Don’t forget to catch the latest episode of the BN Podcast, featuring some time with the Cubs’ voice of Spring Training, Tim Sheridan. Better yet, subscribe to the podcast, and then you’ll never miss an episode, which is obviously your goal in life.
Game action (ish) gets underway today, with an intrasquad game at HoHoKam Park at 1pm local time, which is open to the public for you folks in the area. Chris Rusin and Nick Struck get the starts, with Rusin followed by non-roster invitee Cory Wade and Trey McNutt, and Struck followed by Rob Whitenack and Rafael Dolis. The lineups are very interesting:
White Squad:
CF DeJesus
SS Castro
1B Rizzo
LF Soriano
RF Schierholtz
C Navarro
3B Stewart
2B Barney
DH Hairston
Blue Squad:
2B Valbuena
CF Sappelt
C Castillo
1B Nelson
LF Soler
SS Baez
3B Lake
RF B. Jackson
DH Bogusevic
Why do I say interesting? Well, setting aside the fact that there’s some prospect goodness in the Blue lineup, there’s the fact that it looks like the projected starters on White, and then prospects/back-ups/competitors on Blue. … except that Welington Castillo shows up on Blue, and Dioner Navarro shows up on White. What up with that? Should we read anything into it? Probably not, although there’s been a fair presumption that Castillo will be the nominal starter this year, with Navarro getting plenty of starts in the backup role (maybe a 3:2 split). This was probably just a “veterans” versus “younger players” thing.
Also semi-interesting? Look at the outfield configuration on Blue. You’d think it would be Sappelt-Jackson-Soler, but everyone seems to be playing “out of position.” Clearly, each is being evaluated on certain things, and the biggest is probably how Sappelt handles center field. I think we’ll probably see him in center quite a bit this Spring.
The Tribune, in an inspired turn, takes a look at 12 cult heroes for the Cubs over the years. For the most part, the list is absolutely spot on – from leading with Tony Campana, Mark DeRosa, and Sam Fuld, right down to the pairing of Ryan Theriot and Mike Fontenot at the end. I won’t spoil the fun by listing everyone, but I think you know some of the other names.
Speaking of which, Baseball Prospectus writers came up with their favorite moves of the offseason, and Brad Doolittle greatly enjoyed the fact that the Cubs got a couple prospects (“living homo sapiens”). A humorous portion: “This is how you know Theo Epstein is a heartless, calculating bastard. Sure, Campana can’t “hit” or ‘get on base’ or ‘play baseball’ in a major-league sense, but he was so f’n cute. Seriously, it’s as if Ollie from ‘Hoosiers’ left the farm and signed with the Cubs, and showed up at the ballpark in the back of a pickup truck. Campana has the strangest build of any ballplayer I’ve seen, even more so, and in a very different way, than Sidney Ponson, whom I had the misfortune of seeing in a towel. Campana is all arms and legs. He’d have the build of a hurdler if only the hurdles weren’t so danged high. He acted the way he looked, carrying that aw-shucks demeanor over to his oh-so-precious encounters with the media. Yet he was really fun to watch, there is no denying that. His Cubs uniform was too floppy and his hat a size too big, and when he got going, he was as fast as any player in the game. His inside-the-park homer on a grounder up the left-field line in 2011 was electric. Once then-Reds outfielder Yonder Alonso overran the ball in the corner, Campana exploded on the basepaths. He could have scored and made it back to second base. He also seemed to be able to steal bases at will, even though every pitcher and catcher in the league knew that his entire value was wrapped up in that skill.”
The Cubs are the second most improved team in baseball! … if you look solely at the team as it existed at the end of last season and then add projected WAR that the team added over the Winter, which is what the Wall Street Journal did. I’ve long said I don’t think that’s a fair comparison (by September, the Cubs had already torn the roster apart – of course they were going to be massively “improved” over the Winter – but what matters is how the team looked in the first few months of 2012, when they were still all together, and were still terrible), but, hey, it’s nice to see a plaudit.
Who knew? Carlos Villanueva and the Chicago Cubs – by way of Sammy Sosa – have a history together.
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.
*The Cubs were rained out yesterday, but today? Today, we've got a Friday 1:20 start at Wrigley Field, and that means all is right in the world. Before you take a look at the Cubs lineup against Miami, check out...
Well, the rain stole one from us yesterday, which is a blessing and a curse. On the bright side, the bullpen gets an extra day of rest (on top of the day Hayden Wesneski bought them). But on the flip...
