2017 ZiPS Projections – Chicago Cubs by Carson Cistulli November 28, 2016 After having typically appeared in the very famous pages of Baseball Think Factory, Dan Szymborski’s ZiPS projections have been released at FanGraphs the past few years. The exercise continues this offseason. Below are the projections for the Chicago Cubs. Szymborski can be found at ESPN and on Twitter at @DSzymborski. Other Projections: Washington. Batters The present document represents only the second of 30 total installments of these team-by-by ZiPS projections. Despite that, it’s likely that no other club’s hitters will receive such optimistic forecasts as the Cubs’ do here. Nor is that particularly surprising: Chicago’s field players produced the highest collective WAR figure in the league by some distance in 2016 — and only one of that team’s starters (Dexter Fowler) has left by way of free agency. Kris Bryant (6.9 zWAR) receives basically the best projection possible among players who aren’t also Mike Trout. Anthony Rizzo (5.7) and Addison Russell (4.2) also profile as star-level types, per Dan Szymborski’s computer. ZiPS calls for the remainder of the team’s starters to produce wins at an average rate or better — including Jason Heyward (3.1), whose defensive forecast (+13 runs in right field) compensates for whatever offensive deficiencies he might continue to exhibit. Pitchers Like the offense, the rotation has also lost only one piece this offseason — namely Jason Hammel, whose projection (1.5 zWAR in 145.1 innings) places him in a different category than the club’s four top starters, anyway. Whatever reasons for optimism might exist apropos Mike Montgomery (115.1 IP, 1.1 zWAR) as the club’s fifth starter, they don’t exert much influence over the ZiPS algorithm. The departure of Aroldis Chapman obviously creates a vacuum at the back of Chicago’s bullpen — and that unit represents probably the club’s greatest weakness (relatively speaking) as the roster is presently constructed. Hector Rondon’s postseason was suboptimal, but he receives a promising forecast (72 ERA-) nonetheless. He and Pedro Strop (71 ERA-) appear to remain the most qualified candidates for high-leverage innings. Bench/Prospects Third-base prospect Jeimer Candelario (2.4 zWAR) didn’t experience much success in his brief exposure to the majors at the beginning of July, but he’s already projected to play like an average major leaguer and his top historical comp is Edwin Encarnacion. He and outfielder Albert Almora (1.8) represent the best of the club’s young depth, while Chesny Young (1.0) appears to be a possible fixture among the Fringe Five. The depth is less robust among the team’s pitchers. Only 27-year-old Jake Buchanan (121.1 IP, 0.7 zWAR), for example, receives a projection of better than half a win. Depth Chart Below is a rough depth chart for the present incarnation of the Cubs, with rounded projected WAR totals for each player. For caveats regarding WAR values see disclaimer at bottom of post. Click to enlarge image. Ballpark graphic courtesy Eephus League. Depth charts constructed by way of those listed here at site and author’s own haphazard reasoning. Batters, Counting Stats Player B Age PO PA R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB CS Kris Bryant R 25 3B 672 104 158 30 4 33 109 12 4 Anthony Rizzo L 27 1B 667 94 159 36 3 33 108 8 5 Addison Russell R 23 SS 601 69 133 29 4 19 91 6 2 Willson Contreras R 25 C 477 56 113 22 3 14 58 4 4 Jason Heyward L 27 RF 592 72 135 28 3 12 60 15 4 Ben Zobrist B 36 2B 548 74 126 29 3 14 60 6 4 Dexter Fowler B 31 CF 552 76 121 24 6 13 45 12 5 Javier Baez R 24 2B 516 61 121 22 2 19 70 16 4 Jeimer Candelario B 23 3B 566 64 133 34 4 14 68 0 2 Kyle Schwarber L 24 LF 461 77 97 14 3 28 78 3 2 Albert Almora R 23 CF 496 54 126 26 4 8 51 9 3 Victor Caratini B 23 C 473 47 105 24 2 7 44 1 1 Miguel Montero L 33 C 375 34 74 11 0 10 46 1 1 Chesny Young R 24 2B 497 50 121 20 3 3 35 11 8 Chris Coghlan L 32 LF 389 47 80 20 4 8 41 6 2 Tim Federowicz R 29 C 260 27 58 12 0 7 32 1 0 Christian Villanueva R 26 3B 427 45 93 23 2 11 52 2 3 David Ross R 40 C 176 14 29 7 0 6 20 0 1 Tommy La Stella L 28 2B 299 27 70 16 2 3 27 2 1 Lane Adams R 27 RF 500 53 103 20 2 12 48 25 5 Matt Szczur R 27 CF 367 42 84 14 2 6 35 12 5 Jorge Soler R 25 LF 347 43 74 16 1 13 46 2 1 Charcer Burks R 22 LF 526 53 103 22 4 9 44 17 10 Taylor Davis R 27 C 285 31 61 15 2 5 30 1 0 John Andreoli R 27 CF 482 54 95 14 5 8 38 28 7 Ian Happ B 22 2B 487 54 102 22 3 14 56 10 4 Mark Zagunis R 24 LF 434 51 91 21 4 9 46 7 4 Donnie Dewees L 23 CF 499 50 112 19 7 6 46 19 6 David Bote R 24 3B 392 42 84 20 2 7 39 6 3 Munenori Kawasaki L 36 SS 326 29 66 10 1 0 19 8 4 Ryan Kalish L 29 RF 212 24 45 8 2 3 21 7 3 Jacob Hannemann L 26 CF 446 45 89 17 4 9 41 19 6 Logan Watkins L 27 2B 451 47 93 17 4 5 38 14 6 Juan Perez R 30 RF 390 40 85 19 2 7 34 10 3 Ben Carhart R 27 1B 304 32 69 14 0 6 31 1 1 Matt Murton R 35 LF 410 38 102 20 1 6 40 1 2 Yasiel Balaguert R 24 1B 485 46 103 19 2 13 55 2 1 *** Batters, Rates and Averages Player PA BB% K% ISO BABIP AVG OBP SLG wOBA Kris Bryant 672 11.6% 27.1% .238 .342 .274 .372 .512 .380 Anthony Rizzo 667 11.7% 17.1% .249 .297 .280 .382 .529 .386 Addison Russell 601 8.3% 23.3% .176 .298 .248 .320 .424 .318 Willson Contreras 477 8.2% 21.0% .164 .313 .264 .334 .428 .335 Jason Heyward 592 9.8% 16.2% .133 .293 .257 .335 .390 .323 Ben Zobrist 548 12.0% 13.1% .163 .286 .267 .357 .430 .341 Dexter Fowler 552 12.9% 22.5% .160 .322 .258 .362 .418 .347 Javier Baez 516 5.0% 28.1% .174 .323 .254 .303 .428 .320 Jeimer Candelario 566 8.3% 21.0% .164 .312 .260 .325 .424 .323 Kyle Schwarber 461 11.7% 30.6% .261 .296 .243 .337 .504 .357 Albert Almora 496 3.8% 14.3% .124 .299 .269 .296 .393 .300 Victor Caratini 473 8.5% 22.0% .116 .309 .248 .317 .364 .299 Miguel Montero 375 11.5% 22.1% .126 .272 .228 .323 .354 .292 Chesny Young 497 7.4% 15.3% .077 .312 .266 .323 .343 .305 Chris Coghlan 389 10.8% 20.8% .152 .283 .234 .322 .386 .310 Tim Federowicz 260 5.8% 25.8% .137 .304 .242 .290 .379 .287 Christian Villanueva 427 5.6% 22.7% .153 .285 .237 .285 .390 .286 David Ross 176 12.5% 31.3% .169 .256 .196 .295 .365 .263 Tommy La Stella 299 9.0% 12.7% .109 .295 .262 .336 .371 .311 Lane Adams 500 6.8% 28.2% .132 .296 .225 .285 .357 .294 Matt Szczur 367 6.0% 19.1% .107 .298 .250 .300 .357 .295 Jorge Soler 347 10.4% 28.2% .187 .308 .243 .323 .430 .323 Charcer Burks 526 8.2% 27.6% .121 .295 .219 .291 .340 .290 Taylor Davis 285 7.4% 14.7% .130 .262 .235 .293 .365 .286 John Andreoli 482 10.8% 28.6% .114 .314 .227 .314 .341 .305 Ian Happ 487 8.4% 30.0% .160 .310 .232 .298 .392 .304 Mark Zagunis 434 10.8% 23.5% .149 .306 .242 .336 .391 .325 Donnie Dewees 499 4.8% 19.8% .110 .293 .242 .283 .352 .284 David Bote 392 6.9% 23.5% .126 .297 .235 .299 .361 .294 Munenori Kawasaki 326 8.6% 18.1% .042 .287 .230 .301 .272 .263 Ryan Kalish 212 7.5% 21.7% .110 .294 .236 .300 .346 .291 Jacob Hannemann 446 5.4% 28.0% .126 .288 .217 .268 .343 .278 Logan Watkins 451 7.1% 22.4% .099 .290 .229 .288 .328 .277 Juan Perez 390 4.9% 21.8% .121 .286 .234 .276 .355 .279 Ben Carhart 304 4.6% 17.8% .113 .280 .244 .287 .357 .282 Matt Murton 410 4.4% 14.4% .103 .295 .264 .298 .367 .289 Yasiel Balaguert 485 4.5% 28.5% .135 .289 .224 .260 .359 .269 *** Batters, Assorted Other Player PA RC/27 OPS+ Def zWAR No.1 Comp Kris Bryant 672 7.2 138 4 6.9 Ron Santo Anthony Rizzo 667 7.6 145 5 5.7 Justin Morneau Addison Russell 601 4.9 100 8 4.2 Tim Naehring Willson Contreras 477 5.1 106 -2 3.2 Bill Freehan Jason Heyward 592 4.9 97 13 3.1 Armando Rios Ben Zobrist 548 5.6 113 -3 3.1 Jeff Kent Dexter Fowler 552 5.6 112 -6 3.0 Mitch Webster Javier Baez 516 4.9 96 4 2.7 Jeff Blauser Jeimer Candelario 566 4.9 102 -3 2.4 Edwin Encarnacion Kyle Schwarber 461 6.0 125 -7 2.1 Ryan Klesko Albert Almora 496 4.4 86 4 1.8 Robert Perez Victor Caratini 473 4.1 85 -7 1.4 Al Pardo Miguel Montero 375 4.0 84 -4 1.2 Brian Schneider Chesny Young 497 4.0 82 -1 1.0 Liu Rodriguez Chris Coghlan 389 4.4 92 2 1.0 Bubba Carpenter Tim Federowicz 260 4.0 80 0 1.0 Dave Parrish Christian Villanueva 427 3.8 82 2 0.9 Lou Lucca David Ross 176 3.5 78 4 0.8 Rick Dempsey Tommy La Stella 299 4.6 92 -3 0.8 Jerry Browne Lane Adams 500 3.9 73 6 0.8 T.J. Bohn Matt Szczur 367 3.9 78 0 0.7 Charles Thomas Jorge Soler 347 4.9 103 -4 0.6 Joe Vitiello Charcer Burks 526 3.4 71 9 0.6 Rodney Clifton Taylor Davis 285 3.8 78 -5 0.5 Mike Ryan John Andreoli 482 4.1 79 -8 0.5 Reggie Williams Ian Happ 487 4.2 86 -9 0.5 Jay Bell Mark Zagunis 434 4.7 97 -7 0.5 Pat Tabler Donnie Dewees 499 3.7 72 -1 0.5 Chris Stowers David Bote 392 3.8 79 -3 0.5 Chris Gomez Munenori Kawasaki 326 2.9 58 3 0.4 Mark Belanger Ryan Kalish 212 3.7 75 0 -0.1 Kenny Kelly Jacob Hannemann 446 3.3 65 -3 -0.1 Chris Stowers Logan Watkins 451 3.4 67 -3 -0.1 Juan Gonzalez Juan Perez 390 3.6 70 0 -0.3 T.J. Bohn Ben Carhart 304 3.6 74 0 -0.5 Toby Rumfield Matt Murton 410 3.9 80 -6 -0.7 Ray Knight Yasiel Balaguert 485 3.3 66 3 -0.9 Aaron McNeal *** Pitchers, Counting Stats Player T Age G GS IP K BB HR H R ER Jon Lester L 33 29 29 189.7 188 45 20 162 70 65 Jake Arrieta R 31 30 30 188.0 187 58 17 148 67 63 Kyle Hendricks R 27 31 30 182.0 157 41 18 161 70 65 John Lackey R 38 27 27 176.7 155 47 21 157 74 69 Jason Hammel R 34 26 26 145.3 128 42 21 136 71 66 Aroldis Chapman L 29 59 0 58.0 96 24 5 35 15 14 Mike Montgomery L 27 35 16 115.3 94 46 13 106 55 51 Hector Rondon R 29 61 0 57.7 61 13 6 49 20 19 Pedro Strop R 32 60 0 52.0 64 20 5 38 18 17 Jake Buchanan R 27 29 16 121.3 78 34 14 128 61 57 Travis Wood L 30 73 0 61.0 58 24 7 53 25 23 Joe Smith R 33 62 0 58.0 52 18 6 52 24 22 Justin Grimm R 28 69 0 57.0 69 25 6 46 24 22 Aaron Brooks R 27 18 16 92.7 68 21 13 100 49 46 Felix Pena R 27 51 0 68.7 82 28 9 57 30 28 Armando Rivero R 29 45 0 61.0 77 33 7 49 27 25 Carl Edwards Jr. R 25 50 0 52.7 71 30 6 38 22 21 Brian Matusz L 30 43 4 47.7 52 18 7 43 22 21 Jack Leathersich L 26 34 0 32.7 43 18 4 26 14 13 Joe Thatcher L 35 37 0 25.0 28 9 3 22 11 10 Spencer Patton R 29 53 0 58.0 73 27 7 46 27 25 Ryan Williams R 25 16 13 71.3 49 18 10 74 41 38 Trevor Cahill R 29 65 0 67.0 70 34 8 59 32 30 Aaron Crow R 30 28 0 24.0 17 10 4 24 12 11 Zac Rosscup L 29 38 0 34.3 40 18 4 29 17 16 Seth Frankoff R 28 39 5 67.0 58 24 9 66 36 34 Conor Mullee R 29 29 0 42.3 42 19 6 38 21 20 Joel Peralta R 41 32 0 28.7 28 8 4 27 15 14 Stephen Fife R 30 14 12 58.3 41 23 8 61 35 33 Corey Black R 25 51 0 56.0 60 37 6 49 29 27 Jose Rosario R 26 47 0 55.7 44 20 6 55 29 27 Pierce Johnson R 26 21 15 80.3 76 48 12 78 48 45 Scott Barnes L 29 20 3 34.0 30 15 5 34 21 20 Andury Acevedo R 26 24 0 29.3 26 23 4 28 18 17 Drew Rucinski R 28 26 24 134.3 97 47 21 146 82 77 Steve Perakslis R 26 29 3 57.0 41 22 9 60 36 34 Rob Zastryzny L 25 24 20 108.7 90 46 19 114 70 65 Jordan Pries R 27 24 20 115.7 84 43 20 121 74 69 Duane Underwood R 22 18 18 72.3 52 38 13 79 50 47 Jen-Ho Tseng R 22 22 22 114.3 68 38 19 132 75 70 Gerardo Concepcion L 25 41 0 58.0 46 33 8 59 36 34 Juan Paniagua R 27 38 0 60.0 51 36 9 60 40 37 *** Pitchers, Rates and Averages Player IP TBF K% BB% BABIP ERA FIP ERA- FIP- Jon Lester 189.7 776 24.2% 5.8% .275 3.08 3.38 75 81 Jake Arrieta 188.0 770 24.3% 7.5% .261 3.02 3.36 73 81 Kyle Hendricks 182.0 748 21.0% 5.5% .273 3.21 3.51 78 84 John Lackey 176.7 734 21.1% 6.4% .269 3.52 3.84 85 92 Jason Hammel 145.3 614 20.9% 6.8% .277 4.09 4.29 99 103 Aroldis Chapman 58.0 233 41.2% 10.3% .283 2.17 2.34 53 56 Mike Montgomery 115.3 498 18.9% 9.2% .276 3.98 4.40 96 105 Hector Rondon 57.7 235 25.9% 5.5% .281 2.97 3.15 72 76 Pedro Strop 52.0 214 29.9% 9.3% .273 2.94 3.19 71 76 Jake Buchanan 121.3 526 14.8% 6.5% .289 4.23 4.37 102 105 Travis Wood 61.0 260 22.3% 9.2% .271 3.39 3.91 82 94 Joe Smith 58.0 244 21.3% 7.4% .282 3.41 3.77 83 90 Justin Grimm 57.0 242 28.5% 10.3% .286 3.47 3.45 84 83 Aaron Brooks 92.7 399 17.0% 5.3% .298 4.47 4.35 108 104 Felix Pena 68.7 291 28.2% 9.6% .284 3.67 3.73 89 89 Armando Rivero 61.0 265 29.1% 12.5% .290 3.69 3.92 89 94 Carl Edwards Jr. 52.7 226 31.4% 13.3% .271 3.59 3.68 87 88 Brian Matusz 47.7 204 25.5% 8.8% .290 3.97 4.11 96 98 Jack Leathersich 32.7 142 30.3% 12.7% .293 3.58 3.98 87 95 Joe Thatcher 25.0 106 26.4% 8.5% .292 3.60 3.59 87 86 Spencer Patton 58.0 247 29.6% 10.9% .287 3.88 3.79 94 91 Ryan Williams 71.3 306 16.0% 5.9% .285 4.79 4.52 116 108 Trevor Cahill 67.0 294 23.8% 11.6% .287 4.03 4.26 98 102 Aaron Crow 24.0 106 16.0% 9.4% .267 4.12 5.06 100 121 Zac Rosscup 34.3 150 26.7% 12.0% .288 4.19 3.94 101 95 Seth Frankoff 67.0 291 19.9% 8.2% .289 4.57 4.41 111 106 Conor Mullee 42.3 184 22.8% 10.3% .281 4.25 4.61 103 110 Joel Peralta 28.7 121 23.1% 6.6% .287 4.40 3.99 107 96 Stephen Fife 58.3 259 15.8% 8.9% .290 5.09 4.90 123 117 Corey Black 56.0 254 23.6% 14.6% .291 4.34 4.58 105 110 Jose Rosario 55.7 242 18.2% 8.3% .290 4.37 4.25 106 102 Pierce Johnson 80.3 367 20.7% 13.1% .292 5.04 5.22 122 125 Scott Barnes 34.0 151 19.9% 9.9% .293 5.29 4.75 128 114 Andury Acevedo 29.3 139 18.7% 16.6% .286 5.22 5.64 126 135 Drew Rucinski 134.3 596 16.3% 7.9% .295 5.16 4.98 125 119 Steve Perakslis 57.0 253 16.2% 8.7% .287 5.37 5.12 130 123 Rob Zastryzny 108.7 486 18.5% 9.5% .292 5.38 5.24 130 126 Jordan Pries 115.7 511 16.4% 8.4% .281 5.37 5.23 130 125 Duane Underwood 72.3 334 15.6% 11.4% .291 5.85 5.83 142 140 Jen-Ho Tseng 114.3 513 13.3% 7.4% .296 5.51 5.31 133 127 Gerardo Concepcion 58.0 266 17.3% 12.4% .290 5.28 5.20 128 125 Juan Paniagua 60.0 276 18.5% 13.0% .290 5.55 5.39 134 129 *** Pitchers, Assorted Other Player IP K/9 BB/9 HR/9 ERA+ zWAR No. 1 Comp Jon Lester 189.7 8.92 2.13 0.95 127 4.4 Bruce Hurst Jake Arrieta 188.0 8.95 2.78 0.81 130 4.4 Dave Stieb Kyle Hendricks 182.0 7.76 2.03 0.89 122 3.8 Jon Garland John Lackey 176.7 7.89 2.39 1.07 112 3.1 Orel Hershiser Jason Hammel 145.3 7.93 2.60 1.30 96 1.5 Ramon Ortiz Aroldis Chapman 58.0 14.90 3.72 0.78 181 1.4 Billy Wagner Mike Montgomery 115.3 7.34 3.59 1.01 99 1.1 Rich Robertson Hector Rondon 57.7 9.51 2.03 0.94 132 0.8 Rod Beck Pedro Strop 52.0 11.08 3.46 0.87 133 0.8 Troy Percival Jake Buchanan 121.3 5.79 2.52 1.04 93 0.7 Tom Murphy Travis Wood 61.0 8.56 3.54 1.03 116 0.5 Mike Matthews Joe Smith 58.0 8.07 2.79 0.93 115 0.5 Chad Paronto Justin Grimm 57.0 10.89 3.95 0.95 113 0.4 Jorge Vasquez Aaron Brooks 92.7 6.60 2.04 1.26 88 0.4 Mark Johnson Felix Pena 68.7 10.74 3.67 1.18 107 0.4 Fernando Cabrera Armando Rivero 61.0 11.36 4.87 1.03 106 0.3 Jorge Vasquez Carl Edwards Jr. 52.7 12.13 5.12 1.02 109 0.3 Jose Valverde Brian Matusz 47.7 9.81 3.40 1.32 99 0.3 Jack O’Connor Jack Leathersich 32.7 11.83 4.95 1.10 110 0.2 Armando Almanza Joe Thatcher 25.0 10.08 3.24 1.08 109 0.2 Tony Fossas Spencer Patton 58.0 