Jacob Zanolla

It took a few days, but the Carson Kelly signing is now official. After entering the offseason with the goal of upgrading at the catcher position, Jed Hoyer grabbed Carson Kelly, one of the last free-agent catchers on the market. Image courtesy of © Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images Carson Kelly's official deal is for two years, earning $11.5 million total. This is quite a solid bargain compared to what other catchers have been earning. Kelly is originally from Chicago, which is a possible reason for the deal coming together. He’s an average catcher offensively, with one of the best parts of this game being the lack of strikeouts and balls chased out of the zone. His OPS of .687 in 2024 is definitely below average but was slightly better than his new partner, Miguel Amaya. Kelly’s defense is the best part of his game, with above-average blocking, framing, and stolen base prevention. His three blocks above average were just over the 60th percentile mark, with his framing around the same. Until Christian Bethancourt was added to the team, the Cubs were one of the worst teams in baseball when it came to throwing runners out. Kelly should help change that, as he threw out four more runners than the average catcher, putting him in the 85th percentile compared to the rest of the league. Once it was clear that someone like Logan O'Hoppe or Cal Raleigh was unavailable via trade, Hoyer had to pivot for the current year. Two possible prospects to investigate as trade options are Drake Baldwin and Carter Jensen, with Cody Bellinger being a trade candidate for both teams. View full article

Tuesday marked the deadline to protect players from the upcoming Rule 5 Draft. In order to be protected, an otherwise eligible player has to be placed on the 40-man roster. The Cubs began the day with that roster full, which means in order to add players, changes had to be made. Image courtesy of © Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images The no-brainer add was Owen Caissie, the 34th-best prospect in all of baseball, per MLB Pipeline. Caissie finished the year in Triple-A Iowa and was a top candidate to be promoted to Chicago. His contact skills come and go, but the raw power is unreal. On top of that, his defense has significantly improved. As of right now, there isn’t a clear spot for him on the active roster. The odds are that he’ll start the season in Iowa, ready to be called up if and when an injury occurs. Caissie’s promotion wasn’t a surprise, but it’s exciting to see him finally get some more recognition. He’s been mentioned as a possible trade candidate, of course, but for now, this was an automatic move. Ben Cowles was the second player to have his contract selected, even though he only played four games in Double-A with the Cubs. Chicago acquired Cowles in July, along with Jack Neely. Cowles was injured before the trade, and Jed Hoyer knew that. It’s a testament to Cowles and his talent that Hoyer was still willing to trade for him, even though there was a risk that the injury would hinder his abilities. Cowles was able to appear in a few games for the Tennessee Smokies before heading to the Arizona Fall League, where he played in 19 games. The returns from the desert weren't pretty, and there was a chance Cowles could have been kept without adding him to the 40-man. Because he controls the strike zone well and has some versatility, though, it was plausible that a team would pluck him in the Rule 5. The front office decided it was worth a roster spot to thwart that risk, and since they're likely to non-tender an infielder (Nick Madrigal, perhaps?) Friday anyway, it cost relatively little to give Cowles the bump. Since the roster was full to begin the day, two players had to be designated for assignment to make room for Caissie and Cowles. Adbert Alzolay and Brennen Davis drew the short straws, with their time in Chicago coming to an end (for now). Alzolay only appeared in 18 games with the Cubs in 2024, posting a 4.67 ERA and 7.38 FIP. After having such a successful 2023, the lackluster performance to begin this season was quite surprising. The team quickly realized Alzolay was injured, and he had Tommy John surgery in August. At first, they tried to find ways around it, but they couldn’t escape the inevitable. Alzolay was set to earn around $2.3 million in arbitration, and is unlikely to pitch at all in 2025. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Cubs try to bring him back on a minor-league deal, letting him rehab before potentially appearing in Chicago again. The second player to be cut loose stings the most, with the former top prospect Davis finally running out of time to get some runway. Davis was one of the top prospects in baseball before the pandemic. After the lost season in 2020, though, injuries plagued Davis for the next three years. He seemed to be making a comeback earlier this year, with 11 home runs in 55 games. His success didn’t last long, as he suffered a back injury in early July and then broke his lower leg on Sept. 10. Davis is one of the prime examples that prospects are never guaranteed. His downfall had nothing to do with a lack of skill, but instead the fact that he couldn’t ever stay healthy. He is also a candidate to be brought back on a minor-league deal, although probably less likely than Alzolay. More roster churn looms for the Cubs, this week and beyond. Tuesday marked a step toward the future, however, with Caissie creeping toward a major role in Chicago and some long-time hopes flickering out. View full article

