All-Star surprises

If you asked me before last night's All-Star game how I expected our Chicago boys--White Sox Matt Thornton and Paul Konerko, and Cubbie Marlon Byrd--to perform in the game, I would have said Thornton will get a key out against a lefty batter, Paulie will deliver a late-inning clutch hit and Byrd will not touch the field unless the game goes into extras (I also would have said the National League will lose again).

Boy, was I wrong: Thornton actually squared off against Byrd (both an SBW dream and nightmare) in a key situation and walked him after possibly the most intense at-bat of the game. Thornton then gave up what would prove to be the game-winning hit, a three-run double by left-handed hitter Brian McCann that scored the always-hustling Byrd from first base. Speaking of hustling, Byrd also saved the first N.L. All-Star win in 14 years by charging a shallow 9th inning fly ball, grabbing it on the first bounce and spinning around and throwing to second in time to force out David Ortiz, who had been on first but had to wait to see if the ball would drop.

As for Paulie, he got his late-inning at-bat, but struck out.

McCann may have been the obvious MVP of the night, but Byrd was awfully close, and it's nice to see a Cub get the spotlight for something positive during this otherwise tough season. As for Thornton and Konerko, time to forget about this game, and go about the business of keeping the Sox in first place.

Back in the swing of things

Just back from a week of vacation, and I know there's a lot to discuss, but for now just a brief post recognizing our two Chicago All-Stars, Matt Thornton of the Sox and Marlon Byrd of the Cubs.

The picks are surprising, not because the players picked weren't deserving, but because of who was left off the list: Paul Konerko and Alex Rios from the Sox and Carlos Silva and Carlos Marmol from the Cubs. Konerko still has a chance to get in on fan vote, and I wouldn't be surprised if Marmol gets on at the last minute if someone else bows out.

Meanwhile, the Cubs are right now allowing the Reds to have another epic inning, and are losing 13-3. I have some thoughts on the Cubs, Lou Piniella and Jim Hendry that I will share over the next couple days.

The Sox are down in Texas, where they had a nifty 5-3 victory Friday night, but lost last night, and remain two games out of first. We'll talk more of the Sox' second half chances this week.

Sox streak; Zammy the Clown's final performance?

So much to talk about, so little time...

--The White Sox have a 10-game winning streak, reportedly their longest since 1976 (?!), and everything is clicking. Even Gordon Beckham homered yesterday in the Sox-Cubs crosstown clash at The Cell. Excellent pitching and just enough hitting allowed the Sox to sweep the first-place Atlanta Braves earlier this week, which should convince many that the streak is for real, and not just a hot run against cold teams (though playing the Cubs twice in two weeks really helps).

--Carlos Quentin is still punishing pitchers, homering yesterday off Carlos Zambrano, but it's even better to see him driving singles up the middle and to the opposite field. It's 2008 all over again.

--Jake Peavy had his third straight strong outing, though again, two of those have been against the Cubs and the third against another the National League foe, so it remains to be seen if he can deliver against the American League.

--The Zambrano tirade is all over the place, so I won't get into the details, but his most recent meltdown into Zammy the Clown has many people demanding and believing that Zambrano's days are over as a Cub. How that will happen remains to be seen. The Cubs once again have held onto damaged goods for far too long, and (as with Milton Bradley) are forced to try to move a player who is suspended. Who will want him? (Even the Mets have to be shaking their heads...)

I'm not saying Zambrano didn't deserve to be suspended. It was the only remaining option. It's unfortunate because it leaves the already sad-sack Cubs a man down. And, it only reminds us that GM Jim Hendry should have tried to move Zambrano long ago, when teams like the Mets were still interested and their praise could have convinced Zambrano to wave his no-trade option.

I don't think Zambrano's days as a Cub are over. I think he will apologize and will be allowed to come back to the team--but only long enough for Hendry to move the once-promising (always promising, it seems) pitcher to another team, probably for a couple of iffy minor leaguers.

There are further implications to consider after this episode: Lou Piniella, I fear, has lost his team. They are not just bad, and behaving badly--they are unresponsive. With the exception of Marlon Byrd, who is a true gamer, they are a lackluster group. Zambrano's tirade yesterday apparently was aimed partly at Derrek Lee for not diving at a ball hit down the line by Juan Pierre, and while Lee's resume is impeccable and Zambrano's criticism questionable, Lee has not been the same strong fielder lately that he was earlier in the season and throughout his career. You could say the same of the entire error-prone group, of course.

The Cubs, like it or not, may be headed for a rebuilding. That project should start with Piniella's dismissal.

