Rockies send Baker to Cubs for prospect

Carnac alert!..."The butcher, the baker and the trouble maker.”

The Rockies traded utility infielder Jeff Baker to the Cubs for Class A Daytona relief pitcher Alberto Alburquerque, who will be assigned to Double-A Tulsa, Rockies general manager Dan O’Dowd confirmed Thursday morning.

Baker, who was at the end of a rehab stint for a right hand sprain, said he learned of the trade in a conversation with Cubs general manager Jim Hendry on Wednesday night.

“I haven’t talked with [Cubs manager] Lou Piniella, but I did talk with Jim Hendry last night,” said Baker as he headed to a flight Thursday morning so he could join the Cubs for their game against the Brewers at Wrigley Field on Thursday night. “I’m excited for the opportunity. I don’t know what their plans are for me yet, so I’m looking forward to getting there.”

Seamheads: El juego casi perfecto de Tom Seaver (Tom Seavers’ Almost Perfect Game)

(just in case you really, really don’t want to remember...)

Seaver también rememora que mientras calentaba el brazo sintió una rigidez en el hombro que se mantuvo los dos primeros innings. Con los dos lanzamientos iniciales de Ken Holtzman, los Mets se fueron arriba 1-0 mediante triple de Tommie Agee y doble de Bobby Pfiel. En el segundo marcaron otras 2, Seaver remolcó una con un doble. En el séptimo Cleon Jones la sacó del parque para poner el juego 4-0. Sus impresiones sobre el aislamiento que trata de realizar el pitcher para neutralizar la tensión del juego, explican como a medida que avanza un juego sin hits, la situación se dificulta cada vez. En las tribunas estaban su esposa Nancy y su padre, quién había viajado desde la costa occidental. Había 60000 personas en Shea Stadium, la primera vez que Seaver lanzaba ante tanto público.

Luego que Seaver dominara a Hundley con rolling al montículo. Me senté en la cama y estiré el oído hacia el radio, toda la tensión se desdibujó cuando el narrador dijo”… es una línea de hit de Jimmy Qualls hacia el centerfield, se acabó el perfecto, se acabó el juego sin hits. Tom Seaver mira hacia el cielo, se va detrás del montículo….” Aún sentado en la cama escuché como terminó el juego dominando a Willie Smith y Don Kessinger con elevados inofensivos.

Seaver regresa al dugout y nota que Nancy tiene lágrimas en los ojos. “¿Por qué estás llorando? Ganamos 4-0”.

Morrissey: Fair or not, Chicago Cubs’ failures are Jim Hendry’s fault

Hendry...more miscast than Henry Kulky as Bearcat Sampson? Morrissey believes so.

Ultimately, however, it is his fault.

Hendry is a stand-up guy, and he takes full responsibility for the way things are going. But just because most of the signings looked good at the time Hendry engineered them doesn’t lessen his culpability. It’s a general manager’s job to decide who will perform and who won’t.

It’s a general manager’s job to predict whether a manager will be effective long term. Lou Piniella, 65, is in Year 3 of his tenure.

It’s a general manager’s job to look into the future and see whether a player with a history of anger issues will be able to perform under the pressure cooker of one of baseball’s most high-profile teams.

It’s a general manager’s job to look at a player from Japan and decide whether his performance there will translate into success in America.

General managers do the hiring and firing, so it’s no surprise they almost always outlast players and managers. But if this team doesn’t turn itself around soon, Hendry could find himself out of a job at the end of the season.

Sox’s Ozzie Guillen hopes Sammy Sosa comes clean

Wow! Didn’t take OxiClean long, did it?

“If that’s the truth, come out and say it, because that is going to help you,” Guillen said before his Sox’s 6-0 victory over the Cubs on Sunday. “You are not talking about a crime scene. You are not doing something that people should be ashamed of. Some people are very heartbroken ... everyone who is a fan. But you should go out there and admit it if you are guilty. People will forgive you. But when you admit it, [say it] like you mean it.”

The New York Times reported recently that Sosa was one of the 103 MLB players who tested positive for performance-enhancing substances in 2003. The results were supposed to remain anonymous.

“And if it is not the real thing, just say that it is a bunch of bull and move on,” Guillen said. “But I would say that to anyone who got caught with [steroids]. Hey, man, admit it and hopefully people will forgive what you did and you can move on. But the longer you keep [quiet], there are going to be doubts and more doubts and more doubts. Then you are going to be screwed.”