Seiya Suzuki is underrated around the game of baseball, and this nomination further proves how valuable he is to Craig Counsell's lineup. Image courtesy of © Jim Rassol-Imagn Images A day after learning that Ian Happ won his third straight Gold Glove, his outfield counterpart Seiya Suzuki was announced as a Silver Slugger Award finalist. The Silver Slugger Award is given to each position's best hitter, with one award per league. Jackson Chourio, Teoscar Hernández, Jackson Merrill, and Jurickson Profar were also nominated for the award. Suzuki won multiple offensive awards in Japan, and this is now the second nomination he’s received for this award. This was Suzuki’s best offensive season since coming to America, posting 3.6 fWAR and a 138 wRC+. He hit 21 home runs and walked 63 times. His strikeout percentage hit a career-high as well, but when he made contact, the results were more than enough to cancel that out. Among qualified hitters on the Cubs, Suzuki led the team in wRC+, ISO, BABIP, slugging, on-base, and batting average. He was easily the Cubs' best hitter and, honestly, is underrated around the game of baseball. This nomination further proves how valuable he is to Craig Counsell's lineup. He was near the top of baseball in terms of exit velocity, with a hard-hit rate of 49.2%. He will likely stay in the designated hitter spot next season, giving the Cubs a sure-fire bat near the middle of the lineup. He has some tough competition to win the award, but it wouldn’t be a surprise if he brings home some hardware after a fantastic season. View full article

Even in a season full of disappointments, the Cubs had plenty of talent. That’s what makes the result so frustrating, knowing that the skill was there, even if the results weren’t. Let’s take a look at who the North Side Baseball crew voted as the 2024 Most Valuable Player. Even in a season full of disappointments, the Cubs had plenty of talent. That’s what makes the result so frustrating, knowing that the skill was there, even if the results weren’t. Let’s take a look at who the North Side Baseball crew voted as the 2024 Most Valuable Player. Honorable Mention Nico Hoerner, Cody Bellinger, Jameson Taillon, Justin Steele, Porter Hodge, and Pete Crow-Armstrong Let's countdown the Top 5 vote getters for Chicago Cubs 2024 MVP. #4: Michael Busch (1B), Dansby Swanson (SS) Michael Busch won our Rookie of the Year award but ended up tying with Dansby Swanson for fourth place in MVP voting. Both players were absolutely spectacular, and one thing they had in common was great defense. Swanson has always been a great fielder, as we knew when he was signed before the 2023 season. Swanson won the Gold Glove award in his first season with Chicago and will be in the running once again once the postseason concludes. Busch was acquired for his bat, but his defense was equally as impressive. Knowing that the Cubs have someone who can hit 20+ home runs while also providing a strong glove is really important when building this team. We had it in Anthony Rizzo, and now we have it with Michael Busch. Swanson started off strong and then fell into a rough slump where his batting average sat around .200, not something you expect from the face of the franchise. He finished the season with a 99 wRC+, right at the league average. Swanson finished the first half with a .212 average but turned it around by hitting .281 in the second half. Battling through the criticism from all the media, the shortstop had a really solid season. #2: Seiya Suzuki (RF/DH), Ian Happ (LF) The best two offensive players in Chicago this year tie for second place, although I’d give Seiya Suzuki the slight edge due offensively. Suzuki posted a 183 wRC+ and 3.5 fWAR, all while missing 30 games total due to injuries. In May, he had an average but .219, but other than that he was one of the best hitters in all of baseball. Happ had a 122 wRC+ but posted 3.6 fWAR thanks to his great defense. Happ’s no-trade clause makes it very unlikely that he’s moved this offseason, which is totally fine with me due to his reliability offensively. There is always a stretch where he goes into a horrible slump, but in the end, the season numbers always look quite impressive. #1: Shota Imanaga (SP) Shota Imanaga had a spectacular rookie season, earning the most votes for Most Valuable Player on the 2024 Chicago Cubs. His 37.2% ground ball rate worked well with the strong infield defense, and the 2.91 ERA also backed that up. He threw a career-high 173 1/3 innings with a 1.02 WHIP and .264 BABIP. Imanaga doesn’t throw super hard, but his command is what makes him one of the best pitchers in baseball. His Cubs debut came on April 1st, the home opener in Chicago against the Colorado Rockies. The southpaw threw six innings of shutout baseball, not allowing a hit until the sixth inning. He was everything you could ask for and followed that up with an incredible rest of the season. Looking at Imanaga’s rankings league-wide is important to show just how good he was. His K/9 ranked 21st in all of baseball, with his BB/9 ranking 4th. His BABIP was 12th best, LOB% 4th, ERA 5th, and fWAR 28th. He didn’t just have a great season when looking at the Cubs standards, he had an insane season when looking at the whole league. And don’t worry, we have him for several more years to come. So what do you think? Would Imanaga receive your top vote? Who would you rank #1? View full article

