2024-2025 Offseason Thread

[sports24/7]

One thing I hope to see in a Luzardo (or others) deal is them move to a quality over quantity approach. They’ve restocked the depth in the system. Now it’s time for some crown jewels.

[sports24/7]

Mish throws a bit of water on the fire saying they’ve discussed Luzardo with a bunch of teams, but “did not hear the Cubs were close or a favorite.” He also said the Cubs are trying to buy low, but the names mentioned by the Cubs guy don’t indicate “buy lo”. Mish also says the Marlins arent set on trading Luzardo.

Mish hasn’t been super in tune with the Marlins since Bendix took over, though. So who knows.

[lou]

One thing I hope to see in a Luzardo (or others) deal is them move to a quality over quantity approach. They’ve restocked the depth in the system. Now it’s time for some crown jewels.

Yes. Big time SS, 3B, and CF that is "Ramirez" level should be the prime piece in every deal.

That being said, I'd be open to something like a double FV45+ package to get a major step up in a second player (that's like Serna + Head in the same deal). Or a RF (Caissie) is fine presuming Norby can actually play 3B and/or Sanchez is traded for good value to align with that roster spot. Would depend on the names but in spirit I am with you.

This is where not having the # 2 pick is a real gut punch. The draft takes the shape quickly of do they go low (Noble, Morlando) to get the better next guy (White, Johnson). I saw a mock draft where they took a 2B with their compensatory pick (think it was pipeline), and I was like yea that tracks

[lou]

Actually, there is also just absorb Bellinger as they want to dump him. For instance:


Alcantara, Caissie, Bellinger and his $52.5m, and a FV40 or two
x
Luzardo, Sanchez, Max Meyer, and maybe Bender or something


To note, Luzardo/Sanchez/Bender are gonna cost minimum $32m through arbitration so this is not a lot of added money for Bellinger, but it is spread out over many spots for the Cubs over more years so it makes sense for them. More so, Max is obviously the kicker and how this would get done on top of that and he probably makes it relatively salary neutral as he is controlled 5 years The years of control being traded here are 13+ incoming for the Marlins and 14 for the Marlins (but Bender is 4 of those). Basically, the Cubs can't feel grifted on losing control years on two huge properties with getting that many years of pitching and a proven RHP basher for right now.


So unpack this. Cubs can still move Suzuki for the cash relief they seek, re-sign Tucker forever, and roll out in the OF...... Happ/Sanchez, PCA, Tucker w/ Triantos floating between 2B/Bench/AAA for 2 years until Happ is a FA. It's a great depth chart and they have an IF (Shaw, Swanson, Nico, Busch, Ballesteros) and got the pitching for cheap. They'd have to resign Tucker though to make this work but they must be doing that right now.


Now trading two SP and Max with a lot of control? Who cares. Max is probably a RP anyways and that's how the Cubs would use him for sure. You're getting to this by Summer 2026 if not Summer 2025. I am just "trading" Bellinger off the team "Mike Hampton-Piazza" style here.

C - Mack, Ramirez
1B - DDLS, Martorella/Hicks/Berry
2B - Edwards, Serna/Otto/Sanoja
SS - _____, Acosta/Serna/Sanoja
3B - _____
LF - Norby
CF - Alcantara, Mesa Jr./Marsee/Pintar/Dane
RF - Caissie

SP - Sandy, Eury, Garrett, Cabrera, Snelling, Weathers
(White, Noble, Mazur)

And now we're at the point where do they pony up two bats, or is Sandy moved for 1 of them (and prospects), and they use all the money saved on the FA bat and bridge SP to White/Noble?



Frankly, this is a lot of moving parts and I doubt it. But ultimately, this goes to the comment on "get a dude crown jewel" and not a bulk deal. Go out and get 2 of those guys even if it costs objectively some really good pieces and all of a sudden, that bat depth chart could make a lot of sense.

And imagine if Serna and Acosta (or Otto) can adequately handle SS and Norby and Acosta can handle 3B, and all of a sudden, you're in business with this:

C - Mack, Ramirez
1B - DDLS, Martorella/Hicks/Berry
2B - Edwards, Otto
SS - Serna, Acosta
3B - Norby (Some Acosta)
LF - Stowers/Dane/Martorella/Berry (Some Norby)
CF - Alcantara, Mesa Jr./Marsee/Pintar/Dane
RF - Caissie

SP - Sandy, Eury, Garrett, Cabrera, Snelling, Weathers
(White, Noble, Mazur)

Who knows what they'd need to upgrade at this juncture (likely LF or one of the MI for a more dedicated SS/3B), but they'd have adequate or better hope everywhere and that frankly, would be a major step forward as the SP is there and they'd have a fleet of relievers behind them with Faucher, Nardi, Cronin, and gang.


So moving on from Burger, it is swinging big. I think the Cubs would be beyond thrilled for Luzardo, Max, and Sanchez, with dumping Bellinger money, even if it costs them two of their top 5 premium prospects. (And yes, the Marlins could well afford Bellinger as-is, but if they ate 33-50% of his contract, he would be moved very fast and that's fine all things considered).


Just some food for thought. We could probably do a similar hypothetical trade of Luzardo+Max+reliever to Baltimore and a number of other teams looking for cheap pitching. Kjerstad and Bradfield would accomplish this same thing effectively, etc.

