Jed Hoyer sounds like a broken record talking about Cubs' second-half weakness

Carson Kelly's Labor Day heroics at the Federal Landmark put an exclamation mark on one of the most thrilling wins of the year for the Chicago Cubs and, at least for one day, we could all forget about how the offense has looked like a shell of its first-half self for more than a month.

When talking about his team's offensive issues on Monday, Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer spun the same spiel we've heard for three straight summers now, talking about how the 'collection of players' the team has slumping simultaneously.

With the exception of rookie Matt Shaw, who has been on a tear in the second half (.281/.320/.614), the Cubs have been searching for answers and consistency as the dish. Only Shaw and Nico Hoerner have second-half batting averages north of .250, a testament to just how widespread the struggles have been for Chicago.

Cubs desperately need to get to the bottom of this recurring issue

The frustration lies in the fact that this keeps happening. It cost the Cubs a playoff spot two years ago late in the season and their summer swoon in 2024 pushed them outside the postseason hunt long before the calendar turned to September. Not even a managerial change between the 2023 and 2024 seasons could save us from re-living the same experience, with both teams putting up identical 83-79 records and missing the playoffs.

So forgive me if I'm tired of hearing the same story from Hoyer. Just how similar is what we're hearing? Take a listen for yourself at a clip from last summer.

Last season, the team-wide slump was attributed to extremely pitcher-friendly conditions at Wrigley Field - and those conditions have been similar this year, as well, with the Cubs posting an OPS roughly 50 points higher on the road than when at home. Regardless of the cause, though, the organization needs to take a long, hard look in the mirror and try to come up with a solution to this problem.

Slumps happen for pretty much every player. There's no way around it; there are just going to be ups and downs over the course of 162 games. But the Cubs need to figure out how to keep it from snowballing and becoming a team-wide issue moving forward. The pitching kept the ship afloat this time around, but we can't let that be the reason this isn't addressed heading into 2026.