Jay Mariotti: Milton Bradley Reduces Cubdom From Sad to Wacko

CHICAGO—We’ve long moved past the sympathy-for-the-lovable-losers stage. Now, the Cubs must be treated like any other patient with an acute mental illness: send them to the funny farm, load them up on Prozac, lock them in a rubberized room and hope they don’t kill each other. It was only a matter of time, I suppose, before this forlorn franchise collapsed from the burden of a 101-year drought without a World Series title.

Still, who knew the Cubbies would crack up and go utterly mad?

It was almost better when they’d lose 97 games and fans were in it just for the beer, the seventh-inning singer and the post-game mating rituals. What happened this past weekend just might be rock bottom in the bottom-feeding, increasingly dismal existence that is Cubdom. Not even in the most psychotic of sporting soap operas—Yankees, Cowboys, Lakers—do you see a three-day rage in which: (a) serial knucklehead Milton Bradley attacks a water jug in the dugout and is ordered to go home by his angry manager, Lou Piniella; (b) Piniella follows him down the clubhouse tunnel, where he rips Bradley as “a piece of (bleep);’’ (c) the Cubs accuse visiting clubhouse workers at U.S. Cellular Field, home of the crosstown rival White Sox, of leaking the “piece of (bleep)’’ quote to a reporter, prompting outrage from the equally loony Sox manager, Ozzie Guillen; (d) catcher Geovany Soto, your reigning National League Rookie of the Year, is busted for a positive marjiuana test during the World Baseball Classic, which might explain his sluggish season and desire for munchies; (e) Piniella volunteers that he “smoked dope’’ once (though, honestly, who in this world smokes dope only once?); (f) Piniella and Bradley have a hug-it-out session in which both admit to crying; (g) the Cubs lose two of three, extending their woe to six losses in seven games and dropping them to 35-37 in the NL Central; and (h) watch a player who never should have been traded away, Mark DeRosa, get snapped up by top divisional rival St Louis.

Chicago Tribune:  Perfect time for Cubs to waive bye bye to Carlos Zambrano

As Lou Piniella was saying on Friday, enough’s enough.

Get Carlos Zambrano out of here, even if the Cubs have to give him away. He’s not the guy you want as the ace of a curse-busting team, and at this point, it’s wishful thinking that he’ll ever mature into that guy.

Proving that I did not attend Kellogg, Wharton or even the Acme School of Business, I offer this proposition for Jim Hendry: First thing Monday morning, put Zambrano on waivers. If anyone claims him and the $62.75 million left on his contract, which runs through 2012, immediately trade him for whatever is being offered, from a bag of balls to a 32-year-old minor-leaguer.

Piniella vents about clubhouse leaks and Sox attendance woes

“Look, things get a little heated in the clubhouse at times,” Piniella said. “I don’t think what happened is right. I mentioned it in a nice way to the (visitors’ clubhouse employees). But, look, it happened. What can you say? A lot of things happen.”

Piniella was told by a Sox official that no one from the clubhouse leaked the “piece of (expletive) comment.” Only Piniella, Bradley and some Sox employees were eyewtinesses to the incident. On Sunday, Piniella said he wasn’t sure where the leak came from.

“I’m not going to accuse anybody, because I just don’t know,” he said. “And if I don’t know, why should I start accusing people? If I knew who it was, I would take care of that. The person who wrote the article, he knows who gave him the information. They should ask him.”

...So the Sox need the Cubs to help them draw fans? White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen was asked why attendance was so low at the Sox-Dodgers series, and said: “Because our fans are not stupid like Cubs fans. They know we’re (expletive).”

Guillen said Cubs fans will go watch any game at Wrigley Field because “Wrigley Field is just a bar.”

Thanks to Nubby.

Tribune: Milton Bradley confirms Lou Piniella’s insult

Good to see Uncle Milty owning up:

Milton Bradley spoke to Cubs beat reporters before Saturday’s game and confirmed that manager Lou Piniella called him a “piece of [expletive]” during their confrontation Friday at U.S. Cellular Field.

“It’s Lou Piniella,” Bradley said. “To me, Lou Piniella is somebody. If it’s a motivating tactic, taking a different switch because people say he didn’t have fire, I understand.”

Piniella said Saturday he apologized to Bradley for the remark.

