MLB: ***Official 2022 Chicago Cubs Season Thread***

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ClonesTwenty1

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May 23, 2018
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He did get a World Series Championship that he wouldn't have gotten in St Louis....and a lot of money.
Jason seemed like a good dude, but definitely a bust on the offensive side of the ball. Great center fielder though.
 

CyJack13

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May 21, 2010
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Jason seemed like a good dude, but definitely a bust on the offensive side of the ball. Great center fielder though.

He was average in center, and an overrated OF defensively in general. Had a total of 0.3 dWAR from 2018 on.
 

ISUCubswin

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Mar 3, 2011
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The Schwindel demotion sure makes you wonder if Mervis will get a look now as there is no way Frank gets much time with both Mervis and Rivas at 1B in Iowa.
Weird indeed. I know Wisdom has been working there but he was short hopped a ball last night and looked lost trying to field it.
 

Brentwood

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Jun 25, 2008
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I always thought Heyward should have been #43, because he was the king of grounders to second base. Tip of the hat to him thanks for the contribution, but I wont miss him.
 
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CyState85

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Extend Contreras and Happ with team options at the end (see White Sox contracts). 4 years/$70 million range.

One more year of reclamation projects on one year deals you can flip at the deadline.

Sign the best SS and SP you can in the off season to long term deals.

Give the young guys some looks (Killian, Davis, Velazquez, Mervis, PCA etc.)

Phase out/move/release guys like Bote, Schwindel, Mills, Rivas, etc.
 

CYdTracked

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Why are so many eager to move on from Rivas? He's only 25 and only had limited time in Chicago so far. He has a good glove and still is under team control, he's worth keeping around for some depth at 1B for now and see if he can adjust to MLB pitching as he hasn't been terrible hitting in the minors.
 

CyState85

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Why are so many eager to move on from Rivas? He's only 25 and only had limited time in Chicago so far. He has a good glove and still is under team control, he's worth keeping around for some depth at 1B for now and see if he can adjust to MLB pitching as he hasn't been terrible hitting in the minors.

Rivas, Schwindel, Bote, and even Wisdom are guys that don’t really move the needle for the team because they don’t do anything exceptionally well. You could argue that Wisdom has power but he is on pace to strike out 205 times. I think he gets the nod at 3rd right now because the team doesn’t have a better option.
 

ISUCubswin

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New name to watch that I hadn’t heard of before tonight

Darius Hill

Has started 49 games in Iowa. Only 4 in center field, but all 4 have come in the last 6 games. Had been hitting in the back half of the order but has led off the last two games. Could this sudden shift be related to Ortegas struggles in Chicago or just a coincidence?

Hitting .340 with a .376 OBP. 13% K rate.
 

BigJCy

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Apr 11, 2006
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Team owner Tom Ricketts expressed similar sentiments in a statement to ESPN.

"I'll be the first to acknowledge this is not the type of baseball Cubs fans deserve," Ricketts said. "Our decision last year to move away from Cubs players who brought us a World Series title was tough, but we have a plan to return to championship contention by building the next great Cubs team around a young core of players augmented by free agent signings -- and we're making progress."

 

CycloneErik

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Jan 31, 2008
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Team owner Tom Ricketts expressed similar sentiments in a statement to ESPN.

"I'll be the first to acknowledge this is not the type of baseball Cubs fans deserve," Ricketts said. "Our decision last year to move away from Cubs players who brought us a World Series title was tough, but we have a plan to return to championship contention by building the next great Cubs team around a young core of players augmented by free agent signings -- and we're making progress."



Whatever. If a marquee franchise like the Cubs "needs" to tank, his words mean nothing.
 
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Cyforce

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Kinda getting excited about the possibilities for the offensive lineup next year.

Madrigal 2B
Contreras C (if we can resign)
Top tier SS
Suzuki RF
Reyes DH
Happ LF
Mervis/Wisdom 1B
Hoerner 3B
Morel CF

Bench
Higgins
Davis

Quite a bit more contact then the WS team and still some nice pop

Basically add a top of the rotation starter. A top tier SS and Contreras either to a qualifying offer or a 2 or 3 year extension until Amaya is ready. That seems pretty competitive without selling the future.

