Earlier this week, I joined up with Andrew Johnson and Will Brinson on the inaugural BaseCast to discuss the Cubs' unbelievably disappointing start to the 2009 season. To conclude the segment, I was asked if the Cubs can get things straightened out and win the division. I said that was an easy answer because of the word choice. Of course they can. Had the question been "will they?" I would have said no.
Just two days later, there are plenty of reasons on the horizon to believe they can head into the All-Star break not only in thick of things in the NL Central, but atop it. Wouldn't that be a weird sight -- seeing the Cubs in first place after such a disastrous first half.
It's a baseball podcast. The math is easy right? BaseCast. Let's rock.
Hey there! It's the initial MLB FanHouse BaseCast. You know you're excited, and frankly, you should be, because it's pretty freaking awesome. In this episode, host tandem Will Brinson and Andrew Johnson (Prez) welcome Matt Snyder and Ed Price into the proverbial fray.
We discuss -- with Snyder -- the Cubs' lack of success, the insane notion of cutting Carlos Zambrano and if a division title is still in the works. Then Ed joins us from Yankee Stadium where we (ironically?) talk about the banged up Mets, the NL East race and whether the Braves plan on making a deadline deal or not.
The White Sox and Cubs finished up their three-game series at U.S. Cellular Field on Sunday with a 6-0 White Sox victory that came complete with another Carlos Zambrano meltdown to put the finishing touches on a very ugly weekend for the Cubs. Of course, never wanting to actually talk about what the real problems are with the team, when talking about the team's lackluster play as of late manager ,Lou Piniella started talking about how the Cubs are helping the economy.
He talked of the team playing in front of three sellout crowds during the week in Detroit and how they helped fill all the seats on the South Side of Chicago over the weekend. Well, you can't expect Lou to make a subtle dig at the White Sox attendance numbers without Ozzie Guillen getting in a response, can you?
Starting Five is our wrapup of the previous day's baseball action, with a quick nod to what is ahead.
You Oughta Know ... That Sunday was a good day to steal home in the major leagues. With an assist from Carlos Zambrano, who airmailed a pitch to the backstop as Dewayne Wise attempted to suicide squeeze, Chris Getz was credited with a steal of home in the White Sox's 6-0 victory over the crosstown rival Cubs. Zambrano followed by plunking Wise, pushing the oft-heated interleague rivalry close to fisticuffs.
"I got a good jump and pulled it off," Matthews said. "The key was getting a big lead. They're definitely not expecting it with two strikes. If there was a right-handed hitter up there, I wouldn't have even tried."
I feel like I'm being a bit hard on these two-start pitchers for week 12, but I feel that 64% of them are pretty risky to be in your lineups. You'll see what I am talking about after the jump. There are a total of 33 guys throwing twice between Monday, June 22nd and Sunday, June 28th.
On the flip side, the Cubs have two very good options with Carlos Zambrano and Ryan Demptser going twice this week. That could mean good things for the Cubs this week.
Finally, the world may be coming to an end this week as both Livian Hernandez and Brad Penny are solid starts for the week. Seriously?
Lineups for the week are due to be set at 7:10 PM ET. So relax and make some good decisions.
Greinke took the loss Wednesday as Kansas City fell 12-5 to Arizona, allowing six runs (four earned) on eight hits in 6 2/3 innings.
And since Greinke went 8-1 in his first 10 starts he has gone winless in four straight starts. Over his past 26 innings, he has given up 31 hits and 20 runs (five of them unearned).
Each year the Chicago Cubs and Chicago White Sox play six times. Six. Out of 162 total games. Those games aren't any more relevant than six games between the Twins and Cubs or Brewers and White Sox. Of course, there are millions of misguided fans who believe there's a rivalry between the two teams, a notion that is only perpetuated when our President talks about how the White Sox play "real baseball." FanHouse's resident Cubs fan (Matt Snyder) and resident White Sox fan (Tom Fornelli) got together to discuss the aura surrounding what shouldn't be a rivalry.
