Before you get confused by the headline, that's Jon Lieber of the Cubs, whom our intrepid YouTube hero spotted roaming the concourse of Wrigley Field before a recent Cubs game. I mean, what are the odds? A actual big league player mingling with the common fan? It happens more than you think, apparently.
Take the case of Dan Giese, the 31-year-old rookie just called up by the Yankees. He arrived at Yankee Stadium five and a half hours before last night's game, so what did he do? Tyler Kepner of the New York Timestells us:
Giese wanted to see the sights, and he noticed a group taking a tour of the ballpark. He tagged along a few feet behind, careful not to step out of line.
"I didn't want to get yelled at," he said. Giese could have amazed the group by revealing himself as an actual Yankees pitcher, but the fans might not have believed him.
After all, unless you were down in Florida watching spring training or in Scranton watching the Triple-A Red Barons, chances are you haven't seen Giese pitch this year. After pitching 3 2/3 innings under the bright lights last night, he'll probably be recognized the next time he takes the tour, but at least no one will yell at him.
It's been a pretty great spring for pranks this season, with my personal favorite being the Phillies somehow convincing Kyle Kendrick he'd actually been traded to Japan. This week it was the Chicago Cubs getting in on the act, as they played a cruel trick on their strength coach, Tim Buss.
When the Cubs began practice in the morning, Aramis Ramirezpointed to a wrecked '95 Nissan Sentra near the Cubs bullpen and asked: "Hey 'Bussy,' what's your car doing on the ramp?"
Buss looked over at the wreck and replied: "That's not my car."
But then Buss did a double take.
"Dude," he said to Ramirez. "That's my car!"
Buss soon discovered his car was demolished beyond recognition, but this was no ordinary crime. The car windows all had been smashed in, the front, back and sides all were severely dented and the smoking guns-a couple of baseball bats and balls-were strategically placed in the windshield.
Jon Lieber, Kerry Wood, and Ryan Dempster then continued playing dumb even as Buss figured out that it was the pitchers who had destroyed his car. What upset Buss the most about it? It wasn't even his car. It was his wife's. So not only was he out a car, but he wasn't going to be getting any love at home either.
The Cubs then finished their workout and left Buss twisting in the wind before Lieber told him to "quit pouting" and follow him to the weight room. Once they got there, Buss saw the new $25,000 Nissan Xterra the players had bought for him.
Then as Buss thanked them and admired his new car, they destroyed that one too. Okay, no they didn't, but they should have. That would have been hilarious.
One of the main position battles for the Chicago Cubs this spring is for the last two spots of the starting rotation. While it's safe to say that Carlos Zambrano, Ted Lilly, and Rich Hill will more than likely claim three of the five spots, there are four other pitchers fighting for the final two: Jason Marquis, Ryan Dempster, Sean Gallagher, and Jon Lieber.
Well, Jason Marquis was asked on Saturday what he thought about the possibility of having to pitch out of the bullpen, to which Marquis replied, "So as much as I want to be here in Chicago-I love it, I love the fans, I love the stadium-I also have a family to worry about. I think I can take my services elsewhere if that's the case and I can help another team, in that capacity as a starter. So, my value doesn't lie in the bullpen in my mind."
"Well, if that's the case, he can go somewhere else," Piniella said. "Win a spot in the rotation, you don't have to worry about it. ... I've got seven starters here for five spots, you know? It's a little bit too early to start talking about what he wants to do or not do."
"You know, that galls me about Marquis, it really does. I'm not pleased with that comment. We've had a good camp over here, everybody's getting an opportunity. Go out and win a spot in the rotation."
"Sure it's a surprise. We've got seven guys here that are competing for spots in the rotation and everyone is going to be given an equal chance. After the first start of spring training, saying if I'm not going to make the rotation I'd like to go somewhere else?
"He can go somewhere else right now if he wants. How's that?"
The Chicago Cubs added some veteran depth to their pitching staff on Wednesday afternoon, signing veteran Jon Lieber to a contract.
Terms of the deal weren't disclosed, but Lieber is coming off a season in which he made only 14 starts, and went 3-6 with a 4.73 ERA for the Philadelphia Phillies. He also missed the entire second half of the season after rupturing a tendon in his right foot.
This will be Lieber's second time around with the Cubs as he spent 1999 through 2002 going 48-34 for the north siders. Of course, he was only 32 when he left, and he'll be turning 38 this April, so I'm not sure he'll be as effective. What he does do for the Cubs, though, is give them options.
He'll be competing with Ryan Dempster, Sean Marshall, and Sean Gallagher for the fifth spot in the Cubs starting rotation, but more importantly, he provides flexibility. The Cubs have been trying to get Brian Roberts from the Orioles for a while now, and now that they've added Lieber to their staff, they may feel more comfortable giving up some of the young pitching the Orioles want in return if they're to complete the deal.
