What you need to know: The second day of the draft went well. The Cubs picked up five more arms and three bats in rounds 3-10 including a really high upside high school arm in the 6th round in Jeremy Estrada. Wait…… The Cubs actually won tonight? The offense is back, baby! I kid of […]
Author: Tommy Meyers
Checking in on Preseason PECOTA Projections
We’ve all heard it repeatedly over the past couple weeks. The Cubs offense is struggling. They have multiple guys hitting well below their expected numbers, most notably Kyle Schwarber and Anthony Rizzo. But how bad is it? How far off are these guys based on their projections? It’s an interesting way to look at things. Projection […]
What’s up with Willson?
Coming into the 2017 season, one of the many reasons to be optimistic was getting a full season of catcher Willson Contreras. The 24-year-old backstop burst onto the scene in 2016, solidifying himself as the Cubs every day catcher in the second half of the season. He was not only better with the glove than […]
Cactus Catchup: Rotation Work and Roster Cuts
Leaving the snow and cold behind, I have spent the past four days in Arizona, soaking up all things Cubs. In between hiking up mountains and celebrating Irish heritage with green beer, I was able to actually squeeze in some baseball. After multiple trips to the minor league backfields and visits to both Camelback Ranch […]
Composite Top Prospect List
As an extreme prospect nerd, the months leading into the season is always one of my favorite times of year. Prospect ranking is extremely subjective, perhaps more of an art than a science, so it’s no big surprise that rankings often differ quite greatly from one another. While there is usually a bit of consensus […]
Predicting Albert Almora’s 2017
The Cubs don’t have many roster questions as they enter the 2017 season, but a key one is how Joe Maddon will handle the center field spot. With the departure of Dexter Fowler to the rival Cardinals, the Cubs have far less of a sure thing in center. The current in-house options include free agent […]
Low-Level Prospects Primed for a Breakout
Dakota Mekkes, RHP 2016 level: Arizona (Rookie), Eugene (A-) Drafted in the 10th round out of Michigan State, Mekkes was one of the better relievers taken in the 2016 draft. At 6’7″ and 250 pounds he’s an absolute monster, and he led the NCAA in K/9 in 2016. He’s all the more interesting because he doesn’t necessarily do […]
Southpaw Roulette: Assessing the Cubs Left-handed Bullpen Options
At this point in the off-season, the Cubs have a pretty good idea what their roster might look like on Opening Day. While they might tinker on the fringes and try to get a bargain in January/February, I thought this would be a good time to evaluate the internal options for left-handed relief in the […]
Potential Offseason Targets: Drew Smyly/Patrick Corbin
The Cubs are likely casting an extremely wide net when it comes to the starting pitching market. While the likes of Chris Sale, Chris Archer, Jose Quintana, and Sonny Gray have gotten all of the headlines, I am looking at two lesser names for the Cubs to add to their stable of arms. I grouped […]
Chris Coghlan: Potential Offseason Target
Position: OF 2016 Stats: .188/.290/.310, .222 TAv, -.7 WAR Why he fits: On the surface, Chris Coghlan looks like he had a horrible 2016 season, but really it was a tale of two seasons for him. Heading into the year, Coghlan became a last minute roster casualty to make room for the signing of Dexter […]