2014 Roster Discussion

[SouthSideRyan]

I don't think he wants me to say hello to him.

[davell]

I don't think he wants me to say hello to him.

Thanks man. But UGH. Was hoping for SOMETHING new. Change a few prospect ranking numbers and that sounds like the same letter he could have sent you guys last year.

[Clem Fandango]

Tom Ricketts = neely crenshaw

[SouthSideRyan]

I don't think he wants me to say hello to him.

Thanks man. But UGH. Was hoping for SOMETHING new. Change a few prospect ranking numbers and that sounds like the same letter he could have sent you guys last year.

 

Meh, it's PR fluff, I'd never expect anything of actual worth from it.

[SouthSideRyan]

For reference, here's last year's letter:

 

As part of the Cubs' ongoing efforts to engage and communicate with their fans, Chairman Tom Ricketts wrote the following letter to Cubs Season Ticket Holders:

Dear Season Ticket Holder -

With the 2012 season having drawn to a close, it's time for all of us at the Chicago Cubs to thank you for your support and provide an update on the progress we've made toward building a championship-caliber organization. You are a vital stakeholder to this franchise and an important partner in our transformation.

Despite this year's results in the standings, we are confident the Chicago Cubs are heading in the right direction. Our players, coaches, management and front office have approached their jobs with professionalism, effort and unity, which has created a winning atmosphere inside the organization. It's our responsibility to turn that effort into additional wins on the field. Our number one goal is to reward loyal generations of Cubs fans with a World Series and we're reinvesting every dollar spent by our fans into the franchise to achieve that goal.

To achieve our goal, it was clear the team needed a long-term strategy. Over the past year, we recruited new baseball leadership to create and execute a plan for building a consistently-competitive ballclub. We now have a long-term strategy in place and a baseball organization focused on delivering a championship to Wrigley Field. That team is communicating openly and honestly about implementing a proven model for sustained success.

As part of that strategy, we are developing a core of young players at the major league level. This season provided an opportunity for homegrown and acquired players to gain valuable experience and establish themselves as potential long-term contributors to the club.

Our minor league system improved in 2012, as the Cubs acquired, drafted or signed a significant wave of new talent into the organization. We welcomed a strong 2012 first-year player draft class into the system, building on a franchise-record investment in draft signings in 2011. Many of these players made immediate positive contributions. In fact, five Cubs prospects were included in MLB's recently-released Top 100 Prospects list; a total topped by only three other teams in the league. A number of our newly-acquired players excelled in both the minor and major leagues and look to contribute further in 2013 and beyond.

We've welcomed new talent in the front office as well. Perhaps no operation bears more responsibility for advancing our organizational plan than scouting and player development. After a season of evaluation, our scouting and development teams have been reorganized to procure and develop the best amateur, professional and international talent available. Our scouts and coaches have been equipped with state-of-the-art analysis tools and equipment to enhance the club's analytical capabilities.

In addition to personnel investments, we've made significant upgrades to our facilities. We are currently building a new baseball academy to serve our Latin American players in the Dominican Republic. The facility, open year-round, will span 50 acres with baseball fields, training facilities, player housing and an education center, making it the largest academy in the country. Additionally, we broke ground this season on a new Spring Training facility in Mesa, Ariz., that will be one of the premier training facilities in baseball, as well as a more enjoyable venue for watching a Spring Training game. We continue to make improvements to Wrigley Field's facilities for our players and fans, with larger scale investments coming down the road. All of these improvements will enhance your fan experience and bolster the club's ability to attract and develop elite players throughout the world.

Lastly, we continue to invest in the Chicago community to help deserving children and families. The Cubs and Chicago Cubs Charities will support a team-record $4.5 million of donations to worthwhile nonprofits and programs across Chicagoland this year. We're honored to support the people and organizations that make our city a great place to work, live and play baseball.

In the end, we are fans and our goal is to win. We're committed to building an organization you can be proud of and we're committed to building a champion the right way. This franchise has embarked on a path that will present challenges along the way, but the destination is promising.

We deeply and sincerely appreciate your ongoing support.

 

Tom Ricketts

Chairman, Chicago Cubs

[CubsWin]

As I look over the potential Cubs 2014 roster, the thing that excites me the most (outside of the potential trades/signings this off-season) is that there are still players that could establish themselves as long term pieces already in the fold.

 

I was pleased with how the Cubs had players move into "core" player status over the last two seasons. They started with just Castro. In 2012, Samardzija and Rizzo entered that category. Last season it was Wood and Castillo. But with the Cubs doing as poorly as they did last season and the poor performances from Castro and some others, it seemed like the Cubs rebuild had stalled, or worse, derailed. I had momentarily forgotten that the Cubs have a shot at adding one or two more players to that list without making one move this off-season. I'm not saying it's a done deal that these players take the next step, but then again, it wasn't a sure thing that Wood and Castillo would have had the seasons they did this year either. Jake Arrieta, Pedro Strop, Junior Lake and Mike Olt all have a shot at taking that next step in 2014. There might actually be a reason to watch Cubs baseball before Bryant and Baez arrive after all...

