Deeg
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Everything posted by Deeg
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Except the reason that Montero is left-handed, and pretty good against RHP even in his two down years. And that he's far better as a pitch-framer and general receiver than Castillo. It would be nice to have the both of them as a platoon, but the Diamondbacks have no heir apparent at catcher and if you give them Castillo, Montero isn't going to cost you any additional talent. You can go out and sign a competent RH platoon catcher for a couple million easily enough.
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Rosenthal has a piece out saying Montero is definitely available. I'd consider doing a straight up swap for Castillo if we don't sign Martin - Montero's contract certainly isn't great, but he's also a much better receiver than Castillo and likely still a better offensive player.
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Well, thanks Wiggins for the bailout. But the Bulls deserved to lose this game.
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Sure is a good thing we brought in Gasol. We need to ignore him with Rose out, while he's being played by a SF, so Butler and Hinrich can run isolation plays.
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That's a bad assumption. I think they've made it pretty clear they don't consider Martinez manager material, and especially as he's seen as very much Maddon's guy I very much doubt he gets it now. Probably Kapler's to lose.
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Very moderate and well-reasoned take on the Maddon situation, comparing it to Sparky's hiring in Detroit: http://m.mlb.com/news/article/100241038/phil-rogers-joe-maddons-path-to-new-club-mirrors-sparky-andersons
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Which begs the the question: how is this in any way news about Chris Denofria?
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Funnily enough, Chris Denofria - who's been mentioned as a potential Cubs target this offseason (I'll pass) just tweeted that Maddon was about to become the Cubs' manager.
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Interesting quite from Maddon about Javy Baez, mentioned by CCO:
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But the point is, you're giving a lot of those ABs to Baez and Alcantara who failed to produce anything close to a .700 OPS in a decent sample size this year. And throw in that Bryant isn't guaranteed to not struggle either. All while hoping for repeats from Castro, Rizzo, Soler over 140+ games, and the journeymen in the OF platoons. That is indeed the point. By all means, the Cubs should try and field a competitive team next season - not least because they should have been trying harder to do that for the last three years, and because they're adding one of the best managers in the game. They should spend money, and try to add pieces that can help win games in 2015 and beyond. But if you're going to commit to playing guys like Baez, Bryant, Soler and Alcantara every day - as I think you should - then I think you have to accept that the Cubs are not as far along in this process as the Royals were going into 2013. Unless you're going to sell-out the long-term plan, as Theo is so fond of saying, it's probably not realistic to think the Cubs are going to be playoff contenders next season. They should announce to the world that they plan to be, and act accordingly - but that doesn't mean we shouldn't keep our expectations reasonable.
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One difference, though, is the core pieces that would lead this Royals team had already had more experience - and relative failure - at the big-league level when they took that 14-game leap than the Cubs' core pieces will have going into next season. By all means spend, and try to compete - but 2016 is probably more realistic given how much production we're going to need from 22 and 23 year-old kids next year to compete.
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Have fun losing 60 games, Carmelo. Realistically, Mirotic isn't going to play with Gasol and Gibson in front of him. I expect short first half minutes, garbage time and injury situations to be his season.
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I can't imagine it'll be less than $5 million per, probably for 5 years. Theo has made some nice moves and there's no denying the farm system has turned around spectacularly, but this is one that really counts as a huge lucky break. He's frankly mishandled the manager situation from day one (including leaving Sveum hanging out to dry for so long last year) and to have a top-tier guy like Maddon unexpectedly fall into his lap is that rarest of events, a lucky break for the Cubs. Sometimes as they say it's better to be lucky than good. Still, Theo had to be willing to dive into this knowing he was breaking a lot of rules by pulling the rug out from Renteria this way, and that took some balls. Certainly if you can be both lucky and good, that's the best of all.
