marlon byrd | The Baseball Zealot

Cubs’ Quade gets support

I was asked by a fellow Cub fan what I thought of interim manager Mike Quade. I honestly told him I didn’t know a whole lot about him but I sure was impressed by his performance so far. His 21-11 record is a long time coming.

Now I find out that at least a couple of the Cubs are coming to the plate for him too. Pitcher Ryan Dempster and outfielder Marlon Byrd both have expressed support for him.

So says Dempster:

"He’s been very upfront, very honest with all of us. He’s been tremendously supportive, he’s given us a lot of confidence to go out there. What he’s done for the bullpen- those guys have really stepped up and he’s believed in them.”

Pretty strong words. As for Byrd:

"The record speaks for itself. The way we’re playing, the way we’re executing, just all-around."

I won’t speculate if they’re just simply backing up their manager or making a statement on who they want for their next permanent manager but those statements (especially Dempster’s) are pretty telling.

That said. the Cubs could have gone 32-0 under Mike Quade and that won’t change the fact that a certain former Cub second baseman has more star power than a ex-Carolina League/current Coach with a funny name. Like it not, the Cubs organization knows that and they’ll have tough decision to make.

Or not.

The GMS curse: The NL wins one

On the heels of the announcement of George Steinbrenner’s passing, the National League finally win an All-Star game… their first since I was in my early 30s.

It was a simple win with good pitching and a nice clutch hit by sub Brian McCann who was responsible for all three of the NL’s runs. Indeed, all of the NL’s offense came from the bottom of the order, much from the substitutes. The top four in the order were a combined 0-11.

Kudos goes to my Cub Marlon Byrd who was one those runs McCann drove in during the seventh inning. More importantly, Byrd gunned down David Ortiz at second for a 9-4 assist. Byrd can probably be thankful it wasn’t anyone else besides slow-footed Ortiz but nonetheless it was a ninth inning rally killer.

Final score NL 3 AL 1

And thought you have most likely have seen the box score already, check out the one done by Baseball Reference. It’s the most comprehensive and interactive out there.

Let’s just pack it up now, cuz it won’t get any better for the Cubs

The Cubs won today. And you know winning the first game of spring training means everything in the world, right?

But the Cubs did get the right hits from the right people. Fuld, (homerun), newly acquired Marlon Byrd (2 for 2, homerun), Tyler Colvin (2 doubles, homerun), Derrek Lee (homerun, yawn), and Starlin Castro, who seems to be everyone’s freakin’ darlin’, (triple).

I kid, I love the guy. Castro came in relief for Ryan Theriot and his triple seemed to say, “Find a another position, Cajun dude!” Which just might happen. The baseball pundit hordes are calling for Theriot to move to second base and it’s probably on Cubs management’s mind, too.

But first and foremost on Cubs manager Lou Piniella’s mind, is how to spell Kosuke Fukudome’s nickname. From Cubs beat writer Carrie Muskat, Lou says it’s “Fuke”. I guess that “e” keep us Cub fans morally clean. Perhaps they should issue a press release.

The press (mlb.com and the Cubs in particular) have been making a big deal about Alfonso Soriano and how gosh darn healthy he is.

I don’t know about you but that kind of talk scares the beejeezus out of me. One, you don’t talk about it unless there is something to be worry about and two, why are they tempting fate? Almost like talking during a pitcher’s no-hitter. “Well, Ron, Soriano’s gone through the season so far a not a hint of a hamstring pull.” “We’ve been pretty lucky. He’s sure to go through the whole season without a visit to the DL.”

Then BAM!

Let’s just keep it quiet and count our blessings. And win another… even if it is just spring training.