The Chicago Cubs are against theft. Of bases: https://twitter.com/codifybaseball/status/1781046629103231339 The Chicago Cubs this year have stolen just three bases, the fewest in all of baseball. Dansby Swanson has stolen two bases, Nick Madrigal has stolen one. That's it. I don't...
Even with tonight's rainout, the Chicago Cubs are still making some roster moves. When Patrick Wisdom was removed (perfectly healthy) from the I-Cubs game in the 4th inning on Wednesday, we had an idea of what was coming next. When...
The weather wasn't going to cooperate for Jameson Taillon's season debut, and tonight's Cubs-Marlins tilt has been postponed. The game will instead be part of a split-doubleheader this Saturday, with the first game at 1:20pm CT and the second at...
If you're into tracking young pitchers with star potential like I am—as I watch Jack Leiter's debut while typing this column—then you're probably itching to see Pirates top prospect Paul Skenes make his way to Pittsburgh sooner than later. While...
Cubs vs Marlins — Whew! The Cubs got through their first West Coast road trip of the year, and did so with a winning record (5-4) against the Padres, Mariners, and Diamondbacks. They definitely let a couple games slip out...
As the father of a toddler who was sick for an entire week — the same week Brett was out from his back surgery and the Cubs were playing almost exclusively late-night ballgames on the West Coast — I was...
Kevin Alcántara hit his first home run of the season for the Tennessee Smokies last night, and Owen Caissie hit his first Triple-A home run for the Iowa Cubs as Iowa and Tennessee secured victories. The same can't be said...
Given the way the offseason played out for super agent Scott Boras's top available clients - Cody Bellinger, Matt Chapman, Blake Snell, and Jordan Montgomery - you wouldn't be shocked to see some unhappiness behind the scenes. Did Boras overplay...
The St. Louis Cardinals (9-10), led by Willson Contreras on an 11-game hitting streak, will meet the Milwaukee Brewers (11-6) Friday at Busch Stadium. The Brewers are -122 favorites for the matchup, which starts at 8:15 PM ET on BSMW.Milwaukee's...
Two of the league's top power hitters meet Friday when the Baltimore Orioles (12-6) and Kansas City Royals (12-7) take the field at 7:40 PM ET, live on BSKC. Gunnar Henderson has six home runs for the Orioles (-139 favorites...
The Minnesota Twins (6-11) are -151 favorites to break their four-game losing streak when they face the Detroit Tigers (10-9), losers of two in a row. The game begins Friday at 8:10 PM ET on BSDET, live from Target Field.Joe...
On Friday at 7:00 PM ET, the Chicago Bulls meet the Miami Heat in the NBA Play-In Tournament, and Coby White's 3-pointer prop for this clash requires three trifectas.Coby White's Three-Pointer Prop Odds vs. the HeatCoby White's over/under for three-pointers...
Nikola Vucevic's Chicago Bulls face the Miami Heat on Friday at 7:00 PM ET in the NBA Play-In Tournament, and to beat his 3-point prop, he needs to make two from beyond the arc.Nikola Vucevic's Three-Pointer Prop Odds vs. the...
At 7:00 PM ET on Friday, in the NBA Play-In Tournament, it'll be the Chicago Bulls against the Miami Heat -- with DeMar DeRozan needing to connect only once from beyond the arc to beat his 3-pointer prop.DeMar DeRozan's Three-Pointer...
At 7:00 PM ET on Friday, in the NBA Play-In Tournament, it'll be the Miami Heat versus the Chicago Bulls -- with Bam Adebayo needing to score just once from beyond the arc to beat his 3-pointer prop.Bam Adebayo's Three-Pointer...
Following a stretch of three consecutive wins, the Seattle Mariners (9-10) play the Colorado Rockies (4-15) at 8:40 PM ET on Friday.This contest's pitching matchup is set, as the Mariners will send Emerson Hancock (1-2) to the mound, while Dakota...
The Cincinnati Reds (9-9) will try to put a stop to their current three-game losing streak when they host the Los Angeles Angels (9-10) at 6:40 PM ET on BSOH Friday. Bookmakers consider the Reds to be -126 favorites to...
The Cleveland Guardians (13-6) are favorites (-170) on the moneyline when they take on the Oakland Athletics (8-11) Friday at 7:10 PM ET, live on BSGL.Triston McKenzie gets the starting nod for Cleveland while Joseph Boyle is Oakland's starter for...