Spring Training Game Thread

[JBears79]

10 minutes ago, 1908_Cubs said:

Probably Brujan. Workman can't be sent to the MiLB, and while Brujan can handle CF, I suspect that the Cubs, in an event of a PCA injury, would be okay with allowing Suzuki/Tucker/Happ/Berti to handle CF for a day or so before Alcantara took it over (he's already on the 40). 

Brujan hasn't looked awful this spring by any means, but he's been awful at the MLB level so far, is decently far removed from being a highly thought of prospect, and looks much closer to that dreaded Quad-A guy more than anything. 

There will be a few weeks where and injury can change the math, but I'd suspect today that the answer of "who goes" is Brujan be a notable amount. 

I have to imagine Brujan doesnt make it through waivers either. Id like to keep him at AAA but I imagine a team that can offer him more playing time to try to establish himself would pick him up. He'd fit well on a lot of "rebuilding" teams.

[Jason Ross]

8 minutes ago, JBears79 said:

I have to imagine Brujan doesnt make it through waivers either. Id like to keep him at AAA but I imagine a team that can offer him more playing time to try to establish himself would pick him up. He'd fit well on a lot of "rebuilding" teams.

I think that's fine. Brujan is kind of whatever. He'd be nice depth, but he's probably more on the redundant side of things. For example, and injury and there's a prospect ahead of him. So, for example, if an OF'er goes down, Caissie or Alcantara will be next up. On the infield, it's Triantos. If the Cubs didn't have that kind of immediate depth, he could probably more easily find his way into a real spot, but the Cubs are set up in a way he'd probably need two injuries to get on the roster. 

[Rcal10]

21 minutes ago, 1908_Cubs said:

Probably Brujan. Workman can't be sent to the MiLB, and while Brujan can handle CF, I suspect that the Cubs, in an event of a PCA injury, would be okay with allowing Suzuki/Tucker/Happ/Berti to handle CF for a day or so before Alcantara took it over (he's already on the 40). 

Brujan hasn't looked awful this spring by any means, but he's been awful at the MLB level so far, is decently far removed from being a highly thought of prospect, and looks much closer to that dreaded Quad-A guy more than anything. 

There will be a few weeks where and injury can change the math, but I'd suspect today that the answer of "who goes" is Brujan be a notable amount. 

I agree with this. And that’s why I would like to be able to work something out with Detroit on Workman. We are clearly seeing him at his best. But he never played above AA. My guess is he is going to struggle at some point. It would be nice to be able to send him down when that happens. I don’t see him making it all year in the team. I like him, he had a very good spring. But they may need some flexibility with him. Hope they can get something done. 

[Jason Ross]

6 minutes ago, Rcal10 said:

I agree with this. And that’s why I would like to be able to work something out with Detroit on Workman. We are clearly seeing him at his best. But he never played above AA. My guess is he is going to struggle at some point. It would be nice to be able to send him down when that happens. I don’t see him making it all year in the team. I like him, he had a very good spring. But they may need some flexibility with him. Hope they can get something done. 

He probably will struggle at times. But the cool thing about Workman is he offers an immediate floor of being a high level defender at 3b, SS, 2b and 1b. And the Cubs don't ask a lot about the fourth bench option (Luis Vazqeuz spent 25% of the year on the bench last season and barely played). I see no reason as of now to send a prospect to Detroit to keep him in Iowa, while also forcing through Brujan who has a pretty narrow pathway to relevancy in Chicago. 

Roll with Gage. If the glove doesn't show what it looks like it does, if he can't hit...he's not worth the fourth bench spot - and isn't an MLB player - then you return him to Detroit. If the glove is good, he'll offer a floor regardless of the bat struggles, and he probably wouldn't be playing much anyways. Keep him in the position and see the bat progression. 

[JBears79]

18 minutes ago, 1908_Cubs said:

I think that's fine. Brujan is kind of whatever. He'd be nice depth, but he's probably more on the redundant side of things. For example, and injury and there's a prospect ahead of him. So, for example, if an OF'er goes down, Caissie or Alcantara will be next up. On the infield, it's Triantos. If the Cubs didn't have that kind of immediate depth, he could probably more easily find his way into a real spot, but the Cubs are set up in a way he'd probably need two injuries to get on the roster. 

Agree. I'm more than ok with keeping Workman over him. I think the backup CF role issue is overblown. Tucker and Suzuki can play there in a pinch and we have Alcantara right there in AAA and we know he is capable of plus D out there along with tremendous upside with the bat. I wish Workman was a righty but we can work around that since he plays great D. I cant recall, have they played him at any COF spots this spring? I recall him maybe playing RF a couple times.

[Rcal10]

7 minutes ago, 1908_Cubs said:

He probably will struggle at times. But the cool thing about Workman is he offers an immediate floor of being a high level defender at 3b, SS, 2b and 1b. And the Cubs don't ask a lot about the fourth bench option (Luis Vazqeuz spent 25% of the year on the bench last season and barely played). I see no reason as of now to send a prospect to Detroit to keep him in Iowa, while also forcing through Brujan who has a pretty narrow pathway to relevancy in Chicago. 

Roll with Gage. If the glove doesn't show what it looks like it does, if he can't hit...he's not worth the fourth bench spot - and isn't an MLB player - then you return him to Detroit. If the glove is good, he'll offer a floor regardless of the bat struggles, and he probably wouldn't be playing much anyways. Keep him in the position and see the bat progression. 

To be clear, working something out with Detroit was not suggesting sending them anything of real value. I think the word prospect is loosely appropriate. I was thinking of maybe Thompson, who the Cubs are going to have to dfa anyway. Maybe whoever is the next guy they are going to have to release. Might be T. Miller, if he doesn’t make the roster. He is out of options. Can also be Brujan, assuming Workman beats him out. (And we all safely assume that is the case)  Or maybe a cash sort of deal. Nothing of real value. But if that didn’t do it, I agree they just roll with Workman without a safety net in the event he fails. As you said, if he doesn’t hit well he is still a solid defensive option. And probably won’t get many AB anyway. 

[Rcal10]

1 minute ago, JBears79 said:

Agree. I'm more than ok with keeping Workman over him. I think the backup CF role issue is overblown. Tucker and Suzuki can play there in a pinch and we have Alcantara right there in AAA and we know he is capable of plus D out there along with tremendous upside with the bat. I wish Workman was a righty but we can work around that since he plays great D. I cant recall, have they played him at any COF spots this spring? I recall him maybe playing RF a couple times.

Why do you wish Workman was righty? I think it is a plus he hits left handed. He is our bench left handed hitter. Also nice for him to play for Shaw at times. 

[JBears79]

1 minute ago, Rcal10 said:

Why do you wish Workman was righty? I think it is a plus he hits left handed. He is our bench left handed hitter. Also nice for him to play for Shaw at times. 

Yeah I get you. So he could back up Busch at 1B at times against tough lefties, mostly. It's the one thing were missing on the bench imo. It is nice he's the lefty that can back up all 3 INF positions, especially since Berti is RH. I like that quite a bit. 

[JunkyardWalrus]

2 minutes ago, JBears79 said:

Yeah I get you. So he could back up Busch at 1B at times against tough lefties, mostly. It's the one thing were missing on the bench imo. It is nice he's the lefty that can back up all 3 INF positions, especially since Berti is RH. I like that quite a bit. 

Justin Turner not enough for you?

[Bertz]

I'm cautiously optimistic about Merryweather this year.  Non-arm surgery gives me some hope the issues last year were dealt with personally.  Plus with the bullpen seemingly being deeper, he can hopefully pitch more often with rest and that should pay dividends.

[Jason Ross]

1 hour ago, Rcal10 said:

To be clear, working something out with Detroit was not suggesting sending them anything of real value. I think the word prospect is loosely appropriate. I was thinking of maybe Thompson, who the Cubs are going to have to dfa anyway. Maybe whoever is the next guy they are going to have to release. Might be T. Miller, if he doesn’t make the roster. He is out of options. Can also be Brujan, assuming Workman beats him out. (And we all safely assume that is the case)  Or maybe a cash sort of deal. Nothing of real value. But if that didn’t do it, I agree they just roll with Workman without a safety net in the event he fails. As you said, if he doesn’t hit well he is still a solid defensive option. And probably won’t get many AB anyway. 

