The South Bend Cubs are currently hanging around the .500 mark and are just 3 1/2 games out of first place in the Eastern Division of the Midwest League. The Cubs have improved a lot in all areas of the game from the first half. The starting pitching has stabilized thanks to Michael Wagner and Tyler Thorpe; the bullpen is much improved with Ryan McNeil, Daniel Lewis, and Corbin Hoffner; certain batters have improved from the first half.
Some players — like Jeffrey Baez — have improved noticeably, while others just continue steadily climbing in their development. One of the players who has incrementally improved all year is outfielder Rashad Crawford.