Cubs' Prospects FUTUREBONER thread

[World's #1 Astros Fan]

I don't want to say Vogelbach can't play left field without actually seeing it, but I do think it would at least be a hilarious Spring Training experiment. FWIW, I did see a few pictures of Vogelbach and Schwarber standing next to each other in the Smokies' locker room and their body types are not very different at all...and one was supposed to be able to play LF without many limitations. I saw Vogelbach run the bases and he moves well for a big guy, but that in no way means he can play the outfield. It at least tells me he doesn't move like John Kruk.

I don't think Vogelbach has much of a position other than 1B and DH (duh), so we really just have to hope the DH comes to the NL before Vogelbach does if we want to see him in a Cubs uniform. Rizzo is under contract until 2019 with two club options for 2020 and 2021, so Vogelbach is very blocked at the MLB level if we assume Rizzo continues his awesomeness.

Also, the National League DH would come in 2017 at the earliest (current CBA expires after 2106 I believe).  

Vogelbach will be in the bigs before then.

It may make me a MEATBALL but I am absolutely dead set against the DH in the NL, and probably always will be.

I used to be that way but I'm kinda with Len Kasper in that with interleague being a year long thing now it just doesn't make sense anymore to have two different sets of rules. So either get rid of interleague (never happening) or bring the NL the DH. Having guys like Vogelbach and Schwarber sure makes it more appealing now than it was before, too.

Same.  I used to be zealously anti-DH but I've grown out of it.  The fact that Cubs have seemed to have cornered some major offensive talent in a post-steroid world where offense is at a premium has only hastened my change in conviction.  I'm not concerned with how nakedly self-interested this makes me look.

[World's #1 Astros Fan]

Vogelbach is very blocked at the MLB level if we assume Rizzo continues his awesomeness.

Sounds like the perfect guy to include in a deal for Cole.

They can have Castillo too.  Hell, if MY GUY Junior Lake suddenly develops some value (he looked like a different hitter last night) throw him in.  Would be awesome if the Cubs could flip all of this flotsam for Hamels.

[SKO]

I don't want to say Vogelbach can't play left field without actually seeing it, but I do think it would at least be a hilarious Spring Training experiment. FWIW, I did see a few pictures of Vogelbach and Schwarber standing next to each other in the Smokies' locker room and their body types are not very different at all...and one was supposed to be able to play LF without many limitations. I saw Vogelbach run the bases and he moves well for a big guy, but that in no way means he can play the outfield. It at least tells me he doesn't move like John Kruk.

I don't think Vogelbach has much of a position other than 1B and DH (duh), so we really just have to hope the DH comes to the NL before Vogelbach does if we want to see him in a Cubs uniform. Rizzo is under contract until 2019 with two club options for 2020 and 2021, so Vogelbach is very blocked at the MLB level if we assume Rizzo continues his awesomeness.

Also, the National League DH would come in 2017 at the earliest (current CBA expires after 2106 I believe).  

Vogelbach will be in the bigs before then.

It may make me a MEATBALL but I am absolutely dead set against the DH in the NL, and probably always will be.

I used to be that way but I'm kinda with Len Kasper in that with interleague being a year long thing now it just doesn't make sense anymore to have two different sets of rules. So either get rid of interleague (never happening) or bring the NL the DH. Having guys like Vogelbach and Schwarber sure makes it more appealing now than it was before, too.

Same.  I sued to be zealously anti-DH but I've grown out of it.  The fact that Cubs have seemed to have cornered some major offensive talent in a post-steroid world where offense is at a premium has only hastened my change in conviction.  I'm not concerned with how nakedly self-interested this makes me look.

Well it does irritate me every time the Cubs go to an American league ballpark and their DH is someone like Welington Castillo (no offense to Beef) and the other team has David Ortiz or whatever. I know that advantage is supposedly made up for by the American League team having to be down a player in NL ballparks, but I still think not having a 9th, full-time professional hitter even on the roster and going to an AL ballpark is a bigger disadvantage than sometimes just having to make do with 8 like every National League dteam does anyway.