He said it was “made in the sanctity of the clubhouse” and was upset it was leaked to the media.

Asked if he was singled out by Piniella since other Cubs players have made a scene in the dugout, Bradley said, “Like I’ve said, I don’t have the same set of rules as other people. Because of the mistakes I’ve made in my career, I don’t get the leeway other guys get to a certain extent.”

Milton Bradley Departs Stadium Early After Confrontation With Lou Piniella

Scattergories!

I guess the Milton Bradley haters are all going to be basking in all their glory now. According to a report on Chicagosports.com, Bradley was taking out some frustration on the Gatorade cooler in the Cubs dugout when approached by his manager, Lou Piniella. Apparently the two exchanged “angry words” and Bradley was removed from the game.

In news much more disconcerting, though, Bradley was seen in street clothes leaving the stadium and is now gone from the premises. You might recall Sammy Sosa left Wrigley Field during the last game of the 2004 season and it was the last time he ever played for the Cubs. The Bradley situation will obviously conclude differently, because the Cubs signed him to a three-year contract this offseason and likely can’t get a good return on him via trade.

Chicago Tribune: Soto Failed Drug Test During WBC

I blame it on that damn Finklestein kid…

Cubs catcher Geovany Soto tested positive for marijuana while playing for Puerto Rico during the World Baseball Classic last March, the International Baseball Federation announced Thursday.

Chicago writers to discuss steroids, Hall of Fame

Ben Bentley lives!

“We’re going to spend the next decade or so voting for guys who have been implicated or rumored” in steroid scandals, said Paul Sullivan, the Cubs beat writer for the Chicago Tribune and president of Chicago BBWAA chapter.
“We’re debating it in press boxes anyway, so it’s a good idea we all get together and discuss it,” Sullivan said Tuesday. “We’re just going to see what people have to say about it.”

Neither the national BBWAA nor the Hall of Fame had heard about the Chicago chapter’s plan to meet, and any decisions the chapter makes would not be binding. But representatives from the BBWAA and the Hall said they would look at any recommendations.
“We’ve been pleased with (the BBWAA’s) capabilities to interpret the criteria presented and to elect accordingly,” said Brad Horn, Hall spokesman. “They’ve had that privilege for a long time, and they’ve done a very good job.”

...It’s that kind of uncertainty that prompted Sun-Times columnist Rick Telander to ask the Chicago chapter if it could discuss the issue during this weekend’s Cubs-White Sox series at U.S. Cellular Field.

“The guidelines used to be so simple: stats, longevity and star power. It’s all been trumped by performance-enhancing drug use and drug use suspicion,” Telander said Tuesday. “Part of me says it’s not fair we have to make these determinations, but we do.”

Sandberg: Sosa doesn’t belong in Hall

It’s against the law and against society! (It’s friggin hot under this Councillor Sandberg mask!)

Appearing on the “Waddle & Silvy” show on ESPN 1000, Sandberg said “I don’t think so,” when asked if Sosa belongs in the Hall of Fame.

“They use the word ‘integrity’ in describing a Hall of Famer in the logo of the Hall of Fame, and I think there are gonna be quite a few players that are not going to get in,” Sandberg said. “It’s been evident with the sportswriters who vote them in, with what they’ve done with Mark McGwire getting in the 20 percent range.

“We have some other players coming up like [Rafael] Palmeiro coming up soon, and it’ll be up to the sportswriters to speak loud and clear about that. I don’t see any of those guys getting in.”

...Sandberg said that punishment should include being banned from Cooperstown.

“It’s something that’s against the law and against society,” Sandberg said. “It was cheating in the sport.

“I think it has to be spoken very loud and clear on the stance, and baseball needs to stand as they have. I’m very, very satisfied with the testing program they have in place now. For a guy who’s tested positive today under what happens now like Manny Ramirez, it almost takes an idiot to participate in that. For the society, for the up-and-coming players and youth out there, I don’t think those guys should be recognized at all.”

Morrissey: Cubs fans’ love for Mark DeRosa a little out of whack

Flesh...Trash...Heat...Love.

But let’s try to be celebratory: What a career DeRosa had with the Cubs!

Sure, if you want to get all technical about it, he was with the team for only two seasons. But what a sublime two seasons! He averaged about 16 home runs and 80 runs batted in while hitting .289. He played six positions in each season and had a total of 22 “unfortunate events”—a designation many of us prefer over the word “errors” when it comes to DeRosa.

