The Chicago Cubs have had few bright spots in Theo Epstein's first year of command. They're 30-plus games back of the NL Central lead and have strung together losing streak after losing streak. There's one bright spot of particular note though: Alfonso Soriano, as Doug Padilla of ESPN Chicago notes.
Soriano hit his 30th home run of the season on Wednesday, though the Cubs did eventually lose, 6-5, to the Cincinnati Reds. This goes hand-in-hand with his 100-RBI mark, which was reached over the weekend. He had a slow start to the season, and didn't belt a home run over the team's first 30 games. As Padilla notes, Soriano is just the second player in MLB history to hit 30 home runs after not hitting one over the first 30 games.
While the Cubs may not make that leap to competitiveness in a season or two, Soriano is proving to be a great example for the young players that Chicago is investing in. Guys like Josh Vitters and Anthony Rizzo will look to Soriano and his success and hopefully emulate it going forward to help put this team on the map.