Latest / North Side Territory: A Chicago Cubs Podcast / Cubs Mailbag: Who’s on the hot seat? What’s the manager’s value? Which prospects are untouchable?

Transcript

Cubs Mailbag: Who’s on the hot seat? What’s the manager’s value? Which prospects are untouchable? · North Side Territory: A Chicago Cubs Podcast

0:00
Speaker 1: That there's not like this desperate need to like we
0:02
Speaker 1: need you guys, Like I know you've gone a ton lately,
0:06
Speaker 1: but we need you, we need you. That that's not happening.
0:13
Speaker 1: Welcome into North Side Territory Foul Territories Cubs Podcast. I'm
0:19
Speaker 1: Sahadev Sharma and with me is Patrick Mooney, where your
0:22
Speaker 1: Cubs beat writers for the Athletic and we're gonna talk
0:25
Speaker 1: all things Cubs for you guys. Patrick. The Cubs are
0:29
Speaker 1: coming off a nice win in in Tampa after a
0:33
Speaker 1: tough loss, another one of those brutal losses, but they
0:35
Speaker 1: get that big hit, big win. Cody Bellinger sends one
0:39
Speaker 1: into the seats late. Uh, they had just not been
0:42
Speaker 1: getting those big hits with men on base second and third.
0:46
Speaker 1: I believe it was two outs and I think it
0:49
Speaker 1: was two outs with Ballenger up there. They were trailing
0:52
Speaker 1: two to one. It just felt like, oh man, is
0:54
Speaker 1: it is it gonna happen again? Where they get runners
0:56
Speaker 1: on base, they get the right guys up to bat,
0:59
Speaker 1: and they can't come up with a big hit. And
1:01
Speaker 1: there were quite a few of those hard hit balls again. Yeah,
1:05
Speaker 1: that's becoming a trend that that has to like drive
1:09
Speaker 1: a manager crazy, but they eat out a win. You know,
1:13
Speaker 1: there's no such thing as must win, but that just
1:16
Speaker 1: felt like one of those where it was like, Okay,
1:18
Speaker 1: sigh of relief for a council in the Cubs when
1:22
Speaker 1: it comes to where they are in the standings, how
1:24
Speaker 1: things are doing, and just generally trying to get things
1:27
Speaker 1: back on track.
1:29
Speaker 2: Yeah, it props to you for planning a Bellinger story
1:32
Speaker 2: on the day he become the night he becomes the
1:36
Speaker 2: hero much needed swing. And this goes back to what
1:39
Speaker 2: we're talking about of like this guy's getting paid about
1:42
Speaker 2: thirty million dollars I think it is this year. I mean,
1:45
Speaker 2: he was even though he have the signing have been
1:47
Speaker 2: in spring training he was a centerpiece idea of either
1:51
Speaker 2: you have to bring him back or finding an equivalent
1:54
Speaker 2: left handed bat, not to mention.
1:57
Speaker 3: All the defensive versatility he brings to the table.
2:00
Speaker 2: So he's he hasn't been like the primary culprit here.
2:03
Speaker 2: He has a fine season overall, it just hasn't been
2:07
Speaker 2: that like the slug.
2:10
Speaker 3: It hasn't been MVP stretches. And I don't think we.
2:15
Speaker 2: Need to get into whether or not this is some
2:17
Speaker 2: sort of you know, game changer for him. But like
2:19
Speaker 2: clearly we've been talking about it. They need more from Bellinger,
2:23
Speaker 2: they need more from say It, they need these guides
2:27
Speaker 2: in the middle of the order to produce, and for
2:29
Speaker 2: one game at least they did. I know you'll be
2:32
Speaker 2: getting into Hector Nares probably more in your coverage on
2:36
Speaker 2: the athletic heres to hear at what point Council maybe
2:41
Speaker 2: pivots off of that or doubles down, because clearly it's
2:46
Speaker 2: going to take a while until they get some bullpen
2:48
Speaker 2: reinforcements back in there.
2:51
Speaker 1: Yeah. I mean that's like, here's the reality, Hector. This
2:55
Speaker 1: isn't new with Hector Nare. Yeah, Like he has done
2:58
Speaker 1: this when he's had even in his best seasons. Like
3:02
Speaker 1: we have Megan Montemuro on the beat. She covered him
3:05
Speaker 1: in Philly, and she kind of just watches it and
3:07
Speaker 1: is like, Yep, I'm used to this. Like he does
3:10
Speaker 1: this and a lot he gets out of it. A
3:12
Speaker 1: lot of the time. It's still hard to watch and
3:17
Speaker 1: and the Cubs fans have every right to freak out
3:20
Speaker 1: and be stressed, and and the fact that this stuff
3:22
Speaker 1: is kind of not where it was probably when Megan
3:26
Speaker 1: was watching with Philly or when he was with Houston.
3:28
Speaker 1: That is also a concern, but that's that's a topic
3:31
Speaker 1: for another day. We'll dive into that in the future.
3:35
Speaker 1: It definitely needs to be talked about. Patrick. Today, we're
3:38
Speaker 1: taking questions from the fans. We we want to be
3:41
Speaker 1: as interactive as possible. We want you guys to feel
3:44
Speaker 1: like your concerns are heard on here and we'll discuss
3:48
Speaker 1: as much as we can as far as reaction from
3:52
Speaker 1: the fans. And and what what? What are the hot
3:55
Speaker 1: button topics? Uh and and prime among them is Jed Hoyer.
4:00
Speaker 1: We have a question from believe it's Sam, I am
4:04
Speaker 1: and then another one from Brian A bunch of numbers
4:08
Speaker 1: I'm going to describe him, and it's both about Jed Hoyer.
4:13
Speaker 1: Is Jed Hoyer on the hot seat? What will it
4:15
Speaker 1: take for him to be on the hot seat? And
4:18
Speaker 1: another one was you know if you think Jed is gone?
4:22
Speaker 1: Do you think Jed is gone if they don't make
4:24
Speaker 1: the postseason this year? I'll let you take go ahead
4:29
Speaker 1: and give your thoughts there first.
4:31
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think it's fair to raise those questions. I
4:34
Speaker 2: think we should address it in this forum. I personally
4:38
Speaker 2: am not going to spend like you know, every loss
4:43
Speaker 2: is like a referendum on Jed Hoyer, or every win
4:45
Speaker 2: is like vindication for Jed, or you know, losing streak
4:49
Speaker 2: winning streak, Like I think have to let this play out.
