As the Cubs come out of the All-Star break, all that matters now is wins.
The Cubs must string together consecutive series victories — starting this weekend at Wrigley Field against the Arizona Diamondbacks — to make up ground in the wild-card race, especially as the July 30 trade deadline looms. For the second straight year, they have put themselves in a tough position as they try to reach the postseason for the first time in a 162-game season since 2018.
The White Sox begin the second half Friday with the first of three games in Kansas City. They’re 1-6 against the Royals this season, including getting outscored 20-5 during a four-game sweep April 4-7 at Kauffman Stadium.
Every Friday during the regular season, Tribune baseball writers will provide an update on what happened — and what’s ahead — for the Cubs and White Sox. Want more? Sign up for our newsletters.
Cubs invest in high school shortstops
The Cubs selected only three prep players during the three-day, 20-round draft this week. But two of those selections came in the third and fourth rounds when they chose shortstops Ronny Cruz (Miami Christian School) and Ty Southisene (Basic High School, Nevada).
Cruz, who is from the Dominican Republic, doesn’t turn 18 until next month and was committed to the University of Miami. He hit .397 with a .479 on-base percentage and 1.050 OPS in 75 plate appearances this year. A right knee injury limited him to 21 games.
Ranked by Perfect Game as the No. 12 shortstop prospect in Florida, Cruz was a switch hitter in high school but is listed as a right-handed hitter by the Cubs.
“He’s got lightning bat speed, actually, and how wiry strong he is, the ball really jumps off his bat,” vice president of scouting Dan Kantrovitz said. “He uses the ground really well and I think you’ll see some upper-end exit (velocities) from him.
“Once he gets back to full health and we’re able to do a full assessment of where he’s at right now physically, you might see him out there this fall, but I’m not quite sure what the plan is for him at this point right after he signs.”
2024 MLB draft: A look at players with Illinois connections who were selected — and by which teams
Kantrovitz believes Southisene, 19, and Cruz will stick at shortstop. He pointed to Cruz’s arm and speed as creating a high ceiling at the position. Southisene’s dazzling defensive plays last summer made the 5-foot-9 shortstop stand out, turning him into a priority scouting target this spring.
“We had some pretty thorough coverage of him and got pretty comfortable with his glove at short,” Kantrovitz said. “So he’s going to be versatile, he’s going to be able to play all over the dirt, but in our eyes there’s no doubt that he can maintain shortstop.”
Trade talk the topic of discussion with Sox
A period of change could be ahead for the Sox.
Several players have been mentioned in trade speculation, including starting pitcher Garrett Crochet and center fielder Luis Robert Jr. At 27-71, the Sox are in a selling position at the trade deadline.
“We can’t hide from the fact that this is an uncomfortable couple of weeks for some of these guys,” manager Pedro Grifol said. “That’s the reality of it. That understanding that you may be here, you may not be here is real.
“However, you’ve got to be where your feet are. You’re here. You’ve got to work, you’ve got to prepare. You’ve got to play to win, you’ve got to pitch to win. Control what you can control.”
Grifol knows that’s easier said than done.
“These guys are human,” he said. “Shoot, even the coaches every once in a while, we talk about what are the possibilities of what our roster is going to look like. But I’ve been in this game long enough to sit in a room and say it might look exactly the same. I’ve seen it where you’re wanting to do things and things don’t pop up or you’re not wanting to do things and things pop up.
“That’s why every time you ask a question to a front-office member, not just here but anywhere in baseball, they say the same thing: ‘Hey, we’ll see what happens. We’re always open.’ Why? Because you never know what’s going to happen. There might be a team that’s really close that is willing to go the extra mile to be all-in. You just never know.
“But we’ve got to focus on what our task at hand is, and that’s putting us in a position to continue to develop a winning mentality and put ourselves in a position for ’25.”
What to watch for in 2025
Twenty-five years after the Cubs opened their season in Japan, they will return to kick off 2025.
Schedules were released Thursday, and the Cubs are slated to open with two games against the Los Angeles Dodgers on March 18-19 at the Tokyo Dome. In 2000, the Cubs split a pair against the New York Mets at the same venue, the first regular-season MLB games played in Japan.
The games will be a homecoming for Cubs pitcher Shota Imanaga and right fielder Seiya Suzuki and Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani.
Those will count as home games for the Cubs, who will return to Mesa, Ariz., to finish spring training before the regular-season schedule resumes March 27. The Cubs will start on the road against the Arizona Diamondbacks (four games) and the Athletics in Sacramento, Calif. (three games). The home opener is April 4 versus the San Diego Padres.
It’s a challenging start to the season with two of their three multicity West Coast trips coming in the first three weeks. After their opening homestand, the Cubs visit the Dodgers and Padres.
The City Series dates are May 16-18 at Wrigley Field and July 25-27 at Guaranteed Rate Field.
