Cubs 2nd half placeholder thread

[Tryptamine]

Completely random thought, but what happens to the ASG at Wrigley if the 2027 season goes as most of us expect it to? Do they just completely lose the ASG and who knows when we get another? Does it get pushed to 2028?

 

 

 

[CubUgly]

3 hours ago, Jason Ross said:

Bruce Levine used to be very much "the guy" about 10-15 years back, especially under Jim Hendry as a reliable source of information. When things shifted to Theo Epstein, he fell out of the inner circle. He wasn't a liar, but his connections were far less. Jesse Rogers seemed to take that mantle from Levine there for about 10 years. Things seemed to swing back to his side with Hoyer and especially, Marquee when he was hired there. 

Frankly, the last few years he's been fairly reliable. Which should make sense; his employer, for all intents and purposes *is* the Chicago Cubs, not an independent journalistic source. Probably safe to assume where that information comes from and that the team knows what they're doing when he gets it. 

But we are probably at a point after that tweet that you have to wonder why the team would keep him around. He's old. He just called the team out publicly. And no one is going to really trust him moving forward, fans or the org. 

You seem to have much more historical knowledge of him as a person and as a reporter, do you think his mental faculties are slipping or was he always like he is now?

[Jason Ross]

6 minutes ago, CubUgly said:

You seem to have much more historical knowledge of him as a person and as a reporter, do you think his mental faculties are slipping or was he always like he is now?

Nah. And this isn't his first Twitter flub. Can't remember the exact tweet or when it was (sometime pre-covid, I think?) but he posted some dumb thing on Twitter before and had to apologize publicly. 

He's an older man who didn't grow up with tech. Hell, he was in Kindergarten (based on an interview) the year my father was born and my father is about to turn 72. It was almost assuredly "old man sucks at Twitter and the internet" more than anything. But you can't have those kind of horsefeathers ups. Especially when you call the hand the feeds "tweedle dee and tweedle dumb". 

[squally1313]

Now that the All Star Game is over and no one is playing any baseball for a couple days, can we get a couple pitchers and/or a Mike Trout

[NorthsideAvenger]

1 hour ago, Bertz said:

Curious if this is "we think we can fix him" or "we're pretty worried about Harrison's elbow"

This feels like the 2026 version of the Cubs acquiring Mike Soroka. 

[Tangled Up in Plaid]

picking up mccullers because you're worried about injuries is certainly a choice. can't think of a more injured pitcher

[chibears55]

6 minutes ago, NorthsideAvenger said:

This feels like the 2026 version of the Cubs acquiring Mike Soroka. 

Maybe their injuries are a little more concerning if theyre acquiring a guy like this now 

[CubUgly]

15 minutes ago, NorthsideAvenger said:

This feels like the 2026 version of the Cubs acquiring Mike Soroka. 

My in-laws are all big Astro fans and I can tell you they will not be torn apart to see McCullers go.  Having said that he'll probably turn into the second coming of Roger Clemens once he gets to Milwaukee. 

[NorthsideAvenger]

30 minutes ago, CubUgly said:

My in-laws are all big Astro fans and I can tell you they will not be torn apart to see McCullers go.  Having said that he'll probably turn into the second coming of Roger Clemens once he gets to Milwaukee. 

McCullers has not been both good and healthy since 2021. Maybe there is something left in the tank but ijmo, I think McCullers is cooked.

 

[UMFan83]

1 hour ago, Tryptamine said:

Completely random thought, but what happens to the ASG at Wrigley if the 2027 season goes as most of us expect it to? Do they just completely lose the ASG and who knows when we get another? Does it get pushed to 2028?

Not entirely sure but I believe the MLB has tentatively selected Oracle Park in SF for the 2028 game, but there's also the potential impact of the Olympics as they are trying to clear the path for MLB players to play.

My guess is they would likely move the game to 2029 if its not played next year.

Edit: And I guess the MLB has reportedly promised the Cubs the 2029 game if the 2027 game is wiped out

https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/columnist/bob-nightengale/2025/08/24/guardians-mlb-gambling-investigation-emmanuel-clase-luis-ortiz/85804280007/

Quote

While there already is rumblings of a potential work stoppage threatening the 2027 All-Star Game at Wrigley Field, the Cubs have been guaranteed that they would host the 2029 game as a contingency plan.

 

Edited 11 hours ago by UMFan83

[Cubs420psd]

19 hours ago, Jason Ross said:

Absolutely. When I said "it may be his last" I really wonder if that was it for Bruce. He isn't an on-air guy, and his one thing has been to be a source. Who's going to trust him now? He's toxic. 

