POLLING PLACE
What the heck is wrong with the Cubs? Nothing, it seems. At the plate, they’re displaying the kind of discipline that former manager Joe Maddon lamented not seeing enough of over his last couple of seasons. In the field, they’re making all the plays. On the scoreboard, they’re partying — plenty of runs scored, not many given up — like it’s 2016.
So, then, what’s most right about the Cubs — owners of the best record in the big leagues? That was our first question in this week’s “Polling Place,” your weekly home for Sun-Times sports polls on Twitter.
“Playing the two easiest divisions in baseball, the NL Central and AL Central?” @peterbrownysr offered.
That doesn’t seem like giving nearly enough credit where it’s due. The Cubs are getting meaningful contributions from up and down their roster. Following manager David Ross’ lead, they’re having a blast in the dugout during games — “basically playing high school summer baseball right now,” veteran Anthony Rizzo said. And we ought not overlook their as-yet-unblemished record when it comes to players’ coronavirus test results.
But none of those is what voters chose — by a wide margin — as the biggest key to it all. And that’s starting pitching. How good has it been? Put it this way: 11 times in the Cubs’ first 16 games, the starter allowed one or zero runs. That’s a recipe for a first-place cakewalk.
“Gotta find my Cubs T-shirts,” @rynelancer commented. “Wait, every time I do that, they go to [expletive].”
OK, so maybe it’s still too early in the season to be talking cakewalks.
On to the polls: