Zambrano and Cubs need to remain focused
August 9, 2010
Carlos Zambrano will make his first start in over a month on Monday as the struggling Chicago Cubs take on the National League West leading San Francisco Giants. The Cubs are coming off of being swept at home by the Cincinnati Reds in what has been an aweful display of offense. Chicago has a tremendous line-up on paper, but almost every one of their All-Star caliber players is having the worst year of their careers.
Derrick Lee has averaged 28 homeruns, 36 doubles, 90 runs batted in and a .282 batting average over his 11 year career. He has fallen well below those totals this year. His 12 homeruns and .248 batting average tell the whole story. He has struggled with his discipline at the plate as he already has 97 strikeouts this year. It’s hard to pinpoint the problem with his hitting this season, but he will need to do a ton of work in the off-season to get back on track. Aramis Ramirez is also having the worst year or his career. Injuries have plagued Ramirez over the past 2 seasons, but prior to that he had been averaging 31 homeruns and well over 100 RBI’s over the previous 6 seasons.
With a team that has players like Lee, Ramirez, Alfonso Soriano and Geovany Soto, it’s surprising to see that Marlon Byrd leads the team in batting average, on base percentage and hits. Byrd has progressively become better over his MLB career. He had his best season as a big leaguer in 2009 when he hammered out 20 homeruns with 43 doubles and 89 runs batted in. It will take contributions from the entire team if this Chicago squad is going to compete with St Louis and Cincinnati for years to come.
Zambrano is a rare talent physically, but lacks the mental toughness to maintain any type of consistency. He has had several “blow-ups” over his time in the bigs, and has yet to learn that it does nothing but create tension in the clubhouse. He has been over-hyped in my opinion throughout his career. His lifetime 3.59 earned run average isn’t all that impressive, and his 727 walks to 1381 strikeouts isn’t the kind of ration that most GM’s get excited about. He is a fierce competitor that lays it all on the line each time he takes the mound, but that doesn’t necessarily translate to wins.
Zambrano has been used in a limited capacity over he last month and a half due to his blow-up in the dugout back on May 25th. He will need to show that he has the ability to remain composed more so than show that he’s capable of shutting down the opposition. This is nothing more than a test by the Cubs management to see if he is worth keeping around for the next few seasons. The consensus by most baseball experts in regards to the Cubs winning the N.L. Central or finishing in the wildcard spot is all but done now. However, Chicago still has a very good nucleus that has the potential to be successful in years to come. The announcement of Lou Piniella’s retirement after this season may be just what is needed to give this team a different perspective. We will see what the change in manager brings next year, but in the mean time it is up to this team to remain focused and stay positive.
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