Otto: Maddon has luxury lineup
Despite some injuries to some key players, Cubs manager Joe Maddon still has the luxury of fielding lineups with a dangerous mix to opponents of experience and youth. Short-term and long-term injuries are all part of it, and the Cubs have adjusted nicely.
After his win against the Nationals on Friday, John Lackey noted that this team has a mix of older guys who have "done some things," and younger players who are hungry and talented.
There are not too many situations that an older, more experienced player hasn't seen before. Lackey gave up 2 runs in the first two innings on Friday, and was faced with a Wrigley Field wind blowing straight out. With 393 career starts, Lackey has been there many times before. That type of experience gives a player confidence, even arrogance, to get through jams during a game. Lackey went on to flip up 5 scoreless innings and let his Cubs offense do some damage.
Experience is also valuable when it comes to those ups and downs in a season, both individually and as a team. There's no panic in players who have been through it before. Ben Zobrist is in his 11th major league season, and was hitless in 24 at-bats earlier this year. Now fast-forward a couple of weeks, and what has Zobrist done? In a five-game stretch through this past Friday, Zobrist knocked in 12 runs and placed his team firmly on his back during that run.
While players like Zobrist and Lackey bring that experience, there is no substitute for youth. Players like Addison Russell and Javier Baez bring that youthful talent on defense. They are taking away hits, and giving the Cubs pitching staff confidence to go out there and just attack hitters.
In a couple years, Derek Jeter will enter the Hall of Fame. While still a great fielder later in his career, Jeter couldn't make all of the plays that he once could in his 20s. Russell and Baez are making plays that only youth can pull off.
Rizzo's kitchen:
Anthony Rizzo started the year with a closed stance where his front foot was closer to the plate than his back foot. With Rizzo on top of the plate, it's no secret that opposing pitchers will try to pound the ball inside and get in his "kitchen." In Cincinnati earlier this year, Rizzo made the adjustment to open up his stance. Now that "kitchen" is closed. A pitcher better be perfect when throwing inside to Rizzo now.
Max Scherzer, the starter for the Nats on Friday, learned the hard way when he gave up a towering home run to Rizzo on a fastball inside.
The winds of change:
With summer fast-approaching, that usually means more games at Wrigley where the wind is blowing straight out. Anthony Rizzo said he checks the flags on his way to the ballpark every day. For every position player checking flags on the way to the ballpark, there are just as many pitchers, even former pitchers, doing the same thing. When the wind is howling out, Wrigley feels like it's the size of a little league field.
So how does one pitch at Wrigley when the wind is blowing out? I'm not sure. Just don't do it with tears in your eyes.
• Dave Otto, a standout athlete at Elk Grove High School, pitched from 1987-1994 for four MLB teams, including the Cubs. A former baseball analyst for WGN Radio, FoxSportsNet and Comcast SportsNet Chicago, Otto also is a member of the University of Missouri Hall of Fame.