1. Early Guess at Cubs 25-Man Roster

    Just throwing this out there. The back-up catcher and the right fielder are guesses. Jeff Samardzija is being talked about as a starter, even in Iowa (think Sean Marshall as the no...

    Harry Pavlidis Written by Harry Pavlidis about over 4 years ago 386 reads 5 comments

  2. Rich Hill En Vivo

    One of my favorite things right now is LVBPTV, which features streaming live, and recorded, coverage of Venezuelan games.Tonight, Rich Hill, pitching for Aragua, faced Caracas and made his second appearance on Venezuelan TV...

    Harry Pavlidis Written by Harry Pavlidis about over 4 years ago 454 reads 4 comments

  3. Chicago Cubs' Winter Update

    Winter baseball is in full swing in this part of the world. The Puerto Rican league got underway, joining the Dominican, Venezuelan, and Mexican leagues in Latin America...

    Harry Pavlidis Written by Harry Pavlidis about over 4 years ago 169 reads 2 comments

  4. Guzman Strong, Berg and Ascanio Struggle

    Action continues in the Venezuela for Cubs pitching prospects. On Thursday, three were the pitcher of record in their Winter League games.Angel Guzman made his second start for Magallenes, working five shut-out innings...

    Harry Pavlidis Written by Harry Pavlidis about over 4 years ago 150 reads 0 comments

  5. Phils Clinch Ignites Cubs Stove

    Hot Stove Season is officially here. The Marlins traded Mike Jacobs to Kansas City for Leo Nunez. And the free agent filings have begun. Ryan Dempster, Bob Howry, Chad Fox and Jim Edmonds all filed on the first day they could...

    Harry Pavlidis Written by Harry Pavlidis about over 4 years ago 145 reads 0 comments

  6. Rich Hill Picks Up Win, Boosts Trade Value

    Rich Hill made his debut in Venezuela Friday night in Maracay. Rich threw 5.1 innings to get the decision in Aragua's first win of the 2008/2009 season. Hill didn't walk any batters, and struck out six, allowing two earned on four hits...

    Harry Pavlidis Written by Harry Pavlidis about over 4 years ago 523 reads 1 comments

  7. Arizona Fall Cubs: Donald Veal Wild, Nate Spears Hot

    The Mesa Solar Sox and Peoria Saguaros faced off Friday afternoon in Peoria. The 18-10 shoot-out featured some good, and some bad, from Cubs prospects, with the Solar Sox ending up on top...

    Harry Pavlidis Written by Harry Pavlidis about over 4 years ago 481 reads 0 comments

  8. Two Strike Fouls—Not the Key for Kazmir

    Listening to the fifth game of the ALCS, the Tampa broadcast, while Scott Kazmir enjoys the home run festival. One of the announcers said a key for Kazmir is reducing foul balls on strike two, since it can pile-up the pitch count...

    Harry Pavlidis Written by Harry Pavlidis about over 4 years ago 261 reads 0 comments

  9. Rich Harden—Faster Is Better

    Rich Harden will try to stave off elimination Saturday night in Chavez Ravine. Harden, despite control issues, remains tough to hit. The Dodgers will counter with Hiroki Kuroda...

    Harry Pavlidis Written by Harry Pavlidis about over 4 years ago 399 reads 0 comments

  10. Cubs Still Involved in Playoff Races

    As the season enters its final week, the playoff races are still cooking. With the only battle in the AL that has real meaning isolated in the Central, the NL mixes it up quite a bit more...

    Harry Pavlidis Written by Harry Pavlidis about over 4 years ago 525 reads 5 comments

  11. Plenty of Baseball For Cubs Fans Saturday, Even With Ike

    Hurricane Ike postponed, and moved, the Cubs/Astros games the past two days, but there certainly wasn't a lack of great baseball to enjoy. Thanks to mlb.tv (now letting you choose home/away broadcasts) I was able to see some great stuff Saturday...

    Harry Pavlidis Written by Harry Pavlidis about over 4 years ago 423 reads 1 comments

  12. Cubs Lose in 9th, but Marshall Does Job in Place of Zambrano

    Carlos Zambrano's shoulder problems forced Sean Marshall to stay in the rotation for a second turn. This had cost the Cubs, as noted by the Sun Times, when Marshall's absence in the pen played into Jon Lieber being left in to face Jay Bruce on Friday...

    Harry Pavlidis Written by Harry Pavlidis about over 4 years ago 237 reads 2 comments

  13. Cubs News - September Call-Ups, Pawelek Sent Home, Guzman Ready?

    According to the Daily Herald, 2005 #1 pick Mark Pawelek didn't get his passport in time for a trip to Canada, so the Boise Hawks have sent him home for the season...