4:53
Speaker 2: I will say this does remind me a little bit
4:56
Speaker 2: of what happened with David Ross at the end of
4:58
Speaker 2: last season of if you don't convert when you have
5:03
Speaker 2: a chance to win, it opens the door to different
5:07
Speaker 2: possibilities that you may not have expected and kind of
5:11
Speaker 2: unpredictable actors can enter the situation. And so that I
5:18
Speaker 2: think happened to David Ross last year. I mean, you know, September,
5:22
Speaker 2: I think they're on pace for about ninety wins. I
5:25
Speaker 2: think above ninety percent was their playoff percentage. You know,
5:30
Speaker 2: Rossi's demeanor is feel how he had the pulse, really
5:36
Speaker 2: seemed to be working and lining up. But when it
5:39
Speaker 2: crashes that heart at the end. Even though I think
5:42
Speaker 2: the outperformed expectations, you have to play the season in
5:45
Speaker 2: front of you.
5:46
Speaker 3: And so.
5:48
Speaker 2: Right now, I think it's fair to look at this
5:51
Speaker 2: roster and wonder, kind of should there be more at
5:54
Speaker 2: this point? Given even though the Cubs don't spend the
5:58
Speaker 2: nth degree, it's still around the luxury tax threshold. I
6:05
Speaker 2: think you have to understand who the ownership group is,
6:09
Speaker 2: and they've largely endorsed Jed Hoyer's plan. I think they
6:14
Speaker 2: view him as someone who's good to work with and
6:17
Speaker 2: who understands their priorities, and ultimately you have to execute
6:22
Speaker 2: ownership's vision on this.
6:24
Speaker 3: I think on the pro side, you have.
6:30
Speaker 2: A really remarkable collection of young pitching that the Cups
6:33
Speaker 2: have not had for a long time. And I do
6:35
Speaker 2: think no matter how the season ends, you can point
6:38
Speaker 2: to a lot of different things that will give you
6:41
Speaker 2: optimism towards the future. There's a lot of flexibility coming
6:48
Speaker 2: up here as well. No matter what they do with
6:49
Speaker 2: the trade headline, there's a lot of money coming off
6:51
Speaker 2: the books. There's a lot of interesting young players either
6:55
Speaker 2: in the upper levels of the farm system or making
6:58
Speaker 2: you know, close to the minimum on your major league roster.
7:03
Speaker 2: And I think too, you know, you take over in
7:08
Speaker 2: the middle of a pandemic and you're given orders to
7:11
Speaker 2: cut spending, and Jed was a good soldier in that.
7:15
Speaker 2: I think he largely you know, followed their directives and
7:18
Speaker 2: I think they were very much in alignment on this
7:22
Speaker 2: I think temperament wise in terms of their what they
7:25
Speaker 2: value and prioritize on the free agent market. I think
7:29
Speaker 2: getting Craig Council was a really good long term preservation
7:33
Speaker 2: move of saying, this is our partnership, this is you know,
7:36
Speaker 2: arguably the best manager in the majors. But yeah, I mean,
7:42
Speaker 2: this team can't be under five hundred in one of
7:44
Speaker 2: the worst divisions in baseball, right, I mean, it's at
7:46
Speaker 2: a certain point you got to see the results, and
7:50
Speaker 2: that's why this trade deadline. Heading into the final year
7:53
Speaker 2: of his contract next year, there's just going to be
7:55
Speaker 2: a lot more focus on this. It's come really fast.
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Speaker 1: Please. Yeah. I think ultimately you know that there's there's
8:59
Speaker 1: some thing that fans want to point at Jed Hoyer
9:03
Speaker 1: right now. And I get it. It's the next logical
9:06
Speaker 1: step when there's frustration with the team on the field.
9:10
Speaker 1: Right It's like, well, he's the one that you want
9:12
Speaker 1: to blame the players, right, Well, he's the one that's
9:15
Speaker 1: picking the players. So I get it. I get that
9:18
Speaker 1: this hasn't worked. He's been saying this isn't to rebuild.
9:22
Speaker 1: This is going to be a quicker turnaround. Okay, where
9:24
Speaker 1: are the results that? Where's this quick turnaround. I also think,
9:28
Speaker 1: like how much does everything change the narrative change if
9:33
Speaker 1: they win two more games last year? Right, that's you know,
9:37
Speaker 1: like suddenly you're not talking about like this is a
9:40
Speaker 1: failed rebuild. They haven't made the playoffs, and it makes
9:43
Speaker 1: our narratives much harder to write about, right Yeah, Like
9:47
Speaker 1: because we're not talking about them not making the playoffs
9:51
Speaker 1: since in a full season, since twenty eighteen, and things
9:54
Speaker 1: like that, there's there's not that that talking point is
9:58
Speaker 1: knocked down, and there's a little bit of the pressure
10:01
Speaker 1: taken off. But I don't think that absolves him. I
10:05
Speaker 1: don't think you can say, like there's no pressure on
10:08
Speaker 1: Jed Hoyer. I just don't think it's a middle of
10:10
Speaker 1: the season thing. I really think you have to evaluate
10:13
Speaker 1: the full season, see how this season goes. You know,
10:17
Speaker 1: people were complaining about Saya Suzuki a couple of weeks ago,
10:21
Speaker 1: and and he's pretty much putting up one of his
10:24
Speaker 1: best seasons by this point. You know, just a couple
10:28
Speaker 1: of weeks later, he's he's, you know, a great offensive player.
10:34
Speaker 1: Right now. You can complain about his defense, and I
10:36
Speaker 1: think that's fair, But he's got a one twenty eight
10:38
Speaker 1: Way runs great at plus he's he's having a very
10:41
Speaker 1: good season. So these things change quickly. I would be
10:46
Speaker 1: cautious about saying Jed has to be fired right now.
10:52
Speaker 1: I think I also wonder, Look, Tom Ricketts isn't looking
10:58
Speaker 1: for someone to spend all is money. He's not looking
11:02
Speaker 1: for a team president to act like Aj Preller or
11:06
Speaker 1: Dave Dombrowski, So so what. But there's also a little
11:11
Speaker 1: bit of they are letting it be known that this
11:15
Speaker 1: is Jed's team. Jed, I give him the budget and
11:19
Speaker 1: he has suspend it how he sees fit. So it
11:22
Speaker 1: is on him, right, they're making they've made that clearness,
11:25
Speaker 1: like they've made that very clear. So if the time comes,
11:28
Speaker 1: it's like, well, he didn't spend the money properly. I
11:32
Speaker 1: guess my question becomes, so who's the person that takes over.
11:36
Speaker 1: Is there some great front office exec? Is there Craig
11:41
Speaker 1: Council available, Craig Council of the front office available? Is
11:44
Speaker 1: Andrew Friedman available? Like does does Alex Nthopolis become available?
