With a talented, young nucleus of players fresh off a World Series championship, nobody could have predicted the Chicago Cubs would sit at .500 on June 9. Here we are, though.
The roller coaster season continued Friday with a 5-3 loss to the Colorado Rockies, sending everyone and their mother into a treacherous hot take storm.
On SportsTalk Live, we called in the experts to analyze the North Siders' problems:
CSN's David Kaplan
"Number one, I would send (Ian) Happ down. No doubt. And I would tell Albert Almora, 'You're starting in center field. You're playing every day. Here's your opportunity, go get 'em, kid.' Ian Happ's done some nice things, but he's not ready to be an everyday player here. I'd send him down 100 percent. In addition, if Addison Russell is going to be here and be on this roster, he's gotta play, or you gotta put him on a reserve list or send him to the minors or whatever it is. But if he's going to be in uniform and be available, then he's gotta play because he's a talented player."
670 The Score's Anthony Herron
"With Russell, even before these personal issues came up, he may have been fine in the infield, but at the plate he's been worse than Heyward looked to me last season. He's just not the same guy who ended up making the All-Star game."
MLB
ESPN's Nick Friedell
"I'm sending Happ back down, get him some more at-bats down in Iowa. And from what I've seen from (Kyle) Schwarber -- I know there are a lot of defenders out there that say, 'Oh no, no, no, he can get it together here' -- I'd send him down to Iowa for a week or two and let him get his mind right because he just looks awful."
Watch the video above to see the spirited discussion.