Position: Third base, occasional corner outfielder 2018 Stats: .272/.374/.460, 109 DRC+, 0.6 FRAA, -2.2 BRA, 1.9 WARP Year in Review: After being promoted in April 2015, Kris Bryant wasted no time in establishing himself as a force in the middle of the Cubs lineup. That season, he belted 26 home runs on his way to […]
Tag: Player Profile
Player Profile 2019: Brandon Kintzler
When the Chicago Cubs were searching for bullpen depth and the Washington Nationals wanted to get rid of a supposed problem, Brandon Kintzler appeared. The rest is, well, a whole lot of bad. Position: Relief Pitcher 2018 Stats: An ERA of 4.60, with a WHIP of 1.47, a FIP of 4.06, a DRA- of 142.3, […]
Player Profile 2019: Brandon Morrow
Position: Relief Pitcher, Primary Closer 2018 Stats: 1.47 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, 2.92 FIP, 3.66 DRA, 0.4 WARP Year in review: The Cubs knew the risk they were taking when they signed Brandon Morrow to be the team’s primary closer prior to the 2018 season. As a starter early in his career, the injury-prone righty made 30 starts […]
Player Profile 2019: Brian Duensing
Sometimes a diamond in the rough is nothing more than a mirage. Sometimes that mirage of a diamond is a relief pitcher giving Chicago Cubs fans false hope. Position: Relief Pitcher 2018 Stats: ERA of 7.65, with a WHIP of 1.88, a FIP of 6.30, a DRA of 7.34, a DRA- of 163.9, and a […]
Player Profile 2019: Pedro Strop
Pedro Strop is the man, any Chicago Cubs fan who doesn’t realize this is fooling themselves. You tilt, I tilt, we all tilt our hats to the left in true Pedro style. Position: Relief Pitcher 2018 Stats: An ERA of 2.26, with a WHIP of 0.99, a FIP of 3.39, a DRA- of 82.0, a […]
PLAYER PROFILE 2019: CARL EDWARDS JR.
Position: Relief Pitcher, Occasional Worm 2018 Stats: 2.60 ERA, 2.89 FIP, 4.39 DRA, 1.31 WHIP, .227 TAv, 0.3 WARP Year In Review: We know about the Cubs struggle to develop pitching, but if you consider the Spokane Indians part of the Cubs farm system, it’s much less of a problem: the Rangers affiliate rostered both […]
I Think He’s Talking To You: Ian Happ
While no one was mentioned by name in Theo Epstein’s post-season treatise on everything, when he got to the line about evaluating players on “production, not talent,” it was pretty clear there were only a couple players he could be talking about. Namely, they were Albert Almora, Kyle Schwarber (to an extent), and Ian Happ. […]
2019 Player Profile: David Bote
Positions(s): Second base, third base, and pinch hitter extraordinaire 2018 Stats: 210 PAs, .239/.319/.408, 17 XBH, 6 HR, .269 TAv, 1.8 FRAA, 0.9 WARP Year in Review: When Cubs position players reported to Mesa for 2018 Spring Training, David Bote was a nobody. No one outside his family and friends knew how to correctly pronounce his last […]
Player Profile 2019: José Quintana
When the Cubs acquired José Quintana from the White Sox in July of 2017, the narrative Quintana carried was his consistency. Overshadowed by Chris Sale and saddled with a going-nowhere franchise, Quintana was undervalued, underappreciated, and (maybe most importantly for his trade value) underpaid. He was the guy about whom articles with titles like, “Is […]
2019 Player Profile: Duane Underwood
Duane Underwood finally brought his considerable talents to the big league club in 2018. It was only one game and four innings pitched, but personally, it felt good to finally see Underwood in a Chicago Cubs jersey during the regular season. Position: Starting/Relief Pitcher 2018 Stats: For the Iowa Cubs the right-hander posted an ERA […]