What the Chicago Cubs need to add to make the playoffs
The 2015 Chicago Cubs are writing a nice, fun little story for themselves.
Who'd have thought back at the start of spring training that in late July, nearing the trading deadline, that they would be holding — albeit precariously — one of the wild-card spots in the National League.
As we near the stretch drive, the plot is starting to get serious. With the way the team is currently constituted, not to mention the way it's performing in certain areas, the ending is not likely to be a happy one, if you consider making the playoffs as the only happy ending for the Cubs.
The Cardinals and Pirates are ahead of them in the NL Central, and the defending world-champion Giants are bearing down hard right behind the Cubs in the wild-card race.
The Cubs need help. No doubt team president Theo Epstein and general manager Jed Hoyer are on their cellphones all day trying to obtain a starting pitcher for a rotation that could use reinforcement and also another bat for an offense that has sputtered in July.
Manager Joe Maddon has said he's prepared to go forward with what the Cubs have now, but he's done too good a job in the dugout and in the clubhouse not to be handed a couple of new weapons.
There are two ways for the Cubs to get better. One is to make a trade or two. The good news for them is they probably can get something done by not giving up one of their top prospects or top young major-league players.
Plenty of players down on the farm have their big-league paths blocked by established players, and the Cubs have done a good enough job of stockpiling young talent so that giving up three, four or even a half-dozen prospects to get a pitcher and a hitter won't hurt them.
Tradable names from the system that come to mind are Albert Almora, Dan Vogelbach, Mike Olt, Junior Lake, Arismendy Alcantara and Christian Villanueva.
You might be able to throw Javier Baez's name into that mix once he gets back to playing full time after recovering from a broken finger.
The Cubs no doubt would be willing to part with more for a pitcher they could keep beyond this year rather than a two-month rental. If they can't land Detroit's David Price, they could very well sign him to a free-agent deal in the off-season and have it cost them nothing more than money.
The other way for the Cubs to make sure they make the playoffs is for their current players to start hitting again.
July has been a tough month for several. Let's look at how tough:
• Anthony Rizzo's July line is .234/.378/.313 with 1 homer and 7 RBI. His last home run came July 7. For the season, all-star Rizzo still has a nice line of .287/.402/.513 with 15 homers and 51 RBI.
• Kris Bryant is at .194/.316/.388 in July. He has 2 homers this month, both coming on the Fourth of July. He still leads the team for the season with 54 RBI, and his overall line is .258/.367/.449. Anybody would gladly accept that .367 on-base percentage.
• Jorge Soler's slash line for July is .220/.281/.339 with 1 homer, which came this past Sunday in Atlanta. Soler was hampered by an ankle injury for a month, and his season line to date is .254/.313/.387 with 5 homers and 26 RBI.
• Center fielder Dexter Fowler is beginning to hit the way the Cubs thought he'd hit. Even though his July batting average is only .246, the OBP for the month is .364. He's 8 for his last 24, but for the season, he's batting only .212 against right-handed pitching.
• Shortstop Starlin Castro is having a brutal season at .239/.272/.310 with 5 homers and 40 RBI. His offensive WAR (wins above replacement) is minus-0.5. For July, Castro is even worse: .157/.178/.200. His last home run came way back on June 12.
Castro's season has to be especially troubling for Epstein and Hoyer. They'd no doubt love to trade him and move Addison Russell from second base to shortstop. If they keep Baez, he could slide into the second-base spot.
Epstein and Hoyer may not emerge from their offices this weekend at Wrigley Field. But if they do, look for them to be answering a whole lot of questions from the media.
Cubs scouting report
Cubs vs. Philadelphia Phillies at Wrigley Field
TV: WGN today; ABC 7 Saturday and Sunday
Radio: WBBM 780-AM
Pitching matchups: The Cubs' Jon Lester (5-8) vs. Jerome Williams (3-7) today at 3:05 p.m.; Jake Arrieta (11-5) vs. Cole Hamels (5-7) Saturday at 3:05 p.m.; Jason Hammel (5-4) vs. Aaron Nola (0-1) Sunday at 1:20 p.m.
At a glance: The Phillies (34-63) come to town as the worst team in baseball. It's a good opportunity for the Cubs, who are in the middle of a long stretch of games against sub-. 500 teams. Philadelphia ranked 14th in runs scored, on-base percentage, home runs and ERA in the National League entering Thursday. Ben Revere has a line of .300/.338/.380 but with only 1 homer among his team-leading 105 hits. Ryan Howard has 16 homers and 48 RBI. Second baseman Chase Utley has been on the disabled list with an ankle injury. Williams pitched for the Cubs in 2005 and 2006. He recently came off the DL. The Cubs entered Thursday ranked 12th in runs scored, ninth in OBP, seventh in homers and fifth in ERA.
Next: Colorado Rockies at Wrigley Field, Monday-Wednesday
— Bruce Miles