Bleacher Bums Forum

"I do not believe Kris Bryant will resign with the Cubs after 2021."--Dave Kaplan

Believe me, if MLBTR had no links and posted up nothing but unsubstantiated rumors from unknown non-journalists, the site would have disappeared long ago. On the contrary, the core of what they do is linking to, and summarizing, well-sourced journalists.

That’s why you read it.

Ron, I truly believe this is out there because the Cubs wanted Bryant to hear it, not because they seriously expect to deal him.  Either they weren't 100% sold on his rehab habits or (more likely) they want him to understand that if he plays hardball on an extension, they're under no obligation to see that he completes his pre-FA years as a Cub.

I think Onley heard what he heard, but I'm not convinced that it is any sort of change in the Cubs stance. 

Since this came from other teams, I'm not sure how the Cubs are the ones wanting Bryant to hear it.  It would require Theo picking a team (s), saying sure we are  open to trading Bryant and we really want offers on him and then hoping that team leaks it to a reporter that runs with the story.  It all seems convoluted to me.  If the Cubs wanted it leaked, somebody would have mentioned it to Kaplan and he would have run with it.

As far as trading Bryant goes I've yet to hear a proposal that makes the Cubs a better team and saves them money.  In your World Series window you aren't trading your best player for prospects.  If you trade him for another major leaguer, the list of players that improves the Cubs is basically Trout and Betts.  I doubt either guy is getting traded.  For an equal value everyday player, most are going to be older and more expensive. 

The Cubs knew that when they took Bryant he was repped by Boras and the chances where high that he was going to test free agency no matter what.  The Cubs will have the option of bidding for him like everybody else and will have a nice TV contract and only Darvish and Heyward under contract.  The Cubs will have to make some decisions in 2022 as to what direction they go with Bryant, Rizzo, Baez, Schwarber, Russell and Theo becoming free agents. 

Sharma with another fine article. This one is on shifting lineups and playing time.

https://theathletic.com/655689/2018/11/15/are-joe-maddons-lineups-a-problem-for-the-cubs-or-the-main-reason-they-won-95-games-in-a-down-season/

Sharma with another fine article. This one is on shifting lineups and playing time.

https://theathletic.com/655689/2018/11/15/are-joe-maddons-lineups-a-problem-for-the-cubs-or-the-main-reason-they-won-95-games-in-a-down-season/

Olney talked about the Cubs on his podcast and Jesse Rogers responded.

Olney said the are Cubs are “boxed in” with their payroll. Rogers says “I would not have said that 6-8 weeks ago as the season ended. I thought for sure they’d be in on the Bryce Harper sweepstakes and making some other changes. But I think the rhetoric changed once the front office got its budget. I think ownership drew a line.”

The way the media is reporting, it's looking more and more that they'll go into the season with the same dysfunctional mix of position players they've had the last two years. If this is the way they go, I think we're going to see them take a big step back in 2019.

I think the worst case scenario is that they have just enough money to make one medium-sized move and they decide to double down on their current versatility model by signing Marwin Gonzalez. All he does is add another hitter to the mix who has many of the same flaws that half the lineup already has.

The way the media is reporting, it's looking more and more that they'll go into the season with the same dysfunctional mix of position players they've had the last two years. If this is the way they go, I think we're going to see them take a big step back in 2019.

I think the worst case scenario is that they have just enough money to make one medium-sized move and they decide to double down on their current versatility model by signing Marwin Gonzalez. All he does is add another hitter to the mix who has many of the same flaws that half the lineup already has.

What I don’t understand is if the budget is tight why would you pick up the $20 million option on Hemels. I like Hamels, but I think there would be more impact adding Harper for an extra $10 million.