Seiya Suzuki of the Chicago Cubs (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
After losing two games to the St. Louis Cardinals, the Chicago Cubs now sit at 27-26. And like last season, there seems to be little sense of urgency on the part of the team. In addition, the Cubs high salary guys just aren’t producing. That’s a shame since the Cubs are getting a lot of mileage from guys who aren’t making a lot of money.
Imanaga, Assad, Wesneski and Brown are all outperforming their contracts
The Cubs starting pitching has turned out to be surprisingly strong. Shota Imanaga has been the best pitcher in baseball. Javier Assad has also been solid while Ben Brown and Hayden Wesneski have been outstanding in both starting and relief roles,
Kyle Hendricks has been an unmitigated disaster while making $16 million. That’s pretty much on par with what Imanaga makes. Like most Cubs fans, I’ve loved watching Kyle pitch for the Cubs, and he’s been one of my favorites but if the Cubs were run like a meritocracy Kyle would be off the roster.
Adbert Alzolay is getting some medical attention after doing tremendous damage out of the Cubs bullpen. Cubs’ manager, Craig Counsel has given Hendricks and Alzolay entirely too much latitude.
If Suzuki is the best Cubs hitter, it would be nice if he showed it
This is Seiya Suzuki‘s third season with the Cubs, and he has shown flashes of being the hitter the team thinks he could be. But frankly, he hasn’t been worth the $21 million he’s making this season.
And speaking of $21 million, that’s also what Ian Happ is making. He hasn’t been worth it either. After hitting two home runs last night, Ian sits at four home runs and 17 RBIs. $21 million doesn’t buy what it used to.
And then there’s Dansby Swanson. Dansby recently came off the IL after dealing with a balky knee. That may explain Dansby’s lack of production this season. Swanson is currently hitting .219 with an OPS of .633. Dansby allegedly feasts on fastballs. Well for a guy who allegedly feats on fastballs, Dansby seems to be missing a lot of fastballs. That’s a disturbing trend for a guy making $26 million this season.
Cody Bellinger hasn’t been disastrous this season, but his .767 OPS doesn’t merit his $30 million paycheck for 2024.
While Yan Gomes is making “only” $6 million, he’s hitting .167 with an OPS of .447. And if you see him at the plate, he seems completely lost. He could be a DFA candidate if the Cubs can unearth other options.
There is potential help available in Iowa
First of all, Pete Crow-Armstrong should be in Chicago now. But in addition to PCA, Brennen Davis and Alexander Canario are also tearing it up in Iowa. Plus, Owen Caissie is a potential sleeper as outfield help.
They may be able to give the offense a shot in the arm. Or at least be used as trade material for an established bat or closer.
Luis Vazquez is already in Chicago to provide infield depth. He’s considered a tremendous defender whose bat isn’t as strong. I wonder if Vazquez couldn’t provide almost as much production at a fraction of the cost of Swanson.
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