11:49
Speaker 1: I don't think any of that stuff's happening, right, So
11:51
Speaker 1: there's not like some elite front office like exec that's
11:57
Speaker 1: already one a ton that has this experience. It says,
12:00
Speaker 1: I have this history of winning. Wherever I go, I'm
12:03
Speaker 1: this great uh like team president, and I want to
12:06
Speaker 1: go to the Chicago Cubs that that person's not there. Like,
12:11
Speaker 1: what Ricketts wants is kind of what Jed is doing
12:14
Speaker 1: beyond the winning and the like. He wants someone that
12:17
Speaker 1: follows his budget, that isn't going to badger him to
12:20
Speaker 1: spend more and and just kind of like you know,
12:23
Speaker 1: is doing what he wants with the money. Uh So
12:28
Speaker 1: does it mean? Like I think if if Cubs fans
12:32
Speaker 1: are angry about Jed Hoyer and and really want him fired,
12:36
Speaker 1: I think what ends up happening is just someone that
12:38
Speaker 1: does something similar to him becomes the the you know,
12:43
Speaker 1: head of baseball operations. So it's not like someone you're
12:47
Speaker 1: not getting someone that goes out and gets Juan Soto
12:50
Speaker 1: and and trades for Vlad Junior and does all this
12:54
Speaker 1: stuff and then sends the payroll to three hundred million dollars,
12:58
Speaker 1: right that that's not happening.
13:01
Speaker 3: Yeah.
13:01
Speaker 2: I just think I'm glad we've discussed this. I don't
13:06
Speaker 2: necessarily disagree with anything you said, but if say the
13:10
Speaker 2: Cubs win one more one run game a month so
13:13
Speaker 2: far April, May, June, they'd be thirty six and thirty two,
13:19
Speaker 2: and we'd probably be talking about, you know, extension time
13:23
Speaker 2: for Jet, like that would be where this is going
13:25
Speaker 2: okay like that, And I just think Jet is extremely experienced,
13:34
Speaker 2: deeply knowledgeable and connected. He's extremely organized and predictable in
13:44
Speaker 2: a good way from an ownership perspective, and so you know,
13:50
Speaker 2: I think there are time I get some of the
13:52
Speaker 2: fatigue in terms of just how much the Cubs kind
13:57
Speaker 2: of systems and infrastructures get overhyped, Like that gets old,
14:02
Speaker 2: that gets annoying. I totally understand if you're listening to
14:05
Speaker 2: this and rolling your eyes, But like what owners want
14:09
Speaker 2: and what modern baseball organizations are in many ways.
14:14
Speaker 3: Are this revolve around that.
14:17
Speaker 2: And I think what Tom Rickets wants as a team
14:20
Speaker 2: that's gonna win about eighty five games a year to
14:23
Speaker 2: be like the Diamondbacks and now certain years you'll get
14:26
Speaker 2: the bounces and that'll be ninety plus. Some years you
14:32
Speaker 2: have more injuries and it's more like maybe seventy nine
14:35
Speaker 2: wins whatever. But what Ricketts wants is sort of the
14:41
Speaker 2: opposite of what happened after that World series of the
14:44
Speaker 2: idea of the boom and bus cycles. That he wants
14:47
Speaker 2: a steady supply of young talent, the flexibility to go
14:51
Speaker 2: out and sign a big free agent, you know every year,
14:57
Speaker 2: the trade chips and resources to make up grades at
15:00
Speaker 2: the deadline. I mean, that's and in that regard, I
15:05
Speaker 2: would have to say it's trending in that direction, you know.
15:07
Speaker 2: And if you look at the circumstances in which he
15:11
Speaker 2: inherited this job, there's a whole other episode if you
15:14
Speaker 2: want to how much you want to pin on him,
15:16
Speaker 2: since he was here since.
15:17
Speaker 3: Twenty eleven, here a long time.
15:22
Speaker 2: So if you're saying, you know, if some of your
15:24
Speaker 2: issues are in player development or whatever, like the post
15:29
Speaker 2: twenty sixteen phase, clearly he was a part of all
15:35
Speaker 2: of that. But I think when you take all of
15:37
Speaker 2: this together, I think he's a pretty comfortable choice from
15:42
Speaker 2: ownership's perspective. And that's ultimately what matters, because we know
15:45
Speaker 2: this ownership group, like, while they're aware of public perception
15:49
Speaker 2: and certainly they want certain messages or images presented to
15:52
Speaker 2: the public, like, they don't overreact. They're not like you know,
15:57
Speaker 2: hounding him over roster moves, stay to day you know,
16:01
Speaker 2: they very much play the long game. Let this play out,
16:07
Speaker 2: and I think there's a baseline of competency and competitiveness
16:12
Speaker 2: that Jed's group has instilled here.
16:15
Speaker 3: And then ultimately, I think ownership really values.
16:18
Speaker 1: That right and and ultimately, if the like just to
16:22
Speaker 1: answer the questions like what does it take. Yeah, I
16:25
Speaker 1: think if they bought him out this year and they're
16:27
Speaker 1: a bad team by the end of the year, we
16:29
Speaker 1: have to start talking about him being on the hot
16:31
Speaker 1: seat at minimum, right like that, like that if they
16:34
Speaker 1: just if they're not close things, just like, if it's
16:38
Speaker 1: not injury related whatever it is, then then yeah, then
16:41
Speaker 1: then that discussion starts. I think he has a year
16:45
Speaker 1: left after this on his contract. Yeah, so so you
16:49
Speaker 1: can start talking about it. Absolutely, But I don't think
16:54
Speaker 1: this is like I get why it's a topic right now.
16:57
Speaker 1: I just don't think he's like it's something that that
17:00
Speaker 1: he needs to be concerned with unless the things just
17:04
Speaker 1: continue to take a turn for the worse. Let's get
17:07
Speaker 1: to a couple more here. This is from William Vogel.
17:12
Speaker 1: Since the Brewers appear to be at least as good
17:14
Speaker 1: as they were last year despite trading away their best Pitcher,
17:16
Speaker 1: and the Cubs appear no better than they were in
17:18
Speaker 1: twenty twenty three despite acquiring Shoda. Is it fair to
17:21
Speaker 1: wonder whether Craig Council's value added is not all that high? J?
17:25
Speaker 1: Marwitz seven says there's a tendency to describe poor defense,
17:29
Speaker 1: base running fundamentals, etc. To the manager. I can't imagine
17:33
Speaker 1: Jed fields that way. Where do you think they internally
17:36
Speaker 1: assign blame to this? And where do you assign the blame? Okay,
17:39
Speaker 1: So those are two manager questions we can take, you know,
17:42
Speaker 1: take them however you want, separately together, but I'll start
17:48
Speaker 1: it off Patrick, So to William, is it fair to
17:54
Speaker 1: wonder whether Craig Council's value added is not all that high? Yeah? Sure,
18:00
Speaker 1: it's fair to wonder that. I think you need to
18:05
Speaker 1: You need to look at each thing, everything individually. Right,
18:11
Speaker 1: this season has not come together in a way that
18:14
Speaker 1: like the bullpen, the way that bullpen was last year,
18:17
Speaker 1: the talent that they had last year, and how everything
18:20
Speaker 1: came together was like, these are two separate seasons. These
18:24
Speaker 1: are not. This isn't despite it feeling similarly at times,
18:28
Speaker 1: the way things are going, it's different. It's very different.
18:31
Speaker 1: What I'm watching on the field is very different, and
18:34
Speaker 1: I don't put that on Craig Counsel. I just struggled
18:36
Speaker 1: to I think Counsel is aware of the weaknesses of
18:41
Speaker 1: his team. I think he's he's keenly aware of it,
18:45
Speaker 1: and he's trying to do his best. He's trying to
18:47
Speaker 1: He's also aware of like there's going to be like,
18:52
Speaker 1: how can you put Christopher Morell at third is a
18:55
Speaker 1: topic I hear a lot, like Counsel should have known
18:58
Speaker 1: this was going to be bad. He's going to struggle
19:01
Speaker 1: at third. Council did know there would be greenpaigns. He
19:05
Speaker 1: under like he's not just looking at one day in
19:09
Speaker 1: April and May of twenty twenty three. He's he's also
19:12
Speaker 1: a twenty twenty four. Sorry I forgot what year it is. Uh.
19:17
Speaker 1: He's he maybe maddening to fans to hear this, but
19:21
Speaker 1: he also wants He's trying to think of the future
19:25
Speaker 1: as well. It's not like he's not giving up on
19:29
Speaker 1: the present for the future, but he's trying to kind
19:32
Speaker 1: of blend it all together, and he understands that if
19:36
Speaker 1: if Christopher Morrell can take leaps at third base, it
19:41
Speaker 1: changes the dynamic of what you can do with the team. Uh,
19:45
Speaker 1: So he's he's trying to it's it's not a perfectly
19:49
Speaker 1: put together roster. They don't have a great third baseman,
19:53
Speaker 1: third base option, so he's trying to figure out how
19:56
Speaker 1: to use that offense and defense together. Think I do
20:02
Speaker 1: think there's something to the idea that Council had elite
20:06
Speaker 1: options in his bullpen over the years and and and
20:12
Speaker 1: he doesn't right now. So I think I think we
20:16
Speaker 1: touched on it. I don't think we were blind to
20:18
Speaker 1: that fact coming into the season. Patrick, I'm pretty sure.
20:21
Speaker 1: I'm pretty sure we talked about it, and I like
20:24
Speaker 1: I remember someone, if not one of us, asking counsel
20:29
Speaker 1: and jed about it at the introductory conference like press conference,
20:33
Speaker 1: like yeah, this just isn't this isn't out of the blue.
20:39
Speaker 1: That helps a lot, having Josh Hader, having Devin Williams,
20:42
Speaker 1: but he also had other like diamonds in the rough,
20:45
Speaker 1: and there was there were things that he did that
20:51
Speaker 1: media members or fans in Milwaukee scratched their head about
20:54
Speaker 1: and it would work. Like he is, he is very
20:57
Speaker 1: aware of how to use his bullpen. He doesn't really
21:01
Speaker 1: have the horses right now, and that's that will make
21:04
Speaker 1: any manager look bad. I do believe that in the
21:09
Speaker 1: long run, over the course of the season, he really
21:12
Speaker 1: knows how to handle his bullpen, how to he is.
21:17
Speaker 1: This was something when I was defending David Ross last year.
21:21
Speaker 1: I had a couple of Scout friends tell me, I
21:24
Speaker 1: get where you're coming from. He is trying to push
21:26
Speaker 1: all in because he has to. But there is something
21:30
Speaker 1: to be said for knowing how to take your losses
21:33
Speaker 1: in June and July so you win in August and September.
21:37
Speaker 1: Ross pushed, pushed, pushed because he had he felt he
21:40
Speaker 1: had to right, and he went a pedal to the
21:43
Speaker 1: medal with the bullpen pretty much all summer long. Council,
21:48
Speaker 1: it may sometimes you may wonder, like like yesterday, I
21:51
Speaker 1: was wondering, does he go Mark Lighter instead of Nerris?
21:55
Speaker 1: That it was lefty righty, lefty. I could see that
21:59
Speaker 1: that that could make. But he clearly like whether it
22:04
Speaker 1: was I need to give Lighter a break or I'm
22:06
Speaker 1: sticking with Nerris. Whatever the decision was, he didn't right,
22:10
Speaker 1: and I don't. I don't think he's going to grind
22:12
Speaker 1: these guys into the ground. Yeah, I'm not ready to
22:18
Speaker 1: start saying like Craig Council's just an average manager or
22:22
Speaker 1: not impactful. I think what's going on in Milwaukee tells
22:27
Speaker 1: me that is a well run organization. Yes, that's what
22:32
Speaker 1: that tells me. They have like just like put him
22:36
Speaker 1: up there with Tampa and Cleveland as the small market
22:39
Speaker 1: teams that just get it and know like have everything.
22:42
Speaker 1: Like what we were just talking about, what you were
22:45
Speaker 1: just saying about what modern in front, not what owners want. Yeah,
22:49
Speaker 1: they have that. They have that The Cubs want to
22:52
Speaker 1: want that with the two hundred and whatever thirty million
22:57
Speaker 1: dollar payroll, which which those teams don't have. Cleveland, Tampa,
23:01
Speaker 1: Bay and Milwaukee don't have. Yeah.
23:05
Speaker 2: I think what you articulated is kind of the feeling
23:08
Speaker 2: in the clubhouse so that the council impact is supposed
23:12
Speaker 2: to show up over the second half of the season,
23:15
Speaker 2: and that is obviously to be determined. I will give
23:19
Speaker 2: the Cubs credit for valuing the manager's position and like
23:23
Speaker 2: bringing in somebody not like some nobody who's you know,
23:30
Speaker 2: never played in the majors or never did the job before,
23:33
Speaker 2: you know. And I think managers recently have been severely undervalued.
23:38
Speaker 2: That's part of why Craig Council wanted to push the
23:41
Speaker 2: bar higher for managers. I also think the council impact
23:47
Speaker 2: can't be truly measured until after he has a full
23:50
Speaker 2: season and an off season to implement what he wants.
23:53
Speaker 2: I mean, this guy was hired. It was roughly between
23:57
Speaker 2: Halloween and Thanksgiving, right, I mean, the Cubs essentially had
24:00
Speaker 2: a coaching staff already in place, and they made a
24:04
Speaker 2: few adjustments, additions whatever. You know, there were a lot
24:10
Speaker 2: of injuries early in the year. When I asked Craig about,
24:13
Speaker 2: you know, do you kind of wonder maybe if something
24:16
Speaker 2: could be done differently, He's like, that's a fair question,
24:18
Speaker 2: and he said, we haven't seen anything yet.
24:20
Speaker 3: But I totally understand the question.
24:22
Speaker 2: That's fair question, which in council speak to me says
24:25
Speaker 2: like this is totally.
24:26
Speaker 3: On my radar right now. I just don't know exactly
24:29
Speaker 3: what we should do about it.
