Chicago Cubs News: Top three 'villains' having their way

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Brad Miller (Photo by Nuccio DiNuzzo/Getty Images) /

The Chicago Cubs fans know the players that always seem to give the team a tough time. Here’s the current short season list of opposing player villains.

When the Chicago Cubs take the field, I like to think of them as the good guys in their red, white and blue uniforms, unlike those other guys across town that have accepted the color black to represent themselves.

Every superhero must have a nemesis villain to rally against, or they would be sitting around getting fat eating Doritos all day. Batman has the Joker, and Superman has Lex Luthor to battle with, but who are the Cubs villains these days?

Indeed, fans can point to several guys who get a rousing set of boos whenever they step up to the plate or make plays against our heroes from the north side. How about the Milwaukee Brewers center fielder Lorenzo Cain, and his knack for stealing home runs from the edges of glory in the outfield? The Brewers have a whole roster full of bad guys like left fielder Ryan Braun or closer Josh Hader that seems to get our blood boiling. Now that we’ll be playing those South-siders more this season, I’m sure we’ll be adding onto this list shortly.

I could go on and on through a bunch of teams, but let’s take a look at who has surfaced recently as some bad hombres for our Cubs.

Chicago Cubs: Wanted – Cardinal Brad Miller the Killer

When I look over the St. Louis Cardinal roster, I can see a whole bunch of bad guys that can give us trouble, but since we are focusing on recent villains of this short season, then my first pick is second baseman, Brad Miller.

Last season, Miller wouldn’t have risen to the level of Hitman-bad-guy against the Cubs as he only played about three games against the Cubs and garner only one hit, albeit an RBI and a run. This short season Miller is putting up bad guy Joker-type stats that are nothing to laugh about.

In 12 appearances at the plate against the Cubs, Miller has six hits scoring two runs. Miller has gotten two doubles, and two home runs off of us and racked up eight RBIs already. Trying as hard as we can to crush the spirit of this first super-baddie on my list, our boys have only been able to strike him out twice and have instead tried to take the bat out of his hands by walking him some five times this season.

The real numbers that scare fans are a .500 BA against the Cubs, .647 OBP, 1.167 SLG and a Brad Miller the Killer 1.814 OPS.

How the heck do you fight those numbers Cubs fans?

Miller has certainly put himself on Cubs fans radar and is slowly becoming known all through Gotham.

One player who continues to give us a hard time from the Brew-Crew is up to his old tricks again, as we go to the next current villain on our list.

Orlando Arcia, Chicago Cubs (Photo by Nuccio DiNuzzo/Getty Images) /

Chicago Cubs: Wanted – Brewers Orlando “Ice-man” Arcia

Milwaukee Brewers shortstop Orlando Arcia could almost be considered the ‘yang’ to our Cubs shortstop Javier Baez – who would be the opposite and be considered the ‘Ying’ (this, of course, depends on which team you’re rooting for of course).

It’s no secret that wild and wily Arcia has given the Cubs plenty of reason in the past to have cause for concern putting up a .487 OPS last season against the Cubs. This short season, however, Arcia has come back with a vengeance.

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Against the Cubs this short season, Arcia has a .381 BA, .409 OBP, .619 SLG and 1.028 OPS. That’s enough to make any hero scratch their head and look for justice. What’s inside that icy bag of Arcia tricks is just the typical eight hits, three runs, one triple and one stinky dinger.

Arcia has only struck out twice in 21 bats against the Cubs this short season. Arcia walked (or should I say strutted) only once to first base under the chagrin of Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo. That’s about the only good news in the Ice-Man Arcia report.

Just like our shortstop’s hero Baez, Arcia is usually the slippery ice that can garner stolen bases for the Brewers. His league record in 2019 was eight stolen bases, and although Arcia hasn’t been able to get anything this season on his ‘Yin’ counterpart (Baez), you can be sure he’s looking for that opportunity.

Our last and worst baddie (only cause we know him) is like a “Red Hood” comic character, the type that was once a good guy, but circumstances led him to the dark side of the house. He used to be one of the good guys wearing red, white and blue in Wrigley Field just last season.

Nick Castellanos, (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

Chicago Cubs: Wanted – Reds Nicholas ‘The Artist’ Castellanos

There was no bigger fan of Cincinnati Reds outfielder Nicholas Castellanos than I was last season.

After the season was over, article after article, I wrote about how the Cubs needed to find a way to bring back Castellanos and I wasn’t alone. Fans, writers, and anyone who saw the heart that he played with and the spirit that he brought to the club would agree that if there were any room in the budget to bring someone back for this last-chance season, it had to be Castellanos.

Of course, this was the perfect storm for creating a Bane-like monster that was going to come back and make you pay for your mistakes, and Castellanos has let his roar loose on the Cubs. In only 11 appearances at the plate against the Cubs, Castellanos has garnered five hits, four runs, one double, seven RBIs and not one but two home runs!

What does that mean? Well, how about a punishing .455 BA, .538 OBP, 1.091 SLG and a 1.629 OPS.

Castellanos has undoubtedly made it known that although he is no longer the ‘friendly confines neighborhood Castellanos-man,’ he is still a force to be reckoned with, none-the-less.

dark. Next. Cubs, Puig would be a good fit

The beautiful thing about changing to a villain is that there is always the opportunity to turn back.

The cool way that Castellanos had his contract written will allow him to be available again after this short season. I’m sure we’d love to have him back in our lineup again.

Wouldn’t we, Mr. Epstein?

Maybe in there re-building phase and right fielder Jason Heyward’s inevitable exit from the Cubs, management will remember our “Red Hood” Castellanos…

And bring him back to the light.

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