The Chicago Cubs escaped a series sweep at the hands of the New York Mets yesterday, with a come from behind 3-2 victory at home that stopped their losing streak at 9. Had they fallen at Wrigley Field to the visiting Metropolitans, it would have marked their fourth 10 game losing streak of the first half. Yes, you read that right.
They sit at 35-57 heading into the All-Star break, which puts them on pace for a 61-101 season. Obviously, at first glance, their midterm grade is a F, or maybe a D-, but we’ll go a bit deeper than that in our analysis.
The Cubs game in to that game as heavy underdogs where you have baseball betting available at Arabic online casinos online. Typically, the Cubs were priced at about +285 while the Mets could be had at -375. Makes sense given how the Mets have the second best record in the National League right now and have sat atop the NL East division most of the season thus far. While the Cubs are overall bad, their offense, at times, hasn’t been all that terrible.
They can hit the ball, it’s just that their hitting is not clutch, and the team’s RISP metrics have been downright putrid at times. That said, there are more everyday regulars in this line-up with “game” than you might think.
Attending a Chicago Cubs home game these days means seeing about 90% of the fans sporting jerseys and sherseys of guys who left the club at least a year ago. That said, you have a couple potential building blocks here and there.
Writes Brian Harl of the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America:
“Nico Hoerner and Christopher Morel have been two of the most impressive parts of the 2022 Cubs team so far. Their play, along with offensive leadership from All-Star catcher Willson Contreras (the Cubs‘ first-half MVP), has been at the forefront of the team’s sporadic attempts at being competitive this year.”
Contreras is an All-Star and he’ll be joined this week by Ian Happ, a guy who is FINALLY living up to his hype as a really high draft pick (better late than never).
Unfortunately, one if not both are likely to be shipped out before the trade deadline, and therein lies the rub. If the Ricketts family is going to continue being sellers at the deadline, then the darkest thoughts are therefore confirmed. They have a non-rebuilding plan, not actual ambitions of rebuilding this club into a winner.
At some point, you have to keep, and then develop the true legit everyday starters on your roster, if you’re serious about competing again. I have absolutely zero faith in Ricketts to do that, given his recent track record. Despite his hamstringing Jed Hoyer and David Ross, I still have found a couple bright spots here and there, so overall, I would have to give their offense/position players a C- on the season.
Now on to the pitching, and that’s where it get ugly. There is only so much Contreras can do to handle this staff, and only so many moves that Rossy can make to manage it.
As Harl points out: “there have been multiple times this season where 80 percent of their initial starting rotation has been unavailable or injured.”
If you’re watching yesterday’s game on Marquee Network, the state TV propaganda of the franchise that takes spin to a level that would make the old Soviet Union media people blush, you might have noticed a message that they repeatedly pushed.
The Cubs are, according to their stats, the third most injury-stricken in Major League Baseball. That’s in terms of opening day roster players having spent time on the I.L. While some of that may be true, it really is no excuse. Marquee also spotlighted the starting staff injury woes, and again that’s real, but this rotation wasn’t likely to be that good anyway.
It’s unfortunate that Kyle Hendricks, one of just three players left from the 2016 World Series championship team (which now feels like it was 60 years ago, not six), is having anything but the kind of season that you would expect from The Professor.
The bullpen has some bright spots though, so we’ll give the pitching staff a D on their midterms and the team itself a D+. Tough, but fair. The Chicago Cubs are not being “given” these grades. They have “earned” them.
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Bank (TheSportsBank.Net) and author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” as well as “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune, and he co-hosts the After Extra Time podcast, part of Edge of the Crowd Network. Follow him and the website on Twitter and Instagram.