Notice: Trying to get property 'post_title' of non-object in /home/ofzfvenynm4q/public_html/wp-content/plugins/wp-rss-feed-to-post/includes/wprss-ftp-display.php on line 109
The Chicago Cubs reached the halfway point of the season Saturday night, and whether the glass was half-full or half-empty was in the eye of the beholder.
At the start of spring training, PECOTA projections had the Cubs winning 77 games and finishing third in the National League Central behind the St. Louis Cardinals and Milwaukee Brewers.
After Saturday’s weather-delayed 6-0 loss to the Cleveland Guardians, the Cubs are 38-43, on pace for 76 wins and fourth in the division, five games behind the co-leading Brewers and Cincinnati Reds.
The half-full crowd could point to a 14-11 record in June as a sign the Cubs have begun to get their act together. The half-empty crowd could suggest a sub-.500 first-half record indicates little progress from the last two losing seasons.
Asked about the PECOTA projection in spring training, Cubs President Jed Hoyer said 87 or more wins were within sight.
“That has to be our goal, to be a team that’s plus-10 or more, and that’s what everyone here is working hard to do,” he said in mid-February in Mesa, Ariz. “That’s the job. But who am I to question someone’s methodology? We have our internal projections.”
Whether the Cubs are meeting their internal projections remains to be seen, but at the very least they should remain in contention in a mediocre division.
Here are five things to watch in the next month until the trade deadline.
The top two starters, Marcus Stroman and Justin Steele, have kept the Cubs in contention by giving them a chance to win almost every outing. Steele led the majors with a 2.43 ERA through Friday, while Stroman was third at 2.47 before giving up five earned runs in 5 2/3 innings Saturday against the Guardians.
Stroman’s self-confidence seemingly has rubbed off on Steele, who has quietly turned into one of the game’s most dominant left-handers.
“It’s the endless amount of hours nobody sees,” Stroman said June 20 after a win in Pittsburgh. “My work comes from my confidence. I know nobody is going to be more prepared than me out on the field.
“When I step out there, there is nothing in my head that has any bit of doubt about things I could’ve done to make my game even slightly better. I’m confident. Like a true, real confident. It’s not a fake confidence. And that’s not going anywhere anytime soon.”
With Stroman expected to exercise his opt-out clause, Hoyer must decide whether to risk losing him for nothing in return or deal him at the trade deadline and try to re-sign him after the season.
Trading one of the most popular Cubs would seem self-destructive, but Hoyer has experience in that, having dealt Anthony Rizzo, Kris Bryant and Javier Báez in the big summer sell-off of 2021.
Manager David Ross hasn’t gotten any consistency at the position where his old friend Rizzo was a mainstay for 10 seasons.
The Cubs entered Saturday ranked 26th with a .353 slugging percentage at first base and 25th with a .225 average. Eric Hosmer and Trey Mancini started out as a lefty-righty platoon, but Hosmer’s lack of offense led to his release in May and Mancini’s defensive woes have forced Ross to use him mostly as a designated hitter. Hot prospect Matt Mervis immediately cooled off during a brief promotion, and Cody Bellinger’s best position is center field.
Rookie Jared Young has impressed since his call-up this week and could get a chance to run with it if he continues to hit.
Nick Madrigal knows he’s not a prototypical third baseman at 5-foot-8 with almost no power whatsover.
“I know it didn’t look the best on paper, and a lot of people had different opinions on it,” he said Friday of the move from second base in spring training. “But I felt like I can form myself into a third baseman in the league. I know it’s still at the halfway point, but I feel comfortable out there.”
Madrigal was briefly demoted to Triple-A Iowa but entered Saturday hitting .375 (18-for-48) since June 11 and has ably replaced Patrick Wisdom, rehabbing at Iowa with a wrist injury.
“I know everything happens for a reason,” Madrigal said after hitting his first home run in more than two years. “Looking back, maybe (the demotion) was a good thing. I wasn’t happy about it at all, but looking at the big picture, it helped get my timing in everyday at-bats.”
The Cubs know his limitations, but having a contact hitter in the lineup isn’t a bad thing if they can supply power from other positions.
Ross shocked many in 2017 when he became a finalist on “Dancing With the Stars.”
“I’m surprised he made it this far,” Jon Lester told MLB. com. “I told him early to take a fall and pull a hammy and go on home.”
Chicago Tribune Sports
Weekdays
A daily sports newsletter delivered to your inbox for your morning commute.
Ross didn’t win, but he won the hearts of grannies everywhere. Winning over Cubs fans as manager has been a more difficult task since he replaced Joe Maddon in 2020. Early this season his handling of the bullpen was a major bone of contention.
But the recent emergence of Adbert Alzolay as closer and Mark Leiter Jr. and Julian Merryweather as setup men has quieted many of his critics. Ross has no worries about job security for now, but fans ultimately will judge him on whether he can take this team to the postseason.
Hoyer has been a seller in his first two seasons as president. Now he’s expected to be a buyer, depending on where the Cubs stand on Aug. 1.
After an active offseason in which he spent more than $300 million on free agents, Hoyer should have the leeway to add a significant piece or two to ensure the Cubs are playing in October. But if they flop in July, all bets are off.
General manager Carter Hawkins said Wednesday that improvement in all three phases of the game in June “obviously leads to wins, and wins lead to improving our playoff odds, and if we do that more and more, it puts us in position to buy.” FanGraphs gave the Cubs a 14.1% chance of winning the division through Friday.
The NL Central is there for the taking.
Will the Cubs step up and grab it?
