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Rick Hahn is the best GM in baseball.

Look at that toss! It's all over!

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Lester has been hustling the league. Saving the good moves for when it matters.

I bet he is Madison Bumgarner at the dish.

edit: On queue, nice bunt to move the runner to third, and a bad decision by Happ has him reach safely.

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Rick Hahn is the best GM in baseball.

#mindgames

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The Sox should watch that so they know how to properly handle a rundown.

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They goof something tonight?

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Rick Hahn is the best GM in baseball.

If he ever does develop a good move to first, he will be able to pick guys off pretty easily (well, at least a couple times, till the league adjusts) as so many runners take a ridiculously large lead against him. Even an average move should do the trick.

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Go Cubs!!!!

As I said

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Rick Hahn is the best GM in baseball.

It was a legitimate pick-off and hopefully that causes runners to think twice about taking huge leads and stealing bases left and right. Now maybe he can get back to avoiding giving up homers.....

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Go Cubs!!!!

Then he could say 'If at first you don't succeed'!

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I think it's safe to say after yesterday's game that Lester's problems throwing to bases are not over. How a major league pitcher can be so inept at this simple issue is baffling. How a LEFT handed pitcher cannot hold/ pick off runners better is unfathomable. Spring training is where these kinds of problems should be addressed, but it's obvious more work needs to be done. Major strength my ass....

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Go Cubs!!!!

How a middle aged white male living in Chicagoland can be so racist in 2016 is unfathomable.

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Rick Hahn is the best GM in baseball.

The Cubs need to bring in a former LH MLB pitcher who was a pick off artist. Either that or have a current LH pitcher on the roster show him how it's done.


There is no way in Hell the Cubs should have signed this spaz with such a major hole in his game.

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favrefan said:"Chris Coghlan isn't gonna pay your rent, Jimmy."

Id like to watch him practice. I mean, it doesnt seem to be in his head because you can see the terrible form.

It really is physical.

I said when they signed him that they overpaid and that I would have signed Shields or Liriano instead. Between the money and this issue with holding runners and throwing to bases, it was a flawed signing. He pitches well and I'm not saying he is awful by any means. Just that he has flaws that have far too much potential to be problematic at the worst possible time.

Obviously, Shields wasn't tremendous in 2015 either, but those were the guys I wanted instead for far less money.

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Go Cubs!!!!

I had no idea the guy had this issue when they signed him. Who the hell watches West Coast baseball when he pitched for the A's? I would have signed 2 or 3 cheaper options to give my rotation some depth. I think that is the way I felt in 2014 but I sure was not unhappy they signed Lester.

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favrefan said:"Chris Coghlan isn't gonna pay your rent, Jimmy."

No one did. Even when the Royals ran all over him in the 1 game playoff they were crediting the Royals speed with no mention of Lester's pickoff


Its an amazing blind spot that scouts missed for years.

Theo was aware of it and thought Madden could solve it.

That example isnt a good one, as he stepped off the mound and he wasnt making a pickoff at that time, he was in a run down...which probably was a great thing for him, got the YIPS out of his head.

Should step off each time, instead of picking off.

Then next year an MLB rule will arise on the # of throw overs!

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"That's what the internet is for. Slandering others anonymously." Banky
“Been that way since one monkey looked at the sun and told the other monkey ‘He said for you to give me your fuckin’ share.’”

It really is that simple. It would make the game take longer but who gives a fuck

The reason he survives is the run game has died a slow death. no more Vince Coleman or Rickey Henderson types. The majors had a slew of base stealers about 30 years ago or so. There are still some but not like back then. The Cubs have not seen a super base stealer since Miguel Dilone who they gave away to the A's a long time ago. Dernier was good but I can't think of a lot of Cub swipers.
Davey Lopes set a stolen base (consecutive steal) record on the Cubs I think,not sure. (look it up)

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favrefan said:"Chris Coghlan isn't gonna pay your rent, Jimmy."

I disagree. He should have the ability to learn a decent pickoff move. As a LEFT hander, my God, it should be a piece of cake. Throwing to bases? Keep him working on it every day possible, until he shows he can make the throws. I would never accept this level of ineptitude as acceptable. It has to be addressed and corrected.

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Go Cubs!!!!

Coop could fix him.

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"That's what the internet is for. Slandering others anonymously." Banky
“Been that way since one monkey looked at the sun and told the other monkey ‘He said for you to give me your fuckin’ share.’”

Yeah, I remember hearing that refrain. I think Samardzija is one of the most inconsistent and therefore overrated pitchers there is. I have heard that he and Cooper did not get along well too. I doubt he will be significantly better with the Giants either. He's got the stuff, he just lacks the consistent focus.

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Go Cubs!!!!

You made my point. Shark didn't listen to Coop, so he sucked.

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Could be. But the most maddening point to Sox fans must be how he pitched really well for over a month before the trading deadline as well as in his final start or two. Yet he had long stretches where he was unbelievably bad. Just after the trade deadline for quite a while, in particular. You saw how good he could be though. That was how he was to a lesser extent with the Cubs .......maddeningly inconsistent. Not Maddon ly, maddeningly.

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Go Cubs!!!!

Bump.

You just can't run on Lester. He will make you pay.

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Rick Hahn is the best GM in baseball.

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"smarter baseball fans"

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Rick Hahn is the best GM in baseball.