The Cubs lost their first series of the year to the Colorado Rockies.
In the rubber game, Jon Lester pitched well enough to win but the staff gave up two home runs to Nolan Arenado to seal the defeat.
In the game, Lester made the worst throw to first base in major league history: fielding a bunt on the first base side, he grounded to Anthony Rizzo who had to stretch in foul territory to scoop it up.
And that was emblematic of the series issues: defense.
In one game, the Cubs committed four errors (in reality it was more like six.) In Lester's game, Trevor Story took the longest lead off first base I have ever seen - - - his entire body was beyond the grass cut out. Still, Lester did not throw to first or even step off the mound. It was an easy stolen base.
Meanwhile, Colorado has a stellar Gold Glove infield of Arenado at third, Story at short and DJ LeMathieu at second. They all were solid to great in the field during the series. Even outfielder Carlos Gonzalez tried to deke out runners from advancing when he was catching fly balls.
The bane of the Cubs this season could be team defense. This may be more true when Maddon plays players out of position such as Bryant in the outfield. The old saying is "pitching and defense wins games," and when the Cubs offense snoozed on Sunday, it was hard to put any pressure on the Rox defense.
The Cubs Total Zone Total Runs Above Average for team fielding is already +13 in just 12 games. One could argue that the Cubs defense is giving their opponent a full run per game because of their defensive weaknesses.
