Reminder: I’m on vacation all this week and will be a little briefer than usual this week. Thanks for your patience.
The Cubs offense has showing some serious signs of life. It’s now 53 runs over eight and if we drop the high and the low, it’s 42 over six. Or if you prefer, it’s 62 over 10. Any one of those slices is a very good one. They’ve scored the sixth most runs in baseball now. But it bears repeating, the start of this season is a weird one. The Astros have slipped to second most runs scored and they
have a bottom six record in baseball.
The key to this team is going to be finding a groove on run prevention. They have a deceptively large margin of error though. This defense can be special. They need guys that throw strikes and manage contact. I mean everyone looks for guys with really elite stuff. You should always be searching high and low for those. But an old fashioned Kyle Hendricks would be in heaven with this team. The old championship core was good, but I don’t think anyone could credibly argue this team isn’t better. Javy Báez, Anthony Rizzo and Jason Heyward were truly elite fielders. But this team flashes elite ability at five positions. The eye test says that Michael Busch is pretty good too.
On Wednesday night Shōta Imanaga was terrific again. If early metrics are any indication, he might be in store for his best year as a Cub. The strikeouts are up and the walks down. That is always going to be a great sign for a pitcher. He and Edward Cabrera look really good in the early going. If Colin Rea can be relatively dependable, the rotation is functional. Jameson Taillon and Javier Assad can fill out the rotation, mixing some good and bad starts with a lot of veteran experience. Hopefully, in the not super distant future, Justin Steele becomes an option and Matthew Boyd returns healthy.
Eighteen games in, the Cubs are two games out of first place, but only a half game behind the team that I think most of us think is their primary competition. Don’t play yourself out of contention in April. Half way there and on track to accomplish that one simple goal.
Three Positives:
- It’s hard to find enough positive words for Nico Hoerner’s start to the season. Three more hits, one a homer, five runs driven in and two scored. He also stole a base. He was involved in six of the 11 runs scoring.
- Imanaga threw six innings allowing just three hits and a walk against a very potent Phillies lineup. I know most of you only root for or pay significant attention to the Cubs, but imagine yourself a Phillies fan. You just allowed 21 runs over two very non-competitive losses. They have a 28-year-old starter with a 7.94 ERA over 22.2 IP.
- Dansby Swanson also had three hits, one a homer. Two runs driven in and two scored.
Honorable mention to Matt Shaw pounding lefty pitching with three doubles.
Game 18, April 15: Cubs 11, Phillies 2 (9-9)
Reminder: Heroes and Goats are determined by WPA scores and are in no way subjective.
THREE HEROES:
- Superhero: Nico Hoerner (.315). 3-5, HR, 5 RBI, 2 R, SB
- Hero: Shōta Imanaga (.163). 6 IP, 3 H, BB, ER, 11 K, WP (W 1-1)
- Sidekick: Matt Shaw (.118). 3-4, 3 2B, 3R, 2 RBI
THREE GOATS:
- Billy Goat: Ian Happ (-.081). 0-4
- Goat: Michael Busch (-.044). 0-5
- Kid: Pete Crow-Armstrong (-.028). 2-4
WPA Play of the Game: The game was tied in the third inning when a wild pitch scored Alex Bregman from third to give the Cubs a 2-1 lead. (.219)
*Phillies Play of the Game: Trea Turner led off the bottom of the first with a solo homer. (.097).
Cubs Player of the Game:
Game 17 Winner: Colin Rea 74-68 over Hoerner (197 votes)
Up Next: Off day Thursday. The Cubs host the 7-12 Mets this weekend. Edward Cabrera (1-0, 1.62, 16.2 IP) gets the start for the Cubs. Kodai Senga (0-2, 7.07, 14 IP) is off to a rough start right along with the Mets as a whole. This will be the first of 13 straight scheduled games for the Cubs before the next off day. That will take us to the end of April.
Let’s take at least two out of three and keep momentum.
