Which upgrade is more likely to happen before Opening Day? SP or LF

[JosMin]

Which upgrade do you think is more likely to occur before Opening Day? Will the Cubs find a solution to left field? Or will the nab another guy for the rotation?

 

[chibears55]

My guess would be LF..

Guessing they would be satisfied with picking from their litter for the 5th slot

 

[TC in Mississippi]

With maybe $5 mil left to spend I don't see either happening but there might be some trades for depth. Colby Rasmus at the right price maybe but for the most part I think what you see is what you get until guys come up and trades get made in the summer.

 

[Parade_Rain]

Rotation.

 

[JimJohnson]

With maybe $5 mil left to spend I don't see either happening but there might be some trades for depth. Colby Rasmus at the right price maybe but for the most part I think what you see is what you get until guys come up and trades get made in the summer.

Where are you getting your numbers from? Isn't Tom Rickets a billionaire? If he wants to go and snag someone, why can't he do so?

 

[brett05]

I think the Cubs are done. Not much left out there FA wise and I think they really haven't decided if the specs are good or if they should be used for trade. So for now, they are holding firm.

 

[TC in Mississippi]

Where are you getting your numbers from? Isn't Tom Rickets a billionaire? If he wants to go and snag someone, why can't he do so?

Multiple sources all saying close to the same thing. The debt service ordered as part of the sale of the team to the Ricketts in combination with MLB rules has placed some artificial limits on spending. Again most everything I've read, and a lot of the details have been spelled out on the Cubs Den blog among other places if you're interested, put the budget at somewhere between $110-$115 million this year. With the 6 new signs, the jumbotron and the additional TV revenue as part of the WLS deal next years budget should be much higher.

 

[JimJohnson]

Multiple sources all saying close to the same thing. The debt service ordered as part of the sale of the team to the Ricketts in combination with MLB rules has placed some artificial limits on spending. Again most everything I've read, and a lot of the details have been spelled out on the Cubs Den blog among other places if you're interested, put the budget at somewhere between $110-$115 million this year. With the 6 new signs, the jumbotron and the additional TV revenue as part of the WLS deal next years budget should be much higher.

So presumably then, they couldn't even make a big deal during the season right?

 

[TC in Mississippi]

So presumably then, they couldn't even make a big deal during the season right?

The assumption is with the revenue booked and coming in that they could use basically accounting tricks to spend that money early. I've read a lot on this and frankly it makes my head hurt. I think these guys will spend money, I think they will spend a lot of it. How they do it is their business. I do think in terms of free agents they're done for now though.

 

[Parade_Rain]

Rotation.

I stated this based on the question in the OP, but my personal feelings are that they are likely done making moves unless someone bowls them over with an offer that comes fairly reasonable, so IOW, not likely.

 

[chibears55]

Epstein left open the possibility that the Cubs could add a leadoff type hitter in the outfield, perhaps in center field, according to Mark Gonzales. In either case, it doesn’t sound like Colby Rasmus is a realistic target for the Cubs, despite this weekend’s report that the two sides had met.


This is why i chose LF/Of. . They stay with what they have rotation wise for now, they could always upgrade at deadline..

They still need to figure out what to do with Jackson, and possibly wood.. W. Castillo is also a possibility to move for maybe a SP or OFer in a package. .

I doubt their done now..

 

[JP Hochbaum]

I think the Cubs are done. Not much left out there FA wise and I think they really haven't decided if the specs are good or if they should be used for trade. So for now, they are holding firm.

That would be the smart move. Only one year flip rentals are available for one year right now. Going longer than 2 years would block someone. Because if Russell and Baez pan out Bryant has to go to LF. (best case scenario).

 

[Zvbxrpl]

Neither......

Who is out there that remains to be worth going after?

Nori Aoki? Josh Willingham? Colby Rasmus?

Not starting caliber players on a contender......Maybe Willingham if he relocates his recent success.......big maybe

 

[CSF77]

I believe they will trade if anything. I doubt they will add payroll.

