The offseason – the real meat of it – is still a good month away, but with the Cubs eliminated from postseason contention and staring down the face of what *MUST BE* a compelling roster reformation, it’s not too early to start noting the the kinds of bits and rumors and speculation that make up the Lukewarm Stove.
Besides, it’s a Friday afternoon, the Cubs won’t be in the playoffs, and there are a few items I want to share that I don’t have another place for …
The financial story will be, as it is forever and always, a big part of what the Cubs’ front office can and cannot do this offseason. We’ll be doing some deep dives on that when the office gets rolling, but before that even happens, I want to cut off one storyline at the knees if may. I saw an article out there talking about the Cubs’ luxury tax situation, having exceeded the luxury tax this year, and then risking exceeding it again next year. The implication of the article, perhaps, was that with so much money coming off the books, the Cubs could get back under the $208 million luxury tax (first tier) level for 2020 in order to avoid a repeat offender situation.
To be sure, yes the Cubs absolutely *could* get back under the luxury tax next year if the simply strip away the departing contracts and make no significant additions, but let’s talk about the financial benefit of doing so (which is the only benefit at this stage in the penalty process): in a hypothetical world where the Cubs were willing to post a, say, $230 million payroll as a first-time offender, but wouldn’t be willing to do so as a second-time offender, the tax difference between the first and second year is a whopping $2.2 million. That’s it. The tax rate the first time around is 20% on the overage in the first tier (and *only* the overage). The tax rate the second year on the overage is 30%. At a reasonable luxury tax payroll level, that difference in tax is *NOTHING,* and absolutely SHOULD NOT be a consideration on how the Cubs choose to spend this offseason.
If there are broader limitations on spending that the Cubs want to try to sell to the public, then, by all means, let’s have those discussion and analyze them in a fair way. I’m open to it. But what I am not open to is any conversation that starts with “well, the Cubs have to get back under the luxury tax because being a repeat offender is so terrible.” It’s not. Stop. Do not go there.
Is this the next Miles Mikolas signing coming to MLB this offseason:
With 8 more Ks yesterday, Josh Lindblom (@JoshLindblom52) broke the single season strikeout record in team history w/ 186. With 1 start remaining, all eyes on Lindblom to see if he can claim the Pitching Triple Crown. Currently leads #KBO in Wins (20), K (186), 2nd in ERA (2.38). pic.twitter.com/0Zp16WFayc
Lindblom, now 32, is putting together his second straight overwhelmingly-dominating season in South Korea. Obviously there’s no certainty that it translates, but Lindblom does have a past MLB history as a mediocre reliever. He wouldn’t be the first guy to not be able to get over the hump, go overseas and figure things out (now as a starting pitcher), and then come back with success. It could be one of those low-key, low-cost, intriguing signings. Starter? Swing guy? Depending on how the Cubs proceed, a guy like Lindblom could be right there with Tyler Chatwood, Kendall Graveman, and Alec Mills as swing/starter/relief/6th/7th starter option types. Given how old the Cubs’ rotation is getting, I sure wouldn’t mind seeing a lot of options available.
Speaking of which, while signing a guy like Gerrit Cole is (rightly) going to get most of the attention, I wonder if the Cubs might be creative to try to bring in an impact starting pitcher via trade. This is just something I’ve been kicking around in my head, and is entirely speculative:
Apropos of nothing other than "I think the Mets might listen," can the Cubs pursue a Noah Syndergaard/Edwin Diaz combo trade this offseason? Mets would absolutely consider moving both, IMO, and the Cubs seem like a very good fit to use Syndergaard and reclaim Diaz.
Syndergaard, 27, is under control via arbitration for two more years, but the Mets have seemingly been very chill with shopping him for two years now. His results this year were relatively disappointing for him (4.30 ERA), but the underlying peripherals were very solid, even if unspectacular. Dude has always felt like there’s another level to his game, and maybe getting out of New York would help spur that on.
As for Diaz, the 25-year-old reliever has three arbitration years left following a disastrous 2019 campaign with the Mets. He still struck dudes out at a herculean clip, but perhaps more than any other reliever in baseball, he got destroyed by the homer. Maybe with some tweaks and a changed baseball, he’s right back to the guy he was before New York?
You’d have to get pretty comfy with the idea of the Cubs giving up a lot and/or big league pieces to make a deal like this work, but it could be one of those old-fashioned-baseball-trades things that people mention sometimes without much in the way of explanation. I think maybe it means two teams trading at the big league level to improve at the big league level, but whatever. I’m just saying: I could see the Mets seriously considering moving those two, and I could see the Cubs being interested.
Rumors in Ken Rosenthal’s Red Sox front office piece about folks wondering whether the organization might undergo a SERIOUS rebuilding effort upon the arrival of the new top brass. Always possible when there’s a big change like that, and certainly would be interesting.