Good thing the Phillies stocked up on all those starting pitchers. It now looks like, after Brett Myers was moved to the bullpen and subsequently got hurt and Freddy Garcia also got hurt and is out for a while, that Jon Lieber is probably going to be out for the season with a ruptured tendon in his foot.
"It's going to be a while, no matter how you look at it," said Lieber, who was placed on the 15-day disabled list. "I have no clue. I knew it was a little bit more than a tweak, but I didn't think it would be this bad."
No one thought that on June 20, when Lieber stood in the bowels of Jacobs Field and spoke of not missing a start. He said he felt a pop when, after giving up a single to Casey Blake, he moved to back up home plate, but hoped for the best.
As you know, when you hope for the best, you also have to prepare for the worst. Add this to the injuries to Francisco Rosario (15 day DL with a right shoulder injury), Antonio Alfonseca (battling ankle soreness) and Tom Gordon, you have a team that has lost a lot of pitching, and will have to hold it together with duct tape and bubble gum just to stay in the thick of it in the N.L. East.
On Deck is The Fanhouse's look at the day's most intriguing matchups
Oakland Athletics (28-27) vs. Boston Red Sox (37-18)-10:05PM Est.
You know, there is somebody on the Athletics who's not injured, and his name is Dan Haren. I hope by saying that I haven't jinxed him, his arm will probably fall off tonight and I'll feel terrible. If it does, it'll be a shame, because he's been one of the best pitchers in baseball this season. He's 6-2 with a 1.64 ERA this season, and those two losses are misleading. Haren started this season 0-2 even though he only gave up one earned run in his first two starts. It won't be easy for him tonight, as he faces one of the best lineups in baseball, and he'll have to ignore the prowess of Boston's greatest porn star, Julian Tavarez.
Seattle Mariners (28-25) vs. Baltimore Orioles (27-30)-10:05PM Est.
Speaking of young arms with fantastic stuff, tonight's matchup in Seattle should be fun to watch. Felix Hernandez gets the start for the Mariners, and he'll be facing off against Erik Bedard and the Orioles. Felix hasn't been very good since coming off of the DL, going 1-2 with a 6.30 ERA in those four starts, but he gets to face an Orioles lineup that's struggling to score runs lately. Bedard is coming off of his best start this season last week against the Royals, but has trouble with the Mariners. In four career starts he's 1-3 with a 5.73 ERA. If you have Jose Lopez on any of your fantasy teams, you may wanna give him a start today. He's 5-7 with a home run in his career against Bedard.
Philadelphia Phillies (28-28) vs. San Francisco Giants (26-29)-1:05PM Est.
Barry Zito's 5-5 record and 4.21 ERA so far this season haven't really been worth the $126 million he's being paid, but if he can keep throwing like he did in his last start, it will be. Zito went seven innings against the Mets in his last start, striking out seven and not giving up a run. Jon Lieber starts for the Phillies.
On Deck is The Fanhouse's look at the day's most intriguing baseball matchups Colorado Rockies (24-27) vs. St. Louis Cardinals (20-28)-9:05PM Est.
There is no team in Major League Baseball hotter than the Colorado Rockies right now. They've won their last six games thanks to both their hitting and pitching. They're hitting .281 while the pitching staff has maintained an ERA of 1.80 during the streak. If they can beat the Cardinals tonight, it will be the teams first 7-game win streak since 1998. It's also a reason why Dan O'Dowd finds those Todd Heltontrade rumors to be so amusing.
Minnesota Twins (25-25) vs. Chicago White Sox (24-22)-8:05PM Est.
It's not as if the Twins ever need any extra motivation when playing the White Sox, but the latest incident surrounding A.J. Pierzynski and Justin Morneau is bound to make tonight's game even more interesting. Whether or not Pierzynski stepped on Morneau's foot purposely-and I don't think he did-I wouldn't be surprised if he's "accidentally" hit by a pitch from The Boof tonight. Bonser faces off against John Danks, who's won his last three starts for the White Sox after starting the season 0-4.
Philadelphia Phillies (26-25) vs. Arizona Diamondbacks (30-23)-7:05PM Est.
The Rockies aren't the only team in the NL West playing good baseball right now. The Diamondbacks have won their last five, and look to continue their streak tonight in Philly. If the DBacks do win tonight, it will mark the third time this season they've won six games in a row, which is pretty remarkable. Micah Owings will be looking to make it happen for the Snakes as he faces off against Jon Lieber.
On Tuesday, we saw the beginnings of hate between the Phillies and the Marlins. There was Scott Olsen yelling at Chase Utley, and there was Utley and Cole Hamels telling us how many people hated Olsen.