The Sox will open at home for the second straight season, hosting the Los Angeles Angels on March 27 at Guaranteed Rate Field.
The home finale is Sept. 21 against the Padres, and the regular-season finale is Sept. 28 in Washington.
Number of the week: 32½
The last-place Sox return from the All-Star break trailing the division-leading Cleveland Guardians by 32½ games in the American League Central standings.
Tracking the White Sox’s record-setting losses
Record: 27-71
The Sox have the worst record after 98 games in franchise history. The previous mark of 32-66 was set in 1948.
They’re on pace for 117 losses, three short of the record set by the expansion 1962 New York Mets. The team record is 106, set in 1970.
Their 71 losses were the most in MLB history before the All-Star break (the 98 games before the break tied the franchise record).
Week ahead: Cubs
- Friday: vs. Diamondbacks, 1:20 p.m., Marquee
- Saturday: vs. Diamondbacks, 6:15 p.m., Fox-32
- Sunday: vs. Diamondbacks, 1:20 p.m., Marquee
- Monday: vs. Brewers, 7:05 p.m., Marquee
- Tuesday: vs. Brewers, 7:05 p.m., Marquee
- Wednesday: vs. Brewers, 1:20 p.m., Marquee
- Thursday: off
As the Cubs (47-51) come out of the break sitting 3½ games out of the last National League wild-card spot — with five teams between them and the Mets, who hold the third wild-card position — they must find a way to keep rolling.
The offense in particular must build off the 10-day stretch leading into the break. Ian Happ and Michael Busch have been the primary sources of offense since early June, while Nico Hoerner and Seiya Suzuki are trending in the right direction the last three weeks. With Cody Bellinger (fractured left middle finger) potentially sidelined through July, Suzuki especially needs to provide consistent power.
When they return to the ballpark this weekend, Suzuki’s interpreter, Toy Matsushita, will not be with the Cubs, a team source told the Tribune. The organization has parted ways with Matsushita, who had worked as Suzuki’s interpreter since the Japanese outfielder signed with the Cubs before the 2022 season.
The decision to let Matsushita go does not involve any legal issues, the source confirmed. Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, was involved in a scandal this spring in which he pleaded guilty to stealing millions from the Dodgers superstar to cover illegal gambling debts.
Nao Masamoto, the Cubs’ major-league video coordinator and Pacific Rim liaison, and Edwin Stanberry, Shota Imanaga’s interpreter, will fill the role of assisting communication between Suzuki and the organization, his teammates and media.
Week ahead: White Sox
- Friday: at Royals, 7:10 p.m., NBCSCH
- Saturday: at Royals, 6:10 p.m., NBCSCH
- Sunday: at Royals, 1:10 p.m., NBCSCH
- Monday: at Rangers, 7:05 p.m., NBCSCH
- Tuesday: at Rangers, 7:05 p.m., NBCSCH
- Wednesday: at Rangers, 7:05 p.m., NBCSCH
- Thursday: at Rangers, 1:35 p.m., NBCSCH
Garrett Crochet’s first scheduled start after the break will be at the location of the All-Star Game: Tuesday against the Rangers at Globe Life Field. Erick Fedde will pitch the first game of that series Monday.
“The idea behind this is give Fedde his 11 days between outings and give Crochet 10 days (excluding one inning in Tuesday’s All-Star Game) between outings,” manager Pedro Grifol said. “Our intentions were to give these guys a really good, long break.”
Chris Flexen, Jonathan Cannon and Drew Thorpe are lined up to start against the Royals.
What we’re reading this morning
- Column: The White Sox’s primary 2nd-half goal? Avoid making history.
- 4 takeaways from the Cubs’ 2024 MLB draft, including landing one of the best defensive catchers
- 4 takeaways from the White Sox’s 2024 MLB draft, including a ‘super interesting’ 2-way player born in Siberia
- 2024 MLB draft: A look at players with Illinois connections who were selected — and by which teams
- Cubs’ Shota Imanaga picks a perfect jingle for All-Star Game, while White Sox’s Garrett Crochet ‘absorbs’ his big moment
- White Sox catcher Martín Maldonado, batting .119, is designated for assignment
- White Sox sign Nick Senzel to a major-league deal after his release by the Nationals
- MLB players in 2028 Olympics? Robot umpires by 2026? Commissioner Rob Manfred says both are possible.
- 3 takeaways from the Cubs’ 1st half, including needing more from Christopher Morel
- White Sox at the All-Star break: A look at the highs — and mostly lows — of the season so far
- Column: Velocity is the name in the MLB All-Star Game — and perhaps every game in the future
- New monument for White Sox great Minnie Miñoso unveiled at Chicago’s Graceland Cemetery
Quotable
“I feel like I’m a power pitcher. Just big-time stuff. I feel like I worked for that and I’m going to keep working for it. There’s room for improvement. I’m a competitor, first off. That’s my biggest trait.” — Sox first-round pick Hagen Smith
