Cubs Pursuit of Yu

[Rice Cube]

Not the case with Wells. In 11, his LD% actually decreased from 10. This season was his first season that it was above 20%. Last year he gave up more fly balls, but it was not a great percentage change. What got him was that his HR/FB rate was off the charts at 13.8%. HR/FB rate is about as lucky/unlucky as you can get, as there is virtually no correlation from year-to-year.

Now, with that being said, I think that is due to the fact that he "forgot" how to throw his fastball last year. He only threw it less than 49% of the time and the average speed was only 88 MPH. Both significantly down.

Maybe it was his arm injury last year that messed him up. But LD% doesn't take into account all the sharply hit ground balls, fly balls that go over outfielder's heads, etc. etc. There's only so much those can tell you, and one of the mitigating factors could be that his injury (coupled with the decreased sample size due to said injury) necessitated a change in his pitching and skewed his numbers. I'm too lazy to look all that shit up but I'm sure you have a response lined up, can't wait

 

[DewsSox79]

Maybe it was his arm injury last year that messed him up. But LD% doesn't take into account all the sharply hit ground balls, fly balls that go over outfielder's heads, etc. etc. There's only so much those can tell you, and one of the mitigating factors could be that his injury (coupled with the decreased sample size due to said injury) necessitated a change in his pitching and skewed his numbers. I'm too lazy to look all that shit up but I'm sure you have a response lined up, can't wait

really with all that said...he was DFAd....by the cubs. the end.

 

[Rice Cube]

really with all that said...he was DFAd....by the cubs. the end.

The funny thing is that nobody put in a claim for him despite the fact that he didn't even make that much in arbitration, which shows how far his stock had fallen. Basically if your pitches aren't that good AND you can't locate them, you're going to have Wells-like numbers.

 

[Capt. Serious]

Not the case with Wells. In 11, his LD% actually decreased from 10. This season was his first season that it was above 20%. Last year he gave up more fly balls, but it was not a great percentage change. What got him was that his HR/FB rate was off the charts at 13.8%. HR/FB rate is about as lucky/unlucky as you can get, as there is virtually no correlation from year-to-year.

Now, with that being said, I think that is due to the fact that he "forgot" how to throw his fastball last year. He only threw it less than 49% of the time and the average speed was only 88 MPH. Both significantly down.

CO is back in fashion. :jackson:

 

[DewsSox79]

The funny thing is that nobody put in a claim for him despite the fact that he didn't even make that much in arbitration, which shows how far his stock had fallen. Basically if your pitches aren't that good AND you can't locate them, you're going to have Wells-like numbers.

with all the teams needing help in the back end and BP no one picked him up pretty much shows that he sucks. the sox are going with 7 rookies in the pen and they stayed away.

 

[Captain Obvious]

with all the teams needing help in the back end and BP no one picked him up pretty much shows that he sucks. the sox are going with 7 rookies in the pen and they stayed away.

I think he'd be worth a shot in the pen, especially at league min. Too small of a sample size to tell how he'd be. James Russell is awful as a starter, but he is a pretty good reliever. I could see Wells being that way. Not a 7th inning guy, but a back end guy, maybe. He certainly should be as far away from the rotation as possible.

 

[Rice Cube]

I think he'd be worth a shot in the pen, especially at league min. Too small of a sample size to tell how he'd be. James Russell is awful as a starter, but he is a pretty good reliever. I could see Wells being that way. Not a 7th inning guy, but a back end guy, maybe. He certainly should be as far away from the rotation as possible.

He might not be the best bullpen guy either based on his few relief appearances this season. The guy needs to get fixed before he's allowed back in MLB.

 

[Captain Obvious]

He might not be the best bullpen guy either based on his few relief appearances this season. The guy needs to get fixed before he's allowed back in MLB.

I don't think anyone is claiming him to be a great reliever. But I think he could be serviceable. If the risk is a minor league contract, I don't see why a team wouldn't take a risk on him in the future. I definitely see him getting non-tendered this year.

 

[Rice Cube]

I don't think anyone is claiming him to be a great reliever. But I think he could be serviceable. If the risk is a minor league contract, I don't see why a team wouldn't take a risk on him in the future. I definitely see him getting non-tendered this year.

The claim off waivers would've taken on Wells' entire arbitration contract. The Cubs didn't release him. Wells had to basically go back to Iowa to ensure that he got paid.

 

[Rice Cube]

I'm pretty sure that the Cubs finished farther back than 2nd...

By the way, was there any record of all the offers A-Rod could've gotten back then?

 

[dabynsky]

By the way, was there any record of all the offers A-Rod could've gotten back then?

To be honest I don't think the Cubs were involved with Alex Rodriguez. If my recollection is correct the Cubs did finish second on a free agent that offseason, but it was Mike Hampton. And I want to say that Hampton actually took less to go to Colorado.

 

[Rice Cube]

To be honest I don't think the Cubs were involved with Alex Rodriguez. If my recollection is correct the Cubs did finish second on a free agent that offseason, but it was Mike Hampton. And I want to say that Hampton actually took less to go to Colorado.

Thank goodness.

 

[dabynsky]

Thank goodness.

Yeah we really lucked out on that one though as overpaid as he was he might not have blown up as badly if he wasn't trying to survive pitching in pre-humidor Coors.

 

[Captain Obvious]

To be honest I don't think the Cubs were involved with Alex Rodriguez. If my recollection is correct the Cubs did finish second on a free agent that offseason, but it was Mike Hampton. And I want to say that Hampton actually took less to go to Colorado.

Why would he want to go to Colorado? That's just silly.... Was the Coors Effect not known back then?

 

[FirstTimer]

Why would he want to go to Colorado? That's just silly.... Was the Coors Effect not known back then?

To get away from you.

 

[dabynsky]

Why would he want to go to Colorado? That's just silly.... Was the Coors Effect not known back then?

Because Hampton had a family and felt that it was a better place to raise his family, and of course they knew about Coors destroying pitchers. Though Hampton was supposed to be a pitcher that could handle it since he was a groundball pitcher, and was one of the better hitting pitchers as well.