2015 Cubs Offseason: Building a Winner Around David Ross

[Eli]

I'm operating under the assumption that that's the plan moving forward. It's not hard to teach a guy to play left field. He's got a decent arm and - usually - catches what he gets his glove on. He needs to work on reading the ball, taking proper angles and the little things that make a guy a serviceable outfielder. They've had worse guys playing LF in my lifetime.

I mean, look at Coghlan. He transformed from totally clueless in left field last year to a giant whiny asshole baby out there this year.

[SKO]

I'm operating under the assumption that that's the plan moving forward. It's not hard to teach a guy to play left field. He's got a decent arm and - usually - catches what he gets his glove on. He needs to work on reading the ball, taking proper angles and the little things that make a guy a serviceable outfielder. They've had worse guys playing LF in my lifetime.

I mean, look at Coghlan. He transformed from totally clueless in left field last year to a giant whiny asshole baby out there this year.

This. Soriano also made a remarkable transformation in his first year playing for Sveum. It can be done. For fuck's sake if the Red Sox managed to get by with Manny, Schwarber can be good enough to stick.

[Tony]

I'm operating under the assumption that that's the plan moving forward. It's not hard to teach a guy to play left field. He's got a decent arm and - usually - catches what he gets his glove on. He needs to work on reading the ball, taking proper angles and the little things that make a guy a serviceable outfielder. They've had worse guys playing LF in my lifetime.

I mean, look at Coghlan. He transformed from totally clueless in left field last year to a giant whiny asshole baby out there this year.

It's a good thing there's nobody else here in my office because they'd wonder why I was laughing like some kind of idiot.

[World's #1 Astros Fan]

So at what point can we expect the first wave of pitching arms that they've begun to collect the last few years (i.e. Dylan Cease, Carson Sands et.al) to wash ashore? 

[R-V]

Scouting takes on Schwarber's defense, for what it's worth.

“He needs lots of reps to stick in LF, but Manny Ramirez stuck out there for a while,” said one scout who projected Schwarber as a DH when he saw him as an amateur.2 An NL GM echoed the scout’s sentiment by invoking the name of another bat-first left fielder, saying, “If Matt Holliday can do it, so can Schwarber. He will drive in more than he will let in.” And a scouting director told me that Schwarber “could get to 40 in LF,” referring to the 20-80 scouting scale, on which 50 is average. “Could upgrade from disaster to slight liability,” he added.

ESPN analyst Keith Law had the least equivocal and most optimistic response. “I have zero doubt he can play an average left field,” Law said. “He’s a good athlete for a guy his size” (6 feet and 235 pounds).

Baseball Prospectus says his receiving was exactly average as well: In 953 “framing chances,” he earned his pitchers precisely as many strikes as expected. So how does a guy with average ratings in so many areas draw such scathing reviews?

“He may be a decent framer but he’s a horrible [blocker],” the AL scout says. “And while the pop times are passable, the arm is not accurate.”

The stats support those critiques. Between Double-A, Triple-A, and the majors, Schwarber allowed 47 wild pitches and 12 passed balls in 574.2 innings. Among major league catchers, only Russell Martin, Francisco Cervelli, and Blake Swihart had as many combined wild pitches and passed balls this season, and all three allowed far fewer on a per-inning basis. Moreover, Schwarber has thrown out only 21 of 105 baserunners (20 percent) in High-A and above.


The AL scout thinks the Cubs’ rhetoric about Schwarber’s future behind the plate was intended to prop up his trade value in the event the team decided to deal him for young pitching, like the Yankees did with Jesus Montero, another player without a position who (unlike Schwarber) has also been a bust with the bat. Yet, I spoke to an NL scout who doesn’t believe the Cubs were blowing smoke.

“I think that, for the next few years, there’s a possibility that Schwarber becomes an average defensive catcher,” he said. “I believe in his athleticism and his ability to translate it into lateral agility. Perhaps more importantly than that, he has proven to have very good balance and strong hands. I believe those two attributes correlate strongly with framing abilities. I’m not sure how long he will be able to last back there — the tools I see seem to be fairly maxed out and I am skeptical about any increases happening. But count me in on the Schwarber-behind-the-plate bandwagon. He won’t be Yadi [Molina], but I think he can do it and not be harmful to the pitching staff.”

[SKO]

I wonder what Coghlan could bring in a trade. He's under control for another year, he's managed a 118 OPS+ and been worth nearly 6 wins over almost 1000 PAs the last two years. He has proven to be able to play passable defense in both corners and can play 2B in a pinch. Obviously he's not going to interest a rebuilding team but if there's another contender that needs the bat and has a prospect the Cubs don't maybe he can be part of a three team deal. Either way I'd be surprised to see him back next year given Schwarber's emergence and Jorge and Starlin both reasserting themselves as forces to be reckoned with and also I fucking hate his stupid face and his pirouette when he swings and misses.

