Bleed Cubbie Blue - Cubs vs. Rockies Friday Game ThreadsA Chicago Cubs Fan Community Since February 9, 2005https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/47557/cubbieblue.png2013-07-20T08:00:07-05:00http://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/rss/stream/42967312013-07-20T08:00:07-05:002013-07-20T08:00:07-05:00Cubs 3, Rockies 1: Take Me Down To Junior's Farm
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<p>Junior Lake's big MLB debut, along with solid pitching and offensive contributions from just about everyone, led the Cubs to victory Friday night in Denver.</p> <p>I promise not to use that old Paul McCartney song line again. Or at least, not too much, during Junior Lake's <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/">Cubs</a> career. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pEil2e_bUvg">Here, have an earworm</a>:</p>
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<pre>♫♪♫ Let's go, let's go, let's go, let's go
Down to junior's farm where I want to lay low,
Low life, high life, oh, let's go,
Take me down to junior's farm. ♫♪♫</pre>
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<p>Lake went 3-for-4 in his major-league debut with a stolen base, helping lead the Cubs to <a href="http://chicago.cubs.mlb.com/news/boxscore.jsp?gid=2013_07_19_chnmlb_colmlb_1" target="_blank">a 3-1 win over the Rockies in Denver</a> Friday night. And if you think that's an unusual occurrence, you're right. From 2009-2012 the Cubs were 2-11 at Coors Field, and were outscored by the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.purplerow.com/">Rockies</a> 104-55 in those 13 games, giving up 10 or more runs in four of the 11 losses. So right there, this is a huge improvement.</p>
<p>The first Cubs run, though, was another home run by <span>Alfonso Soriano</span>, his 17th, in the fourth inning. In 19 games since June 23, Soriano is hitting .308/.329/.795 (yes, a .795 SLG) with six doubles, a triple, 10 home runs and 20 RBI. Perhaps, if the Cubs can't send <span>Matt Garza</span> anywhere, they can finally trade Soriano for some prospects (presuming the Cubs eat the entire contract, or 90 percent of it). The home run tied Soriano with Johnny Bench on the all-time list with 389. Next up: Graig Nettles, 390; Jim Edmonds, 393; Joe Carter, 396.</p>
<p>The Cubs gave the run back in the bottom of the fourth, a solo homer by <span>Dexter Fowler</span>. It was the only run off <span>Jeff Samardzija</span>, who had a bit of a shaky first inning, got out of it, and then threw 7⅓ solid innings, allowing just four hits. Shark also made a nice play at the plate after bouncing a pitch past <span>Welington Castillo</span> with <span>Troy Tulowitzki</span> on third base in the fourth; Castillo fired to Shark, covering the plate, to nail Tulo to end the inning.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, <span>Pedro Strop</span> was summoned when Shark got in trouble in the eighth, and Strop got out of it by getting pinch-hitter <span>Jordan Pacheco</span> to fly to center, and then he struck out Fowler.</p>
<p>Strop has been excellent since the Cubs acquired him from the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.camdenchat.com/">Orioles</a>, pitching like he did last year. Maybe the Cubs got themselves a decent setup man out of the <span>Scott Feldman</span> trade.</p>
<p>The Cubs scored the eventual winning run on <span>Anthony Rizzo's</span> RBI double in the seventh, and <span>Darwin Barney</span> doubled in an insurance run in the top of the ninth. The Cubs had a nicely balanced offense, as every one of the position players except <span>Starlin Castro</span> reached base, had a hit, drove in a run or scored one.</p>
<p>Lake's 3-for-4 excited many, including me, and <a href="http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/ct-spt-0720-bits-cubs-rockies-chicago-20130720,0,1579434.story" target="_blank">Dale Sveum says he's going to get more playing time</a>:</p>
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<pre>The Cubs didn't plan on bringing Lake up this quickly, but now that he's here manager Dale Sveum plans on using him.
