Could have been better/worse. Meatloaf in Milwaukee sounds good, for lunch.
* autoplay warning
Find out what it means to me.
- Barry Rozner (Daily Herald): Bat flips in baseball not the problem. "Respect isn't just a lost concept in baseball."
- CBS Sports: Joe Maddon in aftermath of Blue Jays-Rangers fight: 'players should police everything'. Includes [AUDIO] from the Spiegel and Goff show.
- Evan Altman (Cubs Insider): Sorry Triple-A pitchers, the Cubs are too awesome to call the next wave just yet. Absent a cup of coffee here or there due to injury or DH help, the Cubs simply can’t or won’t be making the call to bring anyone up.
- Jeff Sullivan (Fangraphs): The Cubs are dominating the ground ball game. "Here’s another place where the Cubs have been really super good."
- Carrie Muskat (MLB.com): Joe Maddon hopes Jason Heyward locates 'feel'. "It's all about feel," Maddon said. "Once you do it, you get that feel in your hands."
Joker in the house of cards.
- Paul Sullivan (Chicago Tribune): Ryan Braun to the Cubs? Just a story in search of some substance. Jim Edmonds notwithstanding.
- Chris Emma (CBS Chicago): As Cubs thrive, fellow favorites from Houston fight for their season. The Astros have struck out at a league-worst 25.8 percent rate and seen key players like Evan Gattis, Tyler White and Carlos Gomez underperform.
- Rick Morrissey (Chicago Sun-Times): A dark period might help the Cubs -- and especially their fans. "Just because the Cubs are mowing down opponents and are indeed the best team in baseball right now doesn’t mean that they will be the last team standing in October."
- Rian Watt (Wrigleyville-Baseball Prospectus): Kris Bryant: The unluckiest Cub. "...in at least one important way, Kris Bryant has been unlucky this year."
Reality check bounces.
- Patrick Mooney (CSN Chicago*): Embracing the target. Joe Maddon warns Cubs against playing down to competition.
- Patrick Mooney (CSN Chicago*): Why the Cubs are betting on Joe Nathan. The Cubs are trying to catch lightning in a bottle.
- Gordon Wittenmyer (Chicago Sun-Times): How 'super-pumped' Joe Nathan could become the impact deal of the summer. "You can never have enough pitching depth," said Joe Maddon.
- Michael Cerami (Bleacher Nation): Game lengths are creeping back up again this year and the commissioner is displeased. "...the 289.25 pitches per nine-inning game is the highest level its been at in seven years." Hmm.
- Ken Schultz (Wrigleyville-Baseball Prospectus): Javier Baez is the Skynet of prospects. "The first step on the path to learning is to suck."
Sound decisions.
- ESPN: Anthony Rizzo with David Kaplan and Jeff Dickerson [AUDIO]
- Jesse Rogers (ESPN): Ben Zobrist is getting better with age. "It’s pretty amazing seeing a guy turn 35 continuing to get better, doing it the right way," said Theo Epstein.
- Neil (Chicago Cubs Online): Front office preparing for curveballs the season could throw at the Cubs. Many in the game think the Cubs will try to acquire a starting pitcher, a reliever or two and possibly an outfielder.
- Jared Wyllys (Wrigleyville-Baseball Prospectus): David Ross retirement party: out with a bang. "As a whole, I appreciate sports in part because of how often it provides an avenue for the unlikely and improbable."
- Carrie Muskat (MLB.com): Dexter Fowler building rapport with "Howlers".
I've got my eye out for #FowlersHowlers take a pic in my shirt/jersey & u could win tix to next home stance
— Dexter Fowler (@DexterFowler) May 17, 2016
Food for thought:
- Elizabeth Pennisi (Science): Humans are still evolving, and we can watch it happen. "Many people think evolution requires thousands or millions of years, but biologists know it can happen fast."
- Donna Vickroy (Chicago Tribune): Why popular science is growing on people. The general population has suddenly found easy access to the technology it needs to be inventive and expressive.
- Rachel Feltman (The Washington Post): More signs that life could thrive on Jupiter's moon Europa. All of these planets are yours, Carlos Santana.