Cubs Pre-Offseason Mega Thread

[Geographyhater8888]

6 hours ago, Stratos said:

I'm not sure how the Cubs feel about Busch vs LHP.  He had a 117 wRC+ vs LHP, but did it affect him vs RHP? I'd like to give Busch another shot at fulltime duty, so I'm not sure id grab a pure 1b to platoon, but at least find someone on the bench who can play 1B., like a bench OF we sign?

I'm down for King and Morejon.  Arozerana is an option.  Lowe doesn't seem to fit.

Busch is also one of the few disposable players that could net a decent return for some younger arms with years of control. I’m not saying that he should be traded, I don’t think he’ll be traded, but I’m not against it either. This team isn’t in as good of a spot as they were a year ago with all the pitching injuries and unloading a lot of the farm to fix a broken rotation.

There’s enough redundant bats with 20-25 home run power. 

Edited 21 hours ago by Geographyhater8888

[BigbadB]

9 hours ago, Rcal10 said:

Cut out a lot of your post. Mainly because your opinion is probably not worth the 2 cents you mentioned. A lot of ridiculous ideas here. I especially am puzzled by wanting Riggleman and most of all, Pinella. Just glad you aren’t responsible for building the team. 

Why so harsh? Brand new poster here and you're attacking him like he's a troll Cardinal fan. Rude as hell. A lot of what he said here is what others are pointing out as well. Go after Skubal, fix the pitching staff, etc... Debate his Riggleman, Piniella and Stephenson stance all you want, but let's try to be a bit nicer to a guy offering his first time thoughts. 

[gflore34]

9 hours ago, JD94 said:

Thoughts on Goldschmidt as a platoon 1B? He’s old but had a .969 OPS against LHP this year. 

Im guessing Michael King opts for free agency. Would love adding him to the rotation

Any interest in Brandon Lowe? Would be nice adding a 30+ homer bat to the lineup but he doesn’t fit positionally. He’s primarily a 2B. 
 

Just throwing a few names out there. I’m obviously interested in Arozarena and Morejon and those guys as well. 

Alec Bohm has pretty good numbers vs. LHP although, he still might consider himself to be a full time player.

Edited 19 hours ago by gflore34

[gflore34]

6 hours ago, Stratos said:

I'm not sure how the Cubs feel about Busch vs LHP.  He had a 117 wRC+ vs LHP, but did it affect him vs RHP? I'd like to give Busch another shot at fulltime duty, so I'm not sure id grab a pure 1b to platoon, but at least find someone on the bench who can play 1B., like a bench OF we sign?

I'm down for King and Morejon.  Arozerana is an option.  Lowe doesn't seem to fit.

2025 the Cubs took steps to lessen Busch' exposure to LHP, think that needs to be the approach going forward.  Platoon at 1B.

[gflore34]

6 hours ago, Stratos said:

I'm not sure how the Cubs feel about Busch vs LHP.  He had a 117 wRC+ vs LHP, but did it affect him vs RHP? I'd like to give Busch another shot at fulltime duty, so I'm not sure id grab a pure 1b to platoon, but at least find someone on the bench who can play 1B., like a bench OF we sign?

I'm down for King and Morejon.  Arozerana is an option.  Lowe doesn't seem to fit.

2025 the Cubs took steps to lessen Busch' exposure to LHP, think that needs to be the approach going forward.  Platoon at 1B.

[Bertz]

This is long and a bit rambly but some various thoughts heading into the winter

- 2027 payroll is currently ~$170M, 2026 payroll ended around $265M. The CBA will impact things but I'd guess there's at least $80M to play with 

- Seiya obviously warrants a QO, but I'd let him walk after that. He's a good player and a very cool dude but I can't really justify giving him a 9 figure contract

- I'd offer Happ a QO because honestly I suspect he takes it. Giving us a one year bridge to Hartshorn and giving Happ an opportunity at a platform year that's closer to '25 than '26 feels like an obvious win-win

- I would lean no on a Matt Boyd QO, but it's close enough I'll be fine either way the team decides to go

- The team needs a veteran catcher, you can't just roll with Amaya and Ayers. Kelly has probably priced himself well beyond what we're looking for (good for him). I'm eying Gary Sanchez since he can also be part of the 1B/DH mix, and who knows maybe he brings some valuable state secrets south of the Wisconsin border