The Cubs haven’t had a player win the National League Rookie of the Year since Kris Bryant in 2015. Nonetheless, a few players stood out in their rookie campaigns with Chicago. There are three players that are in the running, each of them impressive in their own way. The Cubs haven’t had a player win the National League Rookie of the Year since Kris Bryant in 2015. Nonetheless, a few players stood out in their rookie campaigns with Chicago. There are three players that are in the running, each of them impressive in their own way. Honorable Mention: Porter Hodge Hodge solidified the closer role down the stretch and should keep that role going into 2025 unless something drastic changes. #3: Pete Crow-Armstrong, CF PCA was coming off a brutal debut stretch in September of 2023, but ended up proving that it was a fluke, and a rough start that is experienced by most rookies in today’s game of baseball. He started off his 2024 season with a bang, sending his first MLB hit into the right-field bleachers. The best part is that Crow-Armstrong got better as the year went on. His defense was always a strong suit, although there were a few bad errors mixed in. His best defensive game was against the Dodgers on September 11th, when he made two diving catches as well as robbing a home run to end the game. Just a few weeks earlier, he hit an inside-the-park home run in Miami that made highlight reels across social media. In August, Crow-Armstrong had a .314 average, with an elite .558 slugging and .933 OPS. He helped the Cubs catch fire and make one last push for the Wild Card, although it was unsuccessful. There are too many defensive stats to show off, but he is easily one of the best defensive players in baseball, and will only get better with more experience. #2: Shota Imanaga, SP Imanaga should earn several votes for the Rookie of the Year and a few for the Cy Young award. Although Imanaga is 31 years old, he is eligible for the award due to coming over from Japan back in January. The Cubs didn’t expect Imanaga to be a real option for a free-agency addition. However, it quickly became apparent that he only wanted to play in Chicago, making the eventual deal much easier to negotiate. At the time of his signing with the Cubs, many people around the industry predicted that he would be the steal of the offseason, which ended up being correct. Imanaga threw 173 1/3 innings, with a 2.91 ERA and 1.02 WHIP. Imanaga doesn’t throw super hard, but his command is what helps make him one of the best pitchers in baseball. He had a 4.0% walk rate, and 25.1% strikeout rate, striking out 174 hitters in total. The main concern with his scouting report was the amount of fly balls he gave up, which often led to home runs. It wasn’t as noticeable as everyone expected, but a 45.5% flyball rate is more than average. Whether it was his performance on the mound, his attitude on the field, and his fun antics after games, there isn’t much debate that Shota Imanaga is the 2024 Cubs Rookie of the Year. #1: Michael Busch, 1B Acquired in a trade with the Dodgers in January, no one expected Busch to be so good in his freshman season. It was going to be impossible to fill the shoes of Anthony Rizzo, who is the definition of a franchise first baseman to the Cubs fans. However, Busch immediately became well-liked among Cubs fans and easily put up the stats to back that up. In 152 games, Busch posted a 119 wRC+ and 2.3 fWAR. 21 home runs were accompanied by 28 doubles and 63 walks. He started off strong in April, blasting five home runs in five straight games, before slowing down and having a rough month of May. All rookies have slumps, which we saw continue to be true with the young first baseman. He was able to bounce back each time, and gives the Cubs a really strong bat to help secure a top spot in the lineup. He played first base for all but seven of his games, with a few appearances at second base and third base. He will most likely get a few gold glove votes among first basemen, and could easily win one in the future. He has power, hits the ball hard, and draws a lot of walks. Busch needs to work on his strikeouts, but otherwise, there is no reason he can’t become an elite first baseman in the years to come. Congratulations to Michael Busch on a fantastic rookie season. The Cubs had a few rookies that came up big throughout the year, and they have prospects galore. So, what do you think? Who would get your vote? Should players coming over from the major leagues of Japan or even Korea be considered rookies? Discuss below. View full article