24:31
Speaker 2: And maybe I'm taking a leap, but I do think
24:33
Speaker 2: some of these things on the field, how they got
24:36
Speaker 2: out of the gates this year, how they incorporate players,
24:43
Speaker 2: how they evaluate acquisitions, like Counsel is going to have
24:47
Speaker 2: his hands in like all of this, And so I
24:50
Speaker 2: think the value whatever it is, will become a parent one.
24:56
Speaker 1: Way or the other. Yeah, And just to to kind
25:00
Speaker 1: of hammer home my point, Mark Lighter had been used
25:03
Speaker 1: three of the past four days. Okay, that that's that
25:07
Speaker 1: seems like a perfect time, like Council wanted to, wanted
25:10
Speaker 1: to likely wanted to give him a day a day off.
25:13
Speaker 1: We saw him talking to Lighter in the clubhouse. Uh.
25:17
Speaker 1: I don't know what he was talking to him about
25:18
Speaker 1: in pre game, but he's clear He clearly communicates with
25:23
Speaker 1: them regularly and let him know, like you are down
25:26
Speaker 1: whatever it is. I don't know that he said that yesterday,
25:29
Speaker 1: the Lighter I'm saying, we do know that that that
25:32
Speaker 1: type of stuff happens where it's very clearly communicated. That
25:36
Speaker 1: always hasn't been the case. Not every manager is like that,
25:40
Speaker 1: but this is he is like that. There's not like
25:43
Speaker 1: this desperate need to like we need you guys, we like,
25:46
Speaker 1: I know you've gone a ton lately, but we need you.
25:48
Speaker 1: We need you. That that's not happening like sorry, you're down,
25:53
Speaker 1: like I you feel fine, No, we need you find
25:57
Speaker 1: in August. That type of stuff that as far is
26:00
Speaker 1: the the tendency, like the poor defense, the base running
26:04
Speaker 1: the fundamentals, look the base running, they're getting thrown out
26:08
Speaker 1: on the bases that there there's been some egregious stuff,
26:12
Speaker 1: but they also like some of it is you need
26:15
Speaker 1: to be aggressive to to make things happen, right, Like
26:19
Speaker 1: there's some aggression on the bass pats that that comes
26:22
Speaker 1: with a lack of offense. So I think sometimes like
26:26
Speaker 1: there are good teams that get thrown out on the
26:28
Speaker 1: bases a lot, like they're they're like if you go
26:32
Speaker 1: look at the outs on the bases leaderboards, it's like
26:35
Speaker 1: the top six are going to be three bad teams
26:38
Speaker 1: and three really good teams. We can we can have
26:41
Speaker 1: the debate of where we age and the cups. Yeah, right,
26:45
Speaker 1: right right. So it's like like I think it's hard
26:48
Speaker 1: to just look at that and say they're a bad
26:50
Speaker 1: base running team. I do think there have been some
26:53
Speaker 1: head scratchers as far as, uh, things that happen on
26:57
Speaker 1: the basis. Sometimes it's it's just on the players. Like
27:00
Speaker 1: I've seen some stuff that that that's not coached, that
27:03
Speaker 1: nobody's coaching that they're just like doing something boneheaded out there.
27:07
Speaker 1: Uh So that's tough for me to like I'd have
27:10
Speaker 1: to go through individual plays and say like that that's
27:14
Speaker 1: a bad one, that's one that needs to be corrected,
27:17
Speaker 1: that that's one where the player is not thinking that
27:21
Speaker 1: type of stuff. Yeah, you can say like, well, you
27:23
Speaker 1: need to go over that. It's not like I mean,
27:25
Speaker 1: we watch spring training. Council's there, he's he's talking, he's
27:29
Speaker 1: doing everything that needs to be done. When you come
27:33
Speaker 1: to poor defense. Listen, we touched on Morell being a
27:38
Speaker 1: third council knows this team has some deficiencies on defense.
27:44
Speaker 1: He's trying, like there sometimes you need to like you
27:48
Speaker 1: need to do things to make it like you sacrifice
27:51
Speaker 1: defense for offense at times, right and right now, this
27:54
Speaker 1: is a team that's looking for offense. So he's gonna
27:57
Speaker 1: push things. Michael Bush has been playing second because of
28:00
Speaker 1: Goes uh, you know, the injury that he's now playing through.
28:05
Speaker 1: There's you know that, But counsel, I think that's.
28:10
Speaker 2: I think that's yeah, that's the you know, maybe in
28:13
Speaker 2: terms of evaluation or not being married to certain concepts
28:17
Speaker 2: or players or I think he walked in. I didn't
28:20
Speaker 2: think he was blown away by this team's defense before
28:22
Speaker 2: the season he started, So I think that I think
28:26
Speaker 2: I'm with you on base running. I think defense is
28:28
Speaker 2: an area where you saw it in Milwaukee where he'd
28:30
Speaker 2: be willing to kind of live with stuff for certain players.
28:32
Speaker 2: And now Tim to you know, either develop enough on
28:36
Speaker 2: the other side of the ball, and Chris Morrell sort
28:38
Speaker 2: of had you know, offensively has defense hasn't pc A.
28:43
Speaker 2: You know, it's certainly an interesting player. And I don't
28:45
Speaker 2: know if he's up here, if Craig counsel is are
28:48
Speaker 2: the manager.
28:49
Speaker 1: Right, and and like he's willing to do it both ways, right,
28:52
Speaker 1: He's willing to take the lumps on defense to get
28:55
Speaker 1: better offense, but he's also willing to take the lumps
28:58
Speaker 1: on offense to get better defense, like he did it
29:00
Speaker 1: with Bryce Terran last year. Terraan has turned. I haven't
29:04
Speaker 1: checked Terrang's stats lately, but he had pretty sod. His
29:08
Speaker 1: offense was really good to start the season, and he
29:11
Speaker 1: was dreadful last year on offense. But he gave them
29:13
Speaker 1: an elite defender at a key position. And and uh
29:18
Speaker 1: that that's happening with the PCA. PCA makes things happen
29:21
Speaker 1: on the bases too, so so he's not like while
29:24
Speaker 1: if I went and looked at PCA's numbers, I don't
29:26
Speaker 1: need to right now. I just I know they're not
29:29
Speaker 1: good just surface level numbers, but like he brings value.
29:33
Speaker 1: His defense is so good. He improves the team in
29:36
Speaker 1: different ways. As far as the rest of it, you
29:40
Speaker 1: know that they they don't. I think if you want
29:42
Speaker 1: to assign blame there, that's where you just put it
29:45
Speaker 1: on the players and like sometimes trying to do too
29:47
Speaker 1: much roster construction, whatever you want to do. That's that's
29:51
Speaker 1: what it is. It'd be really hard for me to
29:53
Speaker 1: say that's all on on Craig Council. I'm sure it
29:57
Speaker 1: is something he wants that that needs to be tightened up.
