Results tagged ‘ Travis Wood ’
Cubs snatch defeat from the jaws of victory
Just when you think that the Cubs have lost every way possible they go and gives us another disaster. At this point it seems as though the only thing that is holding the Cubs back, is the Cubs themselves. Travis Wood was outstanding in this one, as he has been so often this year, and yet again, somehow, the Cubs found a way to lose. After taking a 
late 2-0 lead on a clutch Scott Hairston home run the wheels fell of in the eighth. With two outs and two guys on it looked like the Cubs were going to get out of it, then the wind took over. Yonder Alonso, who had the day off until the eighth inning, hit a fly ball to right field, it turned into more of a pop up in short right field because of the wind. Julio Borbon, who made a spectacular catch to retire the previous batter charged in and called off Barney, then flat-out missed the ball, that allowed the Padres to score and make it 2-1, and extended the inning. That marked the end of the day for Wood, but not the end of the misery. Shawn Camp came in and Welington Castillo completed boxed the first pitch from Camp to allow the game tying run to score, not only was it a passed ball on Castillo, but he completely dogged it while “chasing” the ball down. The Padres runner didn’t break right away, and if Castillo hustles they have a great chance to get him at the plate, he didn’t, and when the dust finally settled the Padres led 4-2 and the Cubs were done. Yet again, a series the Cubs should have won, ends in a split, so very frustrating.
At The Plate – The familiar issues were there once again for the Cubs as they tallied nine hits in this one but could only score twice as they were o-for-7 with runners in scoring position. Scott Hairston had the big blow for the Cubs, a two run homer in the seventh that looked like it would be the difference. Hairston finished the day going 1-for-3 with two RBI’s, said home run, and a run scored. Welington Castillo at least had a solid day at the plate going 2-for-4 with a run scored.
On The Mound - For the second straight game the Cubs starting pitching was the story, or should have been the story as Travis Wood was brilliant. Wood carried a perfect game through four and two-thirds, giving up a hit to Kyle Blanks with two outs in the fifth. Wood ended up going 7.2 innings giving up three runs on four hits while walking one and striking out three, and was tagged with the loss, mind numbing. Shawn Camp was charged with an earned run, and didn’t retire anyone as he walked the only batter he faced. James Russell didn’t have it today either as he gave up the difference making hit in two-thirds of an inning. Carlos Marmol pitched a scoreless ninth inning, he hit a batter, and gave up a hit, but kept the Padres off the scoreboard.
Up Next - The Cubs welcome the Reds to Wrigley for a three game weekend set. Carlos Villanueva will get the ball for the Cubs in game one and the Reds will counter with Mike Leake, first pitch scheduled at 1:20 PM CST, weather permitting.
Game Highlights:
Hairston’s two run homer
Castro’s slick play
Barney turns a line out into a double play
Borbon’s great catch
Full video recap
Castillo’s error’s
Thanks for reading,
- George
May 2, 2013 – Padres @ Cubs; Lineups!
The Cubs go for their second straight four game series win today at 1:20 PM CST. Travis Wood gets the ball for the Cubs and he will be opposed by Eric Stults for the Padres, the weather has cooled considerably, but it’s not awful out there today. There is a threat of rain later this afternoon, but I think they should get this one in, here are the lineups.
Thanks for reading,
- George
Feldman goes the distance to get Cubs back in win column
Well, how about that? Scott Feldman was brilliant right from the start and all night long as he tossed his first career complete game and had plenty of support from his offense. The Cubs had Andrew Cashner on the ropes right off the bat as they scored in each of the first four innings to take a 5-0 lead. That was all she wrote for Cashner who was already up to 96 pitches after four innings, that’s what you like to see from the offensive side of things. 
The Cubs were only able to manage one more run over the final four innings but they didn’t need it as Feldman was throwing darts all night long. With a win tomorrow the Cubs could take three out of four in their second straight series, I don’t care who the opponent is, that’s a huge step in the right direction.
At The Plate – Awesome job by the Cubs at the plate tonight as the pounded out nine hits, and six runs, while walking five times. They probably could have and should have had more, but beggars can’t be choosers I guess. David DeJesus continues to hit as he was 2-for-5 from the lead-off spot. Starlin Castro, getting a chance in the fifth spot today was 2-for-4 with an RBI, and two runs scored. Julio Borbon had another solid game going 1-for-4 with a walk, and two runs scored. Dioner Navarro had two RBI’s, Nate Schierholtz had one RBI, and Luis Valbuena has one RBI in the win.
