Versus

Kyle Orton vs. Expectations

The expectations for the Bears’ offense in general and Kyle Orton in particular have risen with each game. And so far, Orton has answered the bell. Despite the Bears’ well chronicled struggles at QB, Orton isn’t the first Bears passer to string together 7 decent games. It’s just that those 7 are usually followed by 17 (or more) terrible efforts. Will Orton avoid that and continue to satisfy a city suddenly clammoring for a contract extension?

Verdict: Pending.

Cole Hamels vs. God

Given that his last start was cut short by a driving rainstorm, Hamels appears to have finally come up against the one who can stop him this postseason. But Hamels may get the last laugh since the delay means he might have the chance to take the hill in Game 7, should the series go to the limit. But as I write this, the Phils are up by one and the Rays have just three outs to do something about that. So for the time being, the edge goes to the Almighty.

Verdict: God.

Isaiah Thomas vs. The Truth

Thomas tried to lie his way out of an embarrassing medical incident, showing no shame in feeding his own daughter to the wolves along the way. Of course, this particular lie is my favorite sort of of lie: the implausible one (and when I say “favorite,” I mean “least favorite”). There are usually records kept about these sorts of incidents, and various medical personnel are involved. In what universe must you live in order to believe that reports will be falsified and that officials will lie in order to protect the tattered remains of your reputation? What an idiot.

Verdict: The Truth. The Truth always wins. Don’t mess with The Truth.

Something Else to Watch

So I have been less than impressed with the Big Ten Network, but I finally have a big plus for it.  Thanks to the BTN, I was able to watch collegiate women’s volleyball.  And it was fun to watch.  I caught Purdue at Illinois — a match-up between top 20 teams.  And the digs, kills and passes impressed.  These ladies put on a show.  I will admit it wasn’t quite international-level competition, but I am going to have to remember to watch the standings during the NCAA women’s tournament.

Just what I needed – something else to watch. 

I Found It

The defense, that is. Last weekend I couldn’t find any reasonable football defense anywhere. But this weekend, I found it. Penn State at Ohio State. Good stuff. Both teams have explosive offenses, but the defense on both sides was quite impressive. This game definitely lived up to the “Big Ten Game of the Year” billing.

Where Has All the Defense Gone?

Allowing long-time passes. 
Where has all the defense gone? 
All weekend long…

My apologies to those who don’t get the musical reference.  I love defense.  After all, I was raised on Big Ten football and the Bears.  And this past weekend was seriously deficient in defense, at least in the games I watched. 

Let’s start on Friday night.  TheWittyOne and I took in a high school football game that had lots of long runs, painful kicking, “intersting” special teams and almost no defense.  The teams raced up and down the field with very little getting in their way.  I did see a few incomplete passes (and one great pass knockdown), a couple sacks and a few good tackles, but missed tackles in favor of pushing the ball carrier forward out of boungs was much more popular.  I guess D isn’t the thing in that particular high school conference.

Then, on Saturday, the scoring continued.  Wisconsin and Michigan State had minimal defense, given the points put on the board by Iowa and Ohio State, respectively.  And I expect good D out of the Badgers.  The Illini needed 2 plays to score on their first possession against Indiana, and although the Hoosiers struggled, missing their starting QB seemed to have more to do with that than the Illini D.  87 points were on the board at the end of the Texas v. Mizzou game, USC scored 69 (although they did shut out Washington State), and 21 D1-A teams put up more than 40 points.

And the insanity extended into Sunday.  I had the Bears v. Vikings on as background noise, and every time I looked up, someone was scoring a TD.  Giving up 41 points?  And scoring 48?  I’m glad Kyle and his Bears (I know – that’s a bizarre statement, but that’s for another day) won, but the Bears are supposed to have great D. 

So what’s the deal?  I love watching solid hits.  Great open field tackles.  Goal line stands.  Great pass coverage.  Is defense just not cool anymore?  I know that big offensive plays are exciting, but defense can be exciting, too.  Really.  I like it.  And I hope it comes back next week…

Five Dumb Ideas

I know what you’re thinking. If they’re dumb, why suggest them? Well, maybe they’re not so dumb as they seem. Or maybe dumb is exactly what this team needs. This year, they did most everything right, and they got nothing to show for it.

