You guys are all complaining how bad the Cubs are doing are you
jealous that you did not make the team or are you all Hall Of Fame
Groupies, and all looking at your world series Rings as you are
typing.

You won't need to go to Des Moines or Lansing, Mich., to see Mark
Prior pitch. He's coming home.
Prior, sidelined with a sore Achilles since March 1, will make his
first start of the season Friday for the Chicago Cubs against the
Pittsburgh Pirates at Wrigley Field.

"I think all things considered, it's the right thing to do," Prior
said Monday of the decision. "We'll do it the right way. I'm not
going to go out there and throw a complete game on Friday. There will
be limitations and restrictions but given the situation, it's the
right time."

The Cubs right-hander, who went 18-6 with a 2.43 ERA last year, tuned
up with an outing Sunday for Triple-A Iowa in which he gave up three
hits and struck out 10 over 5 1/3 innings.





"I dont think I'm rushing," Prior said. "After my second start in
(Class A) Lansing, I was a little nervous. I didn't think my stuff
was up to the level it should be. After (Sunday), I felt I was pretty
much my normal self. I was hitting spots, down in the zone, good
curveball. After (Sunday), I felt like my stuff was ready to get
people out at this level.

"As far as the way the team has been playing, it's a similar
situation to when I came up my rookie year when they'd lost 10 of
12," he said. "I know what my job is, it's to give them quality
innings and pitch my game. My job isn't to do anything over the top.

"There's no sense of panic on this team at all," he said. "We went
through this last year. We'll come out of it. We'll get things going
in the right direction here."

Prior made his Major League debut against the Pirates on May 22,
2002, with a 7-4 victory, striking out 10. At that time, the Cubs
were struggling, similar to this year. Chicago opened a 10-game
homestand Monday against Central Division foes Houston, St. Louis and
Pittsburgh after losing five of its last six games.


----------------------------------------------------------------------
----------

"We'll do it the right way. I'm not going to go out there and throw a
complete game on Friday. There will be limitations and restrictions
but given the situation, it's the right time."
-- Mark Prior

----------------------------------------------------------------------
----------


Is it a psychological boost to get Prior back?

"Not only psychologically but physically, too," Cubs manager Dusty
Baker said. "Every time we get one of these guys back it's like
making a trade. You're getting quality guys back.

The Cubs currently have nine players on the disabled list, including
Prior and pitcher Kerry Wood. Chicago entered Monday's game 2 1/2
games behind Cincinnati in the Central Division.

"Having Mark back is huge," Baker said. "I'd like to get one back
every two or three days, to tell you the truth."

The two months off could help Prior in the long run. He came back
strong after missing time last year because of a shoulder injury.

"Maybe, maybe not," Prior said. "We won't know until after the season
is over. Nobody wants to miss two months of the season. Definitely, I
didn't want to miss two months of the season. All I know is what I
have in front of me and what I can control. I'll give it everything I
can the next four months. We'll see what happens and where we are (at
the) end of September and October."

So, is he relieved to be back?

"I wouldn't say it's a relief," Prior said. "I worked hard to get
back and get healthy and get here as soon as I could. It's nice to
know my next start will be here at home."

He believes that's the key????  It doesn't say that.  I read nowhere that
said that's what Dusty "wants," Forby.  It looks more to me like that what
Dusty "has."  And baseball managers have about as much control of their
players as basketball coaches.  You can't lay this at Dusty's feet; it
belongs squarely at the players feet.  You were right about one thing, he is
one of the best managers in baseball.

--Frank

-----Original Message-----
From: Forby [mailto:forby_int@...]

so much for not listening to the coach. Dusty expects HRs. he wants them,
he believes that is the key to the Cubs. read below:

this copmes from the June 2004 issue of Vineline, the section entitled "In
the Dugout with Dusty Baker", page 20.....
Dusty was asked by Vine Line
Q: The cincinattie series was huge offensively. then the arizona series
was like a desert. are youy afraid that your team will develop into a
streaky offense?

A: Dusty answered>>>> "NO, BUT WE DON'T HAVE A LOT OF SPEED. WE RELY ON
HITTING THE BALL OUT OF THE BALLPARK. IT IS LIKE HAVING A THREE POINT
SHOOTING TEAM IN BASKETBALL. IF YOU RELY ON THE THREE POINT SHOT, YOU'RE
JUST GOING TO HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL YOU HIT THAT SHOT....BUT THAT'S THE TYPE
OF TEAM WE HAVE."

there it is folks. Dusty says he has a HR based team. he thinks that is
how the Cubs gotta win. so when you see all the players swinging for the
fences with two outs and a man on 2nd and 3rd. hey it is what Dusty wants.
in the same article Q&A he said "HE HAS THE GREEN LIGHT" about Corey.
remember this is one of THE best managers in baseball.

