Official 2023 Chicago Cubs Season Thread Vol: (17-17)

Last night win was a tough grind. Hopefully we can win this afternoon game. Not really sold on Kyle Hendricks but he has to deal today.
 
Rizzo with his 30th. :smokin


Cubs up 4 in the bottom of the 7th, pen needs to LOCK THIS DOWWWWWWWWNNNNNNN.
 
Still so many missed opportunities. Bases loaded, no outs, Rizzo/Bryant up, only 1 run? Gotta stop doin that.

Some first and third no out starts to innings, no runs. :{

Our situational hitting needs to improve in order to be what we can be.
 
Cubs jump on the board early, already have the Cards starter wobbling in the first inning. :smokin


Keep it goin.
 
Was 3-0 after the first, but of course we come out and give up 2 right back. :{
 
we gotta score runs to beat the Cards. we need at least 5-6 runs to win today. 3 is not gonna cut it.
 
SportsJunkie said:
we gotta score runs to beat the Cards. we need at least 5-6 runs to win today. 3 is not gonna cut it.
Click to expand...

It was 3-0 just like that, with the bases loaded and only 1 out, but Haren was up. He SMOKED ONE, but right at the third baseman. Had that gotten by........ :{

Gonna need to keep attacking, we also have Bryant, Baez, and Soler on the bench, so we have matchups as needed late in the game.
 
As you likely recall, the Chicago Cubs are overspending their international free agency pool for the 2015-16 IFA period, which opened back on July 2, and concludes next year on June 15. To date, we’ve heard relatively little about whom the Cubs might be targeting outside of the original group they signed on July 2, and Korean outfielder Kwang-min Kwon. In theory, if the Cubs were going to blow their budget and incur the associated penalties (a 100% overage tax, and a two-year restriction on signing any individual player for more than $300,000), they would aggressively pursue as much talent as they could get, assuming it made remote financial sense.

To that end, the Cubs have been linked, along with many other teams, to top Cuban prospect Eddy Julio Martinez, who has yet to make a decision on where he’ll sign. Unlike most Dominican and Venezuelan prospects, who come to handshake agreements long before July 2, Cuban players become available more sporadically, and thus frequently have a negotiating period after they actually reach free agency (you’ve seen this many times over the past decade with Cuban players). There are several other available or soon-to-be available Cuban prospects whom the Cubs could look to sign in the coming months.

There was a large contingent of very intriguing prospects whom the Cubs would not be eligible to sign, however. In short, MLB had a rule that international prospects under the age of 20 must register by May 15 to be eligible to sign in the following IFA period (which, again, starts on July 2), but this was a problem for Cuban prospects, given the lengthy defection process. It led to a number of younger Cuban prospects who’ve recently defected not being eligible to sign until next July 2, at which time the Cubs will be under penalty, and unable to sign the biggest names.

But that’s all changed now.

You’re going to want to read Ben Badler’s latest report at Baseball America, digging deeply into these issues and revealing a change by MLB that will likely allow all available Cuban prospects to sign during the current IFA period because it wasn’t their fault that they weren’t able to register by May 15. Badler goes into the big names that could now be available to the Cubs (and other teams, like the Dodgers, that have blown their pool this year), and it’s a really significant crop of talent. And that’s to say nothing of the slightly older Cuban prospects who were already expected to become available soon.

Long story short: although it may seem like the Cubs haven’t taken advantage of their position as a team that overspent its IFA pool*, it’s entirely possible that many more high-quality signings are coming before June 15. That was already the case, of course, but now the pool of high-end talent from which the Cubs can draw talent just got a lot bigger.

They will have competition, of course, but it’s always good to have more options.

*(And I’d argue that the organization deserves a little leeway however this shakes out, and even if they don’t sign additional prospects. Just because they haven’t signed the biggest names out there, that doesn’t mean they haven’t actually signed a boatload of high-end talent. It seems that they have, and I also expect that they know quite a bit more about how they’re approaching this period and which players they’re targeting then I do. We have to be honest about how little information we really have when it comes to the international market.)
Click to expand...
 
