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Re: Charts I’m Watching: Jun 25, 2013

Generational Talent — Tue, 25 Jun 2013 10:00:27 -0000

Beautiful call last night/today, Pebble. That was a nice scalp

Re: Pre-Gamin’: Brewers v. Cubs (1:20 CT) – Lineups, Broadcast Info, etc.

Generational Talent — Fri, 16 May 2014 16:30:44 -0000

I'll say this, for anyone who was up in arms when it was suggested that after a 126 pitch performance there was a high probability Samardzija would have some issues in his next 3 starts - his velocity was quite a bit lower today, like 2 MPHs down to 91-92 at least. Was it because of the weather? He ate something bad for breakfast? He was doing something different? I don't know, but it is something to think about. Hopefully, it has nothing to do with his arm

Re: Draft Notes: Surprising Mocks Aplenty, and Much to Discuss

Generational Talent — Sat, 17 May 2014 19:43:16 -0000

"But, hey, if there's one area in which I trust this front office implicitly, it's in the draft." - Not trying to start a poo=throwing fight, but why is this? If we look at their drafts so far they took Almora in 2012, and arguably the next 5 picks after are showing more this year than him, and then after that ? I'm not sure I see one guy that projects as a MLB regular at this point in time in the rest of the 2012 class. In 2013 we got Bryant who was the best player in the draft at #2. No brainer. After that I don't think we know what we have.

I'm certainly not saying we have had bad drafts. There is really no way of knowing about the 2013 guys, but we've yet to have a breakout guy from the 2012 class that's playing way above expectations. It just seems like a strange trust given what we know at this point.

Truly interested to know what you have seen at this point to think these were great drafts

Re: Enhanced Box Score: Brewers 0, Cubs 3 – May 17, 2014

Generational Talent — Sat, 17 May 2014 20:33:55 -0000

I don't see any reason we wouldn't be able to move Jackson at the deadline if we want to. He's not a great pitcher, but he's not a bad pitcher. He's been decent for the last 6 or 7 years and he's been healthy for the most part. He's certainly good enough to eat innings for the Marlins, Rockies or any team in the NL East. And given today's pitching market he's worth $12 million a year

Re: So, Who’s Ready for Something Shocking? Cubs Sign Manny Ramirez

Generational Talent — Sun, 25 May 2014 13:11:45 -0000

I think this is great. Manny, for whatever else he was, is one of the greatest right-handed hitters of all time. Both pre, during and post PEDs. Any wisdom he can give to Baez, Bryant and others is well worth the time and trouble

Re: Pre-Gamin’: Cubs v. Padres (3:10 CT) – Lineups, Broadcast Info, etc.

Generational Talent — Sun, 25 May 2014 18:09:46 -0000

How do you end up with Russell against Quentin in that situation? That's just bad bullpen management

Re: Pre-Gamin’: Cubs v. Padres (3:10 CT) – Lineups, Broadcast Info, etc.

Generational Talent — Sun, 25 May 2014 18:12:17 -0000

If you are going to lift Russell after 1 batter anyway, why not have him throw 1 pitch outside and go to the righty? How does that happen - they have 1 good hitter, he's on the bench and you put in a lefty which brings him up in the most crucial situation in the game. A real head scratcher

Re: Pre-Gamin’: Cubs v. Padres (3:10 CT) – Lineups, Broadcast Info, etc.

Generational Talent — Sun, 25 May 2014 18:14:41 -0000

Yeah, no kidding. It was a bad move considering who was on the bench

Re: It’s OK for Pitchers to Care About the W/L Stat and Other Bullets

Generational Talent — Tue, 27 May 2014 11:55:42 -0000

FYI Brett - Not sure if you have Comcast in Ohio, but OnDemand has all 5 seasons of The Wire for free right now. It's my favorite show ever

Re: Pre-Gamin’: Cubs v. Giants (2:45 CT) – Lineups, Broadcast Info, etc.

