Bull

Tangent: even if that’s true it still sucks Corollary: it’s sucks because it’s true. Extrapolation: everything sucks Application: we should all buy needles. And heroin.

The Cubs won 95 games last year with way more going wrong than right. I’d ask you to pick a new schtick but I know you don’t have it in you to avoid bad faith arguments. Could go back to the three way trade schtick. That one was at least fun. Having to hope the “old timers stay ‘young’” is pretty easily offset by the players that are going to start costing money soon developing normally (ie without having to hope them into it). As TT said is the same team that won 95 games last year. The division is improved, but there’s little chance things go so wrong for the Cubs this year. It’s a wash. Still the team to beat. It’s a disappointment they didn’t improve on it to put them over the top, but hopefully there’s trade deadline room for that. I like this team.

So ive never done heroin but #1 im pretty sure all heroin is injectable #2 "forehead heroin" doesnt exist any more than arm heroin does #3 I dunno, maybe ask a friend who is a drug dealer if you are expecting a friendly discount on drugs This guy heroins.

No, I'm saying its' a stupid ask. And therefore easy to concede.

It’s definitely not. Now you can’t trade him.

I can't believe pitchers and catchers report next week, and neither of these guys has signed.

A dramatic recreation of this dude's reporting process: Is he the stuffed lion?

More likely they had an extensive phone call that someone hearing about it second hand would abbreviate to 'met'. Much more likely the whole rumor is BS. Ive been a believer, but I think I’m done. The only way Bryce comes to the Cubs now is the way Andre Dawson did.

Which is why it makes the most sense that rookie deals are cut down. Rookie contracts should be down to 3-4 years (though I think they'll likely only be able to cut it down to 5), and you should have to first bring up a player within 3 years (at the very most) instead of 5. Exactly. I’m not saying do one without the other. I’m also not proposing any specific plan. I’m just saying arenado making 26 million this year makes more sense to me than pujols making 28 million this year. If owners are going to pretend this a free market, then make it a free market. Or whatever.

I hear this stuff and am very recently coming to realize that often the intention is to take from the older players to give to the younger players. While I can’t assume that is what you mean, that can also burn in hell It's very simple: players are grossly underpaid in their prime years, so they ask for monster contracts to make up for it in their post-prime years. Owners are now cooling on those mega-contracts, so they are setting up a system that they don't pay the players in either case. The Bryants and Betts and Lindors of the world should be getting paid more earlier in their careers I just think that players should be paid when they’re producing and that EVEN Bryce Harper will not produce enough to justify a $35 million salary in his age 36 year, And that the nationals should have been paying him more the last few years. This is much more pronounced with players like pujols. the Cardinals got ridiculously cheap production out of him and now the Angels are hamstrung. I just think the Cardinals are awful and deserve awful things. Basically, if a player never realizes a big free agency payday due to an injury (potentially even caused by misuse and medical team incompetence) he could have provided great value to a team without ever getting paid for it. So yeah, Tom, I’m saying pay older (post prime) players less and younger (valuable) players more (commensurate with their value). Sorry if you don’t like it, but it’s what needs done.

Both guys are only 26, and have been each worth approx. $236 million in about 7-ish seasons of play apiece. Free agency is fine. Fix prearb

Bryant in 2018: 2.3 Baez in 2018: 5.3 So a relatively healthy Bryant gains 3.7 fWAR, making up for the 1.3 fWAR Baez loses almost three times over. It seems you and Tim agree.

All of this is true. It's also true that Bryant has reached that level in every season in which he was "fully" healthy and also was on pace to go well past 6 WAR last year before the injury. It's possible that the injury will limit the finish on his swing going forward and that his results dip as a result. But I'll take bets on the gap between his 2018 and 2019 more than offsetting the dip in Javy's, assuming KB and Javy each play in 145+ games. Any of you doom bonering people want to wager? I offered to make wagers as a responce to his doom bonering before. I never heard back. (Although, that 145+ game stipulation is pretty significant.) Easiest way to quantify “healthy” this far in advance. To Tim’s credit, would also include “relatively healthy,” so he’s givng more than he has to.

Brach in Black?

“Hey Dex, I’m sorry. Sorry you have to play in a stupid boring town.”

Must have named his dog Wrigley because it craps on the floor in the winter.

Well the year I went, I bought the stupid passes and then discovered that anyone could walk in off the street and do everything because there was no ticket checking/taking checkpoint anywhere in between the hotel doors and the convention hall The year I went (2016), I bought the passes off of an autograph hound for $20 bucks via craigslist. They just kept the autograph scratch-off. We met at the door. I went to the sessions (and asked if the Joe was serious about Javy Baez in centerfield), they got a ball signed and sold it on ebay.

Love it. Perfect response in my opinion. We’re not going to write him off as a person, but three times affirms that there’s a long road of accountability for Russell to walk.

Think I read that more details would be coming soon Saturday Night with Ryan Dempster and Sunday Brunch with Ryan Dempster? The Ryan Dempster talk show style sessions really are fun live (at least when I went in 2016). Surrounded by people having a good time, seeing the Cubs have a good time. Since then they’ve seemed less so. Maybe because I’m not there live, maybe because the schtick wears thin, or maybe because you guys make me awful and ruin everything.

yeah, i mean to me, intuitively speaking, there's no way we are so cash strapped that we can do literally nothing. we must be in a holding pattern for harper (or possibly machado). Surely this it.....Surely. Please?

I’ve contended this all along. Theo is fancy like that.

While I agree with the sarcastic sentiment here, Zobrist is old and crusty, and there’s no guarantee he’ll continue to get on base at a —— holy crap! He had a .378 OBP last year?!? Nevermind.

This offseason can really go horsefeathers a goat. Even the rumors are idiot level Ffs the Mets are the most respectable ML team this offseason. The Mets! Just get used to it. This is the new normal. They should just move the Winter Meetings to late January. Front offices are far more cautious and less willing to be the first teams to make a big splash in free agency. Switch the arbitration deadline with the winter meetings. Get arb out of the way earlier and let the teams have a better handle on their actual budget. Winter meetings then return to their proper position, that being where things get done.

I was just reminded that Harper’s full name is Bryce Aron Max Harper. I have decided I prefer an outfield of Schwarber, Happ/Almora, Heyward.

Too late. You’re dead to me.