Last update images today Volvo V50 T5 Awd
NYCFC Build Big First-half Lead, Defeat Orlando City
MILWAUKEE -- Chicago Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer said ownership is "clearly frustrated" with the way the team has played this season and if its position in the standings doesn't improve, he said he'll have to think about subtracting from the roster instead of adding to it ahead of the July 30 trade deadline.
"It has undoubtedly dragged on far longer than we expected or hoped," Hoyer said of a two-month slump that has seen the Cubs drop to 38-45 -- the latest loss Friday night to the Brewers, 4-2. "We need to play a lot better. We dug ourselves a hole, and we have to dig out of that hole.
"It's important we do that in this next 33 days or whatever we have until the deadline. You have to make hard decisions sometimes."
The Cubs are last in the NL Central, 11.5 games behind the first-place Brewers. They've lost eight games to Milwaukee in the standings over the last 32 days.
"I am very surprised," Hoyer said. "Two weeks turned into four, turned into six, turned into eight ... It just hasn't ended."
Hoyer pointed to the team's offensive woes as a catalyst for its plummet, but the bullpen has struggled just as much. Chicago ranks 23rd in bullpen ERA, as it's struggled to close out games and also has dealt with injuries. The latest to go down was middle-man Keegan Thompson, who was placed on the injured list with a rib fracture Friday. The team also designated newly acquired reliever Vinny Nittoli for assignment.
In the corresponding roster moves, the Cubs selected the contract of former Mets reliever Jorge Lopez and called up righty Ethan Roberts, who hasn't pitched in the big leagues since 2022 after undergoing Tommy John surgery.
For Lopez, it's a second chance. After he was pulled from the game against the Los Angeles Dodgers on May 29, Lopez threw his glove into the stands and then had a misunderstanding with reporters afterward in an attempt to blame himself for some of the team's issues. The Mets subsequently DFA'd him earlier this month.
"I'm never going to do it again in my life," Lopez said Friday before throwing one scoreless inning against the Brewers. "It's emotions. I've been working on my mental health for a long time. That's my priority to not show that anymore, give the best energy and body language that I can to the game."
Lopez said he wants to set an example for his 11-year-old son.
"He doesn't know much about it," Lopez said. "I have to teach him the things not to do. Need to respect the game. I'm not proud of that (what happened)."
In joining the Cubs, Lopez is reunited with bullpen coach Darren Holmes, who held the same position with the Baltimore Orioles from 2019 to '23, when Lopez pitched for the team.
Lopez and Roberts could be thrust into major roles as Chicago only has three relievers on its active roster from opening day. That turnover has contributed to its overall woes.
"Most of what we've been doing is out of necessity," Hoyer said. "We keep getting hit there."
In terms of the Cubs offense, Hoyer admitted he can't tinker with it much considering his core players are all under longer-term contracts. In other words, the trade deadline won't fix the team's run-scoring problems; it will have to come from within.
"There's not a ton of wiggle room on as far as how we can shake things up and improve things, positionally," Hoyer said. "When you look at where we've performed this year with a team that's stronger (on paper), it's lesser. Is that frustrating to me? Absolutely. If it's frustrating to me, I have to imagine it's frustrating to the fans."
But the Cubs also haven't controlled the controllables.
For example, Chicago entered Friday leading the league in one-run games and in outs made on the bases, including 15 at home plate. That's a lot of potential scoring left out on the field, which could have turned losses into wins.
It's also the third consecutive season the team has led the league in outs made at home plate, calling into question the judgment of third-base coach Willie Harris.
"We've done a ton of research," Hoyer said. "Plays at the plate are really hard. It behooves you to be aggressive in those situations. You can take that a little too far. He is aggressive, and off the scorecard we work off of, he does a good job."
The Cubs entered Friday ranked second in the league in going from first to third base on a single, so some of that aggressiveness has paid off. Yet overall the team hasn't played as well as last season, when it won 83 games while just missing out on the postseason.
"Our win-total projections were higher this year than last year," Hoyer said.
All of it adds up to a critical month for the team even though it doesn't have a lot of pending free agents. Still, Hoyer will ultimately pivot to trading away players instead of adding if the standings dictate it.
"I don't think it's time for that full conversation, but it's just a reality that we have to play better in July," he said. "We backed ourselves into a corner."
