Chicago Cubs game threads

Open Thread: Cubs vs. Rockies, Friday 5/30, 1:20 CT

By Al Yellon@bleedcubbieblue May 30, 2008, 10:45am CDT

Next Game

Friday, May 30, 2008, 1:20 PM CDT
Wrigley Field

Aaron Cook vs Ted Lilly

Mostly cloudy with a 60-percent chance of rain. Winds blowing out to center field at 15-25 m.p.h. Game Time temperature: Around 70.

Complete Coverage >

Those of you who have been around this blog or my old one for a while know that I went to college at Colgate University in upstate New York. I graduated thirty years ago, in 1978. (No secrets, you can surely figure out my age from that, or close.)

Anyway, ten years ago, in 1998, I went to my 20-year college reunion. To do so I missed two home games, and the Cubs went on to the postseason.

Five years ago, in 2003, I went to my 25-year college reunion. To do so I again missed two home games and... the Cubs made the postseason again.

I tell you this, and you may have already guessed, this weekend is my 30-year reunion. I will miss the games today and tomorrow. Draw your own conclusions. (And the way the weather looks for today, they may not play this afternoon anyway.) And don't worry. I'll have time to follow the games and post recaps and game threads, and be back at the ballpark on Sunday.

On to today's matchup:

Today's Starting Pitchers


T. Lilly Cubs	vs.	A. Cook Rockies


5-4	W-L	7-3
5.23	ERA	2.82
58	SO	35
21	BB	22
10	HR	5
vs. Col	--	vs. Cubs

	W-L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	BS	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
2008 - Ted Lilly	5-4	11	11	0	0	0	0	62.0	62	36	36	10	21	58	5.23	1.34

	W-L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	BS	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
2008 - Aaron Cook	7-3	11	11	1	0	0	0	76.2	70	27	24	5	22	35	2.82	1.20

Aaron Cook is tough. He's the Rockies' best pitcher and has won more than 1/3 of their total wins (7 out of 20). He has already beaten the Cubs once this year, on April 24 in Denver. Ah, but now we have a secret weapon we didn't have then -- Jim Edmonds, who is 7-for-13 lifetime vs. Cook, with a double, 2 HR and 6 RBI. If there is any life left in what appears to be the lifeless bat of Edmonds, this would be the time for it to show up.

Ted Lilly is 2-1 lifetime vs. the Rockies with a 6.59 ERA. That's misleading, because one of those games was on May 21, 2006, when Lilly was with Toronto; he got blasted out in 1.2 IP, allowing 4 ER. Last year he was 2-0, 4.50 vs. Colorado, and he is 5-1, 3.53 in his last seven starts.

Today's game is on CSN Chicago only -- no Denver TV, but it should be on EI and at the MLB.com Mediacenter.

MLB.com Gameday (2007 version)

MLB.com Gameday (2008 version)

Baseball-reference.com game preview

Today's first overflow comment thread will post at 2:15 pm CT and the second one at 3:15 pm CT.

Discuss amongst yourselves.