Chicago Cubs: Four in-house players that are critical for the second half

Chicago Cubs: Some deserved rest for Contreras via Caratini

The last on this list is Victor Caratini. First, the knock on Caratini was he was, mainly, a ‘4-A’ player. Hit well at Triple-A, couldn’t hack it in the majors. Well, he’s finally reaching his potential at the plate. That’s great, but that’s not the entire reason he’ll be critical to the Cubs in the second half. And that reason would be?

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Rest. But not for him, but Willson Contreras. Last season, Contreras caught 460 2/3 innings behind the plate. By far the most in baseball. And his second half showed the wear and tear the regular season can have on a catcher.

After making the All-Star team, he had a dismal second half hitting just .200 with just three home runs and 20 knocked in.

Caratini was healthy last season, but Maddon was afraid to go to him because he was a ‘lost bat’ in the lineup. Even if Contreras was struggling, Maddon felt he was the better option. Now that Caratini seems to have found his way, you could see him spell Contreras more often later in the summer.

Contreras seems to have a motor that never stops. But last year, he simply ran out of gas. Caratini hasn’t slowed from his strong start and should make it easier for Maddon to sit Contreras occasionally instead of catching the bulk of the innings.