July 16--Many managers often preach patience by letting a full season play out before evaluating a player's season.
In the case of the Cubs, Joe Maddon and the front office are hoping for strong second halves from players who have struggled -- particularly their hitters.
The Cubs have managed a 47-40 record at the All-Star break on the basis of their pitching staff and knack for pulling out one-run victories. At the same time, they need stronger efforts from the back end of their rotation and improved production with runners in scoring position to assure themselves of their first playoff berth since 2008.
Here's a look at the first-half performance of their more experienced players and how they fared in the second half of 2014:
Player 2015 first half 2014 second half
Anthony Rizzo .298, 16 HR, 413 OBP .307, 12 HR, .397 OBP
Starlin Castro .247, .283 OBP .329, .371 OBP
Chris Coghlan .245, .343 OBP .288, .350 OBP
Dexter Fowler .232, .308 OBP .289, .371 OBP (Houston)
Miguel Montero .230, 32 RBI .212, 20 RBI (AZ)
David Ross .189, 4 RBI .205, 7 RBI (Boston)
Pitcher 2015 first half 2014 second half
Jake Arrieta 10-5, 2.66 ERA 5-4, 3.10 ERA
Jon Lester 4-8, 3.59 ERA 7-4, 2.18 ERA (Boston, Oak)
Jason Hammel 5-4, 2.86 ERA 2-5, 4.31 ERA (Oak)
Kyle Hendricks 4-4, 3.55 ERA 7-2, 2.18 ERA
Jason Motte 2.97 ERA, 5 saves 3.38, 9 games (STL)
Pedro Strop 1-4 ERA, 3.03 ERA 1-0, 1.23 ERA
Hector Rondon 2.17 ERA, 12 saves 0.62 ERA, 18 saves
Justin Grimm 1.19 ERA 2.60 ERA, 29 K's, 27 2/3 innings
James Russell 1.71 ERA 3.38 ERA (Cubs, ATL)
