Chicago Cubs: Javier Baez, Rick Sutcliffe and the playoff format

 Early season positional rankings haven’t gone all that well for the Chicago Cubs. For some reason, Max Muncy has ranked ahead of Anthony Rizzo. We know. There’s no sense to it. But Javier Baez landed closer to where he should.

The MLB Network released it’s early season rankings, and it didn’t sit well with Chicago Cubs‘ fans. Apparently, they must know something we don’t know about National League first baseman (they don’t). So what about Javier Baez? Where does he rank among the best shortstops in the game? Much better than you might think for not even having a full season at the position.

We’ve had a lot of fun with the Heroes of Wrigley Field series here at the site. Some of these guys were stars of the game. Others, just for the Cubs. But all had their success at Wrigley. Next up on the list, the Red Baron, Rick Sutcliffe. The Cubs gave up Joe Carter and Mel Hall to get Sutcliffe during the 1984 campaign. And to say that it worked out for them would be an understatement. He managed to win the Cy Young of the NL in just half a season with the Cubs.

I think there are more than a few teams over the years that have felt a bit slighted in the Wild Card game. It finally came in and bit the Cubs. No, the team played poorly down the stretch, and you can say they deserved it. But how does a team that has the second best record in the NL–by one game–play in the “one and done” Wild Card game?  There’s a flaw there that needs to be addressed for all future Wild Card games.

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These and other stories you might have missed:

‘Where does Baez rank among the MLB shortstops?’ – Cubbies Crib

‘The Heroes of Wrigley: Rick Sutcliffe’ – Cubbies Crib

‘Is the MLB playoff format flawed?’ – Cubbies Crib

‘Opening Day roster predictions’ – MLB.com

‘A’s still unsure if Murray will report’ – ESPN

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