HOUSTON -- The Chicago Cubs have had a rough week or so. First, there was the homestand in which umpires single-handedly influenced the outcome of two games, one against Philadelphia and one against Cincinnati. Both were losses. The Cubs split four games against the Phillies and lost the series to the Reds to finish 3-4 on the homestand.
The starting pitching was subpar, the bullpen was horrendous, and the offense relied way too heavily on home runs. And now, in Houston, the Cubs have reverted to more of the same.
Cole Hamels and Jon Lester have turned in two awful performances, the offense has been incapable of generating anything other than home runs, and the bullpen fell apart last night. No lead seems safe.
The Cubs still own a half-game lead over second place Milwaukee heading into Wednesday night's finale against the Astros. The Cubs then head to St. Louis for the weekend to take on the Cardinals.
Plenty of frustrated Cubs' fans have written to the Cubs Mailbag -- let's reach in!
Why can't we get clutch hits? -- Cassie T.
It's interesting -- in the Cubs' last few losses, they've put up plenty of runs for the most part, but most have come on home runs. Home runs, by the way, without many base runners. The Cubs are one of the league leaders in OBP, but for some reason, they tend to not hit their home runs with runners on base. It's pretty crazy.
As far as non-homer clutch hits, I think the Cubs' loss of Ben Zobrist has hurt this team more than we know. Even if he was scuffling at the plate before going on his leave of absence, his presence was a force. The Cubs are very streaky at the plate, and right now, they're mired in a rut where they can't seem to drive in people at clutch moments, leading to the Twitter hashtag: #fakerally.
Side note: Want to know what's crazy? The Cubs have been giving up plenty of runs to opposing teams during this stretch where they started with two outs and nobody on. It's really been remarkable. The frequency of this phenomenon should regress to the mean eventually, but it is still frustrating.
Hello Craig Kimbrel? Please? -- Scott Y.
I wish. After the Cubs blew Game 1 against the Reds over the weekend, I posted this:
The interest in Kimbrel should pick up after the MLB Draft when teams will no longer owe Boston draft pick compensation, but that's also when Kimbrel's price will skyrocket. I wouldn't be surprised if teams like the Brewers also get involved.
One thing is for sure: The Cubs need help in the bullpen. A good amount of help, whether it's Kimbrel or someone else. The Cubs are one of the worst teams in the league in save percentage this season. That can't continue.
Should we be worried about the Cubs' playoff chances? -- Isha R.
It's still too early to be talking playoffs. The Cubs are still one of the best teams in the league, but they have obvious, damning flaws that they need to address. The NL Central is good, and the teams in it aren't going away. Hell, even Cincinnati, the last place team in the division, is only five games out of first place and have beaten the Cubs in series played in both Cincinnati and Chicago!
The reality is, the Cubs will be in the running the rest of the year unless something truly awful happens. They will (read: they better) make improvements by the trade deadline to shore up their weaknesses.
The Cubs are a good team. They're a very good team. But the other teams in the division are good, too. The Cubs need to acknowledge the competition and their weaknesses and improve. Quickly.
Should the Cubs play Addison Russell more? He's hitting the ball well. -- Corey G.
Addison Russell shouldn't be on this team. That's all I have to say about this; the baseball portion be damned.
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