It’s been a disappointing season for Nico Hoerner. His offensive numbers are down, with Cubs fans noticing when he isn’t as clutch as he was in 2023. To the people who are frustrated with Hoerner for not producing like last year, though, we have some rejoinders to offer. Image courtesy of © Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images Though thoroughly unimpressive, Nico Hoerner has remained playable this season, with a .268/.332/.358 slash line in 141 games. The one big improvement I wanted him to make entering this season was hitting more home runs, but he’s only hit five--fewer than the nine he hit last year, and without a meaningful uptick in doubles and triples to make up for it. Hoerner’s defense hasn’t been in issue at all, with 10 Outs Above Average, according to Statcast. Dansby Swanson and Hoerner both won Gold Gloves in 2023, and will be plausible candidates for those awards when they're handed out again this fall. Hoerner has seven errors to his name, with a fielding percentage of .986, and he's shown excellent range at times this year--just as he did last season. Jul. 4 was the rough turnaround date for Hoerner, offensively. He’s been solid since then. As of Jul. 3, Hoerner had a .241 average and .662 OPS, along with a .297 wOBA. From Independence Day onward, he’s batted .299, with a .723 OPS and a .318 wOBA. One concern with Hoerner has been the lack of clutch hits compared to last season. He’s improved in that regard, too. Since Jul. 4, he has a .273 average with 20 RBIs when there are runners in scoring position. Before then, he was hitting .211 with 17 RBIs in such spots. He’s back to his normal self, and it’s awesome to see. While he is getting hits, the power is still non-existent. His .358 slugging is one of the worst on the Cubs roster, with a .090 ISO that ranks second-to-last on the team. (Miles Mastrobuoni owns a .032 ISO.) It’s great to have such a good contact hitter on the roster, but the lack of power is quite frustrating and concerning. There's also a more serious question of how he can blend his BABIP skills with his control of the strike zone. Hoerner's 2023 had this same general shape, but when he came on strong in the second half, he also drew a good number of walks, making him a dynamic overall offensive player. This season, he's given up the walks he'd been taking to get the hits that had been missing, which has resulted in a much less exciting OBP and less ability to affect the game with his legs. Split PA BA OBP SLG OPS ISO K% BB% HR% BABIP WOBA Pre All-Star Break 2023 371 .271 .321 .376 .697 .105 11.9% 5.7% 1.3% .297 .306 Post All-Star Break 2023 317 .297 .377 .391 .768 .094 12.3% 8.8% 1.3% .331 .342 Pre All-Star Break 2024 381 .256 .336 .348 .684 .092 10.8% 8.1% 1.0% .279 .306 Post All-Star Break 2024 221 .287 .326 .373 .699 .086 10.9% 5.0% 0.5% .321 .307 In 2022, Nico Hoerner posted a 4.3 fWAR, following that up with 4.6 fWAR in 2023. He’s currently sitting at 3.2 fWAR, so there is a noticeable decrease since last year. However, thanks to his elite defense, he’s still third on the team in fWAR. In his last eight starts, he's recorded five multi-hit games. A .424 average and .405 wOBA aren’t sustainable for a whole season, but finishing the season strong will help his trade stock, something that will need to be discussed further once the offseason is upon us. Whatever decisions the Cubs make with regard to their infield for 2025, continuing to show signs of life over the final fortnight will be good for Hoerner and the club. View full article

Jed Hoyer made two roster moves before Chicago’s matchup against the Pirates on Tuesday, bolstering the bullpen with some fresh arms. The moves are the latest in a round of moves aimed at allowing the team to hold leads and give themselves chances to win on an everyday basis. Image courtesy of © David Richard-USA TODAY Sports The first move that trickled out Tuesday afternoon placed Julian Merryweather on the injured list with right knee tendinitis. Merryweather is coming off a rough outing in Miami, in which he allowed four runs in one inning of work. His fastball velocity was down a little, but it’s hard to know if the loss of speed was injury-related. It's been a rough season for Merryweather, who spent most of the year on the shelf already, and could remain there now for the balance of the campaign. It sounds as though this has been nagging him since last year. The corresponding action for Merryweather’s injury is the promotion of Keegan Thompson. Thompson has done well in Iowa this season, with a 2.96 ERA in 20 games. In his last 22 innings, he has only allowed 2 earned runs, while racking up 32 strikeouts. Thompson fractured his rib back in June, but appears to be at full strength right now, He’s kept his walks down, too, giving up only three free passes since returning from the injured list. One of the best parts of Thompson’s skill set is the ability to throw more than one inning at a time, which could be useful down the stretch. Daniel Palencia was out for most of June, but after returning to Triple-A Iowa, he’s been lights out. This season in Triple-A, he has a 15.5 K/9, although the walks can be an issue. His velocity has topped out at 102.5 miles per hour. Even with poor command at times, he’s still a really valuable name to have in the bullpen for the late innings. Like Thompson, he's back with the big-league team as of Tuesday night. To make room for Palencia, the Cubs demoted rookie reliever Jack Neely, who was acquired from the Yankees in the trade for Mark Leiter Jr. back in July. The towering rookie has had a rough start in Chicago. In his first outing, he gave up four earned runs, but that was followed by two scoreless appearances with three strikeouts. Monday was his last outing with the major-league club, for now, after a two-run home run to Connor Joe ballooned his ERA even more. With a month left in the season, there is still a chance Neely is called up again, but it’s unfortunate that his first stint was so short. Thompson and Palencia are a new look for the bullpen, and since it sounds like Merryweather's injury was making it hard to count on his availability from day to day, the ever-versatile Thompson seems to be an upgrade in terms of flexible usage. Meanwhile, Palencia provides the same kind of upside as Neely, who didn't pass his first test at the highest level. This feels like an effort to improve the bullpen, constrained by the limited options available to the team but with a kernel of hope remaining for a hot finish to the season. In that way, it makes sense, although it's a long shot that it will make a material difference. View full article

