Bring me on, you Chicago Cubs.

My Chicago Cubs are going into a funk. I can tell. I sense those things. The negative vibes the team is emitting. Since their best two pitchers were traded Friday.  The Cubs had been on a roll. Winning four straight games. On the road, too.  They also had a winning record in their last 50 games or so. And they had a decent chance of reaching .500. For the season. If not for trading away their best talent. One of the pitchers didn’t have a good won-loss record. Winning only two of nine decisions. But he had an earned run average of less than three runs per game. I don’t necessarily base the player’s worth on his won-loss record or batting average. Just his presence. Can be a lift for team morale. Adds to the team chemistry. The flow.  That’s important in baseball. The way players interact with each other.  Cubs management has  decided to disrupt the chemistry. In exchange for possible long-term benefits. Getting young players with high potential. For the future. Not necessarily the wisest move – for the immediate now.  And for the rest of this season. Because some of the remaining  players seem disconsolate over the departures. Reason to go into a funk. The Cubs lost yesterday, 13-0. And today, it was worse. By 2-1. I say worse. Because that’s a game they should have won.  And might have. If the players had been in a better frame of mind.  Rather than a funk. Psychology has something to do with winning and losing. Especially in the game of baseball.  Really, the Cubs need a full-fledged, full-time team psychiatrist. They had  a part-time one. For a while. Anyway, I’m only an amateur at the psychological game. But I’m available. And I work for free. Bring me on, you Chicago Cubs. -- Jim Broede