Bandwagon jumpers, beware. Hopping on the Cubs' bandwagon at this point of the season could lead to serious bouts of panic, nausea, delirium, migraines, drooping eyelids and barking shoulders. But since summer is almost over and the Cubs are playing the role of accidental contenders in a most winnable division, thousands are expected to join the crowd and proclaim themselves die-hards for the stretch run. With so little time before Labor Day to study up on the team, here's a brief guide to refer to the next time you're involved in some water-cooler Cubs talk. 各位准备跳上小熊列车的球迷请注意! 在这个时候成为小熊迷 可能会导致 恐慌, 恶心, 发狂, 头痛, 精神萎靡, 痴呆 等严重症状 以下我们将提供小熊队基本资料给新球迷 这样下次你跟其他球迷聊天的时候 才不会没话讲 Kids 'n' play Most teams get more experienced for the stretch run, but the '07 Cubs are breaking the mold and getting younger. The Cubs had five players in Sunday's starting lineup who played together in the minor-league system—Sean Marshall, Ryan Theriot, Felix Pie, Mike Fontenot and Matt Murton. All but Fontenot were in Class A three years ago, with Marshall playing in Lansing with Carlos Marmol, while Theriot, Murton and Pie were playing in Daytona with Rich Hill. Daytona was named 2004 Florida State League co-champion after the league canceled the championship series between the Cubs and Tampa Yankees because of damage from Hurricane Ivan. Playing in a pennant race is nothing new for the Cubs' kids, though the stakes are obviously higher and the pressure much greater. "To me last year, and '05 also, were the two oddities," Theriot said of late-season games on losing Cubs teams. "This [race] feels normal. This is why we play, to have something to play for and be able to see it and be this close to it. It's exciting and fun. "It makes every game, every at-bat, that much more important. It gives you reason to go out there and do it for reasons other than playing for next year, which is never any fun." Theriot is hitting .286 and playing solid defensively at shortstop. He ranks third in fielding percentage (.984) among major-league shortstops with 60 or more games, trailing perennial Gold Glover Omar Vizquel and Troy Tulowitzki. He's ninth in zone ratings, which measure a player's range. 大部分的球队在进入最後冲刺阶段的时候 都会找来老经验球员 然而小熊队却反其道而行 上星期天我们的先发阵容里 有五个曾一起在小联盟打球的球员 他们是: Sean Marshall, Ryan Theriot, Felix Pie, Mike Fontenot 和 Matt Murton 除了 Fontenot 之外的每个人 三年前都还在打 1A Marmol 和 Marshall 当时在 Lansing 一起打球 (注: 这应该是我们当时的低阶 1A 队) Theriot, Murton, Pie 和 Hill 在 Daytona 当队友 (注: Daytona Cubs 是我们的高阶 1A 队) 当年 (三年前) Daytona Cubs 和 Tampa Yankees 并列那个联盟的冠军 因为当时有台风 所以冠军赛取消 "对我来说 05 和 06年这两个球季 感觉非常奇怪" Theriot 说 "今年的球季比较正常, 我们有比赛的动机 我们努力打球 然後我们就有机会进季後赛" "每一场比赛 每一次上场都是那麽重要 我们有一个可以达到的目标激励我们 而不是只是期待明年" Theriot 打击率 .286 防守方面也有不错的表现 他的防守率 .984 在全大联盟SS 中排行第三 在防守范围方面 则是排名第九 Closer-by-conundrum Manager Lou Piniella announced over the weekend that he'll go with a three-headed monster in late-inning relief, using Bob Howry and Marmol in some closing opportunities at the expense of Ryan Dempster. The numbers suggest it's the right call by Piniella. The Howry-Marmol combo worked well during Dempster's absence with an oblique injury, and Dempster has lacked consistency since his return, with six walks and eight hits allowed over six innings. He held opposing hitters to a .178 average before the All-Star break, but it has risen to .317 since the break. Howry has allowed one hit and one walk over six innings in August, and has a 1.17 ERA since the break, with opposing hitters batting .182 off him. Marmol ranks first among NL relievers in strikeouts per nine innings (12.38), first batter efficiency (.086), inherited runners stranded (96 percent), and third in batting average allowed (.171) and fifth in ERA (1.83). Dempster can read numbers too. 