Recap: The Cubs asked and answered the question, "how far can you get on pitching alone?". The answer? Pretty far. In spite of a 3.91 ERA that was 8th in the NL, the Cubs pushed hard all season long, even carrying a 5 1/2 game lead in the NL East standings (6 games over the eventual champion Pirates) as of September 1. Then everything bad caught up with them and they finished the year 12-17 and wound up in second place for the second straight year.
History: What curse of the goat? These Cubs won World Series titles in both 1955 and 1961. Sorry, Billy Goat Tavern, you'll just have to stick with being the cheezborger cheezborger place (and also for some reason the favorite "dining" spot of longtime columnist Mike Royko) (actually, I know exactly why Royko went there so much; the Billy Goat just so happens to be literally in the basement building I work in, which is in turn across the street from the old Chicago Tribune building) (also by the way, I would not exactly confuse it with La Frontera if you catch my drift).
Outlook: I think you have to give the Cubs a fighting chance in 1971 if for no other reason than that it is really, really hard to see the Pirates repeating what they did last year and the Mets having fallen way off after a magical - some would say miraculous - 1969 season. They've definitely got the hitting.
Rotation
Code:
Pitching Age BT W L WL % ERA G GS GF CG SHO SV IP H R ER HR BB IBB SO WHIP H9 HR9 BB9 SO9
Lucas, Bill 32 LR 12 17 .414 4.42 38 38 0 7 2 0 266.2 292 141 131 34 114 12 155 1.523 9.9 1.1 3.8 5.2
Marin, Victor 29 RR 11 11 .500 4.86 27 27 0 6 3 0 168.2 182 95 91 22 65 8 87 1.464 9.7 1.2 3.5 4.6
Coffey, Scott 27 LL 8 7 .533 3.80 22 19 2 6 3 0 139.2 132 61 59 11 53 8 93 1.325 8.5 0.7 3.4 6.0
Sanders, Jason 30 RR 8 4 .667 3.14 17 17 0 5 0 0 114.2 101 43 40 9 43 4 93 1.256 7.9 0.7 3.4 7.3
Zarate, Jose 21 LL 11 3 .786 1.96 18 17 1 6 4 0 128.2 105 34 28 3 25 7 64 1.010 7.3 0.2 1.7 4.5
Obregon, Javy 30 RR 4 3 .571 4.04 15 9 1 1 1 0 62.1 64 30 28 8 32 7 23 1.540 9.2 1.2 4.6 3.3
Wilbers, Mike 31 RR 3 3 .500 3.26 10 10 0 1 0 0 58.0 51 23 21 4 21 3 39 1.241 7.9 0.6 3.3 6.1
Jones, Nigel 30 RR 0 0 .000 3.60 1 1 0 0 0 0 5.0 4 4 2 0 0 0 2 0.800 7.2 0.0 0.0 3.6
Did the Cubs lean too hard on
Bill Lucas last year? A year removed from leading the NL in wins with a 23-13 record, the Farragut, Tennessee native struggled in 1970, finishing 5th in the league in losses and managing to finish just 7 of his 38 starts. Lucas fell apart as the team collapsed in September; he threw a complete game victory against the Padres on August 28 to put his record at 11-13, 3.94, then went just 1-4 with a 7.28 mark the rest of the way. Lucas has now led the NL in starts the last 2 years in a row; it's nice to say the team should cut down, but who else are they going to use? They do have
Jason Sanders now, a 4 time All-Star and 1966 Cy Young Award winner to take some of that heat. When healthy, as he was for most of last year, Sanders proved that he's still in the upper echelon of NL starting pitchers - he was a combined 14-7, 3.11 between San Francisco and Chicago. That said, SF traded him away for, ironically, closer Chad Nies because he hasn't been able to stay healthy (ironic because Nies suffered a badly torn labrum in August and recently announced his retirement).
Jose Zarate should return as the #3 man after a great rookie season. It's misplaced to call anyone who only hits the high 80s on his fastball a true staff ace but he's got pinpoint control and forces you to beat him over time instead of all at once.
