One could refer to the 2011 Chicago Cubs outfield as The Good (Marlon Byrd) The Bad (Soriano) and the Ugly (Fukudome) but Soriano and Fukudome are just overpaid. And what about Colvin?
Hookers or Cake continues his 2011 Chicago Cubs preview: The Good, The Bad and The Worry
- The Outfield
CF - Marlon Byrd
The Good - A lead by example hard working hustler - had a torrid first half in 10’ with a .976 OPS - solid fielder - pulls a ton of ass!
The Bad - A horrible second half .727 OPS - Says that he wasn’t used to playing all those day games - not a base stealer - not enough power to be in the 3 hole which is where he’ll probably hit.
The Worry - Was the tale of 2 halfs just NL scouts figuring out how to pitch to Byrd and not Bryd wearing down?
LF - Alphonso Soriano aka “Showboat”
The Good - There is only one of him.
The Bad - hit .764 OPS against righties last year - is a liability in LF - can no longer steal bases - 35 years old - the highest paid Cub and he has 4 more years on his contract.
The Worry - That he hits well enough to keep Colvin out of the line-up or that he gets hurt and blames his lack of production on injuries… again! Did I mention he has 4 MORE YEARS LEFT?! FUUUUCK!!!
RF Kosuke Fukudome
The Good - Gets on base - solid in RF - professional - can play a little CF - Fuk U Do Me
The Bad - not enough power for a corner OF - not enough speed to bat lead-off - swings like a girl
The Worry - That he finishes the year as our 2cnd best Outfielder
RF - LF - 1B Tyler Colvin
The Good - 25 yr old Left handed power hitter that can hit lefties - decent fielder - decent speed - boyish charm!
The Bad - a free swinger who may not be the hitter we’d like him to be. A little pasty
The Worry - Pitchers figure him out and his lack of production keeps Soriano on the field and several thousand Cubs fans kill themselves.
Utility Outfielder - Reed Johnson
The Good - everyone likes him - can play all 3 outfield positions ok - hits lefties - probably a good pool player
The Bad - a 35 year old marginal player who had a bad year last year - not a power or base-stealing threat - owns an Affliction t-shirt
The Worry - I love drinking with Reed down at the Double Duece but he may have taken a step back and he just doesn’t have the skills to be an adequate back up - paging Brett Jackson
Overall outlook
I think Quade is a smart manager (we know he’s a potty mouth!) and the outfield is Colvin - Byrd - Fukodome vs righties and then Soriano - Bryd - Colvin vs lefties - He may stick with Soriano vs righties for the time being so that Soriano can make the case for Colvin all by himself and I understand that - but if everything continues as is, Colvin should get 500+ ABs this year so we can see what we have in him.
The Line-up will probably look something like this.
vs RH
1. Fukudome LF
2. Castro SS
3. Bryd CF
4. Ramirez 3B
5. Pena 1B
6. Soriano/Colvin
7. Soto C/Colvin
8. Barney 2B
There’s a lot of fun options vs lefties so tomorrow I’ll break down RH/LH line-ups with fun stats ect. Yes I’m a complete dork.
A 2011 Chicago Cubs season preview by lifelong Cubs fan Hookers or Cake
The Good, The Bad and The Worry
1B - Carlos Pena
The Good - Left handed - Gold Glove - power bat. Lifetime .351 OBP - clubhouse guy - hits well in big spots - hits 30 homeruns in his sleep - only signed to a one year deal.
The Bad - Hit .196 last year… thats right ONE NINE SIX! Lifetime .241 hitter Hit .206 on the road the last 3 years - may have to bat 4th to break up RH Byrd & RH Rameriez
The Worry - That Pena hits .251 with 38 homeruns Hendry signs him to a 7 year contract.
2B - Darwin Barney
The Good: I like him - a shortstop by trade he’s a nice, natural fielder with quick feet and a good arm - a hustler and only 25 - a winner
The Bad: not a plus with the bat or a base stealer - comes from a family of Dentists
The Worry: He’s from Portland and went to OSU so Deadspin.com will publish a pic of him leaving a head shop with a florescent orange 6 foot gravity bong by the break.
SS - Starlin Castro
The Good - Great Defense - Looks like he may become a big bat and a base stealing threat - future all-star - turned 21 on March 24th. only 21!
The Bad - Seems like a bit of a showboat - takes too many gambles in the field - might not have a high baseball IQ
The Worry - puts on 20 lbs and starts hanging out with Sammy Sosa
3B - Aramiz Ramirez
The Good - All around good hitter and still has a bit of hose at the hot corner.
The Bad - Looks old and slow at 3B - crapped the bed in the 1st half last year
The Worry - that he’s really 39 and can’t get around on a fastball anymore - ala George “Taco” Bell (ask a White Sox fan)
C - Geo Soto
The Good - The 2008 Rookie of the year - slimmed down and bounced back last year from a horrid 2009 - Calls a good game and his arm looks strong after offseason shoulder scope. His .890 OPS led all catchers last year. Increased his walk % each year.
The Bad - Gets dinged up - only 100 or so games each of the last 2 seasons - might be tempted to bat him 3rd but he’s slower than Dick Bavetta.
The Worry - That he gets so thick in the britches that he becomes a lowrider pin-up.
The Bench - Jeff Baker & Blake Dewitt
They will back up 2cnd & 3rd with Baker seeing 1B and emergency OF duty. Baker hits lefties pretty good which is lucky cuz he sure as fuck can’t hit righties. Bakers luck continues as DeWitt flat out can’t hit anything - DeWitt’s main claim to fame is he’s a lefty who tries hard… but so was Hellen Keller and she couldn’t hit a breaking either.
Both Baker & DeWitt are nothing special at 2cnd and winceable at 3rd. Paging Josh Vitters.
C- Koyie Hill
If you poke around it won’t take you very long to find out we lost in 2010 because of Koyie Hill. I kid - I kid! But holy shit do Cubs fans hate them some Koyie Hill - maybe its because he’s a ginger or maybe its because his reattached fingers creep out the ladies… whatever the case if Soto goes down for 15 or more expect Wellington Castillio to come up to save the day.
Overall outlook
The infield isn’t that much diferent than last year. The defense might be a little better. The real hope is Castro takes a big step and that Pena just had a bad year in Tampa. Old 1B D. Lee was actually a better bat last year than Pena and I don’t think anyone has fond memories of Lee’s season. Both D. Lee and Pena can pick it so I don’t see any upgrade there.
It pretty much all boils down to Ramirez, if he is no longer a middle of the order hitter he needs to go. I hate to say it. I love him and he was a sweet and tender lover of mine for 6 solid years but he cost us a lot last year and he’s getting worse by the minute at 3rd.
Tomorrow - The Outfield IE. What to do with Sori(fuckin’)ano.
