Pretty historic day, and it put a smile on my face.
I won’t tell all of you not to discuss this morning’s big SCOTUS news in the comments, since I just did, but please be respectful. And, if you can’t, then just stick to baseball.
Jon Lester was visibly frustrated with what he later said was his own lack of command yesterday, and indicated that he’s still trying to figure things out this year (ESPN). As you can see from the strike zone calls at Brooks, it definitely wasn’t a matter of him not getting calls:
I’ll admit that, seeing that Lester was getting those borderline calls yesterday and still struggled concerns me a bit. The story is still the same every other time Lester has struggled this year: he’s a vet with a long, quality track record, and there’s still plenty of time for him to have a very good season, in total. But even Lester says in that ESPN piece he’s not quite sure what the issue is.
For the year, Lester’s FIP and xFIP are 3.58 and 3.31, respectively. Both are solidly above average, and both suggest that better results – even with the same performance – are coming. I understand that you’re probably tired of hearing that.
As for the home plate umpire essentially coming after Lester when he was yelling at himself, I don’t really know what to make of that. He might get a talking to.
For the second time this year, a Kris Bryant mid-game exist left fans in a panic until it was revealed that it was for flu-like symptoms. Having two of those incidents in a half-season is unusual, but don’t go drawing any wild conclusions. Hopefully he’s feeling better in time for tonight’s series opener against the Cardinals.
Also, there is mention in the CSN Bryant piece, as well as this Cubs.com piece, that folks were speculating on Twitter that Bryant had been traded. I didn’t see that, but, if you were among those so speculating, you probably need the hug that Kris Bryant would never get mid-game for a trade. That’s not happening. No one should have to tell you that.
Everyone is still saying that Addison Russell is a future shortstop after he subbed in for a half-game yesterday (CSN), though it remains unclear exactly how that’s going to happen.
The Cubs are going to shoot off post-game fireworks at Wrigley Field on July 4 for the first time. Should be a lot of fun for those in the area.
A very interesting read:
Jake Arrieta became an ace by ditching the fastball that got him to the bigs. Me on his changes & spin rates: http://t.co/ZvddYBfbrZ#Cubs
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
Pretty historic day, and it put a smile on my face.