We do know that the Red Sox are very likely to listen to offers for Mookie Betts, whom they did not extend, and who is now a free agent after 2020:
Mookie Betts contract: Boston Red Sox star once considered extension offer but then ‘took the emotion out of it’ (report) https://t.co/rJC6v7i3Se
Old friend Jorge Soler is having himself a monster power season, and there’s talk that maybe the Royals might try to extend the 27-year-old. He’s got two years left on the original deal he signed with the Cubs way back when as a Cuban amateur. Good for him. Soler cannot play defense to save his life at this point (which is sad), but the dude sure is raking: .262/.352/.555, 133 wRC+ and 45 homers.
A trio of pitcher injury news updates, all of potential relevance to the Chicago Cubs ... Sandy Alcántara - The Marlins' ace, out with a UCL sprain, was trying to hustle his way back through a rehab assignment so he...
Well there it is. Another surprising turn in the ever-mysterious, ever-twisting saga of Marcus Stroman's injury and return. It's very good news: https://twitter.com/jon_greenberg/status/1705330802802757828 https://twitter.com/WatchMarquee/status/1705333054691070457 The Cubs obviously kept that one very much close to the vest, with Stroman pitching twice...
FINALLY. The Cubs really took care of business in a game where they were supposed to take care of business. The final regular season Friday at Wrigley Field ends in a W. Jameson Taillon was not super efficient today, but...
You really couldn't ask for a better second-half from Seiya Suzuki, who just hit his 20th home run of the season, as part of a 3-3 effort so far. https://twitter.com/Cubs/status/1705304145962455136?s=20 He's now slashing .281/.352/.485 (124 wRC+) and has been the...
Was that headline a little mean-spirited? Perhaps. But we're all a little tense right now. So while I was very happy to see Kris Bryant get his standing ovation at Wrigley Field in his first at-bat this afternoon, I was...
Well the news is all there in the headline: Jeimer Candelario, who's been on the injured list with a strained lower back since September 10, could be back with the team as soon as this weekend. But we can get...
Some years, it's pretty easy to guess who is going to win player of the year-type honors in the Chicago Cubs' farm system. Other years, it's really difficult, either because several guys were so good that you're just picking between...
Cubs Lineup — The Cubs cannot afford to lose more than one game this series. In fact, they probably need to sweep. But let's just take it one game at a time ... especially with Jameson Taillon on the mound....
Cubs vs Rockies — I ended the last series preview asking the Cubs, directly: "Can you just not make this terrible, please?" They did not oblige. After dropping two of three to the Pittsburgh freakin' Pirates, who were playing on...
The Little Boy and I are headed to Chicago today for the final series of the year at Wrigley, and I gotta tell you, when we planned this a couple weeks ago, I didn't think THESE would be the circumstances....
At this rate, I'll be writing a new post about Zach LaVine every hour! After an initial report connected the Chicago Bulls to the Damian Lillard sweepstakes on Thursday, the trade rumor floodgates have opened. Jake Fischer is the latest...
A trio of pitcher injury news updates, all of potential relevance to the Chicago Cubs ... Sandy Alcántara - The Marlins' ace, out with a UCL sprain, was trying to hustle his way back through a rehab assignment so he...
Well there it is. Another surprising turn in the ever-mysterious, ever-twisting saga of Marcus Stroman's injury and return. It's very good news: https://twitter.com/jon_greenberg/status/1705330802802757828 https://twitter.com/WatchMarquee/status/1705333054691070457 The Cubs obviously kept that one very much close to the vest, with Stroman pitching twice...
A recent report from Kyle Neubeck (PHLY Sixers) named Chicago as the "wildcard" team in the Damian Lillard sweepstakes. More specifically, Neubeck mentioned that the Bulls could look to construct a three-team trade that includes moving Zach LaVine. Yep, that's...
After the week we've endured as fans, we're ready to focus on football. Game Info Chicago Bears (0-2) vs Kansas City Chiefs (1-1) FOX -TV (Kevin Burhardt, Greg Olsen, Erin Andrews, Tom Rinaldi) ESPN 1000 AM (Jeff Joniak, Tom Thayer), Sports...
FINALLY. The Cubs really took care of business in a game where they were supposed to take care of business. The final regular season Friday at Wrigley Field ends in a W. Jameson Taillon was not super efficient today, but...
With under two weeks to go before training camp begins across the NBA, trade talk is heating up. Matt Rooney and I started this week's episode by discussing the revamped Damian Lillard trade rumors, which now include the Chicago Bulls...
It's hard to dispute the success that Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch have had together in San Francisco. Ownership seems to agree and has rewarded Shanahan and Lynch with new contract extensions that will keep them in San Francisco for...
What a year this week has been. So, why not add on to the pile while we still can? Soldier Field, home of the Chicago Bears, is looking at more than $100,000 worth of damages and stolen equipment after an...
You really couldn't ask for a better second-half from Seiya Suzuki, who just hit his 20th home run of the season, as part of a 3-3 effort so far. https://twitter.com/Cubs/status/1705304145962455136?s=20 He's now slashing .281/.352/.485 (124 wRC+) and has been the...
