Girl Scout cookies have started to arrive, and it is only now that I learn we ordered from multiple kids. OH WELL!
At the Cubs Convention, Jed Hoyer famously said the Cubs were in the fourth or fifth inning of their offseason, leading most fans to conclude that a whole lot more maneuvering was coming. A month and one Hector Neris signing later, Hoyer now says the closer is warming up on the offseason, so to speak. I guess that means we’re in the 8th inning, and there is but a little left to possibly do. I tend to think the comment was more about the fact that, with Spring Training starting, the front office can’t keep acting like they don’t have their team yet – it’s a bit of a disservice to the guys who are here and working now to gear up for the season. You don’t want them feeling like you don’t believe in the team that is assembled.
That is to say, I didn’t take the comment as Hoyer ACTUALLY saying that he feels like the moves are basically done. They may not ultimately land Cody Bellinger and/or another arm, but it’s pretty clear they’re still trying. So you kinda have to say the offseason is basically over and allow the guys to gear up, while also continuing to work behind the scenes. I truly just hope it ends soon so that EVERYONE can say the “offseason” is over, and it’s all focused on the 2024 season ahead.
That tracks with how Hoyer followed up his closer-warming-up comment: “There’s a lot of good free agents out there, certainly. It’s been a really late evolving offseason. Every day, we’re in contact with different free agents, and we may well add one or more players to the roster. But at this point, as we sit down and think about it, I mean, it is February 14, it is day one of Spring Training, and we’re trying to focus on the guys who are here.”
Speaking of guys not yet signed, by the way, I found it pretty interesting just how plainly Rangers GM Chris Young said that he doesn’t expect any more notable additions to his roster (you can read it to see the comments, but it definitely doesn’t sound like gamesmanship). That would mean no Jordan Montgomery for the Rangers, and would continue to really muddy up the waters on where he and the other Boras Four will ultimately land. You could maybe imagine something like Montgomery to the Red Sox (but are they actually spending?), Blake Snell to the Yankees (if he drops his asking price), Matt Chapman to the Giants (if they want another bat after Jorge Soler), and Cody Bellinger to the Blue Jays (if they stretch). But all in all, it sure FEELS like the Cubs should be able to get one of these guys. I won’t be silly and hope for two, but yeah, the market squeeze is real.
Speaking of which, this is not necessarily surprising, but wild:
I do get the logic there, as you could IN THEORY increase the payday for both Snell and Montgomery if you were able to make it work this way. But it’s now February 15, and if teams are really pushing to get a deal done on Montgomery, you kinda just have to do right by him. (Again, as the article notes, Boras denies that there is any connection between the two players. That said, I have long wondered about how this works when you have a team like the Cubs, who might be interested in both Bellinger and Chapman, but has a clear preference – would Boras just be looking to get the right deal for the one guy the Cubs are seriously pursuing, or would he try to play them off of each other and other teams to maximize the payout for both? And if so, at what point in the offseason does it just become too late to keep playing games?)
The new jerseys are definitely getting a whole lot of attention around the game this week:
A number of Nike-associated players came out in defense of the new gear, which, hey, I understand. And maybe some of them really do feel like the lighter nature of the jerseys will physically feel better on the field. I did appreciate the quotes in there from Dansby Swanson, who wasn’t just offering the company line:
‘Chicago Cubs shortstop Dansby Swanson, who has a Nike endorsement deal, said he reached out to Nike contacts Tuesday to discuss the new jerseys. He’s all for the new materials, he said, but some of the design decisions — like the specific shade of blue on the Cubs jerseys — are worth reconsidering.
“Cubbie blue is its own blue, right?” Swanson said. “This blue on the uniform is a little bit different than Cubbie blue. So how can we just recapture that?”
Swanson’s broader point was that in the design process, Nike may have removed some elements that make each team’s jersey their own. In Cardinals camp, for example, they lamented losing the chain-stitching of player names on the jersey.
“You wouldn’t change the font of, let’s say, the (Atlanta) Falcons,” Swanson said, referring to his favorite National Football League team. “They have a little bit of a futuristic block lettering. That’s unique to their jersey. You wouldn’t then go put that on the New York Giants jersey.” He added, “With some of those things, it’s like this makes a Cubs uniform a Cubs uniform. It doesn’t need to change. I think that they will probably have to end up figuring out a way to kind of go back to what it used to be ….
“It’s one of those things where there’s good and bad,” Swanson said. “It’s hard to sit here and just blast them about it or praise them for it. There’s stuff on both sides, and I think the beauty is they’re willing to have those conversations. Obviously, if it’s a change of anything, initial reactions are always going to be (strong). But I do think there are some things that could be altered to make it better.”’
I love this:
This is a nice video, though I couldn’t help but notice that the only notable Dodger not featured was Shohei Ohtani (unless you count the part where he was dashing by in the background):
Meanwhile on the Dodgers, I laughed a lot:
Stay tuned, because it sounds like the Pirates are trying to trade for a Marlins pitcher this week (Edward Cabrera, perhaps? I really like that guy’s potential, so I would kinda hate it).
Taking me back to my childhood!:
NEWSLETTER
