NEWSLETTER
I have not had true food poisoning in a long time. The type where you KNOW – no details – what you’re dealing with. That was me overnight, all night. It was awful, and I’m in rough shape this morning. It’s like having the worst hangover of your life without at least having the fun that preceded it.
• Over at Ivy Futures, Greg Zumach writes about a series of ambitious (but realistic) moves to build out the Cubs’ offense for 2022, and there were two things I absolutely loved in the discussion. First, I love aiming to pick up a prospect/young player in a deal with the Rays to take Kevin Kiermaier’s contract off their hands. Kiermaier, 31, falls into that category of players the Cubs could actually use (platoon-type outfielder), even if they wouldn’t want him at $12.2 million for 2022 (plus a $2.5 million buyout). So the Cubs are getting a useful, albeit overpriced, player and snagging young talent in the process (though, as always, be careful when trading with the Rays). That’s the best version of that kind of “buying a prospect” trade, and I hope the Cubs make at least one this offseason. (Hey, have the Rays throw in Tyler Glasnow, and we can really get something cookin’.)
• Second, I REALLY love the way Zumach is thinking about the types of bats the Cubs could target. For example, gets way into soon-to-be free agent third baseman Kyle Seager, and whether you specifically dig Seager or not, Zumach’s reasoning is sound: everything Patrick Wisdom does poorly at the plate (the coverage and the types of pitches), Seager does really well. When you talk about more advanced platoon situations, this is what you want to see – one guy who MASHES fastballs and sinkers down, paired with a guy who simply never misses on anything up in the zone. Depending on the type of pitcher you’re facing on a given day (or who gets swapped in from the bullpen), that’d be quite a pairing. It’s a very 2021 Giants way of looking at platoons.
• Seager, a lefty, also has traditional splits, so the pairing makes even more sense in that regard. Oh, and Seager is still a really solid defender at third base, like Wisdom. Oh, also, Seager, 33, ain’t gonna break the bank on a short-term deal, so you’re still wide open to splurge on pitching and in the outfield (without any long-term impact). Check out more of what Greg Zumach got into over at Ivy Futures. I’m digging a lot of the thinking.
• Speaking of how well the Giants maximized performance this year, this is a wild, two-tweet ride:
Also hearing Mets owner Steve Cohen spoke w/Giants GM Scott Harris, who declined to be a candidate for a top front office job. That’s less a reflection on the Mets’ situation and more based on the fact Harris is a Bay Area native and is excited about the path the Giants are on.
— Andrew Baggarly (@extrabaggs) October 25, 2021
• Harris, formerly in the Cubs’ front office, is now the Giants’ GM under Farhan Zaidi. So if the Mets were approaching him about a possible presidency, you’d think he would listen … unless, yeah, “it was a reflection on the Mets’ situation.” They are seriously having some trouble getting any of their discussed candidates to even come for a real interview:
Sources say Rays executive Peter Bendix is likely to stay in Tampa Bay.
The Mets had discussed him as a possibility for their front office.
— Michael Mayer (@mikemayer22) October 25, 2021
• As for the Giants thing in Baggarly’s tweets, yeah, it’s not at all a surprise that they’re getting hounded for interviews/promotions/poaching. When you take a team that was “still rebuilding” and was “projected for 75 wins” and immediately turn them into a 107-game winner, you must have a whole lotta people doing a whole lot right. (The Cubs have an open hitting coach spot … )
• Actually, speaking of that parenthetical: this probably means nothing at all, but outgoing Brewers hitting coach Andy Haines, who was poached from the Cubs when he was an up-and-coming assistant hitting coach (and former minor league hitting instructor), just re-followed BN Cubs on Twitter. It could just be a matter of him getting back out in the world a bit after the Brewers let him go, but it does seem an oddly specific new follow (his only recent new follow). It’s fair to wonder if the Cubs are going to have a conversation with an old friend.
• But they DESERVED. ALL. OF. IT:
All the jeering, booing, etc., did was make the @Astros closer, tougher and better. Oh, and their fans loved them more than ever in a Houston-vs-Everybody themed season. @TexasMonthly https://t.co/UN86fkJ2Cv
— Richard Justice (@richardjustice) October 25, 2021
• Clothes, pet supplies, and more are your Epic Daily Deals at Amazon. #ad
• And HEADS UP, because it’s Mystery Box szn again at Obvious Shirts – these will not last, and I highly recommend jumping on this if for no other reason than they remain some of the most comfortable t-shirts you’ll ever wear:
👀 LIMITED! Our Cubs-themed mystery box has returned for a limited time! 3 shirts for $39+Free Shipping is a very good deal. Link: https://t.co/yjRLWFoWH4 pic.twitter.com/ZhI43p7M7v
— OBVIOUS SHIRTS® (@obvious_shirts) October 25, 2021
• The Bulls did it again:
For the first time since he entered the NBA …
Zach LaVine has won four games in a row. pic.twitter.com/2RkR5pir1G
— Bleacher Nation Bulls (@BN_Bulls) October 26, 2021
Chicago Bulls Full Game Highlights: 111-108 Win Over the Toronto Raptors – https://t.co/RljeNR3uKd pic.twitter.com/F69j8Kq1PT
— Bleacher Nation Bulls (@BN_Bulls) October 26, 2021