11.33 4.19 1.09 101 0.2 Steve Sparks Ryan Williams 71.3 6.19 2.27 1.26 82 0.1 DeWayne Vaughn Trevor Cahill 67.0 9.40 4.57 1.07 97 0.0 Pat Flury Aaron Crow 24.0 6.38 3.75 1.50 95 0.0 Mike Barlow Zac Rosscup 34.3 10.50 4.72 1.05 94 -0.1 Chris Blazek Seth Frankoff 67.0 7.79 3.22 1.21 86 -0.1 Jason Karnuth Conor Mullee 42.3 8.94 4.04 1.28 92 -0.1 Ryan Bukvich Joel Peralta 28.7 8.78 2.51 1.25 89 -0.1 Boom-Boom Beck Stephen Fife 58.3 6.33 3.55 1.23 77 -0.2 Carlos Chantres Corey Black 56.0 9.64 5.95 0.96 90 -0.2 Anthony Chavez Jose Rosario 55.7 7.11 3.23 0.97 90 -0.2 Rocky Childress Pierce Johnson 80.3 8.52 5.38 1.34 78 -0.3 Mark Outlaw Scott Barnes 34.0 7.94 3.97 1.32 74 -0.4 Allen McDill Andury Acevedo 29.3 7.99 7.06 1.23 75 -0.4 Brett Wayne Drew Rucinski 134.3 6.50 3.15 1.41 76 -0.5 Nelson Figueroa Steve Perakslis 57.0 6.47 3.47 1.42 73 -0.7 Ivan Maldonado Rob Zastryzny 108.7 7.45 3.81 1.57 73 -0.7 Joe Horgan Jordan Pries 115.7 6.53 3.34 1.56 73 -0.7 Kirk McDonald Duane Underwood 72.3 6.47 4.73 1.62 67 -0.9 Chris Clemons Jen-Ho Tseng 114.3 5.35 2.99 1.50 71 -0.9 Matt Childers Gerardo Concepcion 58.0 7.14 5.12 1.24 74 -1.0 Randy Phillips Juan Paniagua 60.0 7.65 5.40 1.35 71 -1.2 Agustin Montero *** Disclaimer: ZiPS projections are computer-based projections of performance. Performances have not been allocated to predicted playing time in the majors — many of the players listed above are unlikely to play in the majors at all in 2017. ZiPS is projecting equivalent production — a .240 ZiPS projection may end up being .280 in AAA or .300 in AA, for example. Whether or not a player will play is one of many non-statistical factors one has to take into account when predicting the future. Players are listed with their most recent teams unless Dan has made a mistake. This is very possible as a lot of minor-league signings are generally unreported in the offseason. ZiPS is projecting based on the AL having a 4.05 ERA and the NL having a 3.97 ERA. Players that are expected to be out due to injury are still projected. More information is always better than less information and a computer isn’t what should be projecting the injury status of, for example, a pitcher with Tommy John surgery. Regarding ERA+ vs. ERA- (and FIP+ vs. FIP-) and the differences therein: as Patriot notes here, they are not simply mirror images of each other. Writes Patriot: “ERA+ does not tell you that a pitcher’s ERA was X% less or more than the league’s ERA. It tells you that the league’s ERA was X% less or more than the pitcher’s ERA.” Both hitters and pitchers are ranked by projected zWAR — which is to say, WAR values as calculated by Dan Szymborski, whose surname is spelled with a z. WAR values might differ slightly from those which appear in full release of ZiPS. Finally, Szymborski will advise anyone against — and might karate chop anyone guilty of — merely adding up WAR totals on depth chart to produce projected team WAR.