Plus we are loaded with upper level prospects and they are set for rhe long haul.
 
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Cyclone90

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Rivas, Schwindel, Bote, and even Wisdom are guys that don’t really move the needle for the team because they don’t do anything exceptionally well. You could argue that Wisdom has power but he is on pace to strike out 205 times. I think he gets the nod at 3rd right now because the team doesn’t have a better option.

Rivas, Schwindel, Bote, and even Wisdom are guys that don’t really move the needle for the team because they don’t do anything exceptionally well. You could argue that Wisdom has power but he is on pace to strike out 205 times. I think he gets the nod at 3rd right now because the team doesn’t have a better option.

Need to add McKinstry to that list as well. Just double clutched out of an inning ending double play that resulted in 4 runs and the lead. Not a big sample here but his OPS is. 500 or less

Wisdom seems to be getting his 1B experience/tryout and would be the most palatable of those options
 

Cyforce

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Need to add McKinstry to that list as well. Just double clutched out of an inning ending double play that resulted in 4 runs and the lead. Not a big sample here but his OPS is. 500 or less

Wisdom seems to be getting his 1B experience/tryout and would be the most palatable of those options
If Mervis can handle the left sided half of a platoon at first Wisdom could be productive piece and can play both corners. I see him more of a stop gap for future prospects.

Contreras (if they resign), Morel, Hoerner, Suzuki, Madrigal and Happ are the pieces that can be part of a productive lineup.
 

CYdTracked

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I'm still skeptical on some of the guys on this current roster if they are long term solutions. Last year this time many were raving about Schwindel and Wisdom and look how much we've cooled on them since then. Even Ortega looked like a serviceable OF at times last year too.

C: I doubt they are able to resign Contreras so probably will be a Gomes/Higgins platoon here unless they make a move
1B: Sure seems like they are gauging if Wisdom can play here for now until Mervis is ready or some other guy
2B: I want to see more of Madigral before I am sold on him but he sure is hitting better lately. Worse case still have Hoerner and Morel that can play here
SS: Hoerner sure has been a surprise but long term they will likely sign or trade for an elite guy here
3B: Could be another position with opportunity to bring in an elite guy outside of the organization as so far have not seen anyone in the current system that stands out here
OF: Not worried about the future here, if anything going to eventually have a logjam of prospects that they can trade from a position of depth at maybe. Need to decide if Happ is part of the long term and extend him now otherwise trade him while he is at peak value. Suzuki is the only one locked in at the moment and if you take away his spot, Happ and the DH there isn't much room for the glut of OF that are working their way up to Chicago soon.
DH: May as well see what Reyes can do for now, could be another Schwindel and Wisdom situation where a guy gets hot late in the season then comes back down to reality the following year but he's a low risk option right now

Pitching: Need to go out and get a top end of the rotation guy or 2, use Stroman and Hendricks in the middle of the rotation and Steele and Thompson have shown enough so far to at least be in the backend of the rotation next year. Eventually Killian will get another shot too I'm sure. Bullpen I am not worried about as there are some good young arms currently in the system and the Cubs have done well lately signing veterans to fill in the gaps.

I want to see some actual money spent before I brighten my outlook on the 2023 season as we've heard this story before about how they are going to spend and then nothing happens. I still think 2024 is when they will be in a position to go all in on competing again with hopefully some noticeable improvement in 2023 as more of the top prospects get called up and hopefully a couple big pieces are added in free agency or a trade.
 

RivClone23

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I'm still skeptical on some of the guys on this current roster if they are long term solutions. Last year this time many were raving about Schwindel and Wisdom and look how much we've cooled on them since then. Even Ortega looked like a serviceable OF at times last year too.

