Ruben Amaro as a First Base Coach? And Other Bullets

boston red sox logoWe celebrated The Sister-In-Law’s birthday last night by pedaling a table – like, literally, a table attached to a bunch of bicycle seats and wheels and cranks and stuff – around downtown Cincinnati, and drinking as we did it. Apparently that’s a real thing that people do. It was surprisingly fun, and good exercise!

  • Although it’s not yet official, it sounds like former Phillies GM Ruben Amaro, Jr. has a new job: first base coach for the Red Sox. Obviously that’s not a common move for a former front office exec, and Amaro has been the target of a great deal of (probably deserved) criticism as a GM over the years, but, hey, I commend Amaro on getting out there and getting back onto the field if that’s what he wants to do. Clearly he’s not a guy who’s going to let ego stand in the way, and I respect that.
  • And speaking of the Phillies, they’ve got Amaro’s replacement now: it’ll be Angels AGM Matt Klentak, who will serve under new Phillies president Andy MacPhail.
  • A reminder from Gordon Wittenmyer, and from Theo Epstein, that the road ahead for the Cubs will continue to be extremely difficult, as the NL has so many strong teams right now. To my eye, the Pirates look to be at least as good on paper next year as they were this year, and the Cardinals will probably be right there as well.
  • Doug Glanville reflects on his time with the 2003 Cubs, and how he views the 2015 club. Great read.
  • David Laurila’s Sunday Notes are always a good read, and there are plenty of Cubs bits in it this week. I love the quote from Theo Epstein in there about Kris Bryant struggling a bit with changeups from righties in the postseason … until the final one he saw, which wound up a monster shot out of the park.
  • Earlier: Luis looked at Jorge Soler’s crazy postseason, and I checked in on the AFL.
  • 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.

    more cubs news

    Jed Hoyer Speaks: New Reliever, Bullpen Issues, Imanaga, Morel, Swanson, Bat Data, More

    The Chicago Cubs' President of Baseball Operations just hopped on 670 The Score On the Bernstein & Holmes Show, discussing a number of Cubs-related items. He led things off with a discussion of newly-acquired reliever, Tyson Miller: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hes1lI-8ZCI So, then,...

    Shota Imanaga Favored for NL Rookie of the Year, Cy Young, MVP, Nobel Peace Prize, and an Oscar

    There is nothing Shota Imanaga can't do. Going up against one of the best teams in baseball — and best overall offenses versus LHP — on the road, without his best stuff, Shota Imanaga tossed 5.0 scoreless innings in Atlanta, with...

    MLBits: Shōta and ReyLo Duel, New MLB Pipeline Top 100, Investigating the New Statcast Swing Metrics, More

    Baseball's top two pitchers in the ERA department squared off last night and did not disappoint—that and more in today's MLB Notes. Shōta Imanaga Was Awesome (Again), But So Was Reynaldo Lopez I've watched a lot of Reynaldo López, given...

    Cubs Farm Report | May 14, 2024: Top 25 Prospect Stock Report

    The Chicago Cubs minor league affiliates were off on Monday, so it's time to take stock of some recent hot (and not-so-hot) performers inside the Cubs Top 25 prospects down on the farm in today's Cubs Farm Report. Cubs Farm...

    Did You Ever Wonder What Happened to Frank Schwindel?

    I've gotten back into baseball cards, which, among other things, sends me down a lot of Memory Lanes. You pull a particular card, you think about that player, and you have various memories. It's part of the fun. The other...

    Shotamania, Counsell Boot, Rotation, Wesneski, Happ, and Other Cubs Bullets

    I hope your Tuesday is treating you well. So far so good on my end ... Shota Imanaga dealt with more traffic last night than he has thus far in his debut MLB season, but hey, that's a ridiculous Braves...

    Cubs Roster Moves: Lovelady DFA’d, Miller Acquired, Slaughter Sent Out

    The Tyson Miller trade is now official, with the Chicago Cubs sending minor league utility man Jake Slaughter to the Seattle Mariners for Miller, who figures to be mostly a match-up righty/middle reliever in the bullpen. More on the trade...