I guess if it's someone we're DFA'ing, then maybe? But even then, I just don't see any reason to engage with Detroit right now on giving something back if the plan is to keep Workman regardless. 

[JBears79]

1 hour ago, JunkyardWalrus said:

Justin Turner not enough for you?

I'm gonna be honest I completely forgot about Turner lol. I havent heard anything from him this ST. 

[Stratos]

2 hours ago, 1908_Cubs said:

Probably Brujan. Workman can't be sent to the MiLB, and while Brujan can handle CF, I suspect that the Cubs, in an event of a PCA injury, would be okay with allowing Suzuki/Tucker/Happ/Berti to handle CF for a day or so before Alcantara took it over (he's already on the 40). 

Brujan hasn't looked awful this spring by any means, but he's been awful at the MLB level so far, is decently far removed from being a highly thought of prospect, and looks much closer to that dreaded Quad-A guy more than anything. 

There will be a few weeks where and injury can change the math, but I'd suspect today that the answer of "who goes" is Brujan be a notable amount. 

Yeah i guess the other OF can handle CF in a pinch.   Workman is a fill-in option in corner OF as well.  I think everyone wants to see him on the team.

If he can keep the K% not horrid he has starter potential.

[Jason Ross]

40 minutes ago, JBears79 said:

I'm gonna be honest I completely forgot about Turner lol. I havent heard anything from him this ST. 

I always forget someone. Ryan Braiser has been my blindspot this year. I'll type up a mock bullpen and he won't even exist on it. 

[thawv]

2 hours ago, 1908_Cubs said:

I always forget someone. Ryan Braiser has been my blindspot this year. I'll type up a mock bullpen and he won't even exist on it. 

Me too!  Also, Morgan is missed by me at times.  But Brasier by far the most. 

[Stratos]

Brujan seems like replacement level nothingness. 

[Rcal10]

4 hours ago, 1908_Cubs said:

I guess if it's someone we're DFA'ing, then maybe? But even then, I just don't see any reason to engage with Detroit right now on giving something back if the plan is to keep Workman regardless. 

Because while the plan right now would be to keep Workman there may be some sort of roster crunch that would make them want to send Workman down. Sure, now it is keep workman regardless. Might not always be the case. Why not see if Detroit wants Thompson or whoever else who might be dfa and work out something so that the Cubs don’t have any restrictions on how they use Workman. From Detroit’s POV, they get a guy without him having to clear other teams before they can get him. It works. That said, if he cost more than that, agreed, just keep him on the roster and if he falters offer him back.

[Jason Ross]

2 hours ago, Rcal10 said:

Because while the plan right now would be to keep Workman there may be some sort of roster crunch that would make them want to send Workman down. Sure, now it is keep workman regardless. Might not always be the case. Why not see if Detroit wants Thompson or whoever else who might be dfa and work out something so that the Cubs don’t have any restrictions on how they use Workman. From Detroit’s POV, they get a guy without him having to clear other teams before they can get him. It works. That said, if he cost more than that, agreed, just keep him on the roster and if he falters offer him back.

Again, if it's Thompson, whatever, he was going to be DFA'd. Maybe the Tigers like him enough to take him on their 40-man, but I'm not entirely certain that they do, so I'm not really all that interested in going down a line where we're pawning players off on Detroit we have no idea of their interest. It's very easy for us to just say "well just send them Thompson" but that assumes a ton.

Beyond that, I'm not sure there's any reason for the Cubs to need to option Gage Workman. If he's entirely out of his depth, like a 60 wRC+ and looks entirely lost, I'm not sure the Cubs are going to want to give up a prospect to option him. Workman is 25. My understanding is that they'd have to carry him on the 40-man - the Cubs are already in positions where they're DFA'ing Michael Arias and Alexander Canario - players they didn't want to carry on the 40 in Iowa or below. Workman, if he looks entirely lost in Chicago, is probably then in that same category as Canario - in the DFA bin - or in this case, in the "return to sender" bin. If he's not looking horrible, they'll carry him in that 4th bench spot, use his glove and let him sparingly. The Cubs weren't willing to keep Arias and Canario, I'd guess they'd be uninterested in carrying a similarly aged (to Canario) prospect who couldn't add value in Chicago, either. I'd guess the Cubs view him as a "free bench option" or a player they can ship back to Detroit if they don't want to keep him.

