A Visit To Papago Park
PHOENIX, Arizona -- While most of the rest of you were watching the Cubs lose 7-3 to the Rockies in Tucson via ESPN2 -- and it appears that most of the pitching was done by pitchers who have little chance of making the team, except for Scott Eyre and maybe Sean Marshall -- I headed over to Papago Park in Phoenix, the minor league complex of the Oakland A's, to watch Carlos Zambrano pitch (taking what would be his regular turn, instead of taking the bus to Tucson).
Z threw six innings, which included 91 pitches, only 47 for strikes. His command was decent, despite the 50/50 ratio of balls to strikes. He walked three and struck out four, allowed two hits and no runs. The defense behind him wasn't very good -- center fielder Bobby Scales dropped what appeared to be a routine fly ball in the second inning; third baseman Kyle Reynolds threw away a ground ball in the fourth and nearly blew another routine play in the second, but recovered in time to throw the hitter out; and catcher Tony Richie let a ball get through him that probably would have been scored a wild pitch if a scorer had been there.
Of the four strikeouts, two were called on nice-looking breaking pitches. I don't know who any of the A's minor leaguers were -- A's practice jerseys don't have names, and there was no roster list available -- but it appeared to be Triple-A level. For the Cubs, Matt Craig played 1B; two guys both wearing shirts reading "BLANCO" were the DP combination (I assume one was Andres Blanco, who just got sent to the minor league camp; don't know who the other one was); Reynolds was at 3B. In the outfield were Jake Fox in LF, Scales in CF and Josh Kroeger in RF, and Tony Richie catching. Clearly, they are a little more casual about who bats, and where, because at least two different hitters batted where the DH should -- J. D. Closser and Joe Simokaitis. And, as you might expect, Z also batted, once lefthanded and once righthanded; he made contact both times, grounding out to second base hitting LH and grounding out to third hitting RH.
It wasn't Z's finest hour, but apart from the bit of wildness it was just about as good as his last major league start. He'll face the Angels in Tempe next Wednesday, and then be ready for Opening Day the following Monday.
About 50 people assembled to watch this game, including a gaggle of people huddled near the Cubs dugout carrying envelopes and boxes, and as the day went on it became clear that they were there waiting for Z to be taken out of the game so they could get his autograph. I didn't wait around to see whether they were successful or not.
Oh, and when I left, the Cubs, going into the seventh inning, didn't have any hits.

Top: Jake Fox batting; 3-photo sequence of Z pitching (Yes, I know it's from different hitters, but I wanted to put it in logical order)
Middle: Larry Rothschild lost in thought; Josh Kroeger swings and misses; Rothschild talking to an A's coach (sorry -- don't know who this is!); Z stands in the batter's box
Bottom: Z brushed back; Z fouls off a pitch; Z fouls off another pitch; Z showing excellent form, grounds out to third
Photos by Al; as always, click on thumbnail to view full-size in new browser window. If you are using IE6, you may have to click the lower-right corner of the image in the new window to expand it to its full size; in Firefox or IE7 click anywhere on the image.
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Gotta love the cement stands
And I'm guessing Z's control problem had to do with all the errors. You know how he gets when he's on the mound and the team is making mistakes....even with rookies he's going to get distracted and a little hotheaded/wild.
I'm drunk......and it shows.....
by Keystone80435 on Mar 21, 2008 8:23 PM CDT 0 recs
No, didn't have time, and he seemed busy.
n/t
"That's my opinion and if you don't like it, well, I have others." ~ Groucho Marx
by Al on
Mar 21, 2008 8:57 PM CDT
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I kid Al, I kid
I just got a mental image and got a kick out of someone (not you ofcourse) going up to Larry in a situation like this and saying:
Blog pusher: Hi there Larry, big fan, big fan. Listen I was wondering if I could just give you...
Larry slowly turns his head and coldly glares at Blog pusher.
Blog pusher: ....uh, yeah....uh (blog pusher puts his card on the hard concrete next to Larry) you know, I'll, uh... I'll just leave this...uhh... right heerrrreeee.
by lemon20pie on
Mar 21, 2008 9:47 PM CDT
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LMAO
n/t
"That's my opinion and if you don't like it, well, I have others." ~ Groucho Marx
by Al on
Mar 21, 2008 9:56 PM CDT
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In the non-alcohol section? hahah
I'm drunk......and it shows.....
by Keystone80435 on
Mar 21, 2008 8:51 PM CDT
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No...
... in the corner of the bleachers.
"That's my opinion and if you don't like it, well, I have others." ~ Groucho Marx
by Al on
Mar 21, 2008 8:57 PM CDT
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I was just jokin. I'm aware of the season bleacher tickets.
I'm drunk......and it shows.....
by Keystone80435 on
Mar 21, 2008 8:59 PM CDT
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No worries.
Stop on by if you're in the bleachers.
"That's my opinion and if you don't like it, well, I have others." ~ Groucho Marx
by Al on
Mar 21, 2008 9:02 PM CDT
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It would be a privilege. And I'll be there the 31st.
I'm drunk......and it shows.....
by Keystone80435 on
Mar 21, 2008 9:04 PM CDT
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See you then!
Dress warm.
"That's my opinion and if you don't like it, well, I have others." ~ Groucho Marx
by Al on
Mar 21, 2008 9:56 PM CDT
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Brrrr.
n/t
"That's my opinion and if you don't like it, well, I have others." ~ Groucho Marx
by Al on
Mar 21, 2008 8:57 PM CDT
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Do you have any more photos of Wrigley in the snow?
