Blogs

I know we just recorded yesterday and, thanks in large part to how we felt about the Bears, the majority of the episode was “doom and gloom.”  A day removed, I wanted to take some time to paint a brighter picture for the Cubs heading into next season.

For starters, some of our free agent additions played out really well.  Dansby Swanson was the clear front-runner in the Short Stop free agent class for the vast majority of the season and Cody Bellinger looked about as good as he did during his 2018 MVP season.  Dansby is on a long-term deal and Belli seems more than willing to come back to the North Side if money and contract length allow.  Hopefully, the front office won’t pass up this opportunity.

Second, our young talent played, I would argue, better than expected throughout the year.  Christopher Morel was a mainstay at DH and wound up with 26 home runs, leading the team.  Pete Crow-Armstrong was just named the best defensive player in all of minor league baseball and had a few opportunities to show off his prowess at the big league level.  Alexander Canario shined in his admittedly too-few opportunities on the Cubs’ roster.  This doesn’t even mention any of the pitching prospects that were dominating AA and AAA hitters.  There is hope down the pipeline.

However, the main thing I wanted to cover is the self-awareness of the front office.  Jed Hoyer has gone on record as saying (paraphrasing here) that he knows the bullpen needs retooling before next season.  As I mentioned in the podcast episode that aired last night, that’s a stark contrast to anything coming out of Halas Hall for the Bears at the moment.  Additionally, there are reports that the Cubs are deeply interested in trading for Pete Alonso in the last year of his deal with the Mets, and Alonso is deeply interested in becoming a Chicago Cub.  What remains to be seen is if the Mets front office (under new leadership no less) will play ball.

The end of this season was undoubtedly a disappointment.  From a 92% chance of making the playoffs at our peak to being eliminated from contention in game 161, the Cubs left a lot to be desired.  However, we have a front office that is willing to look themselves in the mirror and take accountability.  Jed Hoyer said “the shell of a great team is here,” this offseason is the time to build on it.  I’m surprised to be saying this on the internet for the world to see, but I trust Jed to make the right moves this offseason to make sure this team reaches the playoffs in 2024.