Rcal10

😀Yep. They are clearly not going to do anything except blame last year on the coaches they got rid of. It is official.

I don’t either. Just playing it out as to what happens if this was actually a thing. As mul21 pointed out, none of us knows if this is even anything other than a totally baseless rumor. That said, not something I would consider.

I’m not in favor of trading our 4 WAR SS for a catcher coming off a season where he hit under .200, and he still has several more years at about $12M a year annual, and a guy who does hit some homers, but is position less. And if Bellinger does come back, I’m not even sure where Soler plays. This would lead to more trades that, to me, are senseless. Bellinger isn’t going anywhere. And Happ and Suzuki have NTC. I don’t see how those guys get moved. And, frankly, don’t see why the cubs would move either of them so Soler can play.

Just curious. What would something like Jax, Lopez and Jeffers cost the Cubs in the way of prospects? Solved a few problems for the Cubs with Lopez being the only guy with any kind of salary attached. But what would the Cubs have to give up? In this scenario Jax could either be the late inning pen arm or they can transform him into a starting pitcher. I wouldn’t even pretend to know what it would cost the cubs.

I don’t think they get much, if anything for Bellinger. And if you eat some of his contract they have less money to spend on his replacement.

I think if Bellinger opts out the Cubs will use that salary to add a FA bat. Hernandez, Santander, Bregman and to a lesser extent, Alonso. are a few examples. Or trade for a big bat like Tucker, Rooker or Vlad. I don’t think they will trade for that bat on the last year of his contract unless Jed is pretty certain he knows what the guy wants to extend and he is willing to give it to him. If Bellinger opts in I don’t see the Cubs doing much with the offense. At best, maybe they trade for an everyday player and play 9 guys in 8 positions. That improves the bench. To be clear, they should go after Soto. No reason not to, with or without Bellinger. But I am pretty sure they won’t be in on him.

Adding in to what you just said, depending on how versatile the players are, if they had 9 guys for 8 positions everyone would be able to play 140-145 games a year. Which is fine. And that is assuming everyone is healthy all year, which will not happen.

If your question is would he fit in the line up, I would say without question he would. And he would be my catcher if the cubs got him. But I do think the Cubs are perfectly happy he isn’t on the team. I would say there is less than a 5% chance the Cubs would want him back.

Like I said, I don’t think catching would be the issue. I think if he did come back he would catch 100+ games. I don’t think he hurts the pitchers anymore than Amaya does. Plus with him in the line up,and the other 8 guys, you do have a solid line up. But I am not sure the Cubs want him in the clubhouse. That is my concern.

Willson brought back as a catcher doesn’t bother me on the field. I don’t have much issue with his catching and how pitchers pitch when he is behind the plate. And he would be a huge upgrade offensively. I think the bigger issue is team chemistry. I know a lot of people don’t consider this and think it is a myth. But I am pretty sure the Cubs were not thrilled with his actions in the clubhouse. I think he is less than an ideal teammate. That is my biggest concern with Willson.

I am also in on this idea. Even if everyone plays all year without an injury, if yiu have 9 guys for 8 positions all can play around 140 games. That works for me.

Well if Cody is back Wilson wouldn’t be the DH. He would have to catch to play or one of the other regulars would have to sit. So your plan to have Amaya as the primary catcher with Willson as the DH wouldn’t work for the same reason you are saying the Cubs can’t add a bat elsewhere.

For the most part I have been against the idea of signing a higher priced pen arm. But think I would make an exception for Tanner Scott. He can not only be the closer if they need him to be, but he can also be the lefty pen, late inning arm if Hodge does prove to be a solid closer. He will cost a decent amount of money, but tbh, if Bellinger comes back I don’t see them spending big on the offense. There should be enough money to sign Scott and still get a quality starting pitcher, upgrade at catcher and maybe add a decent/solid bench/semi-regular bat to the team. Between free agency and trades of some young assets the Cubs should be able to do all of that and stay within the budget. And, if Bellinger leaves use his money for an everyday line up bat. Again that can be through a trade or free agency. High end example of a decent semi regular bat would be to trade for B. Lowe. He is about at the spot where Tampa starts moving guys. He can play 2nd, 3rd or first. He can also play when Swanson takes a day, by moving Hoerner to SS. He can DH. Basically he would give the Cubs a 9th man for 8 line up positions, which is fine. That move helps the bench too, because there will always be a starter grade guy on the bench. They have enough young talent to get him without giving a top 5-7 prospect in the team. As for a pitcher, I guess it depends on if the Cubs want to spend money on one or use minor league assets for one. I am sure that decision would be made with the budget in mind. They need to get one that slots ahead of Taillon. Schmidt has been mentioned here. He would be a nice option., if the budget is the issue. Which brings us to catcher.🤷 They could go trade, they could go FA to share time with Amaya. I think that would be a very good, realistic off season. Of course I want them to explode getting one or two of Soto, Vlad, Tucker, Rooker, a TOR starter, a high end catcher etc….. , but I don’t think it is realistic that they will. I think lengthening the rotation with a solid starter, strengthening the line-up/bench with a solid bat, getting a very good, dependable lefty pen arm and upgrading catcher would take this team from an 83 win team to a 90+ win team. And I think they can do it within their budget and still have some young talent available to them from the minors.

