MLB All Star Surprises

Where are the Cubbies?

There are only five teams above the .500 mark in the National League and the Cubs aren’t one of them. At 41-41, they currently sit two games back of the Milwaukee Brewers. Raise your hand if you saw that coming. Now put it down, liar.

The Cubs have all of one representative that is definitely bound for Miami, but every team is guaranteed at least one. Wade Davis is one of six relief options available to National League (and Cubs) manager Joe Maddon, and that got me to thinking: What if the lack of Cubs on the roster is all by design?

Sure, the fan vote didn’t help matters much, and the Cubs aren’t necessarily mashing the ball this year, but Maddon has the final say on the rosters after the fan vote, and we’ve seen managers play favorites with their own guys in the past. Maybe Maddon is giving the majority of his guys a full week off to rest and recoup for the days ahead in which they’ll have to make up some ground.

Add to that the fact that their NLDS opponent (Dodgers would presumably face the wild card winner given their six game lead for best record in NL), the Washington Nationals, have a total of five reps in the game (three starters and two starting pitchers), and that week’s rest could pay huge dividends come playoff time.

If Kris Bryant gets voted in this week, that doesn’t mean that Maddon has to play him by any means. This could all work right into his hands.

I could also be overthinking this a tad.