Will Chicago Cubs make a change at shortstop?
Early in the Chicago Cubs season, a flavor-of-the-day topic was that Javier Baez soon would be the everyday second baseman.
That didn't pan out, even though Baez has made the most starts of anybody on the team at second.
Nowadays, Baez is alternating days at shortstop with Addison Russell.
By the seventh inning of Wednesday night's 6-5 loss to the Miami Marlins at Wrigley Field, neither Baez nor Russell was at short, as manager Joe Maddon moved Ben Zobrist there from second as part of a flurry of moves.
With Russell struggling at the plate, the question came up as to whether Baez could take over as the everyday shortstop.
Maddon wasn't going there.
“I'm not looking to do that, honestly,” he said. “The one thing Addison really has and does well is that he does the routine routinely. He normally doesn't make any mistakes, which I really appreciate about him.
“Javy's got all the flair in the world. I think he's really good. I'm not denying that. But when it comes down to nuts and bolts, for me, I think I talked about that the first time I saw Addison take groundballs in spring training a couple years ago, I was kind of like going crazy. I asked him, 'Who taught you,' because his mechanics were so good.”
Russell has a hitting line of .209/.291/.335 with 3 homers and 19 RBI. He experienced shoulder soreness earlier this season, but Maddon says he expects him to return to his better form.
“As long as he's healthy and well, he's going to look like that again,” the manager said. “I saw it way too much over the last two years. I can't deny it: He has not played up to his standards at this point. But I have a lot of faith in this guy because his mechanics, his fundamentals, are that good for me.”
John Lackey was the starting pitcher for the Cubs on Wednesday and he worked 6 innings, giving up 7 hits and 5 runs as the Cubs had a five-game winning streak snapped.
Another positive development for the Cubs was the night at the plate enjoyed by left fielder Kyle Schwarber. He had a pair of doubles, including an RBI double in the eighth that brought the Cubs within 6-5.
Schwarber also hit his 10th home run of the season, a high drive to the opposite field in left-center in the seventh. It was Schwarber's first 3-hit game since Aug. 13, 2015. Schwarber is batting .175 for the season but has looked better lately. He credits work with hitting coaches John Mallee and Eric Hinske.
“I want to keep it going,” he said. “I think it's more of staying within myself and not trying to go out there and try to get hits after hits after hits. It's all a process. If you can take a walk, it's good.
“I just feel like the work I've been doing (with the coaches), just trying to shorten everything up is allowing me to be more relaxed at the plate and just feel more comfortable in the box.”
Scouting report
Cubs vs. Colorado Rockies at Wrigley Field
TV: Comcast SportsNet Plus Thursday; Comcast SportsNet Friday; ABC 7 Saturday; WGN Sunday
Radio: WSCR 670-AM
Pitching matchups: The Cubs' Jon Lester (3-3) vs. Tyler Chatwood (5-7) Thursday at 7:05 p.m.; Kyle Hendricks (4-3) vs. German Marquez (4-3) Friday at 1:20 p.m.; Eddie Butler (3-1) vs. Jeff Hoffman (3-0) Saturday at 1:20 p.m.; Jake Arrieta (6-4) vs. Antonio Senzatela (8-2) Sunday at 1:20 p.m.
At a glance: The Rockies took two of three from the Cubs in May at Coors Field. Colorado comes to town with a road record of 21-10, and they lead the NL West. The Rockies' 37 victories through their first 60 games were most in team history. Charlie Blackmon entered Thursday with a line of .331/.370/.608 with 13 homers and 47 RBI. Mark Reynolds was at .299/.368/.564 with 16 homers and 51 RBI, both team highs. Nolan Arenado had 14 homers and 39 RBI. Rockies pitching was seventh in the NL in ERA (4.15), while the Cubs were fourth (3.97).
Next: New York Mets at Citi Field, Monday-Wednesday
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