The fundamental question is whether or not this team needs a drastic overhaul. Two straight division titles would seem to indicate that they don’t. In fact, unless the Brewers pull off a miracle and get CC to sign with them, only the Astros appear positioned to contend with the Cubs in 2009. But two straight sweeps in the NLDS would seem to indicate that this is not a team built to win where it counts most: in the playoffs. What to do? Leave the team in tact, and they’re probably odds-on favorites to make the postseason for the third straight year—and maybe run that playoff losing streak to 12 games. Or, take some risks with the team and see if you can cook up that last missing bit of magic—at the risk of looking like the doofus who messed with success and outthought himself right out of the postseason.

If we’re leaning toward changing things up, here are a few dumb or not so dumb ideas to consider (keeping in mind the Cubs’ somewhat limited financial flexibility):

Fire Larry Rothschild. On the heels of one of the best years for Cub pitching in quite some time? Maybe. In the mix for next year’s starting rotation are two still young, still developing pitchers (Marshall and Samardzija) and two pitchers with recent shoulder troubles (Harden and Zambrano). Rothschild’s track record with both categories is not encouraging.

Plus, if the Cubs are going anywhere next year, they need Zambrano to finally put together a complete season. Whatever Larry is doing with Z, it doesn’t seem to be working. I can’t tell you how many times I saw Larry, during a mound visit, clearly utter the word “focus.” The message has not taken. The approach isn’t working. This is mostly Z’s fault. He’s a grown-ass man who should not need to have his hand held. And perhaps nothing will work with this mental case. But with a multi-million dollar contract on the books, Zambrano isn’t going anywhere. What harm would it do to try something different?

Drop Soriano down in the order. I’ve long been against this move. Fact is, when Soriano is on, he sets the tone for the team like no other hitter does. And while his skills seem better suited to a middle-of-the-order hitter, that assumes that you can take his exact current production (let’s say .285 with 30-35 homers) and simply insert it into, say, the #5 spot. But history does not bear this out. History tells us that Soriano struggles anywhere but the leadoff role. So if you shuffle him elsewhere, you’re not simply moving his bat. You’re taking away his bat completely.

Part of this is because Soriano is a fastball hitter, and he sees lots of fastballs out of the leadoff spot. Part of this is because Soriano has, I think, developed a mental block against hitting anywhere but #1. What the Cubs will need to do, if they plan to move him out of the leadoff spot, is to find him a place in the lineup where he’s protected and thus will still see his beloved fastballs. And then you have to tell him, gently and politely, to get his head out of his ass and find a way to be productive out of a lower spot in the order.

Go after Brian Roberts (again). This seems dumb because the Cubs look set at second base. They’ve got Mark DeRosa, who had a career year and who has been nothing but productive over the past two years. And backing him up, they’ve got Mike Fontenot. Not an everyday guy, but a guy who can spark the lineup when he’s there. So why add another one?

Well, for starters, you may need DeRosa in right field more than you think. Though he dislikes playing the outfield, his defense out there showed marked improvement over last year. Unless Fukudome has a miraculous recovery from this year, or unless the Cubs finally locate that outfielder-slash-left-handed-power-hitter that they thought they were getting in Fukudome, DeRosa may once again become the de facto starting right fielder, as he was for the last part of this year. Plus, his versatility means he doesn’t need a set position in order to start basically every day. You’d like to reward DeRosa with a settled starting job, but if that’s not what most helps the team—then he’ll have to remain the superutility man.

Brian Roberts can hit from the left side and he’s a good top-of-the-order guy.

Let Felix Pie compete for the job in center.  Pie’s already competed for the job, what, two or three times? And he’s lost every single time. But he’s another left-handed hitter with top-of-the-order potential. He has the defensive chops for an outfield that will likely be sorely lacking in defense. And really, what do you have to lose? His trade value is less than zero right now. More and more time in Triple-A probably isn’t going to help matters any. There’s nothing left to lose in giving him one last chance because pretty much everything has already been lost.

