Author Topic: Cubs in '19  (Read 72229 times)

Deeg

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Re: Cubs in '19
« Reply #750 on: November 24, 2018, 01:14:25 am »
Witness protection?

brjones

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Re: Cubs in '19
« Reply #751 on: November 24, 2018, 01:16:15 pm »
MLB Trade Rumors posted a list of players who could potentially be a part of contract swap trades this offseason:

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2018/11/2018-19-contract-swap-candidates.html

As it says in the introduction, not all of these contracts are underwater (Goldschmidt and Bumgarner are listed, for example)...they're just listed because salary could be part of the equation for finding a trade. That said, most are bad contracts.

Are there any good fits for swapping the Cubs bad contracts there? Since Kintzler has a strong history with Minnesota, I wonder if the Cubs could deal him for Jason Castro (and maybe involve Duensing or money as well to even out the cost).

davep

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Re: Cubs in '19
« Reply #752 on: November 24, 2018, 06:10:14 pm »
I have friends.  They're just in hiding.

From you.

Deeg

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Re: Cubs in '19
« Reply #753 on: November 24, 2018, 06:12:26 pm »
Man, I thought last winter was a slog but what a monumentally boring offseason it's been so far.

Ron Green

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Re: Cubs in '19
« Reply #754 on: November 24, 2018, 07:31:20 pm »
.... 2018 ending in disaster.

95 wins is hardly a disaster.

Deeg

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Re: Cubs in '19
« Reply #755 on: November 24, 2018, 07:34:11 pm »
The ending was a disaster though.

brjones

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Re: Cubs in '19
« Reply #756 on: November 25, 2018, 02:22:25 pm »
Man, I thought last winter was a slog but what a monumentally boring offseason it's been so far.

Yeah, this is probably just the new normal until the CBA changes again.

Hopefully there will be a little action this week ahead of the deadline to tender contracts to players on Friday. If the Cubs are going to move on from Russell, they'd probably ideally like to deal him this week, or at least have someone in place to replace him so they can feel comfortable with a non-tender.

CUBluejays

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Re: Cubs in '19
« Reply #757 on: November 25, 2018, 08:23:05 pm »
If the Cubs do part ways with Russell, Richie Martin might be an interesting option as a back up.  He’s a good defensive SS. He makes contact, his career high K% is 20.8%. The last 2 years it has been 17.5 and 16.8% and he can take a walk. He is a plus runner with 25 steals in 35 attempts and he had a offensive breakout in AA. It was in the Texas league and he had a high BABIP, but his ISO improved too. He is eligible for the Rule 5 and the Cubs would need to trade up in the draft to get him, but a defensive guy that can run and put the ball in play wouldn’t be a horrible back up to Baez.

CUBluejays

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Re: Cubs in '19
« Reply #758 on: November 25, 2018, 08:31:30 pm »
And to the new guy. Welcome!

It mostly matters what the Cubs owners will allow in the budget. I posted something about the Braves making $100 million on a $133 million payroll for the 40 man roster. The Cubs had a $183 million payroll last year and the had 600,000 more in attendance, about $20 more in average ticket cost and a better TV deal. Just ball parking the numbers the Cubs get around an extra $83 million in attendance and $30-40 million more on the TV deal.
« Last Edit: November 25, 2018, 08:36:06 pm by CUBluejays »

Jack Birdbath

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Re: Cubs in '19
« Reply #759 on: November 26, 2018, 07:04:07 am »
Amazon is involved in the bidding for the YES network. That’s very interesting.  The Cubs are a team with a national fan base which could be intriguing for Amazon.

CurtOne

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Re: Cubs in '19
« Reply #760 on: November 26, 2018, 07:30:49 am »
Last year, the storyline was that the teams were saving money for the big names in this year's free agency class.  I wonder if the lack of movement this year, is that the players are waiting for the big names to sign and set the bar and salary expectations.   Well, except for Deeg, who still believes in collusion.  The Mets sure screwed that up by hiring an agent to be GM didn't they?

Bennett

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Re: Cubs in '19
« Reply #761 on: November 26, 2018, 07:34:06 am »
Amazon is involved in the bidding for the YES network. That’s very interesting.  The Cubs are a team with a national fan base which could be intriguing for Amazon.

Bleacher Nation story dated November 21

Quote
This is something that should be on your radar, as it’s entirely possible the Cubs have already negotiated with Amazon about partnering on the creation of a hypothetical “network” that is available only on Amazon Prime (the mind boggles in thinking about how much the Cubs could charge Amazon for that …. ).

https://www.bleachernation.com/2018/11/21/another-sign-that-the-world-of-tv-rights-could-change-dramatically-amazon-bids-on-rsns/https://www.bleachernation.com/2018/11/21/another-sign-that-the-world-of-tv-rights-could-change-dramatically-amazon-bids-on-rsns/

Deeg

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Re: Cubs in '19
« Reply #762 on: November 26, 2018, 08:10:53 am »
Anyone who doesn’t believe in collusion may as well believe in the tooth fairy, based on their connection to reality.

CurtOne

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Re: Cubs in '19
« Reply #763 on: November 26, 2018, 08:16:30 am »
Wait a minute.  Are you saying there's no tooth fairy?

brjones

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Re: Cubs in '19
« Reply #764 on: November 26, 2018, 08:41:45 am »
I still don't think there's any collusion. I think front offices in general are smarter so they're not wasting money. And the CBA rewards not spending, so there are more free agents available than there are openings for them at the prices they're asking. Teams know they can wait out the market and get a discount price in January or February because guys like McCutchen, Pollock, and Keuchel aren't going to sit out a season.

Last year, the storyline was that the teams were saving money for the big names in this year's free agency class. 

I think that was a convenient excuse. This free agent class is weak behind Harper and Machado. At this time last year, Corbin hadn't broken out yet, so there wasn't even a TOR type starter guaranteed to hit the market. It was made-up reason for teams not to spend money last year. Within a week or two, I'm sure we'll start hearing how teams are holding back this year so they can sign next year's free agents (Goldschmidt, Arenado, Rendon, Bumgarner, Cole, Sale).