Murph just said on the show that his insider @ the Cubs says that Theo's #1 offseason goal is getting rid of Heyward. Pitching is after that. Interesting.

We will see. I always forget Murph is on Sat mornings. May tune in to hear the old bastard

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"He is a loathsome, offensive brute
--yet I can't look away."

His insider is Ronnie Woo Woo

Heard on national radio show that Cubs are also targeting Addison Reed and Pat Nashek.

Radio Guy also said Jake to Houston and Wade Davis Nationals.

Another reason they may dump Heyward at any cost is Harper is next year's free agent prize and he is not a CF. The consensus is they sign at least one starter (Cobb) and they have to get someone to close but they seem reluctant to pay up for the established guys like Davis. Maybe they go bullpen by committee and then trade for a closer at the deadline figuring they can stay in the race in the NL Central until then. This also assumes they keep Schwarber, Russell, Baez, Happ as they don't like the trade offers as one of those guys (straight up or packaged) can land them either a SP or a closer. There are very few elite closers so this is a risky strategy but who is to say Davis would still be elite in 2/3 years?

This is why the last 2 years they have been drafting pitching like crazy and hired Hickey thinking they can develop the next Kenley Jansen. That fact plus their scouting department analyzing guys they can trade for that become major contributors i.e. Arrieta, Hendricks, Edwards or even Davis who failed as a starter before being converted into a reliever. This is the soundest strategy of them all (developing talent) and worked on the offensive side and they do have about 10 arms who are intriguing enough that they should see at least 1 or 2 break through in the next couple years.

So bottom line as Murph said they want to keep their powder dry for next off-season and stay under the luxury tax threshold for sure this season given the money they are going to have to shell out in the future for Harper possibly, or Bryant, Rizzo, Hendricks, and the rest of the young core who won't be young forever and will command big money to keep.

Epstein, regarding Heyward:

“So that’s really the standard. That’s what we want to get him back to, being a six-win player,” Epstein said. “In order to do that, he’s got to continue to play his great defense, continue to run the bases really well, added benefit of everything he does in the clubhouse with his leadership and professionalism."

Why does Theo continue to perpetuate this baserunning bullshit? Heyward had 4 stolen bases and 4 caught stealings this year. And he's not even on base enough to make a difference. He could be Ty Cobb or Rickey Henderson on the bases and it wouldn't justify 1% of his salary. It's embarrassing for Epstein to make such inane comments.

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In fairness to Theo, what is he supposed to say? This guy sucks balls and I made a huge mistake giving him all that dough?

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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

He's a good base runner. That's true.

Being good at stealing bases is different (and nearing extinction)

It doesnt justify the salary though, I agree there.

Even more so if he's trying to trade him.

Hey we got this real piece of garbage here, anybody want him?

I think you can trade him but you have to decide whether the bad money you take back is worse than Heyward's bad money.

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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

Times like these you want them to be a big market team like the Dodgers and Yankees and just write it off.

Remember during the early part of the year the excuse cubbie administration was stating loudly to the public is that they expected to lose in 2017. The "powder dry for 2019" is just another CYA should the team underperform

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O judgment! Thou art fled to brutish beasts,
And men have lost their reason.

Agreed, but praising him on his baserunning is like giving kudos to a poor pitcher by saying he has a great pickoff move (which is at least measurable in terms of pickoffs and SB %). Is there any non-anecdotal evidence to quantify how good or valuable his baserunning may be? Are there metrics on taking (or not taking) an extra base? Anthony Rizzo is also probably considered a "good" baserunner, but neither he nor Heyward are particularly fast (Bryant is far faster than either) and the net effect of their running is essentially negligible. If you're not a burner, and you don't steal a decent number of bases (with an 85%+ success rate), it's hard for me to give much credit for your baserunning -- especially when you're not on base all that often.

As for his leadership and professionalism, if I had signed a contract for $180 million, the first thing my agent probably would tell me is that no matter how bad things go on the field, regardless of how much booing or abuse you take, you take it with a smile. Don't give the team any possible reason to void your contract (Milton Bradley).

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Rizzo is a good baserunner. I dont think it's negligible. Do you not remember the lumbering of the Dusty/Pinella Cubs? It does matter.

I still agree overall about Heyward, but baserunning matters. The Cubs may not have won the World Series without Almora tagging up

Too many baserunners clog the bases.

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If healthy, he fits the bill as a lock down closer for sure:

Jon Heyman‏Verified account @JonHeyman
11m11 minutes ago

cubs and dodgers are among teams showing interest in zach britton, who's back on the block.



