Something that dawned on me yesterday, thinking about non-tender decisions, the Rule 5 Draft, the winter meetings, etc., is how long the offseason is. With CBA negotiations ongoing, this one figures to be even slower at first than is the norm, since teams are expected to wait until the details of the CBA are out there before signing free agents.
One consequence of this, relative to how I’ve been thinking about it, is that the Cubs’ decisions regarding the 40-man roster crunch will happen incrementally. They’ll let the free agents walk. They’ll non-tender a few guys. They’ll add a few guys to protect them from Rule 5 eligibility. Then, and likely only then, they’ll start adding free agents, DFA-ing players or relieving themselves of those roster fillers gradually as they do so. It’s going to take a while, and with some significant free agency activity expected out of Hoyer & Co., we should be ready for a few reversals—guys who we maybe thought they’d non-tender receiving a contract only to later be designated for assignment.
Just a framing to keep in mind if you, like me, are curious how this is going to play out for guys like Rafael Ortega and Michael Hermosillo.
Some notes on last night:
- Kyle Hendricks didn’t walk anybody, which is a positive step. He did allow two home runs, though, and neither was cheap.
- Adbert Alzolay, Adam Morgan, and Rowan Wick were all successful in relief.
- Nico Hoerner had two hits.
- Frank Schwindel and Matt Duffy doubled.
- Ian Happ hit a laser. Only a single, but smoked.
***
The Diaspora:
Kyle Schwarber homered twice and doubled. Joc Pederson hit a pinch hit double. Kris Bryant doubled. Jake Marisnick hit a pinch hit single.
Around the Division:
The Cardinals won again, setting themselves up for an opportunity to mop the Brewers today. St. Louis is now up to 94.5% likely to make the playoffs. Jack Flaherty is expected to return tomorrow and serve as the opener for the second game of the doubleheader.
Up Next:
Four with the Cardinals in the Wrigley season finale, starting with two tomorrow.
Cubs News:
Nothing significant I’ve seen.
Cubs Thoughts:
Lot of September off days. Been pretty lucky with the weather, I guess.
