That was a great Halloween night. Kids all had fun, our neighborhood was really alive with families out enjoying the festivities (it was the first non-pandemic, non-bad-weather trick-or-treat night we’ve had in years and years). I really enjoyed that. Hope yours was good, too.
Jordan Bastian reports that, although outgoing Cubs hitting coach Greg Brown was offered a different position within the organization, he will not be taking the Cubs up on that offer. Understandable after a year of being a big league hitting coach, and getting swapped out with the Cubs’ minor league hitting coordinator, Dustin Kelly. The fit must just not have been quite right – maybe for either side – and Brown, who was previously the minor league hitting coordinator for the Rays, figures to have plenty of opportunities out there.
Nolan Arenado has addressed his still-pretty-inexplicable decision not to opt out of his deal with the Cardinals, and, well, it still feels inexplicable to me. Even though he explained it:
“For me, to get traded to St. Louis was a very complicated deal and it wasn’t easy to get here,” Arenado told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “There was a lot of time and effort put into it. It meant a lot to me they went that far beyond for me. I really appreciate their effort they took to get me here and I want to hold up my end of the bargain. Everything has been, for me since I’ve been here, better than I thought it would be.”
As we’ve discussed, none of that really explains why Arenado, who is owed just $144 million over the next five years (and at 31 could almost certainly top that guarantee in free agency, assuming there isn’t some mystery health issue), wouldn’t just opt out and re-sign for a little more money. The only possible explanation there is that the Cardinals let him know that if he opted out, they would not offer him a better deal, and he refused to call their bluff. It is deeply, deeply annoying, but if I can take off my Cubs homer hat for a moment, I would say it was definitely a team-first decision by Arenado. Cardinals fans must be over the moon about this guy (a guy the Cubs could’ve had two years ago if they simply hadn’t insisted on sending the Rockies back Jason Heyward’s contract … sigh).
The other thing that is heavily implied in that Post-Dispatch piece is that Arenado – who wanted away from the Rockies because they WOULDN’T commit to surrounding him with talent – got assurances from John Mozeliak that the Cardinals will be making sure the roster is decked out and competitive. I think a lot about how the Cardinals have Jordan Walker and Masyn Winn coming soon, and if they also spend aggressively over the next several years … well, suffice to say, the Cubs better be ready to do what is necessary.
Speaking of which, I can’t believe last night’s rainout delayed the Cubs’ AMAZING AND TRANSFORMATIVE offseason by a day.
I’m obviously semi-kidding about the degree of movement this offseason, but I do think it’s going to be a pretty important one. A reminder that, while the bulk will probably happen in that usual late-November through early-January period, more than usual might happen sooner because of the calendar. Not only are there the usual options decisions and Qualifying Offer decisions that come soon after the World Series ends, but you’ve got a Rule 5 rostering deadline that is going to be only about two weeks after the end of the World Series (usually, in non-lockout-impacted seasons, it’s more like three weeks). We could see a lot of movement for the Cubs, then, in mid-November.
Umpire Pat Hoberg called a perfect game in Game Two of the World Series, which is incredible:
I want to see this again:
It’s officially over:
A couple great Halloween costumes:
NEWSLETTER
