WEBVTT - Midseason grades for the Cubs during this up-and-down year 0:00:05.680 --> 0:00:09.360 Welcome into Northside Territory Foul Territory Networks Cubs Podcast. I'm 0:00:09.400 --> 0:00:11.840 Saha Dave Sharma with my partner Patrick Mooney. We are 0:00:11.880 --> 0:00:16.840 your Cubs beat writers over at the Athletic. Patrick is 0:00:16.880 --> 0:00:20.640 not quite the middle of the season, but we are 0:00:20.680 --> 0:00:25.320 going to hand out some grades for this team as 0:00:25.400 --> 0:00:31.520 they continue to muddle through. I guess how many games 0:00:31.560 --> 0:00:34.800 are we in it? Do I have the record rate? Forty? 0:00:35.440 --> 0:00:38.839 Is it forty? No? Wait, like I'm off on my 0:00:39.080 --> 0:00:41.559 it is it's forty and thirty seven, So we're seventy 0:00:41.600 --> 0:00:44.920 seven games in, so we're close. We're close to that midpoint. 0:00:46.880 --> 0:00:49.800 I think everyone can agree that after the way the 0:00:49.840 --> 0:00:54.240 season started, three games over five hundred is not not 0:00:54.360 --> 0:01:00.200 where people were hoping for at this point. It's interesting 0:01:00.440 --> 0:01:05.559 reading fans reactions right now. They're acting like this team 0:01:05.680 --> 0:01:09.600 is ten fifteen games under five hundred. But I get it. 0:01:10.080 --> 0:01:12.679 When you struggle like they have the past month plus, 0:01:13.440 --> 0:01:18.479 it's hard to feel positive. But it just I think 0:01:18.480 --> 0:01:20.839 we have to look at this season as a whole 0:01:20.959 --> 0:01:24.959 so far, which is, you know, we're middle nearing the 0:01:25.080 --> 0:01:28.720 end of June and they're in a playoff spot, which 0:01:28.760 --> 0:01:31.920 is really weird to say because the vibes around it 0:01:31.959 --> 0:01:34.400 does not did not feel that way. But let's start 0:01:34.400 --> 0:01:38.039 with I guess we could do this first segment, the 0:01:38.080 --> 0:01:42.840 coaching staff and the front office. I think it's hard 0:01:42.880 --> 0:01:46.920 for me to, like, I think council, I mean, think 0:01:46.959 --> 0:01:48.520 about it, if we would have done this at the 0:01:48.600 --> 0:01:51.560 end of you know, at the end of April, at 0:01:51.600 --> 0:01:53.680 the beginning of May, it's an A plus, right, like 0:01:53.720 --> 0:01:59.280 what a great job great council has done. I don't 0:01:59.320 --> 0:02:03.440 think he's done anything like super wrong since then this, 0:02:03.880 --> 0:02:06.200 But but it's hard to give him like an A 0:02:06.880 --> 0:02:09.240 when when the season is just kind of average. So 0:02:09.280 --> 0:02:12.519 I think, you know, it's it's just average. It's it's 0:02:12.680 --> 0:02:15.120 a C for me, for him and the coaching staff. 0:02:15.160 --> 0:02:19.560 I I again, I just don't think, like nothing stands outwards, 0:02:19.600 --> 0:02:21.840 like why is he doing this? Why is he calling 0:02:21.919 --> 0:02:23.640 upon this guy in the bullpen, Like when you have 0:02:23.720 --> 0:02:27.600 this many injuries, when you have this many guys being ineffective, 0:02:27.760 --> 0:02:31.240 Like there's a certain way you have to like you're 0:02:31.280 --> 0:02:35.040 going to be wrong. Sometimes I just don't, like nothing 0:02:35.120 --> 0:02:37.919 is glaring to me. But I think fans will disagree 0:02:37.960 --> 0:02:41.480 with that that they'll they'll Nippick on something, but I 0:02:41.560 --> 0:02:44.320 think it's just been an average season for this coaching staff. 0:02:45.840 --> 0:02:48.400 Yeah, I'm going to tie him together the sort of 0:02:48.440 --> 0:02:51.560 like Craig Council's group in Jed Hoyer's group, just because 0:02:51.560 --> 0:02:55.240 there is a lot of collaboration there and that, you know, 0:02:55.280 --> 0:02:59.640 whether it's Tommy hot Devey sort of being an extent 0:02:59.760 --> 0:03:02.600 of the office or Craig Council. 