Jorge Soler Zero Percent Financing Thud On The Shower Door SPLOOGE Fest

[World's #1 Astros Fan]

Sosa and Soriano would have been road beef on that.

Soriano, probably. Sammy? We'd never know, because he would've taken that down-the-middle fastball from earlier in the at-bat off the new scoreboard.

For some reason I was thinking that this year's Cubs might be similar to the 2001, a few nice bats, with some better pitching.  And apparently I forgot what a goddamned beast Sosa was that year.  203 OPS+, 10.3 WAR.  I guess I always think of '98 as his best season since it gets the most hype thanks to the home run chase with McGwire and the team reaching the playoffs, but sweet baby Jesus, those numbers in '01 are goddamned incredible.

I have a vague recollection of his August that year and how he basically single-handedly kept them in the playoff hunt. 17 homers and a 1.405 OPS that month, which is about 300 points better than June of 1998, which more people probably remember.

This is the most Huey I've ever felt.

Speaking of feeling like Huey, I'm going to take this as another opportunity to rip on Ron Coomer. During Sunday's game - I can't recall if it was before or after Coomer butchered his play-by-play duties - Pat mentioned that Eric Young was the first base coach for the Rockies. Coomer (86 OPS+ for the 2001 Cubs) then waxed poetic about how the 2001 Cubs were full of guys like EY (92 OPS+) and Ricky Gutierrez (97 OPS+) who were "team first" and "didn't care about their stats, they just wanted to win." To his credit he did mention Sammy, but someone who didn't know any better would think that team won 88 games due mostly to the grit and determination of their ragtag group of infielders, not due to Sammy putting up a goddamn TWO HUNDRED AND THREE OPS PLUS FOR CHRIST'S SAKE.

I heard that and as soon as he said Ricky G. my first thoughts were, in order:

1) Baylor used to have Gutierrez bunt in the 1st inning whenever EY reached and
2) Gutierrez was second on the team in RBI, but a gazillion RBI behind Sosa, as SKO already indciated.

I enjoyed the 2001 season.  EY actually *didn't* have a good season IIRC--at least as not as good as his debut season the year before when the Cubs sucked (timing!)-- but others did, on a team that was otherwise an anomaly, for me, in that they were the first Cubs team to be competitive all year long, finish comfortably above .500...but actually fade from a race.  Being a fan since 1979, on the rare instance when the Cubs were competitive--1984, '89 and '98--they closed the deal (not counting their torrid September of '93 when they finished above .500 or their fluky last-ditch playoff run in '95 in an otherwise ho-hum summer).  Jeff Fassero got them on the right track in April, the starting pitching held up for the most part (Lieber's season marks the last 20 game winner for the Cubs) and while there was some certainly some grit factor, Sosa's caricaturized offensive force is really what held that team up. I mean, just look at the stat line for that team.

[Slaky]

Jorge Soler is Spanish for Andre Dawson.

I get that Andrew Dawson is revered, but they're not that similar of players. I actually really like Maddon's comp of Vladimir Guerrero with actual plate discipline. Which is just so bonerific a thought I can barely handle it.

I just read this. Fuck you SKO.

[SKO]

Jorge Soler is Spanish for Andre Dawson.

I get that Andrew Dawson is revered, but they're not that similar of players. I actually really like Maddon's comp of Vladimir Guerrero with actual plate discipline. Which is just so bonerific a thought I can barely handle it.

I just read this. Fuck you SKO.

I meant no disrespect to Dawson. I have a baseball signed by him that rests in a shrine in my household. I just don't think it's the most accurate comp. I think he could be a lot like Guerrero, like Joe said, and I just think that would be fantastic. Also, Pen doesn't want us to compare him to Dawson and thus force him to suffer years of knee and back injuries.

[World's #1 Astros Fan]

Jorge Soler is Spanish for Andre Dawson.

I get that Andrew Dawson is revered, but they're not that similar of players. I actually really like Maddon's comp of Vladimir Guerrero with actual plate discipline. Which is just so bonerific a thought I can barely handle it.

I just read this. Fuck you SKO.

I meant no disrespect to Dawson. I have a baseball signed by him that rests in a shrine in my household. I just don't think it's the most accurate comp. I think he could be a lot like Guerrero, like Joe said, and I just think that would be fantastic. Also, Pen doesn't want us to compare him to Dawson and thus force him to suffer years of knee and back injuries.

I like Fork's comparison of Soler to Dave Winfield. 

[Eli]

Pen approves of all these black-guy comps for Soler.

[Oleg]

Pen approves of all these black-guy comps for Soler.

Damnit.  I was thinking the same thing and was trying to find a white guy comp in my brain. Just came up with one: Dale Murphy with a better eye.

[SKO]

Pen approves of all these black-guy comps for Soler.

Damnit.  I was thinking the same thing and was trying to find a white guy comp in my brain. Just came up with one: Dale Murphy with a better eye.

INTREPID READER PEN:
Great, so the Cubs are going to make the playoffs one time in Soler's career?

[R-V]

Jorge Soler is Spanish for Andre Dawson.

