OT: Cubs Offseason Thread

[Chi town]

MVPete.

Nuff said.

[SirKaiser]

The best part of that catch by PCA was that he outran gold glover Happ to get to it, and even then he needed to dive for it.

Minutes later he proceeds to hit a HR off the scoreboard

[Jeffster81]

The best part of that catch by PCA was that he outran gold glover Happ to get to it, and even then he needed to dive for it.

Minutes later he proceeds to hit a HR off the scoreboard

I believe that catch had a 5% catch probability. PCA said..."hold my beer."

Brewers fans are hoping desperately that PCA regresses.

[Jeffster81]

What a terrible series against Mariners. Cubs pitchers decided they did not want to get any of the Mariners out. Garbage pitching. I hope this is just a burb but if it is not then the Cubs has some major issues with the pitching.

[Dresden]

Cubs seem to be flailing the past several weeks. Either they don't hit, or they don't pitch, but they aren't putting the two together like earlier in the year. They look to be a few quality pitchers away from serious contention.

[SirKaiser]

Yeah the hitting has dropped off a bit, but I still blame the pitching. I can't be the only one who is noticing that the Cubs are falling behind within the first inning or two over the past few weeks (win or lose).

Early on, the offense was scoring right out of the gate. Not only was that going to be hard to maintain, but they have even more pressure to score when the pitching has been lackluster and giving up runs early

Getting Imanaga back will be huge, but they need to bolster the rotation with a trade I think. I like Brown as a bullpen arm eventually, but I think he will be demoted before that happens

[Chi town]

Yeah the hitting has dropped off a bit, but I still blame the pitching. I can't be the only one who is noticing that the Cubs are falling behind within the first inning or two over the past few weeks (win or lose).

Early on, the offense was scoring right out of the gate. Not only was that going to be hard to maintain, but they have even more pressure to score when the pitching has been lackluster and giving up runs early

Getting Imanaga back will be huge, but they need to bolster the rotation with a trade I think. I like Brown as a bullpen arm eventually, but I think he will be demoted before that happens

Brown sent down today.

We honestly need an ace and Imanaga and Brown back and strong to be good enough.

Do NOT trade Jaxon Wiggins though. I’d trade Brown before him.

[Dresden]

Taillon's turn to get bombed today. 8 runs in 5 innings.

[Dresden]

Back to back shutouts to split the series with St. Louis was definitely nice to see. Maybe that will get them on another winning streak. Lead is down to 3 games. Also, good to have Shota again.

[Dresden]

Must have been a fun day out at Wrigley today- a Cubs record 8 HR"s- 3 bombs by Bush and PCA with a pair, and a highlight reel diving catch. That's 4 in a row now- let's hope they get hot again.

[Chi town]

Must have been a fun day out at Wrigley today- a Cubs record 8 HR"s- 3 bombs by Bush and PCA with a pair, and a highlight reel diving catch. That's 4 in a row now- let's hope they get hot again.

What a great beat down of the Cards on the 4th.

MVPete is something else.

[Dresden]

A sweep of the Cardinals would be nice. PCA is just electric. The future is bright for the Cubs, if they can just improve the pitching a bit.

[Chi town]

The best part of that catch by PCA was that he outran gold glover Happ to get to it, and even then he needed to dive for it.

Minutes later he proceeds to hit a HR off the scoreboard

I love his scoreboard bombs.

Kid has so much swag yet he doesn’t seem into himself.

[Chi town]

A sweep of the Cardinals would be nice. PCA is just electric. The future is bright for the Cubs, if they can just improve the pitching a bit.

It’s bright if we can resign Tucker.

Need Horton or Wiggins to become a top 2 guy

Or…

We need to trade all our minor league talent for an ace to really have a chance.

I do think we are missing Amaya’s bat. He helps when Kelley slumps.

[Dresden]

Cubs get 3 all-stars- Tucker and PCA starters in the OF, Mathew Boyd pitcher. I thought Seyai would have a good chance- I guess Tucker is someone more people know about, and he had such a hot start.

