In this fourth installment of those players I see that have been touched by the magic of the Cubs this year, I will take a look at the minor leaguers. More specifically I am referring to Micah Hoffpauir and Jeff Samardzija, who have been called up, jumped in and helped the Cubs continue to win.
Now I realize Micah Hoffpauir isn't currently with the big club but he has been up a couple times this year and was impressive when he was. I think his visits to the big club have truly inspired him because he has been outstanding for Iowa this year.
Now he hasn't put in a lot of time for the Cubs but he was solid when he was there instead of looking overmatched like some minor leaguers do. On the year he is batting .378 (14-for-37) and has scored six runs. He has as many strikeouts as hits but that just shows he needs time to adjust to big league pitching. I am not saying that Hoffpauir is the MVP of the Chicago Cubs but he has impressed me when he has been called upon. His effort in Chicago has carried over to Iowa as well and he could very well be considered the MVP of that team.
We should definitely see Hoffpauir in Chicago once Iowa is done with the playoffs, if not sooner, and he could really provide some relief for a sore Derrek Lee at first. Now if you aren't as impressed with Hoffpauir as I am consider his stats at Iowa. In 66 games, he is hitting .368 with 23 home runs and 92 RBI's. That is a very impressive stat line and the 92 RBI's in 66 games is downright insane. If you adjust his stats to a 162 game season, which I love to do, it gives him 56 home runs and 225 RBI's. Yes, I realize it doesn't work like that but it does show the talent this kid brings to the table. That is well over an RBI per game and even over 66 games is a job well done.
We have a guy coming up that hit the ball well but we also have a guy that was called up to pitch and he has done what he was asked to do. It wasn't long ago that Jeff Samardzija was catching footballs for Notre Dame but he is now a Cub and is excelling the role he is currently in. With the guys we have in the bullpen I feel pretty confident in being able to hold most leads we give to them.
Jeff Samardzija was pitching well at Iowa when he got the call so it wasn't a surprise when it happened. Some had thought he might get a spot start but that didn't happen. He has been solid out of the pen. He made his first appearance on July 25th and gave up one earned run over 2.0 innings pitched. Four days later he gave up another earned run against Milwaukee in his third appearance but hasn't surrendered a run since that game.
Samardzija's ERA sits at a very low 1.04 with a WHIP of 0.92. He has appeared in 14 games and pitched 17 1/3 innings. striking out 18 batters while only walking five. The main go to guys have been Carlos Marmol and Kerry Wood with Bobby Howry also getting the ball in tight spots. Samardzija has been a replacement for Michael Wuertz and even though he is young I still feel better when he comes into a game than when Wuertz made the walk to the mound.
Samardzija can throw the heat and his off speed pitches will get better with experience. He is a bullpen guy now but you can see where this is just a step in getting him in the rotation one day.
Winning the division and making the playoffs isn't an easy accomplishment but it happens because your team is able to overcome injuries and continue winning. Micah Hoffpauir and Jeff Samardzija have been the best examples of coming up from the minors and helping out when they are needed. They have both provided some magic from the minors and I am glad we have both at our disposal. I just hope that next year they can keep both guys in Chicago. They are both making solid cases for why they should be there.
This was the 4th part of the "Magic" series with the 5th and final article coming next. I have saved the person that has been touched the most by the magic of the Cubs and I am sure most of you can already guess who that person is. Overall the whole team and year has been magical thus far. I just wanted to take this chance to recognize some of the players that have helped while possibly getting lost behind all the bigger names.
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WRIGLEY FIELD IS ABOUT TO EMBARK ON HISTORY, BEING THE FIRST TO IMPLEMENT ISTANT REPLAY. I LIKE IT FOR THESE PLAYS:
HOMERUN CALLS, FAIR OR FOUL, SAFE OR OUT ON THE BASES, CAUGHT OR TRAPPED BALLS, BATTER/CATCHER INTERFERENCE
WE MUST WIN 3 OF 4 FROM THE PHILLIES TO HAVE A 10 SERIES WIN STREAK, WHICH WILL BE TOUGH. I'M GOING TO TAKE A BEATING FOR THIS, BUT I THINK WE'LL SPLIT THE 4 GAMES. I HOPE I'M WRONG. HERE ARE THE TEAMS WITH A GREATER THAN 50 PERCENT CHANCE FOR REACHING THE POST-SEASON:
1 ANGELS 99.94360
2 CUBS 99.46249
3 RAYS 97.13588
4 RED SOX 90.73559
5 BREWERS 89.94765
6 WHITE SOX 81.15407
7 DIAMONDBACKS 67.07289
8 METS 52.59074
THIS IS BASED ON DIVISION AND WILD CARD STANDINGS,
EXPECTED WIN PERCENTAGE OF RUNS SCORED^1.82/(RUNS SCORED+RUNS ALLOWED^1.82), REGRESSION-TO-MEAN, 4 PERCENT ADVANTAGE FOR HOME-FIELD, AND 2 PERCENT DEDUCTION FOR LOSSES BY 5+ RUNS
PERCENT CHANCE OF WINNING WORLD SERIES, IF THESE WERE THE PLAYOFF TEAMS:
CHC 19.0%
TB 18.3%
LAA 17.4%
BOS 11.1%
MIL 10.4%
CHW 9.3%
ARI 7.6%
NYM 6.9%
IF CUBS HAD HOME-FIELD ADVANTAGE IN WORLD SERIES, IT WOULD BE ABOUT 21.7%
Unfortunately, baseball has become too much of a game of statistics. They take away from the beauty of the game. This old timer ignores most of them. Absorb yourselves if you like, but I say "PLAY BALL"!
