Stratos
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Everything posted by Stratos
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Article: It is the Hope that Kills Us
Stratos replied to CandidCubs's topic in North Side Baseball Front Page News
Baseball teams sell hope. That's really their business. Fans need to believe, or they won't show up. If Ricketts doesn't give us a good team to root for it's just no as fun. 83 wins isn't good enough. -
Article: It is the Hope that Kills Us
Stratos replied to CandidCubs's topic in North Side Baseball Front Page News
Oh I think I can answer that question. -
Brewers won on a low payroll. Cubs want that
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https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2024/02/scott-effross-out-several-months-due-to-back-surgery.html
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Closer warming up? They're down a few runs and need a hell of a 9th to get the walk off.
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Did you watch the games in Sept last year? PCA looked way over his head in almost every single aspect of the game in his short stint. Baserunning decisions were terrible, some of this fielding decisions were over anxious leading to misplays, and obviously his hitting was horrible. Tauchman isn't going to make any of those mental mistakes. Some of it is just nerves, but PCA is 21, he needs more time in the oven against the older more experienced players in AAA. I'm sure the Cubs are aware of all of this. If he starts the year on the MLB roster it's because someone got hurt.
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Oh, nothing, just Sammy Sosa in a cowboy costume
Stratos replied to Derwood's topic in Chicago Cubs Talk
I think we should have an open door policy on any post-skin bleaching Sosa photos. -
Cubs had a well above average offense during every month of 2023 besides May (ranked 25th in runs, peak Hosmer/Mervis/Mancini/Barnhart/Madrigal suckfest plus Bellinger hurt) and June (was just average). Even in Sept/Oct they were 4th in runs scored. Cubs had the 3rd best offense in MLB in the 2nd half (from July 1). They were tied for 1st in the MLB over all of 2023 in baserunning runs, which was a big part of their game and doesn't show up in stats like wRC+. Hopefully they run as well under Counsell as Ross. Mike Napoli and Willie Harris are back so that should help the transition a lot.
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Agree and hope you're right. We know they have at least around 25m to spend under the LT and would probably like to spend it before OD. I doubt the Cubs would pin themselves into a corner with Boras. Totally possible there's options on the table if the Boras guys don't work out. We don't really know long the Cubs are willing to wait out Boras though.
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Recent Hawkins interview says they're basically working the phones daily and watching the waiver wire etc looking to be opportunistic if a good deal pops up. I'd imagine any player they'd deem available and worthy to be on our roster (which is a lot of players) they're trying to check in about. I doubt they're targeting any specific pitchers right now even if they're linked to checking in on them.
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Nice links. There's got to be some kind of formula model that teams use to try to get a ballpark prediction of minors to MLB conversion.
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Interesting is that a lot of the best prospects and young players are getting extended at early ages now so getting stars in their prime in FA is eventually going to be much harder. This will change the way many teams will build teams. Good prospects probably become even more valuable.
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Haven't thought of the name Felix Pie in a long time. Some serious red flags on the offensive side for PCA. But I guess we'll see.
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Wonder what the plan B would be to spend the rest of that money this year if they can't get any of the Boras 4. Some other bat I'd imagine, maybe a reliever upgrade. Could swing a trade. Tauchman, Canario, Morel, and PCA are the options in CF.
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He did it with Counsell.
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Red Sox are still bouncing around too.
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They had problems underperforming offensively throughout last season and have lost Chapman to FA. The offense is almost the same as of now besides the Chapnan/Turner swap.
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I think they probably have their preference for best fits but are likely trying to remain as flexible as they always do. They're a very opportunistic FO and will probably take the deal here that makes the team better compared to the contract cost. Not overspending on one of these guys means they can use that savings to afford an upgrade at another position, like on a pen arm or another bat upgrade etc. and do this every year of the contract. They shouldn't feel pigeonholed. If they sign one of the Boras SP they can always trade someone like Taillon at a later time if they want to make room for one of the young SPs, or trade one of those young SPs like one of Wicks/Brown/Assad etc in a package for an upgrade elsewhere. If they don't sign one of the Boras 4 they could spend that money on a reliever and/or another bat or swing a trade.
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Madrigal isn't your ideal offensive player especially with Nico also lacking power, but end of the day its the total value they each bring to the team. If Madrigal is putting up great defense and able to play at a 2 WAR pace or whatnot while in the lineup then that's ultimately what matters and it doesn't matter how he does it. Scoring runs isn't any more important than run prevention. I'd take 3 Nicos at 2B/SS/3B any day just like I'd take 3 Juan Sotos in the OF.
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Sounds like both the Cubs FO and scouts are quite a bit more confident in Busch's hitting abilities to transfer better at the MLB level compared to Mervis. From Sahadev Sharma: https://www.bleachernation.com/cubs/2024/01/25/the-cubs-clearly-intend-for-michael-busch-to-be-the-first-baseman-to-open-the-season/ This would explain the comments from Hoyer/Hawkins since the Busch trade and their confidence of him over Mervis. They've said he's going to be on the OD roster, and envision him as a player in the lineup over his 6 years of control from this Hawkins interview I listen to: https://www.bleachernation.com/cubs/2024/02/05/carter-hawkins-speaks-working-the-phones-being-opportunistic-rotation-buschs-role-free-agents-more/ They also like Busch's glove at 1B from these comments from the first article above: Looks like Mervis is slated as either a backup depth for Busch, a potential DH option, future trade bait, or Mervis end up hitting well and playing 1B better than Busch, moving Busch to DH. Tons of options available, especially if Bellinger is signed and PCA takes over CF in the future.
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80 projected wins. Go Cubs
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Yeah. Our pitching was average last year and theirs was terrible. Neither team is much improved. Cards swapping Montgomery for Gray is a modest improvement but not enough. They're projecting we score 50 fewer runs and give up 50 more than last year. That's a bit odd.
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I don't think the Cubs guarantee everyday AB's to rookies throughout a whole season. They'll let him have a shot though. Mervis and Morel are options if he struggles as well as Wisdom, and Bellinger also if signed. BJ Murray and McGeary likely start the year in Iowa too. Hawkins has already recently eluded that Busch will probably be platooned vs LHP initially with the hope he could eventually have an everyday role: https://www.bleachernation.com/cubs/2024/02/05/carter-hawkins-speaks-working-the-phones-being-opportunistic-rotation-buschs-role-free-agents-more/
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Ideally he's a 4th OF. He's 33 so something to keep in mind. The good thing is that his best offensive skill is swing decisions and working walks, which doesn't really age or slump. Projections on him are around 97 wRC+ which seems right and matches his career #s. He's a decent OF with good hands and instincts and will catch anything he can get to., just not a ton of speed. He probably won't embarrass himself on either side of the ball.
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Ok. I just think that doesn't make any Altuve is a 5-6 WAR player, but also older, hard to compare them.
