https://northsidebaseball.com/chicago-cubs-news/cubs/page/119/?d=7enhttps://northsidebaseball.com/chicago-cubs-news/cubs/cubs-week-in-review-matthew-boyd-aboard-new-first-base-coach-rounds-out-staff-r1290/To be a Cubs fan is to be both unmoved by the front office's reluctance to make big, splashy moves, and to itch for them, anyway. As we stand at the outset of the MLB Winter Meetings, the Cubs badly need to do something to change the complexion of a not-quite-competitive team. With the offse...1290Sun, 08 Dec 2024 23:04:02 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/chicago-cubs-news/cubs/trading-seiya-suzuki-would-be-a-mistake-r1289/Even if the Cubs need to create more payroll flexibility, trading Seiya Suzuki is a bad way to get there. Earlier this week, Joel Sherman dropped a rather wild nugget into his argument that the New York Yankees should pursue Cody Bellinger even if they do, in fact, sign Juan Soto. Sherman re...1289Sat, 07 Dec 2024 12:57:02 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/chicago-cubs-news/cubs/the-its-not-a-life-and-so-it-cant-be-a-death-of-that-wild-garrett-crochet-to-cubs-trade-rumor-r1288/For a day on which nothing actually happened, a lot sure did happen on Thursday, eh? Let's clean up a mess. On Thursday afternoon, all hell broke loose for a bit on what is left of Cubs Twitter. Most of the good baseball talk these days is happening at Bluesky, but because Jeff Passan hasn't...1288Fri, 06 Dec 2024 12:27:32 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/chicago-cubs-news/cubs/what-exactly-went-wrong-with-the-2024-cubs-bullpen%E2%80%94and-how-do-they-fix-it-r1285/Jed Hoyer has stated that he got the bullpen wrong in 2024. Yes, Jed, you probably did! Along with the offense, the bullpen was simply awful in May and June. So what happened here? And how does fixing it go? Statistially, the Cubs did not have a good relief corps. Baseball Reference ranked t...1285Fri, 06 Dec 2024 00:10:02 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/chicago-cubs-news/cubs/lets-dispel-a-misconception-about-cubs-matthew-boyd-deal-r1283/Part of the value of the contract to which the Cubs agreed earlier this week lies in the clarity it provides them—the options it forecloses. Some observers don't seem to have noticed. There are a variety of valid analyses of the Cubs' agreement to sign Matthew Boyd to a two-year deal at the...1283Thu, 05 Dec 2024 12:37:04 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/chicago-cubs-news/cubs/the-cubs-have-control-of-pete-crow-armstrong-through-2030-based-on-his-service-time-shortfall-r1282/It's a small thing, but it's important: the Cubs still have control of their center fielder for up to six more seasons. Somewhat infamously, in 2015, the Cubs waited until the day they could delay Kris Bryant's free agency by a year before they called him up. It wasn't even close to being th...1282Thu, 05 Dec 2024 00:06:01 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/chicago-cubs-news/cubs/hyeseong-kim-is-officially-available-lets-review-why-cubs-might-want-him-r1281/The speedy, smooth-fielding Korean infielder must sign with an MLB team by Jan. 3, 2025. The Cubs should at least give him a call. Three weeks ago, I wrote about why Hyeseong Kim could be a great fit for the Cubs this winter. Now, the second baseman has been officially posted by the Kiwoom H...1281Wed, 04 Dec 2024 17:59:00 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/chicago-cubs-news/cubs/what-would-garrett-crochet-cost-the-cubs%E2%80%94and-would-he-be-worth-it-r1280/Reported;y, the Cubs are a "viable" destination for one of the sport's best starting pitchers. But he wouldn't come cheap. All offseason, close observers have been keenly aware that Garrett Crochet is going to be traded this winter. The chances that he remains in the White Sox organization c...1280Wed, 04 Dec 2024 14:42:29 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/chicago-cubs-news/cubs/if-the-cubs-add-another-starting-pitcher-where-will-it-leave-javier-assad-and-matthew-boyd-r1279/The Chicago Cubs signing of Matthew Boyd is not a complicated one to evaluate. Until it is.  An offseason that began with aspirations of signing Max Fried quickly dissolved into collectively talking ourselves into a member of the middle tier of starters. Even with a mindset of frugality, tho...1279Wed, 04 Dec 2024 12:53:31 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/chicago-cubs-news/cubs/the-chicago-cubs-need-more-than-matthew-boyd-do-they-know-that-r1278/The veteran lefty serves as a fine back-end starter, but the Cubs need more in order to compete with the elite teams in the National League. In the very early hours of Monday morning, the Cubs landed their first big free-agent fish of the offseason, agreeing with starter Matthew Boyd on a tw...1278Tue, 03 Dec 2024 12:36:02 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/chicago-cubs-news/cubs/signing-matthew-boyd-pushes-cubs-to-decision-point-about-hayden-wesneski-r1277/There are plenty of players below the young righty on the team's 40-man roster, who can be cut to make room for their newest starting pitcher. Still, the arrival nudges them closer to the horns of a dilemma that has been lurking for a while. Though it was only Monday morning that Cubs fans w...1277Tue, 03 Dec 2024 00:07:02 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/chicago-cubs-news/cubs/cubs-sign-starting-pitcher-matthew-boyd-to-two-year-deal-r1273/In a deal reported deep in the night, the Cubs have set a high floor for the back end of their rotation, with a pitcher who provides depth and gives them many more options for their next moves. The Chicago Cubs agreed to a two-year deal with veteran left-handed starting pitcher Matthew Boyd,...1273Mon, 02 Dec 2024 09:11:00 +0000