"While he's here, he's going to play, basically until (David) DeJesus gets back," Sveum said. "We've seen it before where guys wow you too much to send them back down, and then you have to make room for them somewhere."</pre>
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<p>Why not? Sure, he's never played center field before, but as he himself said:</p>
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<pre>"I'm not really focusing on whether I'm an outfielder in the future," he said. "I'm just going to do what I'm called upon to do and take that role and do my best."</pre>
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<p>That's the right attitude, and Lake certainly is athletic and fast enough to cover center field if needed there. Regarding his playing time, again... this is exactly the right time to see what he can do. We all know his flaws -- not really a solid infielder, so maybe the move to the outfield is the right thing to do, and a lot of strikeouts (though he seems to have cut down on that a bit this year at Iowa). Interesting bit of trivia: Lake is exactly three days younger than Starlin Castro.</p>
<p>Back to the game to wrap it: <span>Kevin Gregg</span> put two runners on base before Chris Bosio came to visit him with one out and the runners on first and third. He must have said the right thing, because Gregg's next pitch was hit by <span>Michael Cuddyer</span> for a game-ending double play. It wasn't the prettiest save, but got the job done, and perhaps Gregg, instead of Garza, will be the next Cub shipped out of town.</p>
<p>The two teams will have at it again Saturday evening, with <span>Carlos Villanueva</span> facing <span>Juan Nicasio</span>. The Cubs have now played good ball for over a month; they're 8-6 in July, and 18-13 since June 12, a .581 pace. Keep up that pace for the rest of the year, and they'd win 83 games for the season (.581 over 68 remaining games = 40-28). Is that likely? Probably not, but this team continues to play close to .500 ball by Pythagorean numbers (-8 run differential, 46-48 Pythagorean record).</p>
https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2013/7/20/4540590/cubs-rockies-recap-junior-lake-jeff-samardzija-mlb-scoresAl Yellon2013-07-19T21:40:02-05:002013-07-19T21:40:02-05:00Overflow Thread 2: Cubs vs. Rockies, Friday 7/19,
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<figcaption>David Banks</figcaption>
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https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2013/7/19/4534842/overflow-thread-2-cubs-vs-rockies-friday-7-19-7-40-ctAl Yellon2013-07-19T20:40:04-05:002013-07-19T20:40:04-05:00Overflow Thread 1: Cubs vs. Rockies, Friday 7/19
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<figcaption>USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2013/7/19/4534838/overflow-thread-1-cubs-vs-rockies-friday-7-19-7-40-ctAl Yellon2013-07-19T17:00:10-05:002013-07-19T17:00:10-05:00Cubs vs. Rockies Preview, Friday 7/19, 7:40 CT
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<figcaption>USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>The "second half" is only 69 games this year due to the late date of the All-Star Game. Still, the Cubs have a better record entering the second half than any time since 2009. That's good. Things are improving. Right?</p> <p>Feel free to use this as a Matt Garza Trade Rumor Overflow Thread, until either the game starts or he's actually traded. Usually, trades wind up interrupting my dinner, so expect it sometime between 7 and 7:30 CT. (Joke! Not serious!)</p>
<p>Now then. Some actual baseball numbers.</p>
<p>Cubs' record at the All-Star Break, 2010-2013:</p>
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<pre>2010: 39-50 (after: 36-37)
2011: 37-55 (after: 34-36)
2012: 33-52 (after: 28-49)
2013: 42-51 (after: ?????)</pre>
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<p>The poor record from last year after the break reflects the selloff that was completed just before the trading deadline. Will this year's team be able to better that .364 winning percentage? If they match it, they'd go 25-44 for a final 2013 record of 67-95, which, though an improvement over last year, would still be pretty bad. I'd like to think this team has enough talent, that even after a selloff, they could win between 70-75 games, setting the stage for a better 2014.</p>
<p>This, however, does not bode well for this series:</p>
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<p><a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23Cubs&src=hash">#Cubs</a> have dropped 10 of 11 at Coors while their rotation has posted a 10.68 ERA. <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23Rockies&src=hash">#Rockies</a> C. Gonzalez is 20 for 38 in 9 home games vs. Cubs</p>
— STATS_MLB (@STATS_MLB) <a href="https://twitter.com/STATS_MLB/statuses/358322904653508608">July 19, 2013</a>
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<p><a href="http://www.purplerow.com/2013/7/19/4538986/rockies-cubs-preview-stats-pitching-matchups-tv-schedule" target="_blank">This post from our SB Nation Rockies site Purple Row</a> seems to indicate Cubs fans aren't viewed very well at Coors Field, though they did have nice things to say about BCB. Go check them out.</p>
<p>Cubs lineup:</p>
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<pre>Barney 2B, Ransom 3B, Rizzo 1B, Soriano LF, Castro SS, Lake CF, Sappelt RF, Castillo C, Samardzija P</pre>
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<p><span>Junior Lake</span>, headed right into the starting lineup vs. a LHP, batting sixth, playing center field. He'll be wearing <strike><span class="sbn-auto-link">Sammy Sosa's</span></strike> <strike><span class="sbn-auto-link">Jason Marquis</span>'</strike> <strike><span class="sbn-auto-link">Tyler Colvin's</span></strike> <strike><span class="sbn-auto-link">Joe Mather's</span></strike> <span class="sbn-auto-link">Scott Hairston's</span> No. 21. (Yes, I left someone out. On purpose.)</p>