Scott Coffey and
Victor Marin should compete for the final spot with
Javy Obregon also in the mix. Coffey, formerly a failed prospect in Detroit, delivered 3 shutouts in 19 starts last year but everything about his game screams AAAA player. Marin was a workhorse for the Cubs between 1966 and 1969, even leading the league in games started in '67 (also losses though). He missed time with a strained hamstring last year but on top of that he's had increasing problems with the longball the last couple years, and "problems with the longball" is not a thing you really want to have on your resume if you play half your games at Wrigley Field. Obregon is a Cuban ex-pat so the advanced age isn't as big of an issue as one might think; what is an issue for him is poor control combined with the lack of a good out pitch. One big wild card there is
Mike Wilbers. He was limited to just 10 starts and 58 innings pitched before tearing his labrum, and as of this writing he doesn't look like he'll be ready in time for spring training, but he's carried an ERA in the low to mid 3s over the past 2 seasons and could eat some innings if the Cubs are lucky.
Bullpen
Code:
Pitching Age BT W L WL % ERA G GS GF CG SHO SV IP H R ER HR BB IBB SO WHIP H9 HR9 BB9 SO9
Martinez, Antonio 34 SR 3 3 .500 2.54 51 0 30 0 0 10 74.1 56 27 21 7 35 5 51 1.224 6.8 0.8 4.2 6.2
Paulus, Nick 29 RR 3 3 .500 3.93 43 0 20 0 0 3 73.1 76 40 32 10 40 8 38 1.582 9.3 1.2 4.9 4.7
Uscanga, Freddy 24 LL 4 2 .667 4.74 35 0 30 0 0 8 43.2 45 24 23 4 33 7 35 1.786 9.3 0.8 6.8 7.2
Castro, Frank 29 RR 7 3 .700 3.31 30 5 6 0 0 0 68.0 61 28 25 12 17 3 31 1.147 8.1 1.6 2.3 4.1
Jones, Kenny 28 SR 8 8 .500 4.82 27 17 4 3 2 0 125.0 121 69 67 12 53 3 86 1.392 8.7 0.9 3.8 6.2
Nies, Chad 26 LL 2 1 .667 4.97 21 0 19 0 0 7 29.0 29 16 16 3 12 3 33 1.414 9.0 0.9 3.7 10.2
Gurley, Ryan 32 SL 5 2 .714 4.97 18 0 2 0 0 0 29.0 28 17 16 3 12 0 21 1.379 8.7 0.9 3.7 6.5
Foster, Dan 28 LR 0 0 .000 4.15 11 0 4 0 0 0 13.0 13 7 6 1 4 2 8 1.308 9.0 0.7 2.8 5.5
Montejo, Ricky 28 RR 0 1 .000 6.35 5 1 3 0 0 1 11.1 11 13 8 4 11 0 9 1.941 8.7 3.2 8.7 7.1
John, Brennan 27 LL 1 0 1.000 6.10 5 1 2 0 0 0 10.1 12 7 7 3 1 1 7 1.258 10.5 2.6 0.9 6.1
Moon, Suk-min 34 SR 0 0 .000 1.04 7 0 1 0 0 0 8.2 5 1 1 0 2 0 9 0.808 5.2 0.0 2.1 9.3
Sorongon, Mike 25 RR 0 0 .000 3.00 4 0 0 0 0 0 6.0 7 3 2 0 3 0 2 1.667 10.5 0.0 4.5 3.0
Winn, John 27 SR 1 0 1.000 3.00 4 0 2 0 0 0 3.0 2 1 1 1 1 1 2 1.000 6.0 3.0 3.0 6.0
The Braves ended last year, and will likely go into this year, with a two-headed stopper of
Freddy Uscanga and
John Winn. Neither player broke camp with the Cubbies last year. Uscanga came over from the A's in a trade of outfielder Alex Vallejo, who was crowded out of the Cubs' lineup with the return of Adam Groves. He was given the highest-leverage roles on the team and struggled hard. To help compensate for this, and because the Braves' front office is unbelievably bad (IRL this happened to Hoyt Wilhelm, who was much older than Winn at the time, granted, but who was still very effective for Atlanta that year), they snapped up Winn when Atlanta tried to pass him through waivers for... reasons. He only pitched briefly for them last year but figures to have a huge role going forward. If for some reason, for instance Atlanta gives up actual prospects to bring Winn back (again, this is actually what happened IRL, and I can't explain it), they have
Antonio "Sugar Bear" Martinez, another Cuban ex-pat who saw a lot of time as the team's closer during the first half of the season.