- We don't have an option or QO decision, but I would like to hang on to Michael Conforto. I wouldn't overextend myself to do so, but Justin Turner type money to be our plurality DH and give Shaw a little bit of platoon support in right? Sounds great to me

- I lean towards letting Rea walk. That said I feel worse about simply covering innings heading into '27 than I did each of the last two years, so it wouldn't be crazy to hold onto him

- I wouldn't majorly invest in the bullpen. Palencia, Webb, and Zeferjahn is a good top 3. Rolison is a very good lefty specialist, and between guys returning from injury, guys on the outside looking in for the rotation, and guys at Iowa there's depth. If the team has more money than I suspect sure add another setup man, but broadly just stick to the normal NRIs and waiver claims

- The minor league SP depth is weird. It's relatively talented but also no one is obviously ready enough to provide short term support if needed in April. So you need to operate on the assumption Assad opens the year at Iowa, which sucks for him personally but is the reality of the situation

- I still like Edward Cabrera. There are shades of Ben Brown a year ago, where some bad luck seemed to lead to loss of confidence and things snowballed. Start and stop with the injuries certainly didn't help either. It's not nearly as clear cut of a case as Ben, though I think the solution is the same. Plan should be for Cabrera open the year in the pen in long relief. Mid season once the right combination of trust in Eddie and injuries on the staff hit he can slide back into the rotation and hopefully stay there for good. Just gotta hope he doesn't subsequently develop bone-itis like Ben

- The team needs 3 starters. There are endless permutations of what those 3 can look like, but they need at least 3. And they're closer to needing 4 than they are to needing 2

- Despite the glaring SP need I would lean very much against a controllable SP trade. Wanna trade for another Braxon Garrett swing man type? Fine. Wanna trade marginal prospects for Nate Eovaldi and his healthy contract? Sounds good. But I have very little interest in something like revisiting Reid Detmers

[JBears79]

Throwing a name out there and even though he doesn't have the power we need, Steven Kwan seems like a trade option this season. He would fit Jed's value on defense and is an FA after 27. He does hit and get on base...

Lawrence Butler could also be an option as a buy low candidate,

And we still should be trying to make a deal with the mariners for pitching.

[Geographyhater8888]

19 minutes ago, JBears79 said:

Throwing a name out there and even though he doesn't have the power we need, Steven Kwan seems like a trade option this season. He would fit Jed's value on defense and is an FA after 27. He does hit and get on base...

Lawrence Butler could also be an option as a buy low candidate,

And we still should be trying to make a deal with the mariners for pitching.

Whether or not the Cubs have the trade capital to pull it off, this offense could use some diversity, especially when the wind is blowing in and you have a lineup full of 20-25 home power with warning track power in said conditions. Kwan would be a great addition, whether or not it’s realistic.

Edited 19 hours ago by Geographyhater8888

[Nolo]

We really need to do what we can to secure Suzuki imo. I know he can be frustrating but when you look back at his numbers over the past few seasons, that’s massive production that would be lost. Any other big market fan base would be very happy to land him. 

[chibears55]

4 hours ago, Geographyhater8888 said:

Busch is also one of the few disposable players that could net a decent return for some younger arms with years of control. I’m not saying that he should be traded, I don’t think he’ll be traded, but I’m not against it either. This team isn’t in as good of a spot as they were a year ago with all the pitching injuries and unloading a lot of the farm to fix a broken rotation.

There’s enough redundant bats with 20-25 home run power. 

Hoyer wont do it, but if they did get new management I think theyd consider moving guys like Swanson, Hoerner,  Amaya, and maybe Busch to get a different look

[chibears55]

1 hour ago, Bertz said:

This is long and a bit rambly but some various thoughts heading into the winter

- 2027 payroll is currently ~$170M, 2026 payroll ended around $265M. The CBA will impact things but I'd guess there's at least $80M to play with 

- Seiya obviously warrants a QO, but I'd let him walk after that. He's a good player and a very cool dude but I can't really justify giving him a 9 figure contract

- I'd offer Happ a QO because honestly I suspect he takes it. Giving us a one year bridge to Hartshorn and giving Happ an opportunity at a platform year that's closer to '25 than '26 feels like an obvious win-win

