Chicago Cubs: The good, bad, and ugly heading into Opening Day

The core of the Chicago Cubs is intact which is a positive going into the year.

The Core

Let’s start off on a good note. When you look around the diamond, the core is still there. Rizzo is still “the captain” holding down first base. Bryant is manning the hot corner. Baez is still flashing the leather at short. Meanwhile, Wilson Contreras is one of the best two-way catchers in the league. We need to remember who these guys are when playing at their max potential.

Rizzo is a gold glove first basement that will give you 30 bombs and 100 RBI’s every season. The “glue guy” of the team and the first acquisition made by Epstein when he was hired in 2011. Without him, there is no 2016 World Series.

Bryant was the second pick of the 2013 MLB draft and one of the first big-time prospects for the Cubs. Bryant quickly compounded that into winning the Rookie of The Year in 2015 and the NL MVP in 2016 on the way to a World Series. Bryant is a career .280/.380/.508 hitter and his expectations will be as such.

There are many words that describe Javy Baez. Heartbeat, sparkplug, and “El Mago” are a few that come to mind. The 2018 NL MVP runner-up is everything the Cubs have wanted and then some. While the swing and misses are still there, the gold glove caliber defense and explosiveness at the plate combat the K’s. One of the most marketable players in the league remains the face of one of the biggest brands in baseball.

Last but certainly not least, Contreras has become one of the most valuable players in the league. Very rarely do you find a catcher that is above average behind the dish and at the plate. Like Baez, Contreras brings an energy to the team that is unmatched and much needed in the dog days of summer. This core is as good as it gets. Unfortunately, there are 26 men on the Major League roster. There are holes on this team and they need to be addressed quickly.