The Cubs Are Undefeated & Kyle Hendricks Is The Best Pitcher Of All Time
- Kyle Hendricks might be the most lethal man in Major League Baseball and nobody wants to talk about it. Since 2016 here's a list of every qualified pitcher to log a 3.50 ERA or less in each season: Kershaw, Verlander, Scherzer, Hendricks. That's the company Kyle keeps and it pisses me off nobody acknowledges it. Those people are assholes.
- I want to talk about changeup usage because it's Friday night and I've had a few beers and it's time I get some shit off my chest. Hendricks used the change perfectly in the 9th on Yelich. Runner on 1st base, 1 out and Hendricks goes change-change to start the AB. Both miss low to get the count to 2-0, but they were reallllyyyyy good fucking change ups. Next pitch he missed his spot with an 88 mph over the heart of the plate but Yelich fouled it back. Those changes were like stun grenades in his brain. You have a hard time hitting the next pitch after a good changeup. Even if it's a ball. Even if it's 2-0, Hendricks had the advantage. Then it's 2-1 with another GREAT changeup that he swung and missed over to make it 2-2. Another foul ball over a missed fastball over the heart of the plate and then he grounded out again on a change up on the 6th pitch. Detailed sequencing, I know. But absolutely masterful.
I bring this up because it's unequivocally the biggest moment of the game for the Brewers offense and Hendricks is out there shoving 80 mph changeups down their goddamn throats. Remember that next time someone talks about a radar gun. When the moment is brightest, rely on the fact that the hitter is more nervous than the pitcher. Kyle Hendricks's changeup PREYS on that philosophy and I obviously love this man.
- David Ross is undefeated. He also looks like he put on a managerial 10-15 pounds and I like that a lot because the Dancing With The Stars version was frankly too sexy for me.
- Speaking of being hot, Rizzo 25 pounds lighter looks fantastic. His lettuce is popping out of his helmet too. Dare I suggest the long locks return? Only time will tell but we all know that big Italian looks great with the big flow. Also shoutout for that huge bomb in the 8th. Big time insurance runs
- Craig Kimbrel has a hard name to say and I don't care to watch him warm up mid-inning any more than he likes the idea of coming into a game middle of an inning.
- The postgame and pregame show on Marquee network were average
- The Brewers uniforms were fucking awesome
- 59 games left and while I say this joking the reality is every single one counts. That and the Cubs 4-5 in the starting rotation make me VERY nervous. So basically Yu Darvish has a must-win start in front of him tomorrow at 12:05 and I don't say that lightly. Heaven forbid we're looking at Lester-Chatwood-Mills and hoping for a 2-1 stretch consistently. Reality says you need Hendricks and Yu to shove if this goes anywhere and we're through phase 1 successfully. Phase 2 starts tomorrow against an unremarkable Brewers team and I like Yu a lot, mostly because I need him.
- Justin Smoak fucking sucks