The start of the 2017 Chicago Cubs season hasn’t exactly gotten off to the start that many fans wanted to see. I’ve already fielded numerous phone calls from friends and family asking me, “What the hell is wrong with the Cubs? They’re not going to win it all this year are they? They’re still hungover from the World Series right?”

I’d like to think I’m a relatively level-headed Cubs fan so I’m not too shook up at the fact the team currently sits a game over .500 (8-7) and have the NL Central-leading Cincinnati Reds for a three-game set this weekend at Great America Ballpark.

Seriously, the Reds are leading the Central.

Fans have seen the 2017 Cubs offense struggle for the most part and the once dominant starting pitching has seemingly come back down to Earth from an unbelievable 2016 campaign.

But has it been as bad as Cubs fans make it out to be?

The answer is no.

They currently rank in the top 10 in the National League in runs, hits, doubles, triples, RBIs, batting average, OBP, and OPS. The one offensive category that fans love to track is probably the same reason why most fans think the team has been struggling offensively — home runs. The Cubs currently rank 13th in the NL with 11 home runs (Milwaukee leads the NL with 27 but we all know that the Brewers will cool off in the very near future.)

Well, what about pitching?

Also not as bad as one would think.

The Cubs rotation ranks in the top ten in the National League in wins, ERA, innings pitched, strikeouts, and BAA. Jake Arrieta and Jon Lester have looked sharp in the early part of the season and if you take one bad outing away from Lackey, Hendricks, and Anderson — the staff has been relatively sharp. Combine that with a relatively steady bullpen and you have a team that has kept their heads above water even after a few early season struggles.

So why have Cubs fans been unnecessarily freaking out? I think I have the answer.

The team’s start in 2016.

The 2016 team started the season on a blistering pace through the first 15 games going 11-4 and only spent ONE DAY in second place in the Central. Hell, the Cubs were red-hot through most of the 2016 season and that one day in second was the only day they’d spend in second for the entire 2016 season.

Incredible.

Fans were under the impression that 2017 would simply be a continuation of 2016 and some (myself included) argued that this year’s team would actually be better. I still believe that and although it’s been a bumpy first 15 games in 2017, the team is still a game over .500 and only 1.5 games out of first even though they’ve been playing pretty average baseball.

However, the best part of the early part of 2017 is the fact that the Cubs are IN THE EXACT SAME SPOT in terms of series wins then they were in 2016.

series results to start season:

2016: WWWLW

2017: WWWLW@Cubs

— Max Haid (@maxhaid10) April 19, 2017

So even with that blistering start in 2016, the Cubs opened their season winning four of their first five series and the 2017 team has done the exact same thing. Baseball fans understand that winning a series takes precedence over winning individual games. Granted, the Cubs haven’t swept anyone yet like they did last year but taking two of three from teams (especially in the NL Central) will begin to open up some breathing room as the season progresses.

So before you start unnecessarily panicking at the fact that the Cubs don’t have an eight-game lead in the Central at this point of the season, just remember that it’s a 162-game roller coaster ride. The difference is the 2016 started the ride at the top and this year’s team have just begun the climb.

The Cubs have played some extremely sloppy baseball the last few games, with plenty of fans starting to worry about the reigning World Series Champs (first time I’ve written that in a sentence).

And true to faith, the Cubs found themselves down once again to the Brewers, only scoring three runs the first eight innings of the game. But that all changed when Addison Russell came to the plate with two outs, runners on 2nd and 3rd and came up with another classic Addi Russell moment.

The kid is just too clutch.

And that my friends is a #Cubs walk-off win!!!!! #addy #FlyTheW #PlayTheSong pic.twitter.com/wecioaKWkQ

— Adam Nissen (@nissen54) April 19, 2017

The 23-year-old shortstop absolutely obliterated a three-run shot to walk-off against the Brewers.  He got all of the pitch too, connecting for an 109 mph exit velocity.

WOW… What a shot by Addison Russell! That was his 2nd hardest hit HR recorded by @statcast #NoDoubter pic.twitter.com/nmNw1Xqhzg

— Daren Willman (@darenw) April 19, 2017

The monster shot clinched the series over the Brewers and helped improve the Cubs record to 8-7 on the season, they travel to Cincinnati next to start a nine game road trip that includes the Pirates and Red Sox.

We are 14 games into the Chicago Cubs season and while it is early, almost far too early to be making assumptions like this, the Cubs are favoring Javier Baez as the everyday second baseman – not veteran Ben Zobrist.

On paper, the preference of Baez in the infield over Zobrist make sense. Baez is the far superior fielder and Zobrist, while 35-years-old, seems to fit the utility role more so than Baez at this point in each of their careers. Baez is also a budding star, showcasing the type of superstar potential people thought he could produce throughout the 2016 World Series run. Getting him more at bats and playing time is the most logical move, and Zobrist seems like he is fine with taking a backseat to Baez to start the season.