Owen Caissie is expected to be promoted in September (according to Matt Spiegel of 670 the Score). Caissie is now ranked as the third-best prospect in the Cubs’ system, so let's take a quick look at why he is there, why he deserves this call-up, and how he landed with the Cubs in the first place. The San Diego Padres drafted Owen Caissie in the second round of the 2020 MLB draft, which was shortened to five rounds due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. Before he could step into the box with the Padres, AJ Preller shipped him off, along with two other prospects, for Yu Darvish and Victor Caratini. Darvish came in second place for the 2020 NL Cy Young race, so he easily would have provided value for the Cubs. At the time, Darvish was under contract until 2023, so control was not an issue either. During the pandemic, teams started panicking and shedding payroll, exactly what Tom Ricketts did with shipping away Darvish. Progressing basically one level every season, Caissie finds himself in Triple-A Iowa in his fourth full season with the Cubs. Last year in Tennessee, he posted a .230 ISO, which shows how incredible his power can be. He hit 22 home runs, with a 144 wRC+ and .519 slugging. Injuries have hurt him a little this year, but the power is still there, with a 113 wRC+ and .179 ISO, accompanied by 13 home runs. Defensively, Caissie will most likely play in the corner outfield spots (right field the most) and designated hitter. While his defense is nowhere near elite, it is decent enough, especially with the elite bat you get when he is in the lineup. Cody Bellinger’s decision this offseason will greatly affect Caissie due to the crowded outfield the Cubs already have. The main problem with the big lefty is his strikeouts. As of Saturday, he has a 27.9% strikeout rate, meaning he is striking out almost a third of his at-bats. For context, someone like Christopher Morel, who strikes out a lot, has a K% of 24.7. Maybe the strikeouts don’t go away, although, with the major league coaching, the hope is he can at least trim that down a little bit. He can help this ballclub down the stretch if he keeps up favorable numbers. Caissie has been fantastic as a prospect. Not only did he homer in the World Baseball Classic for Team Canada, but he was also selected to the 2024 MLB Futures Game (he did not play due to injury). Once he is officially promoted, you can expect the right-field bleachers to be a hotspot for Cubs fans trying to catch his mammoth home runs. View full article

The Cubs finished the first half with an 8-3 victory on Sunday, highlighted by big games from Christopher Morel and Pete Crow-Armstrong. I want to focus on Crow-Armstrong for a few minutes because that game sent us into the intermission with reminders of many positive aspects of his skill set. Image courtesy of © Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports Pete Crow-Armstrong hit two home runs off of Cardinals starter Miles Mikolas Sunday, traveling a total of 814 feet. They were both on breaking pitches low and below the zone. This is important because it’s his first multi-homer game in the big leagues, but also because the double-tap was a drought-buster. Not since his first big-league hit back in April had he cleared the fences in an MLB game, prior to these two shots. Crow-Armstrong hit for power in the minors, but that pop hasn’t really translated to the majors. He also walked, making it back-to-back days taking a base on balls. Entering Sunday, the rookie's wRC+ was 48. His wRC+ for Sunday’s game was 708, so maybe he can keep that up for a whole season? Jokes aside, though, if he can manage an 80 or 90 wRC+ at the minimum, that’s awesome for the Cubs. Most of his value comes on defense; we have known this for quite some time. He made a few nice catches Sunday, too, and already has 6 Outs Above Average, according to Baseball Savant. He’s fast and can steal bases, which adds even more value when thinking about putting him in the lineup. Crow-Armstrong is 17-for-17 when it comes to swiping bags. Whenever he reaches base, the first thought isn’t “Can he steal this base?”, but rather, “When is he going to steal this base?” That is unless he triples, although I have a feeling he’ll try to steal home before too long. Over the last two months, he's taken off running on one of every eight pitches when he's been on base with an open one in front of him, easily leading MLB in Go Rate. The main issue with his approach is the whiff rate, which is at 28%. I’d love for him to focus on making better contact in the second half of the year, but that’s easier said than done. [Is the above true? His contact