#91 Nats Win! Rizzo Gold Glove/Heart! Other Things!

And with the return of Cody Bellinger, the season can finally begin! The Cubs finally found a solution for the Cody Bellinger-sized hole in their lineup, and he returns on the Jed Hoyer Special contract (short term, opt outs galore). We talk about that, the Cubs plethora of non-roster invites, PECOTA projections that have the Cubs right around .500, and feelings about the team coming together as Spring baseball begins.

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It’s a BIG episode! So big, we have guest Ken Schultz (OutSports) on to help talk us through it. Shota Imanaga joins the Cubs rotation from Japan, the Cubs dealt two prospects for one top-50 prospect in baseball (1B/DH Michael Busch) and a MLB reliever (Yency Almonte). We analyze the moves the Cubs have made, talk about the big ones they haven’t, what Jed Hoyer has said about all of it, and Ken tells us about all the fun of the Cubs Convention: the new Cubs Hall of Famers, player panels, and an impressive showing by Craig Counsell. 

This is our biggest, deepest Cubs talk in a while, so sit back and enjoy!

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Steele became an ace, we got the Tauch Off & Morel’s walk off grand slam that made him literally lose his shirt. The Ross Era also wrapped up in a weird way, as the team was both better and worse than we thought they could be at different times, leading to a result that was…literally exactly what we predicted in our annual season preview. We take this episode to check in on our pre-season predictions, hold ourselves accountable, look at highlights and lowlights and take stock of what, undeniably, was one year of Cubs baseball.

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Happy holidays to all, but especially Jorge Alfaro, the Cubs biggest signing of the offseason so far. Adam and Kevin thought it was a good time to check in on where things stand for the Cubs as Ohtani chose a new, more local, consistently competitive home with the Deferrin’ Dodgers, Soto landed in New York, and the Cubs are in the news for NOT meeting with Yamamoto. Will Cody be back? Are we trading with Cleveland? Is Rhys Hoskins gonna happen? Is it okay to be frustrated at the moment or does that mean we just don’t possess the galaxy brain needed to see the true plan? Let’s get into it. And, seriously, Happy Holidays!

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The Cubs have a new manager: Craig Counsell is leaving Milwaukee to come complain about weather delays more locally after signing a record 5-year, $40 million dollar deal. David Ross went from “our guy” to “anyone else’s guy” in a snap, and he’s not the only one out the door: Marcus Stroman has declined his option, freeing up more than $20 million of payroll for the Cubs to go shop with. Those are the goodbyes, but we have a couple “hello agains” too: Kyle Hendricks’s option was picked up for 2024, and Yan Gomes and Drew Smyly will also remain with the club next year. Haven’t had a big news day like this in Cubland for a while, folks!

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From one strike away to all the way there, the Rangers finally got rid of the the title of “oldest team to never win a World Series.” Game 1 was an all-timer, with Corey Seager’s 9th inning, game tying homer that reminded us of Kirk Gibson ’88, and Adolis Garcia’s extra inning walk off. And then…there were also other games. We recap the series, give D’backs fans their due, talk about the greatness of Bochy, and how the Rangers could provide the blueprint for what the Cubs should (and could) be as soon as next year. 

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The Astros have been dispatched in what their fans surely think is a grand, unfair conspiracy that goes all the way to the top, and the Rangers will look for that elusive first World Series title against either the Phillies or Diamondbacks. We look at the possible matchups and how the Rangers got here, and look at Dusty’s career with news that he might step away. We also talk a little bit of good Cubs news and rumor, with the reports that Kyle Hendricks is working on an extension with the team.

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Not a big week for currrent Cubs news, but a big week for former Cubs that weren’t offered a contract by our team. Schwarber and Castellanos are bombing the Phillies into a 2-0 lead in the NLCS, while the Rangers take two in Houston. We also talk a little about the playoff format and how it does or doesn’t favor the best teams, and peruse the letter Tom Ricketts sent to Cubs fans this week. 

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Without much Cubs news and with Kevin out of town in Vegas to presumably bet on the Cubbies, friend of the pod Evan Hernandez (Amazon Prime) pinch hits for a playoff recap. We talk about the four Wild Card sweeps, the electric Philly/Atlanta series, whether or not Clayton Kershaw is a certified October choke artist, and the Texas Rangers reaping the rewards of big offseason spending. Get the hint, Ricketts? Will the Dodgers complete an epic comeback? Will the Twins force a game 5? Will Philly recover from a devastating game 2 loss? All that and more on this edition of Away Games. 

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Welp, our big postseason episode turned out to be a "post-season" episode. A brutal final week finished an excruciating final month that found the Cubs on the outside of the playoff picture looking in. Despite a 90+% chance to make the playoffs in early September, the team ran out of gas at a critical time. We talk about the final week and how we'll remember this season before doing a live breakdown of Jed's press conference. What we like: Hendricks staying a Cub. What we don't like: a lack of committing to make this team a true World Series contender. It's gonna be a long offseason. 

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