C: I doubt they are able to resign Contreras so probably will be a Gomes/Higgins platoon here unless they make a move
1B: Sure seems like they are gauging if Wisdom can play here for now until Mervis is ready or some other guy
2B: I want to see more of Madigral before I am sold on him but he sure is hitting better lately. Worse case still have Hoerner and Morel that can play here
SS: Hoerner sure has been a surprise but long term they will likely sign or trade for an elite guy here
3B: Could be another position with opportunity to bring in an elite guy outside of the organization as so far have not seen anyone in the current system that stands out here
OF: Not worried about the future here, if anything going to eventually have a logjam of prospects that they can trade from a position of depth at maybe. Need to decide if Happ is part of the long term and extend him now otherwise trade him while he is at peak value. Suzuki is the only one locked in at the moment and if you take away his spot, Happ and the DH there isn't much room for the glut of OF that are working their way up to Chicago soon.
DH: May as well see what Reyes can do for now, could be another Schwindel and Wisdom situation where a guy gets hot late in the season then comes back down to reality the following year but he's a low risk option right now

Pitching: Need to go out and get a top end of the rotation guy or 2, use Stroman and Hendricks in the middle of the rotation and Steele and Thompson have shown enough so far to at least be in the backend of the rotation next year. Eventually Killian will get another shot too I'm sure. Bullpen I am not worried about as there are some good young arms currently in the system and the Cubs have done well lately signing veterans to fill in the gaps.

I want to see some actual money spent before I brighten my outlook on the 2023 season as we've heard this story before about how they are going to spend and then nothing happens. I still think 2024 is when they will be in a position to go all in on competing again with hopefully some noticeable improvement in 2023 as more of the top prospects get called up and hopefully a couple big pieces are added in free agency or a trade.
I think its certainly fine to be skeptical about next year. That being said, guys like Reyes and now Morel have proven more by the age of 23 than Wisdom, Ortega, or Schwindel had by 29. I know personally I was hopeful maybe one of those guys turned into a piece that could be useful for a few years and maybe that is Wisdom. Does that mean Reyes and Morel will work out long term? No. But I'm a lot more excited about them than the group from last year.

There will obviously be more adds but adding one of the SS and TOR arm will give them a chance to be competitive next year imo. The rise of Nico Hoerner, Christoper Morel and Steele/Thompson have given me hope this rebuild can be done sooner than later.
 

ScottyP

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Jan 24, 2007
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I'm still skeptical on some of the guys on this current roster if they are long term solutions. Last year this time many were raving about Schwindel and Wisdom and look how much we've cooled on them since then. Even Ortega looked like a serviceable OF at times last year too.

C: I doubt they are able to resign Contreras so probably will be a Gomes/Higgins platoon here unless they make a move
1B: Sure seems like they are gauging if Wisdom can play here for now until Mervis is ready or some other guy
2B: I want to see more of Madigral before I am sold on him but he sure is hitting better lately. Worse case still have Hoerner and Morel that can play here
SS: Hoerner sure has been a surprise but long term they will likely sign or trade for an elite guy here
3B: Could be another position with opportunity to bring in an elite guy outside of the organization as so far have not seen anyone in the current system that stands out here
OF: Not worried about the future here, if anything going to eventually have a logjam of prospects that they can trade from a position of depth at maybe. Need to decide if Happ is part of the long term and extend him now otherwise trade him while he is at peak value. Suzuki is the only one locked in at the moment and if you take away his spot, Happ and the DH there isn't much room for the glut of OF that are working their way up to Chicago soon.
DH: May as well see what Reyes can do for now, could be another Schwindel and Wisdom situation where a guy gets hot late in the season then comes back down to reality the following year but he's a low risk option right now

Pitching: Need to go out and get a top end of the rotation guy or 2, use Stroman and Hendricks in the middle of the rotation and Steele and Thompson have shown enough so far to at least be in the backend of the rotation next year. Eventually Killian will get another shot too I'm sure. Bullpen I am not worried about as there are some good young arms currently in the system and the Cubs have done well lately signing veterans to fill in the gaps.

I want to see some actual money spent before I brighten my outlook on the 2023 season as we've heard this story before about how they are going to spend and then nothing happens. I still think 2024 is when they will be in a position to go all in on competing again with hopefully some noticeable improvement in 2023 as more of the top prospects get called up and hopefully a couple big pieces are added in free agency or a trade.
what are the potential 3B options in free agency?
 

Cyforce

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I think for next year your best option is either Hoerner, Bogaerts, or Morel at 3rd. Maybe Correa but I think he'd stick at SS at least for a couple years.
Morel has such an amazing arm, 3B might be a solid choice for his future with all the OF prospects on the horizon.