Gimme a frigging break here guys.  I realize it is frustrating to watch our
beloved struggle right now, and heck I was panicking myself just last week until
Rick shook me (well not literally) and explained that it was the first week of
June and half of our team was still on the DL.  People are talking about our 4.5
game deficit and saying things like it's not panic time yet, but .......    For
crying out loud, did someone change calendars on me or are there still 4 months
until October?  I am no mathmetician, but I believe we could even make up a
deficit as large as 6 or 7 games if we play perfect baseball between now and
then.  Then I read another poster talking about how "we have to still believe"
..... this after previous posts had referred to players on our own team as
"bitches", "garbage" and "totally useless".  Exactly what is it we are supposed
to believe again??

The team is stuggling right now, and that is pretty obvious, but being a fan
means taking the good with the bad and it is way too early to start waving the
white hanky.  Hendry has shown the ability to make timely additions in the past,
and once we get back to health and assess our needs there is no reason to not
expect the same attempts this year.  It is OK to show some frustration here, but
PLEASE STEP AWAY FROM THE LEDGE .. PUT DOWN THE SHARP INSTRUMENTS, and No, the
sky is not falling !!!!  Unless, of course someone forgot to fill me in on that
whole calendar thinge ........ ;-)





Nat
--

George,

I do agree that CP should be benched, however right now our outfield is suspect
enough that we would be highly below average without him in there right now. 
Once Goodwin comes back, we can sit CP down for a game or two .. unfortunately
we need him out there right now.  For now, let's just move him down to 7th or
8th in the lineup.

Nat

--







[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

so much for not listening to the coach. Dusty expects HRs. he wants them,
he believes that is the key to the Cubs. read below:

this copmes from the June 2004 issue of Vineline, the section entitled "In
the Dugout with Dusty Baker", page 20.....
Dusty was asked by Vine Line
Q: The cincinattie series was huge offensively. then the arizona series
was like a desert. are youy afraid that your team will develop into a
streaky offense?

A: Dusty answered>>>> "NO, BUT WE DON'T HAVE A LOT OF SPEED. WE RELY ON
HITTING THE BALL OUT OF THE BALLPARK. IT IS LIKE HAVING A THREE POINT
SHOOTING TEAM IN BASKETBALL. IF YOU RELY ON THE THREE POINT SHOT, YOU'RE
JUST GOING TO HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL YOU HIT THAT SHOT....BUT THAT'S THE TYPE
OF TEAM WE HAVE."

there it is folks. Dusty says he has a HR based team. he thinks that is
how the Cubs gotta win. so when you see all the players swinging for the
fences with two outs and a man on 2nd and 3rd. hey it is what Dusty wants.
in the same article Q&A he said "HE HAS THE GREEN LIGHT" about Corey.
remember this is one of THE best managers in baseball.
~Forby
ееееееееееееееееееееееееееееееееееееее
From: "George Mucher" <fishydude@...>
> Subject: RE: Implosion
>
> Bench them- that's what I say. Players don't want to listen to the
> coach, and are more concerned with personal stats- they can take a seat.
> Especially Patterson. As I said in another e-mail, his attitude about
> being "aggressive" pissed me off...
>
> -George
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Gavin Dow [mailto:gavindow@...]
> Sent: Wednesday, June 02, 2004 12:54 AM
> To: DiehardCubsFans@yahoogroups.com
> Subject: Re: DIEHARD CUBS GROUP Implosion
>
> These guys gotta stop trying to hit home runs.  If any one of our five
> batters had gotten a base hit, we suddenly have (at least) a two run
> lead.  Baker and Matthews gotta get that idea into their heads.  Home
> runs are nice and pretty, but I guarantee you that every Cubs fan at
> that game wanted a base hit just as much.
>
> --gavin

=====
Yahoo Groups by ~Forby: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/baseballusa/ 
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/chat_de_jour/




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That is a good point. Bakers hands are a little tied right now as far as
benching guys, because we don't have adequate replacements!!! With the
way Hollandsworth is playing, he can spell Patterson some as far as I am
concerned. But right now- who would you put in there ? Kelton isn't a
center fielder...

-George

-----Original Message-----
From: tom imbordino [mailto:northlake911@...]
Sent: Wednesday, June 02, 2004 10:14 PM
To: DiehardCubsFans@yahoogroups.com
Subject: RE: DIEHARD CUBS GROUP Implosion


I whole-heartedly agree with you, George.  I think that's coming.  As
soon as Sammy gets back, I feel very strongly that Patterson's ass is
gonna get flat from the bench and Hollandsworth and Goody will show that
pompous little bitch how to play ball, well, that's if he could tear
himself away from the mirror long enough!  He's as useless as tits on a
nun!

