The Chicago Cubs knew that the complex “five-year” contract to which they signed Shōta Imanaga a couple years ago might not actually ever become a five-year contract. Instead, multiple options approaches were baked into the deal, and we saw a couple of them play out at the start of this offseason.
The Cubs had the option to retain Imanaga for the next three seasons at $57 million. Once they declined, Imanaga had the option to stay for the next two seasons at $30.5 million, with an opt out...
From Bleacher Nation | Chicago Sports News, Rumors, and a Reasonable Level of Obsession
| 2 months ago
| 3 reads
In a just-for-fun exercise at ESPN today , Jeff Passan picked one perfect offseason move for each of the 12 playoff teams plus 9 other plausibly active clubs. No overlaps or duplicates, so each club gets just one more.
The one Passan picked for the Cubs, incidentally, is the one I would pick, too (well, with a little caveat to follow). It’s Japanese ace Tatsuya Imai, who will be posted soon . From ESPN :
“The perfect transaction: Even with Tucker expected to leave, the Cubs still h...
From Bleacher Nation | Chicago Sports News, Rumors, and a Reasonable Level of Obsession
| 2 months ago
| 4 reads
As we all know, there are some matters of concern about the extent to which the Chicago Cubs spend commensurate with revenue, market size, and brand identity. I’m not about to throw stones without at least some measure of humility.
But there’s a nine-figure chasm between the Cubs’ alleged parsimony and that deployed by clubs like the Pittsburgh Pirates and Miami Marlins. Two clubs that have been the subject of grievance(s?) by the MLB Players Association for how little they actually spend...
From Bleacher Nation | Chicago Sports News, Rumors, and a Reasonable Level of Obsession
| 2 months ago
| 5 reads
The date in the headline likely sounds familiar to you. Of course, it’s the date of The Sandberg Game, in which Ryne Sandberg burst on the national scene with a 5-for-6 performance that included game-tying home runs in the ninth AND 10th innings. The Cubs came from deficits of 7-1 and 9-3 to defeat the […]
From Bleed Cubbie Blue
| 2 months ago
| 4 reads
You may vaguely remember that, a few years ago, there were stray rumors about the possibility the Cubs could try to trade for Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette, rather than signing one of the big shortstops available in free agency at the time. The Cubs, of course, went on to sign Dansby Swanson. A year later, there were stray rumors about whether the Cubs might try again to trade for Bichette, this time to play third base.
There hasn’t been much there since, in part because Bichette had su...
From Bleacher Nation | Chicago Sports News, Rumors, and a Reasonable Level of Obsession
| 2 months ago
| 6 reads
Late in the summer, the Chicago Cubs signed a Cuban pitching prospect, Ronald Lazaro Mena, to a $350,000 bonus in International Free Agency. That was not only an extremely large bonus to still have available in your pool by late August, but it was also the largest bonus the Cubs have given to a pitcher in this whole class.
Now, the Cubs have signed a second outside-the-traditional-window pitching prospect in the class, Jose Ramon Gonzalez:
El chihuahuense José Ramón González firma co...
From Bleacher Nation | Chicago Sports News, Rumors, and a Reasonable Level of Obsession
| 2 months ago
| 6 reads
EDITOR’S NOTE: This article first appeared here Nov. 6, 2024, when Kyle Hendricks signed with the Angels. With the news of his retirement, I thought you’d enjoy reading it again. It’s been updated to include his 2025 season. One thing to remember about Kyle Hendricks’ mostly good-to-great 11 seasons in a Cubs uniform is that […]
From Bleed Cubbie Blue
| 2 months ago
| 4 reads
Let me preface this article by saying the chances of the Cubs actually signing Kyle Schwarber as a free agent are pretty close to zero. He’s become a folk hero in Philadelphia and had four monstrous offensive seasons from 2022-25, hitting 46 or more home runs in three of the four years, and his 56 […]
From Bleed Cubbie Blue
| 2 months ago
| 3 reads
The Holiday Deals section at Amazon is up and going, so if you want to start your shopping now, you can jump on that. #ad
Although he doesn’t get a trophy, Cade Horton does get two valuable things for finishing second in the Rookie of the Year voting: first, he gets a $500,000 bonus payment from the pre-arbitration pool courtesy of the last CBA, and second, he gets credited with a full year of service time for 2025. That moves up his expected free agency from after his age-29 season to ...
From Bleacher Nation | Chicago Sports News, Rumors, and a Reasonable Level of Obsession
| 2 months ago
| 4 reads
We cover the coverage like PCA covers center field. So long, Professor. Cade was jobbed, too. Some things are set in stone, and some ain’t. One day, this will all be so much hieroglyphics. Hell, maybe we’re going backward and can read tablets in the original instead of swallowing them for our daily bread. The […]
From Bleed Cubbie Blue
| 2 months ago
| 3 reads
It was a charmed first season in pinstripes for Cody Bellinger. Acquired from the Cubs last offseason for Cody Poteet in what amounted to a salary dump, the nine-year veteran had much to prove in his walk year. After taking home Rookie of the Year honors in his first season and MVP in his third, […]
From Pinstripe Alley
| 2 months ago
| 3 reads
Heck Yes. Drake Baldwin is the 2025 NL Rookie of the Year. After a stellar first year in the majors (statistically one of the best by a rookie catcher over the past half century), Baldwin earned 21 of the 3o first place votes, beating out fellow finalists Cade Horton of the Cubs and Caleb Durbin […]
From Talking Chop
| 2 months ago
| 4 reads
It’s another week here at BCB After Dark: the hippest hangout for night owls, early risers, new parents and Cubs fans abroad. Come on in out of the cold. It’s always good to see you. Let us check your coat. We still have a few tables available. The hostess will seat you now. Bring your […]
From Bleed Cubbie Blue
| 2 months ago
| 3 reads
The Baseball Writers Association of America announced the Rookie of the Year Award tonight and Braves catcher Drake Baldwin won the National League award over second-place right-hander Cade Horton of the Cubs. Baldwin received 21 first-place votes and 183 points. Horton received the other nine first-place votes and a vote total of 139. First baseman […]
From Bleed Cubbie Blue
| 2 months ago
| 10 reads
In his end-of-season press conference this October, Cubs President of Baseball Operations Jed Hoyer implied that he’d be trying (this offseason) to extend some Cubs players beyond their current term of team control. And while any number of soon-to-be free agents came to mind (most notably, Nico Hoerner, a free agent after 2026), the guy he may have had most in mind is Pete Crow-Armstrong.
