![]() With the addition of Yu Darvish, the Cubs rotation doesn’t look that different from the World Champion 2016 starting five. With strong bats (to varying degrees) such as Addison Russell, Willson Contreras, Ian Happ, and Kyle Schwarber sprinkled throughout the lineup, the Cubs bring a gauntlet of offensive firepower from the leadoff spot through the eight-hitter. Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo are as good as any power duo, and the rest of the cast behind them are all better than average players. The Cubs’ main advantage in the National League is their powerful lineup. In the meantime, the thing to watch is how these relievers perform early in the year, especially considering Chicago’s soft early-season schedule. It’s doubtful the current Cubs bullpen construction will carry them through August, and I would certainly expect them to make some moves. ![]() Neither Morrow nor Cishek inspire that much confidence, but then again, relief pitchers can always be found at the trade deadline. Morrow is slated as the Opening Day closer, through the veteran Cishek has been in that role previously with the Marlins and Mariners, and could be the understudy waiting in the wings. While the Cubs seemingly upgraded their bullpen on the cheap, the relief corps probably is still in need of some additions. While these pieces are nice to have, they are not differentiators in any way compared to the league’s elite and second-tier relievers. In addition to the starters, the Cubs revamped their bullpen as well, signing Morrow and Cishek and re-upping Duensing’s contract. For under $40 million over three years, there’s solid upside here. A tinkering with his arm slot or other mechanics could yield significant fruit. Although he won’t be a top-of-the-rotation starter, he has a reputation as a ‘spin-rate’ guy, who has had trouble putting good numbers into good results. It’s likely Darvish’s 2018 is better than Arrieta’s, and this ends up being a major upgrade for the Cubs.īeyond Darvish, Chicago inked Chatwood. He’ll be a good - if not better - replacement for Jake Arrieta, whose performance has been getting discernibly worse. Darvish, however, was a sneaky good signing, at a reasonable price.
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