I get that Andrew Dawson is revered, but they're not that similar of players. I actually really like Maddon's comp of Vladimir Guerrero with actual plate discipline. Which is just so bonerific a thought I can barely handle it.

I just read this. Fuck you SKO.

I meant no disrespect to Dawson. I have a baseball signed by him that rests in a shrine in my household. I just don't think it's the most accurate comp. I think he could be a lot like Guerrero, like Joe said, and I just think that would be fantastic. Also, Pen doesn't want us to compare him to Dawson and thus force him to suffer years of knee and back injuries.

Because nostalgia for a player you loved when you were a kid, who played the same position and also hit for power and also had a great arm, is ONLY appropriate if the comp is accurate within a statistically acceptable margin of error in the Baseball Reference comp-uter.

[SKO]

Jorge Soler is Spanish for Andre Dawson.

I get that Andrew Dawson is revered, but they're not that similar of players. I actually really like Maddon's comp of Vladimir Guerrero with actual plate discipline. Which is just so bonerific a thought I can barely handle it.

I just read this. Fuck you SKO.

I meant no disrespect to Dawson. I have a baseball signed by him that rests in a shrine in my household. I just don't think it's the most accurate comp. I think he could be a lot like Guerrero, like Joe said, and I just think that would be fantastic. Also, Pen doesn't want us to compare him to Dawson and thus force him to suffer years of knee and back injuries.

Because nostalgia for a player you loved when you were a kid, who played the same position and also hit for power and also had a great arm, is ONLY appropriate if the comp is accurate within a statistically acceptable margin of error in the Baseball Reference comp-uter.

Agreed.

[Slaky]

Jorge Soler is Spanish for Andre Dawson.

I get that Andrew Dawson is revered, but they're not that similar of players. I actually really like Maddon's comp of Vladimir Guerrero with actual plate discipline. Which is just so bonerific a thought I can barely handle it.

I just read this. Fuck you SKO.

I meant no disrespect to Dawson. I have a baseball signed by him that rests in a shrine in my household. I just don't think it's the most accurate comp. I think he could be a lot like Guerrero, like Joe said, and I just think that would be fantastic. Also, Pen doesn't want us to compare him to Dawson and thus force him to suffer years of knee and back injuries.

Because nostalgia for a player you loved when you were a kid, who played the same position and also hit for power and also had a great arm, is ONLY appropriate if the comp is accurate within a statistically acceptable margin of error in the Baseball Reference comp-uter.

Essentially this. SKO's youth and lack of belt must be clouding his ability to post coherently.

Dawson was and is maybe the most beloved Cub of my entire lifetime. Obviously you have Sandberg and Grace stans out there but Dawson was a mythical figure. The arm, the power, the reverence, and the fact that he never took an ounce of shit from any motherfucker (see Eric Show's poor, dead ass) all equate to what Soler could be to me. Huge arm, huge bat, tried to beat up a bunch of dudes with a bat during a game.

Jorge can be the next true universally beloved Cub.

[SKO]

Jorge Soler is Spanish for Andre Dawson.

I get that Andrew Dawson is revered, but they're not that similar of players. I actually really like Maddon's comp of Vladimir Guerrero with actual plate discipline. Which is just so bonerific a thought I can barely handle it.

I just read this. Fuck you SKO.

I meant no disrespect to Dawson. I have a baseball signed by him that rests in a shrine in my household. I just don't think it's the most accurate comp. I think he could be a lot like Guerrero, like Joe said, and I just think that would be fantastic. Also, Pen doesn't want us to compare him to Dawson and thus force him to suffer years of knee and back injuries.

Because nostalgia for a player you loved when you were a kid, who played the same position and also hit for power and also had a great arm, is ONLY appropriate if the comp is accurate within a statistically acceptable margin of error in the Baseball Reference comp-uter.

Essentially this. SKO's youth and lack of belt must be clouding his ability to post coherently.

Dawson was and is maybe the most beloved Cub of my entire lifetime. Obviously you have Sandberg and Grace stans out there but Dawson was a mythical figure. The arm, the power, the reverence, and the fact that he never took an ounce of shit from any motherfucker (see Eric Show's poor, dead ass) all equate to what Soler could be to me. Huge arm, huge bat, tried to beat up a bunch of dudes with a bat during a game.

Jorge can be the next true universally beloved Cub.

All of this is fair and agreed to. My bad.

[R-V]

Jorge Soler is Spanish for Andre Dawson.

I get that Andrew Dawson is revered, but they're not that similar of players. I actually really like Maddon's comp of Vladimir Guerrero with actual plate discipline. Which is just so bonerific a thought I can barely handle it.

I just read this. Fuck you SKO.

I meant no disrespect to Dawson. I have a baseball signed by him that rests in a shrine in my household. I just don't think it's the most accurate comp. I think he could be a lot like Guerrero, like Joe said, and I just think that would be fantastic. Also, Pen doesn't want us to compare him to Dawson and thus force him to suffer years of knee and back injuries.

Because nostalgia for a player you loved when you were a kid, who played the same position and also hit for power and also had a great arm, is ONLY appropriate if the comp is accurate within a statistically acceptable margin of error in the Baseball Reference comp-uter.

