Comments on: It’s Time to Move on From Dexter Fowler

By: hvaughn

hvaughn — Thu, 17 Nov 2016 19:13:34 +0000

I don’t buy that the team is comfortable putting Heyward in center. He’s got enough on his plate just trying to recover at the plate. He’d have to improve massively to even hit Almora’s 30th percentile projection. The article take is sound: Almora + 17 mil in talent investment elsewhere > Fowler.

By: Steve H IN SLC

Steve H IN SLC — Wed, 16 Nov 2016 20:32:38 +0000

I was originally on board with letting Fowler walk and seeing what Almora can do, but I’ve gone the other way. It’ll still be a few years before the Cubs’ young stars begin earning the big bucks, so why not sign Fowler for two or three years? Overpay him on an AAV basis if that is what it takes to persuade him to take a shorter deal.

To me, the bottom line is that the Cubs have a much better chance of winning the World Series in 2017 with Fowler than without him. Putting Almora out there now may give the team a better chance in 2019, but who knows what else will happen by then. So if they can sign him without significantly hindering their ability to keep Bryant/Rizzo/Russell/Schwarber long term, they should do it.

By: Jack

Jack — Wed, 16 Nov 2016 14:56:30 +0000

So much talent is making me wish (almost) that the NL had a DH.

By: TheCHISportsFan

TheCHISportsFan — Wed, 16 Nov 2016 14:25:02 +0000

One of Wrigleyville BP’s earlier pieces pointed out that the increased offense production of Kyle (with AA) in LF more than makes up for the Dex/ RF platoon, especially if JeyHey has his historic offensive rebound from down years.

I worry about the lead off “you go, we go” aspect however unless Javy continues his improvement our Zobrist somehow finds a place to play to fill that role. But what can’t be replaced is the attack mindset and the intangibles. The reception he received in his return showed how important he was to the chemistry of the team

But I think I knew in my heart that Dex had to move on, and this is helping me deal with my separation anxiety. Who knows, maybe Joe will let KB lead off….lol

By: Str1fe5

Str1fe5 — Wed, 16 Nov 2016 13:11:21 +0000

Almora is not going to start you guys. The Cubs have a grand total of one flex slot in their projected lineup:

Anthony Rizzo 1B
Kris Bryant 3B
Addison Russell SS
Wilson Contreras C
Kyle Schwarber LF
Jason Heyward OF
Ben Zobrist IF/OF

That leaves one spot in the lineup for Baez, Soler, Almora, and LaStella to rotate and fill. Odds are high that Baez will get the lion’s share of those starts, which would push one of Zobrist or Bryant to a COF spot. Heyward will be the primary CF, which was the plan last year until Fowler fell in their laps. There will assuredly be a lot of mixing and matching and rest by Maddon, and of course injuries, but there is little chance the team starts out with Almora as the primary guy in CF.