Chicago Cubs News: This is what a playoff team looks like

It’s been a little while since the Chicago Cubs made the playoffs. For a lot of fans, it may be difficult to convince themselves that this is what a playoff team looks like, but Jed Hoyer and the front office just showed everyone that they believe that and we need to think so as well.

In order to be successful in a playoff run you need to have a handful of things:

1. You need a rotation of at least four guys you feel extremely confident handing the ball to on the biggest stage.
2. You need a bullpen that has at least three arms that you can go to in high-leverage situations to get you out of a bind.
3. You need exceptional (specifically infield) defense. You can’t give up runs on plays that should have ended an inning.
4. You need a lineup of guys that don’t waste pitches, let alone whole at-bats. The strike zone is expanded in the playoffs, so you need guys that don’t chase and wait for the right pitch.
5. You need veteran leadership, but you also need a youthful spark that comes from guys that don’t even know how big the moment is. 
6. Finally, you need a little bit of luck.

This Chicago team has all of the things from this list.

Rotation

In a situation where the Cubs win the division and spend the NLDS playing the Giants, we’d likely see the following pitching matchups:

Marcus Stroman vs. Logan Webb

Justin Steele vs. Alex Cobb

Kyle Hendricks vs. Anthony DeScalfani

Jameson Taillon vs. Alex Wood

There’s not a matchup in that series that doesn’t favor the Cubs. Marcus Stroman pitches best in big moments as he proved in the World Baseball Classic years ago and I would look forward to giving him and Justin Steele the ball in a giant moment like this. Add in Kyle Hendricks with his World Series pedigree and Jameson Taillon as a fourth starter with some junkyard dog in him, I like what we have. 

The Cubs have the fourth highest starting pitcher WAR in the NL at the time of writing. This is what a playoff team looks like.

Bullpen

With the increase in days off that exist in the playoffs the bench (not literally) shrinks. You no longer need guys that can eat the middle innings, you need three guys that can take the ball from your starter for the 7th, 8th, and 9th innings to finish a game up. You need a trusted inner circle of relievers that can get the job done.

The Cubs do not have a deep bullpen. However, they do have five legitimate back end bullpen pieces and a potential sleeper that could bring the filth when needed. In an ideal situation, the Cubs would hand the ball from Stroman to Fulmer for the 7th, to Leiter for the 8th to Alzolay for the 9th. However, they also have the ability to go to Julian Merryweather and Daniel Palencia in the 7th or 8th if necessary or have Fulmer come in earlier if a starter gets into some trouble. 

The Cubs are tied for the lowest number of blown saves in the majors this year. This is what a playoff team looks like. 

Defense

The game on Wednesday against the Reds showed what can happen if the defense falters. Cincinnati would have looked more at home under a circus tent than a baseball diamond as they booted and overthrew ball after ball and the Cubs capitalized on their way to a 16-6 rout of their division rivals.

As much fun as it is to watch your enemies fail, it is heartbreaking when your defense lets you down and allows the opposition to score runs on what should have been outs to get you out of an inning. The front office built this team with defense in mind as they went after legitimate Gold Glove defenders all over the field. 

Marcus Stroman, Tucker Barnhart, Cody Bellinger, Dansby Swanson, and Ian Happ have all won Gold Glove awards. As a team, they’re fifth in the NL in Outs Above Average on defense. This is what a playoff team looks like. 

Lineup

The 2016 Cubs were one of the most frustrating lineups to watch in the playoffs. They had power throughout the order but they had more swing and miss than just about anyone else in the league and when you are facing playoff-caliber pitching every night with expanded strike zones the strikeout numbers became problematic. 

That team had enough pure talent to overcome those strikeout shortcomings, but most teams simply don’t. The 2023 team doesn’t need to overcome that. They’re in the middle of the pack for the league as far as strikeout numbers, but they don’t waste at-bats. Mike Tauchman is a perfect example of this. As aggressive as hitters like Nico Hoerner and Christopher Morel can be, you have guys like Tauchman and Seiya Suzuki that are willing to watch pitches to get a pitcher deeper into counts and make them work for everything they get. 

This team has the fourth-best walk rate and the fourth-highest on-base percentage in baseball. This is what a playoff team looks like.