n/t

I still have faith until the last out is recorded.

This team looked like they had never played baseball before!

Really, really sad to see them collapse like that. the label of “CHOKERS” is going to be hard to shake for a long time to come.

Players are paid to play the game. The Cubs couldn’t execute when they had to (outside of DeRo and Edmonds) and this game is all about execution.

I feel so sad to be a Cub fan today.

That’s a tough trip to take with no tix and a good chance of being punched in the stomach.

I still can’t believe that Z came through with a big game. He pitched well and kept his emotions in check while the defense behind him fubar’d the game.

The Dodgers are a good team. The Cubs losing last night was not the shock, it was the way they lost and the run differential. That game was never close and the other starting 8 owe Z an apology.

I agree with mjk83. Lou has been in this situation before and won. (See the 1995 Seattle Mariners)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1995_Seattle_Mariners_season

Remember the Yankees historic collapse in 2004? Who was the manager?

Our best pitcher is going on Saturday. Lilly has been lights out 2 starts in a row.

I still say we win this thing.

Let the flaming begin.

but the season (for all intents and purposes) is over.

A team can’t play that kind of ball and expect to go anywhere in the Postseason. The Dodgers are executing flawlessly in every area (hitting, defense pitching) of the game, but the Cubs are failing in every area. That my friend is a recipe for a quick exit from the Playoffs

so sad…..but now I am falling into believing this Curse thing is true…

the question is, where do you even start in trying to improve this thing? change attitudes? rid the pressure laden atmosphere?

this team on paper has some holes, but no more so than any other in this postseason, and arguably less than anyone else who is still playing…

there’s no “Bartman” episode here. It’s simply execution and how the Cubs couldn’t execute.

Sobering synopsis Al. You hit the nail on the head with it.

and for the first time since I can remember, I turned off the television and went to bed before the game was over. I just felt sick.
This is not the same team that we followed all year.
I haven’t given up on this team just yet, but I sure as hell gave up on last night’s game.

the nightmare won’t end.

This team is playing like they played right after the ASB.

That Theriot play was crap. All the tiny little guy had to do was glove the ball. Quit trying to barehand it and play fundamental baseball.

Bench Fukudome; he can’t hit and as a result shouldn’t be in the lineup. Even batting 8th.

perhaps the pressure is gone, since all believe they will lose. Perhaps the pressure shifts to the Dodgers, and they wont execute. 1984 Cubs.

lets leave the team alone, turn off the tv, get rid of the newspapers and internet and let them play and have fun. perhaps that will work

…Here I was looking forward to the recap by our fearless leader for re-assurance and I have to read THIS!!

Way to give on your team there, AL.

I think there is a DeBard Diary for you floating out in cybar space somewhere.

We have Harden and Lilly going Sat & Sun. if we can get back to Wrigley the pressure goes back on the Dodgers. Keep the faith, people. I know it has not been pretty, but you, AL, of all people have been saying this is a special team all year and now you give up after 2 games. Fearless leader? or DeBard in disguise?

The Cubs need one win to get on a roll. Maybe, the change of scenery will help the team.
Harden, Lilly, and Dempster are a good trio of pitchers. The Cubs have the ability to come back from this.

We can only hope that finally the Cubs will be the ones to make a miraculous comeback in postseason play. Keep hope alive!

The lyrics to “Yesterday” by the Beatles:

Yesterday
All my troubles seemed so far away
Now it looks as though they’re here to stay
Oh, I believe
In yesterday

Suddenly
I’m not half the man I used to be
There’s a shadow hanging over me
Oh, yesterday
Came suddenly

Why she
Had to go I don’t know
She wouldn’t say
I said
Something wrong now I long
For yesterday

Yesterday
Love was such an easy game to play
Now I need a place to hide away
Oh, I believe
In yesterday

Why she
Had to go I don’t know
She wouldn’t say
I said
Something wrong now I long
For yesterday

Yesterday
Love was such an easy game to play
Now I need a place to hide away
Oh, I believe
In yesterday

to get myself excited about the game this weekend. I want so badly to believe that this isn’t the end of the road for this team and am doing everything I can to remain optimistic.

that being said, if Saturday starts like last night did I’ll be in the bar with a double jameson on the rocks by about 10:30

Al is a truly knowledgeable Cub/baseball fan (as many of us are here) and we have been around long enough to know “when to say when”!

It’s time.

All the work you do here. All the effort. I also feel bad for all the fans that spent a ton on tickets for those two games to see a bloodbath.

Its just realizing that this team was not ready at this point in time to make it happen. Can they come back sure…I’m sure some Brewers fans think that they can too, but the odds are not in their favor. This Cubs team has surprised us before with stellar play, we’ll all be watching to see if it happens. But, I think most of us will not be shocked near as much as in the last two games if it doesn’t.

