19 for 19

If you want to know why the Cubs lost last night, look no farther than Jim Hendry. His lack of balls in refusing to outright release Antonio Alenfuega is sickening, and scary if you really think about it. Alenfuega's contract is up at the end of the year. His salary is fixed until September 28th. He gets his check if he's at Wrigley, Busch, or on a slow boat to the Dominican. The money is already spent, even if his arm falls off. You look at the refusal to eat spent money, then you see Rod Beck. The man is 19 for 19 in save opportunities. I mentioned I'm reading Moneyball. Billy Beane says to stop looking at things like a player's "look" or hs pitch speed, or his power. See if the guy performs in games. You are Hendry. Evaluate Beck at AAA vs. Alenfuega at Wrigley. Hendry's conclusion: Keep Alenfuega and his sunk cost over taking a flyer on Beck. You are Hendry. You make the same decision?

Disturbing.
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The rotation has officially been changed. Prior gets the Cards on Monday. Juan Cruz goes Sunday against the Brewers making him, most importantly, playoff roster eligible. The rest of the Brewer series has penciled in Matt Clement for Friday and Shawn Estes for his scheduled loss on Saturday.

Fred Mitchell interviews (ok, asks three questions) Milt Pappas in today's Trib. "Kerry Wood scares me because he still throws with his arm. That's what happened when he hurt himself. Dusty Baker and I have talked about that because Dusty is a dear friend of mine. Dusty broke in with the Atlanta Braves when I was with the Braves. Why doesn't somebody just take the bull by horns and tell the kid, 'Hey, you have to use your whole body. Otherwise you're going to get hurt again.' His ball is not moving now. It is as straight as an arrow," says Milt.

Chuck