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Outshined_One

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Everything posted by Outshined_One

  1. Outshined_One
    My wish for this QB class is to make the NFL more enjoyable season-wide. The jury is still out on 2023, but, from an NFL production standpoint, it feels like the last decade of drafts has only had one year where more than one high quality starter came out of the class (2020), and the overall quality of the product has suffered as a result.
  2. Outshined_One
    Wicks is my foundation piece for the rotation at the moment. I don't mean I think of him as a 1 or a 2, but, coming into this season, I had serious questions about the rotation depth and concerns about what the rotation would look like in 2024 if Stro and Hendricks opted out. Wicks helped put a lot of that to rest for me, and it didn't feel like this was a flash in the pan or overachiever guy. It felt more like the Cubs found a guy who could anchor the middle of the rotation, give you good innings, and do it on a rookie deal. Hence, foundation piece. It's a large part of the reason I don't want them trading Wicks this offseason; it would open a hole to close another. I will grant that there is quality depth in the system and solid options in FA and the trade market, but I would rather deal a guy like Brown or Farris, even if they have higher upsides, simply because Wicks proved he belongs as a starter in the majors.
  3. Outshined_One
    I think Fields can be the QB of a perennial playoff contender so long as he's healthy and on a coaching staff that can maximize his contributions and minimize his mistakes. However, the Bears' front office has consistently shown a complete incapability of providing Fields with a coaching staff that can actually use him properly. It sucks thinking about it, but it might be better for both sides if he gets traded in the offseason and the Bears pick up a shiny new toy at QB in the top 5 picks this offseason.
  4. Outshined_One
    We get it. He's Black.
  5. Outshined_One
    Sigh.
  6. Outshined_One
    So what, does that makes your reactions the DCU? Or is it more like those sad Universal monster movies that never went anywhere and were made for no discernible reason?
  7. Outshined_One
    If nothing else, this game should be near the top of the list of reasons for why Flus should get fired in the offseason.
  8. Outshined_One
    Is DJ Moore the best WR this team has had in recent memory? I feel like it's him and Marshall.
  9. Outshined_One
    "Fields shoulda shown respect to da guy who hikes him da ball! Whadda thug!" *Bagent does the same thing* "Whadda leader! Bagel shows dat grit you need from yer QB."
  10. Outshined_One
    That went about as expected.
  11. Outshined_One
    If by "blown away" they mean "feel a light breeze", then sure.
  12. Outshined_One
    Brown doesn't make it easy to predict where he'll end up. On the one hand, he has elite level stuff that makes it easy to dream on his upside. If a guy like that is capable of starting and giving you 175+ IP, it's easy to picture him as a #1/#2 in the Cubs' future rotation, even taking guys like Horton and Farris into account. Considering his injury was a lat strain and not an elbow injury, it's easy enough to discount his injury as a freak thing and he likely would have ended the season with around 130 IP. That being said, it's also incredibly easy to see where the downsides come into play. Even if he's healthy for the rest of his career, he'll likely have stretches of time where his stuff gets away from him, which could be a problem even if he moves into the pen. You'd also hate to tinker too much with his mechanics in pursuit of consistency. On top of everything else, he still needs to prove he has the stamina to make it through a full season as a starter. If the Cubs decide to hang onto him, I'd want them to give him every opportunity to stick at SP. However, I also can see a possible universe where he gets a midseason call-up to the major league pen in 2024 and ends up being the Cubs' closer come opening day 2025.
  13. Outshined_One
    I hate the fact that there are so few "good" outcomes to the 2023 season. Either Fields sucks or gets hurt, resulting in this team going on a Bataan death march on its way to two top 5 picks, or Fields does well enough that everyone gets brought back for a second go-round in 2024. There has to be some sort of middle ground where Fields does well enough to get traded for a Top 60 pick, but not well enough that Flus and Getsy keep their jobs for next season.
  14. Outshined_One
    I get why this group is 30-21; they all feel like "break glass in case of emergency" types. Chapman asking for too much and unwilling to give Madrigal the everyday 3B gig? Candelario on a 3 year deal would be a good fit. No faith in Mervis and there's a crap market for 1B? Belt would be a reasonable 1-2 year stopgap placeholder.