George Mucher <fishydude@...> wrote:Bench them- that's what I
say. Players don't want to listen to the coach, and are more concerned
with personal stats- they can take a seat. Especially Patterson. As I
said in another e-mail, his attitude about being "aggressive" pissed me
off...

-George

-----Original Message-----
From: Gavin Dow [mailto:gavindow@...]
Sent: Wednesday, June 02, 2004 12:54 AM
To: DiehardCubsFans@yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: DIEHARD CUBS GROUP Implosion


Implosion is the proper word.  I was at the game, and the fans were
absolutely disgusted.  The first time they did it, I knew it would
happen again -- remember that game against the Sox last year?

These guys gotta stop trying to hit home runs.  If any one of our five
batters had gotten a base hit, we suddenly have (at least) a two run
lead.  Baker and Matthews gotta get that idea into their heads.  Home
runs are nice and pretty, but I guarantee you that every Cubs fan at
that game wanted a base hit just as much.

--gavin

On Jun 1, 2004, at 10:48 PM, Tom wrote:

> The Astros didn't win, we lost!  It's obvious that impatience from
> the bottom of the line up did it in for us tonight.  The Cubs gave
> the game to the Astros, no doubt.  When the camera panned the dugout,

> the look on Gary Mathews' face was one of complete disgust after
> watching Patterson strike out for the third time.  I still think he's

> a diamond in the rough, but when is enough enough?!  Martinez and Lee

> were crap, too.  As for Clemens?  I'm going to church tomorrow I
> think to light a candle for us. LOL!  We'll need it......

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]




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You bet, Gavin!  Since the Cubs were about to blow it anyway, they should have
tried to do a suicide squeeze!  Why not?!  The Assholes, I mean, Astros would
have never expected that!  Hey!  At least we woulda went down TRYING!

Gavin Dow <gavindow@...> wrote:Implosion is the proper word.  I was at the
game, and the fans were
absolutely disgusted.  The first time they did it, I knew it would
happen again -- remember that game against the Sox last year?

These guys gotta stop trying to hit home runs.  If any one of our five
batters had gotten a base hit, we suddenly have (at least) a two run
lead.  Baker and Matthews gotta get that idea into their heads.  Home
runs are nice and pretty, but I guarantee you that every Cubs fan at
that game wanted a base hit just as much.

--gavin

On Jun 1, 2004, at 10:48 PM, Tom wrote:

> The Astros didn't win, we lost!  It's obvious that impatience from
>  the bottom of the line up did it in for us tonight.  The Cubs gave
>  the game to the Astros, no doubt.  When the camera panned the dugout,
>  the look on Gary Mathews' face was one of complete disgust after
>  watching Patterson strike out for the third time.  I still think he's
>  a diamond in the rough, but when is enough enough?!  Martinez and Lee
>  were crap, too.  As for Clemens?  I'm going to church tomorrow I
>  think to light a candle for us. LOL!  We'll need it......

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]



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We'll let Farnsworth take care of that cocky long blond haired jag Wilson!  He'd
take him apart like a watch!

Jason McDowell <jasonpeoria911@...> wrote:well it appears the Pirates
don't approve of the NL RBI leader. They
plunked Rolen in the head in the 1st inning. It was an obvious
Beanball, soon as it left the pitchers hand, it was going straight
for Rolens head. Straight fastball. They better not do anything to
Prior or else I hope theres a huge bench clearing brawl and the cubs
completely stomp the piddly little pirates to the ground. Then
they'll need 20 ambulances to wrigley to transport the whole pirates
team to the hospital LOL. Who cares about stupid suspensions, not
like were going to do any worse than we are now with 9 players
missing and a team that can't get 2 hits in a row.



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I whole-heartedly agree with you, George.  I think that's coming.  As soon as
Sammy gets back, I feel very strongly that Patterson's ass is gonna get flat
from the bench and Hollandsworth and Goody will show that pompous little bitch
how to play ball, well, that's if he could tear himself away from the mirror
long enough!  He's as useless as tits on a nun!

George Mucher <fishydude@...> wrote:Bench them- that's what I say.
Players don't want to listen to the
coach, and are more concerned with personal stats- they can take a seat.
Especially Patterson. As I said in another e-mail, his attitude about
being "aggressive" pissed me off...

-George

-----Original Message-----
From: Gavin Dow [mailto:gavindow@...]
Sent: Wednesday, June 02, 2004 12:54 AM
To: DiehardCubsFans@yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: DIEHARD CUBS GROUP Implosion


Implosion is the proper word.  I was at the game, and the fans were
absolutely disgusted.  The first time they did it, I knew it would
happen again -- remember that game against the Sox last year?