 

[JZsportsfan]

Is Kris Bryant to LF a good enough upgrade

And there is no other SP options worth pursuing unless Shields takes a 3-4 year deal

 

[fatbeard]

Is Kris Bryant to LF a good enough upgrade

And there is no other SP options worth pursuing unless Shields takes a 3-4 year deal

That is why I don't think going after a LF makes any sense...everything I've read or heard says Bryant is most likely to end up in the OF, not at 3B. By signing a LF, even as a one-year rental, the guy is still going to be sans position as soon as Bryant comes up. It's one of the reasons why C was one of the few positions the Cubs were looking to upgrade--there are so many major prospects on the way that signing FAs just creates logjams.

 

[Boobaby1]

The Cubs are not done IMO. Now, the names may not be sexy, but they could indeed get creative (using the 5 million mark listed above) in the money area simply by trading Wood, Valbuena, and/or Castillo.

Just because they trade them doesn't necessarily mean they will get proven players in return either. They could ask for more farm players, and since they don't have to pay some of these guys salaries anymore, they could then use that to acquire something else they may need.

While they have picked up a couple OBP guys in Montero and LaStella, is that enough to get on base since one will be at the bottom of the line-up, and the other one may be a back-up player.

I just don't see how the Cubs have improved in getting guys on in front of some of the big hitters if that was part of their goal?

 

[TC in Mississippi]

The Cubs are not done IMO. Now, the names may not be sexy, but they could indeed get creative (using the 5 million mark listed above) in the money area simply by trading Wood, Valbuena, and/or Castillo.

Just because they trade them doesn't necessarily mean they will get proven players in return either. They could ask for more farm players, and since they don't have to pay some of these guys salaries anymore, they could then use that to acquire something else they may need.

While they have picked up a couple OBP guys in Montero and LaStella, is that enough to get on base since one will be at the bottom of the line-up, and the other one may be a back-up player.

I just don't see how the Cubs have improved in getting guys on in front of some of the big hitters if that was part of their goal?

Well, they're not done if for no other reason that they have too many players. I think Jackson, Wood and someone out of the Doubront, Strailey, etc. group will get moved among other things. There's also a platoon outfielder coming I'm sure preferably with CF chops. Big picture, impact level though I think they're done unless the perfect deal comes. As far as guys on base, yeah that's a need not yet filled, at least not consistently.

To me the big storyline for the Cubs going into 2015 is not that they don't have all the answers, it's that they don't know all the questions. They can't prioritize needs until they see what's happening with Bryant, Soler, Baez, Alcantara or even Russell. Too many what ifs. Until some of those scenarios become clear it's difficult to prioritize needs. Some might become clear quickly, some might take a while and some new questions could materialize if deals happen they didn't even consider would be options. To me that's your 2015 Cubs. I think as constituted they're something near to a 83-85 win team, maybe 87 if if become real but the real stuff is still coming. If they're 5 games ver .500 at/near the deadline I think you'll probably see major moves that could make them a playoff team. Until then though, we wait and watch.

 

[brett05]

The Cubs do have a lot of question marks. Most of it is asking players with less than a year's experience to be great players from the get go in what amounts to their first year in the big leagues. Statistically that's a tall order. Plus you assume no regression for Arrieta, Hendricks, Castro, Soler, Rizzo. That gets the team to the 83-87 win mark. In all honesty I could see the team winning less than 73 and yet the MLB club be much stronger than any of the previous years and be ready to be contenders for 2016 as the youth would all have a solid year plus under their belt and as TC said, get a lot of questions answered.

 

[TC in Mississippi]

The Cubs do have a lot of question marks. Most of it is asking players with less than a year's experience to be great players from the get go in what amounts to their first year in the big leagues. Statistically that's a tall order. Plus you assume no regression for Arrieta, Hendricks, Castro, Soler, Rizzo. That gets the team to the 83-87 win mark. In all honesty I could see the team winning less than 73 and yet the MLB club be much stronger than any of the previous years and be ready to be contenders for 2016 as the youth would all have a solid year plus under their belt and as TC said, get a lot of questions answered.

I'm actually assuming better performances from Rizzo, Castro and Arietta and of course those are also ifs. I also not only expect a regression from Hendricks I'm not positive he's in the rotation in September. I think he's no better than a 5 which is why even after the Hammell signing I wanted a guy with the potential to be a 3. Obviously Brett Anderson and Brandon McCarthy signed for way more money than expected and weren't options. A hot start riding the momentum of the off season would be the ideal thing to happen and make getting to July in the middle of the pack possible and with that the ability to plug holes and mend deficiencies. After that who knows.