2015 Cubs

Let me play GM for the Cubs here for the purpose of this post. I don’t think I’m drinking the Kool Aid, when I say I think next year the Cubs will be around .500 and might even contend for a wild card spot.  It will take one major move for this to happen, signing Jon Lester.  It won’t be easy as the Yankees will also be in pursuit.  But, you have to have a stud at the top of the rotation and Lester can be that guy.  He will be 32 next year so he is no spring chicken.  Four years is the most I would go with him.  If he wants more then you look elsewhere.  That leaves Max Scherzer who has already turned down a boat load of money from Detroit.  Or maybe James Shields who is good but no Lester.  Our hope is the Yankees sign Scherzer and Lester is there for us.  It will cost over $20 million a year but we have a young roster with a lot of guys making pretty reasonable money so Ricketts should be able to swing it.

The other move is signing a mid tier lefty reliever.  James Russell would have been perfect but we traded him away.  Andrew Miller is a free agent only 30 and only makes 2 million now.  He will need a bump but we should be able to nab him.  The good news is Theo and Jed have a history with both guys so, familiarity may lead to an advantage.  I don’t think I am advocating anything unrealistic or crazy here.  So, here would be my 2015 roster.

Catchers

Wellington Castillo, Jon Baker

Infield

Anthony Rizzo, Javier Baez, Starlin Castro, Kris Bryant, Luis Valbuena, Login Watkins

Outfield

Chris Coghlan, Arismendy Alcantara, Jorge Soler, Ryan Sweeney, Justin Ruggiano

Starting pitchers

Jon Lester, Jake Arrietta, Kyle Hendricks, Tsuyohi Wada, Travis Wood

Bullpen

Hector Rondon, Pedro Strop, Justin Grimm, Neil Ramirez, Wesley Wright, Edwin Jackson, Andrew Miller, Jacob Turner

*** A couple of things.  First off yes, I have Jackson in the bullpen.  We are stuck with him.  Sadly, I do not see any way of moving him. Maybe we could trade a bad contract for a bad contract.  With that said, in a swing role/6^th starter position maybe he does ok. 

 Jacob Turner is more likely a starter down the road.  Worst case scenario Wada or Hendricks regresses we have Turner there to step into the rotation. He needs work though but I trust Bosio to get him right. Bosio to me does not get the credit he deserves.  Look what he did with Feldman, Hamel and Arrietta.  He has turned those guys around.  I don’t know what the deal is with E-Jax but sometimes a guy just does not buy in and maybe that is Jackson. 

Bring back some of the fill in players now and they can fill roles they are better suited for.  Baker is a fine backup catcher, won’t give you a ton of offense but calls a good game.  I like a Coghlan/Ruggianio platoon in left.  Valbuena as a lefty bat off the bench who can play all 3 infield positions and spot start when you need him to.  Watkins has shown he can handle being a 5^th infielder.

 The only issue is this leaves the bench a tad left handed.  On a normal day Ruggianio would be the only righty bat available.  So, Mike Olt may make it over Watkins but Watkins has much more flexibility. Another option is Valaika but really we are talking about the 25^th man on the roster here.

I still think Olt has upside but he was atrocious this year.  He has hit in Iowa since his demotion. He might be a possible player to move as someone may take a flier on him. Junior Lake is a classic AAAA player who has huge holes in his game. Matt Szcur is the second coming of Sam Fuld. Brian Schlitter had his moments but is no great shakes.  Neither is Blake Parker or Chris Rusin.

Ok, I think everything I said above is rational.  So, let me make one irrational suggestion.  How about a deal with Philadelphia where we send them Castro and Wood and get Rollins and Hamels in return? Both have huge contracts that are up soon.  The Phillies need to get younger as they have fossils at many positions. 

Castro is a loser.  I know he can hit, but I am sick of his lackluster attitude and his bouts of ADD.  He sets a bad example and I am tired of his antics.  Rollins would be a one year place holder for Addison Russell. He could hit at the top of the order and provide a very young team with some much needed leadership.  He would have to waive his no trade but, I think he might to play on the north side. 

Hamels makes a shitload of money and has a bad contract.  Maybe we send them E-Jax as part of the deal in eating Hamels deal.  He is signed through 2019 for God’s sake.  But, he is still effective and has never really had a major injury. He is only 30 so, he still has some good years left and to be honest what he makes is the price you pay for a frontline pitcher.  Getting Hamels does not mean I would stop in pursing Lester.  I hate to give up Wood, as I think has the ability to be a Ted Lilly type but to get Hamels it is a no brainer. 

This deal works for Philadelphia as it rids them of money and gets them two younger players one a three time all star in Castro, who Sandberg might be able to kick in the ass enough to get him going.  I know this is most likely a pipe dream, and I admitted was somewhat meat headed, but it is fun to fanaticize about the possibility.