Sometimes I come across a rumor from the far reaches of the ‘net that emanates from sources I don’t know. That is not to say it might not have a nugget of truth – I simply can’t vouch for it. But I figure you are all big boys and girls, and can decide for yourselves […]
Editor’s Note: Yes, it’s that time of year again – the time for us to settle back into our protective bubble where the Chicago Cubs are destined for greatness, and every other team in the National League Central is bound for spectacular failure. If you’d care to check out last year’s fare:St. Louis Cardinals, Cincinnati […]
The Chicago Cubs dabbled in the Kiko Calero trade for many a week this offseason, eventually off-put by his past shoulder problems and demands for a multi-year deal. So it’s no surprise that he ended up going elsewhere – he’s reportedly signed with the Mets. What is a surprise, however, is that he signed on […]
Editor’s Note: Yes, it’s that time of year again – the time for us to settle back into our protective bubble where the Chicago Cubs are destined for greatness, and every other team in the National League Central is bound for spectacular failure. If you’d care to check out last year’s fare:St. Louis Cardinals, Cincinnati Reds, Milwaukee […]
The Chicago Cubs have announced their broadcast schedule for the 2010 season, and it will feature the lowest number of games on WGN in a long, long time – just 58 games. And that, of course, does not include Opening Day, which will be on WCIU. The Cubs will be on Fox eight times, and […]
Sports Illustrated’s Jon Heyman threw together a list of the eight most disappointing offseasons in Major League Baseball this year, and – no surprise – the Chicago Cubs made the cut. In fact they came in at number two behind only the New York Mets, who at least added a big bat in Jason Bay. […]
Free agent starter Ben Sheets threw for several teams including the Chicago Cubs on Tuesday. Fortunately or unfortunately, depending on your perspective, the session was widely well-received. Sheets’ fastball hung around his normal range, and his breaking ball looked crisp. He’ll throw again next week for teams – if he’s not already signed. For now, Buster […]
Get ready to be overloaded with “addition by subtraction” type optimism pieces as we gear up for the 2010 Chicago Cubs season. The Cubs, apparently, are going to win eight to ten more games in 2010 simply by virtue of not having Milton Bradley on the team anymore. I question the statistical legitimacy of such […]
The market for starting pitcher Joel Pineiro has been both slow to develop and seemingly thin. It’s hard to figure, given that his tremendous 2009 season was not necessarily an outlier – though you do have to go back a few years to find his previous great success. Now, according to Ed Price the New York […]
Two weeks ago, it looked like the St. Louis Cardinals were going to lose Mark DeRosa, Joel Pineiro, John Smoltz, and Matt Holliday this offseason. Things were looking up for the rest of the National League Central. And then yesterday, the Cardinals re-signed Matt Holliday to a seven year, $120 million deal. Humbug. Setting aside […]
Is he or isn’t he? That’s what the Cublogoverse is trying to figure out today about Chicago Cubs’ ace (yes, he is an ace) Carlos Zambrano’s availability. A few days ago, SI’s Jon Heyman started a firestorm when he tweeted that Zambrano was “eminently available.” We questioned his use of the word “eminently” there, and […]
With Mark DeRosa leaving and Joel Pineiro set to leave, the St. Louis Cardinals were poised to be significantly worse (on paper) in 2010 than they were at the close of the 2009 season. Oh, yeah, but there was that Matt Holliday guy. The Cardinals have had a growing sense of optimism in recent weeks […]
When the New York Mets signed Jason Bay on Tuesday, they conceivably shrunk the outfield market for the Chicago Cubs (by making Jacoby Ellsbury slightly less likely to be traded). But they may have simultaneously increased the market – namely, by overloading their own outfield. Jason Bay is expected to play left field, Carlos Beltran […]
Mini-update, as it relates to the Chicago Cubs: With Bay going to the New York Mets, that’s one fewer outfielder who could take a spot in the Boston Red Sox outfield, thus forcing the Sox to trade Jacoby Ellsbury to the Cubs. It also means that Matt Holliday is incrementally more likely to accept the […]
It may shock you, but trading Milton Bradley for “pitcher” Carlos Silva was not the Chicago Cubs’ idea of the perfect trade. The Cubs actually almost participated in a four-team blockbuster (well, inasmuch as a whole bunch of salary dumps can constitute a “blockbuster”), which would have seen them land Pat Burrell and Luis Castillo. […]
The Chicago Cubs were among approximately one thousand teams on hand to scout Cuban hurler Aroldis Chapman yesterday. Chapman, 21, recently defected from the socialist paradise down south, and is seeking big-time bucks for his trouble. In the morning at the Baseball USA complex, the left-hander tossed two separate five-minute side sessions, throwing mostly in […]
Apparently, when Jim Hendry traded Aaron Heilman earlier this offseason to the Diamondbacks, it wasn’t purely a salary dump or a dealing from a position of surplus. Silly us, we all saw a team with more than 10 legitimate bullpen options (and that was before Jeff Gray was acquired), and figured, “the Cubs are dealing […]
Although sending Milton Bradley to Tampa for Pat Burrell remains the far most likely scenario, the Chicago Cubs are working to increase the possible destinations for Bradley. Meanwhile, the Cubs met with about a half-dozen teams during the first day of the winter meetings at the Indianapolis Marriott and had plans for at least two […]
Joel Sherman of the New York Post has tweeted that, if the Cubs are able to swing a Milton Bradley / Pat Burrell swap, the Mets are interested in a Burrell / Luis Castillo swap. This is, of course, an iteration of the three-way deal that has been discussed at length for weeks, but this […]
