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While the Chicago Cubs are off to a great start this season, they do have a looming concern when it comes to being a contender in October.
It has been an excellent start to the year for the Cubs, who find themselves in first place in the National League Central.
Coming into the campaign, expectations were high for the Cubs after a great winter. The team was able to make a few notable additions to help support what has been an impressive young core of talent.
Trading for Kyle Tucker completely changed the dynamic for Chicago on offense. Adding an MVP-caliber player into the middle of the order has made everyone around him better. Now, the Cubs have one of the best lineups in the league.
Furthermore, while the lineup might be ready to compete in October, they do have some looming concerns in the rotation after an injury to Justin Steele.
Will the Chicago Cubs Be Able to Find an Ace?
Johnny Flores Jr. of The Athletic (subscription required) recently wrote about the Cubs’ need to find and ace-level starter and that potentially being harder than initially thought.
“It also creates a tall task for Jed Hoyer’s front office, as the Cubs won’t be the only team in search of a starter (see No. 1), and through the early parts of the season, it looks like it’ll be slim pickings come July.”
Before the start of the year, it seemed like there were going to be a plethora of front-end pitchers available at the trade deadline. However, that doesn’t appear to be the case as of now.
With the San Diego Padres playing excellently, it would be shocking at this point to see them move on from Dylan Cease or Michael King with the chance to be a contender in the NL.
Furthermore, in the American League, the Seattle Mariners are playing well. This could impact their desire to move on from Luis Castillo, who was a frequently mentioned name.
One pitcher who is likely to be the most available that could fill the need for Chicago is Sandy Alcantara. However, the from NL Cy Young has been struggling and can’t be seen as a fix for the rotation.
While things can change depending on how teams perform, that might make front-end pitchers available, but the options right now are limited.
This isn’t good news for a Cubs team that can compete in the NL this season. However, without adding another front-end starter, it’s hard to imagine that they will be able to hang with the best in the league come October.
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Dodgers make bold decision on closer role for rest of postseason
The Los Angeles Dodgers will play a decisive Game 3 of the National League Division Series at home on Wednesday. If they beat the Philadelphia Phillies, they will advance to the National League Championship Series for the second time in two seasons. After getting great starting pitching from Shohei Ohtani and Blake Snell, the bullpen has finally become a well-oiled machine, pitching 6.0 innings and allowing eight hits, three earned runs, two walks and three strikeouts in the first two games of the series. Finding their groove, every member of the bullpen appears to have their own role, with Dodgers manager Dave Roberts seemingly allowing that to happen and designating Roki Sasaki as his "primary" closer. Dodgers have their closure moving forward Moving forward for the rest of their series with the Phillies and throughout the playoffs (if they advance), Roberts officially announced that Sasaki will be the one who gets the ball in the ninth inning, stating he's "definitely the primary option," according to Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times. Roberts said that Sasaki "won't close every game," meaning others will fill in when he's down. "There’s a component that, we still have to win X amount more games," Roberts said to Harris. "And he’s not gonna close every game. It’s just not feasible. So you’ve got to use other guys. But if it makes sense, he’ll definitely be finishing games." Roki Sasaki has been good when given the opportunity Sasaki has done well in his opportunities this postseason when given the chance to close, tallying two saves in 2.1 innings. A four-seamer (50.2 percent of the time) that hits near 100 mph, paired with a splitter averaging 10-15 miles per hour slower (used 33.5 percent of the time) and that tumbles off the table, is a deadly weapon to have as a closer. Choosing Sasaki to be the closer against the Phillies is the right move, with only four Phillies players having one hit against him: Max Kepler (1-3), Kyle Schwarber (1-2 and a strikeout), Bryson Stott (1-3) and Trea Turner (1-3). Having decent numbers against them could help him if he's called upon to get the final three outs to clinch Game 3.
North Carolina reportedly considering nuclear option with Bill Belichick, and that's justified
Cowboys list 18 players on their injury report but a couple of names steal the spotlight as their return appears very likely
The Dallas Cowboys just revealed their first injury report of Week 6 on Wednesday and it's a long one. The team listed 18 players on it ahead of their matchup against the Carolina Panthers, five of which were non-participants while 10 were limited. The remaining three players on the report were listed as full participants. Two of latter stole the spotlight amid the bitter updates as their "full" participation means they're close to making their 2025 debut very soon: Cornerback Caelen Carson and wide receiver Jonathan Mingo. Neither of the them are currently on the 53-man roster but the Cowboys activated their 21-day practice window last week. Carson and Mingo were limited participants in each of last week's practices. To be upgraded to full on the first practice of the week is a promising sign for their chances of playing against the Panthers. The coaching staff would need to open up roster spots to place them on the 53-man roster. Other notes on Cowboys' initial injury report for Week 6 CeeDee Lamb was a non-participant once again as his chances of playing Week 6 remain up in the air. KaVontae Turpin also missed practice and told reporters he wasn't expecting to play. Right guard Tyler Booker also missed practice. The new additions to the non-participants were LB Jack Sanborn (concussion) and S Donovan Wilson (elbow/knee). Safety is starting to look like a serious concern. Malik Hooker was placed on Injured Reserve last weekend and now Wilson missed practice while Juanyeh Thomas popped up on the injury report as a limited participant. Other starters that were limited participants: CB Trevon Diggs, CB DaRon Bland, OT Tyler Guyton, LG Tyler Smith. Head coach Brian Schottenheimer suggested Guyton will start at left tackle if cleared. Thursday's full Cowboys' injury report window.addEventListener('message', function (event) {if (event.data.totalpoll event.data.totalpoll.action === 'resizeHeight') {document.querySelector('#totalpoll-iframe-375').height = event.data.totalpoll.value;}}, false);document.querySelector('#totalpoll-iframe-375').contentWindow.postMessage({totalpoll: {action: 'requestHeight'}}, '*');
Packers could see breakout star emerge on defense in weeks ahead
The Green Bay Packers’ secondary got lit up by Dak Prescott in a 40-40 tie against the Dallas Cowboys before heading off to the bye week, but help could be on the way. Through the season’s first five weeks, the Packers rank 11th against the pass, but they allowed 319 passing yards and three touchdowns to Prescott in their final game before the bye week. Help, though, could be on the way. Could Nate Hobbs elevate Packers’ secondary? With a showdown against the likes of wide receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins on Sunday afternoon, a breakout star could be about to emerge. Mike Spofford of the Packers’ official website suggests that cornerback Nate Hobbs getting healthier could be a major asset for coordinator Jeff Hafley and Green Bay’s defense moving forward. “Nate Hobbs,” Spofford writes, when asked the player he’s most looking forward to see the rest of the season. “He’s getting further removed from his knee procedure during training camp, and he’s also back on the practice field after leaving the Dallas game to be evaluated for a concussion. I don’t think we’ve seen the best of Hobbs yet in this defense.” Hobbs has appeared in three games for the Packers this season, posting 10 total tackles, one pass breakup and one tackle for loss. Given that the 26-year-old had the added time during the bye week to get further away from the injury he suffered during the summer, he could be a player whose best football this season is still in front of him. That would be huge for a defense looking for consistent playmakers to step up.