And, as we all know, the Cubs won the World Series both years.

OK, I’ll stop with the sarcasm, but only if everyone at least attempts to move on.

Unless I missed the part where DeRosa freed us from our dependence on fossil fuel, I don’t recognize the player upon whom all this praise is being heaped.

Arvia: Sosa unlikely to land in jail or Hall of Fame

I had to take a break from CollectorScum.com for this?!

On June 7, five of the Chicago Tribune’s eight Hall of Fame voters offered qualified “yes” ballots for Sosa’s Cooperstown worthiness. Just 11 days and one nameless New York Times source later, only one Sosa “yes” remained.

The flip-flops bother me not because I believe Sosa is Hall-worthy - in my opinion, cemented by 2003’s corked bat episode, he is not. Rather, I’m bothered that my fellow Hall voters could so easily dismiss one form of cheating, one that almost literally exploded in their faces, yet so quickly embrace a far less-provable allegation of another.

Far more conclusively than the Times’ report, Sosa’s corked bat established he was in violation of half the written guidelines for Hall of Fame voters.

...Ultimately, though, I have no problem with banning Sosa from one’s ballot on an individual voter’s belief that he used PEDs. I just don’t know how one newspaper story suddenly creates that belief.

At best, the Times merely reinforces what the voters clearly already believed. That belief should have been enough to keep Sosa off those ballots.

After all, this is not a trial and voters are not on a jury. This is but a professional honor, and it has long been apparent that Sosa was not an honorable pro.

Theriot’s single in 10th caps Cubs’ big comeback

Sure looked like Kerry Wood would get the day off in his return to Wrigley Field. His new team, the Cleveland Indians, was up on his old one by seven runs.

But for the second straight day the Cubs put together a four-run rally in the eighth inning that cut the lead to one.

Suddenly, Wood was in the game, back on the mound, pitching against the Cubs. He wound up getting an ovation—then blowing the save.

Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel: Cubs castoff McGehee helping to carry team

With Aramis Ramirez entrenched as their starting third baseman, the Chicago Cubs figured they didn’t need Casey McGehee anymore, despite a banner 2008 season with Class AAA Iowa.

Funny, how things work out at times. Let’s just say the Cubs’ sputtering offense might look more formidable these days with McGehee on the club.

“I really haven’t thought much about it,” said McGehee, who has emerged as an offensive force for the Milwaukee Brewers after beginning the season buried on their bench. “It’s kind of a tough situation (for Chicago).”

The Cubs, of course, had no way of knowing that Ramirez would be lost for many weeks with a dislocated shoulder. Oddly enough, he suffered that injury while trying to make a diving stab of a grounder during a Chicago-Milwaukee series in early May at Miller Park.

Looking to create roster flexibility after the 2008 season, the Cubs placed McGehee on waivers after he batted .296 with 30 doubles, 12 home runs and 92 runs batted in over 133 games for Iowa.

The Brewers claimed McGehee and added him to their 40-man roster. The idea was to add depth to the infield, which turned out to be a prescient move.

At the time, the Brewers could not know that second baseman Rickie Weeks would be lost for the season in mid-May with a wrist injury. Or that third baseman Bill Hall’s offensive freefall would carry over to another season.

PlainDealer: Kerry Wood returns to Chicago where injuries forced fans to wonder what might have been

If Kerry Wood could rewrite the script, of course he would.

He would have made 30-plus starts, pitched 200-plus innings and won 20 games year after year in helping the Cubs win multiple world championships.

But Wood cannot rewrite the script. He must accept what transpired between 1998 and 2008 as is. Injuries, cold and unforgiving, dotted his tenure on the North Side of Chicago. They foiled what might have been a spectacular career but did not stop it from providing ample highlight-reel material.

Wood still might come back to the Cubs to write another chapter, but for now, the bottom line reads like this: 276 games, 77 wins, 61 losses, 34 saves, 3.65 ERA, 1,219 1/3 innings, 947 hits, 577 walks, 1,407 strikeouts, no world titles.

The former phenom returns to Wrigley Field this weekend as closer for the Indians, who play the Cubs in a three-game series.

Chicago Tribune/Morrissey: Time for Lou Piniella to shake things up

Don’t spend your time waiting for extreme highs and lows from Lou Piniella. You’ll miss the theme of the season thus far, which is the tedium that has set in with his club.

