There's no getting around the fact that the Cubs have been a mediocre baseball team through the first two months of the season. With a record of 25-27, they sit in third place in a weak NL Central and sit behind teams like the Diamondbacks and Rockies in the playoff picture. Peter helps us think through how they got here and what they can do to change things moving forward.
Next year marks the end of era for White Sox fans. Yesterday, Hawk Harrelson announced he will retire after a baseball career than spans eight (!!!) decades. I've grown tired of him in recent years—especially as I've become more interested in analytics—but I'll always associate his voice with some of my favorite baseball memories. "Call your sons, call your daughters! Call your friends, call your neighbors! Mark Buehrle has a perfect game going into the ninth!"
Through two months, the best infielder in baseball has been...Zack Cozart? At 2.7 fWAR, Cozart ranks third in all of baseball behind Mike Trout and Aaron Judge. He has gotten on base in more than 43% of his plate appearances and has some pop (on pace for 20+ home runs). If he keeps up this pace, it will be fascinating to see what type of free agent deal the 31-year-old signs this offseason.