Still Gotta Come Through Chicago
Still Gotta Come Through Chicago
Week 25—Game night, Cubs finished, Sox stars trending upward, and a new thread topic
This week in Chicago:
Bears: Tonight at the Washington Redskins, 7:15; Sunday vs. Vikings at 3:25
Cubs: Tuesday at the Pirates 6:05, Wednesday 6:05, Thursday 6:05; Friday at the Cardinals 7:15, Saturday 6:15, Sunday 2:15
Sox: Tuesday vs. the Indians 7:10, Wednesday 7:10, Thursday 8:10; Friday double header vs. the Tigers (first game 3:40, second game TBD), Saturday 6:10, Sunday 2:10
Trivia: For the sake of getting Big Ten Football more involved in the newsletter and a shoutout to the most self-important student body in the history of universities. What is Michigan’s record against top 10 opponents since 2012? I’m sorry, I can’t wait to tell you the answer this time. 1-14! Is there a more delusional fan base in all of college football? A good fight song and a national championship last century doesn’t make you a top program.
Intro:
The thread was POPPING last week. Thanks to all of you for commenting and engaging with each other. I’m trying to ramp this thing up in the coming weeks, and I want you all to be a significant part of the ride. New audio portion for next week. Full offseason discussions on Cubs and Sox coming and eventually extensive previews for the Bulls and Blackhawks. A new twitter account and logo will be launched within the next month. Hoping to get some t-shirts too, and the subscribers who have been Still Gotta Come Through Chicago readers, advertisers, and commenters will be rewarded. The only promise I’ve ever made is that the newsletter will get better each week, and I plan on keeping that promise. Keep telling your friends and family to subscribe and when this thing is more widely-read than the Chicago Tribune’s sports section you can say that you were part of it from the start.
Some of my favorite thread comments from last week:
From Chuck Mac:
Can I blame Ryan Pace for this one?
"Should we draft this Deshaun Watson at 3? A guy who just put together a historic season- 4,600 yards and 50 TDs, has virtually no flaws in his game, and who also just took down Alabama in the national title game?"
"Nah I got a better Idea, lets pay Jameis Winston's backup $45 mil and then trade up a pick for this guy who started one season in his career, threw 30 TDs went 8-5 and led North Carolina to a Sun Bowl appearance"
From Mike Brady, responding to his brother, who said the Bears would go 4-12:
Settle Down my brother!! I’m sure you were very angry last year at Mitchell as well but we somehow gutted out 12 wins. There are def some issues we goda fix but this team is still full of talented young men so back away from the ledge and settle it down chief. Love you
That’s what it’s all about. I’ve got love for each and every one of the subscribers to this newsletter. Sometimes we get a little crazy, and that’s why we have this community to balance each other out. Sometimes we’re too high on players and sometimes we’re too low. At the end of the day, you Still Gotta Come Through Chicago. Let’s have a great week.
This week’s thread:
On that note, who’s the most disappointing Chicago sports star of your lifetime? Someone you thought was going to be great, but never turned out. And it made you hurt much more than it should have. Tell me why:
Don’t be afraid—comment, comment, comment.
Bears:
It’s game night, folks! With everything going on with the Cubs, I’m not sure I was emotionally prepared for a Bears game yesterday. I hope you all washed away your hangovers with some ‘za and cold water and refocused yourself for tonight. I think the confidence going into this game is the scariest thing I’ve witnessed from the 4th phase since people were throwing MVP bets on Mitch Trubisky.
The Bears are a 5.5 point favorite, a number I think is way too high. Case Keenum is a respectable starter and the Redskins put more points on the board in Philly Week 1 than the Bears have all season. I’d advise against taking that number. If you want to bet on the Bears, throw a little bit extra on the money line. ESPN’s match up predictor only gives the Bears a 57 percent chance of winning the game—that 5.5 is inflated.
The road crowd will be significantly less raucous than in Denver, tickets are still available and are going for $18. There won’t be any altitude issues to worry about, but it is going to be 86 degrees at kickoff. Everyone with a set of eyeballs noticed the Bears defense tire at the end of last week’s game. It’s important the Bears build a lead early on so they’re not stumbling towards the finish like they were in Denver.
