*****Official Cubs 2023 thread*****

[HawkeyesAndCubs1023]

It's crazy how things sometimes work out in sports, and in life.

In 2017, the Cubs had to trade Jeimer Candalerio because there was no room for him in the Cubs young, star-studded infield. Fast-forward 6 years, later, and we have the following:

• Anthony Rizzo (oldest of the bunch) is about to turn 34 and has continued to be a very good hitter until the last couple of months, albeit as a New York Yankee.
• Kris Bryant is a payroll albatross in Colorado, constantly out with nagging injuries, and sapped of all power when he does play.
• Javy Baez is a payroll albatross in Detroit, as opposing teams finally realized that if you simply don't throw him any strikes, he will be a well below-average MLB hitter.
• Addison Russell has not played a Major League game in nearly 4 years.
• The Cubs, trying to make a playoff push, traded to re-acquire Candalerio to bolster their lineup.

Funny how things work out.

 

[HawkRugged17]

 

[TheCainer]

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Both of them are, IMO, given their roles.

 

[HawkRugged17]

 

[hawkifann]

Good win today.

The pen might be showing some wear and tear. Or maybe the Braves are just really good.

Maybe the Braves are good. It’s hard to tell. On the one hand, they lost 2 of 3 to the A’s. On the other, they have the best record in baseball and the highest run differential in the league. Could be flukish.

 

[hawkifann]

He pitched, Cubs got shut out. 3 cast offs and hamburger pitched tonight and the Cubs won.

See how that works? It's Hendricks fault they got shut out!

Seems legit.

 

[lucas80]

Well, if the Cubs try to shuttle bullpen help from Des Moines they are SOL. I went to see PCA, and saw Toledo beat the I-Cubs 19-8. Rucker started and threw 3 scoreless, but Gonsalves, Little, Horn, and the freshly acquired Roberson all got pounded today. I was hoping to see more from legit prospects like Horn and Little. Nice velocity, but no control.

 

[MeetTheFerentzes]

Well, if the Cubs try to shuttle bullpen help from Des Moines they are SOL. I went to see PCA, and saw Toledo beat the I-Cubs 19-8. Rucker started and threw 3 scoreless, but Gonsalves, Little, Horn, and the freshly acquired Roberson all got pounded today. I was hoping to see more from legit prospects like Horn and Little. Nice velocity, but no control.

Yeah, I was hoping some of those guys were ready to help this year, too. Looks like the only hope for a solid addition to the bullpen now is if Boxberger recovers and returns to 2022 form. The team has left an opening on the 40-man, so perhaps they’re anticipating this???

Edit - I just realized that you watched Luke Little's AAA debut; not a really fair assessment. He was more than solid at AA Tennessee this year (63K in 34IP; .169 BA). Probably won't contribute to the big league club this year, but the team badly needs an effective lefty in the bullpen, so there's a good chance he'll be competing for a roster spot next season. He'll be Rule 5 Draft eligible in November, and I've got to think he'll be on the 40-man (along with Horn).

 

[lucas80]

Yeah, I was hoping some of those guys were ready to help this year, too. Looks like the only hope for a solid addition to the bullpen now is if Boxberger recovers and returns to 2022 form. The team has left an opening on the 40-man, so perhaps they’re anticipating this???

Updates on four injured relievers. Boxberger is throwing in Arizona. I suspect we'll find out something more definitive soon on him.
Hughes, Roberts, and Burdi are long shots at this point.

https://www.bleachernation.com/cubs...ubs-relievers-boxberger-hughes-burdi-roberts/

 

[lucas80]

It's crazy how things sometimes work out in sports, and in life.

In 2017, the Cubs had to trade Jeimer Candalerio because there was no room for him in the Cubs young, star-studded infield. Fast-forward 6 years, later, and we have the following:

• Anthony Rizzo (oldest of the bunch) is about to turn 34 and has continued to be a very good hitter until the last couple of months, albeit as a New York Yankee.
• Kris Bryant is a payroll albatross in Colorado, constantly out with nagging injuries, and sapped of all power when he does play.
• Javy Baez is a payroll albatross in Detroit, as opposing teams finally realized that if you simply don't throw him any strikes, he will be a well below-average MLB hitter.
• Addison Russell has not played a Major League game in nearly 4 years.
• The Cubs, trying to make a playoff push, traded to re-acquire Candalerio to bolster their lineup.

Funny how things work out.

I have so many great memories of the core players, but the Cubs aren't really missing any of them. Add Contreras to your list, too. He's been passable minus the spats with his new pitchers, but not at 5/$75 million passable.

 

[HawkRugged17]

 

[lucas80]

Weird, you'd think it's raining at Wrigley, but the radar is clear.
I don't know if Acuna Jr ran through a sign, the Cubs broadcasters couldn't seem to figure that out, but it looks like he did the Cubs a favor.

