Today’s Reflections
Following a game like Friday’s where the Cubs were errorless on the field while seven pitchers combined for an 19-hitter, it’s refreshing to start off a Cub Tracks with Matthew Boyd’s story. And with the lineup changes and trade ultimatums discussed, it will be good to change those boos into cheers once and for all.
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- Gordon Edes (Chicago Sun-Times): For Cubs pitcher Matt Boyd, relief is his true calling. “Boyd and wife Ashley treasure mission in Uganda, providing safe haven for potential child-traffic victims who previously lived with terror and despair.”
Hard to believe, but was it the boos that struck a nerve in Craig Counsell for Saturday’s lineup?
- Sahadev Sharma (The Athletic {$}): Boos rain down at Wrigley Field as Cubs continue to ‘muddle’ through the season. “Friday was an early sign that the Cubs won’t build off Thursday’s win. Things could actually get worse. The fans are getting restless and exceedingly tired of watching the same story unfold day after day.”
- Zachary Draves (Clutch Points): Craig Counsell makes Dansby Swanson decision amid his brutal season. “Cubs manager Craig Counsell said that Dansby Swanson will take a few days off amid a series of struggles this season.”
- Jake Misener (Cubbies Crib): Craig Counsell finally delivers a lineup change that’s weeks overdue at this point. “Better late than never?”
- Cole Bair (Bleacher Nation): 50 To Figure, Pitch Lab Drab, Ben Brown Day, and Other Cubs Bullets. “ ….. This Cubs team has 50 games to figure enough things out if they want to provoke their President of Baseball Operations to add at the deadline.”
A move, some trade cautiousness, and an interesting analysis of the Cubs’ lineup:
- Evan Altman (Cubs Insider): Cubs Recall Javier Assad, Option Ethan Roberts. “Javier Assad is back.”
- Sahadev Sharma (The Athletic {$}): Cubs’ roller-coaster season continues: ‘We have to play better. That’s the priority’. “When asked about the importance of a particular game or stretch within a season, Cubs manager Craig Counsell has more than once told the story of a teammate he had during his playing career who arrived each day with the same mantra.”
- Brandon Glick (Cubbies Crib): Just in case you thought Jed had plans to act any differently. Cubs’ trade deadline reality gets harsh dose of truth with Jed Hoyer’s latest comments. “Cubs’ inconsistency, lockout fears seem destined to sway trade deadline action.”
- Matt Carlson (Daily Herald): Cubs president Jed Hoyer says talented team will break out of slump, but needs to do so soon. ““That Friday game in Texas, I thought we looked like World Series quality at-bats in that game and we played great,” Hoyer said. “We haven’t really played well since then.”
- Nick Deeds (Cubbies Crib): A reunion with a former Cubs trade deadline hit is the last thing this team needs. “This is one old friend who should remain a thing of the past.”
- Yirsandy Rodríguez (North Side Baseball): Swapping Kyle Tucker for Alex Bregman Has Led to A Bizarre Cubs Lineup Paradox. “Alex Bregman’s arrival seemed to signal a more balanced lineup, but Michael Busch and Pete Crow-Armstrong have fueled a very different transformation.”
Food For Thought:
Something a little different from the Blues side: As it says below, Buddy Guy is going to name his 10 favorite guitarists.
(I can’t make this stuff up) — The Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp. celebrated the upcoming FIFA World Cup by organizing the world’s largest game of human foosball. The May 23 event at Humber Polytechnic Lakeshore Campus West in Etobicoke involved 254 participants holding onto giant horizontal poles and attempting to kick a soccer ball into an oversized goal.
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