Feeling Mostly Quite Good About the Brewers Series, Murphy’s Big Game, and Other Bullets

Sep 06, 2018

I am back at the dentist today to get a couple old fillings repaired. Apparently they went bad over the past 15 years. Boo. I wonder if I can tweet while the drilling is going on.

That was mostly a good series. Insane to say – sunshine and lollipops to many of you, I’m sure – but I mean it. No, I’m not saying losing two of three to the team chasing you in the standings is, in isolation, the thing you shoot for. But when you consider the context – September, 5.0-game division lead entering the series, only so many games left – using up three games in Milwaukee for the Brewers to make up only one game in the standings is a good outcome. It’s not a *great* outcome, but it’s a good outcome. A fine outcome. I’m happy today.

Actually, this post-game pic pretty much sums it up. Albert Almora is how I felt immediately after Pedro Strop struck out Curtis Granderson to end it, Addison Russell is how I felt pondering the overall series as perfectly good, and Javy Baez is how I feel when I remember the Cubs really could have/should have won the first game:

Also, for my psyche, if the Cubs were going to win only one of those three games, I sure am glad it was getaway day. Now the Cubs head to Washington for four games. It’s so hard to predict how a series like that will go, given that the Nationals have been so erratic this year, and have sold off some, but remain deeply talented. Harper, Soto, Rendon, Turner, Scherzer, Strasburg … these are all guys the Cubs will see in this series. I still don’t understand how the Nationals were so disappointing.

If you missed it earlier, Kyle Schwarber is day-to-day with a back issue. But that massive bomb he hit last night? That came *after* he was feeling the back discomfort.

Oh, and if you missed it last night, Brandon Morrow’s return to the Cubs is very much in doubt.

As I noted yesterday, the Cubs pretty much always win when Daniel Murphy is in the lineup, despite his production dropping after the initial surge. Still, I cautioned that with small samples, it could all turn around with a single good game … and after last night, he’s back up to .316/.339/.579 (144 wRC+) with the Cubs. The guy can hit. He just hits. I’d probably rather see him batting second or third or fourth, but it’s really hard to complain with him at the top, given the hitters behind him, and the fact that he works quality at bats.

Long-time former Cardinal Jaime Garcia is now with the Cubs, working in relief, and he’s happy to be on the other side of the field (Cubs.com): “Being with the Cardinals for many years and playing against this team a bunch of times, I’ve seen the direction they’ve gone the last three, four years and it’s for sure something special. You can see it from the other dugout, you can see the fun they’re having.” Daniel Murphy and Jaime Garcia are Chicago Cubs right now. That’s wild.

Pedro Strop, nasty to the left:

Pedro Strop, 97mph Sinker and 84mph Slider, Overlay. pic.twitter.com/o0vipUeGWS

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) September 6, 2018

Meanwhile, things are looking good for the Bears heading into their opening weekend matchup against the Packers, and also on the financial side:

Roquan Smith and Leonard Floyd Were FULL Participants at Practice Today! https://t.co/PRrdsy7XvT pic.twitter.com/CjGXiPW9bd

— Bleacher Nation Bears (@BN_Bears) September 5, 2018

An Eddie Goldman Extension Is Possible, But It Would Bring the Bears Right Up Against the Cap https://t.co/qFFrQthPRe pic.twitter.com/nQis0NeVSv
— Bleacher Nation Bears (@BN_Bears) September 5, 2018

written by

Brett Taylor

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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