Where did the Cubs land overall in bullpens?

True. But there are probably a handful of guys who can be counted year in and year out. So even if you are a team who has 2 of those handful of guys you still have to fill the pen with 6 other guys and probably another 5 or more ready to filter in. As for Jansen, sure he has been fairly consistent. And I know era is a terrible way to judge a pen arm, but in 6 if his last 7 seasons he has had an era over . And his FIP is no better. He is a solid pen arm. But not a lock down closer, IMO. And he probably gets a lot of money to be that guy.

This is true. And a version of this statement can probably be said about 90% of the middle relief pitchers in the game. There is no reason to assume Miller, Almonte, or Lopez will be good either. Same with Pearson, Thompson, and Hodge. But other teams have the exact same issue. Year in and year out it is a guessing game as to who will be good. The guys who make up a good pen this year might be the same guys next year in a pen that is average to below average. Cubs, or any team really, just have to have enough options to go to to find the right mix. Sometimes it happens from the start, like Cleveland this year. Sometimes it takes time, like the Cubs of 24’. And sometimes it never comes together.

I would say Pearson is the least likely to be let go. He will be here next year.

😅

Depending on who is playing I plan on taking in the game on Thursday. These are fun games. But I would like to see at least 2 Cubs in the line up.

It’s just hard to predict. I remember last year some guys people were talking about because of a good 23’ season were Brasier, Armstrong and Stephenson. Of the 3 Brasier was the best this year, and not very good. Stephenson got hurt and didn’t even pitch this year. Armstrong got cut by 3 teams this year, including the Cubs. Neris was coming off a good year. Stanek as well. Hader got $19M last year and for a few more years. He wasn’t that good. Cubs picked up guys like Miller, Lopez and traded for Pearson. All as good as any of the coveted FA pitchers. There is going to be a similar cast of characters available next off season. Differnt names maybe, but similar guys. Sure, off of last year a lot of people will want Lopez back. But he is probably just as likely to suck as he is to be lights out. I will say they do need to have a lefty in the or . So if one is not in the system they need to sign one. And even if Little is a guy next year, might not be a bad idea to have another. Who it is, I have no idea. And I doubt anyone can say with full certainty which guy is the one or two they should sign. Other free agent pitchers signed consist of Stanek, Will Smith, Matt Moore, Chafin, Martinez, Wade Miley, Suter and others. Most not very effective.

Who has 3 guys they can count on year in and year out? The position is filled with guys who are good one year and not so good the next. Having guys who happen to be having a good year is the key. But how do they go about doing that? You could argue Miller, Lopez and Hodge were all guys that the Cubs could count on when they were healthy. Brown was also good as was Almonte for his about time with the team. You are not wrong, they need a good one. But how do they get it? How do they get a guy and pretty much know he is going to be good?

No issues at all with the Cubs not having Castellanos. Cubs have better corner outfielders than him. Schwarber does hurt though.

Honestly, looking at some of these playoff team line ups, I’m not convinced that the Cubs wouldn’t have as good an offense as many of them if everyone came back and maybe they upgraded at catcher. PCA should be better next year. Maybe Busch too. I also think Parades is an upgrade over what we saw from Morel last year. If they upgraded the bench a little and added a higher end staring pitcher and got lucky with whoever they brought in to the pen, they could be a very good team. I say get lucky with the pen because honestly their just isn’t a way to build a pen that anyone can say with 80% certainty it will be good. Look at pens around the league. Some of the best are teams with home grown guys and guys they pick up off waivers. Most have guys that are journeyman and who happen to now be having a good year. IMO they really are not far away. Solid starter, upgrade at catcher and complimentary pieces, if Bellinger stays. If he leaves they have to aim high for a big bat. While I think the team can be good enough even if Bellinger stays, I am very confident if they add a bat better than him along with the other moves they need to make they absolutely could/shoukd be a 90+ win team.

Talking about where he played in HS is a bit much. Basically the best player in the team is usually the guy who plays SS and/or pitches. But chibear is correct he did play second in the minors. As for not playing well there, I have to take the word of people here saying he was bad. I don’t like the idea of moving him to second and trading Nico. If they did get Vlad I would let him and Busch split first and DH. Open up second for Shaw. Or put Paredes at 2nd and bring Shaw up to play 3rd. This is assuming Bellinger opts out. Probably something we won’t have to worry about. Trading for a Vlad is just not something I see in the Jed game plan of building sustained success. Maybe they will fool me. But up until now they have not shown the willingness to do something that aggressive.

Truth is you are probably right and they will most likely settle for a lesser bat rather than swinging for the big guys (Soto, Vlad, Rooker, Tucker). Probably more like Winker or Lowe. They kind of fit your left handed bat idea. Maybe Santander?