Cubs acquire Matt Thaiss for Cash - DFA Wingenter, then Trade Thaiss to White Sox

[Rcal10]

7 minutes ago, Stratos said:

Exactly.  He's a replacement player. He can't do anything well except take walks and block balls.  He can't hit a baseball.  Not for avg or power, he can't run, he can't put the ball in play.  Below average pop-time and framing.  He's passable to be the 3rd catcher to fill in for injuries but he'd suck as the guy sharing starts with Amaya.

Have to assume he's AAA depth (let's hope).

That is exactly what I think he is. AAA depth. I think many are making way too big a deal about this move. It cost the Cubs nothing but a few $. It doesn’t change any off season plans, IMO. 

[Rcal10]

7 minutes ago, Stratos said:

I'm very much hoping Amaya is the backup catcher on this team.  Amaya can block balls and has above-avg power and that's it.  He's too slow to ever have much hope about his AVG.

I would like a clear starter above Amaya too. But the fact is he really doesn’t have to get that much better to be a league average bat. He only has about 800 AB in the majors. Is it really inconceivable he can improve 10% above his current level. That would make him a league average bat and an above average bat for a catcher. Again, I am not advocating Amaya should be the clear starter or that the Cubs should get better at catcher. But I do think he will be better next year than last year. No, he won’t be what he was after changing his stance. But I do think he will be closer to that player than the one who was barely hitting .200 before the stance change. 

[Cuzi]

28 minutes ago, TomtheBombadil said:

Thaiss offers LHH depth at a position that’s been in demand, has shown some approach in the pros, isn’t on the 40…The NFLization of the league has extended to fans so every move has to be a HR or bust, but afaIct these are rational fits for next to nothing (and I actually really like Rosario)

This has nothing to do with NFLization. Thaiss provides nothing. This isn't some special team move on a NFL roster. A guy like Thaiss would struggle to stick on a practice squad. If Thaiss is not DFA'd before the 22nd this is a garbage move. It only ever makes a sprinkle of sense if they bought him for one dollar to have the chance to throw him in AAA after they waive him.

Also, Thaiss can simply reject the outright assignment and elect FA, like Bethancourt did.

Edited November 21, 2024 by Cuzi

[Bertz]

It's mid November and the #2 catcher on the Cubs' depth chart as of this morning was William Simoneit who is 28 and had a 37% K rate in AAA last year.

Several of you are WAYYYYY overthinking this.

[Cuzi]

4 minutes ago, Bertz said:

It's mid November and the #2 catcher on the Cubs' depth chart as of this morning was William Simoneit who is 28 and had a 37% K rate in AAA last year.

Several of you are WAYYYYY overthinking this.

My thinking on this is supported by the teams refusal to even meet with Soto.

[Cuzi]

2 minutes ago, TomtheBombadil said:

I mean, more power to you to feel how you feel but it’s just like an angry more NFL-y faux outraged way of saying alot of what I said lol. Its honestly an even better move (from the org’s perspective) if he’s waived and in AAA, that’s relatively strong depth in a 69 man roster kind of MLB

Btw this line of thinking strikes me as why the refrain that the yooths don’t want to work anymore is rampant among comfortables and spectators. The *expectation* from spectators these days is you have to be overqualified for the position you’re in to qualify, which eventually as that crowd goes is going to run out of rope with the masses 

"Overqualified"

Thaiss has career -0.3 fWAR since 2019. Thaiss is like applying for a job that requires a Bachelor's Degree when you have a GED.

[Bertz]

7 minutes ago, Cuzi said:

My thinking on this is supported by the teams refusal to even meet with Soto.

lol, beyond parody

[Cuzi]

Just now, Bertz said:

lol, beyond parody

Perfect description of Cubs management currently.

[Rcal10]

1 hour ago, Cuzi said:

My thinking on this is supported by the teams refusal to even meet with Soto.

Not meeting with Soto is a level of incompetence all to itself. It is ridiculous that the Cubs don’t even make him a serious offer. But that is what this teams ownership/Front office does. Not getting a solid back up or even starting catcher is a totally different level of incompetence. And trading for Thaiss does not strike me as the catcher move they are going to make to fill the second catcher spot. I think people are overrating to tbis. Let’s wait and see. If we are into spring games and Thaiss is still the top back up, then I will criticize the tram. 

[LBiittner]

1 hour ago, Bertz said:

It's mid November and the #2 catcher on the Cubs' depth chart as of this morning was William Simoneit who is 28 and had a 37% K rate in AAA last year.

Several of you are WAYYYYY overthinking this.

If on March 27, he's in Japan w/ the Cubs, I'll be pissed. 

[Rcal10]

3 minutes ago, LBiittner said:

If on March 27, he's in Japan w/ the Cubs, I'll be pissed. 

Agreed. But if he is in AAA as insurance if/when a catcher goes down to injury, that would be fine with me. Until that time, I am going to believe they will do better at the catcher position. 

[LBiittner]

Thaiss has no options left.