0:03:02.240 --> 0:03:05.720 Getting involved in R and D in the off season. 0:03:05.919 --> 0:03:09.160 You know, Tyler Zombro in this role where he's in 0:03:09.360 --> 0:03:13.000 uniform and out of uniform, uh, you know during the 0:03:13.000 --> 0:03:17.639 off season meetings. Yeah, I'm with you, Like, certainly not 0:03:17.760 --> 0:03:21.160 an A, definitely not an F. You know, if you 0:03:21.200 --> 0:03:24.840 want to go B minus, C plus like I could 0:03:25.240 --> 0:03:28.240 C minus, like you can probably talk me into it. 0:03:28.360 --> 0:03:33.560 Just like that's been kind of the work product thus far. 0:03:33.760 --> 0:03:38.600 And maybe once they get past the halfway point in 0:03:38.720 --> 0:03:41.280 leaving New York, you maybe they have a nice we're 0:03:41.320 --> 0:03:46.080 recording before Tuesday's game after two consecutive rainouts. That also 0:03:46.280 --> 0:03:49.520 colors this a bit as well. There has been a 0:03:49.520 --> 0:03:54.640 new result to move onto. But the Cubs their next 0:03:55.320 --> 0:03:57.920 stop will be Milwaukee, and I think Milwaukee makes all 0:03:57.960 --> 0:03:59.920 of this look worse, you know what I mean, Like 0:04:00.120 --> 0:04:04.800 the we are grading on a curve here when you 0:04:04.840 --> 0:04:07.640 look at the state of the National League, like there's 0:04:08.480 --> 0:04:12.640 a lot of really average teams, and there's so much 0:04:12.680 --> 0:04:16.240 parody that I think we both expect them to be 0:04:17.120 --> 0:04:20.120 in the race until mid to late September, and then 0:04:20.160 --> 0:04:23.680 it's just kind of like, can they come through in 0:04:23.760 --> 0:04:25.840 the you know that last week or so, can they 0:04:25.960 --> 0:04:28.880 avoid the collapse we saw in twenty twenty three, Well, 0:04:28.880 --> 0:04:31.520 they have a nice finishing kick after the trade headline. 0:04:32.600 --> 0:04:36.240 We have no idea and yeah, maybe this is incomplete 0:04:36.880 --> 0:04:38.920 for the front office in that sense, like they still 0:04:38.960 --> 0:04:41.880 have a lot of work to do. I think overall, 0:04:42.080 --> 0:04:45.640 the you know, the coaching stat and council get credit 0:04:45.720 --> 0:04:51.840 for Peka Armstrong's development, for how the pitching, they've weathered 0:04:51.880 --> 0:04:55.200 it fairly well considering the sheer vib of injuries. But 0:04:55.240 --> 0:04:58.120 then again, like we'll never know this, but could they 0:04:58.160 --> 0:04:59.800 have done more on the front end to prevent this 0:05:00.200 --> 0:05:05.479 some of it, you know, the personnel they acquired, Like 0:05:05.560 --> 0:05:08.760 you should maybe expect injuries with some of these guys. 0:05:08.800 --> 0:05:13.440 But I think as we talk through some of these 0:05:13.480 --> 0:05:16.599 additions in the upcoming segments here. I think back to 0:05:16.640 --> 0:05:20.360 the story you wrote somewhat recently of just like this 0:05:20.480 --> 0:05:27.760 was a ninety two win team, pretty methodically built, pretty 0:05:27.800 --> 0:05:34.440 fairly well rounded roster. You're trading swapping out Kyle Tucker 0:05:34.520 --> 0:05:41.880 for Alex Bragman, and like all of these moves were reasonable. 0:05:42.839 --> 0:05:44.920 There was not a whole lot of like what are 0:05:44.960 --> 0:05:49.960 they thinking here? And so that I think that compounds 0:05:49.960 --> 0:05:52.200 it too of just like you see how well the 0:05:52.240 --> 0:05:55.599 Brewers are doing, that doesn't make the Cubs look great 0:05:56.040 --> 0:05:58.760 and also just kind of confusing. I think that's why 0:05:58.760 --> 0:06:01.159 it's hard for me to just you know, put a 0:06:01.200 --> 0:06:04.159 big red F on it, because right we understood where 0:06:04.160 --> 0:06:06.920 they're coming from with a lot of stuff, and as 0:06:06.960 --> 0:06:11.040 we deal with Craig Councilor's coaches, like they're like reasonable people, 0:06:11.520 --> 0:06:12.960 that they're good communicators. 