Braves Series - Jackson Gone

The Cubs played good ball in Atlanta and emerged from the series winning two games of the three.  They might have swept were it not for Pedro Strop's breakdown in the eighth inning of game one, his second blowup in as many tries.  I have to admit that I cringed in Sunday's game when Strop came out for the eighth inning again, though he somehow worked through it despite a bad beginning.

Maddon is a little stubborn in his bullpen decisions.  Especially with the addition of Soriano, the Cubs have a wealth of choices late in the game and things are improving a lot with their top four guys going deep into the game.  They can afford a little more flexibility in assigning these roles and going more often with the hot hand, which, right now, is not Strop.

The Cubs are still not scoring enough runs, but they did manage four in the last two games against the Braves, which was enough to win.  They are still seeing a lot of pitches and driving up pitch counts.  Lately, however, they have been getting a little antsy with two strikes, which has resulted in a lot of outs and a declining on-base percentage.

I'm not sure what the solution is.  Minimizing Castro's role is one key.  He is having an horrendous year and needs to be moved or somehow straightened out.

Which kind of leads to what the Cubs are going to do at the deadline to improve.  I do not think they need to do much with their pitching.  Sure, a reliable fifth starter would be a nice addition, but unless they can pick up a veteran rental cheap, I do not think they are going this direction.

One reason they are not scoring is the bench.  Getting rid of Jackson frees up a spot, but, at least initially, they have chosen to promote Soriano.  I haven't seen the final word on Montero yet, but the first prognosis was pretty dire.  The Cubs are kind of back to square one with Montero out, in that they are carrying thirteen pitchers and three catchers.  That leaves only nine spots for the rest of the team, which is pretty limiting given that Denorfia and Coghlan platoon in left.  That means you have only one utility player, Herrera.

In my mind, the Cubs have to move another pitcher and demote Teagarden if Schwarber hangs on.  That frees up two spots which can be filled from the minors or via a trade.  Zobrist makes a lot of sense on the trade front, as does Parra for a left-handed outfielder.

I wonder if the Cubs would ever think of transitioning Baez into a super-sub role as a way of working him into the scheme.  He can play second, short, and third, and probably left field with some practice.  Maybe they see if he is real by doing something like this, giving him four starts a week to protect him at this stage of his career.  Although he strikes out a lot, he might be better than Castro if he could hit .250 with some pop.