The 2012 season was not a complete loss for the Chicago Cubs organization and its fans. There were a few points that were able to break through the fog of the 101-loss season to highlight—or in some cases lowlight—the season: the emergence of Jeff Samardzija as a legitimate long-term starter; the outstanding defensive play of second baseman Darwin Barney; the correlation of a strong bullpen and success; and the lack of depth in the upper levels of the Cubs farm system. Yet, many of the Cubs’ major deficiencies can be remedied in the offseason; perhaps not to an extent to allow ...
There is no doubt the core of the Cubs’ starting rotation has improved from the beginning of the 2012 season if for no other reason than experience. The question should be, rather, has the overall rotation improved from last year? The splendiferous verity of Chris Volstad no longer being a part of the starting rotation is already an improvement from the Opening Day staff of 2012. But the Cubs did trade away Ryan Dempster, and no matter how cynical you are about Dempster, losing your best pitcher can not, in no uncertain terms, improve your ballclub. Therefore, the equation is ...
This assignment was simple and short: Where does Wrigley Field rank among MLB ballparks? The answer is equally simple and short: No. 1. As a Cubs fan, it would be sacrilege to even consider another ballpark as superior. The history here, in baseball and football, and the players that have plied their trade in the Friendly Confines are both unparalleled. Some of the newer ballparks are able to capture the history of the MLB. But there is only one ballpark in all of America, not just the MLB, which has actually seen and experienced more sporting history than Wrigley Field. ...
Before beginning the day-by-day review of Jed Hoyer’s second round as the Cubs’ envoy at the Winter Meetings there is something I would like to address. On this day 71 years ago, “the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan” sending over 2,400 American military personnel and civilians to their deaths. Some of those deaths were merciful and occurred instantly. But some, such as those inside of the USS Arizona, were not. The events at Pearl Harbor that fateful day were some of the most horrific in our ...
After Mark Reynolds was non-tendered yesterday by Baltimore, a few teams were mentioned as a possible landing destination for the former Oriole’s third/first baseman. One of the possible teams mentioned was the Cubs. But why? After last season’s performances by their third basemen, the Cubs cannot go into the 2013 season with Luis Valbuena or Josh Vitters as the starter. The club’s only option is to bring in a player from outside the organization to man the hot corner for the next four seasons—give or take a season—until Javier Baez makes it to the majors. Which brings me back to ...
The Cubs’ weaknesses are well known and glaring. They need help in the starting rotation and support in the bullpen. Their team batting average against lefties was horrible in 2012, as was their overall batting average, on-base percentage, OPS, BABIP and runs scored. To show any notable improvement in 2013 the Cubs will need to be crafty in their moves this offseason. In some deals they will need to sacrifice average for OBP, and some vice-versa. There are options in the free-agent market that could resolve some of the pitching and multiple batting issues, and make the Cubs more competitive ...
Last week, I posted a slideshow about the worst player personnel moves in Chicago Cubs history. But while I was researching that list, I also began compiling a list of the best player personnel moves in franchise history to complement the aforementioned worst list.So as promised, here is the list of the best player personnel moves in Chicago Cubs history.Begin Slideshow
The Chicago Cubs organization has made its fair share of questionable roster decisions in the past. There have been mind-boggling trades and head-scratching free agent signings to go along with decisions to not re-sign talented players. One of the many proclamations Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer have made since coming to the North Side is their intention to not offer any more contracts with a no-trade clause. Ryan Dempster and Alfonso Soriano would be relevant examples why, but they both were 5/10 players. The reason for not offering no-trade clauses is to avoid having player contracts hinder the club’s plans ...
The key position the Cubs lack true depth in their farm system is pitching. Most of their pitching talent, prospect-wise, lies in the lower levels of minor league baseball, within the arms of babes. They do have Arodys Vizcaino—whom they received in the August trade with Atlanta and should be considered their best pitching prospect—but he had Tommy John surgery in March, leaving the club’s hopes of stocking their pitching staff with players from within the organization still a few years away. The Cubs will need to focus on college pitching prospects so they can have talent to develop at ...
When Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer initiated their mission to bring a World Series Championship to the Chicago Cubs, they began by analyzing the organization in both current and future terms. They looked at their MLB roster and the status of their farm system as dictations on where their plan would or should go and the expediency their plan can take. What they found was not necessarily a bare cupboard, but more of a kitchen cabinet stocked with items such as spam, corned beef hash, a few cans of vegetables, corn kernels to be popped and the like. Epstein and ...
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