22-year old righty swinging SS Starlin Castro slumped in the middle of the season for the Cubs, but he’s finishing strongly in September. Castro has played in 22 games so far this month and he is 29 for 89 (.326 avg, .865 OPS) with 8 runs scored, 1 homer, 11 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. He has now played in 153 games overall this year for the Cubs and he is 174 of 613 (.284 avg, .751 OPS) with 74 runs scored, 13 homers, 76 RBIs and 25 stolen bases. He has now played in 436 games in his first three years with the Cubs and he is 520 of 1,750 (.297 avg, .761 OPS) with 218 runs scored, 26 homers, 183 RBIs and 57 stolen bases. Castro has solidified himself as one of the key building blocks for the Cubs in their rebuilding project.

36-year old righty swinging LF Alfonso Soriano isn’t letting all of the losing effect his performance at the plate, as he has remained hot in September. He has played in 17 games for the Cubs so far this month and he is 18 of 69 (.261 avg, .838 OPS) with 9 runs scored, 5 homers and 19 RBIs. Soriano has played in 138 games overall this year for the Cubs and he is 135 of 517 (.261 avg, .811 OPS) with 61 runs scored, 29 homers, 101 RBIs and 5 stolen bases. The Cubs are likely going to try to deal Soriano over the winter and teams are going to be interested as he still swings a pretty solid bat.

29-year old righty closer Carlos Marmol has gotten his act back together lately. Since July 1st, Marmol has pitched in 24 games (0 starts) in which he is 1-1 with 12 saves, a 2.66 ERA and a 1.48 WHIP. He has now pitched in 52 games (0 starts) overall this year and he is 2-3 with 19 saves, a 3.88 ERA and a 1.66 WHIP. Marmol has given up 37 hits and he has walked 40 batters while whiffing 59 of them in only 46 1/3 innings, which are the kind of numbers to expect out of him….as he is unhittable and wild as hell.

The Chicago Cubs have claimed 28-year old righty reliever/starter Jason Berken off waivers from the Baltimore Orioles. Berken pitched in 1 game out of the pen for the Orioles this year and he was 0-0 with a 18.00 ERA and a 7.00 WHIP. He also pitched in 26 games (all starts) in AAA-ball for the Orioles this year in which he was 5-6 with a 3.50 ERA and a 1.38 WHIP. Berken has now pitched in 106 games (24 starts) in his first 4 years in the majors and he is 10-17 with a 5.40 ERA and a 1.66 WHIP. Berken will take over in the starting rotation for Jeff Samardzija, who is making his last start of the 2012 season for the Cubs tomorrow.

The Chicago Cubs have placed 27-year old righty reliever Blake Parker on the 60-day disabled list due to a bone contusion in his right elbow. Parker pitched in 7 games (0 starts) for the Cubs this year and he was 0-0 with a 6.00 ERA and a 2.50 WHIP. He gave up 10 hits (3 of which were homers) and he walked 5 batters while whiffing 6 of them in 6 innings for the Cubs this year. Parker also pitched in 21 games (0 starts) in AAA-ball this year for the Cubs in which he was 1-1 with 6 saves, a 3.42 ERA and a 0.93 WHIP. The Cubs shouldn’t miss Parker too much the rest of the way this year.

27-year old righty starting pitcher Jeff Samardzija has been pitching like an ace lately for the Cubs. Since July 1st, Samardzija has pitched in 12 games (all starts) in which he is 3-6 with a 2.64 ERA and a 1.07 WHIP. He has now pitched in 27 games (all starts) overall this year for the Cubs and he is 8-13 with a 3.91 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP. He has given up 153 hits and 55 walks in 165 2/3 innings so far this year while whiffing 171 batters, which is impressive. Samardzija would have a winning record right now if he were on a better team. He has adjusted well to his new role after working out of the pen early in his career with the Cubs.