[fish16]

at what fucking point do we stop with the 9 paragraph posts that have us taking on millions upon millions of dollars? It's a joke at this point. it's not happening. just stop already. It's as dumb as the Correa, Adames, insert any other name you've advocated for the last 5 years. this is not a major league organization. they have 0 plan to spend money. how do you not realize this yet? How are you still doing these absurd 9 paragraph posts with us taking on a highly paid player at 26 million per year for the next 2 years?

The only thing they are doing is trading for 6 year cost controlled players. that's it. it is abundantly clear. How are we still doing this? It's almost as dumb as the constant posts all year about adames, which they under no circumstances ever would have done.

[Namaste]

at what fucking point do we stop with the 9 paragraph posts.

You could just fok off to someplace else?

Or just take the 1/4 second to scroll past it?

[fish16]

You could just fok off to someplace else?

Or just take the 1/4 second to scroll past it?

or you could fuck off and put me on ignore already. i already ignore your useless posts that never have any bit of substance, you can feel free to ignore mine. every post of his is the same 9 paragraphs with the same depth chart and some new theory of how they could take on millions upon millions of future payroll. it's a complete waste of time, and it has been for several years now.

[lou]

at what fucking point do we stop with the 9 paragraph posts that have us taking on millions upon millions of dollars? It's a joke at this point. it's not happening. just stop already. It's as dumb as the Correa, Adames, insert any other name you've advocated for the last 5 years. this is not a major league organization. they have 0 plan to spend money. how do you not realize this yet? How are you still doing these absurd 9 paragraph posts with us taking on a highly paid player at 26 million per year for the next 2 years?

The only thing they are doing is trading for 6 year cost controlled players. that's it. it is abundantly clear. How are we still doing this? It's almost as dumb as the constant posts all year about adames, which they under no circumstances ever would have done.

Merry Christmas!

[lou]

You could just fok off to someplace else?

Or just take the 1/4 second to scroll past it?

He's too self important.

Also to note, it actually was an idea to have a payroll wash or lower payroll in the aggregate sense (assuming they would trade Bellinger and eat something to get it done ala Hampton/Piazza which is obviously what would hypothetically happen), but I digress.

This is my mistake ultimately. I didn't realize I'm also not allowed to lower team payroll.

[rmc523]

at what fucking point do we stop with the 9 paragraph posts that have us taking on millions upon millions of dollars? It's a joke at this point. it's not happening. just stop already. It's as dumb as the Correa, Adames, insert any other name you've advocated for the last 5 years. this is not a major league organization. they have 0 plan to spend money. how do you not realize this yet? How are you still doing these absurd 9 paragraph posts with us taking on a highly paid player at 26 million per year for the next 2 years?

The only thing they are doing is trading for 6 year cost controlled players. that's it. it is abundantly clear. How are we still doing this? It's almost as dumb as the constant posts all year about adames, which they under no circumstances ever would have done.

While I agree they’re a waste of time in the sense that they’re not going to happen, I do appreciate the effort he puts into them.
And if I’m not in the mood to read the novel, I just ignore it….its not that hard (admittedly now and then I don’t but I mostly just leave it be)

[fish16]

While I agree they’re a waste of time in the sense that they’re not going to happen, I do appreciate the effort he puts into them.
And if I’m not in the mood to read the novel, I just ignore it….its not that hard (admittedly now and then I don’t but I mostly just leave it be)

i appreciate the time, it's just a waste of time. i'll ignore it for the future but it's 5 straight years of the same thing over and over again that while detailed, is whatever the word is for being beyond realistic. If he took the time to just talk about trades for prospects and how we could build up the team via trades for cost controlled prospects, i'd be fine with it, but it's like the guy looking at $3 million houses on zillow who is unemployed with $47 dollars to his name. It's constantly the most convoluted scenarios where we end up taking on huge salaries, sometimes then saying we will offload those salaries in separate trades. All this as if this team has show any indication that they will ever do something like that.

That, on top of the constant posts literally every single year during the season about how the future would look good if we just sign one of the top free agents to a 5 year 100-120 million deal despite the team making it abundantly clear that will never happen under Sherman. It's just so unnecessarily repetitive, which would be fine if it had any fucking chance of actually happening. It's almost every single post for years, and it has 0 chance of happening.

[fish16]

He's too self important.

Also to note, it actually was an idea to have a payroll wash or lower payroll in the aggregate sense (assuming they would trade Bellinger and eat something to get it done ala Hampton/Piazza which is obviously what would hypothetically happen), but I digress.

This is my mistake ultimately. I didn't realize I'm also not allowed to lower team payroll.

it's self important to tell you how much of a waste of time and space it is to post the same thing over and over and over and over again without acknowledging how it never fucking happens and wont ever happen?

[rmc523]

The Bellinger pipe dream is dead - he was traded to the Yankees

[fish16]

Shocking that it was the Yankees and not the bottom 3 payroll marlins that took on an enormous salary for the next two years

[lou]

it's self important to tell you how much of a waste of time and space it is to post the same thing over and over and over and over again without acknowledging how it never fucking happens and wont ever happen?

Absolutely self important. And it is important for you to understand why. It is because you didn't read the post (you said "taking on millions upon millions of dollars" when the idea was not taking on any money and off setting it) and then you in your personal time choose to talk shit about a post you admittedly didn't read. Because, you feel the need to chime in on things you don't know about and the proof is in you 100% didn't read it as your response was not factually accurate. So you typed a post talking shit when you didn't read the post you were talking shit about, and ignoring the irony of my response in saying the next few words - what is exactly the waste of time here?