- I would lean no on a Matt Boyd QO, but it's close enough I'll be fine either way the team decides to go

- The team needs a veteran catcher, you can't just roll with Amaya and Ayers. Kelly has probably priced himself well beyond what we're looking for (good for him). I'm eying Gary Sanchez since he can also be part of the 1B/DH mix, and who knows maybe he brings some valuable state secrets south of the Wisconsin border

- We don't have an option or QO decision, but I would like to hang on to Michael Conforto. I wouldn't overextend myself to do so, but Justin Turner type money to be our plurality DH and give Shaw a little bit of platoon support in right? Sounds great to me

- I lean towards letting Rea walk. That said I feel worse about simply covering innings heading into '27 than I did each of the last two years, so it wouldn't be crazy to hold onto him

- I wouldn't majorly invest in the bullpen. Palencia, Webb, and Zeferjahn is a good top 3. Rolison is a very good lefty specialist, and between guys returning from injury, guys on the outside looking in for the rotation, and guys at Iowa there's depth. If the team has more money than I suspect sure add another setup man, but broadly just stick to the normal NRIs and waiver claims

- The minor league SP depth is weird. It's relatively talented but also no one is obviously ready enough to provide short term support if needed in April. So you need to operate on the assumption Assad opens the year at Iowa, which sucks for him personally but is the reality of the situation

- I still like Edward Cabrera. There are shades of Ben Brown a year ago, where some bad luck seemed to lead to loss of confidence and things snowballed. Start and stop with the injuries certainly didn't help either. It's not nearly as clear cut of a case as Ben, though I think the solution is the same. Plan should be for Cabrera open the year in the pen in long relief. Mid season once the right combination of trust in Eddie and injuries on the staff hit he can slide back into the rotation and hopefully stay there for good. Just gotta hope he doesn't subsequently develop bone-itis like Ben

- The team needs 3 starters. There are endless permutations of what those 3 can look like, but they need at least 3. And they're closer to needing 4 than they are to needing 2

- Despite the glaring SP need I would lean very much against a controllable SP trade. Wanna trade for another Braxon Garrett swing man type? Fine. Wanna trade marginal prospects for Nate Eovaldi and his healthy contract? Sounds good. But I have very little interest in something like revisiting Reid Detmers

I get the bridge and all, but offering everyone a QO to return just pretty much brings back the same roster.

Guessing payroll drops this year because Ricketts wont go over 2 years in a row, bringing those guys back on QO just means Hoyer will have to go out and do more cheap dumpster dives on rest of roster to stay under

 

[Geographyhater8888]

6 minutes ago, chibears55 said:

Hoyer wont do it, but if they did get new management I think theyd consider moving guys like Swanson, Hoerner,  Amaya, and maybe Busch to get a different look

Swanson and Hoerner aren’t that movable with their contracts. Busch has years of control and would probably get a decent return. He’s solid but not untouchable. 

[Rcal10]

4 minutes ago, chibears55 said:

Hoyer wont do it, but if they did get new management I think theyd consider moving guys like Swanson, Hoerner,  Amaya, and maybe Busch to get a different look

I kind of understand the idea of Amaya and Busch being moved, but why Swanson and Hoerner? What are we getting for them? I guess if the trade is for a pitcher making $20M+ and has 3 or more years of control, I could see that. But I just don’t really see the point in moving those guys. Mainly because I don’t think you get the value back for them, that they give the Cubs. 
Also, when I say I kind of understand moving Amaya and Busch, IMO, that is a reach too. But at least those guys can make an argument towards getting value back and rearranging things a little. 

[javy knows my name]

Why is everyone so sure Happ will take a QO? He's the 3rd best FA OF available. Its his last chance for a decent payday before retirement. He should easily command the same AAV over 3 years, for example 

[mul21]

5 minutes ago, javy knows my name said:

Why is everyone so sure Happ will take a QO? He's the 3rd best FA OF available. Its his last chance for a decent payday before retirement. He should easily command the same AAV over 3 years, for example 

His attachment to the team probably means more than it would in most cases.  He's made $87 million already and a smart guy like him has probably managed to hang onto most of that money and playing another season in Chicago is likely more important to him than a 2-3 year deal elsewhere.