[Eli]

I don't want to say Vogelbach can't play left field without actually seeing it, but I do think it would at least be a hilarious Spring Training experiment. FWIW, I did see a few pictures of Vogelbach and Schwarber standing next to each other in the Smokies' locker room and their body types are not very different at all...and one was supposed to be able to play LF without many limitations. I saw Vogelbach run the bases and he moves well for a big guy, but that in no way means he can play the outfield. It at least tells me he doesn't move like John Kruk.

I don't think Vogelbach has much of a position other than 1B and DH (duh), so we really just have to hope the DH comes to the NL before Vogelbach does if we want to see him in a Cubs uniform. Rizzo is under contract until 2019 with two club options for 2020 and 2021, so Vogelbach is very blocked at the MLB level if we assume Rizzo continues his awesomeness.

If I recall correctly, John Kruk--who was always fat-- started his career as an OF for San Diego.

I'm not pretending Vogelbach would be great, but I imagine it's possible they could get by with it, at least for a little while, early in his career.  Like I said, Luzinski was fat and old but it didn't prevent him from playing LF on a World Series winner.   

I'm not pushing for it, I'm just positing that it's not out of the question...or at least shouldn't be.

He can barely play first base. He'd make Adam Dunn look like Alex Gordon out there.

[SKO]

I don't want to say Vogelbach can't play left field without actually seeing it, but I do think it would at least be a hilarious Spring Training experiment. FWIW, I did see a few pictures of Vogelbach and Schwarber standing next to each other in the Smokies' locker room and their body types are not very different at all...and one was supposed to be able to play LF without many limitations. I saw Vogelbach run the bases and he moves well for a big guy, but that in no way means he can play the outfield. It at least tells me he doesn't move like John Kruk.

I don't think Vogelbach has much of a position other than 1B and DH (duh), so we really just have to hope the DH comes to the NL before Vogelbach does if we want to see him in a Cubs uniform. Rizzo is under contract until 2019 with two club options for 2020 and 2021, so Vogelbach is very blocked at the MLB level if we assume Rizzo continues his awesomeness.

If I recall correctly, John Kruk--who was always fat-- started his career as an OF for San Diego.

I'm not pretending Vogelbach would be great, but I imagine it's possible they could get by with it, at least for a little while, early in his career.  Like I said, Luzinski was fat and old but it didn't prevent him from playing LF on a World Series winner.   

I'm not pushing for it, I'm just positing that it's not out of the question...or at least shouldn't be.

He can barely play first base. He'd make Adam Dunn look like Alex Gordon out there.

I think we'll stick with Bill James' famous BMI/Outfield Conversion chart over your nay-saying, Eli. It's science.

[World's #1 Astros Fan]

Now I really want to see Vogelbach run out to Left Field just to see Eli's head 'asplode.

[Eli]

Now I really want to see Vogelbach run out to Left Field just to see Eli's head 'asplode.

My head wouldn't asplode because I'd be so excited to see what happened the first time they hit a ball anywhere near him.

I mostly just think this kind of message board stuff is amusing -- let's throw Vogelbach in left, Baez in center, Junior Lake in the bullpen, then trade Almora and Blake Parker for Cole Hamels.

This discussion was actually had on Twitter the other day, for further reading.

[SKO]

Now I really want to see Vogelbach run out to Left Field just to see Eli's head 'asplode.

My head wouldn't asplode because I'd be so excited to see what happened the first time they hit a ball anywhere near him.

I mostly just think this kind of message board stuff is amusing -- let's throw Vogelbach in left, Baez in center, Junior Lake in the bullpen, then trade Almora and Blake Parker for Cole Hamels.

This discussion was actually had on Twitter the other day, for further reading.

From what I've the Phillies have asked for a near major league ready starting pitching prospect in every single conversation about Hamels. Frankly that's the one thing the Cubs don't seem to have, and guys closest to fitting that description in the minors are hurt. So I don't think they'll be content to trade him even for a reasonable package of hitters like Vogelbach/Baez etc.

[Powdered Toast Man]

Now I really want to see Vogelbach run out to Left Field just to see Eli's head 'asplode.

