General Cubs Chit-Chat

[Transmogrified Tiger]

Contreras was in the list of honorable mentions in the Fangraphs list: http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/2016-trade-value-honorable-mentions/

 

I think a Cubs list would be fun to put together. If I have time before the break ends and no one has beaten me to it, I'll try to put something together.

[David]

[tweet]

[/tweet]

[imb]

Bryant: no-doubt #2 behind buxton

Rizzo: top-5

Russell: top-25

Contreras: top-50

 

probably nobody else makes it

[UMFan83]

Another life ago

 

[UMFan83]

August Fagerstrom at Fangraphs tries to explain the Cubs struggles over the last month:

 

http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/the-cubs-just-played-a-month-of-very-mediocre-baseball/

 

Really nothing groundbreaking here. His conclusion is that its almost 100% on the starting pitching all inexplicably going through a down period at the same time as the schedule hasn't been particularly difficult, the offense, defense, baserunning and bullpen have for the most part maintained their level of performance through the first few months.

[sneakypower]

Contreras was in the list of honorable mentions in the Fangraphs list: http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/2016-trade-value-honorable-mentions/

 

I think a Cubs list would be fun to put together. If I have time before the break ends and no one has beaten me to it, I'll try to put something together.

this is my best estimation as to what league-wide poll might show; we've seen GMs prioritize star potential over high-floor solid projections so i dinged AA, Baez, Hendricks some

 

 

Bryant

Rizzo

----

Russell

----

Arrieta

Contreras

Schwarber

----

Rondon

Hendrix?

----

Soler

Eloy

Almora

Javy

Happ

Torres

----

Edwards Jr

Cease

Vogelbach

Zagunis

Candelario

[Gmoney08]

Contreras was in the list of honorable mentions in the Fangraphs list: http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/2016-trade-value-honorable-mentions/

 

I think a Cubs list would be fun to put together. If I have time before the break ends and no one has beaten me to it, I'll try to put something together.

this is my best estimation as to what league-wide poll might show; we've seen GMs prioritize star potential over high-floor solid projections so i dinged AA, Baez, Hendricks some

 

 

Bryant

Rizzo

----

Russell

----

Arrieta

Contreras

Schwarber

----

Rondon

Hendrix?

----

Soler

Eloy

Almora

Javy

Happ

Torres

----

Edwards Jr

Cease

Vogelbach

Zagunis

Candelario

 

Id put Javy in Schwarbers group, right behind Schwarber but ahead of Rondon & Hendricks.

[UMFan83]

not sure I'd put Jake ahead of Schwarber and probably even Contreras just because of his age and impending $200m contract that's likely if he snaps out of his funk, but you had them in the same group, which I'm assuming means they are nearly interchangeable so no complaints.

 

I would also maybe replace Hendricks with Eloy. I read a blurb from Kaplan that he heard from the FO that they are not looking to trade him and they are sold on him being a superstar. Hendricks has a shot to be a pretty good pitcher but I think because his stuff isn't sexy it will take consistent performance over a 2-3 year span for him to build up more trade value.

[sneakypower]

Id put Javy in Schwarbers group, right behind Schwarber but ahead of Rondon & Hendricks.

i'm of course lower on Baez, but it's also that SS is becoming talent-rich league-wide where you can't see much more than 3 or 4 or teams where he'd present an organizational upgrade, and also his value drops a bit if you're forcing a move

 

and you don't seem to hear him mentioned in any of the trade talks where other teams are setting a high line and he's the one they're after...possibly they conclude that he's more likely a losing player as he's shown to this point

[sneakypower]

not sure I'd put Jake ahead of Schwarber and probably even Contreras just because of his age and impending $200m contract that's likely if he snaps out of his funk, but you had them in the same group, which I'm assuming means they are nearly interchangeable so no complaints.

 

I would also maybe replace Hendricks with Eloy. I read a blurb from Kaplan that he heard from the FO that they are not looking to trade him and they are sold on him being a superstar. Hendricks has a shot to be a pretty good pitcher but I think because his stuff isn't sexy it will take consistent performance over a 2-3 year span for him to build up more trade value.