rate actually isn't extreme; it's 29th percentile. That's obviously not great, but to me, the overall swing rate (100th percentile), chase rate (99th), and lack of differential between swing rates early in counts and with two strikes (1st percentile) loom larger. They're related, but rejigger the above to clarify a little bit that swing decisions are driving his issues, more than a pure inability to make contact.] Jed Hoyer seems to want Crow-Armstrong to be the center fielder of the future. Many scouts and pundits around the game have said that he is already the best defensive center fielder in baseball. Sunday’s game showed some of his offensive potential, but it’s clear that he won’t be hitting home runs every day. The speed is who he is, translating to his defense and baserunning, as well as helping with reaching first base on bunts. He’s 99th percentile in sprint speed, too, which always helps. Earlier in the series, he grounded out to Cardinals second baseman Nolan Gorman, who didn’t even have time to set his feet before throwing to first. Crow-Armstrong’s hustle creates chaos, and will certainly give him more opportunities to provide value than players with a lower motor would get. [The conclusion here feels abrupt. One more paragraph should do it, but let's bring this in for a landing. Give me some thoughts on how much he should play out there, even as Tauchman and Bellinger return, and reinforce the concept that his power actualizing more would be a huge developmental victory in the second half.] View full article

If the Cubs lose this series, the best option moving forward is most likely to sell at the deadline, but buying wouldn’t be that insane if they take two or three games in St. Louis. Win this series, and you can have momentum heading into the all-star break, along with some of your best bullpen arms nearing return. Image courtesy of © David Banks-USA TODAY Sports Entering the series, the Cubs have won four straight and swept the Baltimore Orioles. They also gear up to face the Cardinals, who were swept by the Royals. Shota Imanaga and Justin Steele, the two best pitchers on the team, will be down and unavailable during these games in St. Louis, meaning that getting a series win will be even tougher. However, with one of the hottest offenses in baseball, a series win isn’t out of the picture. Over the last few weeks, the question surrounding this team has been what Jed Hoyer will do at the trade deadline. Will it be buy in hopes of sneaking into the Wild Card, or will it be sell and prepare to miss the playoffs again and let the fanbase and ownership down? After taking all three games against one of the best baseball teams, fans are optimistic. Last year, on July 28th, Mike Tauchman robbed a home run at Busch Stadium that convinced Hoyer to buy at the deadline. It was way later than this year, but the season's fate will again come down to a crucial series in St. Louis. This year’s squad is a few games ahead of last year’s team, but they’re in relatively the same spot comparative to the league. One difference this season is that the starting pitching has been dominant and one of the best in baseball. A doubleheader on Saturday may shake things up a bit. Kyle Hendricks will start on Friday night, which is good due to his recurring excellence against the Cardinals. In 27 games throughout his career, Hendricks has a 2.62 ERA and 115 strikeouts. Hayden Wesneski will throw in game one of the doubleheader on Saturday, coming off a spectacular performance against the Angels. The night game pitcher is not announced yet, although I wonder if it will be a bullpen game. Another option is activating one of the injured starters to come back that evening, but Assad is the only one I could see possibly getting the call to pitch. Sunday’s game has Jameson Taillon on the bump, hoping to continue an excellent season for the veteran. Standings-wise, the Cubs are nine games behind the Brewers for the division and three games back for the third Wild Card spot. While splitting the series wouldn’t be the worst option in the world, a series win would keep this season alive. The Cubs have the talent to do well, but they’ve dug a hole that will be hard to escape. Momentum should favor the Cubs, but they haven’t done well against the Cardinals this season. If the Cubs lose this series, the best option moving forward is most likely to sell at the deadline, but buying wouldn’t be that insane if they take two or three games in St. Louis. Win this series, and the Cubs have momentum heading into the All-Star break, along with some of their best bullpen arms nearing return. View full article

