Making the confines not so friendly - Chicago Cubs -

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Chicago Cubs

Spoiler

Since I haven't done a sustained Chicago Cubs franchise yet, I figured I might as well give it a go! Hopefully this lasts for a while and I don't get some odd issue with my game, luck is awful in that regard!

I'll be playing this in a bit of an odd manner, I'll be playing opening day, than from there on, I'll slide down the rotation, so I'll play the 2nd pitcher's, 2nd start, the 3rd's third, 4th's, 4th and so on, until it wraps back to the to pitcher. Hopefully that will get me some good movement since that'd be playing 1 of 6. Towards the end of the season, I'll likely slow it down a bit, more so if there's any sort of drama with the post season chase!)

Anyways, time to dig in!

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After last season's run, Cubs come in with huge expectations

The Chicago Cubs seemed to seek moving beyond their lovable loser's moniker after last season which saw them knock out divisional rivals, Pittsburgh and St. Louis en route to a NLCS sweep from the New York Mets that sent this young Cubs squad to Arizona with a chip on their shoulder.

'Don't Suck'

It's a motto printed proudly on some of the shirts that Joe Maddon wears and that can not be more true for this Cubs squad as the season tilts towards it's introduction. The sting of their sweep from the Mets will set in really heavy. This is a team that is years ahead of it's rebuild and is sporting a World Series or bust attitude, even though Joe Maddon would never come outright and say that.

Joe Maddon is well known for being almost the polar opposite of another Chicago coach, The Coach, Mike Ditka. Maddon keeps things light and that will help this young Cubs team that will be seeking to round out it's game. The Cubs biggest strength became their biggest weakness in the NLCS, and that'll be a key focus they seek to work on.

The Cubs were mashers, smashing home runs left and right, but that was where almost all of their offensive production came from, with that came heavy strike out numbers and running into the buzz saw that was the New York Mets starting rotation, the unstoppable force met the immovable object, and the Mets were the last ones standing.

This year, the Cubs seem to be more fixated on being disciplined at the plate, with a focus still upon players being fluid on the diamond gives Joe Maddon an unprecedented amount of flexibility on that end. So much so that three youngsters could be on the move, if not more depending on how the team performs and what areas get hot.

The names on the trading block heading into the season are Arismendy Alcantara, Muneori Kawasaki and Dan Vogelbach. The Cubs biggest targets will be the pitching staff, there is no depth after their five hole and an injury in their rotation could be deadly, while their bullpen which received the bulk of the criticism last season will continue to need to be worked upon.

The Cubs season will open with Ace Jake Arrieta coming off a Cy Young year, where he posted unbelievable numbers and helped spur the Cubs to their NLCS run. The Cubs will travel to Los Angeles for a two game series against the Angels where Jake Arrieta will battle Matt Shoemaker.

Jon Lester returns, slotting into the two slot in the pitching rotation while new comer John Lackey will slide into the three. Kyle Hendricks takes the fourth spot in the rotation and Jason Hammel will round out the starting rotation as the fifth starter.

The Cubs will also bring forth their top free agent acquisition this offseason (excluding resigning Dexter Fowler whom dangled in free agency), Jason Heyward, whom joined Lackey in the Cardinal exodus that saw the North Side grow even more strong in the out field. Needless to say, it will be an interesting season and the Cubs have all the momentum in the world, but as any Cubs fan will tell you, no season is played on paper and there are 163 games plus a playoffs that separate a team from hoisting that trophy, and the Cubs haven't bested that gauntlet in more than a century.

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Jake Arrieta tore through the Angels line up, going 7.1 innings in the Opening Day victory

Arrieta stays strong in opener, Cubs roll past Angels

Jake Arrieta picked up where he left off last season. The Cubs ace went for 7.1 innings allowing just 4 hits with one earned, walking only one batter (Mike Trout on an errant throw) and struck out 13. This didn't go without it's hiccups however, as Arrieta struggled in the first two. Throwing thirty-four pitches in the first two innings, as almost every batter managed to work to a full count, but when it came to it, he either got the punch out or forced the ball into play.

Kris Bryant made a brilliant play in the first, a hard grounder was shooting towards him, he dived and made the grab than threw out the runner at first to keep the runners of the base paths. It seemed that whenever the Cubs allowed an Angel on base, they made them ground into a double play the next batter, and that played big for them.