Hendricks i have no idea about because you have a guy top-25 in pitcher WAR in the span since he's entered the league, 26, injury-free, effectively free for 4.5? years and better in just about every measure of performance than Sonny Gray, who's assumed to be an elite trade chip...but there's always going to be doubt for whatever reason

 

1.5-years of Shark basically returned Russell and .5 years of Price & Cueto returned fairly sizable bounties, i have little doubt that if his medicals checked out (and he were made available), contenders would be in a bidding war for Jake

[UMFan83]

1.5-years of Shark basically returned Russell and .5 years of Price & Cueto returned fairly sizable bounties, i have little doubt that if his medicals checked out (and he were made available), contenders would be in a bidding war for Jake

 

That's a good point, I retract that statement.

[davell]

Id put Javy in Schwarbers group, right behind Schwarber but ahead of Rondon & Hendricks.

i'm of course lower on Baez, but it's also that SS is becoming talent-rich league-wide where you can't see much more than 3 or 4 or teams where he'd present an organizational upgrade, and also his value drops a bit if you're forcing a move

 

and you don't seem to hear him mentioned in any of the trade talks where other teams are setting a high line and he's the one they're after...possibly they conclude that he's more likely a losing player as he's shown to this point

 

Or its because he's considered an untouchable(with KB, Rizzo, Addy, Schwarber, and Willie) and teams have been told not to bother.

[David]

Id put Javy in Schwarbers group, right behind Schwarber but ahead of Rondon & Hendricks.

i'm of course lower on Baez, but it's also that SS is becoming talent-rich league-wide where you can't see much more than 3 or 4 or teams where he'd present an organizational upgrade, and also his value drops a bit if you're forcing a move

 

and you don't seem to hear him mentioned in any of the trade talks where other teams are setting a high line and he's the one they're after...possibly they conclude that he's more likely a losing player as he's shown to this point

 

Or its because he's considered an untouchable(with KB, Rizzo, Addy, Schwarber, and Willie) and teams have been told not to bother.

 

a - javy would never be considered an untouchable by this FO (because they aren't stupid - and i like javy)

 

b - that hasn't stopped schwarber from being mentioned in a horsefeathers ton of rumors.

[davell]

i'm of course lower on Baez, but it's also that SS is becoming talent-rich league-wide where you can't see much more than 3 or 4 or teams where he'd present an organizational upgrade, and also his value drops a bit if you're forcing a move

 

and you don't seem to hear him mentioned in any of the trade talks where other teams are setting a high line and he's the one they're after...possibly they conclude that he's more likely a losing player as he's shown to this point

 

Or its because he's considered an untouchable(with KB, Rizzo, Addy, Schwarber, and Willie) and teams have been told not to bother.

 

a - javy would never be considered an untouchable by this FO (because they aren't stupid - and i like javy)

 

b - that hasn't stopped schwarber from being mentioned in a [expletive] ton of rumors.

 

Look, no ones truly untouchable obviously. That shouldn't even need to be said. But Theo has said he doesn't want to trade from the major league team. He's talked about how valuable Javy is and flat out made fun of NY rumors on Schwarber. Heyman(I think) put out an article that said Javy is a non-starter. There's been other articles that have piggybacked off it too.

 

Javy was mentioned all last trade season as a target. He's certainly improved his value since then too. He's not a guy we want to move.

[David]

javy isn't declared untouchable by any smart FO even by "obviously it is understood that nobody is truly untouchable" standards

[Tim]

In this case, "untouchable" and "won't trade from the major league roster" probably means that if you're offering Ervin Santana, don't bother asking for those guys.

[davell]

Assuming Fernandez is on a buying team and the Angels aren't moving Trout.....There's no one out there on the market, the FO is using Javy in a deal for.

[UMFan83]

At the break, the Nats have MLB’s best ERA (3.29); they just passed the Cubs. On hearing this on Sunday, one Nat said, “Oh, you mean the greatest team of all time?”

 

Saw his quote in a story about the Nats. Cubs hate is strong around the MLB

[Post Count Padder]

In case you were wondering, Bryan LaHair is still an All-Star.

 

http://www.si.com/mlb/2016/07/12/bryan-lahair-all-star-chicago-cubs

 

BRIDGEWATER, N.J. — On July 10, 2012, Bryan LaHair went from a five-star hotel to 38,000-seat Kaufman Stadium in Kansas City. He walked into a clubhouse filled with the most famous players in baseball. He found the locker with his name on it and pulled on his Chicago Cubs jersey. Later that night, LaHair entered the 83rd Major League All-Star Game. He came to bat in the ninth inning but grounded out to short against Tampa Bay’s Fernando Rodney in his only plate appearance. Not that it mattered. He was 29 years old, firmly established as a major league regular for the first time and he had been celebrated as one of the best in the world at his sport.