![VOLVO V50 702 17](https://s1.cdn.autoevolution.com/images/gallery/VOLVO-V50-702_17.jpeg)
![1857937](https://kvdbil-object-images.imgix.net/7063847/1857937.jpg)
![7741](https://c.encycarpedia.com/ci/7741.jpg)
![1857936](https://kvdbil-object-images.imgix.net/7063847/1857936.jpg)
![Maxresdefault](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/zNJzbT54Bu4/maxresdefault.jpg)
![2010 Volvo V50 T5 R 6 Speed Wagon Awd 15961360838eb1a5f54794a9cfullsizeoutput 11798](https://bringatrailer.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/2010_volvo_v50_t5_r_6_speed_wagon_awd_15961360838eb1a5f54794a9cfullsizeoutput_11798.jpeg)
![Volvo V50 T5 Awd 06](https://betterparts.org/images/volvo-v50-t5-awd-06.jpg)
![DSC 9802](https://img-ik.cars.co.za/images/2016/9/VolvoV40T5CrossCountryAWD/tr:n-news_1200x/DSC_9802.jpg)
![405428 3846609](https://www1.garaget.org/archive/15/14173/405428/405428-3846609.jpg)
![27e11695727ca42dd8bf4c5fbe59fdc2](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/27/e1/16/27e11695727ca42dd8bf4c5fbe59fdc2.jpg)
![UyWKz30L1qguCNM5i40ut5d2dKeF TlN4Rcv8pX TGY ?auto=webp&s=17e90b4f7c841118c3e465140c1acb8cbdc431f0](https://external-preview.redd.it/uyWKz30L1qguCNM5i40ut5d2dKeF_TlN4Rcv8pX-TGY.jpg?auto=webp&s=17e90b4f7c841118c3e465140c1acb8cbdc431f0)
![Maxresdefault](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/GeMx2Vib_Lg/maxresdefault.jpg)
![740766f2231b03b187d1dc34663de1d55bb7999e 2000](https://www.carspecs.us/photos/740766f2231b03b187d1dc34663de1d55bb7999e-2000.jpg)
![Volvo V50 T5 Awd 13](https://betterparts.org/images/volvo-v50-t5-awd-13.jpg)
![8bf5893fffde85cee93daa79b248bc86e638cedf 2000](https://www.carspecs.us/photos/8bf5893fffde85cee93daa79b248bc86e638cedf-2000.jpg)
![0a5ce639d79d350d458d9986325d9c3a](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/0a/5c/e6/0a5ce639d79d350d458d9986325d9c3a.jpg)
![16255253300 ?itok=pgOUCwTf](https://www.autocar.co.uk/sites/autocar.co.uk/files/styles/gallery_slide/public/16255253300.jpg?itok=pgOUCwTf)
![848943403abd6a53a39d60d48153d2f84a847abb 2000](https://www.carspecs.us/photos/848943403abd6a53a39d60d48153d2f84a847abb-2000.jpg)
![2017 Volvo V40 T5 Inscription 27 1200x801](https://s1.paultan.org/image/2017/06/2017-Volvo-V40-T5-Inscription-27-1200x801.jpg)
![Volvo V40 T5 Inscription 2016 R2](https://coches.com/fotos_historicas/volvo/V40-T5-Inscription-2016/volvo_v40-t5-inscription-2016_r2.jpg)
![Ad716cde82c542e59fc90c11a907c185 1200](https://images.wapcar.my/file1/ad716cde82c542e59fc90c11a907c185_1200.jpg)
![1745964](https://kvdbil-object-images.imgix.net/7025845/1745964.jpg)
![1745965](https://kvdbil-object-images.imgix.net/7025845/1745965.jpg)
![Eng Pm FRONT SPLITTER V 1 VOLVO V50F R DESIGN 8373 2](https://maxtondesign.com/eng_pm_FRONT-SPLITTER-v-1-VOLVO-V50F-R-DESIGN-8373_2.jpg)
![1745963](https://kvdbil-object-images.imgix.net/7025845/1745963.jpg)
![2012 Volvo V50 Wagon Image 09 1024](https://www.conceptcarz.com/images/Volvo/2012-Volvo-V50-Wagon-Image-09-1024.jpg)