Chicago Cubs: What happened to Edwards?; Homegrown pitching

 It was a tale of two seasons for the Chicago Cubs’ Carl Edwards. After starting out blistering hot, he went cold in the second half. It was clear Maddon’s trust in him was lost. And is there finally news of homegrown pitching making its way to Wrigley?

When the season started for the Chicago Cubs, Joe Maddon was likely feeling very confident about the backend of his bullpen. Pedro Strop and newly acquired Brandon Morrow should have the last few innings locked down, while Carl Edwards could help get them there. First half? That worked well. But in the second half, the wheels came off for Edwards, and there was little faith in him from his manager by seasons end. What happened to him in the second half?

By name, this seasons Cubs’ staff looks promising. Some of them are on the tail end of their careers, others have battled injury but shown promise. But there’s a lot of money injected into that rotation, as the Cubs have developed fine position players over the past several years–starting pitching has been missing. But could some of the actual ‘homegrown’ kids finally be working their way up to the big league club?

Some of us have heard enough about the Cubs’ Kris Bryant and the fact he called the city of St. Louis “boring.” It seemed like a non-issue made as a joke while at CubsCon. Yadier Molina didn’t see it that way. He’s taken umbrage to it and vows it will “carry over” into this season. Others feel it helps keep the rivalry alive and well with the Cardinals. So which one do you think it is?

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These and other stories you might have missed:

‘What led to Edwards late-season implosion?’ – Cubbies Crib

‘Looking at the Cubs homegrown pitching’ – Cubbies Crib

‘Bryant’s comments help fuel the rivalry’ – Cubbies Crib

‘Something vaguely Cubs baseball is happening right now’ – Bleacher Nation

‘Tunney: Cubs might want to stick to baseball’ – Cubs Insider

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