Some guys have all the luck

Starting his eighth straight Opening Day and tossing seven innings of three-hit ball in a 6-0 victory just wasn't enough for Mark Buehrle. He had to go and complete a totally improbable between-the-legs, football-snap defensive play, too (Find it at the White Sox website, but MLB.com and other still have it posted as well).

It's not like Buehrle is the best athlete or the best pitcher around. He just works hard and occasionally ends up in the right place at the right time under the right conditions to do something pretty wonderful. After a no-hitter, a perfect game and many other memorable moments, "The Long-Snap," as I'm hoping the play will come to be known, is just another example.

I wonder if Buehrle will be asked to sign a lot of photos of this play in the years to come, and how he'll feel about autographing a photo in which the main feature is his ass.

The news from the other side of town is that there is no such thing as good luck. The Cubs lost 16-5 to the Braves, and--well, luck didn't have much to do with it unless you count a fly ball dropped by Braves centerfielder Nate McLouth that was wrongly called an out and led to a double play. That was pure Cubbie luck, but the call certainly wasn't the difference in this wipeout of a game.

What was the difference: Bad pitching and sub-par defense on a couple key plays. Carlos Zambrano was saying all the right things this spring about being a good boy, but quickly gave up a 3-0 lead given to him off the bat of new Cub Marlon Byrd and ended up giving up eight runs in a dreadful 1.1 innings. He also had a field error, as did Derrek Lee on a rare poor throw.

No, Zambrano didn't lose his cool, at least not in as visible a manner as he has in the past, though he seemed unhinged and hurried as the six-run first inning unfolded, rather than writing it off as a bad start in a long game to come.

Believe it or not, Zambrano didn't put the game out of reach, as the Cubs line-up scored five runs (though on only five hits), the other major blow being a homerun by Aramis Ramirez--nice to see some of his power after a weak spring. But, the bullpen did put the game out of reach, with Jeff Samardzija giving up six runs and walking three in one-third of an inning, and Justin Berg giving up two runs while also walking three. Time is growing short for Samardzija to fulfill any positive promise, and Berg just made the Cubs look foolish for letting him survive the spring demotions.

With one game in the books, the Sox are looking at Opening Day like it was a good omen. the Cubs are just looking the other way.

The Byrdman cometh

This just in: The Cubs have signed Marlon Byrd, the free agent outfielder whose name has lingered almost since the end of last season as a possible replacement for Milton Bradley. Byrd has talent, a decent hitter and good fielder (only 3 errors in 142 games last year), one of those guys who has always been kind of clutch (.285 BA w/RISP lifetime), which should make him popular at Wrigley. Plus, he's coming off the best season of his career in Texas, which came under the hitting coach, Rudy Jaramillo, whom the Cubs signed weeks ago.

What's not to like? Well, Byrd is 32, and his batting average has gone down the last three seasons as his playing time increased in Texas (His career highs last year were for homers--20--and RBIs--89--while he hit .283, south of the .307 he recorded in 2007.) He's also a righty, which I never cared about much before last winter, when the Cubs used righthandedness as an excuse for getting rid of Mark DeRosa. Now, the Cubs have taught me to care, but they bring in a righty to replace a switch-hitter (Bradley). The Cubs supposedly were looking at lefties Scott Podsednik and Rick Ankiel, so what happened there? They lost out on Curtis Granderson, too, but it would have been nice to see the Cubs take a look at other lefty free agent outfielders like Johnny Damon or Randy Winn.

Still, if the Cubs get .275, 17 HRs, and 80 RBIs out of Byrd, and if he doesn't once fling a live ball into the bleachers with 2 outs, he'll be an offensive upgrade over Bradley (He could actually play centerfield while Kosuke Fukudome moves back to rightfield). Though, to clarify, those numbers would make him an upgrade over the Bradley of 2009. If you look at career stats, it looks an awful lot like a downgrade. At least, he's got a better glove.

Of course, there are intangibles: Maybe Byrd is a "good clubhouse guy." It is looking more likely that the Cubs will need those types of players in 2010 as they continue to take a pass on the big-time free agents. They have also been jilted this off-season by the likes of reliever Matt Capps, who felt like last-place Washington was a better destination than Chicago. The team that is shaping up for next year certainly doesn't look very much like the 97-win team of 2007, or even the 2nd place team of 2009.

Meanwhile, rumors abound that Carlos Zambrano could be trade bait, though the Cubs have denied it and Zambrano reportedly has been against waving his no-trade clause. Unless the deal is for at least two even-keeled, proven winners, I can't imagine the rumors will amount to anything.