There is no one else on the Cubs who could make this play.

Javier Baez’s double play pic.twitter.com/EDqYFV29I8

— ますたー (@baez12m) April 13, 2017

However, the biggest deciding factor between the two will be their bats. Baez, while flashing seer raw power with his emphatic swing, is prone to striking out and seems almost hellbent on never adopting a two-strike approach. According to Fangraphs, Baez is swinging at pitches outside of the zone 46.5% of the time, while only making contact with those pitches 45.5% of the time. For comparison, Zobrist has only swung at pitches outside the strike zone 23.2% in 2017, while making contact with 68.6% of the time – and that’s actually considered low for the career 74.3% contact hitter on pitches outside the strike zone.

I actually talked about this exact situation with BP Wrigleyville’s Editor-in-Chief Jared Wyllys on the 312 podcast last week, you can listen to the interview below.

Without Baez showing more discipline at the plate, he becomes a tough bat to consistently throw into the lineup. Zobrist is sporting a classic Zobrist-esc .333 on-base percentage, compared to Javy’s below-average .289. Zobrist’s patience at the plate, already walking nine times this season, makes him a more valuable player to put in the lineup everyday.

With all this being said, I still think the Cubs should be giving Baez the nod at 2nd base for the majority of the games this season. While Baez was deemed the “super utility” player, people don’t realize that the versatile 24-year-old managed to play in 142 games last season, starting 97 of those games. The guy can play all over the infield, and will continue to do so this season, but his defense is too valuable right now – and that’s what the Cubs are putting a premium on.

Zobrist, while versatile, is not the asset he once was in Tampa Bay. Last season, Zobrist cost the Cubs three runs according to Fangraphs Defensive Runs Saved metric, and has already cost the Cubs a run this season while playing in the outfield. And of course, Baez saved the Cubs a collective 16 runs from three different positions and has already saved two runs for the Cubs at 2nd.

The time has come for the Cubs to figure out what exactly they have in Javier Baez, if he can find consistency at the plate and produce the type of offensive numbers he flashed in the playoffs or just a solid player and nothing more. The Cubs already know what they have in Zobrist, but can Baez become a superstar? It’s time for Baez to either prove he is an elite player and not just an elite talent, and the only way to do that is make Zobrist take a backseat to the budding youngster.

It’s only been a week since the Cubs received their 2016 World Series Championship rings and to be honest with you, I can’t stop looking at them. The detail on each ring, in my opinion, separates it from other championship rings that I’ve seen in the past but when you also factor in the century long wait just to get the ring itself, it’s a big part of why I think these rings are little tokens of excellence.

$70,000 little tokens of excellence that is.

The players were the first to get their rings and were already sharing what they would do with them before they even received the diamond encrusted beauties. But what about the thousands of other people affiliated with the Cubs that also received a ring? The Cubs gave out 1,908 rings and pins to everyone from high-level executives to the scoreboard operator to the National Anthem singer and the bulk of these people are not living multi-million dollar lifestyles like the players on the field.

So if some of those employees are struggling financially, why not sell the ring? I mean, $70,000 is a lot of money to turn down because you love the Cubs. The option of selling their World Series ring was something Cubs management saw being an issue so they had a plan in place before Cubs employees received their rings.

The organization asked all non-players to sign a document agreeing to give the team the right to buy back the ring for $1.

The Chicago Sun-Times obtained a copy of the document that employees were asked to sign. Cubs GM Jed Hoyer was also asked to sign the document and didn’t mince words when he was asked what he thought about the document.

“I signed that thing willingly.”

Well no shit Jed, when you have a six-figure salary, you’re probably never going to struggle financially.

Here’s some insight on the memo.

“We regret the formal nature of this memo, and we do not intend for this information to overshadow our joy in being able to provide this ring to you,” the memo states. “However, we think it is important to communicate this information to you.”

Those planning to sell “or otherwise transfer your ring,” must give the Cubs written notice of “the proposed transaction and a complete accounting of the terms.”

There’s more: “If the Cubs elect not to purchase the ring, then you may transfer it according to the terms you provided to the Cubs; however, each subsequent owner shall also be bound by these terms in the event of a subsequent proposed sale or other transfer.”

The memo makes an exception for rings that are given as gifts — say to a child, spouse or grandchild.

So to break that down, if you’re struggling for money and are looking to sell your ring, you have to notify the Cubs in writing that you want to sell. They then have the option to give you $1 for the ring or if they choose not to buy it back (which would never happen) you are free to sell the ring as you wish.

As a Cubs fan, it’s easy for me to sit here and act like I’d never consider selling the ring because I love the Cubs however, appraisers say they could fetch anywhere from $50,000 to $250,000 on the open market.

Unfortunately, if you signed the document to get your ring, those dollar values are obsolete. Instead of getting $50,000 for the ring, you’ll be getting a crisp one dollar bill from the Chicago Cubs.