[Chuck to Chuck]

Baseball Prospectus says his receiving was exactly average as well: In 953 "framing chances," he earned his pitchers precisely as many strikes as expected. So how does a guy with average ratings in so many areas draw such scathing reviews?

RoboUmps would make framing ability irrelevant.

[Quality Start Machine]

So at what point can we expect the first wave of pitching arms that they've begun to collect the last few years (i.e. Dylan Cease, Carson Sands et.al) to wash ashore? 

Pierce Johnson might show up next year. Carl Edwards is already here.

Blackburn/Underwood/Tseng will scatter the ashes of the Southern League's souls this year.

[CBStew]

Baseball Prospectus says his receiving was exactly average as well: In 953 "framing chances," he earned his pitchers precisely as many strikes as expected. So how does a guy with average ratings in so many areas draw such scathing reviews?

RoboUmps would make framing ability irrelevant.

If what TBS was showing as the ball or strike is an example of what a RoboUmp would call, then I am not having any of it, thank you.

[R-V]

Baseball Prospectus says his receiving was exactly average as well: In 953 "framing chances," he earned his pitchers precisely as many strikes as expected. So how does a guy with average ratings in so many areas draw such scathing reviews?

RoboUmps would make framing ability irrelevant.

Robot Umps and adding the DH to the NL would probably benefit the Cubs more than any of these offseason moves we're speculating about.

[Eli]

So at what point can we expect the first wave of pitching arms that they've begun to collect the last few years (i.e. Dylan Cease, Carson Sands et.al) to wash ashore? 

Pierce Johnson might show up next year. Carl Edwards is already here.

This is not what we're looking for here.

[World's #1 Astros Fan]

So at what point can we expect the first wave of pitching arms that they've begun to collect the last few years (i.e. Dylan Cease, Carson Sands et.al) to wash ashore? 

Pierce Johnson might show up next year. Carl Edwards is already here.

This is not what we're looking for here.

Thank you.

I'm referring, specifically, to the last 2 drafts, where it seems they began to stockpile a bunch of high-upside 18 year old arms.

[PenFoe]

So at what point can we expect the first wave of pitching arms that they've begun to collect the last few years (i.e. Dylan Cease, Carson Sands et.al) to wash ashore? 

Pierce Johnson might show up next year. Carl Edwards is already here.

Blackburn/Underwood/Tseng will scatter the ashes of the Southern League's souls this year.

Of the projected starters (or at least guys who are still starting):
Cease is most likely going to be in Eugene next year. If he starts hot he could definitely get to South Bend.
Sands and Steele should both be in South Bend.  
Underwood will hopefully start in Tennessee, but at his age, he's probably a long-shot to make it to Iowa next year, barring just unhittable stuff.  
Hopefully Ryan Williams will continue to over-perform kick ass and he could easily start the year in Iowa and come up late next year.  
Jeremy Null will probably start again in Myrtle Beach, but could definitely move up.  
Jake Stinnett was really disappointing in South Bend last year. He may stay there another year.  

Those are the top guys off the top of my head, other than the ones Fork mentioned.  

Pierce Johnson is definitely the only interesting guy in the minors who might get a chance to audition for a rotation spot in Spring Training (assuming they don't try to stretch Edwards back out.)  

[SKO]

So at what point can we expect the first wave of pitching arms that they've begun to collect the last few years (i.e. Dylan Cease, Carson Sands et.al) to wash ashore? 

Pierce Johnson might show up next year. Carl Edwards is already here.

This is not what we're looking for here.

Thank you.

I'm referring, specifically, to the last 2 drafts, where it seems they began to stockpile a bunch of high-upside 18 year old arms.

I'm mostly hoping those guys tear up AA ball in time to be trade chips at the deadline because based on this year's deadline the rest of the league hasn't quite adopted Theo's "bats are harder to find" approach to prospects and the currency of the game is still pitching prospects.

[PenFoe]

So at what point can we expect the first wave of pitching arms that they've begun to collect the last few years (i.e. Dylan Cease, Carson Sands et.al) to wash ashore? 

Pierce Johnson might show up next year. Carl Edwards is already here.

This is not what we're looking for here.

Thank you.

I'm referring, specifically, to the last 2 drafts, where it seems they began to stockpile a bunch of high-upside 18 year old arms.

I'm mostly hoping those guys tear up AA ball in time to be trade chips at the deadline because based on this year's deadline the rest of the league hasn't quite adopted Theo's "bats are harder to find" approach to prospects and the currency of the game is still pitching prospects.

Just so I understand, you've moved on from trading all the Cubs young bats to all their young arms, correct?