Don't Expect Theo Epstein to Push the Panic Button over Bad Start to Cubs Season

When Theo Epstein was brought in as the new Cubs President of Baseball Operations by owner Tom Ricketts, he said all the right things about having patience and building the team the right way, the "Cubs Way".

But now that patience is being tested and there are Cubs fans who are facing the reality of just how severe the sacrifices are that they are being asked to make. Yet don't look for Epstein or his GM Jed Hoyer to make a quick fix or a knee-jerk reaction to improve the club over the short term.

Now, whether Cubs fans who have waited their entire lives for a World Series will truly honor that commitment to patience is in question. I can hear many of you now: "Yes I knew we were rebuilding but I didn't think we'd be THIS bad!"

Neither did I, Cubs fans. In fact, I predicted a final record of 80-82 for the inaugural season of the Epstein/Jed Hoyer show. But after a 3-11 start, that prognostication is looking foolishly optimistic.

After all, the Cubs made a lot of moves this winter, and not all of them resulted in prospects being brought in. For example, they took a rebound chance on third baseman Ian Stewart and kept veterans like Marlon Byrd and Matt Garza around. they also brought in a free agent outfielder with a track record in David DeJesus.

Yet despite those moves, the Cubs are on pace to lose more than 100 games this season. Granted, it's only been 14 games so it's a very small sample size. But there are reasons to think it could get uglier soon.

Kerry Wood is back to his usual spot on the disabled list. Ryan Dempster, who has been the top starter so far, had an MRI on his right quad on Friday, so he is questionable for his next start. He could also end up a DL casualty. 

Meanwhile, the schedule won't get any easier for the Cubs, who have lost six straight, even though they are limping home. The Reds are in town with the World Series champion Cardinals coming in next. Then, the team heads back on the road for visits to Philadelphia and Cincinnati.

But a short-term fix is not likely. For that to happen, the Cubs would likely have to give up prospects, which would defeat the purpose of the rebuilding effort.

Look, that's what Jim Hendry did, and it led us into this mess in the first place. In fact, if anything, the Cubs should continue to look to move anyone other than Starlin Castro if they can get multiple prospects.

So it's up to rookie manager Dale Sveum to make the best use of his current roster and hope things improve. How much longer Byrd stays in the everyday lineup is a valid question, and it would help if he didn't bat left-handed hitters Bryan LaHair and Stewart back-to-back in the lineup.

But no matter what he does, this is a team with little power. While it's nice to hear a Cubs manager actually use a term like "slugging percentage" in a conversation, it would be even better to see some slugging.

Also, you may want to hold off on those Cy Young votes for Jeff Samardzija just yet. He's still very much a work in progress as a starter. Following a brilliant start against the Washington Nationals during the opening weekend of the season, he has given up 10 earned runs in 8 2/3 innings.

"In Theo we trust" is still our motto, Cubs fans, but it comes with a price. Hopefully, there's a return on that investment at some point.