’t choke even after he made a costly error. If the rest of the players played that way the story would be different.

No question Jim Hendry has made some good moves. And he has also made some big moves. But most of his big moves have been less masterful and more simply outbidding of the competition. This includes Alfonso Soriano, Jason Marquis and Kosuke. Plus he handed out a number of backloaded contracts to these guys and several players who were already on the roster. Which at some point are going to come back and bite in the ass unless the new ownership group is willing to let the payroll live in the $150 million plus neighborhood.

So what does Hendry do this offseason? Fall into the trap of getting into a bidding war and overpaying Ryan Dempster who is coming off a career year that was peppered with healthy dose of good luck on his side? Or does he overpay for a Kerry Wood whose right arm could explode at any given moment?

are dreaming up stufff like this……Card fans kinda feel bout this like Cub fans do about the Sox…they don’t really care.

…“I guess people just came to the ballpark, and when it went south a little bit, they probably were looking for doom and gloom,” general manager Jim Hendry said.

That could not be farther from the truth, Wrigley was totally electric tonight, 180 degrees from Wednesday. This crowd stood by this team, even through the bad news bears 2nd inning. I am really disgusted by Hendrys comments right now..

…stop using the phrase “puckered up?”

Seriously. I’d never heard anybody use it before last week, and now I’ve encountered it from you at least a half-dozen times.

Can I buy you a thesaurus?

That is where the blame lands. Your whole infield makes an error, Dome is lost, Sori is lost, the bullpen can’t get through an inning without giving up a run, could go on and on.
 This team in soft in the belly except DeRo and Edmonds.

 And hey Jimbo Hendry, you say the fans are waiting to have something go wrong, how about the players, they are so tight they need an oil can in between innings.

How can Hendry stoop to such low excuse making to take a shot at the Wrigley Field crowd? Holy cow. If this team actually had a real owner right now and I was his boss then Hendry would be standing in front of my desk right now and be read the riot act. If my emotions on this subject had not cooled down a bit I probably would even fire him on the spot.

Is this what the Cub organization is reduced to? Total and complete failure on their part once again and they are looking for rationalizations and excuses and stoop to calling out the fans?

This post is 100% correct. The Cubs simply didn’t execute the fundamentals of the game. And when I say the Cubs, I mean the players. There is nothing a manager can do to prevent critical errors like the ones that happened in the infield last night.

This game is absolutely on the players. Zambrano is the only one who can’t be blamed. He pitched great. It was obvious that he was very irritated by the play behind him, but that was the best job he has ever done keeping himself composed. Unfortunately, 1 out of 9 players being composed isn’t going to help a whole lot.

who can play under huge huge huge pressure of the fans at Wrigley. it was the Cubs who blew these two games…. but it is the fans.. yes including the BCB fans… who have caused this train to wreck , over and over and over again!

Lou said it lound and clear.. “lighten up!” its just a game, entertainment… take it easy! Think do or die, and you will surely die. Who can handle such pressure. no one. Not Derosa, not Lee, not ramirez, not dempster, not theriot, not wood… no one.

If you want this team to win in October, then get some other hobbies people!

players being under too much pressure? All eight teams in this tournament are under the same amount of pressure. If you lose three games, you are out. Any additional pressure is self-induced. Good players threive under pressure situations and rise above it. Weak players are over come by the moment and allow it to affect their performance. Which catagory does this team fall into?

I dunno. Felix Pie had a good AB last night. :)

I kid, I kid.

More seriously – I didn’t expect us to be able to take two from Lowe and I didn’t expect us to be able to beat Billingsley with a worn-down Zambrano. So, really, we’re still where many people predicted pre-series, that it would take 5 to win, that the Cubs would lose to Billingsley, and that Lowe wouldn’t lose twice. I like the Harden and Lilly matchups and I like the odds that Dempster can come back and win one. We’ll see.

The Dodgers have lost 3 in a row nearly a dozen times in 2008. The Cubs lost three in a row only 6 times. I still say this series is going to 5.

have the ability to remove external clutter from their minds and focus on the task at hand. To say that there is more pressure on the Cubs players than there is on the Dodgers is ludacrous. It’s an excuse for not executing. What was our excuse last year, the 99 year curce? Give me a break. This team needs a leader who will stand up and not let the team crumble when crunch time comes. That is what this team is missing.

Not just one or two guys but almost everybody?? The argument has been made and I have bought into it that the coaches and players are part of this team now and therefore aren’t accountable for the legacy of losing over the past 100 years. So if that’s true (and I believe it is) then why still can’t this team just go out there and play baseball two years in a row?? It’s not like they operate under a manager who is a dictator and places extreme pressure. Heck, we used to have Mr. Players Manager in Dusty and it was still the same result.

