Chicago Cubs Articles - Page 46

If I told you that the active leader in saves and the career leader in ERA+ who was coming off of a 42-save season in 2019 remained unsigned in early June, would you have believed me? Craig Kimbrel’s incessant offseason demands for a long-term, lucrative contract in free agency put him in this position, but […]

Joe Maddon and the Chicago Cubs have worked their way into the upper echelon of contenders in the National League. That was even before the big news that broke yesterday afternoon. Theo Epstein and the Cubs went out and agreed to a three-year deal with superstar closer Craig Kimbrel. It was a move that was […]

The Chicago Cubs have reached an agreement with free agent closer Craig Kimbrel, according to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic: BREAKING: #Cubs in agreement with free-agent closer Craig Kimbrel, pending physical, sources tell The Athletic. — Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) June 6, 2019 Multi-year deal for Kimbrel with #Cubs, source tells The Athletic. — Ken Rosenthal […]

With the conclusion of the MLB Draft on Wednesday, plenty of reporters have speculated that there would be increased bidding for free agent pitchers Craig Kimbrel and Dallas Keuchel. Both players have compensatory first-round draft picks attached to their name, but those compensation picks are dead and gone as the first round has already concluded. […]

The Chicago Cubs signed veteran outfielder and former superstar Carlos Gonzalez to a minor-league a short while ago and officially called him up to the big leagues this afternoon. In his debut, Gonzalez made his presence felt immediately. With the bases loaded, Gonzalez made an insane diving catch to save multiple runs. For those of […]

Having dealt with some interesting parity to open up the 2019 MLB season, the sport of baseball is in full swing as the month of May closes to an end. The National League divisional leaders, Philadelphia Phillies in the NL East, Chicago Cubs in the Central and Los Angeles Dodgers in the West, all have […]

The Chicago Cubs got off to a rather inauspicious start to their 2019 campaign. Firstly, the team had one of the quietest winters in years while National League Central foes like the St. Louis Cardinals, Milwaukee Brewers and Cincinnati Reds all made improvements to their clubs. The Cubs–who made the biggest splashes of the winter […]

Currently leading the National League Central division by only 1.5 games as the end of May draws closer and closer, the Chicago Cubs have a bit of an issue that needs fixing. Their positional player depth, while a strong suit for the franchise this season, is making it a bit tough to juggle for manager […]

If there is one thing that has become obvious so far this season for the Chicago Cubs, it is that they need to pursue a new closing option. With Brandon Morrow’s injury issues and the rest of the bullpen not finding ways to close out games cleanly, the Cubs need to get aggressive when it […]

Javier Baez and the Chicago Cubs have turned things around after a slow start to the 2019 MLB season. Now, not only are they a solid team, they are one of the hottest teams in baseball. That trend continued on Tuesday evening with a huge 3-2 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies in the friendly confines […]

Currently sitting at a healthy ten games over .500, the Chicago Cubs came from the ashes early on in their 2019 campaign to sit in first place over the Milwaukee Brewers. Dubbed as one of the most difficult divisions to win this season, the National League Central will truly test the wills of all teams […]

When you think of dominant starting rotations, you might think of the power arms of Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole for the Houston Astros. Or perhaps Washington’s combination of Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg come to mind. Corey Kluber and Trevor Bauer are almost always come up as possible trade pieces at the deadline, but […]

Four out of the five teams that are a part of the National League Central are currently over .500 entering play on May 9th (sorry Cincinnati), and all five teams are competitive to open the season too, so the NL Central division is shaping up to be a doozy in 2019. While this was a […]

In all of the offseason predictions, one thing seemed to ring throughout all conversations: that the National League Central would boast one of the best spreads of teams in the entire league for the 2019 season. While backed up by strong facts and solid opinions in the offseason, those NL Central facts are far from […]

The Toronto Raptors can close out the Orlando Magic in Game 5 of their first-round Eastern Conference playoff series on Tuesday night, but history is not on their side. Or is that even relevant? In the past, the Raptors have had playoff struggles, showing an inability to come up big when it really counts. Of […]

Things have not been too peachy on the North Side of Chicago during the early goings of the 2019 MLB season. While the reigning National League Central champion Milwaukee Brewers have jumped out to an 8-2 start, the Chicago Cubs dropped to 2-7 after losing two of three in Milwaukee this weekend. After an offseason […]

The Chicago Cubs have gotten off to a sluggish start in 2018 and fans are beginning to get worried. Even though it’s early in the season, the pitching staff has given them cause for concern. Thankfully, the piece of news that came out this afternoon is nothing but good news. According to a report from […]

In 2018, the National League Central division had its fair share of tough battles down the road, as the Milwaukee Brewers and Chicago Cubs battled back and forth for the right to win the divisional crown. With 162 games not being enough, a tiebreaker was needed to solve the tie. The Brewers, after going down […]

The Chicago Cubs have reached a four-year extension with starter Kyle Hendricks, according to multiple sources: Kyle Hendricks has just agreed to a four-year extension with a club option for a fifth season. pic.twitter.com/YW7j8deGwv — The Pedro Gomez Foundation (@PGFoundation_) March 26, 2019 Correction: Deal is four years, $55.5M. Option is a vesting option, not […]