As a competitive organization, it's important to set standards. What's expected? What's acceptable? What isn't? Once you do that, you can honestly assess the people who make up your group, and sometimes, that leads to hard decisions. Those decisions, however, are necessary and important. Image courtesy of © David Banks-USA TODAY Sports Some portion of Cubs Twitter has been calling for Jed Hoyer to be fired for quite some time. Sometimes it’s warranted. More often, it’s just a bunch of overreactions. As the trade deadline approaches, no one really knows what the Cubs are going to do. Apparently, they don’t even know what they’re going to do. Unless this week goes way better than expected, though, selling is the likely outcome. This begs the question, at what point does Hoyer start to worry about his job? Theo Epstein stepped down after the 2020 season, handing control of the Chicago Cubs over to his lieutenant. Hoyer had been Epstein’s right-hand man the whole time they were in Chicago, so it was someone with familiarity in regard to the organization. The reason Epstein did this was because of the 2016 core and their expiring contracts, and the fact that he wanted to let his successor decide the future of the team. Something similar may need to happen this season. Since Jed Hoyer became the President of Baseball Operations, the Cubs are 271-307. They haven’t made the playoffs since 2020 (which doesn't count), and haven’t won a playoff game since the NLCS in 2017. What was thought to be a potential dynasty became a one-hit wonder, with its stars slowly fading away from glory. He’s built one of the best farm systems in baseball, but we still aren’t seeing a sufficient effect on the big-league team. The fanbase was told that they were not going through another rebuild--that instead, it was a retooling. With the 2023 squad only missing the playoffs by one game last year, the assumption was that they would easily reach the postseason this time around. Instead, Craig Counsell’s squad is 10 games behind the Brewers for the division lead, with no chance of coming back and winning this division. If the Cubs miss the playoffs once again this season, I think we need to start wondering if Jed Hoyer is the right person for the job. He’s had some good transactions, including two from this offseason. Shota Imanaga has been absolutely fantastic, and the Cubs got him for what could easily be considered the steal of the offseason. (Chris Sale’s trade to the Braves could be on that list as well). Michael Busch has been amazing, as well, although we won’t know the full results of that deal for several years. With one of the highest payrolls in baseball, though, it’s a shock that the Cubs are this bad. There’s still time to turn it around, but not much. What was supposed to be a quick fix has turned into a failed project, whereby the team somehow got worse after last season. Some people want Hoyer to be fired before the deadline, so that the next executive can choose the direction of the team, Tom Ricketts has put enough trust in Hoyer throughout the years that there isn’t much of a chance this happens, but a change after this season ends isn’t out of the question. Hoyer is known to be patient, but it could be argued that he is too patient. Sometimes you have to overpay to get a player, but instead, he trusts his prospects and decides to save the money and spend it elsewhere--elsewhere, as in a $177 Million shortstop who currently has a 75 wRC+, but that’s a discussion for another time. We know that Jed Hoyer is smart, but does he have what it takes to take this team to the next level? If so, he’s going to need to change something fast. He can’t do it out of pure panic come this deadline, but that makes me think that it’s too late to truly fix this team. He isn’t on the hot seat yet, but a few more bad weeks and it’d be justifiable. View full article

The Cubs' second baseman is a fan favorite, and many of the team's hopes for this despoiled season were pinned on him. In a limited set of players who could draw trade returns to help them rebuild quickly, he stands out as the easiest to move. Does that mean it would actually make sense to do so? Image courtesy of © David Banks-USA TODAY Sports It’s officially July, the Cubs are plummeting, and rumors are everywhere. It sure seems like the Cubs will be sellers, although this next week should confirm or reverse that. One name that I wasn’t particularly ready to show up in rumors was Nico Hoerner, but it seems that there are talks of him being moved. Hoerner was a Gold Glover last year, and has continued to play impressive defense this season. However, the offense just hasn’t been what we expected. He has picked it up lately, which is good. Before the Phillies series, Hoerner had a seven-game hitting streak, with a few multi-hit games thrown in there. My hope to begin the season was that, if he lowered his average a little, his slugging would increase. This hasn’t been the case, but I do trust that better things are to come during the second half of the season. Sadly, the Cubs are an absolute mess. Sure, they just won a series against the Angels, but that isn’t saying much. They’ve been one of the worst teams in baseball since the start of May, and they now sit in last place in the NL Central. The National League is quite mediocre this year, so a comeback into the Wild Card spots isn’t impossible. However, the odds are pretty slim. There are a few players that are best fit to be moved this deadline: Cody Bellinger, Jameson Taillon, and Hoerner. Hoerner is under contract through the 2026 season, which could help boost the return he would get. He's my favorite player on the Cubs, so I would hate to see him moved. The hope among many fans was that he would be a Cub for life, or at least for one more extension before leaving. Hoerner isn't guaranteed to get moved, but is there a deal out there that will make too much sense to pass up? The Cubs have a lot of good prospects, and Jed Hoyer has made it clear that he believes in them. Two of the names coming up the pipeline are James Triantos and Matt Shaw. They’re