The Cubs still state that the team is a year or two ahead of schedule. That could mean that the team has promoted prospects quicker than expected, or, that the prospects major league performance has exceeded expectations.
In any event, the Cubs are dangling around the second wild card. That means playoffs. That means fan excitement (even though Cubs attendance has not been sell outs since the bleachers were completed; there has been a consistent 4-5k missing gate).
One of Joe Maddon's pet projects was to bat Addison Russell 9th. Maddon said it was done to protect Russell from batting 8th ahead of the pitcher. In theory, Russell will get better pitches to hit batting 9th with the lead off hitter (Fowler) behind him.
But the theory is not panning out. In his first 250 ABs, Russell is hitting only .228, 5 HR, 22 RBI, .296 OBP and 1.2 WAR (of which 1.1 WAR is for defense).
This becomes a problem if the Cubs really want to compete this year. Russell has not adapted well to major league pitching. One can debate whether sending him down to AAA will help his swing, mechanics or confidence. There is no one pushing him out of the lineup since both Tommy LaStella and Javy Baez have been hurt. The Cubs are stuck with Russell at second with no better offensive player on the horizon.
This does become a domino problem. Fowler leads the league in called third strike outs. The team is trending negative with more strikeouts (middle of the order guys, Soler, Bryant and Castro). The only batter that gives a hitter order protection is Rizzo, who has been flipping with Bryant between second and third in the lineup.
As most people focus on adding pitching for a playoff run, the Cubs probably should look at second base for the second half of this year. This is not to say Russell will pan out and have a good career. It may be that Russell's development (and struggles) take precedent over the Cubs getting into this year's playoffs (something fans don't want to hear).