LeBron James & Steve Nash Send Strong Message to Adam Silver Over Long-Standing Kawhi Leonard Issue
The NBA is facing a growing injury crisis, and many believe it’s tied to the demanding 82-game schedule. While some, like Steve Kerr, have long advocated for change, he even emailed Commissioner Adam Silver before last season, urging a reduction to 65 games! On the other hand, some do feel 82 is a sweet spot. The debate continues to divide the league, as concerns over player health and performance intensify. Now, LeBron James and Steve Nash have stepped in to share their perspectives. While discussing the sheer amount of superstars injured for the upcoming season on their ‘Mind The Game‘ podcast, Nash asked James about how much of it has to do with the number of games today’s players have to play each year. The Los Angeles Lakers forward gave a very balanced reply: “I mean, I don’t know, I can’t sit here and say that I have the direct answer to that. But we are at this point in the era that we’re playing in, it’s a lot more running.” While LeBron played it safe, Nash did not hold back. The former Suns star sent a strong message to the NBA, especially to commissioner Adam Silver. “When the acceling-deceling in space, there’s no getting around the wear and tear that causes. Like, we were talking about elite athletes covering elite athletes in bigger spaces, longer rotations, more closeouts, more possessions. Unfortunately, it just is a factor,” Nash pointed out. If you take an ideal scenario, a team can play around 110 games. 82 and then if you take 7 games (ideal situation) in each of the 4 rounds of the playoffs. “And then, so I hate load management. But it’s a part of the equation. We have to be smart. We don’t want guys to miss when LeBron James goes to Atlanta, we don’t want some kid to be sad ’cause he’s got to sit up. But sometimes that’s the reality. It’s that we have to be smart about it. So I don’t know, I feel like it’s an important part of the puzzle is managing the rigors of the game.” Well, Steve Nash does present a fair argument, because we have seen the Clippers star dealing with this issue. Although many fans criticize players like Kawhi Leonard and Joel Embiid for sitting out a significant number of games each season, it might be the result of the immense amount of stress their bodies have taken over time. After all, there’s a huge difference in playing 82 games back in the day compared to today. Then, players did not have to run 20-30 feet to cover a shooter, which might not seem much during one game, but takes a toll on an athlete’s muscles over the season. Teams will have to lean on load management because they do not have any other way of protecting their players. It’s not like the franchise and players like to disappoint the fans, the former Nets head coach revealed, but they don’t want to risk losing their stars for key games. Nonetheless, while LeBron James and Steve Nash have sent strong messages through their statements, what can be the solution? Is there a way to solve the NBA’s load management crisis? Well, in the past few years, load management has become a massive issue for the league, with fans frustrated with the situation. Although the NBA did come up with a way to combat the issue, as they issued a minimum threshold of 65 games for them to become eligible to be considered for the end-of-the-season honors, that doesn’t solve the root cause. You see, while this might prompt players to not sit out every game, the real problem, as Lakers superstar LeBron James and former NBA guard Steve Nash pointed out, is the wear and tear of muscles. The only, or rather an immediate solution, is to reduce the number of regular-season games unless there’s a solid alternative. That’s because any other solution than that will not help the players’ health, which should be a priority for the association. In fact, as mentioned, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr has already raised this concern before. “I’m concerned about the product because I think we are asking way too much of our players,” Kerr said back in November last year. “The game has never been more difficult to play at a high level night after night after night. We should account for that. We all need to be thinking about that, for sure.” The Dubs boss pointed out that, given how difficult the game has become for players daily, teams have no choice but to sit out their players for certain games. As disappointing as it might be for the fans, it’s something the franchises have to do to avoid risking their players suffering a serious injury. Now, with more players and coaches joining Kerr, such as James and Nash, the league might finally be forced to look into this issue. However, reducing the number of games is easier said than done. So, will Adam Silver and Co. finally take some action to solve the NBA’s load management issue, or not? That’s something we can only wait and watch as the new season approaches.
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