  15. Outshined_One
    I'm getting Pablo Sandoval vibes from Ballesteros, although Panda seems to have a few inches on Mo. Still, the comp is not necessarily a bad thing.
  16. Outshined_One
    He's my favorite prospect in the system right now. Love the profile, love the stuff, love his slightly off-kilter mechanics (Tim Lincecum was one of my favorite non-Cubs), love that he rebounded after a rough stretch this season. As with any pitching prospect, he needs to stay healthy and hit his innings limits. If that happens next season, I expect him to be the #1 prospect in this system by this time next year.
  17. Outshined_One
    Shaw's bat should play anywhere on the field, but most of the reports that were circulating around the draft was that he'd have to move off SS and would likely end up at 2B since Shaw's arm is decent, but not great. Madrigal at 3B is acceptable so long as the Cubs make major upgrades elsewhere.
  18. Outshined_One
    I feel like this is a game where Fields comes out in the first offensive drive with scripted plays and marches down the field for what seems like an easy TD, followed by the Lions slowly taking over on defense as the offensive play calls become more reactive, Fields starts making bad decisions by either not audibling out of Getsy's moronic plays and/or by failing to read disguised blitzes and coverage, and the Bears' defense gets worn down due to their inability to get off the field and the offense's inability to sustain long drives in the second half. It'll be a team loss that does absolutely nothing to move anyone's needles regarding Fields because his defenders will have plenty of ammunition for the rest of the team and coaching staff being bad, and his detractors will also have plenty of ammunition regarding his bad decision making and slow passing mechanics. Lather, rinse, repeat.
  19. Outshined_One
    He could be an intriguing bench option who gets periodic time in the OF and at DH, along with power in pinch hitting situations in 2024, but between the injury and his age, he needs plate appearances that won't be available barring catastrophic injury. Any notion that he could push Happ or Susuki for the starting job next season is, frankly, misguided. It's basically Nelson Velazquez redux. If they can't stash him in AAA another year, he'd be a perfect fit in a low pressure/low expectations environment via trade.
  20. Outshined_One
    The callers on sports radio yapping about Bagent being a better QB prospect than Bryce Young definitely wasn't the dog whistle I was expecting to come across today.
  21. Outshined_One
    Triantos is a weird case for me. I made a Chase Strumpf comp back when we were doing the prospect lists, but his AFL stint has made it clear the hit tool should be able to play up at higher levels and even in the majors and that he *should* have 10-15 HR power if he ends up as a ML regular. That's obviously better than what Strumpf has done so far. However, I struggle to see the path forward for Triantos on this team so long as his power and eventual position are both in question. If he can tap into 20+ HR power without sacrificing too much of the hit tool, then I'd be willing to swallow average defense at 2B/3B, but this team has shown a very strong preference in favor of high quality defense in recent years. I wouldn't be surprised to see him traded this offseason as a result.
  22. Outshined_One
    This season is now an exercise in absurdism.
  23. Outshined_One
    I don't even know what to expect any more.
  24. Outshined_One
    I think Caissie, Alcantara, Triantos, Canario, Murray, and Mervis are the sweet spot for me in terms of guys who might be valued highly enough by other organizations to pry away good quality players in fair deals. All are reasonably advanced and could conceivably be quality major league starters by the end of 2024, but there are just enough questions about each that I'd be okay with trading them away. Horton and Wicks are my only untouchables (void for dream trades that will never, ever happen). I think PCA is still the top prospect in this system, but his callup gave me juuuust enough pause to slide him into the next tier with Brown, Shaw, and Ferris for guys who should be off limits unless it's a blockbuster franchise changing deal. I'm torn on how I feel about Rojas and Ballesteros on the hitting side and Gallardo, Arias, and Gray on the pitching side. They're far enough away that it's hard to properly value them, so I'd prefer to keep them, but they're easy enough to dream on that certain teams could way overvalue them.
  25. Outshined_One
    Imanaga and Matsui would go a long, long way towards stabilizing and improving the rotation and pen without breaking the bank and costing draft picks.
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