I am going to my first Cubs game this year! April 6th! Got tix for the bleachers, can't wait!
by GoCubbies34 on
Mar 21, 2008 9:04 PM CDT
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Here are some more photos taken this afternoon
They were shoveling the snow off the tarp in the midst of the storm. This shot is from the scoreboard Cubs Club webcam.
Here the view from the web cam on the third base side of the press box.
Here's the view of Al's corner of the bleachers from the scoreboard web cam:
Al Spangler
by AlSpangler on
Mar 21, 2008 9:49 PM CDT
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Wow....
So when the announcers on ESPN said 54 times that it was cold and snowing in Chicago, they weren't kidding.
by lemon20pie on
Mar 21, 2008 9:53 PM CDT
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Chicago's Easter snow
Hard to believe baseball will be played at Wrigley in just 10 days
Hey, it's a new century!
by cowsarecool220 on
Mar 21, 2008 10:00 PM CDT
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HA!
I see Al waiting in line already!
I'm drunk......and it shows.....
by Keystone80435 on
Mar 21, 2008 10:16 PM CDT
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Oh, no!!!!
Not in that cold and snow. I am VERY glad to be in sunny, warm Arizona this week.
"That's my opinion and if you don't like it, well, I have others." ~ Groucho Marx
by Al on
Mar 21, 2008 10:20 PM CDT
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Enjoy
it while you can. I dont know if you've looked at the forecast but it's saying snow and rain on the 30th so who know what we can expect on the 31st.
I'm drunk......and it shows.....
by Keystone80435 on
Mar 21, 2008 10:25 PM CDT
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The Cubs have to keep Jason Marquis
They need someone to pinch-run for Cedeno who is fast, won't get picked off, and always knows how many outs there are.
"I've never complained about it. I'm thankful to have a jersey." Mark DeRosa, 22 Aug 2007
by DeRoMyHero on Mar 21, 2008 9:00 PM CDT 0 recs
LMAO
n/t
"That's my opinion and if you don't like it, well, I have others." ~ Groucho Marx
by Al on
Mar 21, 2008 9:02 PM CDT
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I've stuck up for Ronny in the past,
but I am really thinking that he is just never going to get it. He's just not the sharpest tool in the shed.
"I've always felt that starting pitching is the most important part of the rotation." - Joe Morgan, Sunday Night Baseball 8-12-07
by gary varsho on
Mar 21, 2008 9:18 PM CDT
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Someone asked me today
how many times can Cedeno get picked off, and I replied, without thinking "all of them."
2008: The year we put it all together.
by drewishdrewid on
Mar 21, 2008 9:39 PM CDT
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RE: Ronny not the sharpest tool in the shed
The worst part of that is, it was a hit and run!!!
by lemon20pie on
Mar 21, 2008 9:49 PM CDT
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No.
The worst part is that it was Ronny Cedeno, once again.
"I've always felt that starting pitching is the most important part of the rotation." - Joe Morgan, Sunday Night Baseball 8-12-07
by gary varsho on
Mar 21, 2008 9:58 PM CDT
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I agree with you
I kept hoping for Cedeno to get it together as well. He obviously has more talent than Theriot but he just makes too many mistakes.
by rlpete on
Mar 21, 2008 10:29 PM CDT
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they need to keep Marquis becuase
...Hill is a headcase. Sorry to bring sobriety to the fun on this thread.
Let me get back to you, will ya, Charlie? I got a guy on the other line asking about some white walls.
by JB 23 on
Mar 21, 2008 9:58 PM CDT
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Yes the 195 innings and 119 ERA+ in 2007
indicate a real headcase. He's obviously struggling but I'm not sure why it's because he's a headcase.
by rlpete on
Mar 21, 2008 10:27 PM CDT
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Thanks!
n/t
"That's my opinion and if you don't like it, well, I have others." ~ Groucho Marx
by Al on
Mar 21, 2008 9:58 PM CDT
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Woody?
Did Kerry Wood pitch today? Anyone know?
2008: The year we put it all together.
by drewishdrewid on Mar 21, 2008 9:39 PM CDT 0 recs
And not in the minor league game, either.
Z was replaced by a lefthander.
"That's my opinion and if you don't like it, well, I have others." ~ Groucho Marx
by Al on
Mar 21, 2008 9:57 PM CDT
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More Wrigley Field snow pictures
Took these outside the park earlier today. Assuming I did this right (ha!) just click on the photo below and you'll go to an album with a bunch more.
One Fine Spring Day at Wrigley Field
Lou Brown: "My kinda team, Charlie, my kinda team..."
by ballhawk on Mar 21, 2008 10:20 PM CDT 0 recs
It works!
This 1st image looks like Harry is falling over.
I'm drunk......and it shows.....
by Keystone80435 on
Mar 21, 2008 10:27 PM CDT
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Those are great pictures! Neat slide show. It looks like there is more snow in Chicago than we got.
by Madison Cub Fan on
Mar 21, 2008 11:47 PM CDT
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The Beauty of Spring Training
Loved your visit and report from the A's minor league facility to watch Z, Al. That's exactly what makes attending Spring Training such a beautiful thing. Walking around the practice fields with just a few people around -- it's almost like watching players from the local high school team. Beats the heck out of driving 2 hours each way to Tucson, too.
If It Takes Forever ....
by wrigley1 on Mar 22, 2008 6:19 AM CDT 0 recs


































