ESPN

CHICAGO -- For the second consecutive game, Chicago Cubs shortstop Starlin Castro is batting fifth against the San Diego Padres in their series finale at Wrigley Field on Thursday.

For almost all of the first 27 games this season Castro has batted second for manager Dale Sveum until Wednesday. Sveum said he needed to be "creative" the last couple of days with his lineup and wants to take advantage of Cody Ransom's hot bat against left-handing pitching, so Ransom is batting second against southpaw Eric Stults while Castro is batting fifth. For now it's just a short-term thing for the Cubs shortstop.

"In our normal lineup he's going to hit second," Sveum said.

But the bigger question is where does Castro fit in the lineup long term?

"On our team right now he's a 2-hole hitter," Sveum said. "He's a hand/eye coordination guy that's going to put the ball in play that doesn't walk much so he's maybe more apt to hit in the bottom of the order because he will hit into some double plays and things like that, but with the team we have right now, he's our second hitter."

That makes it sound like when the Cubs have some better hitters in the lineup Castro will indeed move down. But in the same press gathering Sveum seemed to contradict himself.

"I see him as a 2-hole hitter on prolific offensive teams," he said. "When everything is set correctly he's a 2-hole hitter."

Maybe the bottom line is it's yet to be determined where he should hit and maybe it also depends on what you expect out of your No. 2 hitter. ESPN.com's Keith Law makes the case that a team's best hitter should be batting second which might mean that's Castro's place. But that's a more modern way of thinking. Plus, is Castro the Cubs' best hitter? Can a team's best hitter get on base just 30 percent of the time and have three walks in 27 games as Castro has?

According to ESPN Stats and Information, Castro ranks 29th out of 32 teams in walk percentage for No. 2 hitters in baseball. He also swings outside the strike zone 34 percent of the time which is third-most among No. 2 hitters. Overall, he swings at pitches 51 percent of the time and that ranks fourth.

He's a free swinger. We knew that without the stats. That screams of batting in a spot where more runners can be on base.

"You hit more with men in scoring position," Castro said of hitting fifth. "Position for more RBI out there."

But it's not just to get more RBIs, it's to see better pitches. To take full advantage of Castro's style allowing him to potentially hit with runners on base more often seems like the way to go. Hitting with runners on base inherently means seeing better pitches as a pitcher simply can't nibble as much. Castro swings at those "nibbling" pitches.

So if you do believe in the more traditional sense of a No. 2 hitter then Castro doesn't belong anywhere near there. And if you buy into the best hitter on the team should be hitting No. 2 then Castro simply needs to become the best hitter. Maybe on this Cubs team he is, but if he doesn't take more walks then he won't be.

Sveum says with his temporary switch of Castro to the 5-hole he's not "assessing" anything long-term. Maybe he should.

CHICAGO -- It took 106 major league starts for Scott Feldman to throw his first complete game.

The Chicago Cubs' veteran pitcher not only pitched the entire game, he set a career high with 12 strikeouts in a 6-2 victory over the San Diego Padres on Wednesday night at Wrigley Field.

Feldman, 30, got an assist from manager Dale Sveum after completing the eighth inning.

"Originally, the plan was for me to go eight," Feldman said. "I went back and asked if I could get a crack at a CG [complete game]. I am just glad he didn't take me out after I gave up that home run to [Chase] Headley."

Feldman, who started the season slowly, was in command from the beginning and mostly dominant against San Diego. At one point, he retired 18 straight batters and struck out the side in both the third and fourth innings. Sveum said he felt Feldman's cut fastball was the difference in the pitcher's performance.

"From what I am seeing, there is more arm speed and more velocity on the cutter," Sveum said. "That will always make things a little more crisp. When you add a couple more [miles per hour] things change a little bit. Location and not walking guys is always the formula for pitching [well]. He had a game plan to pitch those lefties in with the cutter and did it all night long."

