Getting a Different Kind of Value from Zobrist, Hillarious Willson, and Other Bullets

Jan 17, 2018

It’s always so weird when you wake up with a song in your head that you *know* you haven’t heard in forever. This morning, it was ‘Rude’ by MAGIC! I don’t even especially like that song, and I know I have not heard it in months (years? … when was that a thing?). What dream was I having that plucked that song from somewhere deep in the recesses of the wiring of my brain?

Also: why you gotta be so roooo-uuude?

Heading into 2018, it’s fair to presume that Javy Baez will continue to take more and more starts at second base (as well as Ian Happ), leaving fewer there for Ben Zobrist. Much of that is the product of Baez continuing to emerge as an everyday-caliber player, but it’s also the product of the whole “time is undefeated” thing. Zobrist, who turns 37 in May, has hit just .233/.335/.388 (92 wRC+) since May of 2016, including .232/.318/.375 (82) this past season. Various injuries – including a lengthy wrist problem – played a major role in that, but the thing is, guys don’t recover as well from injuries in their late-30s, especially when wrists are involved and bat speed is at stake. Expecting Zobrist to return to the 120+ wRC+ guy he was for a decade in these final two years of his deal with the Cubs is not realistic.

That’s not to say you can’t expect Zobrist to provide value, though. Maybe even lots of it, given his versatility and continued steadiness in the field. Heck, even a “bench” guy who makes 80+ starts at a variety of positions with a league-average bat and a league-average glove is an extremely valuable player to have on the roster.

And for his part, Zobrist tells Sahadev Sharma that his offseason has already been very different from last year, when he wasn’t physically able to get his conditioning going until mid-to-late December. This time around, a little more like his usual offseason, he started getting things underway in November, and he feels like that will build up a better endurance foundation for the upcoming season, something he thinks he was lacking last year, which led to various physical breakdowns. There’s a whole lot more on Zobrist in Sharma’s piece, so it’s worth a read.

Also worth a read (in my opinion) is the piece we put together yesterday on the state of the Cubs’ TV broadcast rights, and the future for streaming and MLB. It’s necessarily long – sorry – but it’s critical stuff, not only for the Cubs, but for fans who want to be as free as possible to watch the teams they love in the coming years.

A profile on Dillon Maples, who may not have a spot in the Cubs’ bullpen coming out of Spring Training by default, but he could certainly earn a spot if he looks like he did last year (with maybe just a touch more command). The fastball and the slider/cutter are, without question, big-league-high-leverage quality. If he can hit his spots a little more frequently, he’ll be a back-end option for the Cubs for years. Even if he doesn’t make the club out of Spring Training, you can presume he’ll see plenty of time in the big leagues throughout the season.

The ZiPS projections are out for the Angels, which means Shohei Ohtani projections. As a pitcher, he projects to be nearly 20% better than league average, but ZiPS isn’t buying the two-way star thing, projecting an exactly average hitter. Obviously that would still be a very valuable player, but when you can really only get him in there as the DH, you’re hoping to get more than a merely average bat out of that spot. Then again, Albert Pujols projects for a mere 87 wRC+, so there’s plenty of room for an average bat to be an improvement.

The annual, very deserved congrats for Pat Hughes:

#Cubs radio play-by-play announcer Pat Hughes has been named the 2017 Illinois Co-Sportscaster of the Year by the @NSMASportsMedia! pic.twitter.com/dJApF61Z8m

— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) January 16, 2018

Willson Contreras did a Q&A on Twitter, and it was magnificent. There some informative bits – like he’s looking forward to catching Adbert Alzolay – and also some big LOLs tied to his hilarious performance at CubsCon:

would you wear one of these shirts if they existed pic.twitter.com/HNYL9jgg9v

— Randall J. Sanders (@RandallJSanders) January 17, 2018

Lol probably

— Willson Contreras (@WContreras40) January 17, 2018

Over at TYL, the new Bears coaching staff continues to fill out, the latest mock draft has the Bears addressing needs, and the Bears made some serious mistakes in free agency.