0:06:13.080 --> 0:06:14.760 You know, we can kind of see where they're coming. 0:06:14.560 --> 0:06:17.320 From on a lot of this, and they will point to, look, 0:06:17.720 --> 0:06:20.280 everything's incomplete because we still have a half season to go. 0:06:20.960 --> 0:06:24.760 Yes, if I'm grading them just on these first two 0:06:24.760 --> 0:06:29.640 and a half three months then to the front office 0:06:29.680 --> 0:06:32.000 that is, then I think I would not give them 0:06:32.040 --> 0:06:33.960 a past. I would not give them a c like 0:06:34.000 --> 0:06:38.360 I'd have to give them below and like, look, that's 0:06:39.440 --> 0:06:42.560 totally second guessing because I think we were on board 0:06:42.560 --> 0:06:45.120 with this offseason. We thought it was a smart offseason. 0:06:45.200 --> 0:06:48.600 I thought they did a lot of good h Nothing's 0:06:48.640 --> 0:06:52.320 really worked out as hoped so far. Alex Bregman is 0:06:52.360 --> 0:06:56.520 not performing up to expectations. Edward Cabrera is not a 0:06:56.560 --> 0:07:01.080 standout starter for this team. Phil Mayton has really struggled. 0:07:01.160 --> 0:07:06.400 Hunter Harvey has barely pitched. Jacob Webb has been good 0:07:07.040 --> 0:07:10.120 but has struggled of late. And the bullpen is a 0:07:10.120 --> 0:07:15.440 concern for me. The rotation is a concern. The moves 0:07:15.520 --> 0:07:19.600 just haven't really worked out the bullpen, Like this is 0:07:19.720 --> 0:07:22.840 just how bullpens are. And I know, I'm like, I'm 0:07:22.840 --> 0:07:27.280 probably gonna answer some questions via mail bag and people 0:07:27.320 --> 0:07:29.600 are like, how could they have built this type of bullpen? 0:07:29.640 --> 0:07:33.400 And I mean it said they needed to bring like 0:07:33.440 --> 0:07:35.720 they need to bring in some certainty. Yeah, Okay. They 0:07:35.720 --> 0:07:39.040 should have signed Edwin Diaz, who has pitched four innings 0:07:39.080 --> 0:07:41.040 and had like a ten ERA. Maybe they should have 0:07:41.040 --> 0:07:43.920 signed Devin Williams who has an ERA pushing five. Maybe 0:07:43.920 --> 0:07:46.040 they should have signed Pete Fairbanks, who has an era 0:07:46.320 --> 0:07:50.760 pushing like ten Re signed Brad Keller, who's Era's double 0:07:50.880 --> 0:07:55.520 last season, Like, I don't know, there's no such thing 0:07:55.520 --> 0:07:57.960 as certainty in the bullpen. I know fans get so 0:07:58.080 --> 0:08:01.280 annoyed by hearing that, and like they think it's an excuse, 0:08:01.960 --> 0:08:04.920 But it is so hard to build a bullpen year 0:08:04.960 --> 0:08:07.320 after year. You need guys to step up that you 0:08:07.360 --> 0:08:10.520 didn't like. Nobody has stepped up that they that they 0:08:10.600 --> 0:08:16.400 kind of needed to, like Colin Snyder, Corbyn Martin Riley 0:08:16.480 --> 0:08:20.160 Martin got hurt. So it's you know, this is excuse making, 0:08:20.200 --> 0:08:22.160 I guess you could say, but it's also the reality 0:08:22.200 --> 0:08:23.880 of building a bullpen. You just don't know what you're 0:08:23.920 --> 0:08:27.240 going to get. You could feel so confident about what 0:08:27.280 --> 0:08:29.440 you've put together and it can just turn out to 0:08:29.440 --> 0:08:31.160 be a mess, or you can have like kind of 0:08:31.160 --> 0:08:32.720 be like, I don't know it's going to look and 0:08:32.760 --> 0:08:35.319 then it dominates. Last year was really good. I thought 0:08:35.400 --> 0:08:37.760 last year was a good bullpen. They have figured it 0:08:37.800 --> 0:08:39.920 out on the fly, so I would not be surprised 0:08:40.440 --> 0:08:44.559 if the bullpen does get figured out. They've they're really 0:08:44.600 --> 0:08:47.120 throwing things against the wall with this bullpen right now 0:08:47.160 --> 0:08:49.440 that we've talked about it a couple episodes ago. I 0:08:49.480 --> 0:08:53.240 believe like they're just cycling through forty man roster spots, 0:08:53.320 --> 0:08:57.960 so that I think is something that can be fixed 0:08:58.480 --> 0:09:00.640 over the course of a season. See it all the 0:09:00.640 --> 0:09:04.200 time with different teams. Go back to that World Series 0:09:04.280 --> 0:09:08.080 run that the Diamondbacks went on. I believe what was that, 0:09:08.160 --> 0:09:12.839 twenty three, twenty four, Yeah, twenty three, and they had 0:09:12.840 --> 0:09:16.199 a rough bullpen the first few months. They made a 0:09:16.240 --> 0:09:19.120 couple of trades, picked up some guys that had struggled 0:09:19.160 --> 0:09:22.000 in the first half and were nails for them in 0:09:22.040 --> 0:09:24.080 the second half. And that's that's kind of how it is. 0:09:24.320 --> 0:09:28.040 It can be the most random thing in sports. So 0:09:28.559 --> 0:09:30.840 sometimes there's just no rhyme or reason to it all. 0:09:31.800 --> 0:09:36.200 Let's take a quick break then and break down some 0:09:36.320 --> 0:09:40.240 position players and give them grades. 0:09:41.160 --> 0:09:44.080 When my puppy Bella has something wrong, I'm not going 0:09:44.120 --> 0:09:45.720 to go around googling what. 0:09:45.760 --> 0:09:48.280 To do, Yeah, Kratz, Let's have a better plan. Today's 0:09:48.280 --> 0:09:52.120 episode is sponsored by the ASPCA Pet Health Insurance Program. 0:09:52.360 --> 0:09:55.360 It offers customizable accident and illness plans that can fit 0:09:55.360 --> 0:09:56.520 your budget, your lifestyle, and. 0:09:56.480 --> 0:09:57.120 Even your pets. 0:09:57.200 --> 0:10:00.440 Particular quirks because Let's be honest that builds can add 0:10:00.480 --> 0:10:03.360 up fast. 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The ASPCA is not an insurance 0:10:38.000 --> 0:10:40.160 and is not engaged in the business of insurance. 0:10:42.640 --> 0:10:45.880 All right, So I think if we were grading the 0:10:46.840 --> 0:10:50.800 offense again six weeks ago, we'd be talking about like 0:10:50.840 --> 0:10:52.360 a plus, you. 0:10:52.320 --> 0:10:54.160 Know, best offense. Ever. 0:10:54.600 --> 0:11:01.880 Yeah, and obviously six weeks has changed the Uh. This 0:11:02.040 --> 0:11:04.880 is one of the more confusing. 0:11:05.760 --> 0:11:05.880 Uh. 0:11:06.360 --> 0:11:10.600 It's just I don't know. Again, It's like the volatility 0:11:10.600 --> 0:11:14.960 of bullpens, the randomness of hitting with runners in scoring 0:11:15.000 --> 0:11:17.880 position is like these got these have to be the 0:11:17.880 --> 0:11:22.440 two most frustrating things to watch when things aren't going 0:11:22.520 --> 0:11:27.280 right and and kind of accept that, man, baseball can 0:11:27.320 --> 0:11:30.960 be a random sport sometimes, and yes it is this 0:11:32.040 --> 0:11:34.560 like the hitting with runners in scoring position, Like you 0:11:34.640 --> 0:11:38.360 look at the Cubs numbers when like overall versus that, 0:11:38.559 --> 0:11:41.400 and it's and it's really weird, and it's a stark 0:11:41.400 --> 0:11:44.600 difference and it makes you question of like, what what 0:11:44.640 --> 0:11:47.880 are they doing wrong? When I think a lot of 0:11:47.880 --> 0:11:52.920 baseball people feel like, no, this stuff will even out again. 