30:02
Speaker 1: All right, Let's let's get to the next questions here
30:05
Speaker 1: Cubs from twenty three Cubs bears Bulls. When will the
30:08
Speaker 1: Cubs stop overpaying for mediocre players to say that they
30:12
Speaker 1: are spending and actually pursue and spend on types of
30:16
Speaker 1: players that they have passed on Soto, Machado, Olsen, Freeman
30:21
Speaker 1: and then Diesel three four to two six. Could the
30:23
Speaker 1: Cubs jump the market and acquire a slugger? Which prospects
30:26
Speaker 1: do you feel will be traded? Okay, so those are
30:28
Speaker 1: kind of different. I jumped the gun on those because
30:32
Speaker 1: actually there's two prospect questions. So let's let's focus on
30:35
Speaker 1: the overpaying mediocre players. Listen, you could say that they
30:44
Speaker 1: have some money. I mean, you absolutely can say that
30:48
Speaker 1: they have money that that's poorly spent.
30:50
Speaker 4: Right.
30:50
Speaker 1: They have dead money on Mancini, Tucker Barnheart, Drew Smiley's
30:54
Speaker 1: making starters money, and he's he's a reliever. I think
30:58
Speaker 1: Drew Smiley actually has some value on this team currently
31:01
Speaker 1: just because of how their bullpen is built. He's he
31:04
Speaker 1: helps this team the rest of it. It's like it's
31:08
Speaker 1: kind of like market value. I know fans want. Yeah,
31:12
Speaker 1: I think the argument is, would you rather have like
31:16
Speaker 1: above average players that are making like market value for
31:19
Speaker 1: their production or do you want them to just go
31:22
Speaker 1: all out and have like instead of spreading that around
31:27
Speaker 1: because they have to, Like, I don't really want to
31:30
Speaker 1: have the debate of they need how much money they
31:32
Speaker 1: should be spending. Right, Let's let's assume that they have
31:34
Speaker 1: the budget, and that's what we're not going to debate about.
31:37
Speaker 1: They need to spend more. They have this budget, so
31:40
Speaker 1: that means fewer players that you're spreading it around on,
31:43
Speaker 1: but getting that stud Listen, I think they need to
31:47
Speaker 1: get that stud I think they need to like I
31:50
Speaker 1: agree with that. I don't think Saye Suzuki's an average player.
31:54
Speaker 1: Ian Hap is struggling again and that needs to be
31:59
Speaker 1: brought up. Is that a bad contract? Is that? Is
32:01
Speaker 1: that was that extension? Smart listen, that's a debate worth having.
32:06
Speaker 1: Jameson Tai On somehow is still being brought up as
32:09
Speaker 1: a bad contract. It's been a year now of him
32:12
Speaker 1: being better than the league average when it comes to ERA.
32:15
Speaker 1: That's that's what you pay for starting pitching. He's not
32:18
Speaker 1: an ace, but he's he logs innings and he gives
32:22
Speaker 1: you a chance to win every single time out. And
32:24
Speaker 1: he's got like a three ish e RA since the
32:28
Speaker 1: start of July last year. So that I don't think
32:31
Speaker 1: like they're getting what they wanted from him. You know
32:36
Speaker 1: that there's other than that, Like where are these dreadful
32:40
Speaker 1: I guess you can point to Dansby, Did you want
32:43
Speaker 1: Carlos Korea? Did you want Xander Bogarts, did you want
32:48
Speaker 1: I can't remember who the other options were if they went.
32:50
Speaker 1: If you go two years the year prior to signing Dansby,
32:53
Speaker 1: Corey Seeger, you can make all those arguments. I get it,
32:57
Speaker 1: Make all those arguments if you want. I think they
33:00
Speaker 1: they focused on Dansby for defense, uh, in tangible reasons
33:04
Speaker 1: and a little bit. They weren't looking for superstar offense,
33:07
Speaker 1: but averaged its slightly above and and that that that's
33:11
Speaker 1: how they were looking at it, especially with the idea
33:13
Speaker 1: that this is a this is a guy that's going
33:15
Speaker 1: to stick it short for the majority of the seven
33:19
Speaker 1: year deal.
33:19
Speaker 2: Yeah, and those other deal I mean Zanner, they weren't
33:22
Speaker 2: even on it. Xander Bowler, like they did not really
33:25
Speaker 2: want him. So then you're saying, you know, Korea's medicals,
33:29
Speaker 2: you know a question mark, you know, senior year before. Okay,
33:34
Speaker 2: I can I could see that to an extent trade turner.
33:41
Speaker 2: It sounds like really wanted the Phillies and that contract
33:44
Speaker 2: was nowhere near what the Cubs were willing to pay.
33:47
Speaker 2: And I think it's just, you know, I think this
33:50
Speaker 2: is where this trade deadline is gonna really be defining
33:54
Speaker 2: for this group of the farm system is a lot better.
33:57
Speaker 2: It's interesting, but where's the star. I feel like we've
34:00
Speaker 2: had this conversation for years now of where's the Chris
34:04
Speaker 2: Bryant or even a Kyle Schwarber, Hovey bias, Hobby bias.
34:10
Speaker 2: If you'll remember back then, not who is now one
34:13
Speaker 2: of like the worst UH hitters in baseball?
34:16
Speaker 3: But like where is that star?
34:19
Speaker 2: And now maybe we got to rethink some of this
34:23
Speaker 2: of like Showda Justin Steele are like pretty close to
34:27
Speaker 2: all star level Cy Young caliber pictures. Like if if
34:30
Speaker 2: that is real, if that sustains itself, then maybe we
34:35
Speaker 2: think about the Cubs a little differently. And I'm just
34:39
Speaker 2: saying this is where we talked about it the other day.
34:43
Speaker 2: If you see an opportunity to get someone that you
34:46
Speaker 2: think can be that guy in the lineup, I think
34:50
Speaker 2: you got to go for it. I do not look
34:52
Speaker 2: around and see lots of old Cubs prospects, you know,
34:58
Speaker 2: getting asked will you wear a Cups hat into the
35:00
Speaker 2: Hall of Fame? Like that's just not really the reality
35:03
Speaker 2: right now. And I think that kind of segues into
35:07
Speaker 2: part of I guess the second half of Diesel's questions,
35:10
Speaker 2: which prospects do you feel will be traded?
35:13
Speaker 3: And then I don't know if I'm pronouncing this right.
35:15
Speaker 3: Thirty two wreath, who are the untouchable prospects?
35:20
Speaker 1: You know?
35:20
Speaker 3: They need superstars that comes externally.
35:22
Speaker 2: They needed a power back last season, decided to run
35:25
Speaker 2: back again the same groups.
35:27
Speaker 3: Is not a.
35:27
Speaker 2: Surprise, but in reality they need two bout power bats
35:31
Speaker 2: to balance this lineup. Out thoughts question mark to use Sahada.
