After the end of the 2014 season, Theo Epstein made clear that the front office would seek to add impact pitching from outside the organization that offseason, while also acknowledging that two nine-figure commitments in one offseason were not going to happen. Epstein stayed true to his word, adding Jon Lester on a major contract but […]
Author: Isaac Bennett
Maintaining Financial Flexibility: A New Market Inefficiency? – Part Two
In part one of this series, we discussed each of the major acquisitions and departures from the Cubs this offseason. It would be helpful to read the first part before this piece to add context, but if you missed it, here is a recap of the assertions I laid out: – While some view John Lackey as an imperfect […]
Reflections from the Winter Meetings
Wander along the canals, headphones on, Martin’s Amsterdam on Crimson windows float by; shame quietly covered with glittering lights Your drunken patrons stumble through the night These words were originally penned for the beautifully aged cobblestone streets of Amsterdam, a striking disparity from the trifling theme-park nature of the Opryland hotel. The similarity of feelings came unexpectedly as […]
Maintaining Financial Flexibility: A New Market Inefficiency? – Part One
As the fallout of Jason Heyward and Ben Zobrist signing with the Cubs settles around us, the idea of creating a team spilling over with flexibility on the field has been crystallized in our minds. My late-night lineup doodling revealed a dizzying array of possibilities, with as many as six players having the ability to provide excellent […]
Julio Teheran: Potential Offseason Target
Julio Teheran Position: Right-handed Starting Pitcher 2015 Stats: 200.2 IP, 20.3 K%, 8.7 BB%, 2.0 WARP, 4.04 ERA, 4.21 DRA How He Fits: In the last edition of ‘The Beer List,’ my primary assertion was that intelligent front offices must find value wherever it may lie, and then have the courage to leverage those valuable assets when necessary […]
Cubs Player Profile: Javier Baez
Position: Shortstop, Third Base, Second Base 2015 Stats: 28 G (74 MiLB GP), .289/.325/.408, .268 TAv, 0.4 WARP, 1 HR, 4 R, 4 RBI (MLB stats only) Year in Review: This feels like the only reasonable place to start: For everything he endured in 2015—injury, heartache, and the assured internal struggle of watching his friends succeed at the highest level before he […]
Cubs Player Profile: Jorge Soler
Position: Right Field 2015 Stats: 101 GP, .262/.324/.399, .263 TAv, 0.0 WARP, 10 HR, 39 R, 47 RBI Year in Review: Soler’s season was defined by something that may have escaped casual fans: remarkably consistent output. Unfortunately for the Cubs’, his consistency did not translate into overly meaningful contribution (until the playoffs). Before we evaluate […]
When the Game Gives
As the season that read like a storybook wound down one well-executed Metropolitan pitch at a time, measures of an emotion I never expected to experience bubbled to the surface: guilt. Guilt borne because the deciding game of the most important series in 12 years had lulled me to sleep as the eighth inning began. As […]
Jake Arrieta Is the Right Choice for Game One
Yesterday, my colleague Matthew Trueblood laid out a compelling argument in support of Joe Maddon’s decision to start Jon Lester in Game One of the NLCS. The central argument he made in that piece was that Arrieta (and all modern pitchers) are more accustomed to a fifth day of rest, and that, because Arrieta would be on […]
NLDS Game Four Recap: Cubs 6 Cardinals 4
Top Play (WPA): 2015 has not been an easy year for Javier Baez. After struggling through a cup of coffee in the already-sacrificed 2014 season, adversity found him time-and-again this year. That much is well-documented. Through it all, there was never a doubt that the stoic young man from Bayamon—the man with the MLB logo tattooed on his […]