(670 The Score) The Cubs continue to struggle away from Wrigley Field, completing a 2-5 swing along the West Coast last week. They now return to Chicago for 10 straight home games, starting against the White Sox on Tuesday.
Let's check the latest trends with the Cubs:
THREE UP
1.) Yu moves forward
Cubs right-hander Yu Darvish threw seven innings of one-run ball while striking out 10 Dodgers in his team's 2-1 win Saturday, an outing he felt was important personally. It marked Darvish's return to Dodger Stadium for the first time since losing Game 7 of the 2017 World Series and the best performance of his Cubs tenure.
"Now I can move forward," Darvish told reporters after the game.
Darvish is now 2-3 with a 4.65 ERA and 1.39 WHIP in 2019. He hasn't factored in the decision for nine consecutive starts.
2.) Hamels hanging up zeroes
Left-hander Cole Hamels entered June following one of his worst starts in a Cubs uniform, getting tagged for six earned runs over four innings on in Houston on May 27. Since the turn of the calendar from May to June, he has been excellent.
Hamels has thrown 22 innings without surrendering an earned run in June. His lone blemish this month came in giving up an unearned run in the Cubs' 2-1 loss to the Cardinals on June 2.
The 35-year-old Hamels is 6-2 with a 2.98 ERA this season.
3.) New year, new Willson
The differences between catcher Willson Contreras' 2018 and 2019 seasons have been dramatic, which was just as he had hoped. After recording two hits Sunday, Contreras has slash line of .287/.387/.530 (.916 OPS), far better than the .249/.339/.390 he posted last season.
Contreras has 13 homers, having already eclipsed the 10 he hit last year.
THREE DOWN
1.) Road woes
The Cubs have enjoyed a big home-field advantage at Wrigley Field, where they're 24-11 in 2019. But away from Chicago, they've struggled. After finishing the road trip in Colorado and Los Angeles at 2-5, the Cubs are now 15-21 away from home.
Fortunately for the Cubs, they open up a 10-game homestand Tuesday. Sitting one game back of the Brewers for first place in the NL Central, playing at home could spark the Cubs back up in the standings.
2.) Off line
Manager Joe Maddon has enjoyed the versatility of his Cubs, but it backfired during in a 3-2 loss to the Dodgers on Sunday evening. In a tie game in the bottom of the eighth, Kris Bryant was playing left field as Russell Martin lined a base hit his way. Chris Taylor had just touched third base and was heading home as Bryant collected the ball.
Bryant would've nailed Taylor with an accurate throw, but it went up the first-base line and left Contreras reaching late for the tag and missing. That plated the Dodgers' go-ahead run. Meanwhile, Bryant is without an outfield assist since June 20, 2016.
3.) Russell scuffling
Cubs infielder Addison Russell hasn't provided the kind of production the team had hoped for in 2019. In 31 games, Russell has a slash line of .230/.296/.379 (.675 OPS).
Though Russell is one shy of his 2018 home run total of five, he hasn't hit to a level that deserves regular playing time -- even with veteran infielder Daniel Descalso struggling.
Chris Emma covers the Bears, Chicago's sports scene and more for 670TheScore.com. Follow him on Twitter @CEmma670.
