A Chicago Cubs Fan Community Since February 9, 2005
Let’s shift gears a bit here and talk about the exact sort of free agent Cubs President of Baseball Operations Jed Hoyer seems to like to go after. Mid-range starter? Check. Injury history? Check. Had some success that could be built on? Sure. Michael King had several good years as a reliever/spot starter for the […]
4 months ago | 5 reads
We cover the coverage like PCA covers center field. Ryan Brasier, Willi Castro, Aaron Civale, Brad Keller. Drew Pomeranz, Taylor Rogers, Carlos Santana, Mike Soroka, Caleb Thielbar, and Kyle Tucker have declared Free Agency. I’d bring three of them back. Your mileage may vary. The answer from my end is Keller, Pomeranz, Thielbar… with Thielbar […]
4 months ago | 9 reads
It’s Wednesday here at BCB After Dark, the coolest club for night owls, early risers, new parents and Cubs fans abroad. Come on in out of the cold. We can check that coat for you. It’s always good to see you. There’s no cover charge. There are still a few tables available. Bring your own […]
4 months ago | 8 reads
EDITOR’S NOTE: A version of this article originally ran on the 60th anniversary of this game, in 2023. I’m reposting it, lightly edited, as part of the walkoff wins series. 1963 was a watershed year for the Chicago Cubs. The widely-mocked College of Coaches was quietly ended. Bob Kennedy led the team for the entire […]
4 months ago | 6 reads
The 2025 MLB season just ended with a great World Series Game 7 last Saturday. Now it’s time to talk spring! As of the date of this post, we are just 107 days away from the Cubs’ Spring Training opener against the White Sox. Included in the 18-game Sloan Park home schedule is an exhibition […]
4 months ago | 6 reads
You might say: “But the Cubs already have a third baseman!” Yes, they do. Matt Shaw did a credible job at third base, a position that wasn’t his original one. He did well enough with the glove to be a Gold Glove “finalist,” and posted 3.1 bWAR, which is very good for a rookie season […]
4 months ago | 2 reads
The countdown is on for one of the biggest moments of the offseason. Not only are we coming up on all the major awards of the season, which will be given over the next two week, tomorrow free agency officially opens and the hot stove will be hotter than ever. There will be plenty of […]
4 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 Bryan LaHair, one-time Cubs All-Star! Today in baseball history: Cubs Birthdays: Charlie Newman, […]
4 months ago | 3 reads
Thanks for stopping by here at BCB After Dark: the hippest afterparty for night owls, early risers, new parents and Cubs fans abroad. It’s always good to see you. Come in out of the cold. There’s no cover charge. We still have a few tables available. The hostess will seat you now. Bring your own […]
4 months ago | 3 reads
The Cubs acquired Andrew Kittredge from the Orioles at last July’s trade deadline for minor leaguer Wilfri De La Cruz, who has yet to play in North America (he was with the Cubs’ Dominican Summer League team). Kittredge played well for the Cubs in his two months on the North Side, posting a 3.32 ERA […]
4 months ago | 5 reads
Gabby Hartnett’s famous “Homer In The Gloamin’” is not just the most famous walkoff home run in Cubs history — maybe the most famous Cubs homer, period — it’s one of the top walkoff home runs in all of MLB history, at least in a regular-season game. The BilL Mazeroski homer that won the 1960 […]
4 months ago | 4 reads
MESA, Arizona — I attended the Mesa Solar Sox game Sunday at Sloan Park. Like most AFL games, many attendees were family members of friends of the players and scouts. There were a few of us there who were just plain ol’ baseball fans wanting to get more of the sport after the World Series […]
4 months ago | 2 reads
There is surprising news today about Japanese left-hander Shōta Imanaga, and I call him “Japanese” instead of “Cubs” because… So as of today, Imanaga is a free agent. For the first season and a half of his time with the Cubs, Imanaga was one of the better pitchers in the National League. He was an […]
4 months ago | 10 reads
Ryan Brasier, Willi Castro,, Aaron Civale, Brad Keller. Drew Pomeranz, Taylor Rogers, Carlos Santana, Mike Soroka, Caleb Thielbar, and Kyle Tucker have declared Free Agency. I’d bring three of them back. Your mileage may vary. We cover the coverage like PCA covers center field. Like Ian Happ covers left. Like Nico Hoerner covers short. *means autoplay […]
4 months ago | 5 reads
It’s the first week of the offseason here at BCB After Dark: the hippest hangout for night owls, early risers, new parents and Cubs fans abroad. Please come in out of the cold. We’re open for business. There’s no cover charge. The dress code is casual. The hostess will season you now. Bring your own […]
4 months ago | 3 reads
This news was expected, and today, Major League Baseball made it official. Cubs right-hander Cade Horton is a National League Rookie of the Year “finalist”: Just to make it clear: There isn’t another election. The “finalists” are simply the players who were the top three vote-getters in the award voting that was completed when the […]
4 months ago | 2 reads
Today, as the baseball offseason begins, I’m beginning a series on great Cubs walkoff wins. Instead of focusing just on the win, though, these will focus on the individual responsible for the win, in this case Kiki Cuyler, who’s a member of the Baseball Hall of Fame, though largely forgotten today. And so this isn’t […]
4 months ago | 2 reads
Every Monday is an off-day in the Arizona Fall League, so it’s an excellent time to check in on how the Cubs Boys of Autumn are doing out in the desert with the Mesa Solar Sox. The Solar Sox had their best week of the season so far, going 5-1 and currently sport a four-game […]
4 months ago | 8 reads
I’m going to preface this by saying that you know it as well as I do: The Cubs aren’t going to retain Kyle Tucker. That seems completely obvious to anyone who’s followed Tucker’s saga from being traded to the Cubs last winter, to becoming a free agent the day after the World Series ended. Why […]
4 months ago | 2 reads
Good morning. Not even Yogi Berra did that. (Bluesky Link)
4 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. Today in baseball history: Cubs Birthdays: Jim McCormick, Ed Lennox, Bob Fisher, Fred Richards, Ken Holtzman, Danny Young, Jonathan Herrera, Ryan […]
4 months ago | 2 reads
The Rawlings Gold Glove Awards were announced this evening and three Cubs players, second baseman Nico Hoerner, center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong and left fielder Ian Happ, all won Gold Gloves at their respective positions. Crow-Armstrong was a human highlight reel in center field this past year, making plays that almost no other center fielder would […]
4 months ago | 2 reads
Congratulations to the Los Angeles Dodgers on winning the 2025 World Series, the ninth title in their franchise history. They’re the first team to win two straight since the Yankees won three in a row from 1998-2000. With that, baseball’s offseason commences. Here’s a handy calendar to help you fill your fall and winter until […]
4 months ago | 2 reads
We cover the coverage like PCA covers center field. Something happened on this day in 2016. It hadn’t happened in a while. You probably know what I’m talking about. The 2026 team has a ways to go, but that’s the objective, or should be, when the real games begin today. *means autoplay on, (directions to remove […]
4 months ago | 9 reads
One game, then, to decide the 2025 World Series championship. It’s the first Game 7 since 2019, when the Nationals defeated the Astros in Houston to win the WS. That Series was unique — it’s the only one where the visiting team won every game. That won’t be the case here, of course. Game 6 […]
4 months ago | 3 reads