On The Mound - It was the Scott Feldman show, as he was brilliant. Feldman went the distance for his first career complete game giving up two runs on three hits while walking one and striking out twelve(!). The twelve strikeouts were also a career high, quite the night for Feldman as he improved his record to 2-3 and watched his ERA improve to 3.34 on the season.
Up Next - The Cubs go for the series win tomorrow afternoon at 1:20 PM CST. Travis Wood looks to continue his strong start to 2013 as he will face off against Eric Stults who has been roughed up in the early going this year.
Game Highlights:
Castro’s RBI single
Feldman’s RBI double, he does it all
Navarro’s two run double
Schierholtz RBI double
Thanks for reading,
- George
Series Preview – Padres @ Cubs; April 29 – May 2, 2013
The Cubs are playing better baseball of late, and they were finally rewarded with a few wins in Miami as they took three out of four. The Cubs starting pitching really didn’t miss a beat this past weekend as they continued to turn in quality start after quality start. The pitching has been better than anyone could have imagined up to this point in the season. Currently the Cubs team 
ERA is 3.42 that is ninth best in all of baseball. Breaking that down even further, just looking at the starters the Cubs ERA is 3.14 which is good for fifth in the Majors, impressive. The Cubs staff should have continues success this week against the Padres as they are twenty-sixth in all of baseball in runs scored, part of that has to do with where they play their home games, the other part has to do with their sub par lineup that has been slow to get going. The Padres pitching hasn’t taken advantage of the comfortable surroundings of Petco Park however, as they have a team ERA of 4.39 which is “good” enough for twenty-sixth in baseball. All signs point to a successful series for the Cubs, but they still have to execute, if they do they should be able to win this series.
Last Series:
The Cubs won three out of four in Miami over the Marlins
The Padres swept a three game series from the Giants in San Diego
Game Times and Broadcast Information:
- Monday, April 29, 2013 – 7:05 PM CST on CSN+ (Channel Finder)
- Tuesday, April 30, 2013 – 7:05 PM CST on WCIU, MLBN
- Wednesday, May 1, 2013 – 7:05 PM CST on CSN Chicago
- Thursday, May 2, 2013 – 1:20 PM CST on CSN Chicago
Starting Pitchers Scheduled:
Cubs:
Game One - Jeff Samardzija (1-4, 3.03)
- Career vs. Padres (4 appearances, 2 GS) (2-1, 2.20)
Game Two – Edwin Jackson (0-3, 4.76)
- Career vs. Padres (8 appearances, 6 GS) (0-3, 4.32)
Game Three - Scott Feldman (1-3, 3.92)
- Career vs. Padres (2 appearances, 1 GS) (1-1, 5.40)
Game Four - Travis Wood (2-1, 2.25)
- Career vs. Padres (5 appearances, 4 GS) (0-1, 4.21)
Padres:
Game One - Clayton Richard (0-2, 7.94)
- Career vs. Cubs (2 GS) (2-0, 0.57)
Game Two - Edinson Volquez (1-3, 6.39)
- Career vs. Cubs (6 GS) (4-0, 2.21)
Game Three – Andrew Cashner (1-1, 3.26)
- Career vs. Cubs (2 appearances) (0-0, 9.00)
Game Three - Eric Stults (2-2, 5.67)
- Career vs. Cubs (4 GS) (1-3, 5.21)
Bold Prediction:
I like the direction of the Cubs right now, I know it’s hard to say that with a straight face, but this team could easily be contending in the Central without bullpen blow ups. I think the good vibes continue in this series and the Cubs take three out of four again. Committed is the Cubs slogan, maybe I should be with all my positive thoughts, go Cubs!
Thanks for reading,
- George
Clutch Hitting, Pitching, and Defense Lead Cubs to Third Straight Win
As far as team wins go this one might be at the top of the list. For really the first time all year the Cubs put everything together for a solid victory that included clutch hits, outstanding pitching, and a handful of tremendous defensive plays. Yes, this is the 2013 Cubs we are talking about here, and it was a pleasure to watch. The Cubs jumped in front early again in this one taking a 1-0 lead in the first and a 2-1 lead in the second, both times they allowed the Marlins to tie it up. The game stayed tied at two into the seventh inning and that’s where the Cubs came up clutch. The Marlins went to Mike Dunn, a lefty specialist to take care of Julio Borbon, Borbon drew a walk, then Dunn 
was tasked with retiring DeJesus, he couldn’t do that either. With Castillo at second DeJesus smacked a ground ball base hit back up the middle to give the Cubs a 3-2 lead. The Cubs pen did the job the rest of the way to secure their third straight win, with a whole bunch of help from Starlin Castro and his glove.
