https://northsidebaseball.com/news-rumors/chicago-cubs/page/168/?d=7enhttps://northsidebaseball.com/news-rumors/chicago-cubs/justin-steeles-fastball-is-slowly-sinking-and-thats-okay-r61/Justin Steele will take the mound at Wrigley Field Tuesday night, opposite San Diego Padres starter Blake Snell. It’s a fascinating matchup of starters, because the two share a pitch almost perfectly in common–only, not really. Snell’s slider has almost identical movement to Steele’s...61Tue, 25 Apr 2023 12:27:01 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/news-rumors/chicago-cubs/does-david-ross-need-to-change-the-way-he-uses-keegan-thompson-r59/The Cubs entered this season with as little clarity about roles in the bullpen as they have had at any time in recent memory. There was no obvious closer, though it was fairly clear that Michael Fulmer would get the first chance to secure that job. There were multiple guys whose utility lied in...59Mon, 24 Apr 2023 12:24:01 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/news-rumors/chicago-cubs/why-the-cubs-must-solve-their-first-base-and-catcher-problems-and-how-they-can-r58/That said, there are reasons to question its sustainability. It seems unlikely that Patrick Wisdom will continue to hit like Paul Goldschmidt did last year on the way to an MVP award (though if he does, more power to him!). While the hot streaks may cool for several players, there’s cause for op...58Sun, 23 Apr 2023 12:50:01 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/news-rumors/chicago-cubs/how-drew-smyly-dominated-the-dodgers-and-whats-next-for-him-r57/From the moment Drew Smyly took the mound Friday, he was in command. He had both his fastball and his curveball working, and he had a quick epiphany: he would not need his cutter. Thus, he didn't throw one at all, Smyly hardly ever completely shelves that pitch. He technically went his entire fi...57Sat, 22 Apr 2023 12:46:24 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/news-rumors/chicago-cubs/is-dansby-swanson-a-more-patient-hitter-now-r56/First of all, in answering that question, we have to be clear: Dansby Swanson's current plate discipline numbers would represent a major change for the established star. He's never drawn as many as 50 unintentional walks in a season, so he's doing that more than twice as often as has been his no...56Fri, 21 Apr 2023 12:11:00 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/news-rumors/chicago-cubs/draft-preview-catchers-personalcheeseballs-r55/From time to time, you’ll watch an elite-hitting catching prospect stay behind the dish. Joe Mauer in the early 2000s. Adley Rutschman now. Bryce Harper was going to be the next big thing - and he’s mostly lived up to the hype - but many forget that he was a catcher until the moment he was draft...55Thu, 20 Apr 2023 15:15:00 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/news-rumors/chicago-cubs/what-makes-nico-hoerner-such-a-special-hitter-r54/Every great hitter has great hands. They all have sharp eyes. They all have strength from elbow to fingertips. Nico Hoerner has all of those things, but he doesn't deploy them in especially traditional, straightforward ways. He has his own wrinkle, and it's a doozy. Let's look at what is a...54Thu, 20 Apr 2023 10:01:30 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/news-rumors/chicago-cubs/the-early-returns-on-nico-hoerners-return-to-second-base-r53/For a team that has languished for the better part of *gestures broadly at the last century* at the leadoff spot, Nico Hoerner has been a bit of a revelation. He’s 97th percentile in K%, fanning less than 10 percent of the time, and 99th in Whiff%. He’s not evincing big power or chqarging up his...53Wed, 19 Apr 2023 11:42:17 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/news-rumors/chicago-cubs/scorching-starts-by-patrick-wisdom-and-christopher-morel-give-cubs-good-options-at-third-base-r52/As I watch Patrick Wisdom hit his second homer of the night and tie Pete Alonso for the league lead, with eight, I am reminded of two things.  There’s a slight chance I might have been at least a little bit wrong about this Cubs offense. It’s fun! It’s not especially powerful (beyond Wisdo...52Tue, 18 Apr 2023 12:08:18 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/news-rumors/chicago-cubs/hayden-wesneski-his-arm-slot-and-the-improvements-hes-made-r51/  Just over a week ago, we talked about how Hayden Wesneski altered the arm slot and release point on his four-seamer during the spring. It was a necessary change, because prior to that adjustment, he was throwing the four-seamer and his cutter from a different slot than his sinker, sweepin...51Tue, 18 Apr 2023 05:47:09 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/news-rumors/chicago-cubs/the-third-54-report-stealing-one-r48/Every team will win 54 games in the long grind of an MLB season, and every team will lose 54. The other 54 determine the outcome of your season. When you lost on an excruciating walkoff sequence the previous night, though, and when it’s getaway day at Dodger Stadium, and when you’re sending your...48Mon, 17 Apr 2023 06:16:43 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/news-rumors/chicago-cubs/the-third-54-report-hollywood-heartbreak-r45/Jameson Taillon still hasn’t fully found his form for the Cubs yet, and the team paid the price for that on Saturday, even though Taillon managed five scoreless innings. The cost took the form of Taillon having to leave after five, because he’d expended too much energy and showed Dodgers hitters...45Sun, 16 Apr 2023 06:49:27 +0000