I really wouldn't be surprised to see him retire from the journalism game at the end of the year. He's at an age it makes sense and an access point that probably has to be as small it can be. 

The one thing about this situation im kinda curious about is who on the coaching staff agrees with him and is one of them Craig? 

[Tangled Up in Plaid]

1 minute ago, Cubs420psd said:

The one thing about this situation im kinda curious about is who on the coaching staff agrees with him and is one of them Craig? 

I don't think it's Craig. He gives off "I hate the media" vibes, especially towards Bruce

[Tryptamine]

29 minutes ago, UMFan83 said:

Not entirely sure but I believe the MLB has tentatively selected Oracle Park in SF for the 2028 game, but there's also the potential impact of the Olympics as they are trying to clear the path for MLB players to play.

My guess is they would likely move the game to 2029 if its not played next year.

Edit: And I guess the MLB has reportedly promised the Cubs the 2029 game if the 2027 game is wiped out

https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/columnist/bob-nightengale/2025/08/24/guardians-mlb-gambling-investigation-emmanuel-clase-luis-ortiz/85804280007/

 

Well that's nice at least. I was kind of expecting it to be, another almost 40 years.

[CubUgly]

1 hour ago, Jason Ross said:

Nah. And this isn't his first Twitter flub. Can't remember the exact tweet or when it was (sometime pre-covid, I think?) but he posted some dumb thing on Twitter before and had to apologize publicly. 

He's an older man who didn't grow up with tech. Hell, he was in Kindergarten (based on an interview) the year my father was born and my father is about to turn 72. It was almost assuredly "old man sucks at Twitter and the internet" more than anything. But you can't have those kind of horsefeathers ups. Especially when you call the hand the feeds "tweedle dee and tweedle dumb". 

If so makes me wonder did his editors back in the day have to cover for a lot of stuff like this.  He doesn't have an editor on Twitter and has a lot of typos and grammar errors and flat out odd/peculiar takes.

[Jason Ross]

36 minutes ago, Cubs420psd said:

The one thing about this situation im kinda curious about is who on the coaching staff agrees with him and is one of them Craig? 

I doubt it's Craig. Counsell was hired to work in lockstep with Hoyer and Hawkins. 

John Mallee was hired in 2014. I'd guess him. That's a long time and Bruce has been around a long time. So even though there was a gap in his time, he feels like the guy who probably would know Bruce. He could also hold some anger at being let go originally a year after the WS win. 

Maybe Hottovy considering they didn't bring in a big starter last year. Could be "sell you down the river". And he predates Craig. But I'd come back to it being John as my best guess. 

[Rcal10]

1 hour ago, CubUgly said:

My in-laws are all big Astro fans and I can tell you they will not be torn apart to see McCullers go.  Having said that he'll probably turn into the second coming of Roger Clemens once he gets to Milwaukee. 

I think the trade is more for the other guy the Brewers got in the deal (Gordon). Watch them develope him for the next several years. I think they took McCullers to possibly give less of a prospect away if they take McCullers contract. And, if McCullers does happen to get healthy and pitch well it is a bonus. I am more concerned we will see them then Gordon into a stud pitcher they can control for years. 

[squally1313]

11 minutes ago, Rcal10 said:

I think the trade is more for the other guy the Brewers got in the deal (Gordon). Watch them develope him for the next several years. I think they took McCullers to possibly give less of a prospect away if they take McCullers contract. And, if McCullers does happen to get healthy and pitch well it is a bonus. I am more concerned we will see them then Gordon into a stud pitcher they can control for years. 

• McCullers is owed $7m the rest of the deal, which is essentially nothing
• Are we really going to be worried about a 27 year old who was the 16th best prospect in a bad system before putting up -0.4 fWAR in 95 innings becoming a 'stud pitcher they can control for years'?

[We Got The Whole 9]

5 minutes ago, squally1313 said:

• McCullers is owed $7m the rest of the deal, which is essentially nothing
• Are we really going to be worried about a 27 year old who was the 16th best prospect in a bad system before putting up -0.4 fWAR in 95 innings becoming a 'stud pitcher they can control for years'?

Have you heard of Shane Drohan? Let me rephrase that: had you heard of Shane Drohan before this season?

[squally1313]

1 minute ago, We Got The Whole 9 said:

Have you heard of Shane Drohan? Let me rephrase that: had you heard of Shane Drohan before this season?

