The Worst Deals of the Year and Other Bullets

ian stewart cubsWe are taking The Little Girl to her first at-the-movie-theater movie today. Sure, I’d probably be a little more excited if we were seeing ‘The Wolf of Wall Street’ or something, but I’m perfectly excited enough just to be there for the experience. We’re seeing that Disney ‘Frozen’ movie, which I am sure will be a huge hit with her. And that’s what gets me amped up. Plus the popcorn.

  • The Tribune’s 13 worst moves in Chicago sports in 2013 includes three Cubs signings: Scott Baker, Edwin Jackson, and Ian Stewart. I’d take issue with the first two, given that Baker was the kind of risk the Cubs should have been taking (it simply didn’t work out, which is what the “risk” part was), and Jackson still has three years left on his deal (and peripherals that suggest his outcomes will be better in the future). The Stewart re-signing was a mistake. I don’t think anyone would argue otherwise, given that some of things that derailed his 2013 performance could have been, and should have been, anticipated. Fortunately, it’s a $2 million mistake, rather than a $100 million mistake (and third base actually ended up a bright spot for the Cubs, overall, in 2013). The Kyuji Fujikawa deal is looking crummy right now, too, if we’re including deals that were struck by bad luck, like the Baker deal.
  • Carrie Muskat updates you on Luis Valbuena’s winter ball performance in Venezuela, where he just hit his fourth homer. He’s hitting .311/.440/.467 with more walks (25) than strikeouts (23). Position check? Still at second base.
  • Perhaps it’s an idiosyncrasy, but folks who do dangerous things with their cars make me very, very angry. I suppose it’s because doing such things are completely, 100% within the driver’s control, and are completely, 100% unnecessary. To wit: Yasiel Puig was arrested in Florida yesterday for going 110 mph in a 70 mph zone. That, to me, should come with an immediate one year suspension of license, and a probably a short jail term. Outrageous? Probably, but this kind of behavior that puts other people in danger is the easiest kind of behavior to deter (and the most desirable to deter). Someone pulls this kind of stunt and get slapped hard? They aren’t going to do it again, and other people who hear about it aren’t going to do it, either. Here’s where I point out that this is the second time Puig has been arrested for the same kind of offense: earlier this year, Puig was arrested for doing 97 mph in a 50 mph zone. The charges were dropped after he did a little community service. Clearly, he learned his lesson.
  • BN’er Chris is taking a look at some of the Masahiro Tanaka suitors in his own, unique way.
  • It’s game day for the Bears, who need to beat the Packers – and Aaron Rodgers – today to make the playoffs. Jay’s got your morning Bears Bullets here.
  • 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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