0:11:53.120 --> 0:11:55.120 This is one of those things that fans don't want 0:11:55.120 --> 0:11:58.319 to hear. So I get the frustration, and I think 0:11:58.360 --> 0:12:01.440 it is important to analyze it, be on that and 0:12:01.600 --> 0:12:06.440 wonder what else is going on. But I just don't 0:12:06.480 --> 0:12:09.520 think there's a simple answer to that. But that's probably 0:12:09.600 --> 0:12:14.120 the biggest issue with this team. If they had, you know, 0:12:14.920 --> 0:12:18.520 ten more hits with runners in scoring position, that's probably 0:12:18.640 --> 0:12:22.160 like five more wits. That's really like what a big 0:12:22.200 --> 0:12:24.960 swing it would be. Because I was just looking this 0:12:25.040 --> 0:12:27.679 up after they have the most played appearances with runners 0:12:27.720 --> 0:12:32.959 in scoring position and they have I believe the twenty 0:12:32.960 --> 0:12:36.960 eighth in batting average. And again, like I think people 0:12:37.000 --> 0:12:39.480 who know me know that I don't think batting average 0:12:39.520 --> 0:12:41.920 is the most important step, but it's important with runners 0:12:41.920 --> 0:12:44.240 in scoring position, you want to get base hits because 0:12:44.280 --> 0:12:46.560 sometimes a walk with a man on second and one 0:12:46.600 --> 0:12:51.839 out just doesn't do the job. But you know, a groundball, 0:12:52.040 --> 0:12:57.400 seeing eye, single change, it can change a game. So that, right, 0:12:57.440 --> 0:13:00.520 there is one reason why you. 0:13:00.480 --> 0:13:03.679 Know you're losing your mind you're talking of batting average here, 0:13:03.760 --> 0:13:06.400 like this is what comes I'm done to your brain. Yes, yes, 0:13:06.679 --> 0:13:09.679 this is your brain on Cubs baseball. 0:13:08.800 --> 0:13:14.200 Right, And so overall it's the offense gets another you know, 0:13:14.400 --> 0:13:19.640 mediocre see here for me. But I think I still 0:13:19.720 --> 0:13:21.480 feel that by the end of the season we'll be 0:13:21.520 --> 0:13:23.640 looking back and saying that's a B season, maybe an 0:13:23.640 --> 0:13:25.080 A season for the offense. 0:13:26.760 --> 0:13:29.640 Yeah, I think it's just like disappointing that this group 0:13:29.679 --> 0:13:35.360 as a whole hasn't stepped forward, and like how quickly 0:13:36.320 --> 0:13:40.600 it went from like, you know, World Series contender to 0:13:40.760 --> 0:13:43.280 like are these guys too uptight? Do they have the 0:13:43.320 --> 0:13:49.000 wrong mix of personalities in the room, And like is there, 0:13:50.160 --> 0:13:53.120 you know, is there something wrong with like kind of 0:13:53.120 --> 0:13:57.840 this hitting group as a whole because this is what 0:13:58.200 --> 0:14:02.600 you know, Jed Hoyer's front off that says, really stake 0:14:02.679 --> 0:14:06.080 this team on. This is what they've built around. You know, 0:14:06.120 --> 0:14:08.360 they have been proven right. 0:14:08.800 --> 0:14:10.920 You know, bullpens are volatile. 0:14:11.720 --> 0:14:15.360 Uh, you don't want to put good money, big money 0:14:16.360 --> 0:14:18.480 behind those players. We'll just fine. You just have to 0:14:18.480 --> 0:14:22.320 be right in the other areas. And the Cubs historically 0:14:22.360 --> 0:14:28.320 don't pay for number one starters. They have in the past, 0:14:28.360 --> 0:14:32.120 I should say, I mean you Darvish John Lester, but 0:14:32.280 --> 0:14:35.040 like recently, you know, they they saw where the Dylan 0:14:35.120 --> 0:14:37.320 c s market was going and they were informed and 0:14:37.360 --> 0:14:37.960 we're like, all. 0:14:37.920 --> 0:14:38.720 Right, good luck with that. 0:14:38.880 --> 0:14:41.000 And you know, he got paid in Toronto and so 0:14:41.160 --> 0:14:43.560 sort of getting these getting a lot of sort of 0:14:44.200 --> 0:14:47.840 you know, number three type starters on on good days 0:14:47.960 --> 0:14:52.640 or you know, and also not developing pitching from within 0:14:53.280 --> 0:14:58.160 that much means your your hitters, your everyday guys have 0:14:58.280 --> 0:15:00.680 to carry you, and you know, kind of looking at 0:15:01.000 --> 0:15:02.880 you know, the Baseball reference sheet. 