The man who will start the season as the Chicago Cubs’ fifth starter pitched yesterday. Carlos Villanueva wasn’t sharp, allowing three runs on four hits and three walks.But Carlos’ mama said there would be days like this, there would be days like this his mama said.
“The good thing about today is that I know from experience that I’m going to have days like today,” Villanueva said. “To be honest, I felt I had nothing.”
There wasn’t anything wrong physically. His three previous outings had been fairly quick so it felt good to get his work in.
“Games like this I think are necessary, especially in spring,” he said. “You can’t really plan them out.”
I’m glad to know that he’s just going to have some really terrible games. One thing we don’t have to worry about from Carlos is him being all chummy with his former Brewers teammates. He seems adamant about the old-school “no fraternizing with the enemy” rule. His next start will be Friday against the Brewers, and he’s already expecting the worst.
“When it’s time for business, I’m all business,” the right-hander said. “I’m sure they’ll try to mess with me somehow.”
But he will take them out if he needs to.
“I don’t want to see you or talk to you before the game because if I have to put one in your neck — hopefully it doesn’t come to that — but I won’t feel as comfortable doing it,” Villanueva said. “Outside of the stadium, we can chat all you want. In here, sorry.
“If you’re a pitcher, we’ll be best buds,” he said. “You won’t be facing me. If you’re a hitter, I don’t care where you’re from. It’ll be all business in here. I have to explain it a little bit to some of the guys.”
The Brewers know that about Villanueva but he also anticipates some razzing.
“It’s just the way I am,” he said. “I believe in the rule about no camaraderie before the game. I’m all for enforcing that rule 1 million percent. We’re competing out there. Don’t go behind second base and chat away. We’re going to compete. That’s how I see it.”
Amy chance he’ll put one in Ryan Braun’s neck, just for the hell of it?
The man who should supplant Villanueva from the rotation made his first start of the spring on Sunday. Scott Baker pitched in a live game for the first time in a year and a half, and looked about as good as Carlos Villanueva. He gave up three runs on three hits and walked two in one inning of work.
“Results are one thing, but getting back out there and pitching in front of fans is something I hadn’t done yet,” Baker said after throwing just a third of an inning against the Oakland Athletics. “It was exciting to do that today.”
(snip)
“Occasionally I got a little jumpy and left the ball up a little bit,” he said. “Fell behind some guys and when I had a chance to make a good two-strike pitch I just didn’t make it. Surgery or no surgery, those are things you have to do to be successful.”
He’s still counting on being ready in a month.
“The results weren’t there, but physically I did everything I could to prepare for this outing,” Baker stated. “That’s going to continue to be the case. As long as I continue to progress and build the pitch count up, we’re still shooting for that mid-April time frame.”
No weird Matt Garza-esque lat injuries, Mr. Baker.
Should you be so inclined, Julie has set up an NCAA tournament bracket challenge over at ESPN. Good luck winning, as Julie and I will both pick IU to win it all and they will, so we’ll likely be the top two.
LOHO’s tourney bracket is up and ready for your entries:
http://games.espn.go.com/tournament-challenge-bracket/en/group?groupID=65625&selGrp=65625&entryID=900085
And when I win, what prize do I get?
If there is $$ involved in the tourney, you would get that. If not, you can feel superior to people for awhile. I don’t watch college hoops,so I am skipping the tourney…
Also, re Villanueva: why does he think the Brewers will care enough to do anything when he goes out to pitch? Did they boo-hoo when he left?
The Cubs signed a Cuban today.
Oh yeah. NOW we get the Cuban. Best shot we had at a Cuban was Mark and he got chased away. We’d still have TheoJeddiah running the front office in my fantasy version of what if, but no Rickettses.
Sad thing is this is the best happy moment I’ve had about the 2013 Cubs so far*.
*Ian Stewart getting his release will hopefully make me happier, but we have yet to see the actual results of such action.
You know, if for some miraculous reason Mark Cuban had been able to buy the team, I have no doubt that the Cubs would probably be moving into a new stadium next year.
Finally coming up out of my flu coma. Have I missed anything big?
Well…if there was something you missed, we all missed it because this place has been a graveyard lately.
Why?
UGH, do I have to do EVERYTHING around here?
Also, don’t get this flu, people. This is the first time I’ve been conscious for more than an hour at a time since Thursday.
What do you want me to do about it? (Not the flu…but the lack of comments.)
I don’t know, say something comment-inducing.
What…like “Starlin Castro is way overrated. He hasn’t even won the MVP yet. The Cubs should dump this slacker.”
The Rosemont Cubs?
http://www.csnchicago.com/blog/kapman/rosemont-cubs-suburban-mayor-makes-his-pitch
Yes please.
So here’s a novel idea, why not have two ballparks that the Cubs play at? Even if the Cubs leave Wrigley full time, it still belongs to the Ricketts family. Why not use it for select day games early in the season, crosstown series, concerts in the summertime, and college football in the fall? The new ballpark will be Wrigley Expansion in Suburban Rosemont. You can drop $100 mil into keeping Wrigley as a tourist attraction and use the other $400mil towards ancillary development at the Wrigley Expansion Village (think concert hall, high end retail, luxury townhouses.).
Added bonus of sticking it to the NIMBYS who moved to a neighborhood with an MLB stadium in the middle of it.
So you what the Ricketts family to have to pay to maintain two ballparks instead of one?
No.
It’ll never happen, but I’m amusing myself by imagining what would become of Tom Tunney and Wrigleyville if it did.
I know…as long as the Ricketts family continues to own the team…they aren’t moving…
That doesn’t mean that they shouldn’t move.
To Rosemont? Blech.
I’m not saying Rosemont is the best option…the spot mentioned by Kaplan is actually pretty bad…airplanes coming over all the time. (Shea Stadium anyone?)
I personally would love to see them stay in the city…my proposal would be in the Goose Island area.
Um…
Ryan Theriot is thinking about retiring and becoming an agent.
I can’t help but giggle at this.
What would his qualifications be, and who would want him as an agent?
Anyone with that little talent making that much money MUST have serious negotiating Skills.
Besides, the image of a being a lying scumbucket agent kinda suits him.