Jed would be flushing away 1.3 mil

[Rcal10]

1 hour ago, LBiittner said:

Thaiss has no options left.

Jed would be flushing away 1.3 mil

Cant he still be DFA’ed and sign a minor league contract? I don’t know exactly how this works. 

[Tryptamine]

4 hours ago, Bertz said:

It's mid November and the #2 catcher on the Cubs' depth chart as of this morning was William Simoneit who is 28 and had a 37% K rate in AAA last year.

Several of you are WAYYYYY overthinking this.

I get it, but at the same time what has Jed done to make you give him the benefit of the doubt?

[Transmogrified Tiger]

1 hour ago, Tryptamine said:

I get it, but at the same time what has Jed done to make you give him the benefit of the doubt?

Jed has added a 3rd catcher that we immediately overthink its importance before.  More offseasons than not actually.

[Stratos]

7 hours ago, TomtheBombadil said:

What’s not to like? Both have relatively in demand profiles, not crazy old, and under sweet, powerful control if things go well. Morgan’s a three pitch RP with two offspeeds getting double digit whiffs and probably some promising shape to the changeup. Thaiss offers LHH depth at a position that’s been in demand, has shown some approach in the pros, isn’t on the 40…The NFLization of the league has extended to fans so every move has to be a HR or bust, but afaIct these are rational fits for next to nothing (and I actually really like Rosario)

 

Thaiss has platooned vs RHP the last few years and he still can't hit.

[Stratos]

4 hours ago, LBiittner said:

Thaiss has no options left.

Omg no.  Please no.  Amaya doesn't have options left either.

Grabbing a 1.5 WAR type FA catcher will cost them 8-10m AAV, probably a 2-year deal.  Thaiss is either a placeholder in case a better trade or signing can't be made, or he's Jed's 2nd catcher and Jed thinks he can get more WAR out of that 8-10m AAV by spending on another position, which doesn't seem especially likely to me.

Thaiss is a replacement player, a guy you invite to ST on a minor league deal, not someone you want on a 1.3m contract while waiting to acquire a better catcher.  The good thing is that he can always be traded later in the offseason if they get someone better i guess.  No reason worrying yet.

[Stratos]

1 hour ago, Transmogrified Tiger said:

Jed has added a 3rd catcher that we immediately overthink its importance before.  More offseasons than not actually.

On an MLB deal with no options though?  I can't remember.  Let's hope he's the 3rd stringer, but i'm not signing a career -0.3 WAR guy for 1.3m to be a 3rd stringer who has no options left.

Edited November 21, 2024 by Stratos

[Cuzi]

1 minute ago, TomtheBombadil said:

Even if I saw this as like a material analysis or whatever it doesn’t include the Cubs picked him up for almost literally a nickel. I guess we can cry about the 40 spot but who gives a hoot

It's not a 40 spot. It's a 26 man spot. He has no options left.

[Bertz]

8 hours ago, Tryptamine said:

I get it, but at the same time what has Jed done to make you give him the benefit of the doubt?

Again because it's November and he has barely spent a dime and not February with the team within spitting distance of the tax line.

Also just last year they acquired like 5 catchers like this through waiver roulette. It was a whole meme because people kept flipping out while they hadn't done anything big yet.

[BigbadB]

What is Ballesteros' estimated time table? 

[jersey cubs fan]

16 minutes ago, Bertz said:

Again because it's November and he has barely spent a dime and not February with the team within spitting distance of the tax line.

Also just last year they acquired like 5 catchers like this through waiver roulette. It was a whole meme because people kept flipping out while they hadn't done anything big yet.

And then lo and behold they went into the next season with virtually the same 83 win caliber team 

 

it’s okay to flip out and assume the worst with Jed’s cubs. Jed is a known entity and we know he won’t work to improve the team. He’ll attempt to tweak on the margins but won’t make them better until he stumbles upon a lighting in the bottle acquisition for an emerging superstar from within. 

[CubinNY]

Among the panoply of mediocrity that defines Jed Hoyer's time as the CBO of the Cubs this move doesn't even  register a shrug. 

Goony is exactly correct. Jed will run an 80ish win team with room for a trade deadline deal if things break well for the Cubs. That's what he does and who he is. 

[squally1313]

Your guys confidence in your diagnosis of Hoyer based on a sample size of essentially 2 offseasons of contention is either really impressive or really tiring. It's November 21st and he's made two trades of like the 6 that have been made league wide, so we can't lean on the whole 'oh man he must be hibernating, lol', so instead we just criticize literally paying PTRs cash for a semi-functional catcher and getting a reliever with a sub 2 ERA for our 14th best prospect as 'well it's not Soto, so my priors are confirmed'. No one has signed or traded for anything good. There's 4 more months of this.

[jersey cubs fan]

9 minutes ago, squally1313 said:

Your guys confidence in your diagnosis of Hoyer based on a sample size of essentially 2 offseasons of contention 

Jed’s been here for over a decade 

 

the lack of contention under his watch is his problem, not an excuse to pretend he’s only been working for 2 years