Cubs Live
By: Ryan Melson (@RyanMelson1)
“It’s The Cubs League” will come out on Saturday’s and will focus on the weekly news, notes, and highlights from the week. The Cubs lost their first game of the spring against the Milwaukee Brewers, but since then they have not lost. The Cubs record is 5-1-2 and they may not lose against this spring. Let’s dig into what happened in the Cubs world this week. 1) Starting Rotation. Early in the week, Joe Maddon named the starting rotation. The order is as follows: Jon Lester, Kyle Hendricks, Yu Darvish, Jose Quintana, and Tyler Chatwood. This rotation is going to be phenomenal, and I cannot wait for the regular season to start so we can see these five in action. The reason I mentioned this was because I needed another excuse to say these names in order. 2) Homerun City. Ian Happ hit his third homerun of the spring this week. Two of the homeruns have come from the right side of the plate and the other has come from the left side. Happ is supposed to have more power from the left side, but it looks like pitchers are doomed no matter which side Happ hits from. 3) Free Agency. The free agent watch of former Cub Jake Arrieta is still ongoing. As the calendar flipped to March, Arrieta still remains unsigned. There were rumors a month ago that Arrieta could hold out the entire spring before he signs with a team. Arrieta’s market appears to be small at this point, and he is willing to wait until a team gets desperate enough to give him the money he is seeking. This will be interesting to see who budges first: Arrieta or the teams interested in him. 4) Over the hump? Former Cubs bench coach Dave Martinez brought camels to the Washington Nationals facilities in order to keep the environment loose. Martinez was trying to send the message to the Nationals that they can get over the hump. Martinez learned how to convey unique messages to his team from Joe Maddon, but lets hope he did not learn how to get the Nationals over the hump like Maddon did with the Cubs. 5) Hendricks A Future Opening Day Starter? A lot of chatter about how the Cubs have three pitchers in the starting rotation who started on opening day last year (Lester, Darvish, and Quintana). Joe Maddon said Kyle Hendricks will get his shot one day, but Hendricks could not care less about it. Hendricks said, “Let’s get another World Series. Who cares about the 1st game? I’ll take the last game. Always.” That comment makes me want October to get here. 6) An Elite Bullpen. Justin Wilson looked spectacular in his spring debut on Wednesday. Wilson struggled big time for the Cubs last year after he was traded from the Detroit Tigers. If Wilson can get back to his pre-Cubs success, then the bullpen will be frightening for opponents. 7) Centerfield Watch. Albert Almora Jr. still has not had a hit this spring. Almora will get his hits in at some point during this spring, but Ian Happ is the early favorite to be the starting centerfielder in Miami. 8) Injuries and Illness. Yu Darvish was scratched with the flu on Thursday. Kris Bryant is back after dealing with the flu. Pedro Strop has been sidelined with a sore left calf. Ben Zobrist continues to come along slowly from a sore back. 9) It’s Morrow Time. Brandon Marrow has not pitched yet this spring. He is a healthy scratch so far because the Cubs are trying to monitor the amount of innings he throws after he threw so much in the postseason last year. 10) Need another reason to smile? Drew Smyly said, “If I don’t [pitch for the Cubs in 2018], I’d be disappointed. I definitely plan on playing. I don’t know when it will be—definitely at the end of the year.” If you need reminding, Smyly is coming off of Tommy John surgery. The Cubs signed the lefty this offseason with expectation of a big 2019 season out of Smyly. The Cubs did not expect Smyly to pitch in 2018. In his career, Smyly has solely pitched in the American League and has posted a very respectable 3.74 ERA. Getting Smyly out of the bullpen in 2018 would be another reason to believe 2018 is the Cubs year. 11) On The Bubble. Oscar De La Cruz continues to shine early on in spring. De La Cruz is a 22 year old, solid pitching prospect who has been hampered by injuries. If De La Cruz can stay healthy, the Cubs have another very nice arm in Triple A. 12) More Than Yu’s Personal Catcher. Chris Gimenez continues to crush the baseball this spring. Gimenez has a .500 batting average this spring with 7 RBI’s. At this point, it looks like Gimenez has won the back-up catcher position. There is still a lot of spring left, so we will see if Caratini steps up. 13) More Development Needed. Dillon Maples struggled again on Tuesday. At this point, Maples may need more time in Triple A. 14) Grimm Continues to Struggle. Speaking of struggles, Justin Grimm had another bad relief appearance this week. If this trend continues, I could see Grimm not making this team. 15) The Cubs Fifth Starter. Tyler Chatwood was solid in his one inning debut. I think Chatwood is going to surprise many people this season, as he is quietly flying under the radar. 16) Hidden Gem. Randy Rosario continues to pitch well this spring. Rosario is a hard throwing left handed pitcher, who is only 23 years old. The Cubs may have found a gem in Rosario. 17) Your Weekly Eddie B. Update. Eddie Butler fared better out of the bullpen on Wednesday than he did in his first start this spring. Butler pitched two innings out of the pen, struck out two, and had no hits or walks allowed. 18) More Developmental Pitching. Luke Farrell was roughed up on Wednesday, but he still remains an intriguing developmental arm in Triple A. 19) The Forgotten Arm. While he does not get much attention, Alec Mills is putting together a very respectable spring. On Thursday, Mills pitched two innings, struck out three, and he allowed no hits. I am not sure there is a spot for Mills, but he is making it more difficult to overlook him. 20) Pure Grit. Crown Mike Freeman the batting champion of spring training. Freeman has a .500 batting average with a 1.348 OPS. MVP candidate in 2018? Not a chance, but you have to love the grit Freeman plays with. 21) Sad News. Former Cub Travis Wood tore his ACL on Thursday. Let’s hope that he has a speedy recovery and can get back to pitching next season.
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Kyle MalzhanFounder who is an aspiring journalist who covers the Chicago Cubs daily. Archives
April 2020
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