Swing and a Miss

Very little has gone right for the North Siders thus far in the 2013 season.

Offensively, the Cubs have been atrocious, ranking in the bottom third of the league in nearly every category (with the exception being home runs). Starlin Castro does not appear to have improved much defensively; his goal of winning a Gold Glove this year is more of a punch line to a joke than a realistic expectation. Anthony Rizzo is still batting well below the Mendoza Line, though he leads the team in home runs (six). Matt Garza's recovery has been riddled with setbacks, the most recent being a "dead arm".

In Daytona, top prospect Jorge Soler was suspended for chasing and swinging a bat at the opposing team during a brawl. Alberto Almora broke his hamate bone, requiring a surgery that is likely to sideline him for another month. Javier Baez began the season ice cold, though has recently began to pick up his play.

Carlos Marmol has been the epitome of the 2013 Cubs: Just when you think that the ship is going to be righted, disaster strikes and you are reminded of the shear lack of talent. Fortunately, the biggest silver lining so far has been an area that was a huge question mark coming into the season. The starting pitching has been outstanding.

It isn't much of a surprise that Jeff Samardzija is pitching well. He proved last year that he could be a top of the rotation pitcher, and his first few starts this year have been spent solidifying that notion. Edwin Jackson has been less than spectacular, but for a guy that was expected to be a third starter, he has been solid. The unforeseen success of Travis Wood and Carlos Villanueva has been, frankly, astonishing.

Through 29 1/3 innings, Villanueva has allowed just five runs. His 1.53 ERA and .75 WHIP, coupled with three quality starts, have been extremely promising. He leads the team in both ERA and WHIP, though Wood is not far behind him. His 2.08 ERA and 1.04 WHIP through 26 innings have been equally fantastic. While regression is imminent, this kind of output for the back end of a rotation is unprecedented.

Wood, acquired last year from Cincinnati in a trade for Sean Marshall, has been seen as the future of the fifth spot in the rotation. He isn't expected to be an ace, though a solid starter. Villanueva does not have the same pedigree.

The 29 year old veteran was brought in to be a long reliever, with a shot at making spot starts. His success has given the Cubs several options for moving forward, though.

Last year, Paul Maholm's solid first half netted the Cubs a top pitching prospect in Arodys Vizcaino. Though the Cubs have not yet seen the return on the trade, as Vizcaino is recovering from Tommy John surgery, the future outlook is bright. If Villanueva can continue his success, contending teams could begin making offers. Since the Cubs' farm system is lacking in developed pitching prospects, some polished arms would need to be headed in the direction of the Friendly Confines.

If the Cubs decide to hold on to Villanueva, they could have a fixture at the end of the rotation for the next several years. He has shown over his career that he struggles with giving up the long ball, though pitching is sorely needed in Chicago.

2013 has been anything but smooth sailing for the Cubs, though solidifying the back end of the rotation is something that would go down as a massive win. Then again, the season is still very young.