I still can't believe it took McCutchen that long to get a spot though, and I was annoyed last night by how little he was used (defensive sub in the 7th after Kemp had 3 plate appearances). That doesn't qualify as 'the second half of the game' to me, Bochy, but whatever. It's just an All Star Game, no reason to get incensed
I'll be interested to see what this team does with the deadline looming. We're due to improve a lot by the end of the month without having to add anyone to the roster...but we still need an improvement somewhere, preferably at one of the power corners. Ryan Doumit, Ronny Cedeno, Jose Tabata, and Joe Beimel will be returning from injuries soon and Pedro Alvarez's spell in AAA after his rehab stint shouldn't last past this month. Doumit & Cedeno usually wouldn't be considered upgrades...but considering we're using our 5th & 6th string catchers right now Doumit will at least give the position some offense and Cedeno has been lights out defensively, which has been a huge help for our pitching since so many of our pitchers are sinkerballers that rely on that. d'Arnaud is just wild. Tabata was starting to warm up after a lengthy slump, and should make Diaz appearances rarer and rarer, which is a very, very good thing. Beimel gives us a veteran lefty arm in the bullpen, compared to the rarely used rookie in his spot, Danny Moskos.
If a trade happens I'm smelling it from the Cubs direction. They've got lousy contracts they want to unleash...it's all about if Nutting will open up his wallet. I'm not really holding my breath.
Who did they let off the hook in this category?