Eddy Pineiro hurt his goddamn knee weightlifting on Friday and is now questionable. You can’t make this stuff up. The minute we think our kicking issues are past us, something like this surfaces. I think Pineiro will go Monday, because if he doesn’t, the only other option the Bears have is Pat O’Donnell (what did I call him last week, Patty Pancakes?), the punter. If there isn’t a reliable kicking option available, that’s another reason to believe this game will be closer than Chicagoans think.
Bilal Nichols broke his hand and is out. He’ll be back sooner than later though, I assume, with a club on his hand. Nichols has been an underrated interior lineman on the Bears defense. Eddie Jackson was also hurt in Friday’s practice and is questionable with a knee injury. That is a serious, serious issue. If Jackson isn’t 100 percent, the Bears defense can’t be expected to operate at as high of a level as it has. I also think he’ll play, but if he’s not himself, that’s a real opportunity for the Redskins offense to exploit our secondary. Prince Amukamara is already somewhat of a liability at corner, particularly in Chuck Pagano’s scheme, which often leaves its corners out to try in man-on-man situations. Kyle Long did not practice on Saturday with a hip injury. Long, who has been one of the only consistent lineman for the Bears thus far in 2019, will also seriously be missed if he can’t suit up. I think he will.
Having said all of that, the Bears could blow the Redskins out. A few touchdowns from Trubisky and a comfortable, two-score win would be ideal. But I don’t think Washington is as bad as they’re made out to be. They’ve lost to two of the better teams in the NFC, Dallas and Philly, and hung in there with both of them.
It’s a must-win for the Redskins if they wish to keep whatever is left of their hope for the season alive. I also think it’s a must-win for the Bears. The NFC North looks like the real deal. The Packers are undefeated, already having beat us in Chicago. The Lions are 2-0-1, and probably should have won in Arizona Week 1. They just went into Philly and controlled that game from start to finish. We know how much talent the Vikings have. They dominated the Raiders yesterday and only have one loss from Week 2 in Green Bay. The Bears can’t lose games to inferior teams this year and expect to make the playoffs. We’ve discussed getting to the Bye Week at 4-1, which means that tonight’s game, next week at home against Minnesota, and in London against the Raiders are all highly important contests. If they falter in one of those games, attempting to bounce back in the second half of the schedule, which features division winners and road games against NFC north opponents, will be a tall order.
The run game will be important in this one. The Redskins leading rushers have gone for 18 yards and 25 yards in Week 1 and 2, respectively. The Eagles dismantled the Redskins through the air, but the Cowboys had more success on the ground, with Ezekiel Elliot rushing for over 100 yards and Dak Prescott going for 69 more. Given Trubisky’s struggles, a sufficient ground attack against a vulnerable Redskins defense would be a significant crutch to guide him through hopefully his first good game. He should also look to use his legs, which are his best asset right now, as Prescott did last week.
If Trubisky can’t get things going against the Redskins, it’s safe to say he’s not ever going to get it going. I do think that Mitch is a prisoner of the expectations bestowed upon him. If he can get some confidence going early, and Nagy’s play calling allows him to spread his wings a bit, this is a chance for him to begin a new chapter in this season. The more confidence he has, the better he’ll be, even if better isn’t all that good. If Jackson, Long, and Trey Burton (also questionable) aren’t 100 percent, he’ll need to do much more than he did last week to win the game. Because if the defense isn’t as good as they’ve been and the O-Line is worse than it’s been (not good), above average quarterback play starts becoming a must.
Let’s go win a football game.
Cubs:
This reads better if you play the violins from the Titanic during it:
Play it here. Seriously.
It’s Thursday night. 11:19 P.M.
As my good friend Bobby said, “The Cubs suck.” But it’s worse than that, they don’t just suck. They have this sadistic nature of being good enough to keep us around and not good enough to satisfy any of our sports fandom desires.
Another undisclosed subscriber texted me, “I think I’m about to have angry tears.” And who can blame him/her? That’s right, we’ve got a diverse demographic of subscribers here. But no gender has a copyright on crying and there’s no crying in baseball, unless Kyle Schwarber is the tying run and is up 3-0 on the count and swings and misses at two consecutive pitches, one a borderline ball and another blatant ball.
