Cub Tracks does the right team thing

No baseball last night, so we have rehash for breakfast, plus this week’s #narratives. Tonight the Cubs begin a series against Seattle. Hopefully Edwin Encarnacion’s bat is covered in rime. It’ll be cool to see Daniel Vogelbach, but his bat needs frosting, too. Maybe the seabirds can take care of that. Right, John Cleese?

Here’s today’s Cubs News and Notes. As always, * means autoplay on, or annoying ads, or both (directions to remove for Firefox and Chrome).

Struggling Ben Zobrist offered to sit out Sunday’s series finale against the Diamondbacks in favor of David Bote. Maddon honored Zobrist’s wishes, and Bote played a minor role Sunday, going 1-for-7 with a double. — Mark Gonzales.

• Phil Rosenthal (Chicago Tribune* {$}): Critics want baseball’s extra-innings rule to change. But marathon games — like the Cubs’ 5-hour win against the Diamondbacks — should be savored. “Rushing the ending, in baseball like literature, may or may not be cheating. But it definitely cheapens the experience.”
• Matt Martell (Sports Illustrated*): What will separate Cardinals, Cubs and Brewers in crowded NL Central? “Even the bottom-feeding Pirates and Reds have captured a bit more relevancy a month into 2019.”
• Evan Altman (Cubs Insider): Series win in Arizona provided several examples of how Cubs are following through on offseason goals. “... the Cubs seem to be running smoothly after initial sputters.”
• Bruce Miles (Daily Herald* {$}): Pitching propels Cubs to hot streak after slow start to season. “It’s not difficult to pinpoint the reasons for the Cubs’ recent resurgence.”
• Jared Wyllys (Forbes* {$}): The Cubs need to keep José Quintana In 2020. “... he is still worth retaining for another year.”
• Tony Andracki (NBC Sports Chicago*): The Cubs bullpen has turned things around in a big way. “... the bullpen has actually morphed into a strength of this Cubs team.”
• Tommy Birch (Des Moines Register* {$}): MLB veteran Brian Duensing starting over with the Iowa Cubs. “We were joking the other day that I feel like I’m a 36-year-old A-ball pitcher right now that’s trying to figure it out,” Duensing said.
• Michael Cerami (Bleacher Nation): Hard contact is trending WAY up across baseball. “... batters are waiting longer than ever for a pitch they think they can crush, and then are swinging for the fences when it does finally come...” John Grochowski corroborates.
• Tony Andracki (NBC Sports Chicago*): Bryzzo is starting to find their form and that’s great news for the Cubs. “... Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo have quietly been very productive over the last 11 days...”
• Patrick Mooney (The Athletic {$}): What Zobrist’s unselfish act could tell us about Joe Maddon’s future with the Cubs. “It was the right team thing to do,” Zobrist said. Jordan Bastian adds on. Jesse Rogers does too. Gordon Wittenmyer caps it off.
• Jordan Bastian (MLB.com*): Inbox: Does Javier Baez move when Addison Russell returns? “... there is a strong indication that the Cubs are not necessarily planning to move Baez at the moment.” Gordon Wittenmyer chimes in.
• Buster Olney (ESPN+ {$}): How these four players have taken their games to the next level. “Extraordinary athletes can effect extraordinary change, and this is what Baez has done.”
• Cubs birthdays: Dave Eggler, Charley Jones, Tony Murray, Jumbo Brown, Bob Hendley, Joe Strain.

In history (from BBRef):

• 1970 - Billy Williams becomes the first National Leaguer to play in 1000 consecutive games. The Cubs’ outfielder streak, which started in 1962, will end in two seasons after the future Hall of Famer plays in 1,117 straight contests, setting a National League record.
• 2000 - Randy Johnson of the Arizona Diamondbacks defeats the Chicago Cubs, 6 - 0, as he becomes only the third pitcher in major league history to win six games in April.
• 2005 - Major league players are asked by Commissioner Bud Selig to agree to a 50-game suspension for the first offense, a 100-game suspension for the second offense and a lifelong ban after the third offense for the use of steroids. In addition to the harsher “three-strike” rule, the commissioner is also seeking a ban on amphetamines.

Food for thought:

Thanks for reading. My cat Chicken Butt helped with editing this article. Cats rule. Happy Walpurgisnacht!