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The Back Half of Jon Lester’s Contract: What We Can Expect

When the Cubs signed Jon Lester in December 2014, it signaled a turning of the corner for the franchise. Even though it is widely accepted that free agent pitchers older than 30 are the riskiest and the least efficient way to spend money in baseball, the Cubs were ready to compete with their emerging positional […]

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Quantifying the Cubs’ Quest to Control the Strike Zone

The ultimate match-up in baseball is the confrontation between the pitcher and the batter. And more than anywhere else, that battle is waged in and around the corners of the strike zone. Mindful of this, Cubs President Theo Epstein has preached that his team must “control the strike zone” in order to be successful ever […]