Cubs Bullpen After Davis, Sano Investigation, Historical Memories, and Other Bullets

Dec 30, 2017

I gotta do some serious shoveling today. Grumble.

Snow. I mean the snow. Outside. I have to shovel lots of snow outside.

Wade Davis is moving on, netting a huge three-year deal from the Rockies (still not a single four-plus-year deal in free agency yet), and the Cubs will continue to consider ways to add to the bullpen. Brandon Morrow is currently slated to be the closer if no other sure-fire option comes into the mix (which I am not expecting at this point). I’m good with Morrow closing, so long as the Cubs are careful about his usage, and so long as the Cubs add at least one more quality relief arm before the winter is up. Yes, you’d love to have a sure-fire elite closer at the back, but if the Cubs can at least have four or five very good high-leverage options, you can at least realistically hope that the back-end will sort itself out. Maybe just be prepared for some bumps in April and May …

Farewell to Davis – it was one year, but it was a very good one:

Thank you to Wade Davis for a dominant and record-setting 2017!

Congrats, @Rockies! You got a great one. pic.twitter.com/XjQHLfNJi5

— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) December 29, 2017

We said all year that the peripherals were taking a bit of a turn, and, given his usage and his age (now 32), it was hard to envision giving him a monster contract. In that way, I’m not “sad” to see him get paid elsewhere, and that contract could turn into a dog for the Rockies. But I understand their approach, and respect them rolling the dice on a different kind of strategy given their unique ballpark situation.

The Padres are getting the band back together, bringing Tyson Ross and Chris Young (the pitcher) back on minor league deals to compete for a rotation spot (Lin). It was a very rough 2017 for Ross, who tried to come back from thoracic outlet syndrome surgery with the Rangers, but he managed just 49.0 woeful innings. Remember when the Cubs didn’t land him and instead opted for Brett Anderson on a similar reclamation type deal? Neither one worked out, which, well, is kinda the baseline on deals like that. You take a cheap swing knowing it probably won’t work out – hoping that it might, because of the outsized value if it does.

Yikes on the Miguel Sano investigation, as Jeff Passan immediately found teammates and ex-teammates willing to offer their perspective that he was not respectful of women:

"A ticking time bomb": How the Miguel Sano allegations are only the beginning for a sporting culture that marries money, power and privilege in all the worst ways. Column: https://t.co/jStRPHuMe2 pic.twitter.com/Z0PqZJjVlg
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) December 29, 2017

This is not the first time these kinds of allegations have entered the baseball sphere, and they won’t be the last time. From a human perspective, you say: good that women are finding the courage to share their stories, because I can only imagine what the sports world has been like for them since the inception of women covering sports. From a Cubs/baseball perspective, you say: hopefully the organization continues its work with young players to develop them not only as ballplayers, but good people who are respectful and kind. And, of course, you hope the organization continues to do good work on the information-gathering side, taking character into account when bringing them aboard in the first place.

Sam Miller put together the “single memory” that defines every season since 1903, which featured the first World Series. The Cubs show up more than a few times, including the 116-win 1906 team (they were a lot of fun to watch, eh?), Merkle’s Boner in 1908, Wrigley Field opening in 1914, the Billy Goat Curse in 1945, and, of course, the 2016 World Championship to end all World Championships. It’s a fascinating list, if for no other reason than the historical context it places on certain things (the first ever night game was in 1935, Joe Nuxhall appeared in the big leagues at age 15 in 1944 because of the war, the expansion Mets lost 120 games in 1962, etc.).

Whoopsiedoodle:

Wake Davietta. pic.twitter.com/bsPBmxsqVJ

— Bleacher Nation (@BleacherNation) December 29, 2017

I do remember it, and I very much enjoy it every time:

Remember Yoenis Cespedes’ “Are You Kidding Me?!” Throw from the Outfield? https://t.co/uay16IlFa0 pic.twitter.com/cHXllQgCQR

— Baseball is Fun (@flippingbats) December 29, 2017

Take advantage, my good chums:

I come bearing DEALS. It's the end-of-year clearance at the Cubs Shop, which means a ton of awesome stuff is dirt cheap. Treat yourself and support BN in the process here: https://t.co/jb2ooOzyIP pic.twitter.com/ZaM2IpaCrU
— Bleacher Nation (@BleacherNation) December 30, 2017

Over at The Ten-Yard Line, we’re tracking the Bears’ front office plans and the coaching search – among the latest items:

Obsessive Head Coach Watch: Shurmur Isn’t a Sexy Option, But He Could Be a Good One https://t.co/LNzlqo4u6a pic.twitter.com/sp3uh2Zy36
— The Ten-Yard Line (@TheTenYardLine) December 29, 2017

Report: Ryan Pace Expected to Get Contract Extension with New Coach https://t.co/Qqmhxgsold pic.twitter.com/Og7uIVqlVc

— The Ten-Yard Line (@TheTenYardLine) December 29, 2017

written by

Brett Taylor

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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