How did Javy Baez get voted as a starter?

And Schwarber is only a reserve, despite having 27 HR's and 6th in the NL in OPS?

Interesting- Michael Busch is 4th in the league in OPS. He might turn out to be a real find.

[Dresden]

All-star snubs (Yahoo sports):

Even with two starters in the outfield and a fantastic first-time selection on the mound in Matthew Boyd, the Cubs have no shortage of snub candidates. Catcher Carson Kelly’s late-career breakout makes for a compelling case. Seiya Suzuki has been a run-producing force-of-nature. But of all the Cubs bats that deserve an All-Star invite, Busch stands out. Yes, first base in the NL is one of the more loaded positions, with multiple staples of the game crowding the roster in Freddie Freeman, Pete Alonso and Matt Olson. But Busch’s 162 wRC+ clears all three of those sluggers’ marks and is fifth in MLB behind only Aaron Judge, Cal Raleigh, Will Smith and Shohei Ohtani. Busch has been everything the Cubs could’ve hoped for when they acquired him from the Dodgers, and he deserves to be one of the first additions to the NL team once replacements start being announced.

[SirKaiser]

Eh I'm moreso upset that the Dodgers have 5. Does Kershaw really need another ASG under his belt when he's only pitched in 16 games over the past season and a half? The Dodgers paid good money for their stars, and yet they still get "special" selections. So dumb.

But I'd rather see the Cubs go under the radar as much as possible and then whoop the Dodgers in the postseason.

I think PCA has the right attitude in skipping the home run derby

[Tetlak]

All-star snubs (Yahoo sports):

Even with two starters in the outfield and a fantastic first-time selection on the mound in Matthew Boyd, the Cubs have no shortage of snub candidates. Catcher Carson Kelly’s late-career breakout makes for a compelling case. Seiya Suzuki has been a run-producing force-of-nature. But of all the Cubs bats that deserve an All-Star invite, Busch stands out. Yes, first base in the NL is one of the more loaded positions, with multiple staples of the game crowding the roster in Freddie Freeman, Pete Alonso and Matt Olson. But Busch’s 162 wRC+ clears all three of those sluggers’ marks and is fifth in MLB behind only Aaron Judge, Cal Raleigh, Will Smith and Shohei Ohtani. Busch has been everything the Cubs could’ve hoped for when they acquired him from the Dodgers, and he deserves to be one of the first additions to the NL team once replacements start being announced.

Busch is on a monumental hot streak to be fair. Before the last week he didn't have an argument, although we all know hes been good. He went from good to the best numbers wise in about a week.

[Dresden]

All-star snubs (Yahoo sports):

Even with two starters in the outfield and a fantastic first-time selection on the mound in Matthew Boyd, the Cubs have no shortage of snub candidates. Catcher Carson Kelly’s late-career breakout makes for a compelling case. Seiya Suzuki has been a run-producing force-of-nature. But of all the Cubs bats that deserve an All-Star invite, Busch stands out. Yes, first base in the NL is one of the more loaded positions, with multiple staples of the game crowding the roster in Freddie Freeman, Pete Alonso and Matt Olson. But Busch’s 162 wRC+ clears all three of those sluggers’ marks and is fifth in MLB behind only Aaron Judge, Cal Raleigh, Will Smith and Shohei Ohtani. Busch has been everything the Cubs could’ve hoped for when they acquired him from the Dodgers, and he deserves to be one of the first additions to the NL team once replacements start being announced.

Busch is on a monumental hot streak to be fair. Before the last week he didn't have an argument, although we all know hes been good. He went from good to the best numbers wise in about a week.

Who did the Cubs trade to get him?

[Dresden]

Cubs lineup looks like it's set for the next 4-5 years, except for catcher. Busch, Nico, Danby, Shaw infield. Happ, Tucker, PCA outfield. Seyai DH/OF.

Do they have any catching prospects due to come up?