 

On July 13th, 2016, Bryan LaHair will say goodbye to his family in central New Jersey and make his way to Clipper Magazine Stadium in Lancaster, Pa., where there will be cows, alpacas and sheep beyond leftfield. He will walk into a clubhouse filled with players you’ve never heard of and pull on the jersey of the Somerset Patriots. He will be in the starting lineup of the 19th Atlantic League All-Star Game. He is 33 years old, has mostly been forgotten about by baseball fans and is hoping for one more shot of glory in his sport.

[ConstableRabbit]

In case you were wondering, Bryan LaHair is still an All-Star.

 

http://www.si.com/mlb/2016/07/12/bryan-lahair-all-star-chicago-cubs

 

BRIDGEWATER, N.J. — On July 10, 2012, Bryan LaHair went from a five-star hotel to 38,000-seat Kaufman Stadium in Kansas City. He walked into a clubhouse filled with the most famous players in baseball. He found the locker with his name on it and pulled on his Chicago Cubs jersey. Later that night, LaHair entered the 83rd Major League All-Star Game. He came to bat in the ninth inning but grounded out to short against Tampa Bay’s Fernando Rodney in his only plate appearance. Not that it mattered. He was 29 years old, firmly established as a major league regular for the first time and he had been celebrated as one of the best in the world at his sport.

 

On July 13th, 2016, Bryan LaHair will say goodbye to his family in central New Jersey and make his way to Clipper Magazine Stadium in Lancaster, Pa., where there will be cows, alpacas and sheep beyond leftfield. He will walk into a clubhouse filled with players you’ve never heard of and pull on the jersey of the Somerset Patriots. He will be in the starting lineup of the 19th Atlantic League All-Star Game. He is 33 years old, has mostly been forgotten about by baseball fans and is hoping for one more shot of glory in his sport.

Nice LLF shoutout!

[Andy]

At the break, the Nats have MLB’s best ERA (3.29); they just passed the Cubs. On hearing this on Sunday, one Nat said, “Oh, you mean the greatest team of all time?”

 

Saw his quote in a story about the Nats. Cubs hate is strong around the MLB

Ha, ironic considering the Nationals were crowned 2015 World Series champions last March. But that's fine.

 

[Transmogrified Tiger]

150 million percent chance it was Murphy

[Schwarber Fan]

Darvish to start vs. Cubs Saturday

[UMFan83]

Darvish to start vs. Cubs Saturday

 

Darvish vs Hammel doesn't seem fair

[Sammy Sofa]

In case you were wondering, Bryan LaHair is still an All-Star.

 

http://www.si.com/mlb/2016/07/12/bryan-lahair-all-star-chicago-cubs

 

BRIDGEWATER, N.J. — On July 10, 2012, Bryan LaHair went from a five-star hotel to 38,000-seat Kaufman Stadium in Kansas City. He walked into a clubhouse filled with the most famous players in baseball. He found the locker with his name on it and pulled on his Chicago Cubs jersey. Later that night, LaHair entered the 83rd Major League All-Star Game. He came to bat in the ninth inning but grounded out to short against Tampa Bay’s Fernando Rodney in his only plate appearance. Not that it mattered. He was 29 years old, firmly established as a major league regular for the first time and he had been celebrated as one of the best in the world at his sport.

 

On July 13th, 2016, Bryan LaHair will say goodbye to his family in central New Jersey and make his way to Clipper Magazine Stadium in Lancaster, Pa., where there will be cows, alpacas and sheep beyond leftfield. He will walk into a clubhouse filled with players you’ve never heard of and pull on the jersey of the Somerset Patriots. He will be in the starting lineup of the 19th Atlantic League All-Star Game. He is 33 years old, has mostly been forgotten about by baseball fans and is hoping for one more shot of glory in his sport.

Nice LLF shoutout!

 

Nice.

 

Despite the atmosphere and the unexpected turn his career has taken, LaHair wants to make one thing clear: “I’m not mad at anybody.”

 

LOL no