The Cubs Are Already Digging for that Next Advantage and Other Bullets

Still coming down off the Convention weekend, and trying to get myself back into the routine. There will be plenty to discuss today as we’re entering the phase of the offseason where the Cubs will (theoretically) start settling with their arbitration-eligible players, and there are always rumors about new players. Until then, Bullets…

  • Speaking of arbitration, today’s the day for arbitration-eligibles and their teams to swap proposed salaries for the 2012 season. The Cubs’ arbitration-eligible players are Jeff Baker, Blake DeWitt, Geovany Soto, Ian Stewart, Matt Garza, Randy Wells, and Chris Volstad.
  • Alfonso Soriano, who received a smattering of boos at the Cubs Convention (which booers received a scowl from me), still has a positive attitude about Cubs fans and the Cubs’ future, whether or not he’s not a part of it. “There’s nothing wrong about bringing in the young guys because they have a lot of talent,” Soriano said. “Everyone who is new on the team is more than welcomed and I hope they can play 100 percent and help the team.”
  • The Cubs’ scouting department will be meeting this week to discuss plans for approaching the draft, among other things, in light of the new CBA. It’s an all-hands-on-deck kind of situation, as the Cubs look to try and find whatever advantage they can.
  • Baseball America’s Jim Callis puts Brett Jackson on his all-rookie team for 2012, saying, “Has no obvious opening, but he’ll force his way into Chicago’s lineup.” I wouldn’t look for Jackson much before June, no matter what happens in the next two months, by the way. Delaying Jackson’s service clock, and thus gaining an additional year of control over Jackson, is simply too valuable.
  • The Cubs will seek city approval for the new patio area, seats, and LED board at Wrigley Field if they have to. But the Cubs tend to think Wrigley’s landmark designation will be unaffected by these changes. “It doesn’t affect any of the historic features. It does not change the bleacher height or the outfield wall. It’s a way to continue to modernize the park, but keep within the historic tradition of Wrigley Field,” said Mike Lufrano, Cubs general counsel and executive vice-president of community affairs. But, Lufrano added, “We’re happy to work with the city if they believe it does [require Landmarks Commission approval]. If they ask us to go to the meeting in February, we’ll be there.”
  • Wayne Buckner of the Wrigley Blog snaps a couple photos of the work already underway. Namely, the bleacher seats are being removed.
  • If you still haven’t had enough CubsCon coverage, CSN Chicago has all manner of video from the Convention.
  • Want to work for the Cubs? They’re hiring a social media and PR assistant. If you get the job, you can be the anthropomorphized version of “the Cubs” on the Internet. That would be sweet.
  • 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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