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Yeah, and I don't think Maddon becoming available (something that was at least in large part a byproduct of Friedman leaving TB) was something that they would have counted on. I don't see this as indicative of a lack of faith in Renteria, just that they unexpectedly had the opportunity to get the very best guy for the job. Sorry, no. If you thought Renteria was legitimately a good (not great, just good) manager and not just a placeholder, there's no way you'd break every rule of decorum there is (which is what they've done) and eat two years of salary in order to make a change, even to Maddon.
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Cotillo is also confirming the move, if it matters. Clearly there's some effort to avoid the perception that this is "breaking" on Game 7 day, but it's obviously a fait acompli. If nothing else, this should once and for all erase any doubts that Renteria was anything but a hire of last resort. He did exactly what he was hired to do, but I don't think anyone in the organization really thought he could be the guy to take the Cubs to the contenders level. I can certainly understand feeling bad for him, but the move itself is an obvious no-brainer.
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Decide for yourself if it means anything, but Joe Maddon's daughter Sarah is now following ESPN 1000 on Facebook: http://mlb.mlblinks.tk/E6N
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The Kenta Maeda Thread
Deeg replied to CaliforniaRaisin's topic in MLB Draft, International Signings, Amateur Baseball
In the first place, there's no way Maeda is getting 20m a year. And in the second, that's one guy's opinion. And it's a guy who hasn't been in NPB for what, 7 years? Wouldn't surprise me if he never saw Maeda in person in his life. His opinion is as good as anyone else's who's not actively involved in Japanese baseball but from what I've seen of Maeda, I think he's better than that - likely a #3 starter, with a chance to be a #2. -
Offseason Trade Ideas
Deeg replied to Transmogrified Tiger's topic in MLB Draft, International Signings, Amateur Baseball
Nowhere close to Maeda as a prospect. Probably a reliever if he comes to MLB. -
Having worked as a manager - both directly over hourly employees and as a manager of other managers - I can tell you that my experience is that performance was universally better under managers that created an environment where people felt respected. The personalty of the location manager was the single most important element in determining the success or failure of that location. A bad manager can sour the barrel with remarkable speed, and given a bit of time a good one can achieve seeming miracles in a supposedly terrible environment. And I never once saw a manager whose stock and trade was getting people to work harder because they were terrified of the alternative achieve any lasting success. Is it different with professional athletes, most of whom make more than the "boss" and know they can't be fired and he can? Of course - but maybe not as different as it's generally made out to be. I tend to believe the role of the manager in creating a clubhouse environment is underrated in importance by people who believe stats can explain everything in baseball, and that managers are worth at most 1-2 wins per season.
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I don't see any basis on which to even compare Maddon and Renteria. By any standard on which you'd try and judge a manager, Maddon is an unvarnished success. He's a proven quantity still young enough to be a foundational piece. He's established his skill at developing young players and actually winning in the process. Given the type of organization it seems the Cubs want to be, it's hard to imagine anyone being a better fit. Renteria should be irrelevant in these discussions. It's harsh, but that's the way it is. You'd certainly do everything in your power not to humiliate him unnecessarily and maybe find a place for him in the organization (not on the coaching staff) if he wants it, but if Maddon is an option Renteria just doesn't matter.
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Boy, getting Maddon would be huge. It's a bad break for Ricky, but you can't hesitate when a guy of Maddon's ability may be available because of concerns over a guy like Renteria. He was obviously never going to be the long-term answer, and did nothing this year to disprove that opinion. He did what he was brought in to do - say nice things about the kids and do what he was told. As usual, Miles' take on this is spot-on.
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Mueller resigns/Mallee hired as hitting coach
Deeg replied to ConstableRabbit's topic in Chicago Cubs Talk
It's pronounced "Throat-Warbler Mangrove". -
When Javy is sucking this badly at Olt's current age, I'll be ready to write him off too. He's got a mere 5 years to figure it out. It's not the years, it's the mileage. I won't for a moment suggest that Baez isn't a far better prospect than Olt. But I think people get too hung up on Olt's age. He was a college draftee, and he effectively lost an entire year to his eye issues. I'd like to see a little more of him before I toss him in the rubbish tip.