Spring Training Game Thread

[Rcal10]

29 minutes ago, chibears55 said:

Theyll have played 30 games come May 2nd against a few very good teams, hopefully they can come away with a split.

It is actually 31 games and all except 3 against the A’s are against quality opponents. Not just a few very good teams. I would be fine with 14-17 after April. 

[Stratos]

10 hours ago, Rcal10 said:

I agree with you that ownership takes advantage of the fans loyalty. I just don’t agree that me not going or spending money on the team would matter. If I didn’t go the next person up would go. And actually if attendance started dropping that would give him another excuse to not spend money. So I am going to do what I enjoy doing and go to games and watch games. As I said, I agree the ownership is hard to like. And I understand your theory. I just don’t think it works here, or even if it did it would takes years to chance. I don’t feel like boycotting for 5 to 7 years HOPING lowering revenues would make atom realize he needs to spend money and win to get and back. And even if it rid work I would be years older and not wanting to go to games as much anymore. 

I get what you're saying.  Everyone does a cost/benefit analysis of their purchasing decisions.  If the cost of you not enjoying the Cubs product and losing your slot as a season ticket holder is higher than the benefit of the mild financial hit it would put on the Cubs brass improve their product then that's 100% fine, i'm not going to begrudge you.

But if enough of us did change some of our buying decisions it would likely make a difference.  The low attendance after the 1994 strike did influence future collective agreement negotiation tactics.

[Rcal10]

18 minutes ago, Stratos said:

I get what you're saying.  Everyone does a cost/benefit analysis of their purchasing decisions.  If the cost of you not enjoying the Cubs product and losing your slot as a season ticket holder is higher than the benefit of the mild financial hit it would put on the Cubs brass improve their product then that's 100% fine, i'm not going to begrudge you.

But if enough of us did change some of our buying decisions it would likely make a difference.  The low attendance after the 1994 strike did influence future collective agreement negotiation tactics.

True. But I am not sure you realize what a cash cow Wrigley is. And not just because Cubs fans go. I have often talked to people cheering for the opponent and asked if they ever watched their team in Sox park. Most of the time the answer is no, they just want to come to Wrigley. In many cases that fan pays a Stubhub price to sit in a decent seat at Wrigley that cost them 4 times as much as a similar seat would cost at sox park. But they don’t care. They want to be at Wrigley. That is why I feel if I didn’t go someone else would. And I am fortunate enough to be able to go to 20-30 games a year so why would I deprive myself of what I enjoy. Trust me, I understand your point. And I have many friends who think like you. You’re not wrong. Just not what I do. 

[Stratos]

6 hours ago, Rcal10 said:

Agreed. They have to start hitting on some international talent. Hopefully they will soon. But even if they did get one last season we might not see him for 4 more years. Maybe more. I do agree they didn’t do so well 5 to 7 years ago because we should be seeing some of that talent, and we are not. 

It's almost like this entire org collapsed after 2017.  Glad things have seemingly improved on the international end.

It's unlikely this current crop is going to be the 2015-2017 Cubs.  Difficult to run into a 6-8 WAR player like Bryant, especially with mid-1st round picks and leadership that doesn't want to commit the money to get one in FA.

If they won't tank or sign stars the only way to get elite players (and become an elite 95+ win team) is going to be trading for one like Tucker, which is why I'm ok with that trade.  Only other way is just getting lucky in the draft and international prospects.  Jed has shown he knows how to draft, sign, or trade for solid prospects with 3-4 WAR upside that can land in the top 100.  If we can trade some for elite talent here and there then that's what we have to do.

Then again, we don't necessarily have to be an elite team to win a WS.  An 88 or 90-win team can win, Cubs just need to get into the playoffs.

[Stratos]

6 minutes ago, Rcal10 said:

True. But I am not sure you realize what a cash cow Wrigley is. And not just because Cubs fans go. I have often talked to people cheering for the opponent and asked if they ever watched their team in Sox park. Most of the time the answer is no, they just want to come to Wrigley. In many cases that fan pays a Stubhub price to sit in a decent seat at Wrigley that cost them 4 times as much as a similar seat would cost at sox park. But they don’t care. They want to be at Wrigley. That is why I feel if I didn’t go someone else would. And I am fortunate enough to be able to go to 20-30 games a year so why would I deprive myself of what I enjoy. Trust me, I understand your point. And I have many friends who think like you. You’re not wrong. Just not what I do. 

I agree with you, and I think that Wrigley has been our curse in some ways, for many decades.  When you can fill the stands without a good team it reduces the incentive to build a winner.

[gflore34]

Issues I have with the likes of Pressly, Thielbar, Morgan and Brasier is none of them have plus stuff, they're all bargain bin types.  It never works, the bullpen may eventually sort itself out and be effective but, how many games are going to be blown in the process?  What, numbers, analytics suggest this is an effective approach?  By he way, Pressly' baseball reference page, the player similarity scores?  Of course, Hector horsefeathers Neris is #2.

Edited March 25, 2025 by gflore34

[muntjack]

The biggest problem I have with acquiring these veteran relievers on the back-end of their careers is that they are allowed far too many innings before the plug is pulled.  A lot of damage can be done because of this,  ala Neris.  

