The Cubs have tired of watching young lefty starter Rich Hill walking batters so they have sent him to AAA to work on his control. He still has good stuff but he seems to have lost some of the swagger he had last season. Hill has started 5 games this season for the Cubs and he is 1-0 with a 4.12 ERA and a 1.58 WHIP. Hill has only allowed 13 hits in 19.2 innings this season but he walked an amazing 18 hitters and that’s why he is in AAA ball right now. The Cubs will give Hill’s rotation spot to veteran righty Jon Lieber who has been great as the Cubs long man in the bullpen so far this season. Lieber has pitched in 9 games (0 starts) for the Cubs so far this season and he is 2-1 with a 1.86 ERA and a 1.19 WHIP. Lieber has allowed 21 hits in 19.1 innings this season but he has only walked 2 batters. Lieber will likely do a solid job for the Cubs.

Kerry Wood is only 4 of 7 converting saves and when he blows them they are usually in spectacular fashion! Wood has pitched in 14 games this season for the Cubs and he is 2-1 with a 4.80 ERA and a 0.87 WHIP. Wood better start getting more consistent in his performance or he will likely lose the closer’s job to Carlos Marmol. Marmol has some of the nastiest stuff in the majors and he would be a dominant closer as long as he can handle the pressure. Marmol has pitched in 15 games for the Cubs so far this season and he is 0-0 with 2 saves, a 1.42 ERA and a 0.74 WHIP. Marmol has whiffed 27 batters in only 19 innings and he has only allowed 9 hits as batters often appear hopeless against him. The Cubs should probably flip Marmol and Wood’s roles soon for the betterment of the team.