JunkyardWalrus

Not to broken record, but an opening day lineup with our defense first middle infield as the #5, #6 hitters doesn't ignite the fire of confidence in the Walrus.

They didn't do enough. Not even close. Salary dump bs, the Tucktuck trade without extension and a starting pitcher you hope makes half his starts? It's another goddam low to mid 80 win team. They should be booed in the streets and shamed in their houses of worship. It's horsefeathers inexcusable to small-market another off season. Jed should be let go before the sell off at mid season. Go cubs!

Tater is the starting 3b come July. All of Turner, Rea, Theilbar, Berti are released by August. Dansby is popped for PEDs after another slow start, shaves his head and makes a conscious hip hop album tinged with reggae Cam Smith has a better line than Shaw by the end of the year and goes on to have a dramatically better career PCA gets down ballot MVP votes, very far down and very few, but more than one Cubs are below .500 by the Trading Deadline and trade Tucker for a disappointing return, he stays in the NL and is second in MVP to Trout who is miraculously healthy all season and challenges for 70 Hrs Another low 80s win season means Jed and Carter are both let go, neither position is filled until the Tuckers and Vladdys of the world are safely signed elsewhere. Who wants tot tell their new employee how cheap they are on day one? oh, bother.

Bold Prediction: Tater is the starting 3b come July. -JW

Like my mom who can't pass up a sale on purses (like a handbag,) Jed sees the bargain bin and thinks like Bilbo, "Why not? Why shouldn't I have more?" Got all the extra money, Bad Company is on the jukebox and Lance Lynn sways quietly alone. Jed's heart races in anticipation as he takes his first shuffling steps forward... hoping to lock eyes while he still has moisture in his mouth to speak with...

Justin Turner not enough for you?

I don't know, I wanna see Tater cook.

Yeah, I have a good feeling about C. Hernandez this year. And have there been any Rojas sightings yet?

I'd still bat Nico 9th when he comes back, but this is as good as we'll get it seems. I'd still bat Tucker leadoff and Happ 3rd, but that's quibbling.

I too am in the Killian-curious bandwagon. He did look like something had changed, but briefly, before missing the season. Would be nice to have something from the Bryant trade.

Shaw starting at 3b

Liked what I saw out of C. Hernandez. First ab was solid, then roped a double. Be nice if he continued to figure it out. Are he and Rojas going to open at the same level?

https://www.mlb.com/milb/news/pipeline-podcast-prospects-making-debuts-on-top-30-lists?t=mlb-pipeline-coverage That's fun.

Time for Jed to swoop in and take Devers off Boston's hands. How many 30m/yr 3b does one team need? He's about to be real unhappy it seems. Would be a ridiculous outcome to this offseason. Any word on a Vladdy extension yet? From what I can find he's running a countdown on his IG to tomorrow. Does he get moved if they know they can't extend him? Would it be now, or at the deadline?

This is a concerning list (I appreciate it's not the end all be all)and for a myriad of reasons, but let's look at just one: Cubs drafted/developed players on the list. #1 - #50: 0. Zero. I don't see where a single player drafted or developed by the Cubs appears in the first half of this list. 0 in a league of 30 teams. #55 Cease, traded away for disappointment #65 Schwarber, large market salary dump from when Ricketts demanded payroll slashed due to the biblical loses of the pandemic, signed by a smaller market (#72 Bellinger, again, the old fashioned Large Market Salary Relief dump) #85 Parades, now traded away twice #86 Contreras who Jed let walk for the honor of drafting Jaxon Wiggins Then, finally a player the cubs drafted or developed (hence leaving Shota and Seiya off) #88 Justin mother punching Steele Beyond Ricketts being as useful as skid marked 1-ply, this is what's most troubling to me: The Cubs haven't/can't develop nor will they pay for top talent. (Unless they come cheap, a la Darvish who was also... dumped for large market salary relief on a smaller market... or #93 Swanson the least of the 4 SSs in his class (#35 Turner, #42 Correa, Bogaerts didn't rank) There are reasons the largest market team, by far, hasn't won the routinely worst division in baseball this decade, or even finished as the runner up once during Jed's tenure as GM. (I'm very frustrated with the flaccid approach after Tucker and the ultimatum salary dump of Belli that was followed up by half-assed FA failings. This boring ass team wasn't a single player away. Just a mildly different lineup and the same throw horsefeathers at the wall pitching staff construction as ever. Still an 85 win team if things go right, but with 10% less payroll, so that's a win!)

If he turns out to be spry with that pretty swing? That'd be interesting.

Thanks for the reply, and information. I don't know why I was thinking auto-ump equated to co-ed softball catcher.

When the auto-strike zone is implemented, won't most of the 'dark arts' of catching be negated? Will the catching position whittle down to arm strength at that point and anyone could strap the equipment on? Sorta a second DH?

Better shot at playing time with the ghost of 3B in LAA

When Boog leaves, is it officially a 'Rebuild?'

What teams need a SS? And isn't Seattle out with signing Polanco?

It would be nice to develop some non-1st round talent. Especially with all the propaganda we were fed by Ricketts about their substantial investments in LA some years ago. There seemingly hasn't been much fruit plucked from that vine over the past decade. What, Parades, Morel, Amaya on the position side and... Assad and Alzolay? That pretty much it?

This feels like the most important move for the franchise moving forward.