At The Plate – The Cubs finally found some clutch hitting in this one as they were 2-for-8 with runners in scoring position. David DeJesus was 2-for-4 with a double, an RBI, and a run scored. Welington Castillo was also right in the middle of the action going 2-for-4, and scored the game winning run. Luis Valbuena has been in a good stretch as well, he went 2-for-4 with an RBI in the victory. Loved the Cubs approach tonight as they walked four times and struck out only five times.
On The Mound - Travis Wood was outstanding once again in this one as he earned his second win of the season. Wood went six innings giving up two runs on just three hits while walking one and striking out five, he is now 2-1 on the season with a 2.25 ERA. The bullpen then took over as they shut down the Marlins over the last three innings to preserve the win. Kameron Loe worked a scoreless inning giving up a hit while walking one. James Russell and Carlos Marmol teamed up to work a scoreless eighth inning, surrendering one hit and one walk. Kevin Gregg once again pitched a flawless ninth inning for his third save of the season.
Up Next - The Cubs go for their fourth straight win and a series sweep of the Marlins tomorrow afternoon. Carlos Villanueva will take the mound for the Cubs opposite Ricky Nolasco at 12:10 PM CST.
Game Highlights:
Luis Valbuena RBI single
Schierholtz with a spectacular catch
DeJesus’ game winning single
Castro’s game saving play
Thanks for reading,
- George
April 27, 2013 – Cubs @ Marlins; Lineups!
The Cubs go for their third win in a row tonight, that’s called a winning streak, it has happened before, just not a lot recently. Travis Wood gets the ball for the Cubs as he will oppose Alex Sanabia of the Marlins. I feel like if the Cubs can take care of business tonight that they might be ready to go on a really nice run here. Here are the lineups for tonight, 6:10 PM CST first pitch.
Thanks for reading,
- George
Series Preview – Cubs @ Marlins; April 25 – April 28, 2013
Well, based on the records, this could be an ugly series as the Cubs come in at 6-14 with the Marlins sporting a 5-16 record, that’s a lot of losses. As one could imagine, it hasn’t gone well of late for either team as the Cubs are 2-8 ion their last ten games, of course at least half of those losses could be wins, and the Marlins are 3-7 in their last ten. The Marlins struggles are similar to the that of the Cubs, they can’t score runs. The Marlins have the worst team batting average in all of baseball (.221), the Cubs aren’t much better at .229 (26th in MLB). The Marlins are also dead last in runs scored with 54, eleven fewer than the Cubs on the season. The Cubs also hold the edge in the pitching department as they sport a 3.44 team ERA which is 9th best in all of baseball, think about that for a second, the Cubs have the 9th best ERA yet sit eight games under .500 this year. The Marlins team ERA is a full run worse than that of the Cubs, they sit 26th in the Majors at 4.50. All signs point to a successful weekend in Miami for the Cubs, but they still have to go out there and perform.
Last Series:
The Cubs left Cincinnati wanting more, they lost two of three and could have easily won two of three.
The Marlins split a rain shortened series in Minnesota.
Game Times and Broadcast Information:
- Thursday, April 24, 2013 – 6:10 PM CST on WCIU
- Friday, April 25, 2013 – 6:10 PM CST on WGN TV
- Saturday, April 26, 2013 – 6:10 PM CST on CSN+ (Channel Finder)
- Sunday, April 27, 2013 – 12:10 PM CST on CSN Chicago
Starting Pitchers Scheduled:
Cubs:
Game One – Edwin Jackson (0-3, 4.84)
- Career vs. Marlins (8 appearances, 7 GS) (1-6, 6.69)
Game Two – Scott Feldman (0-3, 4.50)
- Career vs. Marlins (First appearance)
Game Three – Travis Wood (1-1, 2.08)
- Career vs. Marlins (2 GS) (0-2, 16.88)
Game Four - Carlos Villanueva (1-0, 1.53)
- Career vs. Marlins (10 appearances, 2 GS) (1-1, 5.79)
Marlins:
Game One – Kevin Slowey (0-2, 1.90)
- Career vs. Cubs (1 GS) (1-0, 4.50)
Game Two – Wade LeBlanc (0-3, 6.27)
- Career vs. Cubs (2 appearances, 1 GS) (1-0, 2.08)
Game Three – Alex Sanabia (2-2, 5.09)
- Career vs. Cubs (1 GS) (0-1, 3.18)
Game Three - Ricky Nolasco (1-2, 3.81)
- Career vs. Cubs (8 appearances, 7 GS) (4-2, 2.85)
Who’s Hot / Who’s Not:
The Cubs have struggled all season long with runners in scoring position, even more troubling is their inability to get runners in from third base and less than two outs. That is a situation where contact needs to be made and the run needs to score. So far this season the Cubs have had twenty-three at bats with a runner at third with less than two outs, they only have two hits, that’s a .077 average. They have only scored eleven times in those twenty-three chances, 
for one, they need more chances, and two they need to capitalize starting yesterday. Anthony Rizzo is having better at bats as of late unfortunately that is not yielding better results. Over his last six games Rizzo is hitting .185 (5-for-27), he does have three home runs and five RBI’s during that stretch. Darwin Barney has struggled mightily at the plate since returning from the DL, he is hitting .174 (4-for-23) in his last six games, but does have a game winning homer. David DeJesus has been lighting it up of late, he is hitting .368 (7-for-19) over the last six games with a double, a triple, two home runs, three RBI’s, and four walks. On the mound, Carlos Villanueva has been outstanding in his last two starts going 1-0 with a 2.35 ERA only giving up seven hits in 15.1 innings.