Feldman retired 11 out of 12 Padres hitters when using the cutter as his final pitch of an at-bat.

After consulting with pitching coach Chris Bosio, Sveum told Feldman to go back out and attempt the complete game.

"He more or less said that he had never pitched a complete game before," Sveum said. "At 100 pitches, I was letting him go hitter to hitter."

Feldman, who threw 114 pitches Wednesday, has given up two or fewer earned runs in each of his past four starts.

The Cubs, using a lineup of seven batters who could bat left-handed, helped build an early five-run cushion for Feldman by chasing former Cubs pitcher Andrew Cashner after four innings. Feldman helped knock his opponent out of the game with an RBI double in the second inning. Feldman had only one double and one RBI in his career having played in the American League throughout his career before signing with the Cubs in November. He hit the ball hard three times.

"I pretty much closed my eyes and swung," Feldman said. "That was pretty much my motto. Luckily, tonight I put a couple good swings on. I still wish I had a couple more hits."

CHICAGO -- The Chicago Cubs surged ahead early in a 6-2 victory over the San Diego Padres in the third of a four-game set at Wrigley Field on Wednesday.

How it happened: Former Cub and No. 1 draft pick Andrew Cashner started for the first time against Chicago. Cashner was traded to San Diego for first baseman Anthony Rizzo in 2011. Manager Dale Sveum started seven left-handed hitters in his lineup. Starlin Castro started the scoring with an RBI single that plated Julio Borbon in the first inning. Cubs starting pitcher Scott Feldman doubled in the second run, scoring Darwin Barney in the second inning. Cashner's pitch count (76 through three innings) skyrocketed in the third, thanks in large part to a two-run double by catcher Dioner Navarro. Cashner’s 89th pitch was an RBI groundout off the bat of Luis Valbuena. Nate Schierholtz doubled home the sixth run in the seventh inning. San Diego second baseman Jedd Gyorko hits his first major league home run to break up Feldman's shutout in the eighth. Chase Headley homered with one out in the ninth.

What it means: The Cubs have won six of their past nine games. With a win on Thursday, they can wrap up their second straight series victory. Feldman pitched his first career complete game as he records his second consecutive win while striking out 12. That matches his career high. After a rough beginning to the season, the veteran pitcher has been outstanding as of late.

Outside the box: Cubs president of baseball operations Theo Epstein said infielder Ian Stewart is not ready to return to the major leagues; he's rehabbing a leg injury in the minors. Teams can send a player out for only 20 days on a rehab assignment. “You can always get recertified if you are not healthy yet," Epstein said. "He has had some bumps and bruises along the way. We will just monitor it daily and see how he is doing.” … Another rehab began for the Cubs as RHP Matt Garza threw 42 pitches in 2⅔ innings at Double-A on Wednesday. Garza is rehabbing from a strained side muscle he injured on Feb. 17. Sveum said Garza will return to the team in between minor league starts. He also stated his pitcher would be re-evaluated after the third outing.

Up next: Chicago LHP Travis Wood (2-1, 2.25 ERA) faces Padres LHP Eric Stults (2-2, 5.67 ERA) in Thursday's series finale.

CHICAGO -- Chicago Cubs manager Dale Sveum has moved third baseman Luis Valbuena up in the order as he will bat third against the San Diego Padres on Wednesday while left fielder Alfonso Soriano is being given the day off.

"When Sori isn't in the lineup you have to have some creativity," Sveum said before the game. "Valbuena is swinging great so he's a logical choice to get into that spot. You have to be creative when you get your normal lineup out of there."

Valbuena hit his fifth home run of the season on Tuesday, surpassing his total from all of last season. The lineup also features Starlin Castro batting fifth for the first time this season.

