Pete Rose told Kap & Haugh that if Sammy Sosa has any skeletons in his closet – i.e., PED usage – that he should just be open about it, because Rose feels like his own mistake was keeping things inside too long. As I’ve said before, I’m ready to just move on and welcome Sosa back into the fold regardless, but, if he does have anything to admit, I think an admission would go a long way to getting even more people back on his side. If Sosa used PEDs, folks will recognize the reality of that era: so many players were doing it, the rules were purposely left vague, and no one was properly discouraging usage.
It’s going to be a talking point for months because it’s something that really sticks out when you review new Cubs outfielder Dexter Fowler’s stats: he looks great offensively, but he looks almost historically bad defensively. Can it be right? Is there a charitable explanation? Well, Mark Simon throws some shade on the idea that Dexter Fowler’s defensive metrics have been poor solely because of his time spent at Coors Field and Minute Maid Park:
Like I said yesterday, we’re just going to have to wait to see with our own eyes. Perhaps Fowler doesn’t start in center every single day, or perhaps the Cubs’ internal analysis indicates that, stats be damned, Fowler is good in center field. It’s just one of those things that we’ll see when we see. My gut tells me the stats are probably imperfect, but they must be coming from somewhere.
Something to feel good about with respect to Fowler:
Fowler's reaction to trade: "I had a huge smile on my face because I know how good we're going to be." #Cubs
This is awesome news: according to BCB, the South Bend Cubs will be participating in MiLB.tv this year. That means all Iowa Cubs games, almost all Tennessee Smokies games, all Myrtle Beach Pelicans home games (assuming they re-up this year), and all South Bend Cubs home games will be streamed online via MiLB.tv. That is so wonderfully wonderful.
Danny Ecker at Crain’s has a detailed write-up on the Cubs’ promotional plans this year, which will feature Cubs players for the first time in a long time (another indication that everyone involved with the Cubs is expecting this year to be the start of something different – it was tough to sell tickets by using players in the past few years when you didn’t know whether the players would be there for more than a few weeks). As revealed at the Cubs Convention, this year’s marketing slogan for the Cubs is simply, “Let’s Go,” which was very well-received. Given the state of things, I think it’s quite appropriate.
Joe Maddon plans to hold young players accountable throughout the development process (Tribune).
Current smoothie iteration: a little bit of a whole lot of things.
8 oz unsweetened almond milk
4 oz water
2 oz fruit juice
2 oz vanilla yogurt
Handful of tender spinach
1/4 cup carrots
1/4 cup oats
1/8 cup almonds
1 tablespoon flax seeds
1/2 tablespoon chia seeds
1 scoop protein powder (I use vanilla flavor)
1/3 banana
1 cup frozen fruit (I’ve been using a variety of strawberries, blueberries, peaches)
1/4 tablespoon cocoa powder
Sprinkle of cinnamon, splash of agave
The result is about 24 ounces, relatively smooth, and fairly good tasting (you have to be realistic on the taste when you’re trying to shove all that stuff in there). I’m really digging it as my new breakfast, and digging the way I feel the rest of the day.
Brett Taylor is the Lead Cubs Writer at Bleacher Nation, and you can find him on Twitter at @BleacherNation and on LinkedIn here.
Brett is also the founder of Bleacher Nation, which opened up shop in 2008 as an independent blog about the Chicago Cubs. Later growing to incorporate coverage of other Chicago sports, Bleacher Nation is now one of the largest regional sports blogs on the web.
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NEWSLETTER
The State of the Cubs’ Union: Reasonably Hopeful.
