Posted by Matthew Whipps on Tuesday, June 23, 2009 at 12:36 am

Just like every year, the Chicago Cubs have had very high expectations from both the organization and its fans. They went out and made the moves they thought would be the deciding factors in the NL Central.

This has not been the case.

The fact of the matter is the Cubs have underachieved greatly here in 2009 in a division that is begging for someone to take command. As it stands on the morning of June 23, the Cubs are currently sitting alone in third place with a mediocre 34-32 record, a mere 2.5 games out of first place. The playoffs are hardly out of reach but at this point, it should hardly be their main concern.

Right now what the Cubs have to do is figure out how to fix some of the many, many things that are broken. If you watch the Cubs closely (I admit I am a fan) or even take a look at their roster closely, it’s no wonder why they are struggling. It’s because of this that some comments I have heard recently from commentators on sports networks even more confusing.

On numerous occasions over the past month I have heard baseball analysts and commentators make comments regarding their confusion as to why the Cubs have been struggling so much this season. Really? It’s that confusing to you? They can’t score runs. It’s that simple. But, even though you are the so called “experts,” I can take time out of my schedule to help explain it to you (after all some of these people are the same ones who find it necessary to rip on bloggers or Internet writers).

So to make things easy on everyone, here is a current list of exactly why the Cubs aren’t the team everyone thought they would be (in no particular order):

· Last year’s NL Rookie of the Year, Geovany Soto, has hit a major sophomore slump. Once expected to be a big part of this offense after hitting 23 HR, 86 RBI and .868 OPS last season, Soto has struggled all year to get in a groove. His current stats sit at .225/.343/.355 with a .130 ISO.

· Arguably their best hitter, Aramis Ramirez, has been limited to only 18 games this season due to a horrible shoulder injury from diving for a ball at third. His 27 HR, 111 RBI and .898 OPS from 2008 have been missed.

· Because of Ramirez not being in the lineup, the light hitting Mike Fontenot has taken over at third. If this was the Fontenot from last season (.909 OPS) it wouldn’t be so bad. But this version of him (.703 OPS) is not cutting it. Especially since I have turned the Cubs on and seen him batting fifth one too many times.

· Although he has started to show some life recently, the man anointed the savior for the Cubs this offseason has been anything but. When not injured or suspended, Milton Bradley has had to fight his way up to a .248/.353/.398 line after being below the Mendoza line for much of the year. As I stated last winter, the Cubs should have gone after Bobby Abreu rather than the fragile Bradley.

· The Cubs have had a scrap heap of second basemen trotted out day-in-day-out. While they have received some good defense out of them (which is most important from a second baseman), their offense has killed them. Players by the name of Blanco (.612 OPS), Miles (.500 OPS), and their best, Scales (.799 OPS) have just hurt an already weak offense.

· And the last item I will mention is that of their “leadoff” hitter Alfonso Soriano. Listen, I like Soriano as a player. I hate him as a leadoff hitter. I’ve said this so many times before, he does not have what it takes to be an effective leadoff hitter. He has an OBP of .291 this season which is even below his lowly career mark of .327. A time must come when Pinella tells Soriano that he needs to do what is best for the team and that is not at the top of the lineup.

Now those are a lot of things to be wrong with an offense that was supposed to run away with a division. Some of the issues have been out of their control, but many have been of their own doing. As a team they are hitting .246/.324/.400 this season and are one hot streak by a division rival away from falling out of the race. They need to figure out how to fill the holes and fast because there isn’t any help in their system and Ramirez won’t be back until the All-Star break. They need to act now before it’s too late.

Now why is it that these “experts” can’t see that?

If you would like to contact Baseball Daily Digest writer Matthew Whipps, creator of The Diamond Cutter, you can reach him via email at whipps15@gmail.com.