Bartender Banter: You called down the thunder, well, now you got it!

Well the Cubs managed to not suck just enough to avoid being swept in Denver. Here are some random notes.

• In his last 10 games, Thunder Matt Murton is hitting .429 with 3 home runs, 11 RBI, 3 BB and only 1 K. Angel Pagan has hit .367 with 1 home run, 5 RBI, 1 BB, and 4 K. Meanwhile Jacque Jones has hit .182 with 2 home runs, 4 RBI, 5 BB, and 9 K. I understand the Cubs are spending too much to keep Jones on the bench, but it'd be nice to see Murton and Pagan in the corners every now and then. Come on Dusty. Rock out with your Jacque out!
• How about Ryan The Riot? 3 for 3 on saturday and then the game-winning homer yesterday. Can we get this guy some PT at 2B? Nevermind the defensive prowess of Cesar! and Ronny. If The Riot can offer some offense lets give him a shot at 2B. At least we're not dealing with a starting middle infield of Neifi and Womack. That was what I feared most back in June given Dusty's track record.
• Our rotation right now consists of Zambrano, Hill, Guzman, Marmol, and Mateo. There's still a good amount of season left, so there's plenty of time to pitch Zambrano's arm off and get Glendone in there to make this the worst rotation in the majors. But dammit, we still have the best rotation when everyone's healthy "on paper". Ladies and gentlemen, your Chicago Cubs! The 2003, 2004, and 2005 National League Champions on paper!

Are You Ready For Some Football?
Well Monday Night Football premieres tonight on ESPN. The new MNF lineup consists of Mike Tirico, Joe Theismann, and Tony Kornheiser. This just seems like an odd grouping, but I think that's what they're trying to go for. The execs seem to keep trying to recapture the magic of the Cosell and Meredith days, which isn't going to happen. Its like the media constantly dubbing some young hoops star "the next Jordan". In the end, it only fuels disappointment

Anyway, I'm kind of mixed about this group. Theismann seems like a nice enough guy, but he comes off kind of dopey most of the time. Mike Tirico is a pretty good play-by-play guy, but I have to question his impartiality calling games after he dry-humped the Iowa State Cyclones for the entire game against Iowa last year. He was so disgustingly obvious in his bias that I'm pretty sure he called the second half wearing a Cy the Cyclone costume.

Then there's Mr. Tony. Most people know TK from Pardon the Interruption, a sports talk show he co-hosts with Michael Wilbon on ESPN. I'm not sure how he'll do. They had the three on Sportscenter this morning giving a preview of tonight's game featuring the Vikings against the Raiders. Tony looked like a deer in the headlights, not very comfortable at all. This may go well, or it may not, but if he ends up coming off like he did in this morning's Sportscenter, I think the MNF era for Tony will be short-lived. I guess the one plus would be that if Tony left MNF he would probably come back to radio. Kornheiser's show, which used to be in Cowherd's spot in the ESPN Radio lineup, and more recently was aired locally on Washington DC's Sports Talk 980, was fabulous.

Luke the Puke
How about the shitbomb Luke Hudson dropped yesterday? 0.1 IP, 8 H, 10 ER, 3 BB, and 1 K. What's even sadder is all those stupid schmucks in fantasy leagues that in a feeble attempt to pad their stats in head to head leagues, picked Hudson up on the waiver wire for a spot start. Jackasses. Fantasy managers that churn starting pitchers on the waiver wire to gain on their opponents have no real fantasy knowledge or ability. Its the equivalent of doing the nose tackle trick in Tecmo Bowl, where you just dive as soon as the ball is snapped and sack the QB. Do you win by doing that? Sure you do, but your friends look at you as a lousy douchebag that couldn't ever win by playing it straight up.