Although the Cubs' pitching staff is a lot deeper than it was before the trade deadline, the Cubs had hoped Edward Cabrera's return would provide a boost. Cabrera has been shelved since June with a left hamstring strain; before that, he missed two weeks at the end of May with a right middle finger blister.
In the starts Cabrera has made for the Cubs this season, he's underwhelmed. A 5.04 ERA and a dropoff in his strikeout rate was not what the Cubs traded for last winter, when they sent top outfield prospect Owen Caissie, along with two other minor leaguers, to the Marlins.
Cabrera is capable of being the kind of starting pitcher who can round out a strong playoff rotation, but with less than 40 regular season games remaining, he needs to show that he's the guy the Cubs thought they were getting.
"Frankly, we're at go time here," manager Craig Counsell said. "So I think you got to go. We're at a stage where with the people around the roster that it's go time. And I think Edward [Cabrera] understands that."
Facing the Cardinals on Sunday, Cabrera didn't do much to inspire confidence. It took until just the third batter of the game for St. Louis to claim the lead. Cabrera gave up a leadoff double to JJ Wetherholt, and two batters later Alec Burleson launched a 421-foot rocket into the right field bleachers.
#right
In the starts Cabrera has made for the Cubs this season, he's underwhelmed. A 5.04 ERA and a dropoff in his strikeout rate was not what the Cubs traded for last winter, when they sent top outfield prospect Owen Caissie, along with two other minor leaguers, to the Marlins.
Cabrera is capable of being the kind of starting pitcher who can round out a strong playoff rotation, but with less than 40 regular season games remaining, he needs to show that he's the guy the Cubs thought they were getting.
"Frankly, we're at go time here," manager Craig Counsell said. "So I think you got to go. We're at a stage where with the people around the roster that it's go time. And I think Edward [Cabrera] understands that."
Facing the Cardinals on Sunday, Cabrera didn't do much to inspire confidence. It took until just the third batter of the game for St. Louis to claim the lead. Cabrera gave up a leadoff double to JJ Wetherholt, and two batters later Alec Burleson launched a 421-foot rocket into the right field bleachers.
#right
2 months ago
