Mistakes.....

Today's game was all about managing mistakes, bad calls, and poor execution. Lets run them down shall we???

- Mistake 1- The umpire getting caught in the moment of a great play missed the fact that the ball did not enter the web of Joey Votto's glove until Colvin's foot was firmly planted on the 1st base bag. Blown call!

- Mistake 2- Chad Tracy, what was that! Either swing the bat or do not, I will give you a break though. You have never faced Cordero and his nasty stuff.

- Mistake 3- Sweet Lou, why would you remove Carlos Silva, who's was below 100 pitches before the 7th? He was in a groove, wanted to go back out there, and most of all did not walk a batter. Must be a senior moment!

- Mistake 4- Sweet Lou, why would you leave in a young pitcher who is struggling with his command and losing his composure to face a guy that looked good at the plate all night long?

- Mistake 5- Sweet Lou, why in the hell would you pick Caridad over Marshall, who has been a stud. Or at least go with someone with a fresher arm.

- Mistake 6- Hey ump! That black lining around the white plate, if the ball crosses that it is a strike! I am so sick of every ump having a different strike zone when there is one standard in the rule book. I am also sick of these umps giving young guys a small strike zone and veterans 2 foot off the plate. It is so sad to see.

- Mistake 7- Me, actually believing the Cubs had this one in the bag! I know now that this is not the same club from two years ago where if you were down by 2 runs in the 9th you think they had a good chance. No this is a team your up by two runs and say oh, NO, how are we gonna blow this one.

What a frustrating loss for Silva and the Cubs because of mistakes made by Lou, the Ump crew, and Caridad.

Lets see what happens tomorrow!

Random Thoughts....

Here are some random thoughts that went through my head today during the game-

- I am sure glad we got Marlon Byrd.
- How much is Z making!?!?!
- When Z implodes, he implodes.
- Boy I am glad Fukudome is hitting.
- Now, why isn't Marshall a starter again?
- I think Shark should pay the Cubs back the millions they have paid him and go play football. At least there you can get hammered and still stay in the game.
- Our middle infield should looks good without Castro starting there (sarcasm)... I bet he gets called up by May 30th.
- That Russell kid looked scared to death but pitched like a ten year veteran.
- Is my Carlos Zambrano projection already a bust?
- At least I know we won't lose tomorrow.
- That Heyward kid looks like something special.
- Is Chipper Jones actually 58 years old? It seems he has had a longer career than Juilo Franco and Todd Helton combined.
- We should get some established veterans for the pen. I wonder what Glendon Rusch, Mike Remlinger, Terry Muholland, Kent Merker, Ray King, and Kevin Tapani are up to these days?
- We still have hope, I still have hope, and I still believe this is the year.
- Hey! We are tied for 3rd in the NL Central!

Until Next Time...

Fukudome to Nats????

Ben Goessling has a good read on the Nationals outfield situation and he names Fukudome as a possible target. The Nats have talked to the Cubs about Fukudome and you would think the Cubs would jump all over the idea with the emergence of Tyler Colvin in ST. Not to mention that Fukudome is owed 26.5 million on his contract, something the Cubs would love to get rid of.

Ben labels the same snags I consider this a long shot. Fukudome has a limited no-trade clause and unless the Cubs eat a big portion of the 26.5 million it is unlikely a deal will go through. I do think a strong start by Fukudome and a weak start by Willie Harris and Willie Taveras could help strike a deal.

The Cubs could also take a bad contract back to get the deal done. I would be open to a Fukudome and Baker for Cristian Guzman with the Cubs taking on Guzman's contract completely and paying 10-12 million of Fukudome's contract. I think the Nats would do that deal in a heartbeat because they really do not want a 8 million dollar man to be a super utility player. The Cubs could platoon Guzman at 2nd with Fontenot and spot start at SS for Theriot.

The only other way this can work is if the Cubs agree to pay only 10 million of the contract and get a PTBNL in a deal. That would essentially mean the Nats get Fuk for 2 years at 8 million a year for a PTBNL. They might jump on that as well.

I think there is potential a trade could happen between both clubs but there are a couple of issues that make this trade doubtful.