Cubs Being Aggressive in No Particular Direction, ‘Looking to Improve in Any Fashion’
The Cubs have steadfastly refused to pick a lane when it comes to building a sustainable winner, opting to avoid the top of the market while filling the roster with veterans who can’t or won’t be replaced by prospects. They’ve failed to produce a homegrown slugger, trading away literally every player in the last decade to whom that applied, and they still don’t have a consistent pipeline of young arms. Everyone knows they won’t spend on Juan Soto or a top starter, so it looks for all the world like the front office will yet again seek value over strategic big spending.
“I don’t think they’re going out there saying, ‘We have to find another starter,” Sahadev Sharma told 670 The Score’s Spiegel & Holmes Show. “From what I’ve gathered over the past 24 hours, that’s not what they’re doing. They’re not aggressively pursuing starters with a laser focus on that aspect of the team. I do think they’re looking to improve in any fashion.
“So that’s just what it is right now. Anything where they see a possibility for improvement, they’ll be aggressive there.”
This sounds very much like a team that is treating free agency like Lloyd Christmas hanging back at the bar and putting out the vibe while slurping loudmouth soup. Those of you who understood that reference might think it’s a subtle jab at the duo of Jed Hoyer and Carter Hawkins, but I can assure you that’s not the case. At least the doofuses in the Farrelly Brothers’ epic comedy went on a spending spree with someone else’s money.
I’ve previously compared Hoyer to the servant in the Parable of the Talents who buries the money he was given for fear of investing poorly and using it. We don’t know how much chairman Tom Ricketts and president of business operations Crane Kenney have allocated to payroll, but we do know Hoyer is loath to be profligate with whatever he’s given. That means prioritizing value by waiting for the market to come to them in most cases.
Such a strategy has and should be criticized mercilessly by fans, especially when the Cubs can’t even turn a CBT penalty payroll into more than 83 wins. But knowing how simply having a stronger bullpen in place out of the gate could have gotten them to 90+ victories, it’s possible a little mid-market zhuzhing is all it will take to beat the Brewers. Or maybe Hoyer and Hawkins are just driving like mad to uncover the kinds of deals that fit their algorithm.
“I was texting with some people, I said, ‘It doesn’t seem like there’s urgency,’ and I got pushback on that,” Sharma explained. “There’s urgency, they want to improve, it’s just not a laser focus on bullpen or finding a left-handed bat. It’s not that, it’s ‘How can we improve? How can we get better?’
“It has to get better, they know that. This isn’t a finished product. I think we’re gonna hear a lot of trade rumors, especially once Juan Soto signs.”
I remain concerned about the way this front office tends to love activity in no particular direction, but I’m just dumb enough to wonder whether Hoyer really is just treading water. What if the Cubs aren’t aggressively pursuing more rotation help because they’re confident in their ability to sign Roki Sasaki? Maybe they do have a path laid out and Soto signing is the key that unlocks the gate. Cody Bellinger becomes a more interesting option at that point and moving him would clear roster space and a little money.
Isaac Paredes’ future doesn’t hinge on Soto’s destination, though Alex Bregman’s decision might have some influence. And there are surely two dozen other possible trades being tossed around to add a controllable catcher or lights-out closer in exchange for a few top prospects. For a team that isn’t going to land stars in free agency and that loves a good bargain, surfing in Soto’s wake might be the way to get the most value.
Again, not saying that should be the case. But if that’s how the Cubs are looking at things, they could see dominoes start to fall by the weekend. Some believe Soto will make his choice by the end of the week, which means several spurned bidders may look to pivot quickly. With the Winter Meetings coming up soon, there should at least be increased rumor flurries with a strong possibility that the Cubs do something very interesting.