These guys gotta stop trying to hit home runs.  If any one of our five
batters had gotten a base hit, we suddenly have (at least) a two run
lead.  Baker and Matthews gotta get that idea into their heads.  Home
runs are nice and pretty, but I guarantee you that every Cubs fan at
that game wanted a base hit just as much.

--gavin

On Jun 1, 2004, at 10:48 PM, Tom wrote:

> The Astros didn't win, we lost!  It's obvious that impatience from
> the bottom of the line up did it in for us tonight.  The Cubs gave
> the game to the Astros, no doubt.  When the camera panned the dugout,

> the look on Gary Mathews' face was one of complete disgust after
> watching Patterson strike out for the third time.  I still think he's

> a diamond in the rough, but when is enough enough?!  Martinez and Lee

> were crap, too.  As for Clemens?  I'm going to church tomorrow I
> think to light a candle for us. LOL!  We'll need it......

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]




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Mike, I've been a Cub fan ever since I was a fetus!  Ya always gotta believe. 
Everyone has to remember that Jim Hendry was given the job of building a World
Series team with FIVE years.  This is only the second year.  Hell, it may never
happen.  But everyone has to understand.....this team is holding their own with
the Lemon bunch.  Did we forget last July?  EVERYONE was shocked when they came
back after that.  Even after all the big boys get back, they still gotta mesh as
a team - AGAIN!  More time wasted!  But we all still gotta keep the faith!

Mike <mitchnet1@...> wrote:  We all know what the Cubs problems are, the
question is how to fix
it. Lack of timely hitting and the inability to close out an
opponent have plagued them all season and this is a very important
stretch ahead for them.

Getting Prior back will definitely help. Getting Grudz, Wood and
Sammy back would give them a big boost, but the ever changing
timetable on their return is frustrating and makes you wonder if
some of these guys injuries are worse then we are being told?

Lee, Patterson, and Martinez need some bench time. But how can you
do it with so many guys on DL. Hollandsworth could play first for a
few games, but Patterson is their only decent center fielder. When
Grudz comes back, Martinez may be gone.

Lastly, I know you have to be ahead in the nineth to setup your
closer and we haven't done that alot lately but I still feel that
LaTroy should be the closer, or maybe it is time to give Farnsworth
a shot. He has been throwing alot more strikes lately and if this
guy gets ahead of hitters nobody is going hit him, especially for 1
inning.

Still Believing
Mike




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Patterson DOESN'T care!  He SAID THAT on AM 670 the Score radio show about two
weeks ago.  I was floored.  I say trade the spoiled little bitch!

Billy <wstrong5980@...> wrote:Can no longer blame injuries for the Cubs
failures.  Clement beat
them today but hell , every picture they face looks like Clement.
Cubs have been getting some fair pitching , but they're hitting is
atrocious.  I don't care if prior, wood are God is on the mound
they're not going to win until the Cubs get more aggressive and
start playing some tough baseball.  They're not even fun to watch
now . even if they win their boring.  Getting all their players back
is not going to help.  Law, Patterson and a few others are just
picking up the check right now . they play like they don't care.



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Hello there fellow Cubs fans - hoping you'll take a moment to visit metromix.com
and vote for the "High-Carb Honeys" who are vying for the title of Beer Garden
Girls!!  Our favorite beer garden in Chicago is of course Wrigley Field - please
vote for us and ask your friends to vote too!! Many thanks!!!


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Thanks Jake

I checked out the trailer and it looks like a very inspiring film. I
hope they make it available on DVD soon in case I don't get a chance
to see it.

--- In DiehardCubsFans@yahoogroups.com, "Jake" <FantasyBastard@R...>
wrote:
> Hey all, I haven't posted in here in a while but thought this was
> worth posting about.
>
> Last friday I had the privelege of seeing "This Old Cub".  "This
Old
> Cub" is a documentary feature dealing with Ron Santo and his life
> with the Cubs organization.  It was created by Ron's son Jeff
Santo
> and features cameos from Bill Murray and his brothers as well as a
> slew of baseball legends (Willie Mays, Brooks Robinson, Willie
> McCovey to name a few).
>
> The movie tells the story of Ron's passion for baseball and life,
> spanning his 14 year career as a third basemen for the Cubs and
his
> life-long battle with Type 1 (Juvenile) Diabetes.  Ron's courage,
> determination, optimism and humor make this a wonderful film to
see.
> Its chock full of great clips of the Cubs from the 1960's and 70's
as
> well as some good stories from various colleagues in the baseball
> community.
>
> I got to see it at the QC Brew & View in Rock Island where I
live.
> Its running there through the middle of June.  I believe its
showing
> elsewhere in Illinois and Wisconsin.  You can check out places and
> times its showing at http://www.thisoldcub.com.  So if its playing
in
> a theater near you I highly recommend you go see it.  Plus part of
> the proceeds of this movie will go to the Juvenile Diabetes
Research
> Foundation.  So you'll be helping a great cause too!

