OSS: Javier Baez goes 4-4 and John Lackey continues to dominate. Three up: Javier Baez was 4-4 today with a double and the game-winning RBI in the 5th. He was worth just over a quarter of a win in WPA today (0.27). Myself and another commenter were complaining about Baez's approach early in this one. He could still clean the …
What if Jim Hendry Had Been Fired in October 2009?
If the Ricketts had fired Jim Hendry immediately upon taking ownership, what would the Cubs’ drafts have looked like in 2010 and 2011? Would Javier Baez have been a Cub?
Jed Hoyer during SABR GM panel
Jed Hoyer had some interesting things to say during the GM panel at SABR. ON THE ROLE OF SCOUTS Hoyer: "The scouts they know that I have an analytical bent, and that my bosses have that. The worst thing you can do is change their mindset. You're hiring them for their eyes and their instincts, and you want them to …
Curt Schilling: ‘Members of the [Red Sox] organization’ encouraged me to use PEDs
This might become a big deal. Curt Schilling, in a Wednesday interview on ESPN Radio, said toward the end of his tenure with the Red Sox he was encouraged to use performance-enhancing drugs by “members of the organization.” “At the end of my career, in 2008 when I had gotten hurt, there was a conversation that I was involved in …
The Next Generation of Cub Players and Plate Discipline
The Cubs Convention took place this past weekend. OV's own Aisle424 was present and will summarize his thoughts on it shortly (I think). In the meantime, Josh has already weighed in. Bruce Miles was all over the goings-on, as well, and his twitter feed is well worth checking out. A couple of highlights: Sveum: Campana "has a really hard time …
Profiles In Rebuilding- The Cleveland Indians
After Theo and Co. were hired at the end of last season, Cubdom was collectively filled with a sense of manifest destiny. A majority of us, I think, breathed a sigh of relief and started channeling our inner Alvin. Finally, a front office on the vanguard, saying all the right things about performance evaluation, rebuilding the organization from the ground …
Hoyer: we will have financial flexibility
“We will have financial flexibility,” Hoyer said. “We’ve been diligent to make sure we do have flexibility and we’re efficient going forward. We’ll obviously be active in the free agent market. That’s a big part of our research and work now is evaluating free agents. We have some money to spend and we’ll focus on it heavily.” – Jed Hoyer …
A Tale of Two Trade Deadlines
[Billy Beane and Kevin Towers] operate, as ballplayers do, without a fear of failure. This year Beane found too many phone calls that came his way that sounded like this: "I have interest in one of your players and this is what I'm going to give you for him." "That's not deal-making," Beane said. It's name-your-own price. The art of …
The 45%: When Theo Epstein Is Wrong
During Theo Epstein's introductory press conference, as well as the many rounds he made to various radio and tv shows, there is one line that I remember more than any other. if you do a great job, you're right 55 percent of the time. Of the many hours Theo spent talking with people about the Cubs on that day, I …
Will The Cubs Resemble Hoyer’s Padres?
Those of us who follow the Cubs a little too closely know by and large what to expect from the 2012 version: mediocrity will hold sway. Bountiful and unabated mediocrity. The question that has kept us on the edge of our seats over the past roughly five months is: “how will the new front office put its stamp on this …