Here's the entire lineup that will face former Cub Andrew Cashner:

1. David DeJesus, CF
2. Julio Borbon, LF
3. Valbuena, 3B
4. Anthony Rizzo, 1B
5. Castro, SS
6. Nate Schierholtz, RF
7. Dioner Navarro, C
8. Darwin Barney, 2B
9. Scott Feldman, P

CHICAGO -- April was arguably as strange a month as the Chicago Cubs will have. Their first 25 games were decided by four runs or less, making it the second-longest such streak to start a season in baseball history. They almost made it a full month of close games if not for Edwin Jackson's performance in a 13-7 loss on Tuesday night. He had the rare bad start in a month of good ones by Cubs hurlers.

The outcome on Tuesday was much more predictable than the first 25 where games were won and lost in the strangest of fashions. Errors, home runs, bullpen meltdowns and wild pitches were the norm. And a look inside the numbers truly tells how weird the first month of the season was for the 10-16 Cubs.

They hit 35 home runs in the first month, or 26 more than they did last April. Combined with lowering their ERA from 4.21 to 3.78 those numbers should equate to more than just a slight increase in their winning percentage from .348 to .385. But it didn't. Why not?

(Read full post)

CHICAGO -- Even if the Chicago Cubs have a spot on their roster for rehabbing third baseman Ian Stewart he may not be ready to return to the major leagues just yet.

“Right this second, I don’t think I’m ready,” Stewart told the Des Moines Register after going 0-4 on Tuesday for Triple-A Iowa. “That’s just me being honest and knowing myself as a player.”

Stewart has been out since early in spring training with a quad injury. He’s been rehabbing in Iowa Since mid-April, but per the collective bargaining agreement position players only have 20 days of rehab time before they have to be recalled -- although the Cubs could option him right back to the minors. Friday will be Stewart’s 20th day there.

(Read full post)

CHICAGO -- Sometimes the value of a player is never appreciated more than when he's not in the lineup. That theory most definitely applies to Chicago Cubs second baseman Darwin Barney. The lone Gold Glove winner on the team missed the first 12 games of the season with an injury and lo and behold the Cubs defense suffered.

Coincidence or not, his return has coincided with an uptick in play in the field for the Cubs. It helped them win Monday night, 5-3, over the San Diego Padres.

(Read full post)

CHICAGO -– For Chicago Cubs pitcher Kevin Gregg, the ninth inning isn’t like any other inning. Many try to treat it that way, but sometimes accepting it for what it is – three outs filled with tons of pressure –- is the way to go.

“I’m trying to act like it’s the ninth inning and we’re trying to win,” Gregg stated bluntly before earning his fourth save in as many tries on Monday in a 5-3 Cubs win over the San Diego Padres.

And it’s not just finishing off games, it’s how he’s doing it: three 1-2-3 innings over the last four days. The tornado that was the Cubs bullpen as recently as a week ago has dissipated. Still, Cubs manager Dale Sveum doesn’t want to put a label on Gregg or anyone else. He won’t name a closer.

(Read full post)

CHICAGO -- Chicago Cubs manager Dale Sveum downplayed star prospect Jorge Soler's latest incident, which put him back in the headlines at Class-A Daytona. Soler didn’t hustle on two hit balls in a game on Saturday against Lakeland and was subsequently benched for Sunday’s contest.

“Not everybody is going to run every single ball out at 100 percent,” Sveum said before the Cubs took on the San Diego Padres Monday night. “That’s just part of the game but you get a grip on it and hold people accountable and move on.”

Soler signed a nine-year, $30-million contract last season and was noticeable in spring training for his power and patience at the plate. But this is his second time making negative headlines at Daytona in just the first month of the season. He ran towards an opposing dugout with a bat in his hand during a game earlier this month but was stopped by teammates before causing any damage to anyone or anything. He was suspended five games for the incident.

“We have 125 minor league players, I’m sure he’s not the only player to not run a ball out,” Sveum said. “These things get escalated because of who he is and what just happened a few weeks ago too.

