The Chicago Cubs enter play today with a 44-49 record and have taken the first two games of the series against the American League East division-leading Baltimore Orioles. The Cubs are 10 games back in the National League Central and are three and a half games back from the last wild card spot in the National League. The Cubs have the third and final game of the series with the Orioles tonight before heading to St. Louis to take on the Cardinals for a four-game series including a doubleheader Saturday before the All-Star break. Ahead of the final game with the Orioles the Cubs have announced two roster moves.
OF – Cody Bellinger
The Cubs have placed Bellinger on the 10-day injured list with a left middle finger fracture after being hit by a pitch in last evening’s game. Cody has played in 79 games this year for the Cubs with 39 runs scored, 15 doubles, one triple, nine home runs, 37 RBIs, 27 walks, five stolen bases, and 59 strikeouts. He is slashing .269/.331/.410 with a .741 OPS on the year. The timing isn’t great but the days off with the All-Star break at least eliminate potential games missed if there is any bright side to the situation. On the flip side for those teams looking to trade for his services, this could perhaps knock down the asking price a tad, given the timing.
OF – Alexander Canario
The Cubs have recalled Canario from the Triple-A Iowa Cubs today. Canario has played in 13 games so far this year for the Cubs with 22 at-bats. In those games, he has four runs scored, six hits, one double, one home run, two RBIs, two walks, one stolen base, and 11 strikeouts. While with the Cubs he was slashing .273/.360/.455 with a .815 OPS in 13 games. With Iowa, he has played in 59 games with 16 home runs, 13 doubles, 43 RBIs, and is slashing .238/.330/.502.
Overview
Well, the Cubs certainly will miss Bellinger while he is out, but hopefully, the rest of the club can remain hot and finish this first half strong. If the Cubs can win at least split the series with the Cardinals perhaps they can gain a game in the wild card hunt. The Cubs will need Ian Happ, Seiya Suzuki, Pete Crow Armstong, Michael Busch, and company to keep the bats going over the next five games to set themselves up for a run at the wild card spots. The season so far has been a disappointing one, but watching them play the last two games against one of the best teams in baseball has been a reminder of the talent we do have on this Cubs roster. Especially last night when Shota outdueled Corbin Burnes on the way to a four-zip win. There is a lot of baseball left to play and hopefully Cody can recover quickly and come back to a team closing in on a wild card spot, if not there stands a chance he could be fighting for a playoff spot with another team this August.