Essentially this. SKO's youth and lack of belt must be clouding his ability to post coherently.

Dawson was and is maybe the most beloved Cub of my entire lifetime. Obviously you have Sandberg and Grace stans out there but Dawson was a mythical figure. The arm, the power, the reverence, and the fact that he never took an ounce of shit from any motherfucker (see Eric Show's poor, dead ass) all equate to what Soler could be to me. Huge arm, huge bat, tried to beat up a bunch of dudes with a bat during a game.

Jorge can be the next true universally beloved Cub.

They used to do kids clinics on the field a couple times a year before BP, and I just about shit my husky Bugle Boys the day that I got to sit within about 6 feet of Dawson and Dunston to hear them talk about playing ball.

Assuming Soler is the badass that he appears to be, another interesting thing he shares with Dawson is a ri-god-damn-diculous bargain of a salary. Over Dawson's 6 years he made about $25 M in today's dollars. The Cubs have Jorge on a 9 year/$30 M deal.

[flannj]

Jorge Soler is Spanish for Andre Dawson.

I get that Andrew Dawson is revered, but they're not that similar of players. I actually really like Maddon's comp of Vladimir Guerrero with actual plate discipline. Which is just so bonerific a thought I can barely handle it.

I just read this. Fuck you SKO.

I meant no disrespect to Dawson. I have a baseball signed by him that rests in a shrine in my household. I just don't think it's the most accurate comp. I think he could be a lot like Guerrero, like Joe said, and I just think that would be fantastic. Also, Pen doesn't want us to compare him to Dawson and thus force him to suffer years of knee and back injuries.

Because nostalgia for a player you loved when you were a kid, who played the same position and also hit for power and also had a great arm, is ONLY appropriate if the comp is accurate within a statistically acceptable margin of error in the Baseball Reference comp-uter.

Essentially this. SKO's youth and lack of belt must be clouding his ability to post coherently.

Dawson was and is maybe the most beloved Cub of my entire lifetime. Obviously you have Sandberg and Grace stans out there but Dawson was a mythical figure. The arm, the power, the reverence, and the fact that he never took an ounce of shit from any motherfucker (see Eric Show's poor, dead ass) all equate to what Soler could be to me. Huge arm, huge bat, tried to beat up a bunch of dudes with a bat during a game.

Jorge can be the next true universally beloved Cub.

They used to do kids clinics on the field a couple times a year before BP, and I just about shit my husky Bugle Boys the day that I got to sit within about 6 feet of Dawson and Dunston to hear them talk about playing ball.

Assuming Soler is the badass that he appears to be, another interesting thing he shares with Dawson is a ri-god-damn-diculous bargain of a salary. Over Dawson's 6 years he made about $25 M in today's dollars. The Cubs have Jorge on a 9 year/$30 M deal.

Up until this past Christmas when Santa brought me a Blackhawks #65 I had owned only one professional sports jersey over my entire life.

It is number 8.

[Tonker]

Jorge Soler is Spanish for Andre Dawson.

I get that Andrew Dawson is revered, but they're not that similar of players. I actually really like Maddon's comp of Vladimir Guerrero with actual plate discipline. Which is just so bonerific a thought I can barely handle it.

I just read this. Fuck you SKO.

I meant no disrespect to Dawson. I have a baseball signed by him that rests in a shrine in my household. I just don't think it's the most accurate comp. I think he could be a lot like Guerrero, like Joe said, and I just think that would be fantastic. Also, Pen doesn't want us to compare him to Dawson and thus force him to suffer years of knee and back injuries.

Because nostalgia for a player you loved when you were a kid, who played the same position and also hit for power and also had a great arm, is ONLY appropriate if the comp is accurate within a statistically acceptable margin of error in the Baseball Reference comp-uter.

Essentially this. SKO's youth and lack of belt must be clouding his ability to post coherently.

Dawson was and is maybe the most beloved Cub of my entire lifetime. Obviously you have Sandberg and Grace stans out there but Dawson was a mythical figure. The arm, the power, the reverence, and the fact that he never took an ounce of shit from any motherfucker (see Eric Show's poor, dead ass) all equate to what Soler could be to me. Huge arm, huge bat, tried to beat up a bunch of dudes with a bat during a game.

Jorge can be the next true universally beloved Cub.

They used to do kids clinics on the field a couple times a year before BP, and I just about shit my husky Bugle Boys the day that I got to sit within about 6 feet of Dawson and Dunston to hear them talk about playing ball.

Assuming Soler is the badass that he appears to be, another interesting thing he shares with Dawson is a ri-god-damn-diculous bargain of a salary. Over Dawson's 6 years he made about $25 M in today's dollars. The Cubs have Jorge on a 9 year/$30 M deal.

Up until this past Christmas when Santa brought me a Blackhawks #65 I had owned only one professional sports jersey over my entire life.

It is number 8.

Amen.  I loved Maury Buford, too.

[SKO]

Jesus. You people really fucking love Andre Dawson. Noted. I was four when he left, so I have no memory of him. My earliest Cub memories are from 1993, I think, because I do remember Rick Wilkins being awesome. I'm sorry to have missed out.