In the wake of two blown saves in the city of big shoulders this weekend, Cubs and Sox fans alike are pondering the age old question: Am I comfortable with a lead when our closer comes in? Carlos Marmol and Bobby Jenks are two prime examples of guys whose effectiveness fluctuates significantly depending on the outing (For Jenks, it used to depend on how much Evan Williams whiskey he sucked down in the bullpen during the first 8 innings).
As the Semisonic lyrics read, "Every new beginning comes from some other beginnings end" and since losing 3 consecutive games to division rival Minnesota is a new revelation for the formerly red-hot White Sox, we are wondering if this is the beginning of the end. On Sunday, Jenks' pitching looked almost as miserable as his cat-whisker facial hair as he managed to come into the game, blow the lead, get pulled, and finally, sulk in the dugout all without managing to record a single out. For the White Sox, whenever they seem to be playing well, it is because Jenks has been pitching well. In their World Championship year of 2005, Jenks burst onto the scene as the Sox morbidly obese and horrifically unattractive, yet reliable closer. Jenks also passes the test on the 3 cardinal rules of being an MLB closer 1.) Coming out to a generic ACDC/Metallica song. 2.) Having below average facial hair 3.) Least important of course: be able to record outs when you have a small lead in the late innings. Jenks, however is a pretty volatile character. When he's good, he's highly effective. When he's bad, he is damn near abominable (ex:Sunday afternoon). As well as the Sox have played as of late, this weekend made the collective Sox nation wonder if they are really comfortable with a sober Bobby Jenks coming out of the bullpen in the 9th. I mean, come on, Bobby Jenks and sobriety go together about as well as milk and pad thai. Ever since the beginning of the season, it has been reported that Jenks is "on the wagon" and is practicing some form of alcohol abstinence. Yes, the same guy who never pitched a single inning in high school due to alcohol and cocaine abuse. This must make you wonder, how is he dealing with the constant stress of being a closer? It is in the closer's job description to be edgy and bizarre enough to deal with the rigors of pitching nearly every day for only a single inning. I always envisioned Jenks after a loss gulping bourbon until he falls ass-backwards into his own locker, or binging on Robitussin until he regurgitates on the team charter. Either way, thinking about what he may do after Sunday nights loss just makes me feel downright vexatious. Chances are, he is probably going crazy enough to drive his rental Nissan Sentra to Detroit and commit a homicide with Jose Valverde (dude is crazy).
On the other side of town, Carlos Marmol has become the ultimate "hold your breath" guy in baseball because of his uncanny ability to walk the bases loaded and either A.) strike out the side with a dominating and overpowering assortment of fastballs and breaking pitches, or B.) give up 4,342 consecutive "seeing-eye-singles" until he has blown the Cubs lead (Cubs leading is a very rare occurrence itself) into smithereens. I haven't seen a pitcher in the bigs today with stuff as electric as Marmol's (led the league last year in K's per 9). But, his tendency to issue BoB's like a garage band hippie handing out promo fliers for their first "live gig" can be detrimental to the stress level of Cub fans. On Saturday when Marmol blew the save, you had the feeling the Cubs were just waiting to self-destruct. Seriously, the Cubs haven't won a game 1-0 since the Reagan administration. Truth is, Marmol still is very young and control problems are probably a better problem than Tommy John surgery or contracting a bad case of Dengue Fever.
Still, these are the closers that Chicago has moving forward. So, hopefully Jenks and Marmol can start to close games and get the fans to "gather up your jackets and move into the exits" Semisonic. Eventually, in Carlos and Bobby "I hope you have found a friend" Semisonic.
Also, I didn't realize that the day I bet against the Yankees was going to be the day they honored George Steinbrenner at Yankee Stadium. As a result, I lost the bet and am now fighting to get back to .500. Today's bet was recommended by my main man, Pulse-- a small amount betting extraordinaire. So, the bet of the day is on the Cub game because they are on Sunday Night Baseball. The line for both teams' combined runs, hits and errors is 24 1/2. With Roy Halladay on the mound, we're taking the under. The line on the amount of times Soriano spits is at 43,654,342...I'm gonna take the over.
Daily Bet: Phillies @ Cubs combined runs, hits and errors- 24 1/2 -UNDER
Record- (1-2-0)
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