Wednesday night, act II, saw three Marlins get hit by pitches. And after Thursday night, the hate has been kicked up another notch, thanks to Dontrelle Willis and Jon Lieber.
In the first inning of Thursday's 85-minute rain-delayed game, Marlins catcher Miguel Olivo caught Abraham Nunez with a right to the jaw on the follow through of a throw to second base. Nunez swung and missed, and his momentum took him in front of the plate and in the path of Olivo's concussion-inducing haymaker.
In the second inning, Aaron Boone got hit by a pitch for the second straight game. Three batters later, Lieber inexplicably threw a pitch behind Willis that just missed his backside. "The guy hasn't hit anybody the whole year and he didn't hit anybody the rest of the game," Willis said. "I have to defend myself...I'm not going to sit down and back down from anything."
Willis returned the favor in the fourth, throwing a pitch well behind Lieber. After the inning ended, Willis began jawing at the Phillies dugout. Said Phillies catcher Rod Barajas: "There's no need for you to walk off the field and taunt the other dugout. It's something you don't do in this game and tempers are going to flare when that happens."
Both teams spilled onto the infield between home and third base, but it appeared the situation would defuse quickly. The more talking that went on, the closer the two groups got and some shoving ensued. Willis, Olsen and Mitre were among those who had to be restrained. Nobody was ejected and game resumed without further incident.
Usually, when an incident happens such as Olsen yelling at Utley, everyone expects something to happen the next game. Almost always, that next level of aggression never happens and everyone goes home disappointed. Well this time, not only did we get two straight games with tensions, we got three. And that makes this rivalry official. Will something else happen the next time these two rivals meet? Don't bet on it ... they'll have until August 7th to cool down for their next meeting.
It was incredible; I would've called it scripted had I not known better. The FOX Saturday baseball broadcast cut away from the Angels/White Sox game (my regional game in Los Angeles) in the bottom of the second inning to show Barry Bonds' second inning at-bat. And on perfect cue, Bonds swung at the first pitch and cracked a home run to deep center off Phillies starter Jon Lieber. Bonds didn't just crush the ball -- he absolutely annihilated it to dead center. Apparently it was hit so well, you knew it was gone before the radio announcers even called it:
It's nice when you listen to the radio and hear a crack and know it is gone before you hear the crowd or Jon Miller. ... So that's probably the last pitch he'll see today.
Early in March, after Manager of the Year Joe Girardi had been fired by the Marlins, the fans and media were still seething over the report that Phillies pitcher Jon Lieber credited advice from Girardi as the turning point to Lieber's season. Naturally there is a conflict of interest between Girardi helping out an intra-divisional pitcher whom his team would face later in the season. That's why I was so surprised at what I read over the weekend. According to the Riverside Press-Enterprise, Giants outfielder Dave Roberts gave pitcher Brett Tomko advice even though Tomko pitches for the rival Dodgers.
And he has used a new delivery inspired by a discussion over dinner with Giants outfielder Dave Roberts, a fellow San Diego-area resident, about how hitters were seeing the ball all too well against him.
The immediate question that must follow is whether or not Dave Roberts crossed a line in tipping his friend, who happens to pitch for a hated rival. Think about it -- do you see the players in the final showdown at the World Series of Poker tell each other their bluffs after they've finished? Of course not -- they know they'll meet at some point in the future and want to keep that privileged information to themselves. So what do you think, is it OK for Roberts to give a tidbit to his buddy, or does that cross the line of competition? I think Giants fans already know the answer.
It's been a pretty great spring for pranks this season, with my personal favorite being the Phillies somehow convincing 
One of the main position battles for the Chicago Cubs this spring is for the last two spots of the starting rotation. While it's safe to say that 
The Chicago Cubs added some veteran depth to their pitching staff on Wednesday afternoon, 
Good thing the Phillies stocked up on all those starting pitchers. It now looks like, after 
On Tuesday, we saw the beginnings of hate between the Phillies and the Marlins. There was Scott Olsen yelling at Chase Utley, and there was Utley and Cole Hamels telling us how many people 
It was incredible; I would've called it scripted had I not known better. The FOX Saturday baseball broadcast cut away from the Angels/White Sox game (my regional game in Los Angeles) in the bottom of the second inning to show Barry Bonds' second inning at-bat. And on perfect cue, Bonds swung at the first pitch and cracked a home run to deep center off Phillies starter Jon Lieber. Bonds didn't just crush the ball -- he absolutely annihilated it to dead center. Apparently it was hit so well, you knew it was gone 
Early in March, after Manager of the Year Joe Girardi had been fired by the Marlins, the fans and media were still seething over the 
