Fear The Chorizo

After today - defense is great and will have them in every game regardless of opponent. However, offense could just be bad enough to cost them in every game against even a decent defense when it has a bad day. Conan's play today is very concerning

They definitely need to rethink their punt returner

Badgers D 14 - badgers O 10

Alot of that is predictable offensive...there you go d, score yourself!

Or a crazy special teams play...thank goodness for that flag

Coan just looks indecisive as hell

Number 6 running wide open a cross the middle, but sure let's almost throw a pick 6 into coverage

What. The. Hell. This isnt 1890...throw the damn ball

At least a play action seam route to a TE with a wr crossing behind him - that's typically a 1 read, easy throw good for 20 yards a pop when its open

I hate playing northwestern, because it often feels like the gameplan is to let them hang around far too long in the game instead of being aggressive - like they didn't scheme at all and it feels like a playbook for a spring game

Never mind

I know there's the old saying that stranger things have happened...but I dont think it would apply should this situation go where it looks like it wants to

Here we go...buckle up!

Schwaber's OPS of .864 this year would be among the top 25 of ALL hitters in the American League. 2nd among DH's behind Nelson Cruz. His 37 homers would be good for 6th overall in the AL as well. This characterization that the Cubs have a collection of bad players etc. just isn't true. Like a lot of teams, they have really good talent on their roster and didn't play well in 2019, after not playing well down the stretch in 2018, which is why Maddon will be elsewhere next year. Maybe I'm just not seeing eye to eye in what you view the Cubs needing to get bang for their buck in terms of trading players currently on their MLB roster and actually winding up improving their talent level. If they were to deal Schwarber for example, what's a realistic target or return in your mind? Also, if they deal him they're removing that 0.864 OPS and 40HR potential from their lineup, so I'd be curious knowing what combo of moves makes them a better team with him off it? If they are willing to offer Schwarber up for a package of prospects, he could probably net them a decent return. But if he's the centerpiece of a trade that brings back MLB talent I just don't see it being for impact pitching or for a corner OF that is going to be a significant upgrade overall to their team. I never said these guys were trash players - my argument is what they have left on the MLB roster isn't ideal for making impactful trades unless they want to totally revamp their approach and basically restart another rebuild. They are more likely to get the most value out of them by keeping them around unless they want to take the 2020 season off from trying to contend and retool. I doubt that's what their path forward will be, but it probably would be their best option for seasons 2021-2024.

Cub fans may think they have alot if trade capital, but unless they want to try to sell high on Hoerner or risk dealing low level prospects that could blossom into studs they really dont. Schwarber has very limited trade value, because he's a DH with marginal team control remaining. Every organization has bote and caratini level players, they are basically Hernan Perez after they are in mlb for awhile. Take a closer look at the cub bullpen rankings in high leverage, one run game situations and you'll see their poor record in those spots isnt just bad luck. They are a talented but poorly constructed roster that has weaknesses in critical areas that stand out in tight ballgames. They tried to address that by signing kimbrel midseason for 3 years and it basically blew up in their faces.

I think you have drastically under estimated how much the cubs have already committed for 2020. They have over $150M committed to 14 players and that doesn't include Almora, Contreras (arby1), Baez (arby2 eligible/current salary $5.2M) - Schwarber(arby2 eligible/ current salary $3.4M) and Bryant (arby3 eligible/ current salary $13M). They also have Bach in the minors making $5M. With those guys the cubs payroll will easily be in the $190's. Exactly - lots of payroll coming off the books this year but most of it will be offset by raises to their own players...plus that still leaves them with holes all over their roster that need filling from outside their organization if they want to make any drastic improvements to their club's 2020 outlook, which would be expensive.

LOL - I do remember that now...Pecota actually had them finishing 80-82. They were off by a pair of wins to date, but personally I hope Pecota is really wrong and they somehow win up with 83 or 84....but it's still hilarious considering all the Spring Training articles mocking that projection.

Or, Theo & co are gone, and the new GM re-tools. Ricketts is not happy. Epstein has 2 years left and is the highest paid executive in baseball. I don’t think theyd pay him to sit home for 2 years, especially when his team is a major disappointment yet still finishes with a winning record. Theo will do what he does best, sign a bunch of free agents then trade for Corey Kluber or someone of that ilk It's more likely Theo bolts for greener pastures after this season than gets fired...like Boston - or he decides to get out of the MLB front office game and pursue something else in life. Schwarber and Happ are no longer nice pieces to trade, either - one hits alot of bombs but shouldn't be anywhere near a glove and he's well into arbitration. The other spent most of this year in AAA because he doesn't make contact nearly enough. Those were nice pieces to trade 2-3 offseasons ago - instead to make room for them playing everyday Theo and company traded Soler (45HR in 2019) and Jimenez (30 HR as a rookie despite missing time with injury) when they were shopping for pitching help. The Cubs built their world series roster off intentionally being terrible for the first half of Theo's tenure and lucked into turning Arrieta into a pitching monster for 2 seasons and found a way to win despite their manager horribly orchestrating their 2016 bullpen - 3 years ago everything about the organization personnelwise appeared to indicate they would be dominant well beyond 2020 just with their 2016 core. Well, fast forward and their best player (Bryant) is still really good but is breaking down with shoulder/knee ailments and is no longer an MVP-caliber talent, Baez remains flashy and really good but about to get expensive, Rizzo remains great but his best years are likely behind him, Contreras had a great season but also has had his injury concerns, and the rest of the young group of position players haven't developed into the perennial all stars they were once perceived to be. A team like the Astros built their organization similarly, but they are much more well positioned for longterm success. Their minor league system is still highly regarded despite using it for multiple trades and their MLB roster is loaded top to bottom without having an insanely high payroll.

As early as 2017, some posters here speculated that the Cubs cashed in their chips too early and were headed for a quicker than expected decline. Cubs fans on Twitter and other boards caught wind of those posts and mocked those posters. Well, here we are. Next year will be very interesting. As for this weekend, I have a feeling the Cubs win twice. Health permitting, the Cubs' line-up will be very formidable next year. Bryant, Rizzo, and Baez are legit superstars. They can fill in solid role players around them. It's their pitching that is a huge question mark. Other than Darvish and Hendricks, they don't have much of anything coming back. I believe Darvish may be able to opt out, and considering the roll he has been on of late he may do just that. The problem for the cubs is their pitching is largely old and expensive, and their lack of depth leaves some big holes for 2020. They've thrown money and prospects at that hole, but they're out of prospects and many of their young position players are now well into arbitration. The money they have definitely coming off the books is going to largely be chewed up by arby raises. They still have talent, but it's no longer enough for them to be considered obvious division title contenders until we see what this offseason brings for them.

Just run the flipping ball again in that spot! Same defensive front you just picked up 5 yards on and cox is out of the game. Decisions and execution inside the 5 tonight were atrocious. Defense atrocious...at least they are still 3-1 and I'll stick with my overall feeling that you can't take much from a thursday night game - hope Adams' toe/foot is ok

And there you go...that guys replacement

Hate to see this type of injury and get the delay...but this kind of sucks by getting the eagles defense a blow and the db they've been picking on all night off the field

I can’t keep track. There are too many. I honestly think the coaches can't keep track either...its nuts

Rodgers is gonna break a finger on those dives

Or the eagles decide to pass