35:37
Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean yeah, the which prospects do I feel
35:42
Speaker 1: will be traded and which prospects are untouchable? I think,
35:45
Speaker 1: you know, if you want to talk untouchable, I don't
35:47
Speaker 1: love that word. But who do I Who would I
35:50
Speaker 1: be surprised if they moved? I mean, let's consider Peter
35:54
Speaker 1: Armstrong still a prospect. I'd put him in that group
35:59
Speaker 1: with Matt Shaw and Kate Horton, and there's probably one
36:04
Speaker 1: other that, like I'm kind of missing, but I wouldn't
36:07
Speaker 1: like they're not there yet, They're all on, Like you know,
36:10
Speaker 1: the precipice of like who do you want to keep
36:12
Speaker 1: this guy? Like do you not want to move Jefferson
36:15
Speaker 1: Rojas because he's your future in the middle of the infield?
36:18
Speaker 1: I don't know, Like those types of things are too
36:20
Speaker 1: too way too early to discuss in my opinion yet, Like,
36:23
Speaker 1: if you find the right move, you need to I
36:25
Speaker 1: think everyone else is available in a like in a
36:29
Speaker 1: in the right move. And again we said this last podcast,
36:33
Speaker 1: these guys, you don't just move some like a top
36:36
Speaker 1: one hundred and top fifty prospect for Pete Alonzo for
36:39
Speaker 1: two months of Peter Alonzo. That this does not happen anymore.
36:43
Speaker 1: It just does not. So so like saying Owen Casey
36:47
Speaker 1: for Pee Alonzo, that doesn't happen in today's game, like
36:50
Speaker 1: they just that would be a massive overpay. You want
36:53
Speaker 1: to talk about upside low a guy for Peter Alonzo,
36:56
Speaker 1: I get it, okay, talking.
36:58
Speaker 3: About it in a heart beat.
36:59
Speaker 1: Yes, that that's how Yeah, that's how. That's how it
37:03
Speaker 1: works nowadays. Uh in the Cubs, it worked for the Cubs, right,
37:07
Speaker 1: they traded They got Kevin Alcntra for Anthony Uh for
37:12
Speaker 1: Anthony Rizzo. So like that's that was an upside a
37:16
Speaker 1: ball guy. And with talking about Kevin al Contra, I
37:19
Speaker 1: like Kevin Contra a lot he is. He has turned
37:24
Speaker 1: himself into a type of player that everyone thought was
37:27
Speaker 1: going to end up in a corner outfield spot. And
37:28
Speaker 1: now they're saying, is a plus defender in center field
37:31
Speaker 1: who is raw with power in the bat? You know,
37:35
Speaker 1: is he red hot? Is he tearing up double A. No,
37:39
Speaker 1: but he's an above average bat that that has more
37:43
Speaker 1: in the tank, that is still developing and can play
37:46
Speaker 1: center field. Guess what centerfield may be taken if they,
37:50
Speaker 1: like I just said, I don't think they're moving Pete Armstrong.
37:54
Speaker 1: That's a ton of value that you'd be leaving, leaving
37:57
Speaker 1: on the table if you try and keep him and
37:59
Speaker 1: put him in a corner. Right, because if he can
38:01
Speaker 1: play above average center field, I don't know that he's
38:04
Speaker 1: on like that they've had any discussions. I'm not saying
38:07
Speaker 1: that he is getting traded, but that's the type of
38:09
Speaker 1: thing you're you're looking at James Treanto's where are they
38:13
Speaker 1: going to play him? These guys are like, like I said,
38:17
Speaker 1: like like we wrote in our trade Deadline primer, like
38:20
Speaker 1: we said last episode, like sometimes you just have to
38:23
Speaker 1: like say, like it's time to start moving guys Brennan Davis,
38:27
Speaker 1: Alexander Canario, BJ Murray, these lesser uh, these non top
38:32
Speaker 1: one hundred guys that are probably gonna make the major
38:35
Speaker 1: leagues soon, Like look at those guys as well. But
38:40
Speaker 1: the rest it's like, yeah, I don't think they're gonna
38:42
Speaker 1: move Moys's Biasteros, right, like, if they think you can
38:45
Speaker 1: stick a catcher, they probably want to keep him. Pablo
38:48
Speaker 1: a Lando though maybe they move him. Things like that.
38:51
Speaker 1: I think you need to start looking at like the
38:54
Speaker 1: names and and and the players and and you know,
38:57
Speaker 1: as far as untouchables, they're just not that many, but
39:00
Speaker 1: they are there, and I think we I think it's
39:04
Speaker 1: not crazy to say it's PCA, Kate Horton, Matt Shaw,
39:08
Speaker 1: Like they really like those guys. They like the others.
39:12
Speaker 1: But it's just like, maybe you know, to get that
39:14
Speaker 1: superstar bat like everyone's talking about, or to get whatever
39:17
Speaker 1: it is, that difference maker. I just think, you know,
39:21
Speaker 1: you have to start considering moving some of the bigger names.
39:26
Speaker 2: I think this question here from MJM eighteen thirty four
39:31
Speaker 2: is a good place to wrap things up because it
39:33
Speaker 2: touches on both the beginning of Jed Hoyer's tenure as
39:38
Speaker 2: President of Baseball Operations and also some of these untouchables
39:43
Speaker 2: or you know, bubble prospects who are just discussing with
39:47
Speaker 2: the Cubs. Being involved in Vladimir Guerrero junior trade rumors,
39:52
Speaker 2: the Cubs obviously have to cough up some prospects. Looking
39:55
Speaker 2: back on the Darvis trade. How would you grade that trade?
39:58
Speaker 2: Seems like one p prospect in four years has panned out.
40:02
Speaker 3: I would give it a C at best.
40:05
Speaker 2: I personally would give it an F just because of
40:08
Speaker 2: its origination was from a cost cutting perspective. The Cubs
40:14
Speaker 2: had an extreme reaction to the financial losses during the pandemic,
40:20
Speaker 2: and really coming off a division title when you have
40:25
Speaker 2: a guy who is getting cy young votes and there
40:30
Speaker 2: was essentially a one team market at that point of
40:34
Speaker 2: Darvish I believe had some not trade protections. Preller and
40:39
Speaker 2: his ownership group was really the only one that was
40:42
Speaker 2: like into the idea of giving up prospects and taking
40:45
Speaker 2: on that much money. To me, it was just a
40:50
Speaker 2: flawed process that Jed tried to make the best of
40:55
Speaker 2: And the best prospect amongst.
40:57
Speaker 3: That group is the aforementioned.
41:00
Speaker 2: Oh In Casey, who's now a triple A IOWA and
41:03
Speaker 2: is knocking on the door.
41:04
Speaker 3: And I think you're right about the untouchable stuff.
41:07
Speaker 2: He's not quite there, but he's also someone who they
41:10
Speaker 2: think maybe could help this year, Like it's not totally
41:13
Speaker 2: out of the question. And once you're like across that threshold,
41:17
Speaker 2: it's really hard to trade a guy like that in
41:20
Speaker 2: the middle of the summer, particularly for the rental player
41:22
Speaker 2: you described.