Generational Talent — Wed, 28 May 2014 17:59:17 -0000

Can Renteria please stop using Russell in important situations. It's almost like he is trying to do the opposite of what you should do

Re: Pre-Gamin’: Cubs v. Giants (2:45 CT) – Lineups, Broadcast Info, etc.

Generational Talent — Wed, 28 May 2014 18:08:25 -0000

At least in this case he was turning Sandoval around to his much weaker side. The move to go to Russell in San Diego was far worse. So there is that

Re: Cubs Minor League Daily: Smoothies and a Lot of Doubles

Generational Talent — Thu, 29 May 2014 11:01:06 -0000

Too many more games like 2 days ago (4 walks) and they will have to move Bryant up so he doesn't start developing bad habits (swinging at balls outside the zone because he is being pitched around). Also, I understand the defensive spectrum and trying to leave him at 3rd as long as you can, but I've yet to speak to any scout or anyone who has seen him play regularly who thinks he'll stick at 3rd. He just lacks fluidity at the position and his absolute ceiling is probably below average for a ML 3b. His bat is going to be ready long before his glove (and at 22 at his size you have to ask realistically how much better his glove can get). When he comes up to Iowa I hope they stick him in RF and be done with it

Re: Cubs Minor League Daily: Smoothies and a Lot of Doubles

Generational Talent — Thu, 29 May 2014 11:16:50 -0000

He's got the arm and athleticism to play RF...if he is moving down the defensive spectrum you might as well move him down as little as possible. But hey, if they see him as a future LF because we are going to trade for Stanton then I'm ok with that too

Re: Draft Rumor: Are the Astros Going to Grab Nick Gordon at Number One?

Generational Talent — Thu, 29 May 2014 20:41:08 -0000

Bryant was the top person on the Cubs board last year and they were really surprised when Houston didn't take him

Re: Chicago Cubs President of Business Operations Crane Kenney Extended Through 2019

Generational Talent — Sat, 31 May 2014 14:32:18 -0000

Hey Brett - Not sure you got a chance to see it or if you linked it somewhere, but Kenney was on with Kaplan last night. It was an interesting interview and the Cubs have completely taken the gloves off with the rooftop owners. Kenney basically said, hey sometimes when you run a business you get sued, so let them sue. Kaplan also said that he has had several "big time" Chicago lawyers read the contract and they are absolutely convinced the Cubs will prevail. Now whether that is Kaplan doing Cubs PR I'll leave up to you

Re: Pre-Gamin’: Cubs v. Brewers (3:10 CT) – Lineups, Broadcast Info, etc.

Generational Talent — Sat, 31 May 2014 14:36:53 -0000

I posted this in the Kenney thread, but thought I would put it here too. Kenney was on with Kaplan last night and basically took the gloves off with the rooftop owners. He said that as a business owner sometimes you get sued, so let them sue if they think they have a case. The Cubs are confident they can win and are willing to just pay the legal fees now. Kaplan then said that he has had several "big name" Chicago lawyers look at the contract and that they were all convinced the Cubs would win in court

Re: Pre-Gamin’: Cubs v. Brewers (3:10 CT) – Lineups, Broadcast Info, etc.

Generational Talent — Sat, 31 May 2014 14:47:52 -0000

I see that the Blue Jays called up Stroman to start today and he's only given up 1 run through 4. If he proves he can pitch at the MLB level that might cool their interest in Samardzija a bit. Or you could look at it the other way and maybe they are "auditioning" him for the Cubs

Re: Pre-Gamin’: Cubs v. Brewers (3:10 CT) – Lineups, Broadcast Info, etc.