0:15:04.360 --> 0:15:08.000 Right now, I think I mean Peter Armstrong, I think 0:15:08.040 --> 0:15:08.640 he gets an A. 0:15:08.800 --> 0:15:11.400 I think he doesn't get an A plus just because 0:15:11.440 --> 0:15:13.920 of what happened on the South Side and some of 0:15:13.960 --> 0:15:17.800 his glaring defensive mistakes. I know he's still an awesome defender, 0:15:19.320 --> 0:15:25.920 has put up some amazing offensive numbers recently, so I 0:15:25.920 --> 0:15:29.040 think that's a solid A not quite an A plus. 0:15:29.080 --> 0:15:30.160 I think Ian. 0:15:30.040 --> 0:15:34.440 Hap, as frustrating as he can be for fans, is 0:15:34.480 --> 0:15:40.240 putting together an All Star caliber first half. We'll see 0:15:40.240 --> 0:15:43.200 if he actually gets in the game. And you know 0:15:43.240 --> 0:15:47.120 he's streaky as well, so we don't know where he'll 0:15:47.280 --> 0:15:51.400 wind up between now and the All Star break, but 0:15:51.560 --> 0:15:52.880 at the end of the year, you know you're gonna 0:15:52.880 --> 0:15:54.600 have a pretty solid season out of him. So I 0:15:54.640 --> 0:15:58.360 put him in that kind of a minus B plus range, 0:15:58.400 --> 0:16:01.840 And then say, is one a name I sort of 0:16:01.920 --> 0:16:06.360 circled of, Like his numbers are good, he's a much 0:16:06.440 --> 0:16:11.960 better defender, but just when the Cubs go through these tailspins, 0:16:12.400 --> 0:16:15.200 like Saya usually seems to be kind of at the 0:16:15.200 --> 0:16:17.400 forefront of that, and just you would like to see 0:16:17.440 --> 0:16:22.440 a little more consistency or quicker ability to kind of 0:16:22.960 --> 0:16:27.000 pull the team out of the nosedive. And that's one 0:16:27.000 --> 0:16:30.359 of those just because we hear how players talk about him, 0:16:30.880 --> 0:16:35.160 we know how talented he is, we know how hard 0:16:35.200 --> 0:16:40.160 he works, how much he cares, and like that's just 0:16:40.880 --> 0:16:43.120 kind of been who he is during his time in Chicago, 0:16:43.160 --> 0:16:45.080 and now that that may change. He might have been 0:16:45.120 --> 0:16:48.520 their most dangerous hitter during last year's playoffs, and like 0:16:48.560 --> 0:16:49.680 I certainly wouldn't. 0:16:49.360 --> 0:16:49.960 Rule that out. 0:16:50.000 --> 0:16:52.960 Like a monster stretch in the second half, you know 0:16:53.040 --> 0:16:56.760 that sort of carries the team. But he has been 0:16:56.840 --> 0:16:59.640 kind of that guy like when everything's clicking, you know 0:17:00.400 --> 0:17:04.960 around him, say is clicking. There's been fewer times where 0:17:06.720 --> 0:17:08.639 you know, you look to him to sort of like 0:17:08.720 --> 0:17:11.240 have that huge hit that changes everything. 0:17:11.480 --> 0:17:13.960 You just would like a little more there. 0:17:14.480 --> 0:17:16.720 And that's why I put him in that similar sort 0:17:16.760 --> 0:17:18.720 of like B plus range. 0:17:19.240 --> 0:17:23.399 Yeah, I think you look at the middle infield and 0:17:23.520 --> 0:17:29.919 obviously third base Bregman, Swanson, Nico. I mean Nico was 0:17:30.000 --> 0:17:34.679 a plus you know at then a couple of weeks. Yeah, 0:17:35.040 --> 0:17:38.720 I mean we thought he was a different player. So 0:17:40.080 --> 0:17:42.600 you know, he goes through these stretches. Though I think 0:17:42.680 --> 0:17:46.320 sometimes people when they're in it, when he's in it, 0:17:46.400 --> 0:17:50.239 they're like, what's wrong with Nico's He relies on the 0:17:50.280 --> 0:17:55.480 ball finding holes. Sometimes he's not hitting the ball as hard. 0:17:55.560 --> 0:17:58.080 I think that he I'd say the bad luck has 0:17:58.080 --> 0:18:01.119 mostly