[gflore34]

5 minutes ago, javy knows my name said:

Why is everyone so sure Happ will take a QO? He's the 3rd best FA OF available. Its his last chance for a decent payday before retirement. He should easily command the same AAV over 3 years, for example 

Don't know, he appears to be a platoon candidate, that's what the Cubs did towards the end of the season.  Do platoon bats get multi-year contracts?

[javy knows my name]

3 minutes ago, mul21 said:

His attachment to the team probably means more than it would in most cases.  He's made $87 million already and a smart guy like him has probably managed to hang onto most of that money and playing another season in Chicago is likely more important to him than a 2-3 year deal elsewhere.

So then he'd be smart to reject the QO and negotiate a multi-year deal to end his career with cubs at a discount 

[javy knows my name]

4 minutes ago, gflore34 said:

Don't know, he appears to be a platoon candidate, that's what the Cubs did towards the end of the season.  Do platoon bats get multi-year contracts?

Yeah, when their good side is against righties 

[squally1313]

1 hour ago, Bertz said:

- Despite the glaring SP need I would lean very much against a controllable SP trade. Wanna trade for another Braxon Garrett swing man type? Fine. Wanna trade marginal prospects for Nate Eovaldi and his healthy contract? Sounds good. But I have very little interest in something like revisiting Reid Detmers

I was right in line with you until this one. Any specific reason on this? Just don't want to further empty the farm after Rojas and Ballesteros? I'm kinda resigned to Ramirez or Shaw having at least the RHH side of an outfield platoon spot going into next year, but I still do not see either of them as viable outfielders and would rather get one certain OF and a cheap veteran platoon (Conforto/whoever) for the other. Which makes Shaw and Ramirez as valuable but very redundant pieces. 

[mul21]

Just now, javy knows my name said:

So then he'd be smart to reject the QO and negotiate a multi-year deal to end his career with cubs at a discount 

Sure, but I'd be surprised if the Cubs are willing to offer that with Hartshorn probably on target for 2028 and the other OF spot having a different long term solution that isn't him.

[squally1313]

1 hour ago, Geographyhater8888 said:

this offense could use some diversity,

is there actually some support for this being important? somewhat of a legitimate question, would be interested to see if there's something that can prove that out. in my mind, just stack as many non-out getters as possible, if they can hit the ball far, even better. 

[chibears55]

29 minutes ago, Nolo said:

We really need to do what we can to secure Suzuki imo. I know he can be frustrating but when you look back at his numbers over the past few seasons, that’s massive production that would be lost. Any other big market fan base would be very happy to land him. 

I think itll depend on how many years hes looking for as possibly a final contract for him, if its 4+ i doubt the cubs will offer that many

[squally1313]

2 minutes ago, mul21 said:

Sure, but I'd be surprised if the Cubs are willing to offer that with Hartshorn probably on target for 2028 and the other OF spot having a different long term solution that isn't him.

Hartshorn needs to show he can handle two more levels of minor leagues offensively and there are already a bunch of questions about his ability to play the outfield at all. Happ is absolutely flawed, but if we can get a +.800 OPS against RHP with good defense at below market rates, we shouldn't ignore it because a 19 year old had a good year in high A.

[mul21]

3 minutes ago, squally1313 said:

is there actually some support for this being important? somewhat of a legitimate question, would be interested to see if there's something that can prove that out. in my mind, just stack as many non-out getters as possible, if they can hit the ball far, even better. 

https://fansided.com/mlb/wrigley-fields-wind-has-a-massive-effect-on-scoring-according-to-data

That's not hard evidence but the fact is that Wrigley is volatile and being able to score runs in a variety of ways is probably more important to the Cubs than many other teams.

[mul21]

2 minutes ago, squally1313 said:

Hartshorn needs to show he can handle two more levels of minor leagues offensively and there are already a bunch of questions about his ability to play the outfield at all. Happ is absolutely flawed, but if we can get a +.800 OPS against RHP with good defense at below market rates, we shouldn't ignore it because a 19 year old had a good year in high A.

That's underselling what the kid did pretty significantly when you take into account his age and the comps to others who've put up similar numbers with similar underlying metrics at the same age.