It's WAY too early to be gnashing teeth over a guy like Bryant hitting .230 or whatever. What was Goldschmidt hitting in May last year and where did he end up? Same thing EVERY year barring injury...some established guys start hot, some guys start cold and, then, the vast majority end up putting up numbers within the range of their career norms.
As for Joe, I just don't get the criticism his way, particularly looking at the Cubs' record over the past 4 years. Hindsight is 20 Freaking 20...unfortunately, MLB managers don't get to work with the benefit of hindsight (the way we do). And a KEY aspect of a manager's job is handling human beings...keeping YOUNG guys engaged and motivated, out of trouble that tempts some of them EVERY day, and building a TEAM mentality among guys who were always THE MAN at every level all the way up. NOT an easy job!
Finally, I'll vent on the Theo criticism, which seems weird to me...what other front-office executive could have orchestrated a TOTAL metamorphosis of the most futile franchise in sports history? (from a rather bare cupboard to a World Championship and the best overall record in baseball over the past 4 years)
It was a rather impossible assignment, but Theo pulled it off! I'll be forever grateful for his landing with the Cubs and will continue to believe there are intelligent, thoughtful reasons for the moves he makes...we only get a percentage (maybe a small percentage) of the information he gathers from many sources...but our theories are theories, his RECORD shows that he gets RESULTS!
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