The Marlins glaring issues are scoring runs, and then preventing them once the bullpen comes into the game, sounds familiar, eh? I mentioned the Marlins offensive woes above, but their bullpen ERA is just as bad. The 
Marlins sit 28th in the Majors in bullpen ERA with a 4.98 ERA, which is worse than the Cubs if you can believe that. Get ready for a lot of names that you probably don’t know, starting now. Not much has gone right at the plate for the Marlins, but Rob Brantly has been a bright spot lately. Over the last five games Brantly is hitting .313 (5-for16) with three doubles, four RBI’s, and two walks. Justin Ruggiano on the other hand has been awful in the last seven games hitting .207 (6-for-29), of those six hits two have left the park. Ryan Webb has been one of the few bright spots out of the Marlins pen of late as he has tossed six innings over the last seven days giving up only one run. Jon Rauch has been stupid bad in his last two appearances, giving up five runs on four hits in 1.2 innings.
Bold Prediction:
These close games are bound to start going in the favor of the Cubs, and I think that starts now. The way the Cubs staff has been throwing the ball I like their chances against a weak Marlins line up. I also think the Cubs will start getting some timely hits and take three out of four this weekend….please??
Thanks for reading,
- George
Cubs Find Another Mind Numbing Way to Lose
This is starting to get out of hand, maybe it already is out of hand, but the way the Cubs are losing games is almost hard to believe, even for the Cubs. The latest chapter in this horrific story of a season took place tonight in Cincinnati where the Cubs seemingly did everything to win. They received a tremendous performance from starter Travis Wood, jumped out to an early lead, had a strong performance from the bullpen for the most part, and yet still lost. Such is life as a Cubs fan and Cubs team at this point, every game this year has been decided by four runs or less, think about that, all of them. You know what decides close games in the majors? Bullpen and clutch hitting, 
usually with runners in scoring position, two things the Cubs have been terrible at. Luis Valbuena hit a monster two-run shot in the top of the thirteenth to give the Cubs a two run lead, nothing could go wrong, until it did. Before anyone could even savor that two-run homer, Michael Bowden, who didn’t get much help from Sappelt in right field, gave up three runs and the game was over, ho-hum, another mind numbing loss.
At The Plate – David DeJesus got things going right away in this one as he led the game off with a home run, he finished the day 2-for-5 with a home run, two walks, an RBI, a stolen base, and a run scored. Nate Schierholtz was solid as well going 3-for-6, but also had three strikeouts. Luis Valbuena had the big hit for the Cubs, that two-run homer that I mentioned, and finished the day 2-for-6 with two RBI’s, and a run scored. Darwin Barney was 2-for-6 with a run scored, the Cubs left 12 men on base in this one, that didn’t help either.
On The Mound - Travis Wood was great again, against a tough lineup, and once again had nothing to show for it. He went 6.1 innings giving up two runs on four hits while walking two and striking out five. Shawn Camp worked a third of an inning, but balked in the tying run, yes, again. James Russell, Carlos Marmol, and Kevin Gregg all had scoreless appearances out of the pen. Marmol was particularly strong going two scoreless innings while walking two and striking out two. Michael Bowden was good, then really bad, he took the loss going 1.2 innings giving up three runs on four hits.