Deals of the Day today at Amazon on office supplies and tools, if you’re feeling like being an adult. And you can get a huge collection of superhero slap bracelets if you’re not feeling like being an adult.

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.

more cubs news

Chicago Cubs

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...

Brett Taylor

May 14, 2024

Chicago Cubs

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...

Brett Taylor

May 14, 2024

Chicago Cubs

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...

Brett Taylor

May 14, 2024

Chicago Cubs

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...

Michael Cerami

May 14, 2024

Chicago Cubs

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...

Brett Taylor

May 14, 2024

Chicago Cubs

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...

Brett Taylor

May 14, 2024

Chicago Cubs

Enhanced Box Score: Braves 2, Cubs 0 – May 13, 2024

Well that ninth inning rally started off great, with Cody Bellinger and Christopher Morel reaching, the latter on 12-pitch walk (the longest PA of his career). And then POOF. In just two pitches, the Cubs made three outs and the...

Michael Cerami

May 13, 2024

Chicago Cubs

Craig Counsell Was Just Thrown Out from the Dugout … by the First Base Umpire

Well you don't see that very often. Craig Counsell was just thrown out of the game from inside the Cubs dugout *by the FIRST BASE umpire* after a check-swing appeal. Here's what happened. In the bottom of the fourth inning,...

Michael Cerami

May 13, 2024

Chicago Cubs

Pre-Gamin’: Cubs at Braves (6:20 CT) – Lineups, Broadcast Info, Game Thread

CUBS LINEUP — The Atlanta Braves are one of, if not the toughest opponent the Cubs will face this season. But Seiya Suzuki is back, Cody Bellinger is back, and Shota Imanaga is on the mound. This Cubs team is...

Michael Cerami

May 13, 2024

Chicago Cubs

Cubs Roster Move: Alzolay to the IL, Cuas Returns (UPDATE)

It felt like this situation with Adbert Alzolay could not go on much longer, and it has now resolved itself with an Injured List move. Today, the Cubs placed Alzolay on the 15-day IL with a right forearm strain. Jose...

Brett Taylor

May 13, 2024

Chicago Bulls

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....

Matt Rooney

May 14, 2024

Chicago Bears

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...

Patrick K. Flowers

May 14, 2024

Chicago Cubs

Did You Ever Wonder What Happened to Frank Schwindel?

Brett Taylor

May 14, 2024

Chicago Bulls

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...

Elias Schuster

May 14, 2024

Chicago Blackhawks

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...

Matt Rooney

May 14, 2024

Chicago Cubs

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

Brett Taylor

May 14, 2024

Chicago Blackhawks

Oilers Reportedly Making A Big Change Prior To Game 4

Heading into the Oilers and Canucks second-round series, Vancouver was thought to be the team with the bigger concern in between the pipes. Vezina Trophy finalist Thatcher Demko was ruled out for at least the first four games of the...

Matt Rooney

May 14, 2024

Chicago Bulls

Playing Rookies More, 2025 Draft Pick Concerns, Lonzo’s New Podcast, and Other Bulls Bullets

With the 2024 NBA Draft Combine off to a hot start in their own backyard, I hope the Chicago Bulls have learned from their many past mistakes. More on the importance of these next few days ... https://www.bleachernation.com/bulls/2024/05/14/draft-combine-bulls-work-5/ For a...

Elias Schuster

May 14, 2024

Chicago Bears

NFL Schedule Notes, When Should Bears Debut? Goff, Winfield, Parks, and Other Bears Bullets

Coming home to a wonky wifi wasn't on my to-do list. But at least I'm home in one piece. Anyway, apologies if this set of BN Bears Bullets is brief because I can't spend all day on mobile hotspot. The...

Luis C. Medina

May 14, 2024

Chicago Cubs

The Luckiest Dude at the Ballpark

Michael Cerami

May 14, 2024

Getting a Different Kind of Value from Zobrist, Hillarious Willson, and Other Bullets

Read More

more cubs news

Latest News

more cubs news

Most Popular

Most Popular

Latest News

Most Popular

Most Popular