A Chicago Cubs Fan Community Since February 9, 2005
This look is so early that we don’t have a salary number to add for Phil Maton, who the Cubs were reported to have signed late last Friday. We’ll do more of these as the offseason continues, and at some point someone will report what Maton will be getting in his two-year deal (with a […]
2 months ago | 3 reads
Well, the MLB non-tender deadline has passed, and with it, some interesting new names have been added to free agency. It also means that teams can now really begin trading and signing players in earnest. The Mets and Rangers wasted little time getting some big names moving, as they put together a Marcus Semien/Brandon Nimmo […]
2 months ago | 1 read
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. Happy birthday to Dave Hansen* and other former Cubs. Today in baseball history: Cubs Birthdays: […]
2 months ago | 2 reads
Last weekend, I presented this aerial photo of Wrigley Field and sleuthed it, with Mike Bojanowski’s help, as being from a doubleheader Friday, July 4, 1947. That appeared to be an important day for photographing the ol’ ballyard, as here is a photo from inside Wrigley Field on that very same day. The photo from […]
2 months ago | 1 read
We cover the coverage like PCA covers center field. The Cubs signed reliever Phil Maton and his bat-dodger offerings to a two-year deal, sources report. Adolis Garcia is the name that comes up today as a possibility for the Cubs’ outfield. “I’ve always been a big Owen Caissie fan. I pound the table for him […]
2 months ago | 2 reads
This is an early photo of Cubs Hall of Fame outfielder Billy Williams, and with the scoreboard matchups here it was pretty easy to sleuth this one. This was taken at the original Busch Stadium, formerly called Sportsman’s Park, home of the Cardinals from 1909 to 1966, when they moved into the second Busch Stadium […]
2 months ago | 3 reads
We cover the coverage like PCA covers center field. Names in the news today: Rob Refsnyder, Michael King. Several places have discussed both. Refsnyder looks like Turner-lite and that probably doesn’t have legs. Signing King would add a brisker pace to the offseason. *means autoplay on, (directions to remove for Firefox and Chrome). {$} means paywall. {$} means […]
2 months ago | 2 reads
The Cubs have signed their first free agent of the winter and it’s right-handed reliever Phil Maton to a two-year deal with a club option for a third year. Bleacher Nation’s Michael Cerami had it first and The Athletic’s Will Sammon was first with the length of the deal. We still don’t have the dollar […]
2 months ago | 2 reads
Today was the deadline to tender contracts to all arbitration-eligible players. The Cubs had just four such players for 2026: Justin Steele, Javier Assad, Eli Morgan and Reese McGuire. Three of those players will be offered 2026 contracts. One will not: Reese McGuire came along at exactly the right time for the 2025 Cubs. He […]
2 months ago | 3 reads
The Cubs were being rebuilt by new President of Baseball Operations Theo Epstein in 2012, and the results on the field showed it. They finished 61-101, their first 100-loss season since 1966. One of the bright spots was Bryan LaHair, who began the year as the team’s first baseman. He hit well enough in the […]
2 months ago | 2 reads
The other day Josh posed this question in After Dark: Should the Cubs sign Cody Ponce? Ponce pitched in 20 games for the Pirates in 2020 and 2021, with not much success (5.86 ERA, 1.536 WHIP) and then went to throw several years in Japan and Korea, with good results the last two years. Now […]
2 months ago | 3 reads
Good morning. I think Al pretty much handled the fiasco concerning the MLB TV rights, so we’ll skip that here.
2 months ago | 3 reads
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. Happy birthday to Quinton Berry and other former Cubs! Today in baseball history: Cubs Birthdays: […]
2 months ago | 0 reads
Coming off the division title years in 2007 and 2008, hopes were high for a three-peat in 2009. But the Cubs struggled for much of the early going in ‘09. They kept near first place, but after mid-April were not again in first place — until July 26, when a win over the Reds put […]
2 months ago | 4 reads
Last February, ESPN, which has been carrying Major League Baseball games for 35 years, including its signature Sunday Night Baseball franchise, opted out of the last three years of a deal with MLB in which it was supposed to pay the league $550 million a year. The breakup was somewhat acrimonious, with MLB issuing a […]
2 months ago | 0 reads
We cover the coverage like PCA covers center field. Rumors abound but few things have materialized so far. *means autoplay on, (directions to remove for Firefox and Chrome). {$} means paywall. {$} means limited views. Italics are often used on this page as sarcasm font. The powers that be have enabled real sarcasm font in the comments. Food for thought: Please be reminded that Cub […]
2 months ago | 1 read
It’s Wednesday night at BCB After Dark: the coolest spot for night owls, early risers, new parents and Cubs fans abroad. Come on in out of the cold. So glad you decided to stop in. It’s a special night tonight. There’s no cover charge. We have a few tables available. The hostess will seat you […]
2 months ago | 1 read
The stove is hot and Tuesday was the day we learned if players were going to take the qualifying offer or not. There was a bit of suspense for the Cubs on this one because while it was pretty much a lock that 2025’s blockbuster trade addition, Kyle Tucker, would decline the qualifying offer and […]
2 months ago | 1 read
In 2007, the Cubs were coming off a 96-loss season. But they had a new manager, Lou Piniella, and general manager Jim Hendry had made some key acquisitions, including signing Alfonso Soriano to what was at the time the biggest contract in franchise history. And then, thud. The team got off to a bad start […]
2 months ago | 1 read
When you post on SB Nation, we don’t want you to miss all the conversations and responses that follow. So starting today, whenever a user replies to your comment or to your post on the Feed, you’ll see a notification at the top right corner of the page. And of course, this means that when […]
2 months ago | 1 read
Josh already wrote about the Japanese star here last week, but I wanted to post my thoughts, especially after Shōta Imanaga accepted the qualifying offer Tuesday. Many of you think that’s it for the Cubs, that they aren’t going to go after another free agent starter such as Dylan Cease, Michael King or Tatsuya Imai, […]
2 months ago | 0 reads
Everyone loves a dog, but apparently, Josh Naylor really loves the Mariners’ clubhouse dog, because the sweet pooch was a big deciding factor in why he decided to re-sign with Seattle for another five years. Other teams take note! We’ve also seen the new Hall of Fame ballot for 2026 with a dozen new faces […]
2 months ago | 0 reads
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 in baseball history: Cubs Birthdays: Billy Sunday, Stu Martin, Manny Jimenez, Dickie Noles, Jeff Hartsock, Jeff Gray. Also notable: Roy […]
2 months ago | 0 reads
It’s Tuesday night here at BCB After Dark: the grooviest afterparty for night owls, early risers, new parents and Cubs fans abroad. Come on in out of the cold. We’re so glad you decided to stop by. Your name is on the guest list. We still have a few tables available. Bring your own beverage. […]
2 months ago | 1 read
Today at 5 p.m. Central time was the deadline for teams to move players in their minor-league systems to their 40-man rosters to protect them from being selected in next month’s Rule 5 Draft. As a reminder, players 19 or older drafted or signed no later than 2022 and players 18 or older drafted no […]
2 months ago | 0 reads