Cub Tracks Is Glad It Wasn't Us

You know that guy who's looking at his phone, not paying attention to where he's walking, and he falls into a fountain? Yeah, I'm glad that's not me either. Although I did run into a parked car once. Literally on two feet ran into a parked car. Talk about embarrassing.

From Comcast SportsNet Chicago:

• Theo Epstein took the high road regarding the hacking scandal involving the St. Louis Cardinals, choosing not to take any digs at them but at the same time saying "I'm glad it wasn't us." The last line in the story about changing the Cubs' password is just classic, though. I won't spoil it for you.
• Both Epstein and Joe Maddon hinted of big things in store for Kyle Schwarber, with Maddon saying that his next call-up would be "when things are even hotter."
• Patrick Mooney writes that the Cubs don't really know what they're going to get from Starlin Castro from one night to the next, but everyone is continuing to stress the positives.
• The Cubs could have another big addition to the bullpen soon in Neil Ramirez, who is set to begin a rehab assignment with Double-A Tennessee.
• Tuesday night may not have been a good game for the Cubs, but at least Maddon got to hoist the Stanley Cup.
• And as expected, the scene in front of Wrigley Field after the Blackhawks won on Monday night was something to see.

From Cubs.com:

• David Ross is happy to see Kyle Schwarber with the big club, saying that "he belongs here and it's nice to have him around."
• [VIDEO] In case you missed Jonathan Toews' first pitch to Anthony Rizzo, here it is.
• The All-Star balloting in the National League remains pretty much the same, with Kris Bryant still the highest placing Cub in second place behind Matt Carpenter.
• Jonathan Mayo gives his take on how each of the National League Central teams fared in the draft.

From ESPN Chicago:

• Why did Kyle Schwarber get called up from Double-A while no other Cub prospect has made a similar jump? Part of it is because of his position.
• A few Cubs, including David Ross and Joe Maddon, would love to pick the brains of the Blackhawks to find out the secrets of their success.

From the Chicago Tribune:

• [VIDEO] Kyle Schwarber talks about his major league debut on Tuesday night.
• Paul Sullivan writes that perhaps the third time will be the charm for the Stanley Cup magic to rub off on the Cubs.
• Joe Maddon is a pitching freakazoid. His words, not mine.

From the Chicago Sun-Times:

• Dexter Fowler and hitting coach John Mallee chimed in on the Cardinals' hacking scandal, with Fowler saying that the Astros had so much data that a hacker wouldn't even know where to start.
• From the "lesser-known but still important awards" department: Cubs' first-round pick Ian Happ was named the University of Cincinnati Male Athlete of the Year. The headline makes it seem like he was named the male athlete of the year for the entire city of Cincinnati, which makes me wonder who else would get the nomination in that scenario. I don't think Marty Brennaman would qualify for walking his dog in a stroller.
• And from the "I didn't have anything else to write about" department: Kerry Wood turned 38 on Tuesday.

From the Daily Herald:

• What's Erik Peterson doing writing for the Daily Herald?  Oh, wait... it's a story from Eric Peterson. My bad, carry on.

From Bleacher Nation:

• The Cubs are striking out a lot, but combined with their walk rate they have the most plate appearances in baseball that have ended without contact.
• Signs still point to the Cubs blowing out their spending limit in this year's international free agent market, with Baseball America joining the chorus.

From Cubs Insider:

• Not only are the Cubs walking a lot, they're also not allowing many, and the combination of the two is the best in baseball.

Miscellaneous:

• In case you missed it in Josh's MLB Bullets, former Cubs catcher and folk hero John Baker talks about just what it means to "play the game the right way".

Today's food for thought:

• Introducing: An insect with interlocking gears in its legs.
• And here are some of the ways that life in space was made better... with duct tape and electrical tape.