The sh*t hits the fan

Wow.

Corey Patterson and Jason Dubois will be wearing Iowa Cubs jerseys the next time they step onto a baseball field.

Matt Murton and Adam Greenberg were called up from Double-A West Tennessee.

Yet, Dusty Baker remains as manager. What will it take for Dusty to get fired?

Here's a great article from Phil Rogers of The Chicago Tribune

Well, at least the Cubs have an official scapegoat now.

Identifying the root of their troubles was about all that will be accomplished by the Cubs sending Corey Patterson to Triple-A Iowa after getting swept Thursday in Atlanta.

It would be nice if this stark wake-up call could send a signal to Patterson, but that's asking too much. Patterson does not appear capable of adjusting his free-swinging approach, so the guy once likened to Rickey Henderson is doomed forever to remain on the Gary Pettis career path.

No, if the Cubs were going to accomplish something significant, they would have found somebody to take Patterson in a trade, saving themselves the tease. With the exception of the first half of 2003, before he blew out his knee, Patterson has been a major disappointment for two managers now.

Anyone paying attention grasped this long before Cubs manager Dusty Baker, who had Patterson in the right spot in the batting order for exactly one game back in June--when he hit him eighth at Yankee Stadium. Why Baker let Patterson persuade him to put him back in the leadoff spot--the move that triggered the losing streak that reached eight games with the sweep by the Braves--is a mystery.

But the truth is Baker has had just as bad a season as has Patterson. Ditto general manager Jim Hendry, who is spitting in the wind if he thinks neophyte outfielders Matt Murton and Adam Greenberg will be upgrades over Patterson and Jason Dubois. They have potential, but neither has played above Double A. They could get eaten alive.

Dubois was as well prepared for the majors as a hitter can be, proving himself through the minors and in winter ball. But even such a relatively seasoned 26-year-old couldn't handle being jerked around by a manager who would rather turn a veteran role player (Todd Hollandsworth) into a regular than develop a young hitter. Dubois would have survived with regular at-bats but wasn't getting them.

While Patterson's 6-for-46 slump was the centerpiece of the Cubs' latest swoon (7-17 since June 11), it's too easy to put their problems on him. The reality is that the biggest problem remains the bullpen. And Baker's handling of the team has been curious since spring training.

It's July 8, and the Cubs still don't know who their second-best relief pitcher is. That is an indictment of both the front office and the manager.

Was anyone surprised when the bullpen surrendered six runs in the eighth inning to lose the nightcap against the Braves? Ryan Dempster has been a blessing as the closer, but the setup crew has been in shambles all season. The worst injury of the year, worse than Nomar Garciaparra, Kerry Wood or Mike Prior, was Chad Fox's blown elbow in April.

That, of course, could have been prevented (or at the very least delayed) if Baker had not brought Fox into a 10-3 game and not left him in for 29 pitches on a night he didn't have it. The season-long bullpen situation might have been better if Baker had not called a late audible that moved Dempster into the season-opening rotation.

If Dempster had opened the season as the closer, which was the plan entering spring training, LaTroy Hawkins might have found his comfort zone back in setup relief. Instead Hawkins infected the staff with bad karma until Hendry peddled him to San Francisco--the best move he has made since the Sosa trade.

Meanwhile, the thin lineup around him exposed Patterson for being little more than a supporting player.

For all the talk about how he needs to use his speed, the one thing that kills Patterson is his vision. He swings at far too many pitches, including pitchers' pitches that are just outside the strike zone, and struggles to make hard contact. He never has learned to trust his bat speed, letting the pitches get closer before he commits.

Murton and Greenberg are both promising hitters, but the best outfielder in the Cubs' farm system is Felix Pie, a 20-year-old center fielder who was playing between Murton and Greenberg at Double-A West Tenn. The Cubs don't want to rush him, but he's a better bet to be the Cubs' center fielder in 2007 than is Patterson.

Will Baker still be the manager in '07?

Barring a dramatic turnaround, that's the question that will occupy the last months of this season. A center fielder can be assigned only so much blame.

I hope it doesn't take until 2007 to get rid of Dusty.

And lastly, don't be surprised if Jerry Hairston is dealt by the end of the month. Recent quotes indicate that he and Dusty Baker are not friends.

At least we have some interesting stuff happening as we're losing!