ORLANDO — The Chicago Cubs and Los Angeles Dodgers are two of the teams that have spoken to the Baltimore Orioles about star closer Zach Britton, sources tell FanRag Sports. It is believed that a couple other teams also have checked in on Britton, one of the game’s best closers.

The Orioles are said to be willing to at least listen on Britton since they need to reallocate monies for the rotation, he’s expected to get upwards of $13 million via arbitration after making $11.4 million last year — high for a small-to-medium market like Baltimore — and he’s a free agent after the year.

The Dodgers were one of the prime players for Britton last summer, but ultimately they traded for two lefty relievers instead — Tony Cingrani and Tony Watson. The Orioles had a tentative agreement with the Astros at the July 31 deadline, but Baltimore pulled out of it, either due to the medicals of players coming from Houston or owner Peter Angelos’ cold feet — or both. Angelos remains a wild card who could ultimately decide he doesn’t want to trade Britton, but it makes sense to shop him now, at the very least.

The Cubs are in need of a closer with Wade Davis a free agent, and last year were happy to take Davis on a one-year deal in a trade with Kansas City, a deal that worked out nicely for Chicago. Greg Holland is the other star free agent closer on the market, which is deep in bullpen arms but not star closers, meaning Britton could bring a decent haul.

The Orioles’ tentative deal last year would have netted them Colin Moran and others from Houston. Ultimately, the Astros chose to bolster their rotation by making their big trade for Justin Verlander, and that worked out even better for them.

The Dodgers have superstar closer Kenley Jansen, but he’s a team player who told FanRag in the summer he’d welcome a trade for Britton. A couple other teams are believed to be in the mix for Britton, though not Houston this time.

Britton finished last year with a 2.89 ERA and 15 saves, solid but a comedown from the all-time great season he posted the year before, when he had 47 saves in 47 opportunities to go with a 0.54 ERA.

Yes.

Fuck starters
Get Closers

Werid, i was watching mlb network last night and they had a thing on Britton. I was like wish the Cubs could try to get him.

As for Davis, what do you guys think? Do you really think he can have a year like last year again? I don't. Not saying he would suck if they signed him, but not sure he would go down blowing only 1 save the entire season.

This sucks...

Bleacher Nation‏ @BleacherNation
37s38 seconds ago

Another Coach Leaves the Cubs: Henry Blanco Headed to the Nationals http://www.bleachernation.com/2017/11/1 ... nationals/ …

Maybe he can show dumbfuck Weiters where to set up so he doesn't get TWO catcher's interferences in a goddamn 5 game playoff.

Reportedly, Samardijia and Zimmerman are guys available from teams that want to trade them. if the Cubs take on their contract (either) and probably eat 30 million in addition, maybe a deal could be struck. But Heyward has to agree to a deal, as he has a no-trade through next season. they should just offer him 40 million to use his opt out clause now and become a free agent. Maybe the Cardinals would still want him for enough that it would work and he could drag that team down with his awful offensive production.

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Go Cubs!!!!

All time stupid thought. He would never come close to making the other 100 million back and he knows that.

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Heyward is not going to be traded. He will be in RF for the next 3-4 years at least, so just get over it. Let's focus on something else.

More than likely. Although, if his offensive production remains where it's been since he's been a Cub, I doubt they just pencil him in in right everyday. They'll just be stuck with a lot of cash on the bench for 1/3 or 1/2 of the time.

_________________
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

If the rest of the OF produces, then he will play everyday, like in 2016 (at least until playoffs). If they suck, then he might ride the bench some (like last season).

Cubs don't really have a replacement for him on the roster, though. Zobrist sucks and no one else can play RF.

Mike Murphy said over the weekend his Cubs guy is saying trading Heyward is Theo's number one priority for the off season.


Clearly, Murphy has no guy.

Murphy also said that Stanton would cost any team willing to take his contract next to nothing at all.
And he's supposed to be the baseball maven, right?

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Host of the weekly "We Fish ASA" podcast
Weekly columnist for the Northwest Herald
Bi-monthly columnist for Illinois Outdoor News magazine
Former host of The Outdoors Experience on WIND and The Great Outdoors on CLTV
http://www.wefishasa.com

He's a 66 year old guy coming off a battle with cancer who broadcasts once a week. I'd cut him some slack

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O judgment! Thou art fled to brutish beasts,
And men have lost their reason.

What do you suppose the Cubs would have to give in return for taking on that entire contract?