The Angels were stymied at almost every turn, two errors hurt them as did poor performances from their star Mike Trout (0-2 2 K's, 1 HBP). Albert Pujols was the Angel responsible for the lone run that came in the eighth inning and ultimately chased Arrieta out of the game with a man on second with just one out, but the Angels couldn't get anything out of it.

Adam Warren pitched a clean inning in his Chicago Cub debut, earning his hold before turning the game over to Hector Rondon who picked up the first save of the season on opening day. While the Cubs pitching staff would've loved giving their bullpen more rest, Arrieta definitely appeared gassed by the eighth and while he showed distaste when Joe Maddon stepped out of the dug out in the eighth, his day ended with just a 1.22 ERA and a win to boot.

The Chicago Cubs got home runs out of Kyle Schwarber out of the DH slot, and Miguel Montero, both were lasers over the right field wall, Montero's barely skipping past the wall. Heyward struggled in his Cubs debut, going 0-4, but managed to knock one deep enough for a RBI. Anthony Rizzo also struggled going 0-4, as the only strong performance from the top three came from Dexter Fowler who went 3-4 with a RBI and a run. Fowler also stole a pair of bases in this one.

The Cubs improve to 1-0 on the season with a victory on opening day. They will battle the Angels once more before their series against the Diamondbacks in Arizona. Jon Lester will take on Hector Santiago in the Cubs next match up.

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Chicago climbs to 5-1, sweeps Angels and bests Diamond Backs

The Chicago Cubs turned in a strong performances against the Angels and Diamondbacks as they look towards their NL Central rivals in the Cincinnati Reds in their home opener. Pedro Strop will be the lone Cubs pitcher with a L, as he surrendered a late set of runs to the Diamondbacks, giving up the Cubs first defeat of the season.

The Cubs swept the Angels by besting them 6-5 in the series finale, as the offense got more of their bats coming alive. Justin Grimm took home the victory with the relief pitcher looking strong in his short gaps of play.Kris Bryant was huge, going 3-7 with 3 RBI's, as the Cubs needed 14 to finish off the Angels in the series finale. Bryant crushed two home runs while Miguel Montero added one of his own, giving him two consecutive games that he went the distance.

John Lackey claimed the series opener in Arizona, with the Cubs winning 3-1. Anthony Rizzo batted out of his slump by going 2-3 while picking up two walks as well, up to this game, Rizzo is batting just .166 thus far, and it's a serious sting when the Cubs captain struggles like this. Kris Bryant and Jorge Soler both had the other RBI's, as the Cubs went without a home run.

In the second game of the series, the Diamondbacks scored 4 runs in the bottom of the 8th to turn a 2-0 deficit into a lead, as Pedro Strop surrendered big runs. Dexter Fowler picked up his first home run of the season, while Kris Bryant added his third home run of the season. The Cubs still haven't gotten a multi-home run at bat, which is a little troubling in terms of maximizing their value out of going long.

In the third game of the series, the Cubs bats came to life and Jason Hammel bested the 0-2 Zack Greinke in this duel. It was Dexter Fowler and Kris Bryant again both going long, while Jason Heyward added a pair of triples. The Cubs picked up 12 hits and looked dominant on the offensive end, while Jason Hammel did allow 7 hits, he only had 2 earned runs and punched out 7.

In the series finale, the Cubs took it again as the offense ran away with it, a 10-6 decision. Rizzo's bat coming around as he went 3-5 with a RBI and he crossed home plate twice as well. Jorge Soler came up strong as well with a hit and a walk, a pair of RBI's and a pair of runs. Four Cubs had home runs, Anthony Rizzo, Jorge Soler, Addison Russell and David Ross. Dexter Fowler had a double while Anthony Rizzo had a pair of them. The Cubs improved to 5-1 while the Diamondbacks fell to 1-6 on the season.

The Cubs next game will feature Jon Lester squaring off against Jon Lester as the Cubs open up at Wrigley Field.

Pitching Matchups

Los Angeles Angels
G2:
WP: Justin Grimm (1-0)
LP: Fernando Salas (0-1)
BS: Strop (1)
S: Rondon (2)

Arizona Diamondbacks
G1:
WP: John Lackey (1-0)
LP: Edwin Escobar (0-1)
S: Rondon (3)

G2:
WP: Silvino Bracho (1-0)
LP: Pedro Strop (0-1)
S: Ziegler (1)

G3:
WP: Jason Hammel (1-0)
LP: Zack Greinke (0-2)

G4:
WP: Jake Arrieta (2-0)
LP: Randall Delgado (0-1)