Chicago Cubs: 2019 letter grades for each player
By Bill Felber
The Chicago Cubs generally underperformed in 2019. An honest rating of their season shows several players delivering average at best seasons. Let’s take a closer look.
The Chicago Cubs enter the 2019-20 winter with a new manager, David Ross, and a full set of challenges. Ross inherits a largely veteran and contending roster from his predecessor, Joe Maddon. But it is also a roster that has largely failed to live up to pre-season expectations for two seasons running, and it is also largely populated by expensive veterans whose best days are probably behind them.
Whether Ross can whip that conglomeration into contending form will be an interesting challenge.
The biggest question marks center around the pitching staff, which enters 2010 lacking a true ace. Jon Lester and Yu Darvish used to fill those roles, but Lester is showing his age and Darvish – while perfectly adequate in 2019 – was at best a No. 2 or 3.
The farm system has failed to give the Cubs much aid, either on the mound or among the position players. Such formerly projected stars as Ian Happ, Addison Russell, and Albert Almora Jr., all failed to take advantage of the opportunities offered to them during the 2019 regular season.
Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo, Javier Baez, and Willson Contreras remain a viable core to build around, but the cost of keeping them is rapidly accelerating beyond the value they have brought in return. One or more could be a trade chip.
Here’s a rating of every member of the 2019 Chicago Cubs who either got 100 plate appearances or pitched at least 40 innings. Because of his large, multi-year free-agent contract signed during mid-season, Craig Kimbrel is also evaluated.