 

[Rcal10]

2 hours ago, 1908_Cubs said:

Again, if it's Thompson, whatever, he was going to be DFA'd. Maybe the Tigers like him enough to take him on their 40-man, but I'm not entirely certain that they do, so I'm not really all that interested in going down a line where we're pawning players off on Detroit we have no idea of their interest. It's very easy for us to just say "well just send them Thompson" but that assumes a ton.

Beyond that, I'm not sure there's any reason for the Cubs to need to option Gage Workman. If he's entirely out of his depth, like a 60 wRC+ and looks entirely lost, I'm not sure the Cubs are going to want to give up a prospect to option him. Workman is 25. My understanding is that they'd have to carry him on the 40-man - the Cubs are already in positions where they're DFA'ing Michael Arias and Alexander Canario - players they didn't want to carry on the 40 in Iowa or below. Workman, if he looks entirely lost in Chicago, is probably then in that same category as Canario - in the DFA bin - or in this case, in the "return to sender" bin. If he's not looking horrible, they'll carry him in that 4th bench spot, use his glove and let him sparingly. The Cubs weren't willing to keep Arias and Canario, I'd guess they'd be uninterested in carrying a similarly aged (to Canario) prospect who couldn't add value in Chicago, either. I'd guess the Cubs view him as a "free bench option" or a player they can ship back to Detroit if they don't want to keep him.

 

We aren’t going to agree in this so I am done discussing it. I’m not going to change your mind and you aren’t changing mine. Guess we will see how it plays out. One thing we do agree on is Workman deserves that final spot on the roster for now. 

[Bertz]

Read two things this morning that make it sound like Ben Brown is going to be the 5th starter

- Colin Rea didn't leave with the rest of the team for Japan.  He's arriving today, he stayed behind the extra few days to line up his throwing schedule.  Brett at BN notes this lines him up to piggyback with Shota on Tuesday.  Not impossible to get him back onto schedule from there, but feels noteworthy that his availability for length in the bullpen is being prioritized over being ready for a scheduled start against Arizona or the A's.

- Much more direct, Jeff Passan this AM said the Cubs are "seriously considering" giving Brown the 5th starter role

I feel MUCH better about this team with Brown in the 5 spot.  That said it makes the roster management more complicated.

[JBears79]

1 hour ago, Bertz said:

Read two things this morning that make it sound like Ben Brown is going to be the 5th starter

- Colin Rea didn't leave with the rest of the team for Japan.  He's arriving today, he stayed behind the extra few days to line up his throwing schedule.  Brett at BN notes this lines him up to piggyback with Shota on Tuesday.  Not impossible to get him back onto schedule from there, but feels noteworthy that his availability for length in the bullpen is being prioritized over being ready for a scheduled start against Arizona or the A's.

- Much more direct, Jeff Passan this AM said the Cubs are "seriously considering" giving Brown the 5th starter role

I feel MUCH better about this team with Brown in the 5 spot.  That said it makes the roster management more complicated.

Brown in the 5 spot would be nice. His stuff is filthy.

[Bull]

1 hour ago, TomtheBombadil said:

Makes sense as there’s no real use having Brown throw MiLB innings. TJ1 is 6+ years old, he’s constantly out  with arm stuff, is getting ancient certainly closer to catching the Age virus, and all their roster mgmt games and Ivybro/silver spoon baby ideologies can’t really mess with those aspects of reality 

Can we add a “?” or puzzled emoji reaction? Until then I’m going use the laughing emoji as a lol wut.

[squally1313]

2 hours ago, TomtheBombadil said:

Makes sense as there’s no real use having Brown throw MiLB innings. TJ1 is 6+ years old, he’s constantly out  with arm stuff, is getting ancient certainly closer to catching the Age virus, and all their roster mgmt games and Ivybro/silver spoon baby ideologies can’t really mess with those aspects of reality 

me reading this

[KCCub]

 

[Bertz]

Just now, KCCub said:

 

I'm actually really excited for this