It’s Tuesday night at BCB After Dark: the jazziest joint for night owls, early risers, new parents and Cubs fans abroad. Come on in and join us for a while. We love to host new friends and old friends. There’s no cover charge. We still have a few tables available. Bring your own beverage.
BCB After Dark is the place for you to talk baseball, music, movies, or anything else you need to get off your chest, as long as it is within the rules of the site. The late-nighters are encouraged to get the party started, but everyone else is invited to join in as you wake up the next morning and into the afternoon.
The Cubs are playing the Padres as I write this. Beat those Friars.
Last night I asked you who should replace the injured Justin Steele in the medium term. It was a bit of a runaway as 47 percent of you would go with Javier Assad when he returns from the injured list. (And Assad had a good rehab start tonight.) Twenty-four percent of you want to go with Jordan Wicks.
On Tuesday night/Wednesday morning, I don’t normally write about movies. But I always have time for jazz, so you people know the drill if you’re not interested.
I was searching for a video on YouTube to present when I came across this performance of “Autumn Leaves” featuring trumpeter Chet Baker and saxophonist Paul Desmond. My first thought was “Baker and Desmond. Haven’t featured either one in a while. I should check it out.” But then I watched the video and I couldn’t believe the three legends supporting those two legends. Ron Carter is on bass, Bob James plays piano (and I’ve never seen James that young) and Steve Gadd is on drums. What a quintet.
The video isn’t of the greatest picture quality, but the sound is good. I don’t know when this was recorded, but it looks like mid-sixties to me.
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Welcome back to everyone who skips all that jazz.
The Cubs sent infielder Matt Shaw down to Triple-A Iowa today and activated infielder Vidal Bruján.
Shaw was struggling at the plate to start the season, hitting .172/.294/.241 in 68 plate appearances. It’s not uncommon for hitters to struggle to start their major league careers. I think we all remember Pete Crow-Armstrong’s issues last season. The Brewers’ Jackson Churio hit ,206/.257/.351 in the first month of 2024. The point here is that both players got better as the season progressed and they saw more major league pitching. Churio even finished strong enough to finish third in Rookie of the Year balloting.
On the other hand, the Cubs need to win games right now and Shaw wasn’t really helping the Cubs win. Of course, it’s an open question whether Bruján will help the Cubs win games, but Shaw will be able to work on things in Iowa without the added pressure of playing in the majors.
Tonight’s question is a simple one. Did the Cubs make the right call sending Shaw down to Iowa today? They could have let Bruján continue his minor league rehab for a while and give Shaw more time to figure things out in the majors. Or they could have sent Gage Workman back to Detroit, as he’s not getting much playing time in Chicago.
On the other hand, Shaw needs to play and if he’s not helping the Cubs win ball games, then maybe he should be playing in Iowa and not sitting on the bench in Chicago.
Poll
Did the Cubs make the right call sending Matt Shaw down to Iowa?
-
81%
Yes
(362 votes)
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18%
No
(82 votes)
444 votes total
Vote Now
Thank you for stopping by this evening. We always enjoy seeing you. Please get home safely. Check around to make sure you haven’t forgotten anything. Tip your waitstaff. And join us again tomorrow night for more BCB After Dark.
