Cubs Stock Market Report: Road-trippin’

Blue Chip Stocks

Jason Heyward: In his past 10 games or so, Heyward has looked like the player the Cubs thought they were going to get after signing him to an eight-year, $184 million contract before the 2016 season. Heyward went 12-for-28 with two doubles and two runs batted in, including four multi-hit games out of the six starts that he had this week. Since coming back from the disabled list, Heyward is batting .340/.373/.468, with a 127 wRC+.

Luke Farrell: Farrell gave his best Eddie Butler impression on Saturday, pitching five scoreless innings in extras, striking out seven in the process. Farrell earned his second win in a Cubs uniform, and gave the club desperately needed innings when seemingly everyone in the bullpen was unavailable. Hell of a job, Luke.

Jon Lester: Jonny Lestahh continues to live up to his ace billing, as he went 2-0 on the week with a 2.76 ERA. Taking a no-hit bid into the sixth, Lester pitched seven scoreless innings against the Mets on Sunday, eating up innings with ease after a 14-inning affair the night before.

6-1 Roadtrips: Finishing any road trip above .500 is typically deemed a successful one, but when you take two of three against a division rival and then sweep a four-game series, you can’t ask for much more. Unless you ask for an undefeated road trip, which I guess isn’t too unreasonable considering the way this team is playing right now.

Solid Investments

Anthony Rizzo: Rizzo continued his tear this week, going 7-for-22 with six walks, two doubles, and a homer. Since May 1st, Rizzo is batting .309/.409/.564 with seven home runs and 29 runs batted in, amounting to a 159 wRC+.

Mike Montgomery: For a second week in a row, Montgomery finds himself on this list after turning in another stellar start. Montgomery pitched six innings against the Mets, allowing just two hits and a walk, while striking out four. One of those two hits was a solo home run by Michael Conforto, but outside of a fastball left over the middle of the plate, MiMo was nearly flawless. When Yu Darvish returns from the disabled list, the front office will have an interesting conundrum on their hands.

Kyle Schwarber: Schwarber continues to punish baseballs, as he went 7-for-21 with two home runs, seven runs batted in, and four walks on the week, worth 174 wRC+. Since being recalled from Iowa last year, Schwarber is batting .258/.359/.544 with a wRC+ of 135. He’s also tied for fifth in all of baseball with five outfield assists this season.

Penny Stocks

No One! A 6-1 road trip omits anyone from this portion of the list. Kris Bryant and Brian Duensing had down weeks, but nothing cataclysmic to warrant their inclusion in the Penny Stocks.

Buy/Sell

Buy: The Jason Heyward breakout is something. Something is obviously clicking with Heyward, who is having his best 10-game stretch as a Cub. If he can continue to produce league-average numbers offensively, Heyward will be a valuable member to this Cubs team.

Sell: The new Jason Heyward is here to stay. Sandwiching Heyward’s 4-for-5 game against the Mets on Saturday was an 0-for-5 game and an 0-for-4 game. The returns since Heyward’s stint on the disabled list are encouraging, but it’s still early. I’ve held my breath for this Jason Heyward to appear in a Cubs uniform, I can wait a little bit longer.

Buy: The Cubs are a very, very good team. After Sunday’s win against the Mets, the Cubs lead the Senior Circuit in runs per game and ERA. That’s a pretty good combination. Despite the team’s seemingly never ending strikeout woes, and the continued struggles of Yu Darvish and Tyler Chatwood, this team is one of the best in baseball.

Sell: The Cubs are the team to beat in the National League: The National League seems pretty down this year; the N.L. West is the weakest its been in years, and the young Atlanta Braves are leading the N.L. East. Oh, and the Brewers are having a pretty good year too. It’s still too early to deem anyone the front-runner for either league, but the Cubs are sitting pretty right now in early June.