The year it ended. That’s how we’ll probably always think of 2021, with the clear end of the group that had come up more or less together, finally won it all more or less together, and then departing more or less together. I think there were definitely some enjoyable moments, but I’m not sure too many Cubs fans would call 2021, overall, a great year. We’re left instead to hope that it was a productive one. Time will tell.
• I am sufficiently starved for action that this is like watching a mid-June game to me. An important one. Maybe not a *critical* one, but like definitely Cardinals or Brewers:
Long-toss sliders and splits. pic.twitter.com/UlnHtmeKDm
— Marcus Stroman (@STR0) December 31, 2021
• Over at The Athletic, Patrick Mooney wraps the year in quotes, reminding us along the way of the oddities, from Javy being extreme El Mago, to Rizzo striking out Frederick, to Kris Bryant leaving candy on the field for Kyle Schwarber, to the first combined no-no in team history, to the team using an MLB-record 69 players this year. Name them all. I DARE YOU.
• Among the quotes that really stuck out to me was this one from Jake Arrieta in early July, when things had gone fully off the rails: “There’s no storybook ending that’s just magically going to be written.” How right he was, in more ways than he probably realized at the time.
• Speaking of there being no storybook ending:
Kerry Wood, Derrek Lee and Ryan Dempster reflect on Game 7 of the 2003 NLCS – including Wood's epic HR.https://t.co/EOjwu2nka8
— Tony Andracki (@TonyAndracki23) December 29, 2021
• This is just so awesome. Enjoy it:
You saw what they did with the @dallascowboys and @NFLFilms. Now, take two minutes to experience Horner Ballpark and college baseball like never before. pic.twitter.com/25wLVCgvzu
— DBU Baseball (@DBU_Baseball) December 17, 2021
• Andy McCullough offers New Years resolutions for each organization, and the Cubs’ ties back to keeping their pitching prospects healthy and developing, something that’s gotten a lot of attention recently. From McCullough: “This phenomenon is not unique to the Cubs. Solving it remains vital to the franchise’s future plans. The would-be dynasty of Anthony Rizzo, Kris Bryant and Javier Báez foundered, in part, because of the organization’s inability to produce homegrown arms. The pandemic wreaked havoc in the minors these past two years. The Cubs are hopeful a new year will allow for a new beginning.”
• I can easily envision a scenario where the Cubs have multiple arms bust out/continue to bust out, and they look FLUSH with young pitching at this time next year. And I can just as easily envision another year of only incremental gains for some guys, injuries for others, and moves into the bullpen for others. Predicting pitching prospect development is foolish. Hope isn’t a strategy, but it might be all we fans have in that part of the game until the Cubs show that they’ve clearly got org-wide systems in place to make the development happen for more than just reclamation relievers.
• A random memory for no real reason:
Remember when Amir Garrett got so tired of the Pirates shit that he just said, screw it, I'm taking them all on? That was wild. pic.twitter.com/OoubzjOQbx
— Bleacher Nation (@BleacherNation) March 27, 2020
• Put him in:
The Greatest Return Man in the History of the World is a Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2022 Finalisthttps://t.co/ET24zTSdAW
— Bleacher Nation Bears (@BN_Bears) December 30, 2021
Here’s 5+minutes of @D_Hest23 doing @ProFootballHOF worthy things via @nflthrowback. 🐐 pic.twitter.com/ielqA2Vg8r
— Bleacher Nation Bears (@BN_Bears) December 30, 2021
• For your evening:
NEW YEAR'S EVE REMINDER: If you start this video of Game 7 of the 2016 World Series at exactly 8:09:10 pm, the clock will hit midnight right when Rizzo catches Bryant's throw for the final out. (cc @cubs @BleacherNation) https://t.co/phbRmxqNIE
— Marcus Gilmer (@marcusgilmer) December 30, 2021