But isn’t that just the Cubs? This dwindling team is filled with unwarranted confidence, even further damned by a manager who can’t help himself. Schwarber shouldn’t have had a chance to swing at 3-0. I don’t care how many home runs the guy has. This isn’t Hollywood, it’s a vital game in a pennant race. Just get on base. Of course, the Cubs go on to tie the game anyway, and I don’t think it’s outlandish to say they would’ve won if Schwarber gets on base. No butterfly effect keeps them from tying that game. And no I don’t give Joe credit for batting Heyward, who drove in the last run with a ground ball to second base (surprise, surprise). The guy has a .565 OPS against left-handed pitchers this year, over 50 percent below league average. And Andrew Miller, who was pitching at the time, is a very lefty-ish lefty. I don’t care if that doesn’t make sense, either.
But as Hawk Harrelson would say, “Don’t stop now boys.” Then we bring Craig Kimbrel in. The guy has been on the DL for two weeks and you put him in in the 10th inning of a must-win game? Oh, he’s also got a 12 ERA and 2 WHIP in non-save situations this year. But even aside from those two facts, he’s just not been a good pitcher in 2019. No way around it. You can’t put a guy who hasn’t been good all year in that sort of situation. And of course it was Carpenter that got to him. My god, I hate that guy.
As multiple subscribers remarked after the fact, Kimbrel looks so dumb doing his little arm thing after he gives up a 500-foot homer. It looks so pathetic at that point that he should just go into a regular wind up. Almost $20 million being paid to Brandon Morrow and Craig Kimbrel this year and neither of them have done a single thing to help the Cubs win.
And then I have to see Ian Happ take his hand off the bat a year too early and pop out. Bote strikes out. And then just about the only Cub I can stomach right now, Castellanos, hits a ball that would’ve been out in any other part of the field. They had to just rope us in one more time before sending us all off to bed. Sweet dreams, assholes!
By the time this newsletter is published the Cubs will be finished. Or they will somehow have revived themselves (Narrator: They would not), subjecting us to their schadenfreude again.
It’s Friday. 5:53 p.m.
In the 9th inning of a season-defining game, Derek Holland started on the mound. Jonathon Lucroy, the catcher, was at first base (a ball would later sail over his head on an attempted pick off). Then Pedro Strop came in (5.17 ERA).
But alas, murderer’s row was sure to save us in the bottom of the ninth. Jason Heyward-Nico Hoerner (no blame assigned to him)-TONY KEMP-Ben Zobrist. When you pull people at will, pitchers and position players, as Maddon does, that’s who you end up with in the 9th inning of a baseball game you need to win.
Drive home safely, Cubs fans!
Saturday. 5:46 p.m.
hahahhahhaha. At a bar (not to brag). That was so embarrassing. Two cardinal fans next to me obnoxiously yelling. Not even fazed by it. When Kimbrel went in that game did any of us think it wouldn’t end like this?
Text thread between my friend and I during that moment:
Sunday. 9:48 p.m.
I’m proud of two things: Myself, for not watching one second of the Cubs game today. They’ve lost their last five games by one run (first time that has happened since 1915—STATS inc.) and subjecting myself to that kind of horror when there is perfectly good football on would be self sabotage. I’m also proud of Yu Darvish, who struck out 12 for his third start in a row, and showed us all what he’s made of this year.
Yeah, I’m a fan of that guy.
If I told you before the season that Yu Darvish would have a great year, how would you have thought the season would’ve gone? Spectacularly, right?
Also, is it going to be awkward when Joe Maddon is not re-signed after this year (rightfully so) and his tomato sauces are in grocery stores around the Chicagoland area and his recently launched restaurant is placed right outside of Wrigley Field? Let me tell you something, they better have the staff to do a clean up on Aisle 4 once my Dad sees some Maddon Sauce in Jewel Osco on a Saturday morning.
What a colossal embarrassment. The league’s highest payroll rolls over and dies against an inferior team on paper and their greatest rival. I remember thinking in 2015 that the Cubs were going to dominate the Cardinals for a decade. It didn’t even last half of it. And I guess this is where you say, ‘Hey, that’s baseball’.
