Bud Selig Expects to Decide Theo Epstein Compensation and Other Bullets

Thank heavens the Cubs landed Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer, otherwise the next year under the reign of the Cardinals would be utterly intolerable. It certainly ain’t good as it stands. And, to think: the Cardinals just won the World Series after an offseason in which they (1) lost Adam Wainwright for the year, and (2) acquired Ryan Theriot. Voodoo freaking magic.

  • With the end of the World Series, the offseason is upon us. Here’s your roadmap. Up first, option decisions on Aramis Ramirez and by Ryan Dempster. MLB and the Players’ Association have announced that those decisions must be made by Monday at midnight.
  • Bud Selig doesn’t expect the Cubs and Red Sox to come to an agreement on compensation for Theo Epstein by Tuesday’s deadline. “If I had to guess it’ll be another thing that I have to deal with on Nov. 1,” the Commissioner said. “Obviously I talked to both parties a lot, all parties involved. And you know, I am sensitive during the playoffs and World Series that nothing should take away from it. Fortunately nothing has, despite the fact there has been a lot of conversation. I thought in the end it was OK. We’ve moved on .… I’m quite satisfied.”
  • So, the Commissioner believes he’ll have to settle the dispute, which I’m sure is a bit of an awkward spot. As I’ve said before, I imagine Selig’s inclination will be to side with the Cubs – not out of love for the Northsiders, but because he’ll not want to set a precedent of requiring huge compensation for promotions. At the same time, it’s not like Selig is going to totally screw over the Red Sox in favor of the Cubs. Odds are, the Red Sox will get what they deserved all along: a couple good prospects.
  • As we already know, Aramis Ramirez is the best third baseman on the market this Winter. After him, it’s rough.
  • Bryan LaHair, who was recently named MiLB’s AAA player of the year, is hoping he gets a chance to stick with the Cubs for 2012. And he’s a quick study on what President Epstein is looking for. “The little time I was out there [in September], I felt real comfortable there,” LaHair said. “I think I proved I can grind out at-bats, get good pitches to hit it hard, and then just let everything else take over. I think I got a really good opportunity in September.
  • Carrie Muskat answers questions, but there’s not a whole lot there. She expects the Red Sox to get one minor leaguer for Epstein, for what it’s worth.
  • The similarities between Chicago Blackhawks’ GM, Stan Bowman and Cubs’ President of Baseball Operations, Theo Epstein.
  • Chicago Cubs’ prospect Matt Szczur is a good guy.
  • Roger Waters brings ‘The Wall’ to Wrigley Field next summer. Dude.
  • written by

    Brett Taylor is the Lead Cubs Writer at Bleacher Nation, and you can find him on Twitter at @BleacherNation and on LinkedIn here. Brett is also the founder of Bleacher Nation, which opened up shop in 2008 as an independent blog about the Chicago Cubs. Later growing to incorporate coverage of other Chicago sports, Bleacher Nation is now one of the largest regional sports blogs on the web.

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