After an April that had some dreaming about a 100-win season, the Chicago Cubs cooled down in a big way. They crumbled in May, going 10-18. June’s start has continued with mediocracy as well. The Cubs celebrated a series win this week after taking two of three from the San Francisco Giants. This was their first series win of over three games since Mother’s Day Weekend.
Some of those losses can be attributed to the bullpen’s lack of consistency. The starting pitching has been phenomenal. However, everyone has to hold their breath when the starter turns it over to a reliever. This year, the Cubs have already blown a save opportunity 16 times. If they were able to execute a save in half of those blown opportunities, they’d be in a tie for first place with the Milwaukee Brewers.
Speaking of that starting pitching, the Cubs would be far in the basement of the National League without it. Shota Imanaga has been sensational to begin his MLB career. Through 13 starts, he still sits with a 1.89 earned run average. That’s the third-best mark in all of baseball. The Cubs also show up to play when he is on the mound, going 11-2 in games he’s started in.
But even through those fantastic starts from Imanaga and the rest of the rotation, the lack of production on offense contributes to the inability to close games out. What was once a feared lineup in the league has become one that mid-tier teams chewed up to find their way back into contention. Watching the weak contact and inability to move runners around the bases is beyond frustrating. But the Cubs’ struggles are part of a phenomenon impacting all of baseball.
Cubs Are Not Alone In Offensive Struggles
Jayson Stark and Eno Sarris of The Athletic took a deep dive into just how bad offensive numbers have been across the league in 2024. MLB is seeing a significant decline in many categories, including averages, hits, and home runs. The decrease in these numbers is staggering.
Through this point of the season, there have been 1,400 fewer hits than last year. We’ve seen about 800 fewer home runs than in 2023. According to Stark and Sarris, there are only 25 players who are on pace to hit at least 30 home runs. That is less than one player per team (although teams like the New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers will probably have multiple representatives).
It’s not just the Cubs; the lack of offense can be seen all throughout the league. It feels extra frustrating on the North Side of Chicago because of the narrative surrounding the Cubs. This was the year followers of the Cubs expected to open a championship-winning window with the “next great Cubs team.” However, they feel further off from that now than at the beginning of the season. This team is still below average offensively in a year where the offense is below average in the league as a whole. That’s not a winning formula.
At this point, President of Baseball Operations Jed Hoyer’s message is to be patient and let the bats warm up along with the temperatures. One player Hoyer’s patience has worked extraordinarily well for is Ian Happ, who is batting .500 with three home runs in his last seven games. Hopefully, his hitting will become contagious and catch on with the rest of the team so the Cubs can gain ground on the Brewers in a very winnable division.