Trade Derrek Lee. This might be the most controversial. Everyone loves Lee, for obvious reasons. I certainly do. But, again, the power is not coming back. The defense has even slowed a bit over the last year or so. His contract is expensive but there are teams who would take that on in order to get an established first baseman and team leader. If Lee can bring some pitching in return, then this might be a solid move. It does open up a spot for Micah Hoffpauir, who needs some seasoning but has shown that he might be the oft discussed left-handed power bat. The defensive downgrade would be troubling though. So perhaps you use part of Lee’s salary to bring in someone else who can share that job, and use the remaining money to shore up the bullpen. The setup role might turn out to be a question mark. Howry is almost certainly gone, which leaves Samardzija and Marmol as the likely candidates. But Samardzija is unproven and might start. And if Wood doesn’t come back, Marmol becomes the closer. So a veteran arm in there might be welcome.

Now, I might not be so bold as to openly endorse any of these ideas. But food for thought..yes? At least it gets the ideas moving.

Thank You, Tampa…

for sparing us all the annoyance of listening to the talking heads wax poetic about the Red Sox and another amazing post-season comeback.  I just don’t have the stomach for it.

Heartbreakers

There are teams that woo you with their talent or wow you with their grit.  They lure you in with players that work hard and love the game.  They capture you with mind-blowing plays, exciting comebacks or complete domination.  They build your hopes up and entice you to believe.

And then, they lose.

I’m finding it a bit hard to write at the moment specifically because of these teams. 

Take the Cubs.  No, nevermind.  That heartbreak is still to raw. 

Take the Bears.  Oh, wait. I agreed with TheWittyOne that they weren’t worth following this year (but a come-from-behind TD with :11 on the clock, only to lose on a field goal? really?). 

Ah, take my Illini.  They dominated Michigan.  Broke records.  Stomped all over the Big House.  And then came home for a triumphant Homecoming game.  And they played like the team we had Zook’s first year.  Actually, I’m not sure if what I saw even counts as playing.

The weekend in college football was full of such heartbreak.  Mizzou, at home, #2 in the nation (and a respectable loss for my Illini) taken out by the OK State Cowboys.  Or Bret Bielema, a great story in college football coaching who started as a walk-on at Iowa (actually, before that he played in a small Illinois town that doesn’t even have their own team anymore, as part of the IHSA conference I grew up in), and made his way to the top of a Big Ten powerhouse.  0-3 in conference play.  Or the see-saw battle that was the Red River Shootout.  Heartbreak for the Sooners.  That was a national-championship caliber game.  Or the stomping put on the defending national champs (although that soothed my heartbreaks a bit).  Or the Fighting Irish. Or the Wolverines.  (Again, those last 2 made my own disappointment a bit easier to take, but for their fans…)

These painful days make me wonder if it’s worth it.  But, as with any heartbreak, these moments only make victory more sweet…

That Age Old Dilemma

Since we in Chicago no longer have a horse in the playoffs (again), it comes time to answer what has become a regular question: who should I as a Chicago fan be rooting for? This time, the baseball edition.

The Case For Boston: Well, winning a third championship in five years would really piss the Yankees off, especially since they missed the playoffs this year.

The Case Against Boston: I’ve sort of covered my issues with Boston back here. They went from perennial put-upons to rather arrogant in a short time. But then again, they were always arrogant even when they weren’t winning, what with their our-suffering-is-worse-than-yours carrying on.

The Case For Tampa: They are the nicest story of the four remaining teams. Despite their excellent season, they’re still the underdog, and therefore the basic bias is for them. Were they to win just after dropping “Devil” from their name, could be seen as a victory for the forces of good.

The Case Against Tampa: God help us Cubs fans if yet another expansion team wins before us. God help us Cubs fans if another frequent doormat wins before us. God help us if both happen via the same team winning. Also the “Trop” is a stupid-ass nickname for a stupid-ass field.