 

[lucas80]

WTF is Acuna Jr staring out to the mound for? He was hit on purpose in a 5-3 game with the bases loaded?

 

[ihawk in FWB]

Great job by Fulmer there.

 

[hawkfan0319]

Hell of a homestand there boyz!

 

[lucas80]

Hell of a homestand there boyz!

Yep, and they now go on a road trip (With two games in Chicago against the Sox), where they face one team with a record above .500. Then they return to Wrigley to face the putrid Royals. They can keep this hot streak going by fattening up on some bad teams.

 

[ironside1]

Hell of a homestand there boyz!

Hell yes!!!

 

[SoDakHawk]

 

[HawkRugged17]

 

[ihawk in FWB]

I like the rest of the August schedule.

They'll get a needed Thursday and Monday day off over the next 8 days.

 

[HawkBall23]

3-1 vs the Reds
2-1 vs the Braves
now just 1.5 behind the Brewers and charging hard.

 

[St. Louis Hawk]

 

[HawkRugged17]

 

[blhawk]

It's crazy how things sometimes work out in sports, and in life.

In 2017, the Cubs had to trade Jeimer Candalerio because there was no room for him in the Cubs young, star-studded infield. Fast-forward 6 years, later, and we have the following:

• Anthony Rizzo (oldest of the bunch) is about to turn 34 and has continued to be a very good hitter until the last couple of months, albeit as a New York Yankee.
• Kris Bryant is a payroll albatross in Colorado, constantly out with nagging injuries, and sapped of all power when he does play.
• Javy Baez is a payroll albatross in Detroit, as opposing teams finally realized that if you simply don't throw him any strikes, he will be a well below-average MLB hitter.
• Addison Russell has not played a Major League game in nearly 4 years.
• The Cubs, trying to make a playoff push, traded to re-acquire Candalerio to bolster their lineup.

Funny how things work out.

Rizzo has been dealing with concussion like symptoms since a collision with Tatis, Jr late may which totally explains his drop off.

Feel bad for the guy even as much as I hate the yanks, definitely could have used a healthy version of him but yeah....lots of dodged bullets with all those others and it appears Jeimer at first is just what we needed so far. It is funny how things work out.

Glad several of those guys thought so highly of themselves they turned down offers to take less elsewhere

Exclusive: Yankees, Anthony Rizzo explain handling of his head injury, why 'no one missed this'

The Yankees and Anthony Rizzo maintain that no one mishandled what ended up being diagnosed as post-concussion syndrome.

theathletic.com

 

[MeetTheFerentzes]

I'm rooting so hard for this guy. Would love it if he had a strong finish to the season at the MLB level...

Cubs Recall Caleb Kilian, Option Anthony Kay -

The Cubs announced Sunday that they have recalled right-handed pitcher Caleb Kilian from Triple-A Iowa and optioned left-handed pitcher Anthony Kay to Iowa. Kilian has made one MLB start this season in which he allowed seven runs on 10 hits over 3.1 innings, but he’s been working on a few things...

cubsinsider.com

 

[anon_b29nm7v7dwp6r]

Unreal….I had written this team off! Go Cubs Go! (But I’m still mad at you about Marquee)

 

[hawkifann]

I'm rooting so hard for this guy. Would love it if he had a strong finish to the season at the MLB level...

Cubs Recall Caleb Kilian, Option Anthony Kay -

The Cubs announced Sunday that they have recalled right-handed pitcher Caleb Kilian from Triple-A Iowa and optioned left-handed pitcher Anthony Kay to Iowa. Kilian has made one MLB start this season in which he allowed seven runs on 10 hits over 3.1 innings, but he’s been working on a few things...

cubsinsider.com

The last time we saw Kilian, we saw a guy who got blown up in the first inning and then battled back to finish 4 innings. The start was not impressive, but I thought the way he battled back was very impressive. He’s had success at Iowa. I think the biggest thing with Kilian is the lack of swing/miss, which means his location has to be good to minimize hard contact. Hopefully some time in the pen will give him some confidence.

 

[hawkeyez]

I hit the Cubs to win the division at +210 this morning (boosted to +315 on DK). Looking at the remaining schedules, I like our chances!

 

[MeetTheFerentzes]

I figured this would be a good time to start these. The first of many:

I think the sole reason Bellinger was brought in is as bait at the trade deadline to some playoff contender.

Some teams will take a look at him.
If most Cub fans think this team is still 2-3 years from being competitive, he has value to bring in a prospect or two.
Cubs have to be praying he gets hot in June...

 

[MitchLL]

I figured this would be a good time to start these. The first of many:

So I watched the series against the Braves cause my grandson's are big Cub fans.

