So late Saturday night/early Sunday, us Cubs fans finally got a piece of good news. Cody Bellinger will be returning at the cool, cool price of $80M over 3 years. Supposedly, Jed won this battle with Boras, getting Bellinger at less than $100M… ok. Is this enough to make the Cubs serious contenders?
Wait, I thought the Cubs signed him last year? Yes, yes they did. I wasn’t that excited then. Here comes another guy past his prime, with his best days behind him as a Dodger, on to the Cubs roster. If he has a good start, trade him at the deadline and get some more pieces. Well, that didn’t exactly work according to plan. First off, Cody was a lot better than I thought he would be; he had an outstanding season with us. So does that mean this time around I’m more excited? Yeah, I think so. I wouldn’t have been heartbroken if he didn’t resign with us, but I’m glad that he did. After all, the Cubs still need talent on this roster. They hadn’t really done a whole hell of a lot before this.
Sure, we got Craig Counsell, yay! Is he a top tier MLB manager? Lots of experts say he is… I was happy with the move, more so because I didn’t think a lot about Rossy. I thought this move was the start of “going for it”. Since then, what has happened? Enter Shota Imanaga, a left handed pitcher from Japan. I think it’s an upgrade over Stroman, who pitched his ass off during the first half of the season last year, but… he’s no Blake Snell. We added Neris in the bullpen, OK cool. And… called up some of our young guys onto the major league roster? Not exactly the offseason I thought the Cubs would have. Excuse me if I want more…
Look, the Cubs surprised me last year; they did WAY better than expectations. Sure, they fizzled out at the end of the day, but overall, it was a very enjoyable season, especially since I thought it was going to be a tank fest. Now, even with the Belli signing, they’re basically running it back again? I don’t like saying that because I think of the Bulls… These aren’t the Bulls; this isn’t basketball. Still, do we think essentially the same roster is going to be that much better than last year? Relying a lot on these young guys and a guy who is new to this country and the MLB… More moves to come before the season begins? Moves to come at the deadline? I feel like we still need more…
If everybody on the Cubs roster improves from last year, and the new guys kick ass, then sure, it may be a successful year. I like Nico and Dansby; solid there. Now with Belli back, we’re set at 1B. Looks like Morel may lock into 3B; I hope we plays as well as he did last year. The OF is Happ, Seiya, and PCA? Catcher(s)? Not exactly shaking in my boots having to face this lineup. The starters? Steele, Hendricks… ok. Imanaga? Big question mark in my mind. Wicks and Taillon? Not exactly shaking in my boots having to face this pitching staff.
When the Cubs deconstructed the World Series team… a perennial playoff team… we were supposed to get better. Are we there yet? Patiently waiting… at least baseball is back. Go Cubs!
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