It’s the last Friday in January. Monday is February 1 and exactly three weeks from today, pitchers and catchers report to Mesa to start preparing for the 2016 season. Rumors continued Thursday that the Cubs could re-sign Dexter Fowler, even after one of the pitchers the Cubs have been linked to rather heavily this winter was traded to Colorado. Fowler was active on Twitter without giving any indication on where he could be close to signing. Small moves are expected over the next three … [Read more...]
Rays Reportedly Trade LHP Jake McGee to Rockies for OF Corey Dickerson
Rays reportedly traded LHP Jake McGee and RHP German Marquez to the Rockies for OF Corey Dickerson and minor league 3B Kevin Padlo. According to a report from Joel Sherman, the Rays have traded LHP Jake McGee to the Colorado Rockies for a package of players including OF Corey Dickerson. Ken Rosenthal reported the Rays and Rockies were on the verge of a trade that included Corey Dickerson. Sherman indicated it is McGee for Dickerson and prospects. According to Ken Rosenthal, the final … [Read more...]
Cubs-Rays Update: Discussions Reportedly Include Six to Seven Player Deals
The Cubs and Rays have been talking about potential deals since at least December. The two teams have acknowledged publicly they match-up well, but a trade is not imminent. The Cubs have young, controllable position players and the Rays have young, controllable pitchers they would be willing to move in the right deal to add offense to their team. Based on recent comments from Rays’ President of Baseball Operations Matt Silverman and Jed Hoyer, there are ongoing conversations between the two … [Read more...]
Cubs-Rays Rumors Keep Surfacing
Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer said over the weekend the Cubs were likely done making big moves this off-season. And there was a slim chance a significant trade would be made before Spring Training. The front office is always looking for ways to improve the roster. The Cubs repeated numerous times during the Convention they feel very good about the work that was done this winter and the team is ready for Spring Training. “Every day we talk to different teams. We talk to agents,” Hoyer said. “I … [Read more...]
The Daily CCO: Cubs Outfield Ranked Second in Baseball, Jake Arrieta and Other News
The accolades for the Chicago Cubs kept rolling in Thursday from Buster Olney. A day after the Cubs received top billing on Olney’s list of the best infields in the game, the group of outfielders received high praise from ESPN. According to Buster Olney, the Cubs have the second best outfield in baseball, behind Andrew McCutchen and the Pirates. Jason Heyward was added this off-season to Kyle Schwarber and Jorge Soler. The Cubs have a good fourth outfielder in Chris Coghlan and Ben … [Read more...]
Rays Involved in Many Active Trade Conversations, Talks Reportedly Include the Cubs
Ken Rosenthal reported Tuesday that the Rays are “involved in many active trade conversations on both starters and relievers as the free agent pitching market thins out.” Rosenthal pointed out the Rays “line up with teams that need pitchers and can offer hitters” and added that the Cubs and Rockies are among the teams that could be trade partners with the Rays. There has been a lot of noise over the last three days about the Cubs and Rays matching up on a deal. The Cubs priority remains to … [Read more...]
Acquiring Young Pitching Reportedly Still a Priority for Cubs
According to a report Sunday from the Tribune, the front office’s priority remains to acquire young pitching. Mark Gonzales explained “the Rays remain an attractive target and a potential match with the Cubs’ young position players.” Gonzales’ report came on the heels of Matt Silverman acknowledging on MLB Network Radio that the Rays and Cubs have discussed deals this winter. Silverman, the Rays’ President of Baseball Operations, said he has talked to multiple teams this off-season, but the … [Read more...]
Matt Silverman: Rays and Cubs had Targeted Trade Talks, Could Matchup on Deal in Future
Matt Silverman, the Rays President of Baseball Operations, led off Sunday’s Front Office (MLB Network Radio) and talked about his team’s off-season with Jim Bowden and Jim Duquette. Bowden asked Silverman about the countless rumors that have tied Rays to the Cubs this off-season. Reports have suggested the two teams talked about starting pitching going from the Rays to the Cubs for a position player. Silverman would not comment about how close the two teams were or could be on making a deal, … [Read more...]
Cubs Reportedly Still Talking Trades with Multiple Teams
With 2016 quickly approaching, the Cubs are believed to be looking for ways to upgrade the starting rotation and bullpen. The Cubs are expected to make smaller deals to add depth to the roster in the coming weeks, and those players would likely be signed to minor league contracts with non-roster invites to Spring Training. Another big move or two would depend on the front office’s ability to acquire one of the starting pitchers the Cubs have been linked to for months, or a back of the bullpen … [Read more...]
The Daily CCO: Cubs News and Notes on the Last Monday of Two Thousand Fifteen
With the big name free agents still available it could be an unusually busy week throughout the game. Typically the time between Christmas and New Year is rather slow in baseball but with players such as Chris Davis, Yoenis Cespedes, Justin Upton, Alex Gordon, Scott Kazmir and Wei-Yin Chen still unsigned it could be a rather interesting four days. For the Cubs, the rumblings continue the front office would like to acquire a starting pitcher and possibly a late-inning reliever. The same names … [Read more...]