Cub Tracks makes noise

Here at CUB TRACKS NEWS AND NOTES™, we like to keep things brief on the principle that it makes us appear wise. We don’t always, but we like to. Below please see artist representations of my regard for the White Sox’ manager, who is an ex-Cub and therefore relevant to our interests.

Thank you, Don Martin. You and John Madden have enriched my vocabulary in ways I didn’t know were possible. Next up? Interpretive dance? Oh wait, Yermin Mercedes already did that with Tyler Duffey. Thurmp ssst bup ka-tang!

Meanwhile, back at the ranch — the Cubs and Nationals continued their series Wednesday night as Jake Arrieta and Max Scherzer faced off. Both of them are max-effort, scary guys. I don’t think I would want to fight them. But I like to watch them on TV. Both pitched well. Scherzer maybe a little better, or more successfully, by the scorecard.

Anthony Rizzo and Javier Baez started the night on the pine. Maybe they were eating the meat loaf. They had back tightness. I watched Victor Robles and my toes made a fist. Ouch! Amazing that he stayed in.

Javy came in and played some, sent a big fly on its way in the ninth. Bet his back felt some better, after.

That was it, though. Al will have details in his recap.

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 on this page as sarcasm font. (In the comments section, use @ before and after your remarks @ to produce sarcasm font. In the text body. It doesn’t work in the headlines.)

• Tim Stebbins (NBC Sports Chicago*): Dave Martinez gets money’s worth in ejection, throws base. “... Martinez wasn’t going to leave without putting up an argument.”
• Paul Sullivan (Chicago Tribune* {$}): Jon Lester changed the culture of the Chicago Cubs and helped deliver a World Series. Can fans enjoy a 2021 team that may be average at best? “Time flies in baseball, and the only constant is change.”
• Fran Spielman (Chicago Sun-Times* {$}): Cubs get go-ahead for rare Friday night game on June 18. The exception was OK’d by a City Council committee because of the Cubs’ travel schedule.
• Jordan Bastian (MLB.com*): Where do the Cubs stand a quarter into ‘21? “...we’re a team that comes to work every day with a mentality to try to win that ballgame that day.”
• Tyler Smith (Cubs Insider*): Emergence of young talent could change timeline for Cubs’ next window. “Whatever direction the Cubs take, they’re in a much better position than when Hoyer first arrived with Theo Epstein.”
• Evan Altman (Cubs Insider*): What do you know, maybe big trades from Cubs’ Core ‘aren’t imminent after all’. “... even if keeping all three of the current star players mentioned is a bit of a stretch, trading all three would be a grievous error.”
• Russell Dorsey (Chicago Sun-Times* {$}): After long journey, Tommy Nance the latest Cubs’ rookie pitcher to make his debut. “Nance pitched for the Windy City Thunderbolts of the Frontier League in 2015 before signing with the Cubs in ’16.” Tony Andracki elaborates.
• Tommy Birch (Des Moines Register* {$}): Cubs minor leaguer Dakota Mekkes gains big results after slimming down in offseason. “I didn’t even realize I looked that different,” Mekkes said.
• Meghan Montemurro (Chicago Tribune* {$}): Anthony Rizzo is day to day because of lower back tightness after the Chicago Cubs’ 6-3 win over the Washington Nationals. “You don’t want to see him go out there and do something stupid and really hurt himself,” Bryant said. Tony Andracki elaborates.
• Brett Taylor (Bleacher Nation*): David Bote has been terribly unlucky so far this year – but does that really change anything? “... the Cubs were right to want to find out what he would look like as a starter.”
• Steve Greenberg (Chicago Sun-Times* {$}): If anyone embodied the arc of the Cubs from 2015 to 2020, it was Kyle Schwarber. “He was spectacular. Then he kind of stagnated. And then — poof — he was gone.”
• Cubs Insider* New Holy Cow! Podcast: Lester/Schwarber return, Cubs rotation issues with Sara Sanchez [AUDIO].
• WGN Radio 720: Chicago Cubs 21-year old PA announcer Jeremiah Paprocki: ‘Being in the PA booth and experiencing these Cubs games is the best perk of all-time’ [AUDIO].

Food for thought:

Thanks for reading.