been like the last week ish, He's looked a 0:18:01.160 --> 0:18:02.840 little bit better in the plate and he can't like 0:18:02.960 --> 0:18:05.440 he can't buy a hit now. So it went from 0:18:05.760 --> 0:18:07.679 there were a few weeks there where I was like, 0:18:07.880 --> 0:18:11.159 this is soft contact on the ground and that's why, 0:18:11.480 --> 0:18:14.520 like you need a ton of luck for that. But 0:18:14.680 --> 0:18:17.000 now he's starting to hit more line drives, and I 0:18:17.080 --> 0:18:19.320 feel like that last home stand, there were a lot 0:18:19.400 --> 0:18:22.840 of balls that he hit well that were just like 0:18:22.880 --> 0:18:25.240 good defensive plays or right ed guys, and that's the 0:18:25.280 --> 0:18:30.240 type of stuff that you hope Nico's pretty good about 0:18:30.280 --> 0:18:35.240 compartmentalizing and understanding, like that's how you know he relies 0:18:35.359 --> 0:18:39.480 on the ball in play finding grass. Even Bregman looks 0:18:39.480 --> 0:18:41.480 a little bit better, and I feel like the luck 0:18:41.520 --> 0:18:45.240 hasn't swung his way fully yet, but he needs to 0:18:45.240 --> 0:18:46.560 put the ball out of the park. He needs to 0:18:46.600 --> 0:18:48.639 hit the ball out of the park. And Dansby has 0:18:48.680 --> 0:18:51.840 been a mess, and I do feel like there have 0:18:51.840 --> 0:18:55.000 been glimpses, but it's such a short window. It's like 0:18:55.080 --> 0:18:58.679 three games now that we've seen some hard hit balls. 0:18:59.520 --> 0:19:01.760 You need a much longer stretch to feel like he's 0:19:01.800 --> 0:19:04.800 coming out of it. Because this has been I know 0:19:04.880 --> 0:19:08.240 he and Craig Council talks about this. He goes through 0:19:08.240 --> 0:19:13.359 these big swings where it's where it's like, oh, he 0:19:13.400 --> 0:19:15.879 looks lost. Is he on the downswing of his career? 0:19:15.880 --> 0:19:18.520 And then he gets on this huge stretch. But he was, 0:19:18.680 --> 0:19:21.200 you know, five days ago or whatever, he was hitting 0:19:21.200 --> 0:19:23.480 one seventy five. He was tied for the lowest batting 0:19:23.520 --> 0:19:27.840 average in baseball. Patrick, you know who he was tied with. 0:19:28.200 --> 0:19:32.679 He was tied with Manny Machado. Yeah, Manny Machado is 0:19:32.720 --> 0:19:36.359 having a really weird season where he's hitting for a 0:19:36.400 --> 0:19:38.520 really low average, but I think he leads the Padres 0:19:38.560 --> 0:19:41.960 and home runs very odd. I don't want to get 0:19:41.960 --> 0:19:49.040 into Padre's discussion, but yeah, so Dansby needs to get 0:19:49.080 --> 0:19:51.040 on a hot streak, like all these guys need to. 0:19:51.760 --> 0:19:55.919 I think when you look at how well Pete's doing, 0:19:57.160 --> 0:20:00.560 you just want a couple more guys to get hot. Like, 0:20:00.600 --> 0:20:03.520 if you have Pete swinging like he's swinging, if you 0:20:03.560 --> 0:20:06.760 have two other guys, especially if they're kind of bunched 0:20:06.760 --> 0:20:10.200 together in the lineup, that just makes all the you know, 0:20:10.440 --> 0:20:13.760 like that just makes all the hitting, with the scoring position, 0:20:13.840 --> 0:20:17.879 all those things feel a little bit less worrisome. You 0:20:17.960 --> 0:20:20.880 just have a few guys clicking get to the five 0:20:21.040 --> 0:20:23.520 six run mark, and they did that for the last 0:20:23.520 --> 0:20:26.800 three games, but the bullpen blew one of those games 0:20:26.800 --> 0:20:30.800 for them. But just the slightest bit of hope I 0:20:30.880 --> 0:20:33.439 see from this offense right now, it was three games. 