Cub Tracks’ the hardest part

#Cubs, #MLB, and #MiLB news, notes, and commentary, four days a week, rain or shine. We await developments. And wait. And wait…

WELCOME to today’s episode of Cub Tracks news and notes™, a greatest-hits collection of Chicago-style beat writers and bloggers, ground from #Cubs, #MiLB, and #MLB baseball, overheated, steeped in writers’ tears, and then cold-brewed overnight for maximum flavor. No artificial intelligences were deployed, employed, entranced, or embalmed in the commission of this missive (apparently I might be training some though). Cub Tracks eagerly awaits the advent of robotic umpires and has already amended the three laws. The going is weird. Cub Tracks turned pro a long time ago.

Cub Tracks. Where the great ones run away.

Hooray, another day in the non-playoff world, where time has run out and we’re in purgatory while the good teams finish out their seasons. The bar is set low, everybody limbo!

I don’t think I want the answer to the question “How low can the Cubs go?” Lassie has never seen the bottom of that well. Hello, White Sox fans. Glub glub, Timmy.

I just want winning baseball. And I don’t trust this management group to bring it. There’s the dilemma.

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• Jon Greenberg (The Athletic {$}): Cubs chairman Tom Ricketts’ words ring hollow in latest letter to fans. “… the “next championship team” remains an elusive goal for the organization.”
• Tony Andracki and Andy Martinez (Marquee Sports Network*): Yin and yang: How do the Cubs build a top-level bullpen in 2025? “The Cubs bullpen was a story of two halves…”
• Sam Dykstra (MLB.com*): Moises Ballesteros’ AFL work behind plate translating into even better at-bats. “I would look for the pitches I struggle with the most and keep working on that,” he said. Brett Taylor has more.
• Matthew Trueblood (North Side Baseball*): Cubs could bolster infield with one of these 3 arbitration-eligible lefty bats. “One way to leverage the advantage of being a big-market team with money coming off the books is to seek out teams with talented players whose salaries are rising while the payroll is not.”
• Jordan Bastian (MLB.com*): These Cubs prospects forced their way onto the radar in ‘24. “… there were success stories throughout the Minor Leagues for the North Siders this season.”
• Andy Martinez (Marquee Sports Network*): Who are some internal breakthrough candidates for Cubs in 2025? “It’s a hard thing to figure out,” Hoyer said.
• Jordan Campbell (Cubbies Crib*): The Cubs have a major red flag if this MLB contract prediction becomes true. “… regression for a superstar-caliber player is often from great to good.”

Food for Thought:

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