I'm impressed. The Cubs are a good baseball team.
But I do think they need bullpen help if they make the post season.

 

[hawkifann]

So I watched the series against the Braves cause my grandson's are big Cub fans.

I'm impressed. The Cubs are a good baseball team.
But I do think they need bullpen help if they make the post season.

It’ll be interesting to see how the bullpen evolves over the last 2 months. The only paths for additions will be from the farm, the IL or some other team’s castoff. Cubs should be actively monitoring the waiver wire, but for the most part, the guys getting cut are getting cut for a reason. For injuriues, Cubs have Boxburger, Ethan Roberts and Nick Burdi all in the recovery stages of fairly significant injuries (never really heard what Box’s issue was, but he hasn’t pitched since May, so the issue is significant). Brandon Hughes might have a path back - he was originally out for the season, but then had a much less invasive surgery, so we’ll see.

We’re already seeing the new add (Cuas) and an increase in usage of Wesneski and Assad out of the bullpen and now Kilian is up. Palencia is up. There are still some interesting arms in AAA, but those guys have not been consistent. Ben Brown might be able to come up and take some innings out of the pen as well. Roberson (got in the deal with TB) is off to a bad start in Iowa, but it’s 2 outings, so we’ll see how that tracks.

I’m optimistic, but the Cubs are going to need to get a little more out of their starters to really continue this run. Stro has been bad for 7 of 8 starts (likely pitching through injury), Steele is already past his career innings high and Smyly has been struggling. They need to keep getting more from Taillon and Hendricks needs to keep doing his thing. Outside of the 4th against the Braves, he’s been pretty good over a 10 start sample.

 

[MeetTheFerentzes]

So I watched the series against the Braves cause my grandson's are big Cub fans.

I'm impressed. The Cubs are a good baseball team.
But I do think they need bullpen help if they make the post season.

Thanks for being a good sport. You know I'm going to have to get you some more if and when some of your other predictions blow up.

Yeah, bullpen issues seem to be a yearly thing for the Cubs. I think this year was especially bad since no one counted on Estrada and K. Thompson being so ineffective compared to '22, Sampson and Rodriguez having such terrible springs and never making it to the Bigs after each having a very good '22, Boxberger and Hughes being hurt essentially all year and Heuer's arm falling apart.

Then again they've been very fortunate with the seasons of Alzolay, Leiter, Assad and even Fulmer (after he had a dismal Apr and May).

Rounding out the pen, Merryweather and Wes have been off and on, Palencia and Cuas seem to be effective, and they've pulled the plug on the Kay experiment as they desperately were hoping for a lefty to emerge.

I agree that they would have a hard time winning a 5-7 game postseason series with only 3-4 reliable arms in the bullpen. It's just nice to be in the playoff hunt, when it was looking very unlikely a few months ago.

 

[MitchLL]

Thanks for being a good sport. You know I'm going to have to get you some more if and when some of your other predictions blow up.

Yeah, bullpen issues seem to be a yearly thing for the Cubs. I think this year was especially bad since no one counted on Estrada and K. Thompson being so ineffective compared to '22, Sampson and Rodriguez having such terrible springs and never making it to the Bigs after each having a very good '22, Boxberger and Hughes being hurt essentially all year and Heuer's arm falling apart.

Then again they've been very fortunate with the seasons of Alzolay, Leiter, Assad and even Fulmer (after he had a dismal Apr and May).

Rounding out the pen, Merryweather and Wes have been off and on, Palencia and Cuas seem to be effective, and they've pulled the plug on the Kay experiment as they desperately were hoping for a lefty to emerge.

I agree that they would have a hard time winning a 5-7 game postseason series with only 3-4 reliable arms in the bullpen. It's just nice to be in the playoff hunt, when it was looking very unlikely a few months ago.

I'm sure others will remind me of my predictions that the same teams that made the playoffs in the NL in 2022 would repeat this season.
That clearly isn't happening. And I also stated I wouldn't post in the 2024 Cubs season thread next year if they didn't, so I have about 2 months left here.
The Cubs have improved in 2023 and it helps they are in the Central.

 

[fivecardstud14]

Smyly sucks yet again.

 

[MeetTheFerentzes]

Smyly sucks yet again.

Welp, the Cubs have been wanting a lefty in the bullpen - Looks like Smyly should be their guy starting yesterday...

Wes and Killian were acquired to be starters. Time for one of them to step up, at least until Stro returns.

 

[bdg8]

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[blhawk]

Smyly is trash

Yes. Yes he is

 

[hawkfan0319]

The Smyly era needs to end

 

[HawkRugged17]

 

[HawkRugged17]

Then, a rain delay ...