    The Luckiest Dude at the Ballpark

    I have been to more Cubs and MLB games than I could realistically remember. And not ONCE — not even once — have I caught a ball. No homers, no foul balls, no outfielders chucking it to me. Nothing. And...

    Cubs Injury Notes: Morel, Almonte, Alzolay, Smyly, Wicks

    We don't yet know if there's an "injury" here, but it's a pretty scary possibility, so I'm leading with it. If you didn't catch the moment in last night's game, Christopher Morel fouled a ball off his toe in the...

    A Reliever Trade! Chicago Cubs Acquiring Tyson Miller from the Mariners

    The Chicago Cubs are acquiring righty reliever Tyson Miller from the Seattle Mariners for minor league utility man Jake Slaughter, per Jeff Passan. The Cubs did it! An early-May bullpen trade! It can be done! ... ok, there are some...

    Latest News

    Jed Hoyer Speaks: New Reliever, Bullpen Issues, Imanaga, Morel, Swanson, Bat Data, More

    The Chicago Cubs' President of Baseball Operations just hopped on 670 The Score On the Bernstein & Holmes Show, discussing a number of Cubs-related items. He led things off with a discussion of newly-acquired reliever, Tyson Miller: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hes1lI-8ZCI So, then,...

    2024 PGA Championship Tee Times, Pairings, and Featured Groups at Valhalla

    The PGA Championship tee times are out and ready for your consumption. The second major of the 2024 calendar will take place at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Kentucky, from May 16-19. The 106th edition of the championship will be...

    Strike Two! Rudy Gobert Fined Again For Flashing Money Sign

    For the second time this season, Rudy Gobert has been handed down a hefty fine by the NBA. During the T'Wolves' Game 4 loss at home to the Nuggets, Gobert flashed the money sign with his hands directed at officials....

    Around the NFL: Schedule Release Teasers, Amazon’s Upcoming NFL Documentaries, More

    The NFL's schedule release is just over 24 hours away, but we're already getting some juicy teasers this week. Here's a roundup and some upcoming NFL-related productions coming to Amazon in today's NFL Notes. Chiefs Will Host the Ravens in...

    Did You Ever Wonder What Happened to Frank Schwindel?

    I've gotten back into baseball cards, which, among other things, sends me down a lot of Memory Lanes. You pull a particular card, you think about that player, and you have various memories. It's part of the fun. The other...

    MLBits: Shōta and ReyLo Duel, New MLB Pipeline Top 100, Investigating the New Statcast Swing Metrics, More

    Baseball's top two pitchers in the ERA department squared off last night and did not disappoint—that and more in today's MLB Notes. Shōta Imanaga Was Awesome (Again), But So Was Reynaldo Lopez I've watched a lot of Reynaldo López, given...

    The Hype is Real: Mystics Move June Matchup with Sky to Bigger Arena

    You're gonna need a bigger arena ... The Chicago Sky will be quite the draw for WNBA fans across the country. But don't just take my word for it. The Washington Mystics confirmed the excitement on Tuesday, announcing that the...

    Bruins Get Bad Brad Marchand Update Ahead Of Game 5

    Bad news for the Boston Bruins this morning. Trailing 3-1 in their second-round series with the Florida Panthers, it was revealed that captain Brad Marchand will again not be available for tonight's win-or-go-home matchup in South Florida. https://twitter.com/FlutoShinzawa/status/1790401949998706932 Brad Marchand...

    Cubs Roster Moves: Lovelady DFA’d, Miller Acquired, Slaughter Sent Out

    The Tyson Miller trade is now official, with the Chicago Cubs sending minor league utility man Jake Slaughter to the Seattle Mariners for Miller, who figures to be mostly a match-up righty/middle reliever in the bullpen. More on the trade...

    Cubs Farm Report | May 14, 2024: Top 25 Prospect Stock Report

    The Chicago Cubs minor league affiliates were off on Monday, so it's time to take stock of some recent hot (and not-so-hot) performers inside the Cubs Top 25 prospects down on the farm in today's Cubs Farm Report. Cubs Farm...

    more cubs news