BCB After Dark: More on Morel’s glove

Happy Independence Day from us here at BCB After Dark: the hippest hangout for night owls, early risers, new parents and Cubs fans abroad. There are fireworks out there, but there are fireworks of a different sort in here. Come on in and join us. There are still a few tables available. Bring your own beverage.

BCB After Dark is the place for you to talk baseball, music, movies, or anything else you need to get off your chest, as long as it is within the rules of the site. The late-nighters are encouraged to get the party started, but everyone else is invited to join in as you wake up the next morning and into the afternoon.

The Cubs beat the Brewers today, 7-6 in 11 innings thanks in large part to some strong defense by left fielder Ian Happ and catcher Miguel Amaya. It was a pretty crucial win after a crushing defeat the day before. This Cubs team seems to find a lot of ways to lose games that they should win—it’s a good sign that they finally won a game that they should have won, even if it was closer than it should have been.

Yesterday, I asked you which Cubs player would you have added to the All-Star Game rosters. I didn’t think the vote would be close and it wasn’t. In first place, 71 percent of you thought that Nico Hoerner should be in Seattle this upcoming weekend.

On Tuesday night/Wednesday morning, I don’t do a movie essay. But I always have time for jazz, so those of who skip that can do so now. You won’t hurt my feelings.

Since it’s a holiday celebrating independence and revolution, I thought I’d bring you Gil Scott-Heron’s 1971 classic “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised.” Gil Scott-Heron is in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, was posthumously awarded a Lifetime Grammy Award and has been called “The Godfather of Rap” for the way his spoken-word jazz poetry influenced early rap innovators.

And heck, see how many 1971 pop culture references you can catch. The more you catch, the older you probably are.

Welcome back to those of you who skip the music.

Christopher Morel is leading the National League in slugging percentage. Actually, he isn’t because he doesn’t have enough at-bats to qualify. But his .613 slugging percentage would be leading the league if he had 83 more plate appearances.

But one thing that Morel doesn’t have is a position on defense. While coming up in the minors, the Cubs moved Morel around a lot, hoping to turn him into a Ben Zobrist-style supersub. But as others have noted, Zobrist was a pretty special player in that he could be outstanding on defense wherever he played. Morel’s bat may still be special, but his glove, so far, has not been.

So far in 2023, Morel has played 11 games in center field, 7 in right, 6 in left, 5 at second base and three at third base. Morel has been the DH 17 times. While he has not played there this season, Morel played at shortstop 13 times in 2022. The Cubs have even had Morel take reps at first base, even though he hasn’t actually played there in a game.

So tonight’s question is “Where should Christopher Morel play?” What position do you think Morel helps the Cubs out the most? Or do you think he should continue to be a DH and fill in at various positions when needed?

Thank you so much for stopping by. We know there’s a lot going on this long weekend and we’re very glad that you decided to spend a little time with us. Please get home safely. Take extra time on the roads if you’re traveling. I know I did, as I just got home earlier this evening—I missed most of the drama of the past two days of Cubs’ baseball. Please tip your waitstaff. And join us again tomorrow as we finish the week here at BCB After Dark.