Pay close attention to the long, muted in-betweens from the Cubs manager, the great maw of what might be taken as indifference.

You can hear it in his painful pauses during press conferences and see it in his raised palms and shrugged shoulders. It’s the blank face of the franchise. It’s not a pretty picture.

But there was a spark of hope Wednesday in the middle of all these Cubs’ blahs. Piniella didn’t blow up after his team’s 4-1 act of nonresistance against the White Sox, but he did threaten to make changes. It spoke louder than any bug-eyed rant from the skipper. Nothing frightens a position player more than the thought of having his at-bats taken away.

Mel Hall convicted of sexually assaulting 12-year-old girl

Former major league outfielder Melvin Hall Jr. has been convicted of sexually assaulting a 12-year-old girl he coached on an elite basketball team a decade ago.

A Tarrant County jury took about 90 minutes Tuesday to find the 48-year-old Hall guilty on three counts of aggravated sexual assault of a child and two counts of indecency with a child.

The sentencing phase was to begin later Tuesday afternoon. Hall faces up to life in prison.

According to testimony, Hall met the 12-year-old’s family in 1998 during a basketball tournament. Hall talked about plans to start a select basketball team and later worked one-on-one with the girl. At one point, he moved into the girl’s home while his Southlake home was being built.

The woman said she was assaulted in Hall’s vehicle, at a tournament and at his North Richland Hills apartment, where he showed her a pornographic movie.

Ugh.

NY Times: Sosa Said to Test Positive in 2003

Sammy Sosa, who joined with Mark McGwire in 1998 in a celebrated pursuit of baseball’s single-season home run record, is among the players who tested positive for a performance-enhancing drug in 2003, according to lawyers with knowledge of the drug-testing results from that year.

How do people keep leaking this stuff without repercussions? “According to lawyers with knowledge of the [...] results”? Disbarment, anyone?

Ozzie: I puke every time I go to Wrigley Field

Just like most other Cub fans…

Guillen annually voices his distaste for the three games played in Wrigley, and he continued his pile-on before the series finale against Milwaukee, when he explained why Cubs fans should respect his opinion.

‘’Oh, I don’t care if they hate me; they don’t feed my kids,’’ Guillen said. ‘’They hate me, that’s cool. People, no matter how famous you are, they hate you or they love you.

‘’I see the other day they asked (Twins third baseman Joe) Crede about the rats (in Wrigley) ... I never put the Cubs fans down, I’ve always admired the Cubs’ front office, I’ve always made my feelings known about Cubs players, about the manager, about Lou (Piniella) now, (general manager) Jim Hendry and the way I respect them, a lot, a lot.

‘’But Wrigley Field? I puke every time I go there. I’m just being honest.

Chicago Tribune: San Francisco Giants need hitter for wild-card push

Keep an eye on the Giants. They’re a long shot to catch the Dodgers in the NL West but could have staying power in the wild-card race, especially if GM Brian Sabean gets them a hitter.  Matt Cain, who lives in the shadow of pitching teammates Tim Lincecum, Barry Zito and Randy Johnson, is having a great season (8-1, 2.55). His 3.61 career ERA suggests he could pitch his way into Cy Young consideration. ... Could Derrek Lee be the hitter the Giants need? Sabean at least ought to kick the tires to see if Jim Hendry would consider approaching Lee about waiving his no-trade clause, as the Cubs have first-base options available to them in Micah Hoffpauir and Jake Fox.

plus, Overmatched? Not Gordon Beckham

Zanona: The Woes and Pros of Selling Out Chicago Baseball

Wasn’t “A Busload of Iowans” the original title of Helios Creed’s “NUGG: The Transport”?

It starts with beer endorsed bleacher seats and frat boys in the Captain Morgan Club imitating the mascot’s signature leg-up pose. Before you know it, Wrigley Field will be renamed TGI Fridays Field and the Harry Caray statue will be wearing a giant Arby’s hat.

Ok, so maybe I’m exaggerating a little. But creeping commercialism is a slippery slope. It is important to note, however, that there could be a silver lining to this advertising haze, and like everything, has its own set of pros and woes.