Comments on Hoff: I don't see how we can possibly keep him in the minors next year. My guess is that he becomes a part-timer in Right and at 1st but plays mostly from the bench, kinda like Cedeno. I don't see us moving Lee until at least another year, maybe two and I'd hate to see Hoff traded.
Comments on the Shark: It looks like it would be rather tough for him to become a starter anytime soon. Our current 5 is pretty solid and then there's Marshall and even Hill waiting in the wings ahead of Shark. He will probably be the long arm in the bullpen next year and then possibly a starter after that.
Big "statement" game tonight. Great to have Dempster leading off the series...and hope we can get to Hamels early.
And "thank you Cards" for last nights win!
Cary, you are right this will be a big game tonight. Playing a playoff contendar and a chance to gain a 1/2 game.
I like the pitching match ups we have for this series, I hope we can take 3-4 this series.
RE: HOFF, his prospect-ness is debated ad naseum. I don't think he is a major league starter. I think he IS a major league PH/IB/LF/DH, like a Ross Gload or Darryl Ward type. But that's it.
Before we get excited, think of Jason Dubois; he raked in AAA at a younger age than Hoffpauir is, and he is even now only 11 months older. He is still raking in AAA. And I don't think anyone considers him a legit ML-er.
28 is too old to emerge as a legit ML Power hitter. He will be a cheaper replacement for Ward, that's it.
RE: SHARK, you can and should get excited about him however. Being on the roster next year in an important role is a no-brainer. What Hendry and Pinella will REALLY have to work on this offseason is how the rotation will shake out.
Whether we re-sign Dempster or not will be the biggest decision this offseason, as he figures to be expensive. If we re-sign him, then sliding MARSHALL in the rotation seems like a good choice.
If we DO NOT resign Dempster, we have to look at in-house options for a legit #2 starter. We have 2 possibilities: Marmol, and Samardzija. One will end up in the bullpen, but EITHER could help us as a starter. It would be tough to mess with Marmol, but he has the stuff to be a dominant starter, which is more valuable than a dominant relief pitcher.
Woody is another tough one, though I think he is more likely to re-sign with the Cubs than Dempster, because he will be cheaper.
Top teams match ups are our fate this year--and we wouldn't want it any other way. Some observations:
The only Phils advantage seems to be power with Howard, Utley and Burrell all with 30 or more HR's. Team batting averages and pitching records/ERA's favor the Cubs. May the wind blow in with some force--at least in the top half of the innings.
Hamels is their ace and can be tough against all comers. But he has lost 8 times. Lilly is likely most at risk against power teams. Moyers vs. Z in game 4 is the most contrasting and interesting to me. Finese vs. Power and the issue of either Z's health or mechanics or both. My take is that Z's emotions stem more from health/mechanics performance factors than from emotions being the cause of recent poor performances.
The Phils have a motivational advantage because they are in a must win battle with the Mets and have to win their division to make the playoffs. The Cubs will be motivated, but winning series after series and having a 6 game lead in the division can dull a top team's sharp edge for a couple of games.
Unless the wind blows out with gusto and the baseball gods intervene for the Phillies in the game of inches, I see the Cubs doing no worse than a split in the 4 games with the Phillies. If D beats their ace tonight, we should win the series.
Nice summary Jim K, though Saturday could be a tough one. We have Lilly on the mound, but Brett Myers has been lights out since his trip to the minors; 4-1 with 1.66 ERA.
Overall, I would say tommorow's matchup is the only clear Cub favorite, with Rich Harden facing Joe Blanton.
Hoffpauer will replace Ward next year. Then things will go from there. Dubois will probly get a chance to be on the bench next year.
Shark will stay in the bullpen. Maybe in two years.
Joet,
Interesting numbers. They don't resemble anything like Bill James' Runs Created or Pythagorean formulas. Where did you get this formula? And is "^1.82" a linear weight?
Gene,
As much as I see people don't appreciate stats, I also believe that:
"Stats don't lie. People who misuse the stat lie."
We can still root the Cubs whole-hearted while playing with stats~
;-)