“You say something, get a grip on it and then you don’t see it again. You let people know they’re held accountable for everything, and everybody is the same no matter how much money you make or what.”

(Read full post)

CHICAGO -- As the Chicago Cubs return home for the second half of their 20 games in 20 days stretch of baseball their opposition will slowly rise back-up the competitive ladder.

First the San Diego Padres come to town for a four-game series beginning Monday and sport the identical record (9-15) as the Cubs, although they've won four in a row. The Cincinnati Reds are here this weekend followed by a make-up game with the Texas Rangers. Finally the homestand concludes with a two-game set against the St. Louis Cardinals on May 7-8.

Before we look forward, let's take a look back at five things we learned during the first 10 games of this stretch, all coming on the just completed road trip:

(Read full post)

He’s back. Or at least he might be.

Friday might be the night that Chicago Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo looks back on with plenty of meaning. With “75-100” friends and family looking on, Rizzo might have found his swing in Miami. He said as much after belting two two-run home runs to help defeat the Miami Marlins 4-2.

“It was a good day, especially looking at the video after the game,” Rizzo told reporters. “The swing is where I want it to be. Now it’s just staying consistent with it.”

(Read full post)

CINCINNATI -- It’s starting to get ridiculous for the Chicago Cubs' starting staff.

Day after day, night after night, they take the mound and throw quality inning after quality inning ... and come away with very little to show for it.

It was Jeff Samardzija’s turn to see a solid effort wasted; this time it wasn’t the bullpen, but the offense that came up short on Wednesday in the Cubs' 1-0 loss to the Cincinnati Reds.

“It was an unbelievably pitched game. We’re just having trouble hitting the outfield grass when we get people on base,” manager Dale Sveum said afterward.

(Read full post)

CINCINNATI -- To really appreciate Chicago Cubs pitcher Carlos Villanueva's performance Tuesday you have to go inside the numbers.

Villanueva threw 99 pitches, two as slow as 60 mph and at least one as fast as 90 while allowing three hits in 8 1/3 innings of the Cubs' 4-2 victory in 10 innings.

It's the second game this year he's dipped as low as 60 mph on a pitch and surprisingly the first time he's reached 90 mph.

"That's on purpose," Villanueva said. "Sometimes you have to change the eye level."

(Read full post)

CINCINNATI -- Despite Kevin Gregg's first save as a Chicago Cub in Tuesday night's 4-2 win over the Cincinnati Reds, manager Dale Sveum isn't changing his stance on the end of games: closer by match-up is still his strategy.

“One thing that helps is putting people in matchups or situations where they can succeed in a better fashion,” Sveum said Wednesday morning.

That's the reason he had Carlos Marmol enter the game in the ninth inning to face Joey Votto with the Cubs leading 2-1. Votto was 1-15 with nine strikeouts against Marmol. Votto singled home the tying run but the Cubs won the game in ten innings.

Sveum has stated previously when Kyuji Fujikawa returns from the disabled list he would resume his closing duties.

Wednesday's Game

Rain fell throughout the morning on Wednesday potentially delaying the rubber game matinee between the Cubs and Reds. Alfonso Soriano will get his first day off after stealing two bases and scoring a run on Tuesday night while Julio Borbon gets his first start as a Cub. Here's the lineup:

Davis DeJesus, CF
Julio Borbon, LF
Starlin Castro, SS
Anthony Rizzo, 1b
Nate Schierholtz, RF
Dioner Navarro, C
Luis Valbuena, 2b
Cody Ransom, 3b
Jeff Samardzija, P

Sixteen of the first 19 games played by the Cubs have been decided by three runs or less for the first time since 1991. All nineteen (6-13) have been decided by four runs or less.

CINCINNATI -- Chicago Cubs general manager Jed Hoyer expressed support for manager Dale Sveum on Tuesday despite Chicago's losing 12 of its past 15 to fall six games behind the first-place Cincinnati Reds.

Read the entire story.