I don’t know if it’s been discussed, but you made SI

My vote would have to go to Aramis Ramirez. He is far and away the most valuable member of the Cub offense the past several years. So what keeps happening in the playoffs? Why can’t he have a little Manny in him?

Alfonso Soriano? I resigned myself long ago to the streakiness and often times uselessness of Soriano so he doesn’t get most disappointing vote.

Derrek Lee? He has never been a real baseball star of this team and has played like he is in his 40’s the past season and a half. So he can’t get the most disappointing vote.

Mark DeRosa? He still remains my regular season MVP and I guess he should get points for being the one Cub who has hit. His fielding made me gag the past two nights however and it still pisses me off to no end why he wasn’t in right field with Mike Fontenot at 2nd base.

Geovany Soto? Hard to bring withering criticism on a rookie who is banged up and whose main job is catching.

Ryan Theriot? The ignitor and over-achiever, but not a guy you expect to carry in the playoffs.

Jim Edmonds? Actually gets my vote for best effort in these playoffs. One of the few Cubs who actually looks like he belongs in the playoffs.

Ryan Dempster? Career year and beneficiary of luck in 2008, so I wasn’t expecting dominant start on Wednesday.

The Dodgers were the only team I thought posed a real threat to the Cubs.

The Cubs’ dormant offense + the Dodgers great pitching sure as hell isn’t a recipe for getting out of this big rut we’ve been in.

Still, I had such high hopes for this team. I’m at a complete loss for words.

It wasn’t supposed to be this way.

p.s. Derrek Lee isn’t a no. 3 hitter anymore.

and the rest of the playoffs, I think we’re all agreed that there are going to be some long and potentially painful discussions about personnel over the winter.
We have a ton of money invested in Sori, DLee and Dome, Dempster will likely command a large salary, and, as has been pointed out, either no center fielder, or with Pie, one who is still uncertain.
What do you suggest? You can’t cut free these contracts. And while I hope that Dome can learn to hit a slider at this level, Sori is who he is. DLee is on the downside of his career. Who is going to take them?
I understand the pressure to lock up some guys long term to get them, but we’re seeing the downside now.

MDBNIU, I agree with about everything you said. I was reflecting on past moves in the Cubs organization and thought of one name: Carlos Beltran.

In 2005, we had a legitimate chance of getting this guy for a bit cheaper than what we spent on Soriano. I’m not too aware of his numbers specifically, I do know that he’s maintained good home run numbers, RBI totals, and batting averages since signing with New York. Not to mention, the guy has been a monster in his postseason appearances. Now, I don’t know who’d be playing everyday left field (Reed Johnson, maybe?), but we’d have an everyday center fielder in Beltran. Big mistake letting this guy slip through our fingers, IMO.

Does he give us a quality lead-off hitter? Absolutely not. But neither does Soriano, so what difference does it make. I read the phrase “hack who makes guess hits” about him and couldn’t agree more. Beltran does strikeout a bit, but at least he still manages to put up quality numbers and come through under pressure. I seriously believe Beltran may have made a different kind of impact over the one of Soriano. A more positive one, really. What do I know, right? Just an observation. I’d still be game for trading Soriano for Beltran this offseason. Hell, re-sign Reed and make him your everyday left fielder, and he’d make a great #2 hitter. Not bad, I’d say.

Next up: Trade D-Lee. Where does he go? Baltimore, hands down. Why? Pick up Brian Roberts. I was against this deal before, VERY against this deal, because it would limit DeRosa’s playing time. Now I think they’d be able to play both, possibly moving DeRo to right and having Fontenot take over at short (give it a shot, worked with Theriot, I’d say). Theriot assumes the role of Ronny Cedeno.

Next up: What do we do at first? Sign Mark Teixeira. How much? Who cares? He’s young, he’s a switch hitter, he gives a quality bat in the lineup and a nice RBI man. Not much more can be said there.

Next up: Right field? Trade Kosuke for young talent, I really don’t care where he goes. We’re gonna need the talent someday, and his contract would be good for that. I don’t see why not.

Next up: Starting pitching? Re-sign Dempster and hold the core. Shop Marquis around for young talent, a bench player, or relief pitching. SOMEONE will take him. Experiment with either Samardzija or Rich Hill again in Spring Training to assume the role as the fifth starter. It’s risky, but sometimes you gotta take those risks to succeed.

Next up: Bullpen? I’d rather not have Wood back, he hasn’t impressed me as much as he has most of Cubs Nation this year. I’m just not convinced. Ideally you sign K-Rod, but if you sign Tex you’re already in the hole and can’t afford too much beyond that, and K-Rod would probably ask for a huge sum of money. Look out for a guy like Brian Fuentes or David Weathers (yes, he’s old, but I still think he could get the job done. Call me crazy, JMO).