0:20:34.080 --> 0:20:36.760 Need to do much better, need to put together, you know, 0:20:36.920 --> 0:20:41.800 stack some series here. But I'm seeing a little glimmer 0:20:41.800 --> 0:20:44.439 of hope from the offense I am. I just don't like, 0:20:44.480 --> 0:20:49.359 I know, I think when it lasts this long, the struggles, 0:20:49.840 --> 0:20:52.879 you need to it needs to be stacked before you 0:20:53.200 --> 0:20:56.840 buy back in. And that's how I'm feeling that I've 0:20:56.920 --> 0:20:59.680 trusted this offense. I believe that this offense is good. 0:21:00.080 --> 0:21:02.719 Now I need like I get it, like it. You know, 0:21:03.240 --> 0:21:06.359 when you have these slumps, it really makes you question 0:21:06.440 --> 0:21:07.359 everything about a group. 0:21:08.760 --> 0:21:11.800 When a corner Baseball reference, Nico is a one more 0:21:11.880 --> 0:21:17.520 player dansby one point five, Bregman had two. Uh So, clearly, 0:21:17.680 --> 0:21:22.119 like these guys haven't totally cratered. Like that's why the 0:21:22.160 --> 0:21:25.800 Cubs invested in them, because they have a pretty high 0:21:25.880 --> 0:21:28.640 floor and they're sort of I think scraping it now. 0:21:28.960 --> 0:21:35.720 I think, you know, all these guys, you know, get 0:21:35.840 --> 0:21:38.119 marked down just because of how much the Cups you 0:21:38.320 --> 0:21:40.680 have believed in them and bet on them, and how 0:21:40.800 --> 0:21:43.520 much we've heard about their leadership abilities. When you see 0:21:43.520 --> 0:21:47.560 the Cubs in a skid that goes on like to 0:21:47.680 --> 0:21:50.639 this extent, you sort of questioned some of that. I think, 0:21:50.680 --> 0:21:53.720 I mean, Bregman, you'll flat out said I've. 0:21:53.640 --> 0:21:56.040 Been terrible or whatever the quote was. 0:21:56.880 --> 0:21:59.080 He's been basically like league average as a hitter. I 0:21:59.119 --> 0:22:00.840 think you're you're right to out some of these other 0:22:01.000 --> 0:22:04.159 like star third basemen. You know how a lot of 0:22:04.240 --> 0:22:07.200 guys have struggled to get it going, but like this 0:22:07.359 --> 0:22:11.160 is why the Cubs signed him as this finishing piece. 0:22:12.520 --> 0:22:16.600 It's weird because like Bregman doesn't seem totally lost up there, 0:22:17.240 --> 0:22:20.600 like he is getting on bas like he's taking walks, 0:22:20.600 --> 0:22:24.119 he's getting singles, but obviously the big hits, the slug 0:22:24.280 --> 0:22:29.119 just haven't been there. Dansby weirdly started off with that 0:22:29.280 --> 0:22:32.280 power search that made you think, oh, maybe something's clicked 0:22:32.320 --> 0:22:35.080 and oh this is kind of Eco's game. Like you're saying, like, 0:22:35.320 --> 0:22:39.080 I'm not like super concerned, but it's also this is 0:22:39.160 --> 0:22:41.720 what the Cubs have said looking back on prior seasons, 0:22:41.840 --> 0:22:45.800 like do you get that like six win season from 0:22:45.880 --> 0:22:49.240 Nico or do you get like a three win season 0:22:49.320 --> 0:22:51.639 from Nico? And Dansby's kind of in that too, of 0:22:51.760 --> 0:22:54.480 like Dansby can be a six four player, but it's 0:22:54.520 --> 0:23:00.960 gonna be like a three based almost allly solely on defense. 0:23:01.080 --> 0:23:05.200 That all group, I don't know, C plus to D plus. 0:23:05.280 --> 0:23:05.639 I don't know. 0:23:05.880 --> 0:23:08.080 However, you know, if they have a good game tonight, 0:23:08.119 --> 0:23:11.200 maybe it's a C plus. It's like just certainly not 0:23:11.480 --> 0:23:15.160 havevid D plus seems a little a little harsh, yeah, 0:23:15.640 --> 0:23:19.119 given that they're not like negative contributors, but just the 0:23:19.200 --> 0:23:22.280 whole group is just like wanting more other than the 0:23:22.359 --> 0:23:24.000 infield we haven't talked about. And this is probably the 0:23:24.000 --> 0:23:29.240 way Michael Bush likes it. Slow start but very solid year. 0:23:29.359 --> 0:23:32.600