Official Bulls (Chinese) Nicknames

So Derrick went to China, and they gave him a new nickname. "Biao Feng Mei Gui", which apparently means "Speedy, Stormy Rose". Not bad. Unfortunately, the rest of the Bulls are not on the trip, and thus unable to also receive new nicknames of their own. Never fear, though, with the help of Google translator, Chitown Sports is on it!



Kyle Korver- "Làjiāo jiàng" (Hot sauce)

Oh, give me the Lajiao jiang, Kyle! Give me the Lajiao jiang!"

This might replace "Fredo" as my favorite Korver nickname.

Taj Gibson- "Yīgè rén chī de línghún" (Eater of souls)

See my favorite image of the 2010-11 season:



Carlos Boozer- "Shì wǒ de nánrén" (Was that my man?)

Yes, Carlos, it probably was.

Brian Scalabrine- "Bái màn bā" (White Mamba)

This rhymes with "White Mamba", so I'm sure we can come up with some creative chants there.

Joakim Noah- "Fúwù yēzi" (One who serves coconuts)

Unfortunately, that may be what Jo ends up doing this season. Fuck you, David Stern and co.

This is way more fun than blogging about the Cubs.

Mike Quade Doesn't Get It

Reed Johnson is starting in right for the third straight game tonight. I love Reed Johnson. But he could bat 1.000 for the rest of the year and the Cubs wouldn't make the playoffs. He's also 34. Tyler Colvin is 25. Which of these guys do you think might be more important to the Cubs in the future, and thus should see most of the time in right for the rest of the year? Let's see what Quade thinks:

"It's a delicate balance between guys who have earned the right to play and guys who are here to play as young players and get better, and also giving them what I presume is the best opportunity for them to succeed and get back into doing what we saw him do last year."

Is what you saw him do last year "sit on the bench?" Because that's what your doing with him. If Colvin is going to get back to pre-almost-getting-stabbed-to-death-with-a-bat levels, it would be nice if, I don't know, actually played in right field. Or left. Or fucking third base, I don't care, the rest of the season doesn't matter, and there's no reason Colvin, Starlin Castro, Darwin Barney, and maybe Josh Vitters and Brett Jackson shouldn't be given as many at-bats as possible. Start thinking 2012 please, Quade. Or are you worried you're not going to be around for that, and maybe Reed Johnson can help you scrape just enough wins to keep you around? Hmm....

So it's Chitown Sports' Turn to Pile on Jim Hendry

So you would think that having the summer off would allow for more blogging time, but the whole "not-having-a-laptop" thing negates that advantage. But I'm typing this on a new one, where the keyboard is almost entirely on the left side of the computer, so expect at least 20% more typos in this the coming posts.

I know I'm not breaking any new ground in suggesting that Jim Hendry has been part of the problem in Cubs land for a while now. I just want to add my two cents.

It seems like Hendry has gotten a free pass from Cubs fans for two things: rebuilding the minor league system, and the Aramis and Derrek trades. I'll start with the minor leagues.

For years it feels like I've been hearing "The minor league system is getting better." "Just wait until (so-and-so) comes up." Yet I can name on one hand the number of home-grown Hendry prospects have lived up to the hype in a Cubs uniform (Soto, Castro, Marmol...maybe Angel Guzman gets a pass). Otherwise, the prospects that come up always manage to underwhelm. Matt Murton. Ryan Theriot. Micah Hoffpauir.

Maybe you can argue that expectations should never be that high with these guys to begin with, but it's hard to tell since so often their way is blocked by overpriced veterans Hendry stupidly signed or traded for (you need names? Really? Fukudome, Soriano, Milton fucking Bradley, even Jacque Jones. I think I was the only person in Chicago who liked Jacque Jones.)

If we have this talent in the minors, where are the power hitting outfielders? I believe the last one's name was Corey Patterson. Front line starters? The last one was Big Z. Corner infielders? Hee Seop Choi?

I guess we haven't needed corner infielders much, since Hendry did pull off two of the biggest heists in the last decade with the Aramis and Derrek trades. I'll give him credit for Nomar, too, since although Nomar didn't do a whole lot in a Cubs uni, he didn't cost them a whole heck of a lot, either.

The problem is that almost every trade since then has been a loss for the Cubs. Juan Pierre. Greg Maddux for Caeser Izturis. Theriot and Ted Lilly for Blake Dewitt (Hendry apparently loves weak hitting Dodger infielders). Mark DeRosa for nothing. I know some of these trades (like Derrek last year) are designed to give a veteran another postseason chance, but it's an indictment of Hendry that we're in that situation in the first place.

The Cubs aren't getting better until there are changes up top, and we start running the club with some sort of long term plan. That can't happen with Hendry. He has to go.