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       #Post#: 483267--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Hot Stove
       By: chgojhawk Date: December 1, 2023, 4:02 pm
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       [quote author=CUBluejays link=topic=630.msg483248#msg483248
       date=1701452369]
       Jeff Passan's ESPN+ article
       Ohtani: Dodgers, Cubs, Blue Jays, Angels +/- Giants.  Bidding
       could get up to $600 million
       Soto: Cubs not mentioned
       Yamamoto: Yankees, Mets, Dodgers, Red Sox, Cubs +/- Giants,
       Phillies, Blue Jays
       Glasnow: no teams mentioned, just that the market is heating up
       Cease: Cubs mentioned, but just in the sense that they want
       pitchting and have a farm system to make the trade.  Same goes
       for the other teams.
       Montgomery: Linked to the Cubs if they miss out on other
       options. 6 years/$140 is the guess
       Michael Cerami
       @Michael_Cerami
       Sources tell
       @MarinoMLB, @AzoulayHaron and me that the Tampa Bay Rays have,
       indeed, been active in talks to trade RHP Tyler Glasnow. As
       hoped, the Cubs are among the suitors showing strong and recent
       interest, though 3-5 others are still involved.
       Michael Marino
       @MarinoMLB
       The 4 teams @JeffPassanconfirms to be in on Shohei Ohtani are
       exactly the ones I heard. The Angels, Blue Jays, Cubs and
       Dodgers. Like he mentions, it’s unclear where SFG stands here
       and how involved they may be. They could be a player for Cody
       Bellinger or Matt Chapman as well.
       [/quote]
       Just my gut opinion, but I don't see Ohtani staying with the
       Angels. I think he wants something different.  I also don't
       think it will be the Blue Jays.  I hear Toronto is a wonderful
       town, but the Jays strike me as an odd team to remain in the
       running.
       I think it will come down to the Cubs and the Dodgers with the
       Dodgers offering significantly more money and a greater
       opportunity to win.
       #Post#: 483268--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Hot Stove
       By: craig Date: December 1, 2023, 4:09 pm
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       [quote author=CUBluejays link=topic=630.msg483257#msg483257
       date=1701463439]
       Cubs are currently at $185 million.  Add Glasnow would but them
       about $27 million below the first line.
       I wouldn't assume that Bellinger is the fallback option to
       Ohtani.  It sure sounds like the Cubs only are interested at
       their price and not his price.  If it was Montgomery/Bellinger +
       bullpen is that really a more talented team than last year?
       [/quote]
       Fair question, but I think objectively yes?  No guarantees, of
       course, but yeah, I think keeping Bellinger, replacing Stroman
       with Montgomery, and replacing Boxberber + Fulmer with some
       relievers, we *should* be more talented?
       1.  Replacing Bellinger with Bellinger should be a downgrade.
       He's obviously not going to reproduce the year he had.  But he
       should still be a good player.
       2.  Montgomery was >2 WAR better than Stroman.  That should
       help.  Stroman was done by June 21.
       3.  Boxberger and Fulmer provided very little, and cost only $2
       and $4.  I expect Hoyer will spend more and get more
       productivity from his pen signings.
       4.  We're in a rebuild.  We have young talent coming that might
       help.  Wicks, Palencia, Little, Canario, Morel, PCA, Amaya, none
       of those guys were on the roster last April.  I think those guys
       have talent that will help the Cubs to varying degree, and make
       the team more talented than what they started with last year.
       5.  Horton and Brown are variably talented as well.  Good chance
       that one or both of them will help the talent level before the
       season ends.
       6.  *IF* Hoyer hypothetically signs Bellinger and Montgomery and
       pen, that might be it, as your hypothetical states.  But I think
       there's a non-trivial chance that if that were to happen, that
       perhaps Hoyer might also add one more bat for the 3B/1B/DH
       areas?  Barnhart, Hosmer, Mancini, won't be super hard to
       upgrade the talent on their 500 PA.
       So yeah, I think Bellinger-Montgomery-pen combined with our
       young talent would make the Cubs more talented.  Obviously not
       to Atlanta's talent level, but more than the 2023 Cubs, and
       certainly more than the 2023 April roster.
       #Post#: 483269--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Hot Stove
       By: craig Date: December 1, 2023, 4:21 pm
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       [quote author=CUBluejays link=topic=630.msg483257#msg483257
       date=1701463439]
       Cubs are currently at $185 million.  Add Glasnow would but them
       about $27 million below the first line.
       I wouldn't assume that Bellinger is the fallback option to
       Ohtani.  It sure sounds like the Cubs only are interested at
       their price and not his price.  If it was Montgomery/Bellinger +
       bullpen is that really a more talented team than last year?
       [/quote]
       1.  Agree that I wouldn't assume the Cubs will sign Bellinger if
       they miss out on Ohtani.  It's entirely possible that when it
       all shakes out, the big ticket options will choose other teams,
       and perhaps the Cubs roster will NOT exceed even the first lux
       line.
       2.  Personally, I think "interested at their price and not his
       price" kinda makes sense.  I don't think that's dumb.  Do the
       analysis and figure out what reasonable value is.  *IF* you need
       to make a bad-value deal to sign him, I'm OK if Hoyer is willing
       to walk away.  Cubs should prepare good offers, but they don't
       control whether other teams might make bad-value offers, nor can
       they control if a player uses his choice and chooses somebody
       else.  So yeah, maybe they won't get even Montgomery and
       bellinger, much less Yamamoto and Ohtani.  But I don't think
       it's smart to commit to paying whatever the cost may be to get a
       guy like Bellinger.
