Cubs Offseason 2014: So, what did your team do this offseason? Isn't that cute.

[Eli]

If it's "deals" we know the Montero thing is happening any moment now. That seems all but done.

I get the idea that Loxas and others with sources are being told to expect multiple deals with the caveat that they aren't necessarily talking about Lester.

Debatable.

[PenFoe]

Right in line with Randall Delgado's "They don't did a trade."

[Slaky]

All the source guys that Eli hates are feeling like Lester is more possible than ever before. They're going to catch hell if he doesn't sign with the Cubs.

[Eli]

All the source guys that Eli hates are feeling like Lester is more possible than ever before. They're going to catch hell if he doesn't sign with the Cubs.

I don't hate them. I just don't really buy it. Loxas, for example, puts out mostly vague information and it's always accompanied by "Look, guys, I just pass along what I hear" so he doesn't have to be accountable for anything.

If Lester ends up choosing the Cubs, he can say his "feeling" was based on all the buzz he was getting from his sources, rather than him hitting on what's basically a 50/50 shot at this point. And if Lester goes elsewhere, he'll just say, "Oh well, it was just a feeling based on some things I heard." Arguello tends to do some of the same stuff.

It's entirely possible they know someone somewhere who gets bits and pieces of things; I just don't think they're consistently reliable outlets.

[Slaky]

All the source guys that Eli hates are feeling like Lester is more possible than ever before. They're going to catch hell if he doesn't sign with the Cubs.

I don't hate them. I just don't really buy it. Loxas, for example, puts out mostly vague information and it's always accompanied by "Look, guys, I just pass along what I hear" so he doesn't have to be accountable for anything.

If Lester ends up choosing the Cubs, he can say his "feeling" was based on all the buzz he was getting from his sources, rather than him hitting on what's basically a 50/50 shot at this point. And if Lester goes elsewhere, he'll just say, "Oh well, it was just a feeling based on some things I heard." Arguello tends to do some of the same stuff.

It's entirely possible they know someone somewhere who gets bits and pieces of things; I just don't think they're consistently reliable outlets.

http://www.overthemonster.com/2014/12/9/7362385/red-sox-jon-lester-free-agent-rumors-cubs

This seems to be a much more articulate explanation as to why people are getting optimistic.

[World's #1 Astros Fan]

All the source guys that Eli hates are feeling like Lester is more possible than ever before. They're going to catch hell if he doesn't sign with the Cubs.

I don't hate them. I just don't really buy it. Loxas, for example, puts out mostly vague information and it's always accompanied by "Look, guys, I just pass along what I hear" so he doesn't have to be accountable for anything.

If Lester ends up choosing the Cubs, he can say his "feeling" was based on all the buzz he was getting from his sources, rather than him hitting on what's basically a 50/50 shot at this point. And if Lester goes elsewhere, he'll just say, "Oh well, it was just a feeling based on some things I heard." Arguello tends to do some of the same stuff.

It's entirely possible they know someone somewhere who gets bits and pieces of things; I just don't think they're consistently reliable outlets.

http://www.overthemonster.com/2014/12/9/7362385/red-sox-jon-lester-free-agent-rumors-cubs

This seems to be a much more articulate explanation as to why people are getting optimistic.

How would anyone--including Lester's agent--know which he's way leaning at this point?  Seems like every option's already been weighed.

Annoying if true.

[World's #1 Astros Fan]

DPD

I heard "Joon Lee" is New English for "Tom Loxas"

[SKO]

This makes me feel somewhat better about the Montero thing: http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/miguel-montero-the-next-piece-of-the-cubs-puzzle/

[Eli]

This makes me feel somewhat better about the Montero thing: http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/miguel-montero-the-next-piece-of-the-cubs-puzzle/

Good grief, those gifs of Castillo trying to catch.

[Shooter]

This makes me feel somewhat better about the Montero thing: http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/miguel-montero-the-next-piece-of-the-cubs-puzzle/

Good grief, those gifs of Castillo trying to catch.

He'll be quality controlled going forward.

[Saul Goodman]

Per Rosenthal, the Cubs and Jon Lester have agreed on a deal. Passan has it at 6/155. Red Sox offered 20 million less. He even took less money and one fewer guaranteed year than the Giants were offering to pitch for Chicago.

[PenFoe]

Per Rosenthal, the Cubs and Jon Lester have agreed on a deal. Passan has it as 6/155. He even took less money and one fewer guaranteed year than the Giants were offering to pitch for Chicago.

All the fucking boners belong to us.

[Yeti]

I want Lester even more now: https://twitter.com/MDGonzales/status/540915505268547584

Dempster signs, retires with Cubs. Has spoken to Lester.

I know he's not the only Demp-hater, but that'd be such a great HueyTroll

[Slaky]

Now it's real. We don't have to go to plan B. They actually got the guy they wanted. Fuck this changes everything.

[Saul Goodman]

Now it's real. We don't have to go to plan B. They actually got the guy they wanted. Fuck this changes everything.

Can't wait to see what's next. Also, this passage from the Yahoo Sports story kindly invites all the people who love claiming Theo and his team are incompetent/idiots/not as smart as they think they are to go fuck themselves.

All the while, Lester became a great ally of the pediatric cancer community with the NVRQT campaign. During meetings with teams, he stressed the importance of his charity work. The Cubs' emphasis on it during their mid-November meeting – while most of his other get-togethers included strictly ownership and baseball-operations people, Chicago brought in community-relations personnel – stuck with Lester, as did the straightforwardness of Epstein and Hoyer.

"The thing I liked about 'em is it wasn't forced and wasn't a sales pitch," Lester said after his meeting with the Cubs. "It was like, 'This is what we can do.' I don't want BS. I don't want show. I don't want glitz and glamour. I don't want to walk out to the field with your name and number on the JumboTron. I'm not 18 anymore. I want you to tell me what you can do for me and my family."