McGraw: Do Cubs need to correct some offseason mistakes?
The popular take-away from the Cubs' trip to London was that Trey Mancini should never play first base again.
Mancini's blunder in the second inning of Sunday's 7-5 loss was costly and allowed 3 unearned runs to score, but no need to get carried away. This was one game out of 162 and the Cubs have still gone 11-3 since June 9. Shake it off and move on.
But as the Cubs close in on .500 and hope to stay in the playoff race, there are questions about whether some of the team's offseason moves need to be corrected.
Mancini is one example. The hope was, he'd find the power stroke that led to 35 home runs with Baltimore in 2019. But in limited at-bats, he's hit just 4 home runs. Mancini hit 8 homers in fewer plate appearances last year with the Astros.
Cody Bellinger, who cooled off after a hot start, has become the regular first baseman. His numbers, a .254 average, 7 home runs and 22 RBI, aren't much better than what Jason Heyward has done with the Dodgers (. 234, 8, 17). The Cubs traded Zach McKinstry, who has done better in Detroit than Miles Mastrobuoni has in Chicago.
Manager David Ross was mostly a part-time player during his career, so he's usually cognizant about getting his bench guys some playing time to try to keep them sharp. But it didn't work with Mancini or Eric Hosmer, who was released on May 26.
The difference there is Hosmer was on a one-year minimum deal because he's still getting paid by the Padres. The Cubs signed Mancini to a two-year, $14 million deal, so he's probably sticking around.
Giving Nick Madrigal regular at-bats has had better results. He's hitting .290 since returning from Iowa, but the Cubs also need to find a spot to play Christopher Morel full-time and third base is a logical solution.
The Cubs could consider giving Matt Mervis another shot at first base, but there is one other option. Jared Young, who made his major league debut last season, is having a nice year at Iowa, hitting .326 with 13 home runs and 45 RBI.
The other major concern is the bullpen, especially snow that Brandon Hughes (left knee surgery) and Codi Heuer (fractured right elbow) are both done for the year.
The two veteran offseason additions didn't work out as planned, though Michael Fulmer has made a nice turnaround. His ERA in June is just 0.73 in 11 games. Brad Boxberger has been out since May 15 with a right forearm strain and hasn't started pitching in games anywhere.
So if the Cubs had a playoff contention wish list for the trade deadline, it would be an experienced bullpen arm and some sort of power bat that might help at DH. A reliever is likely much easier to find, and it doesn't necessarily need to be a closer, since Adbert Alzolay has been pretty good in that role.
The Cubs' farm system has gotten deeper in the past couple of years, but is it deep enough to bring back enough talent to keep the Cubs in contention? The analytics staff is likely working hard on that question.
PCA hits top 10:
MLB Pipeline released a new top 100 prospects list and one Cub moved closer to the top. Center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong ranked No. 10, but an argument could be made his really No. 7 since three players above him — Reds SS Elly De LaCruz, Marlins P Eury Perez and Dodgers P Bobby Miller — may never play in the minors again, unless it's a rehab assignment.
Leading up to 2016, the Cubs had three top 10 prospects — Kris Bryant, Javy Baez and Addison Russell. Albert Almora Jr. was top 20.
Crow-Armstrong is hitting .280 with 9 home runs and 45 RBI at Double A Tennessee. Crow-Armstrong and infielder B.J. Murray were selected to play in the Futures Game during the all-star break.
The Smokies tweeted a photo of Crow-Armstrong on Monday with the message, “Big news announcement coming tomorrow.” That could mean the California native is moving up to Triple A Iowa.
Two other Cubs prospects made the Top 100 list. RHP Cade Horton, last year's first-round draft pick, checked in at No. 50. He's posted a 3.77 ERA at South Bend, with 46 strikeouts and just 8 walks.
RHP Ben Brown is No. 77. He's cooled off a bit after a hot start, with a 4.95 ERA at Iowa, and 65 strikeouts in 43 innings.
Outfielder Kevin Alcantara dropped off the Top 100 list. The 6-foot-6 Dominican Republic native can produce some nice highlights, but is hitting just .254 with 6 home runs at South Bend.
Twitter: @McGrawDHSports