Chicago Cubs: Strop should be closing; Consistent inconsistencies

 With the Chicago Cubs Brandon Morrow out to start the season, Pedro Strop is the likely fill-in until he returns. Or should he be more than that? And while Joe Maddon has had great success in Chicago, one thing will always drive fans crazy. His ever-changing lineups.

Our Jacob Misener feels that for the Chicago Cubs bullpen to be effective all year, Pedro Strop needs to remain the closer–even after Brandon Morrow returns. In all honesty, that makes complete sense. Morrow already had difficulty going in back-to-back games, and it won’t get any easier coming off another injury. Strop has earned this opportunity. And as the author says, if the way he wears his hat is your complaint and you ignore his fantastic numbers since he’s been a Cub? You should likely skip this article. It isn’t for you.

Consistent inconsistencies. Is there any better way to put how Joe Maddon handles his lineup? No. And this season with the roster they have? It isn’t going to change. It’s highly likely that Maddon will continue to mix based on matchups, rotate leadoff hitters, and move Anthony Rizzo to wherever in the lineup he’s having the most success. You might not like it, and that’s okay. Maddon isn’t concerned about that. His goal is to win games. He’s been doing that since he arrived in Chicago.

It’s been a different sort of offseason for the Cubs. Typically, they’ve been at the forefront of improving–generally through free agents–and often expensive ones. But this season, it’s been small moves, while the rest of the division seemed to seize the chance to close the gap. The Cubs are still an excellent team, even without a significant addition this winter. But how much ground have the others made on the Cubs, and is it enough?

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These and other stories you might have missed:

‘Strop should be the closer in 2019’ – Cubbies Crib

‘Don’t expect a consistent lineup with this roster’ – Cubbies Crib

‘Ranking the NL Central offseason moves’ – Cubbies Crib

‘Fixing MLB’s arbitration system’ – Fangraphs

‘Ranking the worst contracts on all 30 teams’ – ESPN

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