CubinNY

I'm sure glad you are here to point that out at every opportunity.

That should be the # for the Cubs.

I frankly don't give a horsefeathers what FanGraphs thinks of his "stuff". He was let go by the 4th worst team in the league.

horsefeathers yea! USA. USA, USA!!!!

There is a piece in Moneyball where Lewis is recalling a story Bean tells him about the difference between Billy and Lenny Dykstra. "Physically, Lenny didn't belong in the same league with him. He was half Billy's size and had a fraction of Billy's promise - which is why the Mets hadn't drafted him until the 13th round. Mentally, Lenny was superior, which was odd, considering Lenny wasn't what you'd call a student of the game. Billy remembers sitting with Lenny in a Mets dugout watching the opposing pitcher warm up. 'Lenny says, "So who's that big dumb ass out there on the hill?" And I say, "Lenny, you're kidding me, right? That's Steve Carlton. He's maybe the greatest left-hander in the history of the game." Lenny says, "Oh, yeah! I knew that!" He sits there for a minute and says, "So, what's he got?" And I say, "Lenny, come on. Steve Carlton. He's got heat and also maybe the nastiest slider ever." And Lenny sits there for a while longer as if he's taking that in. Finally he just says, "horsefeathers, I'll stick him." I'm sitting there thinking, that's a magazine cover out there on the hill and all Lenny can think is that he'll stick him.'" The point about Lenny, at least to Billy, was clear: Lenny didn't let his mind screw him up. The physical gifts required to play pro ball were, in some ways, less extraordinary than the mental ones. Only a psychological freak could approach a 100-mph fastball aimed not all that far from his head with total confidence. "Lenny was so perfectly designed, emotionally, to play the game of baseball," said Billy. "He was able to instantly forget any failure and draw strength from every success. He had no concept of failure. And he had no idea where he was. And I was the opposite."

I don't know what that means. He's smart? Well, he went to Stanford. What does that have to do with his skills as a baseball player?

Hey, I will be able to watch this one! Go me.

Maybe Jed will quit. I would be embarrassed and raving at my staff. I'd probably pull a Bean and reflexively trade someone who was horsefeathers around in the clubhouse after a loss.

TBH, I don't know what they think of him as a catcher in AA. Like. was he getting it done well enough? I know I saw him throw a guy out in the limited time I watched him.

Tom = Jed until people stop coming to games.

You've got to accentuate the positive Eliminate the negative Latch on to the affirmative Don't mess with Mr. Inbetween Those are the opening lyrics to the last popular song for Bing Crowsby in 1960 and also the mantra of one-time A's GM Billy Bean and Mavericks owner Mark Cuban (who should be the Cubs owner in a fair world). They should also be the marching order for Tom to Jed. The Cubs are in the midst of a retool, not a rebuild, but the tools are Tractor Supply specials and they've found themselves in the land of mediocrity. The value-obsessed President/GM of the Cubs is penny-wise and pound-foolish in his approach to building a team. There are unforeseen challenges that mitigate his strategy, but let's face it, even if things went swimmingly this season, they weren't a World Series contender as constructed. They will go into next year with the same strategy, most of the same "core' and hope for health, still messing with Mr. Inbetween.

I agree, mostly. But AAA is not that much of a step up from AA these days. It's a holding pen for the 40 man and a safe environment for retreads or guys giving it one more go to see if they still have something left. Look at who he hit the doubles off of.

I'm going to go way, way out on a limb here and say that they are showcasing Ballesteros. He's not a promotion away from becoming a MLB catcher. He's about three years young for his league.

I don’t know if it’s a circle finger bang but multiple sources say the Red Sox are looking for a short stop.

You can do that when you hit the piss out the ball.

Teel is a highly-rated catcher. Good approach, with limited power.

I'm not disagreeing with most of your thesis but the "7th in runs scored" argument is hollow. They beat up a bunch of awful teams. The offense did not consistently score runs They were 15th in HR, 11th in SLG. Not awful, but not 10.

I edited it so it won't fake anyone else out.

Boston is looking for a place holder SS until Mayo is ready and they are hanging with NY and Baltimore. Who says no, Boston or the Cubs?

there is more to hope on than those three, but I feel you. I honestly think that Morel is going to turn into a superstar. He needs more seasoning and probably better coaching, but he has the talent level.

It depends on who they can get for Steele. If its some low A baller with pedigree and potential, that's a hard sell.

One thing I didn't expect with this team is the sloppy defense.

I don't think that is true. I think Hoyer saw a manager in his dugout who was not capable of getting the team to where he wanted it to go and one came available. Hoyer's fatal flaw is picking guys like Happ, Hoerner, and Swanson to build a team around. They are good players, but not difference-makers. If you add up the money spent on them it will get you to a pretty high payroll, but a mediocre team. Also, and I'm not absolving anyone here, the injuries have hurt quite a bit, especially in the pen. That said, Hoyer needs to go, but he's a mini-Tommy Boy.

I used to think that things would turn around for this team. I no longer think that. They are merely a bad team, not awful, just bad. There is not one player who is going to make them a better team. They need a thumper like Alonso (but maybe not him), they need closer, and they need guys in the pen who can throw strikes. Some of this stuff is just baseball unpredictability, but a lot of it is systemic failure by the organization.

I figured you'd be watching the CWS.