2 things we've learned about the Chicago Cubs and 1 glaring question we have

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On the heels of another loss on Friday at the hands of the last-place Cincinnati Reds, the Chicago Cubs continue to search for answers with a night game on tap Saturday night at Wrigley. A bad send from third base coach Willie Harris proved to be the difference-maker in the series opener, although the offense at least showed some signs of life late.

After the team lured Craig Counsell away from Milwaukee last winter, a division title was the bare minimum expectation with most fans. Now, with greatly diminished postseason odds, frustrations are starting to mount heading into June. Here are two important things we've learned about this Cubs team and one we're still looking for an answer on two months into the 2024 campaign.

We've learned that Craig Counsell isn't a fix-all for a flawed roster

Hand even the best manager a roster with obvious flaws and it will be a bumpy road to October. Given how the Cubs fanbase (and much of baseball, for that matter) annually underestimated the potential of the rosters Counsell had in Milwaukee only to see them succeed, perhaps expectations were somewhat unrealistic in his first year in Chicago.

Counsell is a tremendous manager, make no mistake. But the shortcomings of this roster were known heading into the year, especially in the bullpen, where things have only been made worse by a flurry of injuries.

Underperforming key pieces, ranging from face of the franchise Dansby Swanson to outfielder Seiya Suzuki, not to mention a catching tandem in shambles, continue to challenge Counsell daily. He's done a great job keeping things on an even keel in the first two months, but even the four-time NL Manager of the Year runner-up can't wave a magic wand and turn things around on a dime.

We've learned that the starting pitching depth is better than expected

Shota Imanaga aside (and brushing what he's done aside is no small feat) the rest of the Chicago Cubs starting rotation has been noteworthy in and of itself.

Despite Chicago eventually losing the game Friday, Javier Assad was once again sharp, allowing two earned and striking out seven over 5 1/3 innings of work. On the year, the right-hander owns a 2.27 ERA in a dozen starts, which ranks sixth in the National League.

Rookie right-hander Ben Brown will start again Sunday, his first appearance since firing seven no-hit innings against Milwaukee his last time out. In six starts and seven relief outings, Brown has a 2.72 ERA - and since his disastrous big league debut, he's been dominant, with a 1.61 ERA.

Even as Justin Steele has worked to settle in after a lengthy IL stint to open the year, both Jameson Taillon (2.84 ERA) and Hayden Wesneski (2.48 ERA) have stepped up in a big way, shoring things up in his absence. And, again, we'd be remiss if we didn't at least touch on Imanaga, who has been one of the best pitchers in all of Major League Baseball to start his big league career.

It's not just depth Counsell has at his disposal: it's a high-quality collection of arms, capable of keeping the Cubs afloat while the offense continues to drastically underperform.

A question we have: which Dansby Swanson should we expect?

If you break Dansby Swanson's career cleanly in half, you get two very different stories. In the front half (2016-2019), he was a well below-average offensive player with 'plus' skills with the glove. In over 1700 regular season plate appearances, he slashed .245/.318/.385, good for an 84 OPS+.

But from 2020-2023, he took a major step forward at the plate, with a .259/.325/.441 line, which works out to a 105 OPS+. Paired with two Gold Gloves and a World Series ring, it was a pretty solid four-year run for the former Vanderbilt standout.

Of course, the Cubs signed Swanson on the heels of the 2022 campaign, when he put together a breakout showing at the plate, driving in a career-high 96 runs with a 114 OPS+, earning the first All-Star selection of his career in the process.

But this year, instead of a key offensive cog, Swanson has been a complete liability offensively and has also shown some uncharacteristic defensive lapses, as well. Baseball Savant pegs him at the 51st percentile defensively, compared to last year's 99th percentile ranking. In year two of a seven-year deal, Swanson has to get back on track or it'll be a huge problem for Jed Hoyer and the Cubs.

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