The emotions are an assortment of shock, anger and sadness all at once. As in “poof,” what was is all gone.

As said before you could not conjure up more awful script if you were a St. Louis Cardinal or Chicago White Sox fan who had hatred raging through your veins for the Cubs.

the groundball hit to Derrek Lee was NOT an easy play. I had seats in 219 and had a nice view up the first base line. The runner crossed in front of Derrek at the worse possible time and I’m sure blocked his view of the ball. Then to pick it up again, especially as hard as it was hit… well that’s tough to do.

Agreed on the Theriot grounder – just bad timing (covering 2nd on a steal). As for DeRosa’s… ughhhhh……

Guess the folks that were ripping on the team (that prompted the koolaid-sipping / Brady Bunch alternate game threads) were right on.

I almost feel like they just don’t know how to step it up in the playoffs. Unlike hockey were emotion and intensity increases (of course with some upper bound) can really elevate a team, baseball simply cannot be played that way and still come out on top.

The whole team is just lack of some sort of pizazz. I can’t even figure it out. Both D-Lee and DeRo heard me and others in my area after their gaffes. Suffice to say it was sobering but no one was vulgar or out of line.

So unless there’s some drastic turn-around, the only thing I can say is there’s 183 days to the season opener.

I feel more compelled now than just 48 hours ago to turn my focus nearly 100% to the Blackhawks. Hopefully they can improve this year like the Cubs have since 2006.

It’s going to be an interesting (and hopefully exciting) off-season.

They looked like pee wee league players not confident in their fielding ability and not sure of the protocol of the infield on who should take which pop up. This has happened 5 times in two games by my eyes. It’s something you don’t see 5 times in an entire 162 game season for a veteran infielder where the players have good familarity with one another.

This is what was needed today.

I just wouldn’t be able to stomach sunshine and rainbows today.

I just wouldn’t.

I am not satisified with winning in the regular season…just like I know the players are not. I had some great memories from this regular season but those great memories don’t really mean much if in the end you fail.

I watched them for 6 months only to see them play their worst two games in a span of two days.

It is like having a courtship with the hot chick for 6 months…only to get dumped right before the prom. It was great during those 6 months but it sucked showing up at prom without her

There was some debate on this site about what is a “Must Win” game. Last night was not a must win. The Next game will be. Hopefully, we’ll have two more “Must Win” games after that.

I’m thinking of the 2004 Red Sox. I thought they were done…

I will not be sad until it is truly over. Go Cubs – we all know what this team is able to do. They will do it.

I’ve had other things happen in real life this week/year that are worse, but I sure as hell could have used the distraction. It’s not about any of us as individuals, but it sure feels like piling on…

I invested a lot in this team this year — maybe more so than in the last 25. I’m not sure that I can do that again. I’ll never stop being a fan, but I don’t think it can be at the level that it was this year.

When I needed them the most in June, they turned to crap. When I need them in October, same thing.

Ugh.

I feel like having home field has worked against the Cubs. Derosa and Lee both looked so tense trying to field those balls, hoping not to mess up

So many issues, why haven’t we seen Reed Johnson yet? Reed’s been one of the best guys all year with base runners. Fukudome again? Seriously if I have to see one more spinarama this year I’m going to puke. Leaving Demp in way too long in game one.

All I’m looking for is a chance, just win game 3 and let’s take our chances. When the Cubs finally do win it all, they won’t just walk to the World Series. It’s going to have to be very difficult and improbable, but to overcome this start, seems like too much.

I know that I keep going back to the 2007 playoffs, but this team, which by in large is the same line-up, is playing the same way. I know that advanced scouting was done but either it was ineffective for the second year straight or the team has no clue how to put that scouting report to good use, whereas the Dbacks and Dodgers have done so against the Cubs.

I contrast this to 2003 where the Cubs faced a very dangerous line-up in Atlanta that included Chipper Jones, Gary Sheffield, Javy Lopez, Andruw Jones, Rafael Furcal and Vinny Castilla. It was a dominant line-up with seemingly little holes. Cubs pitchers had a spectacular gameplan and executed it masterfully.

Over this current playoff series and last year’s playoff series it just seems as though the Cubs have no advanced scouting. It might be there and perhaps the players are not executing it in the least. It just seems to me that when the dust settles, regardless of when the Cubs exit the playoffs, there are a lot of questions that need to be answered, ones that didn’t get answered last year after a quick exit.

to give into the tempation to say " Here we go again!" Yesterday you didn’t allow it.

Given the Cubs’ organization’s focus on the “Fans” and the lack of noise at Wrigley Stadium, maybe they will play better away from home?

