SOFNR
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Everything posted by SOFNR
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If the Cubs manage to sign Bellinger, or aquire another great bat to take his place, I don't really care whether it happened the first day of FA or the last day before Spring Training. The problem is that each day that passes we get closer to an outcome where we don't make either of those moves. It's clear Jed is willing to wait out that market. He might lose the standoff. Plan B's get harder to aquire as teams get set for the season. There's still a chance we go into 2024 with a worse offense then we ended 2023. That's not ok with me. It's definitely a significant risk to wait around and hope one of your needs falls to you at the best price possible. I certainly understand fans getting nervous. I don't think it would really be shocking to anybody if Hoyer grabs a couple cheap bats, a reliever, and stays under the tax again. It may not have been the original intent but it's pretty easy to envision as February approaches.
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If signing a quality reliever for 1/10.5 is too much for the Cubs then I don't know what they're even doing. I wasn't overly interested in a Chapman reunion, but they should be all over a deal like that.
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Any chance of a surprise Bellinger announcement tomorrow? He definitely seems to be the talk of the convention. At this point I'm going to be a bit surprised if Bellinger doesn't sign with the Cubs in the end. Probably not tomorrow though, as cool as it would be.
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Pretty expected, but still nice to hear. Of course they could still get shutout the rest of the game. 🤣
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I really think 2 of Bellinger/Hoskins/Chapman are still very much in play. I imagine he's waiting out that market, while also exploring more trade options in case he misses on 1. I still lean Bellinger and Hoskins but that probably forces you into trying Morel or Busch at 3B. Chapman/Bellinger could be pretty great depending on price/years. Would make for a fun team next year for sure. Chapman/Hoskins is a bit of a weird fit now.
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Cubs trading for Michael Busch & Yency Almonte (for Ferris & Hope)
SOFNR replied to gocubs218's topic in Chicago Cubs Talk
I sure hope they didn't do this just to cheap out. My guess is they believe in Busch as a legit starter going forward. This is a top 50 prospect with great numbers in the minors. 1B would seem to be the best fit. I don't think Mervis is really anywhere on their depth chart for this season. He's likely gone. This move makes it a little easier for Jed to wait out the Boras clients. I could still see Hoskins/Bellinger. There's absolutely no reason to sit under the tax this year and I'll be pretty pissed if that's their aim. -
Cubs trading for Michael Busch & Yency Almonte (for Ferris & Hope)
SOFNR replied to gocubs218's topic in Chicago Cubs Talk
Yah, that's a high price. I liked Ferris. I gotta think they really believe Busch can lock down 1B. Hopefully that's the case. Better not mean Jed is cheaping out on the offseason. But if he believes in Busch this allows him a little more flexibility. Hoskins, Bellinger, and Chapman could still make sense. I think Mervis is as good as gone. -
That's pretty funny. I'm thinking he must've been fairly interested in the Cubs to make Chicago his base of operations.
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My understanding is that the process is the same as after Year 2. The Cubs will have the opportunity to lock him into the fifth year. If they don't he can opt out.
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Pretty much. Except if the Cubs don't grab the option after year 2, and he decides not to opt out, that same choice will come up again after year 3.
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That's the impression i've gotten as well. Pretty happy with that contract structure. It could certainly blow up in their faces but it seems like a worthwhile risk at 4/53 given his upside.
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I don't believe the team can opt out early. The Cubs would have an option to extend to 5/80 after 2 years, and if they didn't Imamaga could opt out. Same after 3 years. But if he doesn't opt out he'd stay for the full 4/53.
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That's pretty interesting. So the team is stuck with the 4/53 if he totally bombs or gets injured. But that's not really much of a hit, and if he's great 5/80 will be a steal. Pretty interesting setup. Definitely better for the team then a traditional opt out. I'm curious if there's more incentives built in too like they made it sound last night. Also, what's the CBT hit? 13.25?
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I kind of assumed he was talking about Taillon as the $17 mil #5 starter.
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I believe he was saying somebody was willing to double the guarantee. So while we're still waiting for all the details, i think he was referring to the 2/30.
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The idea of waiting around for the deadline to make moves always annoys me. Be proactive. As much as I'm excited to see Wicks in the rotation it's not going to kill him to come out of the bullpen for a bit and be first man up. The Cubs have a deep farm. Something like Steele, Luzardo, Imanaga, Hendricks, Tallion would definitely inspire more confidence. There's no way they are in the running for another FA starter but I hope they're still engaged in the trade market.
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Yep. As of right now Wicks would be my easy frontrunner for #5, with Assad and Smyly in the bullpen.
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I think medicals definitely hurt his market. Hopefully it's more of a longterm concern that scared teams off longer deals, allowing to Jed to win with a more incentive laden structure.
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I think it's probably more just him falling into a price Jed was comfortable with. There's gotta be some medical concerns for sure. But I think that contract structure is pretty perfect for a team with some young pitching on the way. I just hope he can stay healthy and replace Stroman for a couple years. The Cubs are in a better position now to spend on a couple hitters/bullpen and all their farm depth is still available for trades. Still hopeful they aren't gonna bail on improvements for fear of the tax line this time.
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I think the most realistic scenario is Bellinger/Hoskins for CF/1B. Morel would have a shot at 3B and DH.
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I like the signing. Rotation looking pretty solid. Good start to Jed's offseason. Long way to go.
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So uhhhh who's going to sign all these free agents?
SOFNR replied to Bertz's topic in Chicago Cubs Talk
As usual, the owners will spend millions on media,and most fans will be convinced they aren't getting baseball because of the "greedy athletes". -
Pretty much where i'm at too. You already missed out on the tippy top of the market. There just aren't a lot of impact bats in FA and they all come with risks. I'd rather risk money on Bellinger then try to spread the same around on tier C guys. Plus it makes a trade for top pitching a lot easier to pull. Bring back your best bat from last year and move PCA for some pitching. Ideally they could negotiate a higher AAV, shorter term, multiple opt out deal for Bellinger. But I think you gotta take a risk on Chapman or Bellinger and i lean towards the latter.
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Dodgers just had my dream offseason. Cornering the Japanese market is gonna be very profitable. Jealous of big market teams.
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