Expectations are always hard to follow through on, especially in professional sports. Injuries, flashes in the pan, players not developing on expected timelines, all of these aspects ring true in some shape during a typical MLB season. In 2019, the league has seen offense overtake and dominant the gameplay, as players are using advanced stats […]

Spring Training is the time of year that all MLB fans look forward to as the unofficial official start to spring. While teams must travel to warm areas of the country to avoid the cold weather taking over the vast majority of the states, the scent of spring and the sound of bats cracking can […]

Opening Day is on the horizon, and one of the greatest closers in the modern era remains unsigned. That’s right, Craig Kimbrel is still unemployed. The 30-year-old notched 42 saves and won a World Series with the Boston Red Sox last season, but he also struggled mightily. Kimbrel allowed seven runs in just over 10 […]

After missing the vast majority of 2018 with a triceps strain and a stress reaction on his pitching elbow, Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Yu Darvish is out to actually attempt to validate his contract in 2019. Signed to a six-year, $126 million contract with an opt-out clause after this season, Darvish has a ton of […]

Over the last four seasons, no team in baseball has won more games (387) than the Chicago Cubs. The Cubs made three consecutive NLCS appearances from 2015-17, winning their first World Series championship in 108 years in 2016. And yet, the past two seasons have ended in disappointment. Chicago led the MLB in run differential […]

As a mainstay on the major league roster for the Chicago Cubs since 2012, first baseman Anthony Rizzo has become a franchise cornerstone over the years, belting out long home runs and making great plays at first. A consistent offensive threat for the Cubbies, Rizzo is what consistent looks like in terms of production at […]

The Chicago Cubs have won 387 games in the past four years, more than any other team in baseball. The team made three straight NLCS appearances between 2015-17. And in 2016, the Cubs snapped a 108-year title drought. But despite winning 95 games in 2018, the Cubs withered in September, going 16-12 and losing two […]

After ranking as one of the best prospects in all of Major League Baseball for multiple years, Chicago Cubs infielder Javier Baez burst onto the primetime stage during the 2016 playoffs. The combination of promise Baez has shown with the glove and the bat has paid off in strides, as he first electrified Cubs fans […]

Widely seen as the league’s best division coming into 2019, the National League Central is going to be an absolute treat to watch this season, as three teams have a real chance at not only making the playoffs but all making some noise. Whoever wins this division should immediately jump to the top of the […]

In a year that will most likely want to be forgotten by both the fan base and the franchise, the Chicago Cubs endured through many hills and valleys to eventually fall in the Wild Card round of the 2018 MLB playoffs. While pitching durability and the lack of clutch offensive hitting impacted the team and […]

Projecting out to be more of a designated hitter more than anything due to his defensively-challenged performance, Kyle Schwarber and the Chicago Cubs are at a crossroads of sorts, needing to figure out his role on a team that desperately needs to move on from 2018. Even though the Cubs made the playoffs, they somehow […]

Coming into last season, the Milwaukee Brewers were expected to make a brief amount of noise but not necessarily compete for a playoff spot. After their acquisitions in late January of both center fielder Lorenzo Cain and eventual MVP winner Christian Yelich, the team took off. Streaking out to lead the National League Central division […]

In a season that only saw Kris Bryant appear in 102 games and start 99, his fewest amounts in both categories in his entire four-year career, his numbers suffered as well. Career-lows of a .272 average, 48 walks, 52 RBIs, 13 home runs and 106 hits all dominated his 2018 season, one that ended in […]

Amid the chatter about the Chicago Cubs this offseason, a recent topic has involved cutting costs with their ballooning payroll, which currently sits barely below the luxury tax threshold at $205.9 million. For a team that not only lost its hold on the National League Central crown in game 163 but also lost the Wild […]

Amid the rumors of the Chicago Cubs looking to cut salary by shedding utility man Ben Zobrist’s deal, there are few members of the Cubs outside of Zobrist that the team should look into trading. Whether it be due to lack of fit, upcoming contract situation, off the field matters or other reasons, there are […]

Theo Epstein and the Chicago Cubs have been relatively quiet so far this offseason, but that does not mean that the team has not been considering making moves. While Ben Zobrist has been an important piece of the roster over the last couple of seasons, he may be one of the players that they are […]

Chicago Cubs general manager Jed Hoyer recently provided an explanation for the team’s decision to keep Addison Russell on their roster despite some accusations of domestic violence towards his wife Melisa Reidy. Per an article from Bleacher Report, Hoyer appeared on Chicago’s ESPN 1000 and explained that he spoke with several people before coming to […]

In a recent report from the Chicago Times, Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon said that the team is not going to pursue Bryce Harper. This does not come as much of a surprise as the Cubs have not been reported to have much interest in Harper, but being one of the biggest franchises in baseball, […]

Last offseason, the Chicago Cubs were fresh off a playoff appearance, looking to continue to make noise and turn their recent World Series success into a long-term plan that brought them back into the dynasty conversation. What last offseason really resulted in for the Cubs was a lot of money spent on one player that […]

Theo Epstein and the Chicago Cubs have been relatively quiet so far this offseason. After failing to win the NL Central division and losing in the National League Wild Card, the Cubs were expected to be busy during MLB free agency. While that hasn’t been the case yet, that doesn’t mean that it won’t end […]