But that is baseball, and despite the initial anger we all felt after these games, the next emotion in line is just sadness and/or depression. The amount of emotional energy we’ve spent on this team since late March is not quantifiable, but all lost. There’s no return for our collective investment in this team. It was all for nothing. I still feel the same sadness when the Cubs are done for the year that I did when I was a kid. Maybe I should grow up, or maybe the Cubs should get their shit together. It’ll be a long time before we can be excited about the sport of baseball again. That just sucks.
It was a fitting end to the 2019 season, though. If you get swept at home to the team leading you in the division with a chance to win the NL Central pennant, you don’t deserve to last until October.
And lastly, please don’t let him go:
Next week, I’m going to do a long write up on the Cubs offseason, on what they should and shouldn’t do. I want you guys to be a part of it.
Send me an email at andrewdonlan0@gmail.com.
Sox:
Tim Anderson is gonna do it! He leads the batting average race now, hitting .335 with seven games remaining. Ketel Marte and Christian Yelich are tied for second at .329, but Yelich is, of course, out for the season. Barring a major cool down from the level he’s produced at the last few weeks, he’s going to take this thing home.
Eloy Jimenez’s batting average is up over .270, which is particularly impressive given that he was in the .230s in late August. His OPS is now 15 percent better than league average. 30+ homers and 75+ RBIs for a rookie is no joke. His WAR is up to 1.3 from -0.1 just a few weeks ago.
Yoan Moncada’s WAR has surpassed four, his average is .315, his OPS 42 percent better than league average. Yes, those all eclipse Kris Bryant’s 2019 numbers. Shot out ChiSoxFanMike.
This has been a good week for the White Sox players in development, and a better week for the fans that care more about the Cubs failing than they do the Sox success. I know there’s not many of those guys in the SCGTC subscriber list. But it’s always a good reminder that you probably shouldn’t talk shit about a team that may miss the playoffs for the first time in five years if you haven’t been since before Barack Obama took office.
Bulls:
As each day goes by, I get more confident about the 2019 Bulls. That’s a worrisome trend. Full season preview coming in the next few weeks. They open against the Hornets on October 23rd.
Blackhawks:
I’m also genuinely excited for this Hawks season because of how unpredictable it is. They could be good, they could be bad. We’ll see. But I’m leaning toward the former. They’re 2-2 thus far in the preseason, and their first game is only a couple of weeks away, on October 4th at the Flyers.
Historical perspective:
In 2015, on this date, the Cubs were on their way to eclipsing 90 wins. They’d secure a wild card spot, win in Pittsburgh, and then trounce the Cardinals in the NLDS. They hadn’t won anything yet, but it felt like Schwarber, Rizzo, Bryant, Baez, Russell (yikes) would last forever. Just four years later, and nothing seems certain anymore. Joe Maddon, who came here with the hope of winning the world series (and did), has a million fans willing to drive him to the airport. Schwarber, even after having a good year, hasn’t experienced the ascent most hoped for. Some people want to trade Kris Bryant, and it oddly doesn’t sound like that crazy of an idea. Theo is no longer venerated, at least as he once was.
I apologize for the somber historical section, but it’s a good reminder: Nothing is promised in this crazy world of sports. This is why you make trades to win a World Series when you can. Because just three years later, you look back and you can’t even remember what it felt like to be on top of the baseball world. The Cubs have good young players still in their prime. They won’t be able to pay all of them. I don’t think we’ve heard from this group for the last time, but it sure feels like the end of an era anyway.
Betting Pick:
I want to be the first to say how embarrassed I am by last week’s pick. I hope none of you took the Jets +6.5. Having said that, I didn’t know Trevor Siemian was going to have his leg snapped in half. Moving on. Record 12-6. Let’s get back on track:
Same principle, new bet. Cowboys favored by 3 points in New Orleans on Sunday night. That place is going to be rocking and rolling. A home team getting points, what’s better than that?
PICK: SAINTS +3
STILL GOTTA COME THROUGH CHICAGO.
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