[d_money]

What's the deal with Szcur? He's on the 40 and has been with the org 3+ years. What's the prognosis? I don't pay attention much be he doesn't seem to be in many conversations as a contributor long-term. Thanks

[Guest]

The optimistic projection for Szczur is now something like platoon/4th OF. While he's got the tools and does some things pretty well, the performance just hasn't been there. Fortunately for him there hasn't been an urgent need for a 40 man spot in the OF, but I imagine he's the first one that will be pulled off if there is a need, even ahead of Brett Jackson.

[d_money]

Thanks

[SouthSideRyan]

Not that any of it will probably matter in the end but I bet Jackson leaves the 40 man before Szczur (obviously with caveat of either going out of their mind in one direction or the other.

[biittner77]

Brett Jackson is still on the 40 man roster? I could have sworn they de rostered him sometime last season.

[terencemann]

Brett Jackson is still on the 40 man roster? I could have sworn they de rostered him sometime last season.

 

A while back Keith Law stated that a lot of teams would almost definitely claim Jackson if he were waived based on his athleticism and probably, just my speculation, because other teams might think they can help him fix his swing.

[davell]

Brett Jackson is still on the 40 man roster? I could have sworn they de rostered him sometime last season.

 

A while back Keith Law stated that a lot of teams would almost definitely claim Jackson if he were waived based on his athleticism and probably, just my speculation, because other teams might think they can help him fix his swing.

 

Welcome! I'm assuming this is terencem from PSD, right?

[Tangled Up in Plaid]

Brett Jackson is still on the 40 man roster? I could have sworn they de rostered him sometime last season.

 

A while back Keith Law stated that a lot of teams would almost definitely claim Jackson if he were waived based on his athleticism and probably, just my speculation, because other teams might think they can help him fix his swing.

 

Guaranteed there is some front office out there who thinks they have the secret to fix him. They're welcome to him.

[Clem Fandango]

Brett Jackson is still on the 40 man roster? I could have sworn they de rostered him sometime last season.

 

A while back Keith Law stated that a lot of teams would almost definitely claim Jackson if he were waived based on his athleticism and probably, just my speculation, because other teams might think they can help him fix his swing.

 

Guaranteed there is some front office out there who thinks they have the secret to fix him. They're welcome to him.

 

I know how to fix Brett Jackson...

 

http://i.imgur.com/0UpSqpZ.jpg

[Little Slide Rooter]

If the season started today, I can't say that I wouldn't like the pitching;

 

Shark

Jackson

Wood

Villanueva

Arrieta/Vizcaino?/Grimm

 

Veres

Vizcaino?

Strop

Wright

Russell

Fujikawa

Cabrera/Rosscup

[rawaction]

That rotation sucks. And Vizcaino is not going to be in the rotation, now or ever.

[Sosa21MVP]

What are the odds that the 2014 team can approach 80 wins? Is that dreaming the impossible dream? Obviously the full roster isn't set yet but...not being totally boned by the end of April would be a nice change of pace.

[Cubswin11]

What are the odds that the 2014 team can approach 80 wins? Is that dreaming the impossible dream? Obviously the full roster isn't set yet but...not being totally boned by the end of April would be a nice change of pace.

30% if I had to put a number to it with no mathematical basis.

[Hairyducked Idiot]

So at this point, the outfield is made up more or less entirely of fourth and fifth outfielders, the infield has absolutely no quality depth, the rotation is weak at the back-end, but we've got nearly triple redundancy in the bullpen. Weird.

[davell]

Both the offense and rotation have upside, at least. Kind of hard to complain about quality infield depth too, when any or all of Javy, KB, Alcantara, and Villanueva could make their ML debuts in 2014.

 

I'll admit to wanting another OFer myself though. If our group winds up out producing more than a quarter of teams in the majors, I'll be surprised.

 

Not expecting Tanaka at this point, but definitely expect Baker, Hammel, something like that added, maybe 2 guys like that. Help the depth anyway, even if its averagish.

[Sammy Sofa]

So at this point, the outfield is made up more or less entirely of fourth and fifth outfielders, the infield has absolutely no quality depth, the rotation is weak at the back-end, but we've got nearly triple redundancy in the bullpen. Weird.

 

Yeah, the bullpen thing keeps making me hope that there are some crazy Tanaka+-type moves coming.

[North]

So at this point, the outfield is made up more or less entirely of fourth and fifth outfielders, the infield has absolutely no quality depth, the rotation is weak at the back-end, but we've got nearly triple redundancy in the bullpen. Weird.

 

I know. It looks like the front office is just filling in whatever available money we have on short term, relief investments (i.e., 1-2 year option laden deals) that have the potential to improve any win probability now. There might be something to it. I'm actually interested in seeing how something like this will play out. Overall, the positional talent and starting pitching talent is pretty bad. There needs to be a lot of progression for the majority of the team, which is idealistic at this point.

[Cubswin11]

Not expecting Tanaka at this point, but definitely expect Baker, Hammel, something like that added, maybe 2 guys like that. Help the depth anyway, even if its averagish.

I kinda like Hammel (averages 93 MPH on his FB), he was someone I wanted early on when I saw projected FA lists. He'd be a good addition to the mid/back end of the rotation, imo.

[ctcf]

I'd be pretty happy with a Hammel addition.