After a season filled with ups and downs, the Chicago Cubs will look to bounce back this offseason, paving the road to their second World Series in three years.
Slow Start, Strong Finish
After coming back from a 3–1 deficit in the 2016 World Series against the Cleveland Indians, the Cubs struggled to consistently win in the first half of the 2017 regular season, finishing with a 43–45 record.
Despite the slow start, they finished the regular season atop the NL Central, and went on to beat the Nationals in a 5-game NLDS. Yet after a 4-1 series loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLCS, the Cubs fell shy of yet another World Series appearance.
They finished the regular season 91–70.
Revamping the starting pitching rotation
One of the top priorities for this front office is to improve the production of the starting pitching staff.
Courtesy Sporting News
They began by dismissing pitching coach Chris Bosio, after their loss to the Dodgers. The Cubs are likely to lose their ace, Jake Arrieta, as he is now an unrestricted free agent and has put his Chicago home up for sale (according to The Chicago Tribune).
John Lackey, entering the final year of his two-year extension, produced average career numbers–yet also allowed a career high 36 home runs.
If the Cubs want to make another immediate run at the World Series, they should move on from Lackey, as his production will likely continue to decline at 39 years of age.
Kyle Hendricks (7–5, 3.03 ERA) will be an important part of the rotation to maintain and build alongside Jose Quintana, as he enters his first year of arbitration.
Hendricks can establish himself as solid number two or three starter after posting similar numbers to his 2016 campaign. He continues to show he is a dependable starter, both in the regular and postseason.
Cubs will need to build around Jose Quintana (11–11, 4.35 ERA) and Jon Lester (13–8, 4.33 ERA) as the only returning starters.
Quintana is a strong candidate to move into the ace slot following an Arrieta departure, and can easily be followed by Lester at any of the 2–4 starting slots, depending on the decisions with Hendricks and Lackey.
Regardless, the Cubs should focus on signing a younger staff to maintain continuity and stability in an aging rotation.
Improvements needed for better run production
The Cubs played their way out of the postseason mostly because they were unable to produce runs to match the LA Dodgers explosive offense.
Their infield may remain intact unless GM Jed Hoyer, or team president Theo Epstein, are inclined to include second baseman Javy Baez or outfielder Kyle Schwarber in a package deal to gain another starting pitcher.
Hitting coach John Mallee was released as well, as the Cubs look to improve hitting production within the staff, rather than immediately trading players.
Courtesy San Francisco Chronicle
The Cubs’ front office should also address the lack of speed on the base pads. They finished 23rd in stolen bases, while getting caught stealing 33% of attempts.
While baseball is reverting back to the days of power hitting and monster home runs, stolen bases provide better efficiency for scoring runs and reducing double play outs, in which the Cubs finished in the top 8.
Moving forward
There is no reason why the Cubs can’t repeat and win the NL Central again in 2018, as this front office has historically done a great job of making changes in areas of need.
On paper, the Cubs are capable of winning several pennants and maintaining in contention for another World Series appearance.
Cubs’ fans, get another one now while you can; you never know if it might be another 108 years.
Possible Offseason Targets: Wade Davis, Chris Archer, Jon Jay, Dawrin Barney