Catcher
Code:
Batting Age BT G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS DP BA OBP SLG Pos
Darrow, Greg 26 RR 128 480 66 158 23 2 12 71 26 31 0 0 14 .329 .361 .460 2*
Singleton, Ian 36 RR 37 114 13 27 6 1 3 19 19 39 0 0 3 .237 .346 .386 2
Martinez, Jose 28 RR 2 6 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 .167 .222 .333 /2
Putnam, Brent 34 RR 2 7 2 1 1 0 0 3 1 2 0 0 0 .143 .333 .286 /2
Greg Darrow's .329 average was the highest BA by a catcher since Emmanuel Costa (by the way, a freaking catcher who retired with 17 All-Star appearances, 4 Gold Gloves, 6 Silver Sluggers, 2700 hits and a .302 BA - a first ballot HOFer for sure) hit .349 in 1962 for the LA Dodgers. Some writers started calling him "Little Smuggy" after Costa's nickname, but fortunately that has not caught on; the local press calls him "Doughboy" due to his girth. Don't be fooled by the extra weight he carries around, though: Darrow is nimble behind the plate and his bat is as quick as any in the major leagues.
Ian Singleton, a former starter for the Pirates, is there to provide a veteran presence more than anything else.
Infield
Code:
Batting Age BT G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS DP BA OBP SLG Pos
Lopez, Antonio 24 LL 159 632 104 191 32 5 29 114 82 82 0 0 25 .302 .385 .506 3*
Palacios, Carlos 24 LL 21 19 5 9 2 0 1 3 2 3 0 0 0 .474 .524 .737
Ruckel, Robby 34 RR 3 3 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 .333 .333 .667
Brettell, Matt 32 LL 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 .000 .000 .000
Williams, Matt 31 RR 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 .000 .000
Perez, Juan 32 LR 88 340 42 89 12 0 9 43 24 60 1 3 5 .262 .317 .376 4
Holcombe, David 23 LR 50 161 21 38 14 2 5 27 26 34 1 0 0 .236 .339 .441 4/7
Mantero, Tim 30 RR 24 61 6 12 3 0 0 6 3 12 0 1 3 .197 .227 .246 4
Owen, Kellen 29 RR 16 50 3 10 3 0 1 3 7 8 0 1 7 .200 .310 .320 4
Gabel, Sean 26 RR 149 641 98 208 29 15 0 67 37 40 30 16 10 .324 .361 .417 5*
Maroney, John 33 RR 47 92 15 24 5 0 3 13 16 15 0 0 1 .261 .370 .413 5/34
Taylor, Jeremy 26 RR 156 614 96 144 18 11 27 89 64 157 12 6 12 .235 .309 .432 6*
Avalos, Gene 33 RR 16 30 2 8 1 0 1 6 5 5 0 0 0 .267 .371 .400 6/4
Antonio Lopez didn't quite match the awesomeness of his 1969 MVP campaign - .315/43/123 - but he was not even close to the reason why the team couldn't quite reach the postseason for the 2nd straight year. Lopez, who turns 25 in November, crested the century mark in RBIs for the 2nd time and even set a new career high in walks. He also set a career high in double plays so I guess it wasn't all good news.
Juan Perez is a 5 time All-Star but has had issues beign healthy the last couple years and it also appears that the injuries may have eaten into his production. He was no better than league average as a hitter last year and that period where he seemed like a lock for 20-25 HRs a season seem to be gone now.
David Holcombe filled in well during Perez's absence; while he is nowhere near the fielder that Perez, a former shortstop, is, he's also a full decade younger and looks to be on the upside rather than the downside of his career.
On a team built around power and in spite of playing at a traditional power position
Sean Gabel defies all odds. He's simply one of the best pure hitters in the league. Nobody in the NL has gotten more hits than Gabel over the past 3 seasons and he's finished in the top 5 in BA both last year and this one. He's even an excellent fielder at third who seems like a lock to win his 3rd straight Gold Glove. And he's a pest on the bases. As you'd might expect, the fans adore him.