Hey all, I haven't posted in here in a while but thought this was
worth posting about.

Last friday I had the privelege of seeing "This Old Cub".  "This Old
Cub" is a documentary feature dealing with Ron Santo and his life
with the Cubs organization.  It was created by Ron's son Jeff Santo
and features cameos from Bill Murray and his brothers as well as a
slew of baseball legends (Willie Mays, Brooks Robinson, Willie
McCovey to name a few).

The movie tells the story of Ron's passion for baseball and life,
spanning his 14 year career as a third basemen for the Cubs and his
life-long battle with Type 1 (Juvenile) Diabetes.  Ron's courage,
determination, optimism and humor make this a wonderful film to see.
Its chock full of great clips of the Cubs from the 1960's and 70's as
well as some good stories from various colleagues in the baseball
community.

I got to see it at the QC Brew & View in Rock Island where I live.
Its running there through the middle of June.  I believe its showing
elsewhere in Illinois and Wisconsin.  You can check out places and
times its showing at http://www.thisoldcub.com.  So if its playing in
a theater near you I highly recommend you go see it.  Plus part of
the proceeds of this movie will go to the Juvenile Diabetes Research
Foundation.  So you'll be helping a great cause too!

Apparently the slumping Mariners have come right out and said that everybody
except Ichiro is available.  How about we get Eddie Guardado?  Then we have
both ends of Minnesota's 1-2 punch from the bullpen last year, and we can have a
good closer without sacrificing the set-up position.

-Ron

In a message dated 6/2/04 12:00:54 PM Central Daylight Time,
DiehardCubsFans@yahoogroups.com writes:

> Lastly, I know you have to be ahead in the nineth to setup your
> closer and we haven't done that alot lately but I still feel that
> LaTroy should be the closer, or maybe it is time to give Farnsworth
> a shot. He has been throwing alot more strikes lately and if this
> guy gets ahead of hitters nobody is going hit him, especially for 1
> inning.



[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Roger Clemens won for the first time at Wrigley Field, keeping his
perfect season intact by pitching the Houston Astros past the Chicago
Cubs 5-1 Wednesday.

Clemens (8-0) came back from three straight no-decisions with seven
sharp innings. The 41-year-old Rocket earned his 318th career
victory, tying Phil Niekro for the 14th place on the all-time list.

Overall, Clemens has won 12 straight regular-season decisions since
Aug. 9.

Clemens' only other start at Wrigley came last June when he pitched
for the Yankees in search of his 300th win. He wound up taking the
loss when the Cubs rallied against New York's bullpen.

This time, Clemens allowed one run -- on a broken-bat single -- and
five hits in seven innings. He struck out five and walked two in his
108-pitch outing.

Clemens wore short sleeves on the cool, 60-degree afternoon and kept
blowing on his hands.



He made two nice plays on comebackers, one in the fourth inning to
end the Cubs' lone rally and another in the sixth. Twice after
retiring the side, he talked with plate umpire Mike Fichter.

Houston broke a 1-all tie in the fifth when Jeff Kent extended his
hitting streak to 18 games with a two-out triple off the right-field
wall and Lance Berkman singled.

It was Berkman's 18th RBI in his last 15 games, and he has now
reached base in 33 straight.

Adam Everett and Brad Ausmus had three hits each against Matt Clement
(6-4), who allowed 11 hits in 6 2-3 innings.

Houston outhit Chicago 13-6 and sent the Cubs to their seventh loss
in nine games.

The Astros tacked on two runs in the seventh after Everett got his
second bunt single. Berkman walked with two outs and Michael Lamb and
Ausmus followed with RBI singles to finish Clement.

Richard Hidalgo drew a bases-loaded walk in the ninth off Cubs
reliever Michael Wuertz.

Derrek Lee doubled in the fourth for Chicago's second hit, stole
third and after Aramis Ramirez walked on a 3-2 pitch, Todd
Hollandsworth delivered a two-out, broken-bat single to tie the game.

The Astros pushed across a run in the first when Everett's fly ball
down the left-field line fell in front of Moses Alou for a double.
Everett moved to third on an infield out and scored when Clement
threw a ball four wild pitch to Kent.