老皮说 他将会使用三头牛 负责 Late-inning 的救援 有的时候他也许会使用 Marmol 和 Howry 的组合 而跳过 Dempster Howry-Marmol 的组合 在 Dempster 受伤的那段时间里 表现的很不错 而 Dempster 回来以後 表现不稳定 才投了六局 就送出六次保送和八支安打 @@ 星星赛前 对手对他的打击率 .178 星星赛後 对手对他的打击率是 317 Howry 在八月里投了六局 只送出一次保送 被打出一支安打 防御率 1.17 被打击率 .182 Marmol 在国联救援投手中 K/9 排第一 (12.38) 第一名打者上垒率 .086 守住前面投手留下来的跑者机率 96% (几乎不会丢别人的分数) 被打击率排第三 .171 ERA 排第五 1.83 蛋皮也会看数字 (XD) Catch-22 After announcing that Jason Kendall and Koyie Hill would split playing time, Piniella has reversed course and played Kendall almost every day. Kendall has responded, at least offensively. He was 9-for-23 on the just-concluded road trip (.391) and is 19-for-50 (.380) over his last 15 games. Catch-22 "I've always played every day, and I always want to play every day," Kendall said. "I know it's not my choice, but I love to play. The off-season, that's the time to rest." Henry Blanco may begin a minor-league rehab stint this week but probably won't be ready to return until Sept. 1. 自从宣布要让 Kendall 和 Hill 平分上场时间之後 老皮马上说话不算话的让 Kendall 几乎每天都上场 Kendall 也没让人失望 在最近 15 场比赛中 打出 9-23的成绩 "我一直都是每天上场的球员 而且我喜欢每天上场" Kandall说 "我知道那不是我能决定的 但是我很喜欢打球 要休息等球季结束再休息就好了" Blanco 的复健赛打打停停的 也许9月1日之前都没办法回来 Drought continues The Cubs rank 13th in the league with 92 home runs, and their top two power hitters, Aramis Ramirez and Alfonso Soriano, are injured. Ramirez is expected to return Tuesday from a sore right wrist, but he has not hit a home run since July 20. "I haven't hit any homers, and I don't have any excuse for it," Ramirez said. "I've still been hitting a lot of balls in the gap, and hit a lot of balls that just don't leave the park. I don't know what it is." Murton, who hit three home runs on the road trip, is currently the Cubs' top home-run threat. Yes, that's the same Murton who has heard for three years he can't hit for power. 小熊队的全垒打数在联盟排行 第13 "我没有打很多全垒打 我没有藉口可以说" "我还是可以打很多穿越安打 有很多球飞不出球场 我也不知道是为什麽" Ramirez 说 Murton 在这次的 road trip 打了三支全垒打 是目前小熊队的大炮 (XD) Transformation of Wood Kerry Wood is now an every-other-day reliever. His control isn't sharp enough to be trusted in late-inning situations, though Piniella used Wood in the sixth inning of a tie game on Sunday. "I like Kerry and [Michael] Wuertz below [the setup men] for now," Piniella said. For emphasis, he repeated, "for now." Wood has the demeanor to be a dominant closer or setup man, but Piniella isn't ready to experiment. "But you know, that can change," he said. "Kerry's done a nice job. If I can get to the point where I've got three pitchers for two innings, and then I've got 2-3 pitchers for that seventh inning [on] … remember, I can't use Kerry every day." 木头现在是每两天上场一次的救援投手 他的控球还不够好 所以没办法在後面局数上场 然而 上星期天 老皮还是在平手的局面下派出了木头 "我宁愿木头和 Wuertz 现在爆一爆" 老皮还没打算让木头当 setup man 或 closer "不过你知道的, 我可以随时改变心意" 老皮说 "木头表现不错...假如有一天 我有三个投手可以在八九局的时候使用" "然後有两三个投手可以在七局的时候上场..." (老皮听起来像是在做一个有关牛棚的梦 哈) Uphill/downhill Rich Hill's numbers aren't all that different from Ted Lilly's. Hill has a 3.85 ERA with 128 strikeouts and 48 walks in 140 1/3 innings. Lilly has a 3.51 ERA with 124 strikeouts and 41 walks in 151 1/3 innings. Lilly is 13-5, Hill 6-7. Part of the difference can be traced to the fact that Hill has the lowest run support (3.27 per nine innings) in the league, while Lilly has the fifth-highest (6.07). But mostly the disparity is because Lilly has enough experience to escape trouble without flinching, while Hill is still learning how to stop fighting himself when things go wrong. How quickly he learns on the job could determine whether the '07 Cubs are a pretender or the real deal. Statistics suggest Hill is a keeper, but the only stat that really matters is the "W." Rich Hill 的数字看起来比没有差莉莉姊很多 Hill- ERA 3.84, SO 128, BB 46, IP 140 1/3 Lilly-ERA 3.51, SO 124, BB 41, IP 151 1/3 Lilly 13-5; Hill 6-7 为什麽他们的胜场差这麽多呢 有一部分原因是因为 Hill 的 run support 是全联盟最低 而莉莉则是全联盟第五高的 但是主要的原因还是因为 莉莉姊经验老到 他知道怎麽解决危机 而且不会紧张退缩 而富丘还需要学着停止跟自己过不去 当他状况不好的时候 富丘可以多快学会赢球的方法 决定了我们的竞争力 数字告诉我们 我们该留住富丘 然而能赢球 才是最重要的 ※ 编辑: shawshien 来自: 69.141.27.37 (08/20 01:59)