Jeremy Taylor took a big step back from a .277/47/140 campaign that saw him lead all of baseball in HRs and RBIs but honestly, 27/89 is still pretty amazing for a shortstop. Unlike a lot of middle infielders who hit this well, too, Taylor doesn't give back a lot in the field - he's no more than an average defender, but he's by no means terrible. The one thing management would love for him to do is cut down on the whiffs - only two players in the major leagues struck out more.
Outfield
Code:
Batting Age BT G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS DP BA OBP SLG Pos
Workman, Jason 33 LL 150 581 98 181 26 3 44 135 29 37 0 0 12 .312 .342 .594 7*
Gomez, Jose 29 RR 11 16 3 2 0 0 0 2 5 4 1 0 0 .125 .304 .125 /78
Littleton, Sincere 27 RR 8 21 3 3 0 0 2 3 1 0 0 0 0 .143 .182 .429 /79
Tooley, Mark 34 RR 94 394 66 107 18 4 11 41 48 88 9 7 2 .272 .350 .421 8
Cooper, Chance 23 LR 71 216 49 55 9 2 14 30 69 69 5 4 2 .255 .433 .509 8/9
Jung, Hee-gon 33 LL 18 35 6 10 1 0 0 3 1 4 2 0 1 .286 .297 .314 /89
Groves, Adam 30 RR 133 409 70 106 14 4 17 52 79 111 8 2 4 .259 .383 .438 9*/7
Marks, Sam 27 LR 93 197 24 67 11 1 3 25 13 14 1 1 6 .340 .380 .452 97
Vallejo, Alex 27 LL 28 96 17 32 4 3 3 17 8 8 0 1 0 .333 .385 .531 9/8
Casio, Steve 33 LL 13 12 1 3 0 0 0 1 2 3 0 0 0 .250 .357 .250 /97
Fenney, Steve 29 RR 4 13 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 .077 .077 .231 /9
The acquisition of
Jason Workman was in a real sense a "rich get richer" situation. The Dodgers, looking to rebuild and with Workman having fallen out of favor with them, shipped him off to the Montreal Expos in exchange for a couple of prospects; the Expos immediately sent him to the Cubs for a couple of prospects of their own (which, it should be said, one of them hit .157 as a reserve OFer and pinch-hitter last year and the other of whom went 4-13 in AAA before suffering a major elbow injury). That was in June of 1969. In the time since, Workman has hit .305 with 67 HR and 221 RBI in 247 games and went right back to making All-Star Games the past 2 years (previously he'd appeared in the 1964 and 1965 Summer Classics). Workman, who's the kind of power hitter sportswriters love - he never walks or strikes out, always puts the ball into play - and has a strong shot at the MVP this year as a result, and because he led the league in RBI.
The Cubs installed the 6th overall pick in the 1969 draft
Chance Cooper in center field in the second half. He did a lot of great things: he flashed major league power at the tender age of 23, he got pitchers so scared of him that he walked 69 times against 216 at-bats, and he even showed a fair amount of speed. The one real thing he didn't show was the kind of range you want from a center fielder. For now, the Cubs look like they're content to live with trading runs in the outfield for everything Cooper provides and is expected to provide at the plate but eventually he'll need to move into one of the corners. The team does have
Mark Tooley there if their pitching staff complains too much. Tooley has been the team's starter in center since 1963 and made 2 All-Star games in that time. Many would feel hard done by with this set of events but Tooley, a former 1st round pick himself, seems to be going with the changes for now.
Adam Groves coming back from a nasty, potentially career-ending concussion he suffered during spring training of 1969 was definitely not something the Cubs were counting on at all. In many ways, his return was a huge complication for the team, as they already had acquired Alex Vallejo from the Phillies and had
Sam Marks, who hit .328/3/29 in half a season as a rookie in '69, waiting in the wings as well. But Groves came in and did what he had been doing from 1966 to 1968: provided solid power, wore out opposing pitchers, found ways to get on base, and had deceptive amounts of speed on the basepaths once he did get there. As a result, Marks became a top perfoming pinch-hitter and Vallejo was sent off to the A's to help shore up their bullpen. One thing Chicago does hope Groves does less of is lean into pitches: he led the league in 1968 and it's no coincidence that it was a beaning that led him to miss all of '69.