ATLANTA -- Are the Chicago Cubs getting some ugly losses out of the way or is there more to it?
Starter Jon Lester thinks the team is simply pressing because they're wanting so badly to get off to a good start. Meanwhile, common thinking among fans is that the team needs a whole new bullpen as it has blown three late-inning leads in five games, including Wednesday's 6-4 heartbreaking loss to the Atlanta Braves.
Lester left after six innings with a 4-2 lead, but by the time the game reached the ninth, the Braves led 6-4. Reliever Steve Cishek was the goat this time, walking all three batters he faced in the eighth, setting up a three-run double by Johan Camargo off lefty Randy Rosario that changed the game.
Perhaps Lester and Cubs fans are right.
"What we're doing a little bit right now is just trying to press and do too much," Lester said after the game. "Everyone is trying to come in, whether it be a hitting situation or pitching situation, and be the guy. That's hard to do over 162 games. We put such an emphasis [on] getting off to a good start, I think it's hanging over our heads a little bit."
That could mean the messaging coming into the year has simply backfired. It makes little sense to be pressing the first week of a six-month season. Of course, the Cubs' bullpen makes little sense right now as it ranks 29th in ERA and already is 0-3. The Cubs finished first in the former category in 2018. Before the game, Cubs president Theo Epstein was reminded about the fans' concerns -- concerns that were voiced well before the season started.
"The average fan of every major league team is worried about the bullpen," Epstein responded. "We've had one of the best bullpens in baseball the last four years and there's probably been a grand total of three days that people haven't been worried about the bullpen. That's just the way it works."
Epstein doesn't need to remind everyone that it's way too early to assess anything, and if the Cubs were blowing a few games in the middle of the season, it definitely would be less noticeable. But that would come after the team and bullpen had established a track record -- presumably a good one if the Cubs were near the top of the standings. But when the bullpen comes out of the gate blowing leads -- only righty Brandon Kintzler has been immune to struggling -- then it leads to one question.
Is this who they are?
Epstein doesn't think so.
"You don't usually notice a pen when they're getting outs on a consistent basis," he said. "You notice them when they're giving it up. And giving it up is a natural part of the game. It's just disproportionately noticeable when it happens early."
So wait-and-see is about the only solution right now. When water finds its level, will the bullpen be floating on top or drowning in its own performance? Time will tell. But that doesn't explain the Cubs pressing -- as evidenced by a six-error performance in Monday's loss to the Braves.
"Guys want to do well and make the really good play or make that perfect pitch," Lester said. "Right now, we're kind of backing ourselves into the corner as opposed to getting the opposing team into the corner."
And any time a team is pressing, the answer is to relax, especially in baseball, where there are so many games to be played.
"You can say it until you are blue in the face, but when you're out there and competing, you always want to do well, for your team and individually," Lester said. "It's easy to say. It's hard to do."
Epstein and manager Joe Maddon also have to be concerned about the rest of the National League. There are no easy teams, save for the Marlins, but even they could present a challenge as everyone will assume they can pad their win total against Miami. That's why giving away games, as the Cubs have done, is such a killer -- even in the first week of the season.
"We're beating ourselves in the end," Maddon said. "We're used to winning those kinds of games."
But the achievements of a previous season can only be used to predict the future for so long. Eventually, the present tells us the truth about a team. Right now, at 1-4, the Cubs are a team trying to find the arms that can get outs late in games.
"We just need to do a better job out there," Cishek said after his three-walk night. "I'm looking for that day when I can forget about outings like this, we're into the season, playing great baseball and we don't even realize this happened."
So are Cubs fans. And while Lester will admit to some negative moments right now, the veteran is certain it won't last. In fact, he thinks the signs are there for a turnaround.
"It's going to sound weird to say, but we're in a good spot," Lester stated. "I feel good about our team."
If this keeps up, he might be the only one.