https://northsidebaseball.com/news-rumors/chicago-cubs/page/177/?d=7enhttps://northsidebaseball.com/news-rumors/chicago-cubs/hayden-wesneski-has-made-the-necessary-sacrifice-r31/In all likelihood, Hayden Wesneski will always be a sinker-slider guy. That’s his primary game. His slider is a two-plane, multi-speed weapon, and his command of the offering is good enough that it can essentially be his primary weapon, even in a starting role. Opponents whiff on about 35 percen...31Mon, 10 Apr 2023 06:41:11 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/news-rumors/chicago-cubs/are-the-cubs-the-new-kings-of-the-multi-inning-fireman-role-r29/Michael Fulmer’s was the sixth relief appearance lasting more than three outs by a Cub this season, in their sixth game. That’s not close to being the league=leading total in this small sample, but it’s right in line with last year. The 2022 Cubs had 168 relief appearances of at least four outs,...29Sat, 08 Apr 2023 11:44:11 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/news-rumors/chicago-cubs/podcast-this-is-not-a-rebuild-episode-25-the-worst-kind-of-tourist-r28/With Tom on assignment this week, Matt, Todd, and DJ tackle the early action around the NL Central. There's discussion of the Cardinals' delicious internal drama; the surprisingly fun and dangerous Brewers; and the Cubs' many ups and downs through just five games.  After that, they engage i...28Fri, 07 Apr 2023 11:38:04 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/news-rumors/chicago-cubs/draft-bonus-details-emerge-r25/The Cubs will have a full bonus amount of $8,962,000, which ranks nineteenth in all of baseball. There was a significant increase in slot values - nearly 10% - which coincides with the significant increase in baseball revenue. The total bonus pool is determined by finding the sum of each in...25Wed, 05 Apr 2023 16:53:08 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/news-rumors/chicago-cubs/what-is-it-eric-hosmer-does-here-exactly-r24/In the selloff of the championship Cubs, perhaps no bigger gap was created than the one left by Anthony Rizzo. Nico Hoerner stepped into shortstop after Javier Baez’s departure, and Patrick Wisdom had already displaced Kris Bryant at third base during the course of the 2021 season. However, the...24Wed, 05 Apr 2023 11:19:17 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/news-rumors/chicago-cubs/the-third-54-report-cubs-drop-another-winnable-contest-r23/If it’s true that every team will win 54 games and lose 54, and that seasons hinge on the 54 games that could break either way, it’s tempting to conclude that we need not worry much about the games that belong to those first two buckets. In one sense, that’s true. That the Cubs lost Sunday doesn...23Tue, 04 Apr 2023 12:58:13 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/news-rumors/chicago-cubs/and-they-said-dansby-swanson-couldnt-hit-r22/Compared to the trio of Trea Turner, Xander Bogaerts, and Carlos Correa, Swanson was less desirable and less marketable. But at his peak, he’s probably part of the second tier of Major League shortstops (we can litigate tiers later). Elite defensively. Probably already punched above his weight o...22Tue, 04 Apr 2023 12:51:14 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/news-rumors/chicago-cubs/this-is-what-cubs-losses-will-look-like-in-2023-r21/I’m not a purist, but I can at least enjoy the idea that the type of baseball which the Cubs will need to employ often is close to baseball at its purest. The wins are going to look like that. Clean. Efficient. A dash of aggression. That’s fun baseball when it works. Since Thursday, though,...21Tue, 04 Apr 2023 09:13:02 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/news-rumors/chicago-cubs/the-best-bullpen-version-of-javier-assad-r20/Having seen him add velocity in successive seasons via diligent training, the Cubs know that Javier Assad has the raw stuff to be a solid big-league pitcher. Assad showed poise and tenacity in his appearances for México in the World Baseball Classic, too, so there’s little question that he can h...20Mon, 03 Apr 2023 11:15:02 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/news-rumors/chicago-cubs/the-third-54-report-cubs-fall-to-0-1-in-a-way-r19/My favorite baseball truism is that every team wins 54 games, and every team loses 54 games. It’s what you do with the other 54 games that matters. That framework can be the best way to balance the twin dangers of a long baseball season, which are either minimizing the impact of a single game an...19Sun, 02 Apr 2023 12:25:26 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/news-rumors/chicago-cubs/the-cubs-new-identity-was-on-full-display-on-opening-day-r18/There’s a little extra anxiety in following a team built on run prevention. On some level, one always knows that there will be moments, innings, and entire games in which the luck dragons will roar and even the best defense in baseball can’t vanquish them. Baseball is unlike every other major Am...18Sat, 01 Apr 2023 11:11:23 +0000https://northsidebaseball.com/news-rumors/chicago-cubs/cubs-4-brewers-0-stroman-swanson-lead-cubs-to-opening-day-win-r17/Box Score SP: Marcus Stroman: 6 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 8 K (69 pitches, 41 strikes (59.4%) Home Runs: None Top 3 WPA: Marcus Stroman (.248), Dansby Swanson (.137), Trey Mancini (.104).  Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) Stro Starts Strong!   Opening Day is a lot of things, but on...17Thu, 30 Mar 2023 21:57:30 +0000