Notes

Clemens moved ahead of Christy Mathewson for the second-best winning
percentage among pitchers with 300 victories (318-160, .665). Clemens
trails only Lefty Grove (300-141, .680). ... Clemens' career best
start to a season came in 1986 with the Red Sox when he was 14-0.
Houston's club record is 10-0 set by Juan Agosto in 1988. ... Rey
Ordonez, just called up from Triple-A last week, was in Chicago's
lineup at shortstop and had a fifth-inning double off Clemens. He
entered the game with a .438 average against Clemens with seven hits
in 16 at-bats. ... The Astros won two of three at Wrigley and have
beatenthe Cubs four times in five meetings this season.

well not its at that critical point. Last year we were only 3.5
games out at the most and now were 4.5 games out but the other teams
are much better

Can no longer blame injuries for the Cubs failures.  Clement beat
them today but hell , every picture they face looks like Clement.
Cubs have been getting some fair pitching , but they're hitting is
atrocious.  I don't care if prior, wood are God is on the mound
they're not going to win until the Cubs get more aggressive and
start playing some tough baseball.  They're not even fun to watch
now . even if they win their boring.  Getting all their players back
is not going to help.  Law, Patterson and a few others are just
picking up the check right now . they play like they don't care.

We all know what the Cubs problems are, the question is how to fix
it. Lack of timely hitting and the inability to close out an
opponent have plagued them all season and this is a very important
stretch ahead for them.

Getting Prior back will definitely help. Getting Grudz, Wood and
Sammy back would give them a big boost, but the ever changing
timetable on their return is frustrating and makes you wonder if
some of these guys injuries are worse then we are being told?

Lee, Patterson, and Martinez need some bench time. But how can you
do it with so many guys on DL. Hollandsworth could play first for a
few games, but Patterson is their only decent center fielder. When
Grudz comes back, Martinez may be gone.

Lastly, I know you have to be ahead in the nineth to setup your
closer and we haven't done that alot lately but I still feel that
LaTroy should be the closer, or maybe it is time to give Farnsworth
a shot. He has been throwing alot more strikes lately and if this
guy gets ahead of hitters nobody is going hit him, especially for 1
inning.

Still Believing
Mike

Bench them- that's what I say. Players don't want to listen to the
coach, and are more concerned with personal stats- they can take a seat.
Especially Patterson. As I said in another e-mail, his attitude about
being "aggressive" pissed me off...

-George

-----Original Message-----
From: Gavin Dow [mailto:gavindow@...]
Sent: Wednesday, June 02, 2004 12:54 AM
To: DiehardCubsFans@yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: DIEHARD CUBS GROUP Implosion


Implosion is the proper word.  I was at the game, and the fans were
absolutely disgusted.  The first time they did it, I knew it would
happen again -- remember that game against the Sox last year?

These guys gotta stop trying to hit home runs.  If any one of our five
batters had gotten a base hit, we suddenly have (at least) a two run
lead.  Baker and Matthews gotta get that idea into their heads.  Home
runs are nice and pretty, but I guarantee you that every Cubs fan at
that game wanted a base hit just as much.

--gavin

On Jun 1, 2004, at 10:48 PM, Tom wrote:

> The Astros didn't win, we lost!а It's obvious that impatience from
> the bottom of the line up did it in for us tonight.а The Cubs gave
> the game to the Astros, no doubt.а When the camera panned the dugout,

> the look on Gary Mathews' face was one of complete disgust after
> watching Patterson strike out for the third time.а I still think he's

> a diamond in the rough, but when is enough enough?!а Martinez and Lee

> were crap, too.а As for Clemens?а I'm going to church tomorrow I
> think to light a candle for us. LOL!а We'll need it......

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]




to go directly to group:http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DiehardCubsFans/
Yahoo! Groups Links

Even with a little extra work, the Houston Astros bullpen was as
dominant as ever.

Five relievers combined to shut out Chicago over six innings, and
pinch-hitter Michael Lamb lined a late go-ahead double to lead
Houston over the Cubs 5-3 Tuesday night.

Dan Miceli (2-2) and Mike Gallo both got out of a bases-loaded jams
without surrendering a run as the bullpen combined to strike out
eight and walk two. Miceli pitched two hitless innings, Brad Lidge
pitched the eighth and Octavio Dotel earned his eighth save.

``When you have the bases loaded twice, nobody out and you get out of
it without a run, that just tells you how well we pitched,'' Astros
manager Jimy Williams said. ``Everybody contributed. They made
pitches.''

They also got a big break on a Cubs blunder in the eighth.

With two outs and the score 3-3, Brad Ausmus hit a weak grounder to
second base that looked like it would end the inning. But Todd
Walker's throw sailed wide of first baseman Derrek Lee, pulling him
off the bag to put runners on first and second.