       3.  I believe the willingness to be involved in competitive
       market offers on Ohtani, Yamamoto, Bellinger, Glasnow, and
       Montgomery provides evidence that the team is at last willing to
       fly past at least the first luxury line.  It might not happen,
       if Ohtani, Bellinger, and Yamamoto all choose other cities.  But
       it seems the willingness appears to be there, *IF* worthy
       players are willing to take the Cubs money.
       #Post#: 483270--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Hot Stove
       By: CUBluejays Date: December 1, 2023, 4:27 pm
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       [quote author=craig link=topic=630.msg483268#msg483268
       date=1701468555]
       Fair question, but I think objectively yes?  No guarantees, of
       course, but yeah, I think keeping Bellinger, replacing Stroman
       with Montgomery, and replacing Boxberber + Fulmer with some
       relievers, we *should* be more talented?
       1.  Replacing Bellinger with Bellinger should be a downgrade.
       He's obviously not going to reproduce the year he had.  But he
       should still be a good player.
       2.  Montgomery was >2 WAR better than Stroman.  That should
       help.  Stroman was done by June 21.
       3.  Boxberger and Fulmer provided very little, and cost only $2
       and $4.  I expect Hoyer will spend more and get more
       productivity from his pen signings.
       4.  We're in a rebuild.  We have young talent coming that might
       help.  Wicks, Palencia, Little, Canario, Morel, PCA, Amaya, none
       of those guys were on the roster last April.  I think those guys
       have talent that will help the Cubs to varying degree, and make
       the team more talented than what they started with last year.
       5.  Horton and Brown are variably talented as well.  Good chance
       that one or both of them will help the talent level before the
       season ends.
       6.  *IF* Hoyer hypothetically signs Bellinger and Montgomery and
       pen, that might be it, as your hypothetical states.  But I think
       there's a non-trivial chance that if that were to happen, that
       perhaps Hoyer might also add one more bat for the 3B/1B/DH
       areas?  Barnhart, Hosmer, Mancini, won't be super hard to
       upgrade the talent on their 500 PA.
       So yeah, I think Bellinger-Montgomery-pen combined with our
       young talent would make the Cubs more talented.  Obviously not
       to Atlanta's talent level, but more than the 2023 Cubs, and
       certainly more than the 2023 April roster.
       [/quote]
       Is Montgomery really better than Stroman?  Stroman had 2.7 fWAR
       in 136 IP, Montgomery was 4.3 in 188 IP.  Stroman's under the
       hood numbers.
       Bullpen's are a crap shot.  For every Fulmer, Boxberger their is
       a Merryweather, Alzolay, Leiter.
       It is a team that can compete in a crap division and might even
       win 90 games, because no one is really trying to be a great team
       in the NL Central.  I just don't think the Cubs are going to
       have a shot at Bellinger.  Somebody is going to miss on the big
       guns and pay him.
       #Post#: 483271--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Hot Stove
       By: CurtOne Date: December 1, 2023, 5:28 pm
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       Is this the same Hoyer who thought that Fulmer, Boxleiter,
       Hosmer, Mancini, Taillon, and Barnhardt were difference makers
       last season and had to have his arm wrung to sign Bellinger?  Is
       this the same guy who praised Ross all season and then spent a
       lot of money to dump him.  Optimistic?
       #Post#: 483273--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Hot Stove
       By: Deeg Date: December 1, 2023, 5:57 pm
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       Watch out for the Giants on Ohtani - their lack of obvious
       involvement is unsettling.  They make sense for him in many ways
       and they're very good at keeping secrets.  It's probably going
       to be the Dodgers but if anybody shocks the world on this, I
       think SF is the best bet to do it.
       #Post#: 483274--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Hot Stove
       By: Deeg Date: December 1, 2023, 6:04 pm
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       [quote author=CUBluejays link=topic=630.msg483270#msg483270
       date=1701469675]
       Is Montgomery really better than Stroman?  Stroman had 2.7 fWAR
       in 136 IP, Montgomery was 4.3 in 188 IP.  Stroman's under the
       hood numbers.
       [/quote]
       Yes, Montgomery is better than Stroman.  He's two years younger,
       one of the more consistent SP in baseball, and shows no signs of
       decline yet (average velocity last year was the highest of his
       career).  He'll cost more too, of course, though some are
       estimating a lot less than 6/140.  He could represent one of the
       better values in the SP market, though he isn't exactly the miss
       bats power arm the Cubs need at the top of the rotation.
       #Post#: 483278--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Hot Stove
       By: davep Date: December 1, 2023, 7:13 pm
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       [quote author=CUBluejays link=topic=630.msg483257#msg483257
       date=1701463439]
       Cubs are currently at $185 million.  Add Glasnow would but them
       about $27 million below the first line.
       I wouldn't assume that Bellinger is the fallback option to
       Ohtani.  It sure sounds like the Cubs only are interested at
       their price and not his price.  If it was Montgomery/Bellinger +
       bullpen is that really a more talented team than last year?
       [/quote]
       That depends.  Will Morel continue to improve his offensive
       production, and if so, can he do it while playing an acceptable
       third base.  Is Canario ready to take over the DH position and
       produce enough contact to make his amazing power useable?  Will
       PCA show that 14 at bats last year are not enough to make a
       valid evaluation of his readiness for the majors.  And above
       all, can they sign Yamamoto or bring in another good pitcher in
       trade?
       #Post#: 483280--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Hot Stove
       By: davep Date: December 1, 2023, 7:19 pm
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       I wasn't aware that he had to have his arm wrung to sign
       Bellinger.  Is there a source for that?
       #Post#: 483281--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Hot Stove
       By: Dave23 Date: December 1, 2023, 7:37 pm
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       I’m still wondering why Bellinger obviously won’t repeat last
       year’s performance…
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