Maybe all that silence in the stands is what is messing up the timing of our top 5 hitters in the lineup?

In any event, if we do win the next two, is possible for the Cubs to change game 5 to be played in LA? Maybe we can make up an excuse like more falling cement chunks at Wrigley?

But I also sense that the Dodgers know they have a dagger at the throat of the dragon and aren’t about to pass up opportunity to end it quickly. Joe Torre and the Dodgers have clear and realistic understanding of who they are and what their weaknesses are. They know on paper they aren’t as strong as the other teams, to include the Cubs. Therefore there is zero chance of arrogance entering the picture for them. I think they will approach game 3 with a ruthlessness to get the job done before the bully on the ground is able to get back up.

Plus, the stage is set for Manny to be a rock star of rock stars in Chavez Ravine. You just know he is going to rise to the ocassion to stamp his name in the Dodger history books now that they have gotten to this point. Plus he is playing for his next mega-contract and would like nothing more to stay with the Dodgers.

They’ll win tomorrow 11-2 or something outlandish like that. But then lose the next game in a close one.

Soriano, .111
Theriot, .250
Lee, .429
Ramirez, .250
DeRosa, .500
Edmonds, .286
Soto, .143
Fukudome, .000

As you know he stooped to lowest form of excuse making by taking a swipe at the crowd. I’m still stunned by what Hendry said to the point that if we had a real owner in place I would think right course of action would be to terminate Hendry on the spot.

The fat lady ain’t sung yet (though she’s had one hell of a tuneup).

Yes, that’s my attempt at a wee bit of levity and maybe get a laugh or two today. It’s a somber day indeed, only slightly upped by the fact that it was a blowout. If we blew a lead late, or lost by one I’d have been even more crushed. As it was, I’d kinda come to terms with this by the time Manny hit his bomb.

But you take it one game at a time. If we win tomorrow, that’s one game. Play Sunday. Win then, it’s tied, back to Wrigley. Longshot, I know, but hey, we’re Cub fans. We should be used to it.

Hope springs eternal. And remember, Cub fans…there’s always next year.

and the park plays to pitchers, so I still have a little bit of hope, but the offense and the D have been so bad that I can’t picture it happening. Plus, this teams seems mentally weak. They make excuses for everything. If Soriano is supposed to be our Manny, he’s just not even in the same galaxy (not saying Soriano makes excuses), he’s an undisciplined hitter that good pitchers seem to have no problem getting out.

she knows it doesn’t matter.

On a positive note, NOTHING can ‘kill’ me Cub-wise since 2003. That was the worst. I can deal with this – not like I…or we have a choice, but what can we do? We are TOTALLY choking… and at the worst possible time.

this has been possibly the most pathetic display of baseball I have ever seen in my entire life. I hope mjk83 is right…i’m out.

Check out this song on YouTube… fast forward to the 3:25 mark.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Od1-hXZ1zUQ

… like it worked for my favorite team when they needed to win 3 straight.

“Over? NOTHING IS OVER…”

Watch it here (unedited). http://tinyurl.com/4pb9hn
Listen here (ok for kids). http://tinyurl.com/3sj8kb

Except for the morons calling for the team to be dismantled and the fire Hendry posts the posts here have been great.

The only hope I have is that this team has shown resillency all season.

A manager’s job is to motivate and Lou has turned into Dusty in one respect- he’s slunk into his seat in the dugout, hands in pocket, an occasional remark to Rothschild. How about some encouragement, how about clapping your hands, how about putting some faith into your team.

I stopped watching in the 6th innning.

I do not plan to watch either of the next two games. I’m not even sure I could stand to watch game 5, if we were lucky enough to get it.

This team is playing scared. Playing like they know they should lose.

I really and truly thought this might be “the year.” It’s one thing to get beat when you play well. It’s another thing to go out there and humiliate yourself with terrible play and terribel at-bats.

The callous gets thicker every year, and at this rate I’m not sure I’ll be able to get emotional about this team until the Cubs actually make it to the world series.

But am I the only one if they’;re not going to come back and win would almost rather have it just be over with Saturday night.

Guys I did see Al last night. He really was dejected. I decided not to approach him. I waved not sure if he saw me or knew who I was.

Of course we are starting the Fire Lou idiots.

I have to check for sure but when the Mariners came back to beat the Yankees weren’t Lou and Torre the managers.

And again these are good players having a bad 2 games. They picked a horrible 2 games to be bad in.

calling them terrible players is one thing. Calling them bad players for a game is another.

We need a new owner in place quickly so that we know how much money we can spend this offseason.

If we get Cuban, I fully expect money to be throw around left and right.

Sign Sabathia, sign Furcal, sign everyone.