With only two games on the schedule for Monday, the two-start pitchers for week 11 of the fantasy baseball season aren't plentiful.
The hottest pitcher on the planet goes twice for the Tigers this week. Justin Verlander gets tested as he's going to have to face some big-time sluggers in Albert Pujols on Tuesday and Prince Fiedler and Ryan Braun on Sunday. However, there's no way you can sit Verlander and his 4-and-0 record over the last month.
In all, there are 31 pitchers throwing twice. The first game on Monday doesn't start until 7:05 PM ET. So, put some extra thought into those lineups before they lock tomorrow night.
Must Start Felix Hernandez, Mariners - Tuesday at SD (K. Correia) and Sunday vs ARZ (D. Davis) Justin Verlander, Tigers - Tuesday at STL (A. Wainwright) and Sunday vs MLW (Y. Gallardo) Kevin Millwood, Rangers - Tuesday vs HOU (W. Rodriguez) and Sunday at SF (B. Zito) Carlos Zambrano, Cubs - Tuesday vs CWS (J. Danks) and Sunday vs CLE (C. Pavano) Gil Meche, Royals - Tuesday vs ARZ (D. Davis) and Sunday vs STL (A. Wainwright) CC Sabathia, Yankees - Tuesday vs WAS (S. Martis) and Sunday at FLA (C. Volstad) Yovani Gallardo, Brewers - Tuesday at CLE (J. Sowers) and Sunday at DET (J. Verlander)
Cubs pitcher/destroyer of Gatorade machines Carlos Zambrano finally returned to the mound on Friday night after sitting out six games for his most recent temper tantrum, and in true Zambrano fashion, he shut down the Cincinnati Reds in a 2-1 Cubs victory. He also managed to do all of this without choking anybody or destroying inanimate objects, so it's clearly a step forward for him.
Still, I wouldn't be surprised if Zambrano blows up again in the near future because it seems that he really enjoyed having six days off this week. Apparently not having to play baseball made him think about how nice it is to not have to do anything because after the game he said he plans to retire after his current contract expires.
Starting Five is our wrapup of the previous day's baseball action, with a quick nod to what is ahead.
You Oughta Know ... That journeyman Marco Scutaro is quietly making a bid for the All-Star Game. The Blue Jays shortstop had three more hits in a 9-3 victory over the Royals on Friday. It was Scutaro's eighth multi-hit game in his last 11 games, during which he's hitting .417.
For the season, Scutaro is hitting .302 with a league-leading 45 runs. Discounting Tampa Bay's Jason Bartlett, who is injured, Scutaro is second only to Derek Jeter among AL shortstops in average, homers (five) and RBI (26). Scutaro, 33, is on pace for career highs in all three categories.
He has no chance of outpolling Jeter in fan balloting for the starting spot, so he ought to be campaigning with his fellow players. Players vote for most of the backups, with a few final spots on the teams filled out by the managers, and fans voting for the last spot.
Earlier this week, I joined up with Andrew Johnson and Will Brinson on the inaugural BaseCast to discuss the Cubs' unbelievably disappointing start to the 2009 season. To conclude the segment, I was asked if the Cubs can get things straightened out and win the division. I said that was an easy answer because of the word choice. Of course they can. Had the question been "will they?" I would have said no. 
The White Sox and Cubs finished up their three-game series at U.S. Cellular Field on Sunday with a 6-0 White Sox victory that came complete with another 
Starting Five
I feel like I'm being a bit hard on these two-start pitchers for week 12, but I feel that 64% of them are pretty risky to be in your lineups. You'll see what I am talking about after the jump. There are a total of 33 guys throwing twice between Monday, June 22nd and Sunday, June 28th.
Starting Five
With only two games on the schedule for Monday, the two-start pitchers for week 11 of the fantasy baseball season aren't plentiful.
Cubs pitcher/destroyer of Gatorade machines 
Starting Five
