Miguel Montero calls on hibernating Chicago Cubs to wake up
By Tim Haberin
Veteran catcher Miguel Montero thinks the defending champs are sleepwalking after their memorable title run. The Chicago Cubs must wake up if they want to get back on top in a competitive division.
At this point in the season, it’s safe to say the Chicago Cubs are indeed going through a slow start. After Tuesday’s doubleheader split with the Colorado Rockies, the reigning world champions sit at an unremarkable 17-16. By salvaging yesterday’s second game, the Cubs snapped a four-game losing streak that began with last weekend’s sweep at the hands of the New York Yankees.
While there are certainly other aspiring contenders faring worse (hello, Giants), the Cubs are in danger of letting their early slump turn into a weight on the rest of their season. There are over 120 games left to turn things around, but at least one member of the team believes it’s time to start feeling the heat.
According to ESPN.com, catcher Miguel Montero spoke Tuesday between games about the club’s need for a sense of urgency:
"“The reality is, we can’t take anything for granted, and right now, I feel like we do,” Montero said after Game 1. “Honestly, we’re just not playing at our highest level. We have to shake it up, wake up. This will be a good wake-up call for us. We either come to play the right way or we’re going to have a short season.”"
Montero is no stranger to speaking his mind, although not always constructively. While everyone else in Wrigleyville celebrated a World Series victory 108 years in the making, he publicly grumbled about his lack of playing time during the postseason. It appears he’s now trying to better fill the veteran leadership role he’s intended to play on this roster.
After a lackluster 2016 campaign that saw him post a .684 OPS and -0.3 bWAR in 86 games, Montero is off to a much better start this year. The 33-year-old is understandably behind Willson Contreras on the depth chart, but over 18 games he’s slashing .378/.396/.600 with three homers and seven RBI in 48 plate appearances.
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It’s still too soon to push the panic button, but the Cubs would do well to heed Montero’s words. Fortunately, none of their NL Central rivals have run away with the division, but all five clubs are packed rather tightly together. The Cubs are only 1.5 games behind the first-place Cardinals, but the last-place Pirates are still just a manageable 4.5 games off the pace.
Montero went on to highlight the team’s sloppy, unfocused recent play as a main culprit for their disappointing results. He’s not imagining things: The Cubs have committed six of their 26 errors this season in their last four games. For a squad that prides itself on playing cleanly, it’s not exactly a winning recipe.
This Cubs team has way too much young talent to flounder around the .500 mark the entire year. It’s a good sign that despite their sluggish start, they haven’t given up much ground in the NL Central. However, with the Cardinals heating up in particular, the division might not be the cakewalk most envisioned before the season.
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If Montero’s comments were a wake-up call, the Cubs responded well with an 8-1 win in yesterday’s nightcap. They’ll look to build momentum in this afternoon’s series finale in Colorado, and then they have a golden opportunity to re-assert themselves in the division with consecutive three-game sets against St. Louis, Cincinnati and Milwaukee.