Marmol more than happy to stay with Cubs
Carlos Marmol seemed surprised Wednesday to hear that he wanted out of Chicago.
“I’m not going (anywhere),” Marmol said before Wednesday night’s Cubs game against the Colorado Rockies. “I’m very happy here. I can’t wait until they do something and I can stay here.
“You know I always talk about how I love Chicago and I love being here. I love my teammates. I love everybody here.”
A website created a minor sensation Wednesday afternoon when it published photos of Marmol and his agents meeting in a public area of Marmol’s Chicago apartment building. The website, Bleacher Nation, wrote a story based on alleged comments made by Marmol, comments that were overheard by the picture-taker.
Marmol is said to have told his agent he wants out of Chicago for a fresh start. (The website later apologized for how it handled the story.)
“I know what I said, but I didn’t say anything about baseball,” Marmol said. “I don’t know who that guy is or why he tweeted it or whatever. I don’t know where that came from.”
Marmol lost his job as closer early in the season. It’s no secret the Cubs would like to trade him as he’s in the final season of a three-year, $20 million contract.
Entering Wednesday, Marmol had a 2-2 record with a 5.40 ERA, 2 saves and a WHIP of 1.80. He has been used lately in various situations.
“It’s not an easy thing, but I can handle it,” he said. “I’ll pitch whenever.”
Rizzo heating up:First baseman Anthony Rizzo doubled in his first at-bat Wednesday. He entered the game having not struck out in his previous 28 at-bats dating to the sixth inning May 7 against the St. Louis Cardinals.That was the second-longest active streak in the major leagues without a strikeout. Rizzo trailed only Baltimore#146;s J.J. Hardy, who had not struck out in his previous 31 at-bats.Rizzo entered the game hitting .380 (21-for-71) with 8 doubles, 3 homers, 15 RBI and an OPS of 1.056 in his previous 18 games dating to April 26. Before that, he had batted .173 (14-for-81) in his first 21 games to start the season.#147;I think all hitters are always kind of tinkering with this and that,#148; manager Dale Sveum said. #147;It might be something this day, something tomorrow, and whatever works, you stick with it until that runs out.#147;Guys like that who have a little bit going on, the hand position, things that aren#146;t quite conventional, you always tinker a little bit because of being uncomfortable. Then you change something up a little bit. It doesn#146;t have to be drastic, just enough to get comfortable again.#148;