    Harry Pavlidis Written by Harry Pavlidis about almost 5 years ago 251 reads 3 comments

  14. Lilly's Strong Outing Not Enough

    Bronson Arroyo slowly worked seven innings to beat the Cubs 2-1. Ted Lilly had a no-hitter until Ryan Hanigan led off the 6th with a double. Hanigan came in to score and Jolbert Cabrera drove home Edwin Encarnacion in the 7th for the difference maker...

    Harry Pavlidis Written by Harry Pavlidis about almost 5 years ago 118 reads 1 comments

  15. Eyre to Philly, Schlitter to Daytona

    The Cubs acquired a prospect, Brian Schlitter, from Philly for Scott Eyre. Eyre is redirecting his RV to Philadelphia, where he'll join their bullpen. Good luck to them. Brian Schlitter is a local kid, 22 years old, from Park Ridge...

    Harry Pavlidis Written by Harry Pavlidis about almost 5 years ago 163 reads 1 comments

  16. Derrek Lee's Outside Pitch f/x

    In a recent discussion at Another Cubs Blog, we discussed using some PITCHf/x data to analyze Derrek Lee's hitting. The hypotheses was simple - Lee's swinging at more outside pitches and hitting more ground outs as a result...

    Harry Pavlidis Written by Harry Pavlidis about almost 5 years ago 145 reads 0 comments

  17. Ray Durham a Brewer

    Ray Durham goes from San Francisco to Milwaukee, in exchange for cash and prospects, details pending per WGN radio. No word on any other Bay Area players (cough...Huston Street...cough) at this time...

    Harry Pavlidis Written by Harry Pavlidis about almost 5 years ago 259 reads 0 comments

  18. Jon Lieber to DL

    Micah Hoffpauir is back in the big leagues and the Cubs' pitching staff is back down to 12. Jon Lieber has been placed on the 15-day DL with a "right foot strain", according to RotoWorld...

    Harry Pavlidis Written by Harry Pavlidis about almost 5 years ago 145 reads 4 comments

  19. Running of the Cubs - Six Swipes Against the Padres

    The Cubs stole six bases on June 3. Since 1956, it is just the 5th time they've done it in a regulation game. None of these teams got caught in the process, except tonight's, as Ronny Cedeno got caught once after over sliding the base...

    Harry Pavlidis Written by Harry Pavlidis about almost 5 years ago 248 reads 2 comments

  20. The State of F/X: MLB.com Gameday and Baseball Analysis Improves

    The work many folks have been doing with PITCHf/x has been great. It's getting better. This weekend was the 1st Annual PITCHf/x Summit. We all hope we'll have a 2nd one, too...

    Harry Pavlidis Written by Harry Pavlidis about 5 years ago 1,212 reads 0 comments

  21. Chicago-Cincinnatti: Zambrano Leads Cubs to Win

    Driving home from the office, I listened to the pregame on WGN Radio. Lou Piniella is clearly unhappy about the defense he's got on the field. He has been talking about it since Spring Training, but it hasn't materialized...

    Harry Pavlidis Written by Harry Pavlidis about 5 years ago 622 reads 4 comments

  22. Cubs Drop Another Series, but Bullpen Is Fresh

    Despite Rich Hill's disastrous two-thirds of an inning start on Friday, the Cubs' bullpen is actually in good shape heading to Cincinnati...

    Harry Pavlidis Written by Harry Pavlidis about 5 years ago 801 reads 2 comments

  23. April's Dirt: Cubs Pitchers and Hitters

    Here's a nibblet of information on pitches in the dirt. Seen by, or thrown by, Cubs players. I don't use the "in dirt" description, but a pz value less than 0. lastpitchesdirtdirt%swings Wood 146 2 1...

    Harry Pavlidis Written by Harry Pavlidis about 5 years ago 373 reads 1 comments

  24. Kevin Hart Out-Foxed

    Chad Fox was recalled from Tennessee and Kevin Hart optioned out to Iowa, according to RotoWorld. Fox is a true reliever, so we're not going to waste Sean Gallagher in the bullpen. We may need Sean as a starter later this year...

    Harry Pavlidis Written by Harry Pavlidis about 5 years ago 303 reads 2 comments

  25. Cubs in April: Pitch Speed

    A good April is a good April. May didn't start well, but that's another story.Here are some PITCHf/x goodies. I'll post various items over the next few days.Release points standardized to 55ft...

    Harry Pavlidis Written by Harry Pavlidis about 5 years ago 193 reads 1 comments