Cub Tracks’ Mills grinds one out

Here at CUB TRACKS NEWS AND NOTES™, we have news for you. The eleven-game losing streak is now behind us. Bolingbrook stubbornly refused to spontaneously combust. Spinal Tap, on the other hand, is advertising for a drummer. José Lobatón is said to be interested.

The good news is, it’s not twelve, but a streak of one in the ‘W’ column. We all know the precipice the team is on the edge of:

Seventeen.

Sell or Not-Sell.

But I try like hell not to jump to easy conclusions, even when I’m over-reacting to events. So I’m not seeing it written in stone that all of the ‘Core’ are gone... even though it does seem to be on the walls, waiting for the fires of the burn-down to reveal the invisible ink. Still... why fight City Hall? You’ll just end up with hamstring tightness. Ima go with the prevailing winds, for now. Alec Mills threw in a Herculean effort, considering the stakes. But that’s still the smaller sample size given the recent skein of unraveling fortunes.

BABIP-A-LULA!

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• Matt Snyder (CBS Sports*): Why the Cubs need to say goodbye to members of their 2016 championship core and sell at the trade deadline. “For Cubs fans, it’s time to make peace with the end of the 2016 championship core.”
• Matt Martell (Sports Illustrated*): Yankees, Cubs and Starting Pitchers: Three questions as the Trade Deadline looms. “As the July 30 deadline approaches, teams must grapple with the age-old question: who to trade and who not to trade?”
• Randy Holt (Beyond the Box Score*): Where do the Chicago Cubs go from here? “With the trade deadline looming at the end of the month, the North Siders find themselves at a monumental crossroads.”
• Michael Cerami (Bleacher Nation*): The Cubs have turned the trade market upside down. “The Chicago Cubs will be sellers at the 2021 MLB Trade Deadline. It’s a done deal. You can count on it.”
• John Buhler (Fansided*): 4 Cubs who need to be traded out of town before deadline. “Look for the Cubs front office to sell high on these four players...”
• Mike McGraw (Daily Herald* {$}): A tear-it-down Cubs rebuild could end up looking like 2012. “It’s not out of the realm for this group to roll off nine in a row as well,” Cubs manager David Ross said. “That’s kind of the other end of the spectrum.”
• Paul Sullivan (Chicago Tribune* {$}): With the Chicago Cubs on another long losing streak, it’s time to look back at the team-record 14-game skid set in 1997. “...this is what former manager Lou Piniella used to refer to as a “Cubby Occurrence.””
• Jordan Bastian (MLB.com*): ‘Not even close’: Arrieta says tank isn’t empty. “This sucks. Really, it does. But, I’m not going to hang my head. I’m going to continue to work. I’m going to do whatever needs to be done.” Patrick Mooney echoes the thoughts of many {$}.
• Maddie Lee (NBC Sports Chicago*): Cubs’ Ryan Tepera targeting Friday Vs. Cardinals for return. “Tepera, who went on the IL last week with a left calf strain, threw live batting practice to Patrick Wisdom on Tuesday, according to David Ross.”
• Brett Taylor (Bleacher Nation*): The Chicago Cubs could get a “Ton” in a Craig Kimbrel trade. “Kimbrel is the big one to me,” Jon Heyman said.
• Eric Longenhagen (Fangraphs*): Top 49 Prospects: Chicago Cubs. “...an analysis of the prospects in the farm system of the Chicago Cubs.”
• Jeff Agrest (Chicago Sun-Times* {$}): ESPN moves White Sox-Cubs ‘Sunday Night Baseball’ game Aug. 8 to ABC. The game will mark the first time that ESPN airs “SNB” exclusively on ABC. Matt Vasgersian, Alex Rodriguez and Buster Olney will call the game on site.
• Phil Thompson (Chicago Tribune* {$}): Julianna Zobrist responds to Ben Zobrist’s ‘ugly’ divorce allegations: ‘It’s tempting to retaliate or seek revenge when someone decides to hurt, slander or lie about you’. “The divorce is scheduled for a seven-day bench trial in Franklin, Tenn., beginning Aug. 9.”

Food for thought:

Thanks for reading.