Generational Talent — Sat, 31 May 2014 18:49:41 -0000

With every start Hammel gets me more excited about what we should be able to get for him. I still want Corey Dickerson and think that would be a win-win trade. After being assured by some on here that Dickerson probably wasn't very good - he's sporting a 1.093 OPS through over 100 plate appearances, is a left-handed bat and plays CF regularly

Re: This Week In The Minors: Lessons from 2012

Generational Talent — Sun, 01 Jun 2014 12:47:34 -0000

At the risk of incurring all sorts of wrath. I'll say that in my opinion, at this moment in time (long way to go) the 2012 Cubs draft looks a bit underwhelming. You are supposed to get a good player at #6 and we did, but at the time words like make-up, leadership, attitude being used about Almora instead of electrifying, power, 5 tool scared me. Some of the players picked immediately after Almora were: (7) Max Fried, (9) Andrew Heaney, (10) David Dahl, (11) Addison Russell, (16) Lucas Giolito, (18) Corey Seager, (19) Michael Wacha, (22) Marcus Stroman, (36) Stephen Piscotty (Cardinals again), (39) Joey Gallo. You could make a case that you could trade Almora straight up for any of those guys right now and end up ahead.

After that we have Pierce Johnson, who looks like a potential 3/4 SP if everything breaks his way. His numbers have been good, but not eye-popping. Blackburn and Underwood are very young, but we have yet to see something that makes you think they are going to breakout in a big way. The rest of the draft has yet to see a breakout candidate with the exception of maybe Bruno, who many don't think is a legitimate prospect.

Overall, very few fast risers or breakout candidates. I'm sure most of you disagree, but that's how I see it

Re: This Week In The Minors: Lessons from 2012

Generational Talent — Sun, 01 Jun 2014 13:15:30 -0000

Oh, no doubt. That's why I tried to put in as many caveats as proper grammar would allow. What worries me about Almora is that he seems to lack two of the most important offensive skills - taking walks and hitting for power. There are guys who are successful that way (I'm thinking Angel Pagan) but you have to hit 290+ and play great defense. He's capable of doing that, and personally I would be happy if he turned out to be as good as Pagan, but I don't think that's what is being expected of him now and makes guys like Russell and Heaney (potential superstars) look more attractive

Re: Pre-Gamin’: Cubs v. Brewers (3:10 CT) – Lineups, Broadcast Info, etc.

Generational Talent — Sun, 01 Jun 2014 13:53:25 -0000

After another HR today (7 in 82 at-bats with a 400 OBP) that HR/FB% probably went up. You are correct that those aren't sustainable, but they can come down a long way and he could still be OPSing 900

Re: Pre-Gamin’: Cubs v. Brewers (1:10 CT) – Lineups, Broadcast Info, etc.

Generational Talent — Sun, 01 Jun 2014 15:22:37 -0000

The extra days rest might also be a negative for a pitcher like Samardzija. He relies so much on movement that being a little stronger can actually hurt him. He was hitting 96 regularly, but everything was flat

Re: This Week In The Minors: Lessons from 2012

Generational Talent — Mon, 02 Jun 2014 00:48:06 -0000

I would agree with that. He's a nice prospect to have, but he better come a long way to be what everyone wants. With that said Soler is more than I thought... if he can ever stay healthy. At this point, I would say Bryant is the best prospect in baseball, Soler could be dynamic, Baez is the ultimate wildcard (a Carlos Gomez type) and Almora is solid

Re: Draft Pick Trade: Marlins Trade 39th Overall Pick to Pirates for Bryan Morris

Generational Talent — Mon, 02 Jun 2014 00:56:34 -0000

Uhhhhh....no. Bryant was the top of every draft board. Even the
Astros. They let him go because he knew it and asked for overslot. They said no way...and took Appel who had no leverage

Re: Draft Pick Trade: Marlins Trade 39th Overall Pick to Pirates for Bryan Morris

Generational Talent — Mon, 02 Jun 2014 00:58:38 -0000

That's wrong as well. The Cubs would have taken Gray...he was 2nd on their board. When the Astros negotiations with Bryant fell through... the Cubs said ok, that's great. How much does he want?