The Cubs Lead the League in This Important Stat

There has been a Twitter hashtag that has been going around Chicago Cubs circles since the beginning of the year. #WeAreGood

The hashtag was started by Cubs catcher Miguel Montero, which Jake Arrieta happily explains here. (He explains the hashtag at the 8:19 mark)

Hashtags and social media fads aside, the Cubs are good. They have the majors fourth best record (66-48), have been streaking of late (eight wins in a row, and won 14 of 15 games), they also are tops in the league in these areas:

Most one run wins (27)
Best road record (32-24)

These are both traits of a good team, in fact good teams typically aim to play .500 baseball on the road which further illustrates my point. They are good.

Winning one run games points to both, a good bullpen, but also very good managing. A manager’s decisions, if not already magnified, are even more so in a one run game. If they pull a pitcher too early it could cost them, and if they keep them in too long it could as well.

There isn’t room for error in these tight games, and those teams at the top of the league in one run wins are usually at the top of the MLB standings.

As I touched on in this earlier article, Joe Maddon has been pulling all of the right buttons this season, and even more so during the current hot streak. Whether he pulls Jason Hammel after just 65 pitches or benches Starlin Castro, his decisions have led to winning baseball on the Northside.

I don’t pretend to be able to predict the future, but talented teams with great managers tend to fair very well in sports. The way this Cubs team is trending, a championship very well could be in their future.

3 thoughts on “The Cubs Lead the League in This Important Stat

  1. What gets me, compared to Cubs teams of the past, is how well they do after there’s TWO outs. Past teams seemed to lay down once there were two outs, but not this one. Of course, the hitters are much more disciplined than before, also.

    1. I think it is the attitude. This team believes it can win, and I think that goes a long way when both hitters or pitchers are facing clutch situations.

      1. It used to be so frustrating when a hitter like Ryan Theriot would get up to the plate with the game on the line, runners on base and two outs and he would immediately think that he was a home run hitter or that he would have to hit a home run to win the game……..what we needed were runs and he’s trying to get them all at once.

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