The Dodgers continued their mastery over the Cubs in the 2017 NLCS Tuesday night with a 6-1 win. The Dodgers seem to have the better team on the field, but Dave Roberts is clearly having a better series managing than the Cubs Joe Maddon. The win put the Dodgers up 3-0 in their series and magnified the flaws of the Cubs and Joe Maddon. The Cubs didn't look particularly good in defeating the Washington Nationals in a NLDS series and are struggling against the Dodgers.
We've seen this before
For the third time in this series, the Cubs took the lead on a home run.
This time, courtesy of a Kyle Schawber first inning homer. And once, again, an early home run accounted for all the Cubs runs. The Dodgers once again tied the score in the next half inning. This time, on an Andre Eithier solo homer. Chris Taylor put the Dodgers up 2-1 with another solo homer in the third and the Dodgers tacked on runs after that.
Where did all the bats go?
Simply put, the Cubs aren't hitting and really haven't hit throughout the playoffs. Kris Bryant, the 2016 NL MVP, has morphed into a strikeout machine and is hitting only .219 in the playoffs. Slugging first baseman, Anthony Rizzo, checks in at .167.
Long time Joe Maddon favorite, Ben Zobrist, looked old and slow during the regular season and that's carried on through the playoffs.
Zobrist is currently hitting .174 during the playoffs. Cubs standout second baseman, Javy Baez, still doesn't have a hit in the postseason. The list goes on and on.
No relief in sight
The Cubs bullpen has also been dismal. Walks have been a serious issue for the pen through this year's playoffs. Carl Edwards Jr. has been consistently inconsistent.
His walks on the wild side culminated with a bases loaded walk to Dodgers pitcher, Yu Darvish. Mike Montgomery has shown little command and been hit hard. Hector Rondon has had a similar fate.
All the wrong moves
In addition, Cubs manager Joe Maddon, has also pushed all the wrong buttons. From playoff roster selection, to choosing a batting order, to using his bullpen, Maddon has had a notably bad series.
Joe Maddon is a good manager and brings a lot to the table, but does have some flaws. This year's playoffs have magnified those flaws.
Maddon came under considerable criticism for his use of his use of Aroldis Chapman in last year's World Series. This year, Maddon's use of John Lackey in game two of the series with the Dodgers has gained similar negative scrutiny. His reliance on John Jay and Ben Zobrist at the expense of playing time for Albert Almora and Ian Happ could also be questioned.
That's strange
In an ironic twist, Joe Maddon could lead the Cubs to three consecutive NLCS series, and one World Series win, while losing his aura of being perhaps the best manager in baseball. Strange but true.
