Hall of Fame Announcement Coming, Grichuk Beefs, Baby Baez, and Other Bullets

January 24, 2018, by Brett Taylor Chicago Cubs

The Little Girl is doing the Girl Scout cookie thing, which is very convenient, because I now don’t have to seek out someone else to buy from. But it is also quite dangerous, because that dang order form just sits there, with so many cookies looking delicious … and all I have to do is change a 2 to a 3 and a 5 to a 6 … or add a 1 in front of a 2 … and then you get the boxes, and it’s like, yeah, I ordered too many, but I’m not gonna waste them, so …

(If you want to get Girl Scout cookies but don’t have someone local to buy from (support your local troop if you do!), you can order from The Little Girl’s online page here.)

The Hall of Fame results will be announced this evening, and here’s where things stand as far as we can tell from public ballots:

With 236 ballots revealed/~55.7% of the vote known:
Chipper – 98%
Vlad – 95%
Thome – 93%
Hoffman – 78.4%
Edgar 77.1%
—–
Mussina – 70%
BB/RC – 64%
Schilling – 59%
Walker – 39%
Vizquel – 33%
Manny – 23%
McGriff – 19%
Rolen – 13%
Andruw – 5.5%
Tracker: https://t.co/EHQYbIMnWo

— Ryan Thibodaux (@NotMrTibbs) January 24, 2018

You tend to see guys like Edgar Martinez – not supported by “traditional” voters – fall when the actual results come out, because those voters tend to be less likely to release their ballots publicly (which is frankly embarrassing). Also embarrassing: Andruw Jones might fall off the ballot because of the stupid backlog of worthy candidates that has built up while voters moralize about the Steroid Era. Your stance has led to plausibly-Hall-of-Fame-worthy players like Kenny Lofton, Jim Edmonds, and now maybe Jones to fall off the ballot right off the bat. Worse, the same voters punish those players because their numbers don’t hold up against the very guys who are being held out as juicers!
Speaking of which:

To review, on Clemens/Bonds.
1. MLB: views them as members in good standing, unlike Rose, Shoeless Joe. Both eligible to work for teams.
2. Hall of Fame: views them as members in good standing. Places them on ballot annually.
3. BBWAA: Have effectively rendered a lifetime ban.

— Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) January 24, 2018

The implications here make for a very not-so-good-look for the Cardinals’ organization and manager:

Grichuk: "Sometimes in STL, me and the other OFs thought we would have to get two hits, or two hits and a walk, to be in the lineup the next day, and that's not good for anybody." #Bluejays #Jays

— Mike Wilner (@Wilnerness590) January 23, 2018

To be sure, that could just be Grichuk frustrated by being part of a rotation because of the Cardinals quality outfield depth last year. But even so, you’d had to see a guy like Ian Happ or Albert Almora thinking this about their playing time with the Cubs – the last thing you want is a young player out there feeling like he’s GOTTA GET A HIT that day just to keep playing. Baseball doesn’t work that way, and that’s a quick recipe for a slump.
Cubs relief prospect Corey Black had Tommy John surgery last year, but he’s working his way back, and just hit a big milestone:

Been over a year since I’ve stepped on a mound but boy let me tell you that’s the most comfortable I’ve felt on the mound in a very long time.

— Corey Black (@CblackCHC) January 23, 2018

With a continued recovery, Black could be pitching competitively somewhere in the minor leagues by at least midseason. Now 26, Black’s stuff has always been big-league-caliber, especially in a relief role. It’d be great if he got into a position to be a depth reliever by the second half, though historically, it could take a year of competitive pitching for him to get back to full velocity and command.
A little Javy Baez is on the way:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BeVaDSTFW1b/?hl=en&taken-by=javy23baez