So they can just turn whoever into an above average (or "stud") pitcher? They traded for a reliever with a 4.21 ERA from the Athletics last month and since then he's put up a 6.52 and -0.6 fWAR in 10 innings for them. Why didn't they make him good?

[Rcal10]

19 minutes ago, squally1313 said:

• McCullers is owed $7m the rest of the deal, which is essentially nothing
• Are we really going to be worried about a 27 year old who was the 16th best prospect in a bad system before putting up -0.4 fWAR in 95 innings becoming a 'stud pitcher they can control for years'?

Im not sure “worried “ would be the word I would use regarding them getting Gordon. But, that said, I do think he is big a part of this trade for McCullers. Maybe even a bigger part. They might not succeed in developing him, but, IMO, that is their plan.

. 

[We Got The Whole 9]

9 minutes ago, squally1313 said:

So they can just turn whoever into an above average (or "stud") pitcher? They traded for a reliever with a 4.21 ERA from the Athletics last month and since then he's put up a 6.52 and -0.6 fWAR in 10 innings for them. Why didn't they make him good?

I think Rcal's point still stands. The trade could be more about Gordon and yes there is plenty of precedent of them turning afterthoughts into solid roster pieces. You are so triggered when people bring up this aspect of the Brewers roster construction. More often than not, they develop them into useful pieces. 

 

Im sure you felt the same way about the Vaughn trade, the Harrison trade, etc. 

[squally1313]

2 minutes ago, We Got The Whole 9 said:

I think Rcal's point still stands. The trade could be more about Gordon and yes there is plenty of precedent of them turning afterthoughts into solid roster pieces. You are so triggered when people bring up this aspect of the Brewers roster construction. More often than not, they develop them into useful pieces. 

 

Im sure you felt the same way about the Vaughn trade, the Harrison trade, etc. 

I'm not triggered, I'm just not going to get 'concerned' about a 27 year old who (likely, not doing research all the way back) never cracked a bad system's top 10 and has pitched badly since being called up 100 innings ago. If he's good, good for them I guess. Teams make a bunch of these trades every year and find success occasionally. Our $2m backup outfielder has an 820 OPS, Ryan Rolison has given us 35 innings of pretty decent bullpen work. Normally they don't because bad players will continue to be bad. 

Andrew Vaughn was the #3 overall pick. Kyle Harrison was the top prospect for the Red Sox 2 years ago. Colton Gordon has given up 27 home runs in 95 career MLB innings and hasn't had a minor league ERA under 3 since he pitched in high A as a 23 year old 4 years ago. These are not the same things. 

[Rcal10]

8 minutes ago, squally1313 said:

I'm not triggered, I'm just not going to get 'concerned' about a 27 year old who (likely, not doing research all the way back) never cracked a bad system's top 10 and has pitched badly since being called up 100 innings ago. If he's good, good for them I guess. Teams make a bunch of these trades every year and find success occasionally. Our $2m backup outfielder has an 820 OPS, Ryan Rolison has given us 35 innings of pretty decent bullpen work. Normally they don't because bad players will continue to be bad. 

Andrew Vaughn was the #3 overall pick. Kyle Harrison was the top prospect for the Red Sox 2 years ago. Colton Gordon has given up 27 home runs in 95 career MLB innings and hasn't had a minor league ERA under 3 since he pitched in high A as a 23 year old 4 years ago. These are not the same things. 

My guess is there is something the brewers like about Gordon or he wouldn’t be in the real. Just because you are concerned by them getting him doesn’t mean they don’t see something in him. I’m not particularly concerned or worried about him either. But I am also not very concerned about McCullers either. All I said was, IMO, Gordon could very well be the bigger get for them. He has years of control left. McCullers is gone after this year. Still coming back from an injury and pitching poorly while coming back. Both him and Gordon are shots in the dark the Brewers are taking. 

[squally1313]

3 minutes ago, Rcal10 said:

I’m not particularly concerned or worried about him either.

 

1 hour ago, Rcal10 said:

 Watch them develope him for the next several years. 

 

1 hour ago, Rcal10 said:

 I am more concerned we will see them then Gordon into a stud pitcher they can control for years. 

 

[Soul]

2 hours ago, NorthsideAvenger said:

McCullers has not been both good and healthy since 2021. Maybe there is something left in the tank but ijmo, I think McCullers is cooked.

 

I just know the history of the Brewers’ FO.  They know something no one else does.  Maybe it’s not McCullers, but Colton Gordon. Looks like he really sucked earlier in the year too, but ¯\_(ツ)_/¯