Lamb then lined an RBI double into left-center off Kyle Farnsworth (0-
3) for the go-ahead run.

``We had one of those games where it could have gone on for a
while,'' Craig Biggio said. ``That was a great piece of hitting by
Lamb.''

The 6-foot-5 Lee said it shouldn't have gotten that far.

Lee said he was certain his foot was on the bag for Walker's throw,
adding that umpire Mike Fichter didn't get a good look at the call.

``He was out. (Fichter) said I came off the base. I didn't think I
did,'' Lee said. ``I think he had a bad angle. He was over on the
other side.''

Todd Hollandsworth, Walker and Moises Alou hit solo homers for
Chicago.

Biggio was hit by a pitch leading off the game and scored on Jeff
Bagwell's ninth homer. It was the ninth time this season that Biggio
has been hit by a pitch -- second best in the majors.





Hollandsworth homered in the second, but Jeff Kent made it 3-1 in the
third with a deep shot to left that Moises Alou didn't even turn to
watch as it sailed onto Waveland Avenue.

Kent extended his hitting streak to 17 games, the longest of his
career and the best in Houston since Lance Berkman hit safely in 18
consecutive games last year.

The Astros bullpen has been dependable most of the season, even
though Dotel has blown two of 10 save chances and lost three games
already. Houston relievers had allowed a major league-low 13 percent
of inherited runners to score entering the game.

They were outstanding against the Cubs.

Chicago came up empty with the bases loaded in the fourth and again
in the sixth inning.

In the fourth, Gallo relieved starter Brandon Duckworth and struck
out Corey Patterson on four pitches. He got out of the jam when Ramon
Martinez tried to check his swing but couldn't, sending a dribbler to
the mound for an easy double play.

``That was huge to come in with the bases loaded, nobody out and keep
them from scoring any runs. That was the difference in the
ballgame,'' Lamb said.

Duckworth allowed three runs and four hits in three-plus innings. He
was pulled after throwing just 48 pitches.

Chicago had the bases full again in the sixth when Miceli forced Lee
to pop out to short right before striking out Patterson and Martinez.

Patterson stranded six runners and was 1-for-4 with three strikeouts.
After striking out with the bases loaded for a second time, Patterson
walked slowly to the dugout and was greeted by loud boos.

``It looked like we didn't want to be overanxious with two strikes,
then they'd paralyze us with fastballs away,'' Cubs manager Dusty
Baker said. ``Whatelse can I say? I wish we would have scored some
more runs.''

Notes

Bagwell moved into a tie with Frank Thomas for 32nd on the career
homer list with 428, three shy of Cal Ripken. ... Chicago's 10-game
homestand is its the longest of the season. ... No timetable was
given for the return of starter Andy Pettitte, who was placed on the
DL Monday with a left forearm strain. ... Adam Everett laid down his
major league-leading 15th sacrifice bunt in the first. ... Cubs
starter Carlos Zambrano turned 23 on Tuesday. ... Gallo has
notallowed a run in 17 of 19 outings this season.

well it appears the Pirates don't approve of the NL RBI leader. They
plunked Rolen in the head in the 1st inning. It was an obvious
Beanball, soon as it left the pitchers hand, it was going straight
for Rolens head. Straight fastball. They better not do anything to
Prior or else I hope theres a huge bench clearing brawl and the cubs
completely stomp the piddly little pirates to the ground. Then
they'll need 20 ambulances to wrigley to transport the whole pirates
team to the hospital LOL. Who cares about stupid suspensions, not
like were going to do any worse than we are now with 9 players
missing and a team that can't get 2 hits in a row.

Implosion is the proper word.  I was at the game, and the fans were
absolutely disgusted.  The first time they did it, I knew it would
happen again -- remember that game against the Sox last year?

These guys gotta stop trying to hit home runs.  If any one of our five
batters had gotten a base hit, we suddenly have (at least) a two run
lead.  Baker and Matthews gotta get that idea into their heads.  Home
runs are nice and pretty, but I guarantee you that every Cubs fan at
that game wanted a base hit just as much.

--gavin

On Jun 1, 2004, at 10:48 PM, Tom wrote:

> The Astros didn't win, we lost!а It's obvious that impatience from
>  the bottom of the line up did it in for us tonight.а The Cubs gave
>  the game to the Astros, no doubt.а When the camera panned the dugout,
>  the look on Gary Mathews' face was one of complete disgust after
>  watching Patterson strike out for the third time.а I still think he's
>  a diamond in the rough, but when is enough enough?!а Martinez and Lee
>  were crap, too.а As for Clemens?а I'm going to church tomorrow I
>  think to light a candle for us. LOL!а We'll need it......