both in the MLB Pipeline Top 100 Prospects list, and they've each been selected to the MLB Futures Game in Texas this weekend. Until they are ready, Michael Busch is also an option to play second base, along with Luis Vázquez. Vázquez has mainly played shortstop in Iowa, so I doubt that is as likely, but he could certainly handle the spot. Seeing Shaw or Triantos up later this year wouldn't surprise me if Hoerner is moved, but Busch does seem like a solid candidate to hold down the fort until they're ready. Alternatively, moving Hoerner could provide a chance to re-evaluate Christopher Morel at that position. Hoerner's strikeout numbers are still fantastic, with that outcome accounting for just 11.6% of his plate appearances. However, he's not hitting the ball hard at all. His expected slugging, average exit velocity, barrel rate, and hard-hit rate are all in the 10th percentile or lower, league-wide. His hard-hit rate has dropped 4.6 percentage points since last season, which is drastic and could explain some of the rough stats compared to 2023. Overall, it does seem that Hoerner is a solid piece who could get moved when the deadline hits in a few weeks. The Cubs have a few strong prospects coming up who can take his spot; it's not clear they will be competing next year; and another team could use some strong up-the-middle defense and a decent contact hitter down the stretch. Jon Morosi mentioned the Mariners as a team looking into Hoerner, so they're a team I'm keeping my eye on. Personally, as my second-favorite team is the Mariners, this would be perfect for me, and I wouldn't be too angry. However, it will still hurt to see such a fan favorite be moved, if that's what happens. View full article

The Cubs were awful in June, continuing their offensive woes from May. This made it hard to choose our favorite offensive players, but we found a few qualified for this award. Let’s take a look at who was the best of the worst for the Chicago Cubs this past month. Image courtesy of Thieres Rabelo Seiya Suzuki can be a very frustrating hitter to watch, but overall, he has put up good numbers. Suzuki also had a high strikeout rate of 32.7%, with a relatively low walk rate. He had a .851 OPS in June, hitting five home runs with twelve RBIs. What's most frustrating with Suzuki is how he often puts up uncompetitive at-bats. It seems like every night, he strikes out looking or will swing and miss at a fastball down the heart of the plate. However, similar to Happ, the numbers tell a different story: he has been a decent hitter. The defense was abysmal when Suzuki appeared in the right, so he has switched to designated hitter lately. Another positive about Suzuki’s June is his hard-hit rate. His soft contact rate was only 6.6%, which is extremely impressive. He’s hitting the ball hard; however, it’s not always landing away from the defense. He struck out three times as much as he walked but hit two triples. This all may sound negative, but I had a hard time choosing for this award apart from the number one spot. Suzuki was solid this month, but many flaws became apparent. No team is without its flaws, but they’re even more apparent when the whole team forgets how to hit a baseball. It's not a fun time in Chicago right now. Ian Happ is a very streaky hitter, but thankfully, he was solid in June. He did have a slump or two, but Happ was so good during the rest of the month that it didn’t matter. Happ hit five home runs in June, with a .244 average and .887 OPS. His strikeout percentage was 27.4%, but he continued to draw walks like usual. To end the month, Happ hit two lead-taking home runs in the eighth inning or later within three days! He’s been clutch, which the team has needed. The problem is that the rest of the team, besides the other two hitters in this piece, have been rather terrible. Ian Happ is usually a consistent fielder, aside from a few costly errors (especially the one in Milwaukee from this past series). He could be moved at the deadline, even though he has an NTC (No Trade Clause). His versatility as a switch-hitter and the defense could make him a very intriguing trade target for teams looking to compete down the stretch. Michael Busch was easily the best choice for hitter of the month, continuing what has been a spectacular season for the rookie first baseman. One thing that he still struggles with is his strikeouts, especially on the high fastball. Craig Counsell has been hitting him second lately, which seems to be a good choice. This year, he has a .289 average and 140 wRC+ in the two-hole. His walk rate was 14.9%, which greatly helps his on-base percentage. In June, Busch reached base more than 40% of the time and now ranks 23rd in baseball in on-base percentage. Busch only hit two home runs last month, but a slugging of .446 is excellent, given the high batting average of .297. Busch has been playing a lot of first base and now has 3 OAA (Outs above average) on the season. Seiya Suzuki has started to play at DH more, which means Cody Bellinger starts in right field. Thanks to this, Michael Busch is now the clear everyday first baseman, with no worries about Bellinger taking his place. If Busch can limit the strikeouts, his value would increase even more. He’s already producing at a high level, so fans should be excited to see what he does for the rest of the season. View full article