Pirates facing Grienke tonight, and Kershaw tomorrow. 8o

Cubs, 25 games over .500 :eek :hat
 
Cubs are currently tied with the Royals for the 3rd best record in MLB.

1 game back of 2nd best record in MLB. :eek



Holy **** this season has been amazing.
 
CP1708 said:
Cubs are currently tied with the Royals for the 3rd best record in MLB.

1 game back of 2nd best record in MLB. :eek



Holy **** this season has been amazing.
Click to expand...

Truly remarkable what is happening there. Incredible season.
 
Not unlike this week’s update on Eddy Julio Martinez, today’s update is a on another increasingly pressing, but probably-won’t-be-determined until after the season story; namely, a contract extension for Cubs President of Baseball Operations Theo Epstein.

Last time we checked in, we noted that Epstein’s 5-year $18.5M contract is set to expire at end of the 2016 season, that no extension discussions had occurred since the conclusion of Spring Training 2015, and that both Bruce Levine and Jon Heyman expect Epstein to receive a record-breaking extension, larger than the deal given to the Dodgers Andrew Friedman. All of that still stands, and I continue to believe that Epstein will remain with the team for the long (but probably pricey) haul. There is nothing to sweat.

Indeed, today’s update – including comments from Epstein himself – serves to reaffirm those thoughts. In a series of stories here, here and here, Epstein expresses that he is very happy in Chicago and does not expect any hindrances to a future extension, whenever those discussions may occur.

Epstein, after saying that a contract extension is not really on his mind right now, told the media that it’s a subject that will probably come back to the fore when the team is done playing. Epstein believes that he and team owner and chairman Tom Ricketts are on the same page on this subject.

There was already no reason to be worried about an Epstein departure in the first place, but this further confirms that belief. It’s understandable to want to see this get done sooner rather than later, but those aren’t the comments of an executive that plans on leaving – or even one trying to gain any sort of leverage.

And to that end, Epstein also commented that he doesn’t expect to lose any of his front office personnel to better jobs throughout the league (which we know are available in spades). He believes that he has a “pretty tight-knit group,” and that everyone wants to see it through until the end.

This story may not conclude until several, somewhat unrelated events occur. And, at the end of the day, Theo Epstein will very likely be extended and it will probably come with a very large, but well-deserved price tag. Until then, there’s nothing to do but wait and enjoy baseball.
Click to expand...

:hat
 
CP1708 said:
Cubs, 25 games over .500 :eek :hat
Click to expand...

Never would've thought we would be at this mark compared to last year.
I knew that the rebuild was coming along but I still figured we were 1-2 arms away and a year or two from actually competing.
 
Yup. I wanted 81-81 to show clear progress, and then we make our run at David Price in November.

At this rate, Price will beg us to take him. :lol


Bryant, Schwarber, Russell, Soler, Baez all figure to improve next year. Rizzo, Starlin, should at worst stay where they are. Fowler, Coghlan, and Montero can drop off slightly and still be ok because of the uptick from the other guys.

And if we do get Price. He, Lester, and Arrieta become the best trio in MLB, and they alone save our pen from over pitching, and they all benefit from the extra bat improvements.

On top of that, as we hit late July, Theo will still have pieces on his farm to trade for anything else we may need. (Closer, 4th starter, middle relief, extra bat, etc)


The future is beyond bright in Chicago. 8)
 
Bryant at .275/25/95 #ROY

Cubs up 5-1 late, with Lester tomorrow. Finish strong fellas.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest News

View All News

Thread Gallery

View Full Gallery

The ultimate sneaker enthusiast community.

Site contents may not be incorporated into AI training data or any other derivative works without prior express written consent.

Links to participating merchants may generate referral or affiliate commissions that help support our community. See our policies for details. NikeTalk is NOT affiliated with Nike Inc. in any way, shape, or form. All opinions expressed herein do not necessarily reflect those of Nike, Inc.

© 1999-2024 NikeTalk.com

Share this page

| Xenforo Add-ons © by ©XenTR | Media embeds via s9e/MediaSites
Back
Top Bottom