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3 reasons Chicago Cubs fans should give up on 2023 and 2 they shouldn’t
The Chicago Cubs are surging right now having won 11 of their last 14 games. There is plenty of reasons to be excited right now as long as the team can keep it up. However, there are a few nagging issues that come up here and there that seem like they need addressing sooner rather than later. The Cubs also haven't even made it back to .500 yet, meaning that their play over the next month will be critical in deciding what the team will do at the trade deadline. Here are x reasons why fans should give up on the 2023 season, and x reasons they should keep hope.
Give up: The Reds are surging
The Cincinnati Reds have emerged as a threat in the NL Central and they are arguably the most exciting team in baseball right now. An 11-game winning streak shot the Reds to the top of the weak division and they hold a half-game lead over Milwaukee and 3 games on the Cubs. While the division is tight, the Reds received a shot of adrenaline earlier this month when top prospect Elly De La Cruz was called up. The 6'4 infielder looks like a five-tool phenom and he is living up to his expectations so far with a .989 OPS in his first 17 games. Joey Votto has also returned from injury recently and looked great at the plate, making this lineup go from good to great overnight.
Keep hope: The division is bad
As I mentioned earlier, the Cubs are only 3 games out of first place in arguably the second-worst division in baseball besides the AL Central. The Brewers are not as good as they've been in recent years, the Pirates are getting cold after a hot start and the Cardinals are having one of the most disappointing seasons ever for a team with so much talent. Everything is in place for the Cubs to jump ahead and stay there if they can take advantage against their division rivals, which they have done against the Pirates so far with back-to-back sweeps.
And even though the Reds are hot right now, and their offense looks pretty good, they have a genuine lack of quality starting pitching outside of Hunter Greene (who is currently on the IL), and rookie Andrew Abbott. This is a big problem and it will hinder the Reds for the remainder of the season unless they make significant additions at the deadline, which seems highly unlikely.
Give up: The bullpen could come apart at any moment
It was only very recently that the Cubs' bullpen found some shred of stability, with Adbert Alozlay looking more than capable of closing ballgames while Julian Merryweather and Mark Leiter Jr. are the clear setup men. Outside of those three, there are glaring question marks. Michael Rucker is not a high-leverage arm, Michael Fulmer has to be expected to give up at least 1 run every time he toes the rubber and I have no idea what they are doing with Javier Assad.
Reinforcements were thought to be coming in the form of Codi Heuer, who was cruising through his rehab assignments at Iowa until another scary injury occurred. Southpaw Brandon Hughes was the best reliever last year but has also hit a snag with a lingering knee issue. Both men had surgeries recently and are confirmed to be sidelined for the remainder of the season. Although arms seem to be sprouting out of Triple-A at a rapid pace, the most recent one being Anthony Kay who has been good in a small sample size, the Cubs will need to add bullpen arms at the deadline if they want to hold it together.
Keep hope: The starting rotation has been phenomenal
It's hard to argue that the Cubs' starting rotation has been the team's primary strength all year. Leading the charge is Marcus Stroman, who is having a career year and could be a Cy Young candidate if his dominance continues. He is currently leading all starting pitchers in WAR (3.5) and he ranks second in ERA (2.47) in the National League. Hot on his heels is Justin Steele, who is third in ERA (2.62) and breaking out as the first Cubs homegrown starter in a long time. Although he was expected to be the fourth or fifth starter, Drew Smyly has been shattering expectations and performed well above his usual standards.
Kyle Hendricks is showing shades of his 2016 self after returning from a long-term shoulder injury, meaning the Cubs have four solid starters right now. Jameson Taillon has been the weakest link and he will have to begin turning in better starts for this team to really shine. But if one of these guys in the rotation goes down, there is decent depth too as top pitching prospect Ben Brown is looking eager to get the call up to the majors. I also haven't given up on Hayden Wesneski as a starter either even though he would probably serve better as a bullpen arm right now.
Give Up: The offense is scuffed, and David Ross isn't helping
While the Chicago Cubs' offense looks amazing at times, specifically when the ball gets sprayed around by Nico Hoerner, Dansby Swanson and Ian Happ, there are some big problems. For one the team is not willing to play Christopher Morel at third base. I know his defense there has been shaky in the past, but his bat needs to be in the lineup and third base is the only place that he can plant a flag in the long run. However, David Ross seems content with having him DH or fill in at other positions when someone gets hurt. This strategy is not only hindering Morel's development but Miguel Amaya's too. On days Amaya is not catching, he should be the one DHing to make up for all the at-bats he's lost due to injury in the past few years.
In addition to the Morel conundrum, the production from first base has been truly atrocious. Again, this is partially David Ross's fault because he couldn't stop himself from putting Eric Hosmer in the lineup when he was still on the team. Matt Mervis got the call in May after tearing it up in Triple-A, but he found the Majors to be much more of a challenge and he has since been sent back down. There is the possibility that he could figure things out, but the Cubs can't really bank on that if they want to compete this year.
They also can't bank on Trey Mancini, who has been not only an inconsistent hitter but a very poor fielder in recent weeks. One horrendous error on his part almost cost the Cubs Mark Leiter Jr. a couple of weeks ago when he narrowly escaped a serious injury. Another Mancini mistake was the main culprit in the Cubs dropping the second game of the London series to the Cardinals. If Mancini is going to be putting on this kind of performance, I'd rather have Matt Mervis in there to develop at the big league level no matter how long it takes because at least he can play good defense.
If not, I guess Cody Bellinger will man the position since Mike Tauchman has been good in center field but who knows how long that success will last. All in all, the Cubs need another big bat in this lineup because Saiya Suzuki seems incapable of hitting home runs at times, Ian Happ no longer seems to be a true power hitter and Mancini is a mystery.
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