We cant chalk it up to "game 3." Its still a serious issue. How many more games need to pass before you get that? The cubs cant advance runners when they need to to put runs on the scoreboard to win games to get us out of the past 3 years. They've had dozens of chances in 3 games and have whiffed, akin to last year, and 2013, and 2012.
Hopefully Bryant is up this week. Watching/listening to a Mike Olt at-bat makes me angry, because he's fucking terrible.
Len and Jim mention it, Pat and Ron, now Jesse Rogers mentions the pathetic display the cubs call "offense" and already say they need to look for different answers. Everybody is seeing the same old song and dance.
The pitching is there. Until the end, Travis Wood looked like 2013 Travis Wood. Used his cutter and put more deceiving touch on his 12-6. He just got rattled in the 5th. The pen is nice, the starters I believe will be just fine, and if the 5th piece needs replacing they can find 5 guys as a servicable resolution.
But Olt, Castillo, Alcantara, and Coghlan shouldn't be allowed to start and go 9 innings. They should have signed a bat in addition to welcoming up Bryant and a few others this year.
No one is stating that their aren't issues. If there weren't issues, the Cubs would be even money to win the WS.
Can we wait a little bit to let this shake out and see who does what and who goes where? Do you really think that Fowler is going to stay at a .077 OBP?
You are pushing the panic button a bit too early.
And the bat you are saying the Cubs should have signed would play where when you have to figure out where Bryant, Russell, Baez, and Schwarber are going to fit into this line-up possibly?
The position that was open was CF and catcher, and Martin went elsewhere so they went to plan B which was Montero who has played 1 game so far. Denard Span never hit the market so go to plan B and trade for Fowler.
Atlanta is winning with shit. Same with Colorado. The Nationals and White Sox can't buy a win. Bryant is hitting .200 in AAA.
There are things that are happening for teams right now, and things that are not.
A 162 game season is very long, and that is why these guys are tied to an average because things average themselves out over the long haul. No one is saying that Mike Olt or Tommy La Stella are the answers because they are not. However, they can be valuable utility players when some others arrive.
Obviously Maddon is putting what he feels is the best line-up out there to succeed, and will continue to make changes as he sees fit.
He won with a lot of question marks in Tampa because he had some pitching. Lets hope the Cubs pitching holds them afloat until things start to average out or help arrives.
I am no means throwing in the towel when the Cubs are a game under .500 and have played bad ball. It wouldn't take much to put them over the .500 mark.
The Cubs have two solid pitchers going in the next two, and then the rotation flips around again with Lester and Arrieta.
Hell, just the sound of that makes me feel more comfortable that they will increase their chances of winning.
