It wasn’t that long after I wrote this that a few names came off the scrap heap list, but then the Cubs decided to do something for their bench bat after all: The Cubs have agreed to a contract with 40-year-old free agent Justin Turner, reports Jon Heyman of the New York Post. Patrick Mooney of The Athletic notes that the deal is a …
The Scrap Heap*
This requires an asterisk because there are certain players remaining on the free agent market that could still be quite useful, but given the proximity to spring league play and the Cubs own accelerated schedule in preparation for their little jaunt to Japan, it makes sense to get most of the critical additions in camp before full squad reporting on …
The Consolation Roster
For reasons that generally come back to the Dodgers being a really good team with lots of money, the Cubs lost out on a couple of would-be realistic targets that chose LA as their preferred destination. I suppose not coincidentally, the folks at MLBTR started pondering a salary cap (as are many folks in various discussions), not to mention rules …
Gearing Up For 2025
Figured we could use a new post, what with not having written anything since last year (technically). First item of business is the arbitration exchange deadline, which is on the 9th (Thursday as of this posting). Most of the arbitration-eligible guys on the Cubs have either been shipped out or settled with, but Justin Steele, Nate Pearson, and the newly …
The Quest to Exceed Mediocrity
The Dodgers overcame their bajillion injuries thanks to the talent they amassed with a very enviable and ludicrous payroll. We can’t even poo poo that because it’s kind of what we wish the Cubs would do, and while the Cubs aren’t the Pirates or the A’s, there is a gulf between their payroll and those at the top. Granted, a …
Nearly Final Best Guess Cubs Opening Day 2024 Roster
OK, so given the stuff from the last thread and taking into account what we’ve already considered for the just-prior-to-Cactus-League-finale roster guess, I think we might just have it this time! So while we wait for Shohei Ohtani (and possibly his new, vetted non-gambling interpreter) to read a statement or whatever, here we go: Catchers (2) Yan Gomes – primary …
New Cuts, New Roster Projections
One week until Opening Day, and we have another set of cuts that helps us clarify the roster situation: Of note, and I don’t remember where I read this now, the emergency catcher situation is clarified as the two non-roster catchers won’t make the team anyway. Various outlets have reported that Jordan Wicks and Javier Assad will make the rotation. …
Dreamcast 84: A Fun Guy On Third
RC & AC talk around Oscars night, which featured a lot of Oppenheimer and a pretty awesome musical number, as we also discuss the happenings around Cubs spring training and MLB: You can check out the podcast page or just click on the embedded players below. You can also use the sidebar to get to our Apple Podcast pages and leave a …
An Early Attempt at Guessing the 2024 Cubs Opening Day Roster
This stems partly from the news that has trickled in between practice games and this post by Berselius way back in the ancient times a couple blogs ago: berselius: I don’t think the Cubs do anything else major (though A+ to Jed for patience), so here’s a stab at the lineup and roster 2B Hoerner LF Happ (S) SS Swanson …
An Offseason Reset Before the World Series Ends
Depending on your point of view, because this is the last MLB action we will have until next Spring Training, but also because the offseason starts basically when the World Series ends, you either want one of the teams still in it to win in five or for it to go the full seven. This means the start of true …