Author: Joe Setyon

Cellar dwellers with bright futures: Cubs

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As the 2014 pennant race starts to kick into gear, we explore a number of teams who need to look to 2015 and beyond for their chance to compete. The second of these teams is the Chicago Cubs.

Cubs fans went into 2014 with little to no hopes of competing in the National League Central. As of the All-Star break, the Cubs are indeed a last place team, but one that can look toward the future. Several players they hope to build around are already shining in the major leagues, while others continue to develop in the minors. Earlier this month, Chicago bolstered an already strong farm system by trading Jeff Samardzija and Jason Hammel for several prospects. (You can read more about how that trade benefits the Cubs here.)

Building blocks

Although the current roster is languishing in last place, several players have emerged as potential stars. Since being acquired in a trade with the San Diego Padres, the Cubs have been waiting for 24 year old first baseman Anthony Rizzo to break out, and this year he has. After hitting just .233 last year, Rizzo has raised his average to .275, and his OBP to .381. His 20 home runs rank third in the league, and he is being recognized with a a selection to the National League All-Star team. Seeing his potential, the Cubs signed him to a long term deal that keeps him under team control at a reasonable price ($41 million minimum) until 2021.

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Cellar dwellers with bright futures: Astros

~ Joe Setyon ~ Leave a comment

As the 2014 pennant race starts to kick into gear, several teams have established themselves as contenders. These teams have shown the resiliency and experience to compete in their respective divisions, and look to be in the thick of things for the rest of the season.

On the other hand, other teams have fallen off, and instead are looking to 2015 and beyond for their chance to compete. In particular, I thought of four teams who won’t make noise in this year’s pennant race, but who have talented young players and strong enough farm systems to turn things around in the near future. None of these four teams have been to the playoffs in quite some time, but if a number of prospects work out, they have the chance to be perennial contenders very soon. I plan to take a look at each of these teams in detail as a four-part series. The first team I’ll be discussing is the Houston Astros.

The Astros last appeared in the playoffs in 2005, and have lost 100 games or more in each of the last three seasons. Although they presently sport a 40-56 record, good enough for fourth place in the AL West, many believe it is only a matter of time before their high draft picks are ready to carry the team.

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Midseason awards: National League

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As we near baseball’s All-Star break, it’s time to take a look at the players who have really stood out thus far in the season. Yesterday I took a look at some outstanding players in the American League. Today I’ll do the same for the National League.

NL MVP

We find a mix of old and new names in the National League MVP conversation. Pirates center-fielder Andrew McCutchen is having a great follow-up to his 2013 MVP campaign, as his .319 average ranks fifth. This, along with his 14 home runs, 58 RBIs, and 15 stolen bases, is proof of his all-around greatness.

Milwaukee catcher Jonathan Lucroy has always been a solid hitter, but he has pulled himself into MVP consideration for the first time this year with a .323 average that ranks third in the league, and an .897 OPS that is sixth. His Milwaukee team has also surprised baseball by maintaining first place in the competitive NL Central (though a 4-game sweep at the hands of a weak Phillies team can’t be encouraging).

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Midseason awards: American League

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As we near baseball’s All-Star break, it’s time to take a look at the players who have really stood out in the half-season gone by. There has been a plethora of outstanding individual performances so far, so it is difficult to determine who specific award winners would be if the season were to end today. That said, it’s an entertaining exercise to predict which players will take home the trophies, specifically the MVP, Cy Young, and Rookie of the Year awards. We’ll see how they stand up at the end of the year.

Don’t view this list as the be-all and end-all, but more as a way to better understand what each player has done up to this point. Today I’m going to take a look at some American League standouts. I’ll do the same for the National League tomorrow.

AL Most Valuable Player

In the American League, a handful of players have really pulled ahead in the race for MVP. Angels’ center fielder Mike Trout, possibly the best all-around player in baseball, is having another outstanding campaign. His batting average (.303) and stolen bases (10 SB, 0 CS) are slightly down from previous years, but his 20 home runs and 64 RBIs are on pace to set career highs. He has scored 60 runs, has a .986 OPS, and leads the league in the sabermetrician’s favorite stat, Wins Above Replacement (5.1) .

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Cubs’ trade furthers a successful rebuild

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Why trading Jeff Samardzija and Jason Hammel will work out in the long term for the Cubs

After winning consecutive NL Central titles in 2007-2008, and finishing second in 2009, the Chicago Cubs have suffered through four straight losing seasons. Going further back, the last time this team won the World Series was 1908, almost a full 106 years ago. It makes sense that the Cubs would go to extraordinary lengths to build a team that will contend for longer than just one or two years.

News of a blockbuster trade between the Cubs and the Oakland A’s just serves as evidence of what the organization is trying to do. The fact that they traded their two statistically best starting pitchers for three potential future stars shouldn’t have surprised anyone. Despite stellar seasons by Jeff Samardzija (2.74 ERA) and Jason Hammel (2.98 ERA), the Cubs are virtually out of the playoff race. At 38-47, they are in last place in the NL Central, twelve and a half games behind the Milwaukee Brewers, and eight and a half games out of the second NL wild card spot. Coming into the season, the Cubs did not expect to be legitimate contenders, but rather hoped to build for the near future. To better understand how this trade accomplishes that goal, it helps to break it down by what the Cubs gave up, and what they gained.

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