Cub Tracks’ life, the universe, and Nico Hoerner

“In the beginning the Universe was created. This had made many people very angry and has been widely regarded as a bad move.”

I’m trying hard to keep my perspective and remain positive. It wasn’t so long ago that possible post-season berths were a pipe dream. And yeah, this core has/had such promise yadda yadda but we all knew it wasn’t ideal lineup construction and it’s still very possible that Theo Epstein breaks up the band, as the waves and waves became ebb tide and the plate approach often looks out to sea for inspiration. They seem to have forgotten their towels.

“A common mistake that people make when trying to design something completely foolproof is to underestimate the ingenuity of complete fools.” — Douglas Adams

But hey! It was cool to watch Nico Hoerner, even though I had to listen to the Padres’ announcing crew. Mark Grant and his cohorts aren’t so bad but Len and JD they’re not. Hopefully Nico can be part of all tomorrow’s parties. I love how the crowd was chanting “MVP! MVP!” after his triple. By the sixth, it was “Nico! Nico!” He evidenced a velvet touch with the glove and a decent arm, along with his quiet but deadly bat.

And hey! Nicholas Castellanos is doing everything HE can to get to the postseason. I’m going to stay on solid ground for a while still. We are, after all, professionals. The ledge is always there. 19 games to go to the end of the regular season.

Don’t Panic.

Here’s today’s Cubs News and Notes. I stayed up late to get only the best for you. As always, * means autoplay on, or annoying ads, or both (directions to remove for Firefox and Chrome). {$} means paywall. {$} means limited views. Italics are often used here as sarcasm font. RUN AWAY! denotes approaching Vogons.

“The one thing that stands out about him (Hoerner),” Cubs manager Joe Maddon said, “is a lot of confidence. I don’t mean that in a braggart way. He’s just a self-confident young man. From the moment I met him, he gave me the impression that he thought he belongs here, which I love.”

• Larry Hawley (WGN-TV): With 20 games left, Cubs are in quite a fight for the playoffs. “There’s only one way to deal with moments like this, and that is in the moment,” said Joe Maddon. Jordan Bastian has more to offer. Matt Martell assesses the pressure.

• Rick Morrissey (Chicago Sun-Times* {$}): Ownership needs to pony up, and Theo Epstein needs to be MVP of the offseason for sliding Cubs. “No matter what happens down the stretch this season, there’s no way Epstein can go into 2020 offering fans the same product.” Evan Altman also addresses this conundrum. Only Young Zaphod plays it safe.
• Jordan Bastian (MLB.com*): Taking 2nd look at potential Cubs playoff roster. “... the Cubs are still alive in both the NL Central and Wild Card races.”
• Mark Gonzales (Chicago Tribune* {$}): Cubs’ Kyle Hendricks says an aggressive game plan is the key to reversing his struggles on the road. “Every year there’s something different,” Hendricks said before taking the mound Monday night.
• Tony Andracki (NBC Sports Chicago*): Amid trying season, Pedro Strop believes he’s ‘on the cusp’ of returning to form. “I feel pretty good and my last couple outings have been where I want to be,” he said.
• John Grochowski (Chicago Sub-Times* {$}): Shortstop no longer a position of below-average offensive players. “... we’re in a time when it takes more than defense to hold the position.”
• Jordan Bastian (MLB.com*): Cubs’ SS situation gets tricky with Addison Russell injury. “It’s, as they say, suboptimal,” Maddon said. Patrick Mooney {$} agrees.
• Mark Gonzales (Chicago Tribune* {$}): Nico Hoerner, a 1st-round pick in 2018, is called up by the Cubs after injuries at shortstop. “Hoerner’s combination of talent and poise convinced team officials to promote him.” Jordan Bastian and Shaun O’Neill have more. Brett Taylor opines as well. Gordon Wittenmyer addresses expectations.
• Mike Axisa (CBS Sports*): Cubs’ Javier Baez unlikely to play rest of regular season due to thumb injury, could return for playoffs. “A visit to a specialist Monday confirmed the extent of the injury and provided a timetable for his return.” Patrick Mooney {$} offers thoughts.
• Gordon Wittenmyer (Chicago Sun-Times* {$}): Kris Bryant hopes to return to Cubs lineup Tuesday after having cortisone shot in knee. “... he originally hurt (the knee) on a slide into second base near the end of June.” Bryant discusses it here [VIDEO]. Jesse Rogers writes it up.
• Cubs birthdays: Mike Lynch, Kid Durbin, Marty Krug, High Pockets Kelly (HoF), Joe Kraemer, Chad Hermansen, Kameron Loe. Also notable: Ted Kluszewski, Roger Maris, Randy Johnson (HoF).

Food for thought:

Thanks for reading.