The Case For Philadelphia: Philly is always a hairsbreadth away from sports-related riot. If the Phillies implode, this could be the one that puts them over the edge. We can’t have that. Cole Hamels, despite being apparently kind of a tool, is an exciting pitcher to watch. And I respect Chase Utley for doing most all of the things a baseball player is supposed to do.

The Case Against Philadelphia: They’re one of the few teams whose fans can put Cubs fans to shame with their whining. Brad Lidge still doesn’t quite do it for me. I mean, good for him for not sucking this year. But should it really take someone that long to recover from giving up a home run to Albert Pujols? He’s a good hitter! Lots of guys give up homers to him and live to tell the tale!

The Case For LA: The longer they stay in, the more they are validated and the more the Cubs debacle goes from 150% embarrassing to maybe 149.9999999% embarrassing. Joe Torre is a class act.

The Case Against LA: Manny Ramirez’s productivity in LA has been amazing, but should this asshat really be rewarded for his antics? As much as I respect Joe Torre, I can’t forget that he managed for the Yankees all those years, and I tire of the ceaseless attempts to canonize him. If the Dodgers make the WS, (1) our desire for this year’s playoffs to be a Yankee-free zone will be crushed, because they will talk all day long of how he made the WS without the Yankees but the Yankees didn’t make it without him; and (2) the hagiography ante will really be upped.

Conclusion: Go Philly, I guess. Then go Tampa, maybe. LA vs. Boston: find something to impale yourself on.

There’s Only One October

And it represents the heart of the college football season, where every game counts.  College teams are facing the meat of their conference schedules over the next month or so, making every weekend exciting.  Plus, it’s really fun to cheer for hard hits and big plays when you are grieving the loss of another October, but I’m not going there right now…

The Illini stuck it to Rich and the Wolverines at the Big House.  USC rebounded against Oregon at the Coliseum.  The Ohio State University won at Camp Randall in Madison.  Mizzou dominated the Cornhuskers in Lincoln.  Vandy pulled an upset at home against Auburn.  And Conneticut lost to North Carolina — yes, I’m talking about football.  And every single game matters.  These all have ramifiacations on conference and BCS standings.  Fun stuff.

And the fun only continues, with the Red River Shootout in Dallas next week, LSU at Florida, and countless other games that will build or destroy bowl hopes.  This is the stuff of October, along with changing leaves, combines rolling through the fields and the nip in the air that tells you to put on a sweatshirt and cheer on your favorite football team.

Besides, I was getting a bit tired of that other sport, anyway (ok, not really, but I’m trying to cope).

What Now?

Actual text exchange between me and Brother #2.

Brother #2: It’s the third period.
Me: Sorry about that. Here’s my thought: Derrek Lee is no longer a viable #3 hitter.

I’m not one to pile on D-Lee, though I imagine his uncanny knack for double play grounders has swelled those ranks. But here’s the facts. He’s well into his 30s and he’s had some key injuries. The power is not coming back. Batting .291 with 20 homers and 90 RBIs is a fine season, unless you’re a #3 hitter.

I don’t say this because I wish to import the pessimism generated by the end of this season into next season. But these are the kind of decisions Lou Piniella has to make. The majority of this team will be back next year, and most of them at rather handsome prices. So Lou is going to have to do what he’s done quite well for the last two years: move the parts around until they become something greater than their sum. And then he’s going to have to do something that he hasn’t done well for the last two years: get this team to win a playoff game.

A possible problem, then, is that none of the other members of this team present as a solid choice for #3. The only player with the productivity to match is Aramis Ramirez. And do you risk moving him out of the cleanup spot, where he’s done so well? And if you do move him up one, who takes over that #4 spot? Do you hope that 23 homers and 86 RBIs in Geo’s rookie year translates into 30+ homers and 100+ RBIs now that he’s got a year under his belt? Or is that too much pressure to put on a still developing young player?

What’ll it be? The time between now and next season is shorter than you think.