In early 2015, ESPN’s Keith Law clearly put an unintended target on the back of the Cubs 2014 5th round draft pick: pitcher Justin Steele. Law named Steele his sleeper prospect of the year for the Cubs. Steele, who was all of 19 at the time, had only pitched 18.2 innings in the lowest levels […]
Category: Articles
Game 23 Recap: Cubs 7, Red Sox 4
What You Need to Know: Things did not look good for John Lackey and the Cubs early on, as Lackey dueled with home plate umpire Bill Welke in the first and seemed frustrated—more so than usual—in the first few innings. He surrendered Boston’s first two runs on a Jackie Bradley Jr. single and Andrew Benintendi sacrifice fly, […]
Is This the Start of Ben Zobrist’s Decline?
Good old Ben Zobrist. You always know exactly what you’re getting from him: great patience, solid average and power, and the kind of positional flexibility that helps Joe Maddon sleep at night. His TAv has been over .280 for six straight years; his wRC+ has never been below average since he became a major league […]
Game 22 Recap: Red Sox 5, Cubs 4
If there’s one thing the Cubs have taught us over the past couple years, it’s that if we live long enough and learn to believe, we’ll eventually be lucky enough to bear witness to something we never thought we’d see: An interesting interleague matchup. If you listen hard enough, you can hear Bud Selig off […]
The Continued Evolution of Addison Russell
It’s absurd to think about the idea of Addison Russell being an overlooked element of the Chicago Cubs. But with performances and personas like that of Anthony Rizzo, Kris Bryant, Kyle Schwarber, and Javier Baez, it ultimately isn’t all that surprising. While three of those four have made their mark with their offense first, Russell […]
Where Has All the Velocity Gone?
One day after the anniversary of his second career no-hitter, Jake Arrieta returned to the mound in Cincinnati and helped deliver a series-clinching victory for the Cubs. While the powerful righty surrendered two home runs on a blustery Ohio afternoon, there were signs that the 2015 Cy Young winner was beginning to right himself after […]
Game 21 Recap: Pirates 6, Cubs 5
What You Need To Know: This was an ugly game for both the Pirates and Cubs. Then it was an ugly game for the Cubs. It then became a very “meh” game for Cubs fans. We probably should have spent our time watching the Bulls. (Editor’s Note: Nope.) The Cubs had Jon Lester toeing the mound […]
J-Hey Hey What Can He Do?
Jason Heyward has been a nice story so far this season. At least it’s more fun than talking about the velocity of the Cubs’ rotation. However, I’m suspicious of anything that has the potential to make me happy. I want nothing more than Heyward to be everything he was before he got to Chicago. But I’ve […]
BP Wrigleycast Episode 45: Heyward gets hot, Lackey loses his cool
Ryan and Isaac lead off discussing the recent struggles of John Lackey, including a few reasons why this could be who the 38-year-old pitcher is now. But are there any potential upgrades from within the organization or via trade? Later, the guys discuss Jason Heyward’s progress and just how valuable he can be to the […]
Game 20 Recap: Cubs 1, Pirates 0
What You Need to Know: A zippy two-and-a-half hour affair featured an improved Kyle Hendricks, who dialed up his fastball to a blazing 88 MPH and completed six scoreless innings. Gerrit Cole stymied the Cubs’ boisterous bats, but emerged with nothing to show for a solid seven-inning performance. The Cubs scraped across a run on […]