41:23
Speaker 1: Side if Yeah, absolutely, I yeah, I mean I get
41:28
Speaker 1: where you're coming from with that, and I wouldn't argue
41:31
Speaker 1: with you that much. Like it's a it's I think
41:35
Speaker 1: the tweeter is is right that it's see at best
41:39
Speaker 1: if you want to be generous, Yeah, I mean grading
41:42
Speaker 1: if you're grading on the curve. Because of the context
41:46
Speaker 1: of what you said there, like he's Jet had to
41:49
Speaker 1: make that trade at that point because like it seemed
41:53
Speaker 1: like ownership basically was saying, like you need to you
41:55
Speaker 1: need to make some moves here to cut some costs,
41:58
Speaker 1: right like that, It wasn't it.
42:00
Speaker 2: Would have been something else. Boxton place while while making
42:04
Speaker 2: that you and I think it's impossible to make a
42:06
Speaker 2: great deal when you're under the right.
42:09
Speaker 1: That's that's exactly what it is. They should have waited
42:12
Speaker 1: till the deadline on that one UH to make that move,
42:15
Speaker 1: and they would have gotten a much better haul for him,
42:17
Speaker 1: I believe. And I had scouts telling me that at
42:20
Speaker 1: the time that we're confused, and and and the consensus
42:24
Speaker 1: everyone came to is like Jad's hands were tied and
42:27
Speaker 1: he did the best with a bad situation. I don't
42:30
Speaker 1: think that was I like that you nailed everything there.
42:34
Speaker 1: There was no nobody else like the Padres were like
42:37
Speaker 1: a lot of people in baseball were talking about, like
42:40
Speaker 1: there's going to be a team or two that's really
42:43
Speaker 1: smart and takes advantage of this market. Nobody else is
42:46
Speaker 1: being aggressive because everyone's terrified about financials, when when the
42:51
Speaker 1: reality is everyone knew like financials would eventually get better.
42:55
Speaker 1: They knew that. They just decided that they used an
42:58
Speaker 1: excuse to like cut and and it was like, you know,
43:01
Speaker 1: the Padres were the beneficiaries at that time, and they
43:05
Speaker 1: got they got darbish for a steal. And you know,
43:09
Speaker 1: I think Owen Casey is a good, really good prospect,
43:13
Speaker 1: and there there are arguments to be made, and this
43:16
Speaker 1: is kind of how we can wrap this up. But listen,
43:20
Speaker 1: I think a big thing that we'll have to watch
43:24
Speaker 1: going forward as long as as Jed Hoyer is running
43:28
Speaker 1: this team. Something he learned and something he feels strongly
43:31
Speaker 1: about is you sometimes have to trade players before their peak,
43:37
Speaker 1: you know, before they their value completely collapses. So trade
43:41
Speaker 1: like you darbish even in middle of contention time. You know,
43:45
Speaker 1: I'm not saying middle of the year, but I'm saying
43:47
Speaker 1: like in off seasons where like even next offseason, like
43:50
Speaker 1: the Brewers did it with Corbyn Burns. Right. I'm not
43:53
Speaker 1: saying that it'll be to that extent, but there are
43:56
Speaker 1: going to be more moves like that. And of course,
43:58
Speaker 1: if Jed Hoyer is running this team, he believes in that.
44:01
Speaker 1: He thinks they held onto guys too long with the
44:04
Speaker 1: original core and the twenty sixteen corps, and I just
44:09
Speaker 1: think that like that you darbish trade. The way he
44:12
Speaker 1: kind of looked at it as like the way he
44:13
Speaker 1: felt he could justify it is look, you, when you
44:16
Speaker 1: sign a player, you're signing them to like a gigantic deal.
44:21
Speaker 1: You're signing them for the first half of that deal.
44:23
Speaker 1: So if you can get value and trade them for
44:27
Speaker 1: the second half of that deal, that's not the worst
44:30
Speaker 1: thing that can happen. In theory, that's supposed to be
44:32
Speaker 1: the worst years of those cont of that contract. I'm
44:36
Speaker 1: pretty sure Darvish was great, good to great for the
44:40
Speaker 1: remainder of that contract. He's on an extension now, so
44:43
Speaker 1: it's a different deal. But that's These are the types
44:46
Speaker 1: of things like prepare yourself for at some point there's
44:49
Speaker 1: going that's going to happen again where they trade someone
44:52
Speaker 1: that you're like, really, they're trading that dude, and it's
44:55
Speaker 1: going to like if they do it right, it works, fine,
44:59
Speaker 1: you won't. But by the time the season, by the
45:01
Speaker 1: time you're in June July, that next season, you're like, oh, okay,
45:04
Speaker 1: I get it now. Uh that was a smart move.
45:07
Speaker 1: That's that's what the great teams do. I'm not sure
45:10
Speaker 1: the Dodgers and Yankees do that, but you know, you
45:15
Speaker 1: may have to. You may have to see them acting
45:17
Speaker 1: like a different type of team. I'm not saying that's it,
45:20
Speaker 1: that's definitely happening or or like anytime soon. They have
45:24
Speaker 1: to start winning first, they have to become that good piece, yes,
45:28
Speaker 1: to start for fans to be angry that they're trading
45:32
Speaker 1: away they're good players. Yeah, So they're not there yet.
45:38
Speaker 1: The you know, let's let's see if they even get there. Uh.
45:43
Speaker 1: I actually I enjoyed this episode Patrick. It was a
45:46
Speaker 1: it's it's good to let the fans vent and and.
45:50
Speaker 3: Hear what they have to say. For sure, I think
45:52
Speaker 3: a regular thing too.
45:54
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, yeah, And it's good for us too to
45:57
Speaker 1: hear what you guys are thinking, making sure that we're
45:59
Speaker 1: on the right topics and that you know, we can
46:02
Speaker 1: think through this stuff, because like sometimes we were so
46:06
Speaker 1: deep in the the weeds with this stuff that we
46:08
Speaker 1: forget what what what's kind of bugging you guys. So
46:12
Speaker 1: so thanks for reaching out, Thanks for sending in your questions.
46:15
Speaker 1: Make sure to rate, review, subscribe, do all that good
46:18
Speaker 1: stuff wherever you get your podcast. This is north Side Territory,
46:22
Speaker 1: read Patrick in my work at the Athletic. Uh, we're
46:25
Speaker 1: going to continue covering this team, good or bad. Uh,
46:28
Speaker 1: there's going to be so much coverage. You know, this
46:31
Speaker 1: team is always interesting. Uh, you know, sitting there late
46:36
Speaker 1: innings like, dear god, how how do they like? They're
46:38
Speaker 1: they're making us change our stories, you know, minute to minute. Yeah.
46:43
Speaker 1: So so it's fun to cover, even if it's exhausting
46:47
Speaker 1: for you fans. Thanks for listening, Thank you for reading.
46:51
Speaker 1: This is north Side Territory. Everyone, take care,