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

And we had a stellar performance by Wood pitching opposite him also. Who
is even starting tomorrow???

-George

-----Original Message-----
From: Azbearfan34@... [mailto:Azbearfan34@...]

Sent: Tuesday, June 01, 2004 10:50 PM
To: DiehardCubsFans@yahoogroups.com
Subject: RE: DIEHARD CUBS GROUP most frustrating game of season



Frank,

I understand Jason's frustration when twice you have the bases loaded
and can't even scratch across a single run.  CP twice struck out with
less than 1 out.  That just can not happen.  We really could have used
this one, as a buffer in case the Rocket is on tomorrow.  Here is hoping
that we can beat the Rocket for the 2nd year in a row, however if I
remember correctly the reason we beat him last year was because Acevedo
gave up a HR the first batter he faced after relieving Roger.

Go Clement and Go Cubbies!!
Nat
--







[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]




to go directly to group:http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DiehardCubsFans/
Yahoo! Groups Links

The thing that pissed me off was listening to the interview afterward on
WSCR, when Corey stated that "I will never apologize for being
aggressive". When being aggressive has you hitting terribly- you should
apologize!!! I am so sick of our lack of patience at the plate I am at a
loss for words. The one thing I can say is that Patterson just plain
needs to be a smarter hitter, and just try HITTING the ball for a
change!!! The HRs will come naturally, he has a great swing- it just
never hits the ball!!!

-George

-----Original Message-----
From: Tom [mailto:northlake911@...]
Sent: Tuesday, June 01, 2004 10:48 PM
To: DiehardCubsFans@yahoogroups.com
Subject: DIEHARD CUBS GROUP Implosion


The Astros didn't win, we lost!  It's obvious that impatience from
the bottom of the line up did it in for us tonight.  The Cubs gave
the game to the Astros, no doubt.  When the camera panned the dugout,
the look on Gary Mathews' face was one of complete disgust after
watching Patterson strike out for the third time.  I still think he's
a diamond in the rough, but when is enough enough?!  Martinez and Lee
were crap, too.  As for Clemens?  I'm going to church tomorrow I
think to light a candle for us. LOL!  We'll need it......




to go directly to group:http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DiehardCubsFans/
Yahoo! Groups Links

Frank,

I understand Jason's frustration when twice you have the bases loaded and can't
even scratch across a single run.  CP twice struck out with less than 1 out. 
That just can not happen.  We really could have used this one, as a buffer in
case the Rocket is on tomorrow.  Here is hoping that we can beat the Rocket for
the 2nd year in a row, however if I remember correctly the reason we beat him
last year was because Acevedo gave up a HR the first batter he faced after
relieving Roger.

Go Clement and Go Cubbies!!
Nat
--







[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

The Astros didn't win, we lost!  It's obvious that impatience from
the bottom of the line up did it in for us tonight.  The Cubs gave
the game to the Astros, no doubt.  When the camera panned the dugout,
the look on Gary Mathews' face was one of complete disgust after
watching Patterson strike out for the third time.  I still think he's
a diamond in the rough, but when is enough enough?!  Martinez and Lee
were crap, too.  As for Clemens?  I'm going to church tomorrow I
think to light a candle for us. LOL!  We'll need it......

Jason, you remind me of Chicken Little.  The glass is half full, not half
empty.  And any of the losses to Pittsburgh were more frustrating to me than
this game.  At least you're not surprised when the Astros win.

Frank

-----Original Message-----
From: Jason McDowell [mailto:jasonpeoria911@...]

We'll be in big trouble if we lose. We'll most likely
fall to 4-5 games back and thats at the critical point. San
Francisco was like 7 games back this year, they just capped off 10
wins in a row and are still 1.5 games back. Things arent looking
good at all.

Oh where to begin. Tonight had to of been the most frustrating game
of the season so far. This games loss is totally on the offense and
the 1 missed call by the ump in the 8th inning. Bases loaded twice
with no outs in 3 innings and score 0, yeah thats right a big 0
runs. Then the missed call in the 8th by the 1st base ump, long
stretch by Lee for a ball, still had his foot on the base but runner
was called safe. Then Lamb the PH hit a double scoring the 2 winning
runs. Tonights game was a tell tale sign of our struggles so far
this season. 2 bases loaded with zero outs and get no runs. All 3
runs tonight were solo shots. Cubs could of easily won 8-5 or
bigger. Well tomorrow is a must win. Although I don't have much
confidence going up against Clemons who has only 1 bad outing so far
this year. We'll be in big trouble if we lose. We'll most likely
fall to 4-5 games back and thats at the critical point. San
Francisco was like 7 games back this year, they just capped off 10
wins in a row and are still 1.5 games back. Things arent looking
good at all.