Yes

Those guys signed long term deals before they had to. Obviously, they're both club friendly deals. The player got something in return. Whether it was worth what he gave up, that's for the player and his agent to decide.

I just don't think it's good policy in general to send a guy who most people agree is ready to kill it to the minor leagues. Not good for baseball. That has nothing in particular to do with the Cubs. The rules were agreed to in the CBA. But if the guy taking Bryant's spot hits .125 for a month and the Cubs miss the playoffs by a game or two, I'm guessing Cub fans won't think it was such a "smart" move.

_________________
Anybody here seen my old friend Bobby?
Can you tell me where he's gone?
I thought I saw him walkin' up to The Hill
With Matthew, Tulsi, and Don

I don't know why you'd say that. The last thing the Cubs want is another Maddux.

_________________
Anybody here seen my old friend Bobby?
Can you tell me where he's gone?
I thought I saw him walkin' up to The Hill
With Matthew, Tulsi, and Don

Exactly. It's that simple.

Because I assume that Boston, New York, and Los Angeles will still exist.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

The Cubs can spend with any of them.

_________________
Anybody here seen my old friend Bobby?
Can you tell me where he's gone?
I thought I saw him walkin' up to The Hill
With Matthew, Tulsi, and Don

Which is why he won't have a significantly better offer from the Cubs.

_________________
You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

maybe they should keep in in AAA all year to master LF.

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Reality is your friend, not your enemy. -- Seacrest

You would think they would have learned from last year when Baez was ready for the big leagues and they dispirited him by sending him down.

_________________
Anybody here seen my old friend Bobby?
Can you tell me where he's gone?
I thought I saw him walkin' up to The Hill
With Matthew, Tulsi, and Don

Nobody masters left field. It exists as a place to put sluggers who can't play defense. And Alex Gordon.

_________________
Anybody here seen my old friend Bobby?
Can you tell me where he's gone?
I thought I saw him walkin' up to The Hill
With Matthew, Tulsi, and Don

But will they?

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by then the cubs will have won at a minimum of 4 world series titles and it won't seem like such a pressing issue to sign any one player.

sounds about right.

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Sex isn't dirty, sex isn't a crime. It's a loving act between two or more consenting adults.

-Hank Kingsley

It won't to Bryant. It wouldn't to me.

I think we all have things we still remember that are employer has done either good or bad. It may not matter if the Cubs are willing to go over the top on the Yankees and Red Sox offer.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

the more I think about it, the more I think this will bite Cubs in the ass somehow. basic rule of life: do the right thing and don't worry about the consequences.

_________________
Reality is your friend, not your enemy. -- Seacrest

I disagree. It seems like a huge deal now but when if the time for free agency comes his feeling on the organization will be formed by a lot of other things. How they worked the arbitration system will be way far down on the list, imo.


I was trying to find any evidence of a player talking about it years later and couldnt find any. Most players eventually understand it's part of the process and have no ill will towards the team.

Good. As that is exactly what the Cubs are doing.

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Rick Hahn is the best GM in baseball.

What if all this talk means nothing? Maybe after all the winning by the time Bryant is a FA it is time to do flipping part two to reload again?

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Elections have consequences.

I like how you think

Or maybe Bryant will get two concussions and quit

this is exactly right. 5-6 years down the line, who the fuck knows. anything could happen. that's why you should DO THE RIGHT THING.

_________________
Reality is your friend, not your enemy. -- Seacrest

When he is playing that extra year you don't think he'll know why he is?
Players rarely give their reasons for not choosing to stay somewhere anyways. It's mostly "I loved my time there and the fans".

The thing is that very few players are so highly touted by their own organization and clearly ready to play MLB and then they get this done to them.

_________________
You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

Do you think if they bring him up now he's more likely to sign back with them when its time for FA? That he'll sit back and reflect how they did him a solid a few years back? Or will he like 99% of players, take the biggest contract he can get from whoever offers it no matter what the Cubs do?

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Proud member of the white guy grievance committee

It aint the six minutes. Its what happens in those six minutes.

when I DO THE RIGHT THING, I don't worry if the other person is going to DO THE RIGHT THING.

_________________
Reality is your friend, not your enemy. -- Seacrest

The other plus is that the extra couple of weeks in Iowa will give Bryant a chance to enjoy better facilities/clubhouse than he will get at Wrigley.

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I think a million things will have happened since then (good and bad) that will shape his opinion of the organization. I dont think he'll blame the team for doing what almost every team does in this situation. Obviously, its possible but seems unlikely.





It's not that rare. There's a few players like this every year. And it seems like most of them re-sign at least once. (Mike Trout, Evan Longoria, Ryan Howard)


Its possible he'll be bitter. I just think it's unlikely. Also I think he goes where the money is regardless.

He is much more likely to stick with the Cubs if he feels they are treating him right.

_________________
You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

He certainly seems to be blaming the team now.

_________________
You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

“Ownership here has been great to me …. Tom [Ricketts] is great to me, everybody in the front office is great to me, and I have nothing but good things to say about them.”).


Bryant, for his part, seems to understand, adding that he’s a professional, and he doesn’t think any of this is going to impact his relationship with the Cubs, or the Cubs’ relationship with Boras.