Quote of the Day: Pete Rose says the Cubs “will find a way to screw it up”

By Jun 15, 2016, 10:53 AM EDT
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Pete Rose made a bunch of friends among Ichiro fans with his comments yesterday, so he’s decided to move on to Cubs fans. Here’s the Hit King on Fox Sports Radio talking about the Cubs’ great start and their World Series chances:

The Cubs right now no question have the best team, but I can’t root for a team that hasn’t won since 1907. The Cubs will find a way to screw it up I think. They’ve got a good ball club, probably the best ball club in the league right now. They’re playing like it, but again, they can be pitched to, their pitchers can be hit. It’s just a matter of who’s going to give them a fight at the end of the season, in the playoffs.

The Cubs, are they going to play good all year like last year when they won 97 games and then got swept in the playoffs? We’ll have to wait and see, because in the playoffs, you’re a different animal.

I like to pile on Pete Rose as much as the next guy, but let’s not pretend that’s not a pretty decent take. No, not the “because they haven’t won since 1907” part (it was 1908, but who’s counting?). I think he and a lot of other people put way too much emphasis on history as a predictor of the future when it doesn’t really work like that most of the time. That’s just superstition. No, I mean the “playoffs are a different animal” thing and the idea that even the best teams have flaws.

As we see each year, teams with great offenses can be “pitched to” in the playoffs. Bullpens and defense have become extraordinarily important in the postseason. The Cubs are still messing around with rando bullpen options, because they realize that could be a problem as the season wears on and the weather gets colder. They’re winning a lot now, but they’re not perfect. No team is. Ask the 2001 Mariners.

Rose may be pretty fixated on the Cubs’ century plus of failure, but he’s not wrong about there being no sure things. Also, let’s be honest: half of Cubs fans are probably secretly worrying that they will, in fact, screw this up somehow. That’s part of the essence of being a Cubs fan. If the Cubs win the World Series this year, the club erasing all of those doubts in its fan base will be a huge part of the beauty of the season. Maybe even more so than the triumph would be for its own sake.

 

Anthony Volpe, 21, wins Yankees’ starting shortstop job

Associated PressMar 27, 2023, 12:02 PM EDT
Dave Nelson-USA TODAY Sp
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TAMPA, Fla. — Anthony Volpe grew up watching Derek Jeter star at shortstop for the New York Yankees.

Now, the 21-year-old is getting the chance to be the Yankees’ opening day shortstop against the San Francisco Giants.

The team announced after a 6-2 win over Toronto in spring training that Volpe had won the spot. New York manager Aaron Boone called the kid into his office to deliver the news.

“My heart was beating pretty hard,” said Volpe, rated one of baseball’s best prospects. “Incredible. I’m just so excited. It’s hard for me to even put into words.”

Yankees general manager Brian Cashman, hitting coach Dillon Lawson and bench coach Carlos Mendoza were also present.

Volpe was able to share the news with his parents and other family members near the Yankees’ dugout and said it is something he will never forget.

“It was pretty emotional,” Volpe said. “It was just an unbelievable moment to share with them.”

Volpe, who grew up a Yankees fan, lived in Manhattan as a child before moving to New Jersey. Jeter was his favorite player.

“It’s very surreal,” Volpe said. “I’ve only ever been to games at Yankee Stadium and for the most part only watched him play there.”

Volpe is hitting .314 with three homers, five RBIs and a .417 on-base percentage in 17 Grapefruit League games. He has just 22 games of experience at Triple-A.

Spring training started with Volpe, Oswald Peraza and holdover Isiah Kiner-Falefa competing for the everyday shortstop job. Kiner-Falefa was shifted into a utility role midway through camp, and Peraza was optioned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Sunday evening.

“While certainly the performance was there, he killed it between the lines,” Boone said of Volpe. “All the other things that we’ve been hearing about showed up. There’s an energy he plays the game with, and an instinct that he has that is evident. He really checked every box that we could have had for him. Absolutely kicked the door in and earned his opportunity.”

Volpe arrived in Florida in December to work out at the Yankees’ minor league complex.

“He’s earned the right to take that spot, and we’re excited for him and excited for us,” Cashman said. “He just dominated all sides of the ball during February and March, and that bodes well obviously for him as we move forward.”

Volpe was selected out of high school with the 30th overall pick in the 2019 draft from Delbarton School in New Jersey. He passed up a college commitment to Vanderbilt to sign with the Yankees.

“It was a once-in-a-lifetime chance to get into the organization,” Volpe said. “This day, this feeling, this moment was kind of what I’ve worked my whole life for when I made that big decision.”

“Right now it’s crazy,” he added. “I don’t even know what lies ahead but Thursday I just want to go out and play, and have fun.”