Ideally, this is what my 2009 Cubs roster would look like. Bear in mind I expect it to look nothing like this:

2B – Brian Roberts
LF – Reed Johnson
CF – Carlos Beltran
3B – Aramis Ramirez
1B – Mark Teixeira
C – Geovany Soto
2B – Mark DeRosa
SS – Mike Fontenot

Starting Pitchers:

Zambrano
Dempster
Harden
Lilly
Samardzija / Hill

Relief Pitchers:

Closer: Carlos Marmol (take the chance)
Set-Up: Brian Fuentes
Weathers
Marshall
Guzman
A couple more experienced relievers would do the trick

Call me crazy, like I said, just rambling and thinking outloud, is all. It’s late and I need some sleep…

It’s been a horrible postseason for both city teams. A fatalist would surely ask what did Chicago do to earn this fate?

The Cubs will be the same next year, barring some more wheeling and dealing.

Soriano – 100 million dollars of contract remain. When he’s hot, nobody’s saying nothing about it. We signed him knowing what he was. He will be there next year.

Theriot – An average guy who can on occasion play above average and stay there. His bat speaks for itself. He’s not going anywhere.

Fontenot – Ditto. He’s been a far more consistent pitch hitter than Daryl Ward has been. Besides, he rides better on Z’s back in the pregame ritual ..

That said, both men are great bargaining chips in a trade ..

Edmonds – Tough call. Will Felix Pie (another tempting trade offering) be once again anointed as the starting CF? The pennant push and the pressure cooker of the playoffs haven’t given him many opportunities to redeem himself after falling down earlier this year. Jimmy may not be back but I surely hope he’d agree to sign even if it means more bench time to keep platooning. It worked very well this year and he’s still got a couple more years in the tank. I don’t know if, during these waning years of his career, whether that’s a safe bet or not for him. I personally hope he’s like wearing Cubbie blue this year and will come back.

Johnson – Another toughie. I think Reed would want the CF job to stick around with the Cubs. Would he commit to platooning again? I doubt it. I am certain the NL took notice this year and he’s got a job anywhere he wants to go. We need to give him the job.

Fukudome – He ain’t going anywhere. His potential (and demonstrated ability) far exceeds his deficits this year. MLB pitching baffled him and if he’s the kind of guy that his career in Japan shows him to be, he’s going to work harder and more diligently this offseason to make the adjustments necessary. I think Fukudome will be a monster next year. The man is a pro.

Lee – Tough call but I can’t imagine the Cubs letting him go. Not yet. His defense is outstanding, his tragic mistake last Thursday night not withstanding. We know what he can do with his bat, but the batting title stroke has yet to return. The only adjustment I think I recall he said he made that year he won was that he was getting the bat off and around quicker then ever before. Is anyone above tweaking? No. Derrek also could use some help there. The Cubs should help him get it.

Hoffpauir – He’s almost there. He isn’t the defensive player Lee is but he’s still young and only game time will help him get better – and his bat is sorely needed RIGHT NOW. It would be an incentive to DLee that no one is expendable in this business if they platooned next year – having him start next year would send a HUGE message to this team.

Soto – Nuff said.

DeRo – Nuff said also. He ain’t going nowhere. I think after Soto he’ll give A-Ram a run for his money for Cubs MVP this year.

Ramirez – Ditto once more. His numbers the past few years speak for themselves.

Ward – Trade bait. He could become another Prince Fielder if he got playing time, which is why he’s been retained. He deserves a shot elsewhere if he wanted it and if DLee is going nowhere.

Cedeno – A useful utility player for the bench whose contributions, however great, don’t mean we can’t use him to get more depth. But frankly, if he’s too good to trade but not a candidate to start every day because of the options we have to cover his position, why let him go? Then again, the time is coming when he’ll want to go and there will be many teams in MLB who will gladly have him start.

The starting rotation of Zambrano, Dempster, Harden, Lilly and Marquis is set. The debate goes on over a fifth starter. Jason Marquis is going to become trade bait for another position player if anyone of quality comes along. Mike Marshall deserves the shot to get it once more.

Cotts and Gaudin could be up for grabs – they’ve been useful but far from dominating.

Wood – A no brainer. He’s proved this year that he could become the next Mariano Rivera. Is it possible that he could work his way back into becoming the fifth starter once again, ala Dempster? That seems too risky, but at his age, is it possible?

I don’t think Spellcheck’s going anywhere but Bobby Howry needs to be somewhere else, period.

Don’t forget this was his rookie year-give him the winter and spring training next year and lets see what happens when the starting bell rings. If he comes out of the gate in 09 swinging like a gate then send him packing.