Cubs Win (Creative Commons: Ron Cogswell)
The Chicago Cubs have actually strung together two wins in a row. Friday’s 5-1 over the Los Angeles Angels was a particularly solid win. Justin Steele pitched the first complete game of his career. Seiya Suzuki hit a two-run homer in the first, and the Cubs tacked on single runs in the third, fifth, and sixth innings. In each case, the run was driven by a two-out hit.
Miles Mastrobuoni played third base for the Cubs and turned in three sparkling defensive plays. And Seiya Suzuki dropped a flyball. Again.
So, what’s the Cubs’ move?
The Cubs still have a long way to go to be a playoff team. They are getting no production from catcher, third base and shortstop. And very little from second base.
One option, assuming they aren’t ready to punt on the season, is go with a strong defensive lineup. Christopher Morel has been killing them defensively at third and Seiya Suzuki is becoming an adventure in right field. While Suzuki has been really hitting the ball well, the same cannot be said for Christopher Morel. If Morel isn’t hitting, he has no value to the team.
It seems that Suzuki may be better suited as a DH at this time. If the Cubs aren’t going to get any offense from Morel, maybe the team should roll with either Mastrobuoni or David Bote at third.
If the Cubs went with Pete Crow-Armstong in center and Cody Bellinger in right, they would at least have a strong team defensively.
Who could be gone?
Cody Bellinger and John Hoerner are two names being mentioned lately. If they are moved, some help at catching, third base, or the bullpen would be nice.
If Bellinger is moved, Owen Caissie could slide into right field.
Some guys are starting to hit
Ian Happ has been carrying the team in their relatively few victories recently. Happ had a game winning homer in games against the Giants, Brewers, and Phillies in the span of about a week. Today, he drove in two rubs more with key two-out hits.
In addition, Seiya Suzuki has also come alive at the plate. Michael Busch has also been helping out and Cody Bellinger, though not hitting with power, is still hitting for a decent average, and getting on base.
Some pitchers could return in July
Julian Merryweather, Mark Leiter Jr., Javier Assad, Ben Brown and Keegan Thompson are all possibilities to return in July. In the meantime, Luke Little has stuck out 27 in 24.2 innings of work, though the 19 walks are a source of concern. Porter Hodge has also done some good work recently.
Whether the return of pitchers from the IL will be enough to matter remains to be seen.
Regardless, it would be nice to see evidence of a plan going forward.
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