Cubs Continue to Sink (Or Is It Stink)?

I know I haven't written a lot about the Chicago Cubs since starting my blog. There's not a whole lot I can say about a team that is trying to find its identity, let alone a victory or two.

The Cubs lost again today by a score of 10-5 to the San Diego Padres. They looked sloppy and disjointed. They have no offense, no pitching, and after today's game, not much defense either. They've only won once in their last 10 games.

You wonder if Jim Hendry and Dusty Baker even have a plan to put together a winning team and get to the postseason. Granted, they lost Derrek Lee to an injury until at least July, and their starting pitching rotation has three rookies. So you're probably not going to win many games.

At the beginning of this season, I was hopeful that the Cubs off-season moves would improve the team. I like the addition of Juan Pierre, Bobby Howry and Scott Eyre. For the first few weeks, the Cubs did generate some excitement and were playing better baseball. But with Lee's injury, it seems the air has gone out of this team, and you wonder how they will get it back.

What's troubling is that none of the Cub players has stepped forward, either on the field or in the clubhouse. And Baker seems at a loss what to do. The sign of a good manager is being able to motivate a team when they are not at their best or are without some of their best players. So you wonder if Baker is the manager the Cubs hoped he would be.

A sign of a good baseball team is one that is still able to compete even when they lose one or two players. You would think the way the Cubs have been playing that Derrek Lee was a team of one. But a team's success depends on contributions from all the players, not just one person. Where is the rest of the team on this Cub team?