<p><a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.purplerow.com/">Rockies</a> lineup:</p>
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<pre>Fowler CF, LeMahieu 2B, Gonzalez LF, Tulowitzki SS, Cuddyer RF, Helton 1B, Rosario C, Arenado 3B, De La Rosa P</pre>
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<h2><i>Today's Starting Pitchers</i></h2>
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<td class="yspscores" align="center" width="45%">
<a href="http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/players/8281" target="newwindow"><img src="http://assets.sbnation.com/assets/2682591/jeffsamardzija.jpg" alt="Jeff Samardzija" border="1" height="480" width="320"></a><br><a href="http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/players/8281" target="newwindow"> <center>
<h2>Jeff Samardzija</h2>
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<h2>Cubs</h2>
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<td align="center" width="10%">vs.</td>
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<a target="newwindow" href="http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/players/7281"><img alt="Jorge De La Rosa" src="http://assets.sbnation.com/assets/2926989/jorgedelarosa.jpg" border="1" height="480" width="320"></a><br><a target="newwindow" href="http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/players/7281">
<h2>Jorge De La Rosa</h2>
</a> <br><h2>Rockies</h2>
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<h2>vs. Col</h2>
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<td class="yspscores" align="center">--</td>
<td class="yspscores" align="center"><a target="newwindow" href="http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/bvsp?playerId=5906">
<h2>vs. Cubs</h2>
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<th></th> <th>W-L</th> <th>G</th> <th>GS</th> <th>CG</th> <th>SHO</th> <th>SV</th> <th>BS</th> <th>IP</th> <th>H</th> <th>R</th> <th>ER</th> <th>HR</th> <th>BB</th> <th>K</th> <th>ERA</th> <th>WHIP</th>
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<td class="td-name td-first">2013 - <span>Jeff Samardzija</span>
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<td>5-9</td>
<td>19</td>
<td>19</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>0</td>
<td>0</td>
<td>124.0</td>
<td>117</td>
<td>61</td>
<td>56</td>
<td>14</td>
<td>44</td>
<td>128</td>
<td>4.06</td>
<td class="td-last">1.30</td>
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<th></th> <th>W-L</th> <th>G</th> <th>GS</th> <th>CG</th> <th>SHO</th> <th>SV</th> <th>BS</th> <th>IP</th> <th>H</th> <th>R</th> <th>ER</th> <th>HR</th> <th>BB</th> <th>K</th> <th>ERA</th> <th>WHIP</th>
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<td class="td-name td-first">2013 - <span>Jorge De La Rosa</span>
</td>
<td>9-5</td>
<td>19</td>
<td>19</td>
<td>0</td>
<td>0</td>
<td>0</td>
<td>0</td>
<td>109.1</td>
<td>102</td>
<td>40</td>
<td>39</td>
<td>6</td>
<td>38</td>
<td>74</td>
<td>3.21</td>
<td class="td-last">1.28</td>
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<p>Jeff Samardzija got pounded in his last start against the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.halosheaven.com/">Angels</a>, but that was nine days ago. So let's forget about that and hope Shark starts the second half strong. He has faced the Rockies this year, <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CHN/CHN201305150.shtml" target="_blank">May 15 at Wrigley Field</a>, and had one of his better outings (eight innings, two earned runs, seven strikeouts.</p>
<p>Jorge De La Rosa is having the best year of his career, and has been quite consistent for the Rockies all season. He has not faced the Cubs yet this season; current Cubs are hitting a small-sample-size .278 (15-for-54) against him, with four home runs (<span>Dave Sappelt</span>, <span>Alfonso Soriano</span>, <span>Starlin Castro</span> and <span>Nate Schierholtz</span>). Perhaps we're not doomed tonight.</p>
<p>Today's game is on WGN.</p>
<p><a target="_blank" href="http://mlb.mlb.com/mediacenter/index.jsp?ymd=20130401#date=7/19/2013">Here is the complete MLB.com Mediacenter for today.</a></p>
<p><a target="_blank" href="http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/gameday/index.jsp?gid=2013_07_19_chnmlb_colmlb_1&mode=gameday">MLB.com Gameday</a></p>
<p><a target="_blank" href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/previews/CHC.shtml">Baseball-reference.com game preview</a></p>
<p><a target="_blank" href="http://www.sbnation.com/mlb/events/118087/pregame">SB Nation game preview</a></p>
<p>Here's the scoop on game threads for 2013. You'll find the game preview -- like this one -- posting as the first link in the StoryStream™, which will then contain all the overflow threads and the recap. The recap will also be on the front page as a separate post; once I post a game recap, the stream for each game will be retitled "Cubs vs. (Team) (Day of Week) Game Threads" so you can go back and find every thread related to that particular game.</p>
<p>In general, game previews will post two hours before game time. Exception: for day games after night games, that will usually be 90 minutes.</p>
<p>You will also be able to find the First Pitch Thread and all the overflow threads in the box marked "<a href="https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Chicago Cubs</a> Game Threads" at the bottom of the front page (<a href="http://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/game-threads">you can also find them in this section link</a>). They will also appear in this StoryStream™. As I've done for each regular-season game for several years now, we'll have the First Pitch thread at five minutes before game time (moved up from actual game time per your requests), then an overflow one hour, two hours and 2:45 after game time.</p>
<p>Discuss amongst yourselves.</p>
https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2013/7/19/4532594/chicago-cubs-colorado-rockies-lineups-preview-fridayAl Yellon