Cub Tracks plays down

Well, that wasn’t so much fun. I’d rather be reporting on Thursday’s game but it is what it is. On the one hand, Nicholas Castellanos still looks like the second coming of Gary Gaetti at the bat and it may not be entirely premature to start thinking about what he’d like in a free agent contract, Patrick Mooney {$}.

On the other hand, the top of the 8th. I’d like to return that for a refund, please. That was uglier than the red-shoes-and-hats-and-olive-camo combination.

“... that’s gross ...” — Jim DeShaies.

I agree. The less said about either, the better, so... without further ado, 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.

• Dan Szymborski (Fangraphs*): The Cubs are slowly pulling away. “... hidden in the projections were signs that the Cubs were more dangerous at the end of July than they had been earlier in the season.”
• Gordon Wittenmyer (Chicago Sun-Times* {$}): On milestone birthday, Cubs cornerstone Anthony Rizzo mulls future in ‘cutthroat’ biz. “I do want to stay here. I do want to be a Cub,” Rizzo said.
• Sahadev Sharma (The Athletic {$}): What exactly is the Ben Zobrist Effect? French fries, expensive steaks and lots of veteran knowledge. “Everything he does is purposeful,” Cole Roederer said. Gordon Wittenmyer has more Zobrist.
• Tony Andracki (NBC Sports Chicago*): ‘He has a force field around him’: How Javy Baez’s creativity continues to spark Cubs offense. “It’s huge,” Ian Happ said. “He’s a one-man show out there where if he’s hitting or if he’s on the bases, he can create a run by himself.
• Ryan Thomure (Cubs Insider): Even if they cool down, Happ and Castellanos are big upgrades. “... just falling back to career norms would have them performing better than the players they replaced.”
• Patrick Mooney (The Athletic {$}): Happ’s edge could be exactly what the Cubs need now. “Typically, Ian walks around with a lot of self-confidence,” Maddon said.
• Jeff Agrest (Chicago Sun-Times* {$}): Sports media: Cubs might be served cold Dish in carriage talks. “Dish Network’s threat to keep the 21 Fox regional sports networks out of its lineup doesn’t bode well for Marquee.”
• Cubs birthdays: Larry Corcoran, Elmer Jacobs, Bob Porterfield, Jimmy McMath.

Food for thought:

Thanks for reading.