Cub Tracks’ Yu know how it is

Jake Arrieta looks weird in red. Battles pretty much the same. Fields his position well. Stuff isn’t as overwhelming. Had a little extra adrenalin, you bet. Good ball game. Nice kick save, Daniel Descalso. JT Realmuto, damn.

Cubs are now 3-2 in extras.

Not to scare you too badly, but here’s the new black hat I wrote about the other day:

You can see it’s all black, and I got it for half of the price Amazon/MLB wants. Yeah, I have only a nodding acquaintance with the Gillette people. You know how it is. I didn’t hear anything about Armed Forces weekend (I had music on), so the Cubs hats looked black to me. Those camo hats cost real money. I’ll keep the black one.

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).

Triple-A Iowa outfielder Ian Happ left Monday’s game against New Orleans after suffering a cut on his finger in the seventh inning but is expected to return shortly. — Mark Gonzales.

• Bryan Murphy (McCovey Chronicles): He’s hip. He’s cool. He’s 65. “Maddon knows how to speak to the kids. He also really, really needs to stay relevant...”
• TMZ Sports: Jon Lester and Anthony Rizzo partied until 4 am ... after loss to Nationals. “Lester ... tucked his best dress shirt into his jeans, grabbed Rizzo, Albert Almora Jr. and Kyle Schwarber and hit the town.”
• Jesse Rogers (ESPN*): ‘He’s a legend in Chicago’: Yu Darvish knows what facing Arrieta means. “Darvish ended up replacing Arrieta in the Cubs’ rotation but hasn’t exactly replaced him in fans’ hearts.”

• Cam Ellis (NBC Sports Chicago*): Arrieta returns to Wrigley Field a different pitcher and a beloved icon. I’m a big Jake Arrieta fan, just not tonight,” said Theo Epstein.
• Meghan Montemurro (The Athletic {$}): A rejuvenated Arrieta returns to Wrigley: ‘I love that park, I love that city’. ““I think closure happened a long time ago, really,” Arrieta told The Athletic.”
• Mark Gonzles (Chicago Tribune* {$}): After some early ‘hiccups,’ Darvish and the Cubs bullpen reward Epstein’s faith. “Since that first trip, they’ve been, by the numbers, one of the best, if not the best, in baseball,” Epstein said.
• Chris Landers (Cut Four): No one has ever wanted to take an at-bat less than Cubs closer Steve Cishek. “... you could fit two more Cisheks in the space between Cishek and home plate.”
• Sahadev Sharma (The Athletic {$}): ‘Opposite field, opposite field, opposite field’: When the Cubs heed Joe Maddon’s advice, good things happen. “If you’re up there trying to move it along to the next guy, that becomes contagious.”
• John Grochowski (Chicago Sun-Times* {$}): Cubs’ defense is not as bad as it looks; White Sox are different story. “... the Cubs are about an average team...”
• Mark Gonzales (Chicago Tribune* {$}): Javier Baez misses his 1st start of the season but doesn’t expect to be out long. “We thought it would be wise to give him the day off,” Maddon said.
• Gabe Lacques (USA Today*): Cubs’ Kris Bryant is punishing opponents again: ‘I’m a whole lot smarter’. “Bryant will never again be the Next Big Thing, but he’s probably better than that guy was, anyway.”

• Evan Altman (Cubs Insider): Albert Almora Jr. may be turning things around with reduced leg kick. “In 50 plate appearances since May 5, Almora has a .973 OPS and a 155 wRC+ with very promising splits.”
• NBC Sports Chicago launches Outside the Ivy, interactive Cubs show by fans. “Hosted by three, die-hard Cubs enthusiasts – Michael Cerami, Danny Rockett and Luis Medina...”
• Cubs birthdays: Karl Spongberg, Dick Ward, El Tappe, Moe Thacker, Bob Molinaro, Jacob Turner. Also notable: Earl Averill (HoF), Bobby Cox (HoF).

Food for thought:

Thanks for reading.