Up Next - Carlos Villanueva looks to play stopper tomorrow night against Tony Cingrani, the Reds highly touted prospect. First pitch scheduled for 6:10 PM CST.
Game Highlights:
Valbuena’s two-run homer
Castro RBI single
DeJesus lead-off homer
Thanks for reading,
- George
Series Preview – Cubs @ Reds; April 22 – April 24, 2013
Time to start playing good baseball, and getting some wins, and no better time than right now. The Cubs travel to Cincinnati to take on the first place Reds for a three game series beginning tonight. The Reds have been playing solid baseball as of late as they are 6-4 in their last ten games, and have won seven of eight. The Cubs are the exact opposite, having lost three straight and only winning three times in their last ten games. The Reds are also clicking on all cylinders at home as they have an impressive 10-3 home record, if they could do anything on the road they might have a three or four game lead in the division, but they are only 1-5 away from Great American Ballpark. As bad as the Cubs have been, they are only 4.5 games out of first in a tightly packed Central Division, time to get hot, hopefully it starts tonight.
Last Series:
The Cubs came up empty in Milwaukee, getting swept in the three game series.
The Reds took three out of four from the Marlins in Cincinnati.
Game Times and Broadcast Information:
- Monday, April 22, 2013 – 6:10 PM CST on CSN Chicago
- Tuesday, April 23, 2013 – 6:10 PM CST on WGN TV
- Wednesday, April 24, 2013 – 11:35 AM CST on CSN Chicago, MLBN
Starting Pitchers Scheduled:
Cubs:
Game One - Travis Wood (1-1, 1.83)
- Career vs. Reds (2 GS) (0-1, 5.25)
Game Two - Carlos Villanueva (1-1, 1.83)
- Career vs. Reds (20 appearances. 5 GS) (2-2, 3.99)
Game Three - Jeff Samardzija (1-3, 3.38)
- Career vs. Reds (16 appearances, 2 GS) (1-1, 4.67)
Reds:
Game One - Mike Leake (1-0, 4.26)
- Career vs. Cubs (10 GS) (4-2, 3.56)
Game Two - Tony Cingrani (1-0, 1.80)
- Career vs. Cubs (First appearance)
Game Three - Mat Latos (0-0, 2.73)
- Career vs. Cubs (5 GS) (2-2, 3.16)
Bold Prediction:
I’m going into this series extremely positive, the Cubs have been in too many close games to keep losing at the clip they are. Unfortunately, this is a tough place to play and the Reds are playing well and have more talent, I think the Reds take two of three from the Cubs. BUT, if the Cubs defense actually defends I think the Cubs take two out of three. Keep an eye on Tony Cingrani in game two of the series, he is an outstanding young talent, and highly touted pitching prospect. Soon the Cubs will have guys like that, at least I hope they will.
Thanks for reading,
- George
Bats Wake Up Too Late in Loss to Rangers
The Cubs do have a flair for the dramatic, but as we have seen so often this season it usually ends with Cubs fans disappointed and another loss. Hey! That’s what happened tonight. Through seven innings it was the Derek Holland and Travis Wood show as the Rangers 
held a slim 1-0 lead. The Rangers were able to tack on some insurance runs in the eighth which they ended up needing. Trailing 4-0 heading to the bottom of the ninth the Cubs once again fought back and were one swing away from grabbing a victory but ended up falling short after scoring twice to make it 4-2.
At The Plate – The Cubs didn’t do much all night, but at least they were able to snap the 0-for-24 with RISP slump by going 2-for-4 tonight. Alfonso Soriano was 2-for-4 with a double and has his average all the way up to .275 for the season. Nate Schierholtz continued his hot hitting, this time off the bench going 1-for-1 with a two-run double. Starlin Castro, Anthony Rizzo, and Welington Castillo each had one hit in the loss.
On The Mound - Travis Wood continued his strong start to the 2013 season, he went 7.1 innings giving up two runs on five hits while walking three and striking out three and was hung with the loss. Shawn Camp is clearly not the Shawn Camp of 2012 just yet as he gave up two runs on two hits in just one-third of an inning. James Russell and newcomer Kameron Loe had scoreless appearances.
Up Next - Game two of the series will feature Carlos Villanueva against Justin Grimm as long as they can get it in, the weather is not going to be very helpful. The Chicago area is supposed to get hammered with rain on Wednesday and Thursday so we’ll see.
Game Highlights:
Gonzalez’s diving catch
Rizzo with a great throw to cut down the run
Schierholtz two-run double
Sappelt’s sliding catch
Thanks for reading,
- George