My head wouldn't asplode because I'd be so excited to see what happened the first time they hit a ball anywhere near him.

I mostly just think this kind of message board stuff is amusing -- let's throw Vogelbach in left, Baez in center, Junior Lake in the bullpen, then trade Almora and Blake Parker for Cole Hamels.

This discussion was actually had on Twitter the other day, for further reading.

From what I've the Phillies have asked for a near major league ready starting pitching prospect in every single conversation about Hamels. Frankly that's the one thing the Cubs don't seem to have, and guys closest to fitting that description in the minors are hurt. So I don't think they'll be content to trade him even for a reasonable package of hitters like Vogelbach/Baez etc.

You mean to tell me the Phillies scoff at the idea of having Eric Jokisch on their team?

[World's #1 Astros Fan]

Now I really want to see Vogelbach run out to Left Field just to see Eli's head 'asplode.

My head wouldn't asplode because I'd be so excited to see what happened the first time they hit a ball anywhere near him.

I mostly just think this kind of message board stuff is amusing -- let's throw Vogelbach in left, Baez in center, Junior Lake in the bullpen, then trade Almora and Blake Parker for Cole Hamels.

This discussion was actually had on Twitter the other day, for further reading.

And a google query of "could dan vogelbach play left field?"  led me to the this Reddit.

All the nerds say no way but I AM NOT DETERRED.

[Eli]

From what I've the Phillies have asked for a near major league ready starting pitching prospect in every single conversation about Hamels. Frankly that's the one thing the Cubs don't seem to have, and guys closest to fitting that description in the minors are hurt. So I don't think they'll be content to trade him even for a reasonable package of hitters like Vogelbach/Baez etc.

I've wondered if the Phillies would be interested in Hendricks in a Hamels trade. He's shown success at the major-league level and even though he doesn't have an ace profile, I'd assume he'd be more enticing than just a random prospect, though you never know with Amaro.

From the Cubs perspective, someone would need to be bumped from the rotation anyway and since Hamels is signed through 2018 or 2019, you don't have the same loss of team control.

[SKO]

From what I've the Phillies have asked for a near major league ready starting pitching prospect in every single conversation about Hamels. Frankly that's the one thing the Cubs don't seem to have, and guys closest to fitting that description in the minors are hurt. So I don't think they'll be content to trade him even for a reasonable package of hitters like Vogelbach/Baez etc.

I've wondered if the Phillies would be interested in Hendricks in a Hamels trade. He's shown success at the major-league level and even though he doesn't have an ace profile, I'd assume he'd be more enticing than just a random prospect, though you never know with Amaro.

From the Cubs perspective, someone would need to be bumped from the rotation anyway and since Hamels is signed through 2018 or 2019, you don't have the same loss of team control.

I'd be okay with that. There would be a lot of bitching, but a big part of the transition from re-build to contender is fans accepting that you actually have to give up stuff of value to get soemthing of value at this point in the game.

[SKO]

Although is there any reason to be concerned with Hamels start this year? I know he's gotten good results last few times out but he's walking guys at a higher rate than previous years (16 already in 5 starts) and he has surrendered 7 homers. His FIP is 5.56 vs. an ERA in the 3s. Just wondering if any more advanced metrics say if that's just early season bad luck/rough start or indicative of anything more troubling?

[Eli]

Although is there any reason to be concerned with Hamels start this year? I know he's gotten good results last few times out but he's walking guys at a higher rate than previous years (16 already in 5 starts) and he has surrendered 7 homers. His FIP is 5.56 vs. an ERA in the 3s. Just wondering if any more advanced metrics say if that's just early season bad luck/rough start or indicative of anything more troubling?

I think most of that comes from getting roughed up by Boston on Opening Day.

[InternetApex]

Vogelbach is very blocked at the MLB level if we assume Rizzo continues his awesomeness.

Sounds like the perfect guy to include in a deal for Cole.

They can have Castillo too.  Hell, if MY GUY Junior Lake suddenly develops some value (he looked like a different hitter last night) throw him in.  Would be awesome if the Cubs could flip all of this flotsam for Hamels.

Why would the Pirates trade Cole inside their division for two fat guys?