Pro- COMFORT. If you’ve ever been to a Sox game it’s hard to deny that watching baseball in U.S. Cellular Field is not only comfortable, but borderline enjoyable. The numerous screens and loudspeakers really enhance the game because it easier for fans to follow what is going on, which can be a particularly daunting task at Wrigley if you’re getting beer sloshed on your lap while squeezed between two loud, drunk strangers in the bleachers.

Advertisers in baseball stadiums seem to have a good way of making sure you’re relaxed and comfortable before they try shoving branded products down your throat. A comfortable baseball stadium is one example.

Woe- OVERCROWDING. The Cubs already get heat for attracting bandwagon fans and having overpriced, unattainable tickets. Just imagine what would happen if Wrigley Field added more advertisements, sponsored fireworks after every home run and 3D holograms of Ernie Banks in the bleachers. Even though some fans threaten to swear-off Wrigley if it sells out, you know they’ll still be there: right in line next to a busload of Iowans, fighting for a place in line at the Bud Light Bleachers section.

Mental Floss: Non-Streaking Fans Who Stormed the Field of Play

What, no Morganna?  Nolan Ryan’s encounter with her, “Hurry, they’re [security] right behind you!” would be the funniest moment in his career if it weren’t for a Chicago resident who charged him with more than kisses on his mind.  Speaking of White Sox…

4. The Ligue Family

Not every pair of field-chargers can be as affable as Gaston and Courtney, though. Take, for instance, William Ligue, Jr., and his 14-year-old son, Michael. During a 2002 White Sox-Royals game at Chicago’s Comiskey Park, the duo stormed the field and viciously beat Royals first base coach Tom Gamboa before being intercepted by security. Despite giving Gamboa such a ferocious throttling that he lost part of his hearing, neither Ligue saw any jail time after being charged with multiple counts of aggravated battery and mob action. Instead they got probation for the attack. Of course, when you’re as classy as the Ligues, you’re going to end up in prison at some point. Ligue received a 57-month sentence in 2006 for breaking into a car.

SDNN: Blair: The magic that was the 1984 Padres postseason

A look back at the Cubs - Padres series...and Mike Royko/GOD.

Of course, the Padres team that boasted Garvey and Tempe, Flannery and Bevaqua, Nettles and Show was a glorious one. But our citizens were up to the challenge, too. We were the underdogs going into the National League championship series with the Chicago Cubs, and we relished our role. The baiting by the outta-town media helped,too.

The Chicago Tribune’s legendary columnist Mike Royko didn’t come to San Diego for our side of the playoffs. Fear of flying. He took his potshots from 2,000 miles away, calling Padres fans “lousy wimps” and “laid-back surf rats” who couldn’t appreciate the magnitude of what was happening. When Royko’s syndicated tirade was picked up by the Escondido Times-Advocate, the newspaper invited readers to respond to in print. But when editors transmitted the responses to Royko in Chicago, the columnist was not amused. An aide phoned the paper to warn that Royko might pull his column from the T-A. Editor Will Corbin beat him to the punch. He phoned the Chicago Tribune syndicate to advise that the T-A would no longer publish Royko’s column. “For a guy who’s always sticking pins in people,” said Corbin, “his skin is much too thin for us.”

...Kurt Bevacqua was the home-run king of the first series game, but Steve Garvey was still hanging onto the hero status he earned during the playoffs. One enamored Garvey fan — an attractive young woman — spent the night waving a sign with her spiritual message: GOD LOVES US ALL — BUT HE LOVES STEVE GARVEY JUST A LITTLE BIT MORE.

NY Times (Schwarz): Pitching’s Bright Stars Sometimes Flame Out

Scouts have generally called Strasburg the best amateur pitching prospect they have seen. This is the rough equivalent of being rated the world’s No. 1 hydrogen dirigible. For all the promise Strasburg has shown, having names like McDonald, Prior and Taylor in one’s family tree would leave any pitcher digging for adoption papers.

Twenty years ago, Louisiana State’s Ben McDonald was roundly hailed as the best college pitching prospect ever; he won 78 major league games before retiring at 30 with a bum shoulder. No one took McDonald’s consensus best-ever tag until 2001, when Mark Prior of the University of Southern California was such a steely-eyed, bazooka-armed, strike-throwing machine that he was nicknamed Robopitcher. Prior won 18 games for the Chicago Cubs two years later before an avalanche of injuries left him pitching’s Venus de Milo.

