Chicago Cubs

Rogers Hornsby was the greatest of the great second baseman. It isn't even close.

Johnny Evers was a good second baseman for the Chicago Cubs during their glory days, which ended more than 100 years ago.

Comparing Rogers Hornsby to Johnny Evers is analogous to comparing Albert Pujols to Adam LaRoche.

Hornsby was the National League MVP in 1925 and again in 1929. He won the Triple Crown in 1922 and again in 1925.

In 1924, Hornsby batted .424, which is a mark that will never be approached.

Ryan Theriot has compiled 54 hits ranking him second among National League hitters and representing a great start to the season at the plate. This has led to a decent .307 batting average.

What is somewhat concerning is his lack of extra base hits. Of his 54 hits, only five are of the extra base variety. His Isolated Power Index (ISO) has him sitting at .034, worst in the N.L., and second worst in the majors behind (cough) Juan Pierre.

Expecting Theriot to match his career high 7 homers from last season is a bit too much to ask, as that's just not his game.

Last night for the Chicago Cubs Triple-A affiliate in Iowa, one of the less heralded potential superstar prospects in baseball had another good night.

Andrew Cashner, the Cubs first round draft pick in 2008, dominated for seven innings as the Iowa Cubs won 1-0. Cashner was an elite closer in college, but the Cubs are trying to make him into a starter.

Trying?

Since being promoted to Triple-A, Cashner is putting up numbers that could easily be confused for those of super-prospect Stephen Strasburg of the Washington Nationals.

It's one thing to be in a slump. It's quite another thing entirely if a player is trying to play through an injury.

Today especially, Aramis Ramirez looked to be favoring his thumb and if so, he should be on the disabled list until he is healthy enough to play.

Look, he isn't producing anyway, either in the field or at the plate. So if he is hurt, trying to play through it is the wrong thing to do.

It was eight years ago today that Mark Prior became only the 14th player in Chicago Cubs history to win his Major League debut dating back to 1920. Prior and the Cubs beat the Pirates 7-4.

Prior was drafted second overall by the Cubs in 2001. The Twins, who had the first pick in the draft, were interested in Prior, but were told that he did not want to play for them. Instead, Minnesota took Joe Mauer number one. That's worked out pretty well for them.

This article is also available at The Daily Cub.  Visit TheDailyCub.com for opinions, game recaps and more.

While watching the Cubs today, you got a great view of just how bad the Cubs supposed "stars" are, while also seeing how the less impressive players have stepped up to try to fix the situation.

The Cubs entered the day with four straight wins and were hoping to sweep a second straight two-game series, after taking the first game last night in convincing fashion.

Wrigleyville has seen Cubs come and go for years.

The story of the Chicago Cubs dates back to the 1870's.

The Cubs won 11 of their 16 pennants before 1920.

Unless you are over 100 years old you can not remember a Chicago Cubs world championship.

Since there halcyon days, the Cubs have given Chicago and Cubs fans everywhere, heartbreak and very few triumphs.

The anatomy of a Cubs fan is different then any other fan. When things are so close you know something is about to go wrong.

I know it's way too soon in the Chicago Cubs ownership career of one Tom Ricketts to say too many things about him, good or bad.

All anyone can do is evaluate the man on what he says and, more importantly, what he does.

He says he’s a Cubs fan, and that’s a positive of course. He even met his wife in the bleachers supposedly.

All well and good.

He wants to win by building through scouting and development.

This article was originally published at The Daily Cub.  Visit TheDailyCub.com for game recaps and opinions about the Chicago Cubs

Marlon Byrd has been essentially carrying the Chicago Cubs, sporting a .340 average to go along with his .951 OPS. His 51 hits are second to only Martin Prado in the National League.

A glaring issue with Byrd's season thus far, is his shockingly low walk rate. He has walked only three times, good enough for the worst walk rate in the majors (1.9 percent). Byrd has never been mistaken for a walk machine, but he would set a career low at this pace.

Of course, Byrd's walk rate is acceptable so long as he continues his hit parade, but is that possible?