Pollyanna’s Polished Turds: A Few Gems From the Cubs’ Last Three Losses
It’s really funny how quickly Cubs fans have grown despondent after a streak that saw the North Siders win 15 of 16 games. While it’s certainly not fun to drop 3 straight, particularly when you give up 28 runs in those losses, it seems a few folks are getting a bit dramatic. But rather than wade through a mire of morosity, I want to look at some of the things that have gone right for the Cubs since their hot run cooled.
If, however, you’d prefer to wallow in your ennui and make asinine comments about the failures of the hitting coach, be my guest. Just understand that you’re not going to find a kindred soul here. No, I am about to put on the bad-news blinders and lay out some of the high points of the last few contests.
Khal Schwarber Mounts the World
This kid just keeps on hitting. Crushing, really. His home run on Tuesday night put the Cubs right back in the game and gave further proof that he’s as unflappable as they come.
Dexter Fowler stays hot
With 6 hits, including a homer, Dexter Fowler continues to play like the guy the Cubs were hoping for when they traded Luis “King of the Bat Flips” Valbuena to Houston. That .446 OBP since the All-Star break is looking pretty nice and is exactly what you need out of a leadoff man.
1945 WWII tribute
I love stuff like this.
Manny Ramirez is honored to meet WWII veteran pilot Jerry Yellin during our 1945 throwback night with @WWIImuseum. pic.twitter.com/bV4KPQhJsY
— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) August 19, 2015
The starters can’t get worse
Okay, so this is sort of a backhanded good thing, but after Dan Haren, Jason Hammel, and Jon Lester gave up 3 home runs apiece in their respective outings it’s reasonable to think they’ll do better next time. Actually, the combined 15 runs allowed over a combined 9 2/3 innings was worse than the homers.
Russell climbing the ladder
I really love watching this kid play defense.
Kris Bryant with a 4-hit night
He may have struck out 5 times in the previous two games, but Bryant brought the bat with him on Wednesday. And this time, it was the one without a giant hole in the center. Here’s to hoping a 4-4 night with a walk will jump-start a nice little tear here.
Chris Coghlan’s slide
Cogs hit a triple in Wednesday’s loss, but the best part had to be the slide. I was worried that he’d get stuck in the dirt since he started way too early and just turn it into a beautifully tragic TOOTBLAN.
WAR Bear drops another bomb
Yes, it’s another play on Schwarber’s name, this one exemplifying both his cuddly appearance and his proclivity for the destruction of horsehide spheroids. The shot he launched into the juniper bushes on Wednesday was his second in as many nights and his 10th on the year to go with 33 runs scored and 31 RBI.
Were it not for the bed-soiling antics of the pitching staff, this kid would be winning games all by himself. Only 36 games in and he’s already beginning to carve a swath of destruction to rival General Sherman’s. I’ve heard reports that at least three low-T clinics have gone out of business as a direct result of his exploits.
See, there were things to celebrate in spite of the losses. Life’s too short to complain about aberrant games and how John Mallee should be fired for not turning Starlin Castro back into a .300 hitter. This team’s too good to keep having games like this, so I’m going to keep polishing turds and wait for better results on the diamond.