A young guy will get his shot and if he isn't effective pretty immediately,  that's it.  Jeremiah Estrada got 15 innings with the Cubs, for example.   

 

 

 

[Bertz]

1 hour ago, gflore34 said:

Issues I have with the likes of Pressly, Thielbar, Morgan and Brasier is none of them have plus stuff, they're all bargain bin types.  It never works, the bullpen may eventually sort itself out and be effective but, how many games are going to be blown in the process?  What, numbers, analytics suggest this is an effective approach?  By he way, Pressly' baseball reference page, the player similarity scores?  Of course, Hector horsefeathers Neris is #2.

Stuff models love both Pressly and Thielbar.  Morgan and Brasier combined for a 2.57 ERA last year.

[CubinNY]

I'm not worried about anything until mid May. A lot of these guys are "working" on a pitch and they don't care about the outcome. They may throw the same pitch in the same location three times in a row and whatnot. 

Also, it's the end of camp, and not a lot of motivation about the game with travel plans and family settlement.

It's time to start playing for real.

Edited March 25, 2025 by CubinNY

[JBears79]

Yeah I'm not concerned about spring stats. These guys arent really pitching how they typically would in a game. They are likely working on different things. 

 

[Irrelevant Dude]

Apparently Brujan banged his elbow up a few days ago and could be heading to the IL.  What would the 40 man implications be if that were to happen?  Isn't putting him on the IL just delaying the inevitable?

[mul21]

14 minutes ago, Irrelevant Dude said:

Apparently Brujan banged his elbow up a few days ago and could be heading to the IL.  What would the 40 man implications be if that were to happen?  Isn't putting him on the IL just delaying the inevitable?

It's not delaying anything if they don't put him on the 60 day since he still counts toward the 40 man unless he goes there.

[Irrelevant Dude]

7 minutes ago, mul21 said:

It's not delaying anything if they don't put him on the 60 day since he still counts toward the 40 man unless he goes there.

Right, but if they need a 40 man spot elsewhere (Keller?), wouldn't you rather give Brujan's spot up than put him on the IL and have to lose someone else?

[Bertz]

I'd assume Brujan still gets cut, but if he's IL-able you can potentially cut a pitcher like Ethan Roberts or Gavin Hollowell to open the 40 man spot.

[Jfoley89]

Cam Smith is breaking camp with the Astros. This trade is gonna look rough if Tucker walks

[mul21]

Just now, Jfoley89 said:

Cam Smith is breaking camp with the Astros. This trade is gonna look rough if Tucker walks

I'll place a wager on how many days of service time Cam Smith racks up this year.  172 days is a full year and I say he ends the season with 86 or less.

[Jason Ross]

11 minutes ago, Jfoley89 said:

Cam Smith is breaking camp with the Astros. This trade is gonna look rough if Tucker walks

It might. But I'm also pretty sure that Smtih's assignment here is among the tougher ones we have seen. Hes barely accrued 20 PAs outside of high-A prior to ST, hes running a bad contact% in ST, and he's learning a new position. 

Maybe it all works out for him, but him being down in Triple-A by mid-May feels very realistic. 

Long term, hes a good prospect, but no one thinks he's generational. He can be a good player! And I doubt this first bit, even if it's rough, will be the decider in him. But I do think he's become one of the biggest risers I've seen in terms of evaluation from draft day (he went from mid-1st round pick to people thinking he can hit 40 home runs) and that's going to be a tough ceiling to hit.

[Post Count Padder]

29 minutes ago, Jfoley89 said:

Cam Smith is breaking camp with the Astros. This trade is gonna look rough if Tucker walks

I don't like how they approached the offseason after the trade, but Tuckers is an elite player who commanded an elite return. It happens. If Matt Shaw rakes then it'll sting less.

Also, Smith has barely played about A+. He has great potential but I don't think he's gonna be up for long.

[We Got The Whole 9]

Did PCA just get hurt on that GIDP or was he pulled for playing time reasons?

[Bertz]

1 minute ago, We Got The Whole 9 said:

Did PCA just get hurt on that GIDP or was he pulled for playing time reasons?

Not watching, but GameDay has several substitutions happening at once so likely the latter

[Rcal10]

15 minutes ago, We Got The Whole 9 said:

Did PCA just get hurt on that GIDP or was he pulled for playing time reasons?

I think just pulled because his spring training was done. He didn’t look hurt. 

[CubinNY]

I just watched a video of Smith getting the call in locker room. Talk about a teary eyed feel good moment. 

[chibears55]

Kelly, Berti, Workman, and Turner for the bench.

Brown is the 5th starter 

And an old bullpen, lol

Keller turning 30 during season,  theyll have 6 of 8 in their 30s, and four at age 35+

 

 

 

 

[WhyCantWeWin]

1 hour ago, Jfoley89 said:

Cam Smith is breaking camp with the Astros. This trade is gonna look rough if Tucker walks

The crazy part is that he would have been in AA with the Cubs. I respect the Astros aggressive promotion 

[Derwood]

1 minute ago, WhyCantWeWin said:

The crazy part is that he would have been in AA with the Cubs. I respect the Astros aggressive promotion 

Cubs have nowhere for him to play