Chicago Cubs: Joe Maddon is hardly rewarding in-game success

The Chicago Cubs have been on a nice roll since the All-Star break concluded, but Joe Maddon is still favoring players’ feelings when it comes to determining playing time, regardless of how they perform.

If the Chicago Cubs are to win the World Series this season, they’ll need Joe Maddon to stop playing games with the lineup card seemingly every time out.

Since joining the Cubs, Maddon has repeatedly tinkered with the  Cubs’ starting lineup to the point where it puts them in a disadvantage to win meaningful games. He’s started players who’ve been struggling to contribute offensively way too often. Case in point: His lineup card submitted on Monday had Addison Russell playing over rookie second-baseman, Robel Garcia against the Cincinnati Reds.

All Garcia has done is come off another impressive performance, hitting two doubles in Sunday’s win against the Pittsburgh Pirates. He’s helped breath new life into a suddenly scorching hot Cubs’ lineup, yet Maddon still believes in making every player feel happy, regardless of how they’ve played this season.

Russell has largely struggled to hit the ball effectively this season. Continuing to put him in the lineup is baffling, given that someone else is playing his position better right now. By now, everyone knows what type of player Russell is. Why not look to develop someone who has shown way more promise as a hitter for an offense that gets hot and cold way too frequently?

Unfortunately, Maddon has done similar acts like this over his entire Cubs’ tenure, with has hampered the development of many players to date.

Look at what’s happened with David Bote‘s performance lately. He’s been struggling to recapture his early-season magic with the bat in large part because his playing time has gone down once Addison Russell rejoined the team in May.

Accommodating to each player’s personal feeling has benefits, but also repercussions. Starting someone like infielder Daniel Descalso who is batting .185 on the season just because he hasn’t played in a while is ill-advised. Whatever happened to rewarding a player’s success? Or better yet: holding players accountable for their struggles?

It’s great that players enjoy playing for Maddon. He’s a well-respected manager who has made some very good decisions over the years but he’s also made many poor head-scratching ones that have cost his team winnable games.

Don’t even let me get started with his decisions to play his players in positions on the field where they’re not real comfortable being in. That’s happened too often as well…just ask Willson Contreras playing in the outfield instead of at catcher for some strange reason in a meaningful game. Too often bad things happen as a result.

Maddon must clean up his act soon, before he runs out of time, given his pending contract status. Enough with the silly antics. Stop trying to outsmart everyone because it’s simply harming the team.

Winning games has certainly covered Maddon’s poor decisions as of late. The Cubs simply continue winning games in spite of Maddon, which is why he’s been on the hot seat all season long, with no end in sight.