Three high school pitchers during this period also were electric enough to prompt best-ever hyperbole: Todd Van Poppel in 1990, Brien Taylor in 1991 and Matt White in 1996. Van Poppel won just 40 games in a meandering career, and Taylor and White descended into the moat of the minor leagues, never to be heard from again.

Strasburg, who turns 21 next month, is in fact the sixth once-in-a-lifetime pitcher of his own short lifetime. But this has barely distracted the raving scouts, whose job is to look forward, not back. This time, they mean it. Really.

Carlos Zambrano: ‘I’m out of here in five years’

Cool! Zambrano will slot in front of Zavaroni perfectly in my Rolodexedrine of the Forgottens file!

It’s not often a pitcher earns his 100th career victory and then announces his retirement—at age 28. But that’s the bombshell Cubs pitcher Carlos Zambrano would have you believe based on what sounded like a serious response to a question about his 100th win, 2-1 over the Cincinnati Reds on Friday night, in the context of Randy Johnson’s 300th a day earlier.

‘’For 300, me? No, I’ll be out of here in five years,’’ said Zambrano, who is three years younger than Johnson was when the Big Unit won his 100th.

After his response drew laughter, Zambrano added, ‘’No, believe me. After this contract I’m done. ... I’m serious. Because I don’t want to play anymore.’’

...After accepting a $100 bet from a beat writer that he was serious, Zambrano elaborated:

‘’I want to help this team and do everything possible to win with this team. After five years, or four years, or whatever it is, that’s it. I just don’t want to play. I want to stay at home and see my daughter grow up and be with my family more.

‘’You know how many Mother’s Days I haven’t spent with my mother? Twelve. You know how many things I lose in my life [because of the baseball schedule]?

‘’It’s good to be here, also it’s good to be in baseball. But in five years I will retire, and I won’t have to see you again.’’

NBC Sports: Sosa will retire, ‘calmly wait for my induction’

Former outfielder Sammy Sosa will soon announce his retirement, and says he’ll be waiting for the call to the Hall of Fame despite rumors of steroid use, ESPN reported on Wednesday.

“Everything I achieved, I did it thanks to my perseverance, which is why I never had any long, difficult moments [as a baseball player]. If you have a bad day in baseball, and start thinking about it, you will have ten more.

“I will calmly wait for my induction to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Don’t I have the numbers to be inducted?,” Sosa told ESPN.

No excuse given for Carlos Zambrano missing flight

Five days after receiving a six-game suspension for “violent and inappropriate” conduct, Carlos Zambrano found himself in hot water again on Tuesday.

But this time Zambrano is in trouble with Cubs management and his teammates rather than Major League Baseball because he blew off the team flight to Atlanta on Monday without permission. It was not known what his reason was for missing the departure.

Zambrano arrived at the ballpark Tuesday afternoon and was summoned into manager Lou Piniella’s office before the game for a meeting that lasted about five minutes. He wasn’t in the clubhouse after the game as he is serving his six-game suspension

Piniella didn’t say what the meeting was about and assistant general manager Randy Bush had no comment. General manager Jim Hendry is preparing for next week’s amateur draft and is not with the team.

Thanks to He’s Barnald, Fly Him.

AP: Jeff Francoeur smacks a clutch homer to lead Braves past Cubs

ATLANTA — The Braves went much of the night without a hit.

They still got to celebrate. Jeff Francoeur tied the game with a two-out, two-run homer in the ninth and Chipper Jones won it with a 12th-inning single, leading the Atlanta Braves from five runs down to an improbable 6-5 victory over the Chicago Cubs on Tuesday night.

“These are character-builders,” Jones said. “We were dead in the water.”

Instead, it’s the Cubs who are flailing. They slipped back to .500 with their 11th loss in 15 games and wasted a brilliant performance by Randy Wells. The rookie didn’t allow a hit until Jones singled with two outs in the seventh, but the bullpen failed to bring home his first big league win.

“That’s baseball,” Wells said. “Stuff will happen. You can’t sulk.”

But the biggest blow belonged to the struggling Francoeur, a former phenom now being mentioned in trade reports. He drove a 2-1 pitch into the seats in left-centre for just his fourth homer of the season.

“I worked for about two hours on the off day (Monday), hitting, trying to shorten my swing a little bit,” said Francoeur, who got a helmet-pounding reception from his teammates in the dugout. “It paid off.”

I know some people are getting tired of the Jeff Francoeur stuff. But I couldn’t pass on the headline.