Cub Tracks loves a grenade

Well, almost. Almost. Halfway there... stop spotting the opposition six-run leads and I bet the record improves. Mike Montgomery keeps getting slotted into the role of latter-day Terry Mulholland. Probably not his career ideal but hey, those paychecks aren’t bad.

Cole Hamels is headed to the IL. Left oblique strain. See below.

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). {$} means paywall. {$] means limited views.

• Matt Snyder (CBS Sports*): Hamels leaves start with apparent injury and Cubs rotation gets even thinner. “Hamels threw a few warmup pitches before the bottom of the second inning Friday night in Cincinnati and didn’t even hesitate before walking off the mound and straight down through the dugout and into the clubhouse.” Mark Gonzales puts it in perspective. Gordon Wittenmyer sees it the same way. Jordan Bastian set the tone.
• Gordon Wittenmyer (Chicago Sun-Times* {$}): Cubs say ‘possible’ starter Kyle Hendricks could return from shoulder injury before break. “It’s possible,” Maddon said.
• Michael Cerami (Bleacher Nation): The Cubs are nixing the six-man rotation, going with Adbert Alzolay over Tyler Chatwood. Recent events may have changed this. Tim Stebbins has more.
• Tony Andracki (NBC Sports Chicago*): What we learned about the Cubs in the first half of 2019. “They sit at 44-37, a game up on the Milwaukee Brewers in the division and on pace for 88 wins.” Jayson Stark {$} opines also.
• Mark Gonzales (Chicago Tribune* {$}): While Cubs ‘look outside’ for hitting help, Joe Maddon hopes answers will surface on the current roster. “You have to be patient and rely on that and just don’t take a Triple-A success and automatically project him to the big leagues,” Maddon said. Gordon Wittenmyer has thoughts on this subject. Michael Cerami has words too.
• Evan Altman (Cubs Insider): Cubs reportedly had scouts in Detroit, where potential trade targets abound. “Buckle up, folks, things are going to start getting fun.”
• TMZ: Jeff Francoeur backpedals on Willson Contreras comments, I was kidding! “I laughed while I said it. It was fun,” he said. Willy already responded.
• Chris Cwik (Big League Stew): Anthony Rizzo has a purpose that’s bigger than baseball. “Rizzo’s charitable work in Chicago has become so prevalent, that its presence will be felt in the city long after he hangs up his cleats.”
• Tommy Birch (Des Moines Register* {$}): Why is Ian Happ struggling to hit in Triple-A? “It’s a timing issue,” Iowa Cubs hitting coach Desi Wilson said of Happ’s troubles this season.
• Cubs birthdays: Bobby Morgan, John Boccabella, Bruce Kimm, Pedro Valdes, Brooks Raley. Also notable: Dizzy Trout, Harmon Killebrew (HoF)

Food for thought:

Thanks for reading. Michael Crichton, please pick up the white courtesy phone. Michael Crichton, Andromeda calling...