In case you forgot , the Cubs attempted to extend Pete Crow-Armstrong last spring, juuuuuust before h...
From Bleacher Nation | Chicago Sports News, Rumors, and a Reasonable Level of Obsession
| 2 months ago
| 4 reads
The first thing to know about this game is that it was an unusually warm day for April in Chicago. It was 85 degrees at game time, and wound up being 92 degrees, which is still, 45 years later, the highest temperature ever recorded in Chicago in the month of April. This was just the […]
From Bleed Cubbie Blue
| 2 months ago
| 3 reads
Some Chicago Cubs prospects bits for you today …
The Arizona Fall League’s Fall Stars Game was this weekend, with Cubs catching prospect Owen Ayers hitting in the middle of the lineup. He’s still raking in the league overall, by the way, hitting .365/.529/.587. He has more than twice as many walks as strikeouts, and nearly as many extra-base hits as strikeouts.
Owen Ayers rips a single to left field and hustles to second base on the error pic.twitter.com/oYrILtGIB8 — Brenda...
From Bleacher Nation | Chicago Sports News, Rumors, and a Reasonable Level of Obsession
| 2 months ago
| 3 reads
Coming off last night’s Fall Stars Game, it’s a great time to check back in with the Cubs Boys of Autumn playing for the Mesa Solar Sox in the Arizona Fall League. The home run derby and the Fall Stars Game meant it was a short week for the Solar Sox with only four games […]
From Bleed Cubbie Blue
| 2 months ago
| 2 reads
It was expected, but now we know it’s officially happening: 27-year-old Japanese ace Tatsuya Imai will be posted by the Seibu Lions this offseason for MLB teams to make offers. He will be one of the most highly sought-after starting pitchers on the market, and the Cubs have been speculatively listed among the possible suitors.
The posting process lasts up to 45 days, and historically, top Japanese players have been posted around the end of November, allowing negotiations to take place up ...
From Bleacher Nation | Chicago Sports News, Rumors, and a Reasonable Level of Obsession
| 2 months ago
| 1 read
As you’ll recall, Cleveland Guardians pitchers Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz were placed on administrative leave by Major League Baseball last July while the league investigated charges that the two had rigged pitches as part of a gambling scheme. In fact, Ortiz was pulled from a planned start against the Cubs at Wrigley Field July […]
From Bleed Cubbie Blue
| 2 months ago
| 3 reads
Hippo Vaughn re-ups and other stories. Happy birthday, Micah Bowie* and other former Cubs! On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, Bleed Cubbie Blue is pleased to present a Cubs-centric look at baseball’s colorful past. Here’s a handy Cubs timeline, to help you follow the various narrative paths. “Maybe I called it wrong, but it’s official.” — Tom Connolly, HoF Umpire. Today […]
From Bleed Cubbie Blue
| 2 months ago
| 2 reads
As the first snows of late fall hit the streets of Chicago there is still baseball out in the Arizona desert where it’s been mid-80s and sunny since I arrived on Thursday. Last night in addition to the perfect weather, visitors at the Cubs Spring Training home, Sloan Park, were also treated to quite the […]
From Bleed Cubbie Blue
| 2 months ago
| 2 reads
Many of you will likely remember Tim Blackwell, one of the typical “good field, no hit” catchers of the era. Blackwell usually sported a walrus mustache; that’s how I remember him. But as you can see in the photo at the top of this post, he wore a beard for a while as a Cub. […]
From Bleed Cubbie Blue
| 2 months ago
| 2 reads
Snow. Potential for lots of snow, apparently. Stay safe out there in the coming days, folks, if the storm doesn’t peter out. That first big snow blitz of the year always seems to make some drivers forget how to do anything, so you have to be a little extra careful.
I’m not sure I actually see this sentiment out there that much:
Super popular for people to say Kazuma Okamoto > Munetaka Murakami right now. I don't agree. 1. Murakami has age on his side 2. Murakami clearly has elite...
From Bleacher Nation | Chicago Sports News, Rumors, and a Reasonable Level of Obsession
| 2 months ago
| 2 reads
We cover the coverage like PCA covers center field. Pete was jobbed. Tatis ranked 37th in baseball with 8 Outs Above Average (OAA) while Crow-Armstrong tied with Witt for the MLB lead with 24 OAA. By MLB Statcast’s Runs Prevented metric, Crow-Armstrong led baseball with 22 while Tatis was 31st with 7. I mean, dayum. That’s cold. […]
From Bleed Cubbie Blue
| 2 months ago
| 2 reads