What a day. You had the full scope of the Opening of Cubs Convention – great to talk to so many folks! – wrapped around Roki Sasaki making his decision (or, well, making public a decision that was maybe made a very long time ago), two of the late-inning relievers going off the board, the official return of Sammy Sosa, and the announcement of he and Derrek Lee being the Cubs’ Hall of Fame class for 2025. I’m still mentally catching up a bit.
- Although Sammy Sosa got all the headlines, and definitely made for an emotional return, this was the moment that brought tears to the eyes:
Ryne Sandberg is introduced at Cubs Convention to a rousing ovation 💙#RynoStrong pic.twitter.com/3VtmPa009O
— Marquee Sports Network (@WatchMarquee) January 18, 2025
- Ryne Sandberg, who recently announced that he is battling cancer once again, coming out to that song, with that ovation, and clearly touched … yeah, it got me. Love to Sandberg and his family.
- More bits on the new Cubs Hall of Famers if you missed any of it:
Right where they belong. 💙 pic.twitter.com/KOQlbScaj3
— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) January 18, 2025
SAMMY SOSA IS A SHOWMAN 🗣️ pic.twitter.com/EW2JLRb3Wx
— Marquee Sports Network (@WatchMarquee) January 18, 2025
โTonight, itโs been incredible โฆ Thank you, all of you who support me."
Sammy Sosa on returning to the Cubs community after 21 years. pic.twitter.com/2luLJLZwJ2— Marquee Sports Network (@WatchMarquee) January 18, 2025
Derrek Lee on what it means to be announced as a @Cubs Hall of Famer! pic.twitter.com/WZyQRixMMO— Marquee Sports Network (@WatchMarquee) January 18, 2025
- I’m just excited to have Sammy back in the fold – and to see D-Lee getting his props, too – and to be able to live in the memories again. Mistakes were made. By Sammy. By the Cubs. By the league. By a lot of people. We don’t have to forget that part, but we also don’t have to obsess over it and make ourselves miserable. We’re allowed to be happy, and last night, I really was.
- (Which, by the way, is why I’m not IGNORING the fact that Sosa last night seemed to say he was never apologizing for PED usage, but I’m also not going to belabor it. He was simply apologizing for being away from the fans for 21 years. That’s not what his statement said, by the way, but is anyone actually surprised that Sammy kinda wants to have it both ways? He issued the statement he needed to issue so that everyone involved – Sammy, Tom Ricketts, the Cubs org – could check a box and say they did all the things. It’s not the best version of all this, but I just want to move on, and I got the distinct sense last night that the vast majority of Cubs fans agree.)
- As for Sasaki, I feel foolish for ever stepping outside the original thinking that it was, of course, always going to be the Dodgers, and everything else was just about insuring that there wasn’t a grievance and that he could get the biggest bonus possible from the Dodgers. I don’t even blame him, necessarily, because I completely get why he wants to be with that team at this moment. I’m just annoyed that it was made into something it clearly never was. I was glad to hear Jed Hoyer talk about how hard his group worked on the process, even knowing how unlikely they were to succeed, because he believes there will be long-term value in having done it, regardless of the outcome this time around.
- Meanwhile, the Dodgers now have the following starting pitchers: Sasaki, Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow, Dustin May, Tony Gonsolin, and probably Clayton Kershaw. They have a flotilla of rehabbing young arms, too, many of whom will factor into the rotation depth group and the bullpen. It would be obscene even if they DIDN’T also have an absurd volume of talent on the positional side. And it’s not even like they had to spend real money to get Sasaki! They essentially get him for free. So even if the Dodgers have a budget, they now have even more room to keep adding. They are going to project for like 120 wins or some shit. Whatever.
- Oh, and just for fun: The Cubs will be paying as much to lefty reliever Caleb Thielbar in 2025 as the Dodgers will be paying Shohei Ohtani and Roki Sasaki combined.
- Alexander Canario, currently slated to be the on the big league bench, continues to rake in the Dominican Winter League. He finished the regular season in a near tie for third in the league in OPS, and his solo homer last night accounted for the only run in Cibaeรฑas’s playoff-opening win: