March 17th: Manager Craig Counsell provided reporters, including Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune, with an update on Suzuki today. The outfielder has been diagnosed with a minor sprain of the posterior cruciate ligament in his right knee. They will see how he progresses in the next few days before deciding whether or not he will require a season-opening stint on the injured list. (Members of the Cubs beat all initially used the word “strain” but Jordan Bastian of MLB.com later issued a correction and said that it’s actually a sprain.)
March 15th: During yesterday’s quarterfinal game between Samurai Japan and Team Venezuela in the World Baseball Classic, Cubs outfielder Seiya Suzuki limped off the field during the first inning after getting caught stealing second base (as noted by Yakyu Cosmopolitan on social media). Last night, Kevin Barral of Fish On First reported that Suzuki was removed due to discomfort in his right knee and that the team would continue to evaluate him. After the game, superstar Shohei Ohtani spoke to reporters (including Bob Nightengale of USA Today) and noted that Suzuki hadn’t yet undergone imaging to determine the severity of the issue, though he will presumably do so in relatively short order.
If the injury proves to be a serious one, that would be a major blow to both Suzuki and the Cubs. The 31-year-old has been on a torrid stretch all spring, going 2-for-4 with a home run and a strikeout during his brief stay in camp with Chicago before joining Samurai Japan and going 3-for-9 with a strikeout, two homers, and six walks during his four games playing in the WBC. That left him in strong position to carry his hot streak into the regular season, but now he runs the risk of being sidelined when the season begins with Opening Day less than two weeks away. 2025 was a strong season for Suzuki, as he spent most of the season playing DH for the Cubs in deference to Kyle Tucker in right field. He managed to put together a banner year from the DH slot, appearing in 151 games and slashing .245/.326/.478 (123 wRC+) with 32 homers.
2026 is an especially important year for Suzuki as his contract with the Cubs is set to expire, allowing him to reach free agency this coming November. In a free agent class with a relative dearth of high-end offensive talent, another strong year from Suzuki could make him one of the most coveted players available next offseason. He’s a career 127 wRC+ hitter in the majors across four MLB seasons, and over the past two years he’s slashed .263/.345/.480 (129 wRC+) with 53 homers and 21 steals across 283 games. Just 17 players have posted at least 50 home runs and 20 stolen bases over the past two years, and among them only George Springer, Gunnar Henderson, Bobby Witt Jr., Jose Ramirez, Juan Soto, Ohtani, and Aaron Judge have a higher on-base percentage.
There’s an argument to be made, then, that Suzuki has been among the most complete hitters in baseball in recent years. Another strong season for Suzuki where he posts similar offensive numbers to the past two seasons would cement his status as one of the top bats available in free agency, particularly given that he’s expected to return to right field on a regular basis this year with Moises Ballesteros getting a crack at regular DH time. Missing the start of the season would put a damper on all that, especially given that Suzuki averaged just 127 games a year over his first three seasons in the majors due to various trips to the injured list.
As for the Cubs, the team would certainly miss one of its top hitters if he does wind up starting the season on the injured list. The good news for Chicago, however, is that they’re relatively well-stocked in terms of depth at this point. Matt Shaw has begun getting reps in the outfield this spring after being bumped out of the regular third base job by the addition of Alex Bregman, while Michael Conforto is in camp with the Cubs on a minor league deal. Conforto already seemed to be in strong position to make the team’s roster as a bench bat, and if Suzuki were to start the season on the IL he’d surely join Shaw as one of the favorites for regular reps in right field to open the year. Chicago could also view an injury to Suzuki as an opportunity to get top outfield prospect Kevin Alcantara a look at the big league level as he heads into his final option year while facing a fairly crowded outfield mix.
Hoping for a speedy recovery for Suzuki, fun guy to watch when it isn’t against my team.
Hey I’m battling right knee discomfort TOO!
I got right knee discomfort and left knee discomfort plus a few other things. Too many years catching and I’m old now. 😁
I had Wee Knee discomfort once but it went away on it’s own. Just like I’m sure Seiya’s will.
Yeah but was it full Pacific Coast League sprain?
Were you caught stealing too…from Grandma’s cookie jar? Hear she packs a mean wallop. And a thousand yard stare
Do we care?
Some of us care. DockEllis needs to be on the mend so he can fill a crucial role in the chorus of Guys and Dolls at the Candlelight Dinner playhouse.
🤦♂️🤦♂️🤦♂️
He’s going to have a monster year if he’s healthy, Hoyer really did well with this signing
He did okay w the signing. Suzuki rightly, never wanted to be a full time DH, though. Don’t know what Hoyer & the genius CC were thinking! Tucker was no better than in R & in some ways, not as good.
Unless it turns out to be a torn ACL or something( Which it didn’t look like) it’s not a big thing. Carlson has been arguably the best bat in camp and can play all 3 positions. Cubs have options and they can always use him at DH to keep his bat in the lineup. Not to mention it’s still quite awhile before the season starts. Everybody just needs to relax. I’m just enjoying how the Cubs pitching is looking with Assad and Brown looking like they could start right now. Brown may have found a 3rd AND a 4th pitch this off season. Glad I bought Marquee a month early so I wouldn’t be able to watch the games. What a worthwhile investment that wasn’t. Thanks Tom.
You’re not valuing all the…infomercials? Still have bass fishing specials from 1988?
I’ve seen more Cub games on the White Sox channel this spring than Marquee. Guess Tom really needed the 20 bucks. Well lesson learned for next year anyway.
Maybe Papa Joe Ricketts needed a bottle of wine and because old he probably isn’t allowed to drive anymore. So that’s why Tom needed/wanted an extra few dollars for his allowance increase
The problem with Tom Ricketts is that he’s exactly like his father. He’s dirt cheap. I often compare the Cubs ownership to the plot of The Toy with Richard Pryor.
Wealthy father buys a sports team for his kids. In this case the Cubs are the Toy and Tom, Karen, Chad and Steve Dave are the spoiler silver spoon kids that get any and everything they want.
You really need a new Cubs story. That ones getting Blase’. As far as the cheap thing goes my old man always told me if you’re not getting smarter you’re getting dumber. Well I learned that if you buy Marquee to watch ST games you’re wasting time and money you aren’t getting back. So 70 and still learning. Just imparting my wisdom on others for next year.
What do you mean? The Ricketts ownership is almost the exact plot of The Toy. There’s no question about it. Tom and Joe Ricketts are just cheap. It’s actually very surprising when Joe lets Tom let Jed spend more than a few million dollars on free agent signings.
Unclemike…if YOU are buying Marquee to watch spring training games YOU are wasting your money. The TV schedule was published in at least early February…it should come at NO surprise what games and how many are on.
Heads up…there will be Apple games and Sunday night games and a couple Saturday Fox games during the season.
Prepare your $20 waste of money line for those games now.
Buyer beware….especially when you know exactly what you are getting.
My limit is 20 bucks a month for Marquee and 150 bucks for the year for MLB( Mostly to watch the MILB games). I don’t buy every ridiculous package to watch a few games. If they don’t want me to watch, I don’t watch. There are other things on TV. I can see why the slugs don’t put the away games on ST TV. But there’s no excuse for not televising the home games. None
Cheap is one thjng: greedy + cheap is another thing. No problem if he wants to slow roll spending. But then to cite “biblical losses” while buying up the entire neighborhood while turning it into Pottersvillle is next level villain. Odd as hes a pretty nice, though socially awkward. My Cub friends invited me to tag along at a mid-season season ticket holder focus thingie, like 20 of us in the Wrigley grandstands expecting marketing hacks and in walk Crane Kenney and Tom. Maybe he needs to meet with some of the more reasonable Cub fan posters here
Explain to my how the Cubs are cheap… I’m really interested in what kind of response you can pull out of your rear.
Agreed. That’s one way for the Sox to get viewers.
Him & Dad are still crooks, Carpetbaggers & Trump supporters, so nah, he’s not nice.
Oh forgot about that: his brother was finance director too so instrumental to all the voting rights shenanigans. Just the one sister on the other side. Strange – dysfunctional family
Carlson? This is why Cubs fans get a bad rep – spring stats mean absolutely nothing. Sometimes they carry over but many times not. He can be a decent bench piece, but he is not a viable replacement for Suzuki. Check his stats from the past couple of years as opposed to what he’s done vs rookies and washed up starters this spring, if you’re going to use stats. Sure, he is better defensively than Suzuki, but the bottom line is Cubs are going to miss Seiya’s bat if he misses time. And if he plays DH (which is where he actually belongs given his inconsistent glove work), that means.fewer opportunities for the fat guy, and Cubs need more lefties in the lineup.
This is why reading is a skill. Nobody said Carlson was a long term option. Spring stats don’t mean anything but good AB’s and swings do. And he’s swinging it fine right now. Keller was great last spring and I noticed and he basically kept it up all year. They’re not the beat all end all but they are an indicator of things that can happen. Pay attention.
Hey uncle. How can you argue with the great, ‘rememberthecoop’? I think we’ve all learned by now that coop often uses blanket generalizations in his comments. And aside from generalizing, he will put words in other people’s mouths. I imagine it makes it easier for him to display his unparalleled brilliance.
@Uncle: You have more patience with fools than I have, and I envy you for it. I wish I had more. And yes, reading is a skill. So is writing.
Secretary: Perry Minasian on line one, Jed.
Jed Hoyer: Perry, great seeing you last winter at the meetings, really, great tan. Whats happening?
Perry Minasian: Jed, I was just watching your brother, Anderson Cooper, on the news, heard about Seiya Suzuki, tough break.
Jed Hoyer: He’s not my brother.
Perry Minasian: Oh, my mistake, you two look like you’re from the same planet. Speaking of planets, Joe Adell just hit a ball to the moon in this afternoon’s spring training game.
Jed Hoyer: The moon isn’t a planet, it’s technically a natural satellite.
Perry Minasian: Oh. So Adell hit this ball, demolished it, 37 HRs last season, could look good in RF at Wrigley this summer.
Peyote is bad for you.
If they lose Suzuki for a 60 day stint then they should trade for a RF.
I think it should be simple as that. If you trade Cassie and sign Bregman then lose a core guy then you have to make a major deal.
I think we know that anything in house will be a down grade in RF.
It never ceases to amaze me that Angels fans are so lame. For years they try to tell everybody how great Adell could be, All the while he continued to stink. I don’t mean stink like bad breath, I mean stink like a skunk in a garbage dump. Now he finally shows up once and then they start talking out of the other sides of their mouth and insisting someone else come along and take him and be the suckers. Now he’s worth even more? No wonder Arte keeps the team with suckers like that rooting for them. Used to hear the same drivel from the Cardinal fans about how much their prospects were worth TOR arms when in reality most of them were traded for peanuts or out and out released. No wonder the team stinks because the fans will swallow anything they’re told basically. Not all but quite a few. Keep praying boys, Maybe you’ll hit the lottery someday. Odds are long but miracles have happened. I mean Rendon finally left. Maybe you can trade Adell for Kris Bryant and replace him.
sorry a Cubs fan. Adell has been bad at CF. -10 DRS over his career. +5 in RF over that span. LAA addressed this by putting Trout back in CF this year.
O wise His numbers up ticked a bit in 2025. BABIP was low .257 when the league avg is at .300. So bad luck. HR 37. That would have lead the Cubs last year.
Add to it he is 26 yo. That is younger than Busch. So I feel time is on his side still and I do have some faith in his potential
OK. So that’s why you people include him in every trade idea you’ve ever had? Because you have so much faith in his potential. The exact talk out of the other side of your mouth comment I just talked about. Egads
who is you people? Define that
Secretary: Perry… Perry… PERRY!! pick up the damn phone, Jed Hoyer from Chicago on line one.
Perry Minasian: Jed, sorry for keeping you on hold, I was having a post lunch snooze. Wahoo’s fish tacos catered in, I crushed it.
Jed Hoyer: That’s nice, Jo Adell, how’s his medicals looking?
Perry Minansian: Cleaner than the windows in my office, greasy paw prints all over them. Somebodies been in here.
Jed Hoyer: OK, we’re interested, what is the return on Adell and Detmers?
Perry Minasian: Detmers? Detmers is my guy. Really love me some Reid. Great curveball, have you seen his curveball?
Jed Hoyer: Yes, I’ve seen his curveball, Perry, we are interested in a package of Adell and Detmers.
Perry Minasian: Well, shooting down an inquiry before I load up a plate isn’t my style. Speaking of plates, another round of Onion Ring Burritos is on deck.
Jed Hoyer: Onion Ring Burritos? I ain’t got time for this shxt, Perry. What’s your ask?
Perry Minasian: Well, we like Jonathan Long, he’s a Dirtbag from the LBC.
Jed Hoyer: He isn’t a dirtbag Perry, he is a good kid, has hit thr ball well for us in Iowa.
Perry Minasian: No, he’s a Dirtbag, Im certain of it, he played at LB. We like Long and Grant Kipp is a pitcher we think can move up this season and we like the one you call “Mo Baller” “Mo Baller, Mo Baller” that’s a fun nickname. I’ve been calling Trout, Meaty T, like a meaty trout fish, but it hasn’t stuck.
Jed Hoyer: That’s ridiculous, but go on.
Perry Minasian: Long, Kipp, Ballesteros, we’ll take Rea off your hands but need Jostin Florentino on the end.
Jed Hoyer: That’s asking a lot but its a start. Let me run it through some of our models and I’ll get back to you.
Perry Minasian: Do that, I should be here, got a new hammock for my office. This thing is fantastic, far better than the Pelotan.
I would think it would start out with Adell on one side. Brown has 4 working pitches and no clear path to starting. Even next year they do drop Taillon and Shota but are 6 deep right now with Wiggins in Iowa whom they are much higher on.
TBH you could say 1:1 that is a fair trade as both have more upside but neither have taken their games to the next level yet. I would add Alcantara to give him a chance to start also.
LAA is a bad team and that is a solid environment for finishing up development vs a pressure cooker that the north side is. This year more than previous.
When I come up with ideas I also look at what is best for the players. North side is a dead end
Shows why you know nothing. The Cubs are set to lose 3 starters this year to Free Agency. So no clear path to starting? Why don’t you THINK BEFORE you type? Try that for a change. Assad, Brown and Wicks are under control for years. So whatta ya know? Seems like there is a clear path to starting rather than trading them to a dead end organization with a dead end future
Boyd has a option. So one foot in your mouth where will the other foot go next?
2 years/$29M (2025-26), plus 2027 mutual option
Just because I think that you are that dumb Mike. Mutual means either side can agree to it. Not both have to.
So I was not even getting into Rea and Assad. That makes Brown #9 on the SP depth chart and #7 next year.
Boyd has a MUTUAL option. They’re never picked up. So keep looking stupid. You really need to quit when you know you’ll never catch on.
You are pretty dumb.
A option is picked up when the current deal is through. IE after the WS teams have the right to deny or accept. in a mutual the player also can deny or accept. if either approve then it becomes a official contract.
Your statement holds true if the Cubs renegotiate that option year and normally will tack on 1+ years to it. And that could happen still.
But your ‘theory’ of Jed not extending him early means he is gone is plain stupid.
TYVM for making my morning entertaining
Drugs are bad, mmmmkay
What do you call a guy that you have already explained something to 3 times and he still doesn’t get it? Oh yeah, You can’t call people that anymore. I’m done. Next
So is bathing.
Rememberthecoop, “this is why Cubs fans get a bad rep”? Seriously? Of all the teams in baseball it’s only Cubs fans who look at spring training stats and get hopeful? If Carlson was in camp with either NY team or Boston the media and fans would be discussing when to retire his number and where to put his statue.
Don’t think many Cub fans are reading spring stats actually. Attending the endless Wrigleyville pub crawls after watching the river dye green like the tourists they are. Maybe sharpening their cup snake skills. But point taken. More likely to get genuflecting and guffawing about baseball at the South Side Irish parade today: the people’s parade!
DDT is going to be the guy that parked and blocked my folks’ driveway or be the one who staggers back from the parade carrying his shoe.
Guilty as charged!
I think his thought process is rolling with hottest dumpster guys out of the gate, cut them when they tank in 4 to 6 weeks. No big deal as long as no young kid isn’t out of options at AAA. I personally go with Carlson or Carson Whatever his name is over conforto. I simply hope ,Seiya didn’t tear up the knee, his limp and down stairs in dugout was Bad! I hope he gets healthy quickly, man has been smashing for 2 years. Never liked his defense, but crap Kyle’s was horrible and scared. But who cares, he got his money for half arseing it on defense.
rememberthecoop
spring stats mean absolutely nothing.
================
Select stats are meaningful. Mostly for players returning from injury and younger players for things like K/W, maybe fitness.
Man I missed all these clueless posts.
First, Shaw would replace Suzuki and Carlson would be and likely will be a bench piece. It’s either going to be him or McCormick.
Second, Carlson was a first round pick, was one of the very best prospects in baseball and yeah, plenty of guys drafted in the first round bust but the reason they are drafted and considered top prospects is because they have a ton of talent. He’s dealt with a lot of injuries so saying “look at his past couple of years” include the fact he’s been hurt, had surgeries that have effected his play and his preseason preparation.
But Coop has always been a classic doom and gloom Cub fan
Ya know, Suzuki got a bad rap in his first year, cuz he misplayed a couple balls, but he was a stand-out defensively in Japan. Tucker never impressed me any more than SS. He played timidly & gave up on balls easily.
“Carlson has been arguably the best bat in camp.”
Don’t count on that to continue. Nearly 2k regular-season PA to major leaguers carry a bit more weight than 37 PA against uneven competition.
Not counting on ANYTHING. Just saying it’s deserving of a chance at a job if necessary. That’s all Spring Training is anyway. A chance.
Carlson and Conforto have been the likely bench choices along with Shaw and whoever isn’t catching that day. Counsell has decided to roll with letting one the catchers or Shaw play 1B when Busch needs a day off. McCormick seems to be the odd man out.
If Suzuki ends up on the IL, then Shaw and Conforto will get most of the reps in RF against RHP and Carlson will play against LHP. If it is a short absence they will find some disposable fast MI for the bench who they can DFA.
Also if it was a serious injury like an ACL tear. There’s no way even with adrenaline he wouldn’t even be allowed to walk off on his own power
The debate here over Dylan Carlson is at least interesting. What’s not debatable is how the author of this article neglected to mention him as an option for an outfield roster spot in the wake of a potential IL stint for Seiya Suzuki.
This lack of knowledge by some of the MLBTR writing staff is perplexing. The author of yesterday’s “AL Central Notes” article discussed the ramifications of a spring injury to White Sox INF/OF Brooks Baldwin. The author claimed that “Baldwin is headed for regular center field work this year, flanked by Andrew Benintendi and new arrival Austin Hays. If he’s forced to miss time, journeyman Derek Hill and former Yankee Everson Pereira would be candidates to see increased opportunities.” He never once mentioned Luisangel Acuña as an option to be the White Sox opening day CF when in fact he is the odds on favorite to be there as the trade centerpiece for Luis Robert Jr. this past offseason.
Dylan carlson is barely a major league player, so despite good spring AB, relying on him for more than late game defense and the occasional spot start will hurt any team.
I have learned to not count out players. Kelly had a career year after a swing mechanic overhaul. I would need more info on him.
Even minor knee injuries are tricky to play through, especially if you’re trying to hit. When swinging the bat you’re also rotating your legs to follow through and meet the ball. Any discomfort there can cause your timing to slip up and can drastically affect how much power and contact you generate. If Suzuki returns without fully healing, he may have a difficult time slugging the baseball with his usual authority.
Very different players/injury situations: Lawrence Butler saw his batting line drop last year as he played through a torn patella. He did put up a 20-20 season and played decent defense in RF, but his SLG% dropped and so did his AVG. He just couldn’t get those XBHs like he did in 2024. Jorge Polanco also played through a patella tear in 2024 and produced a below average batting line due to a significant dip in power. He got it fixed up with surgery before posting an excellent line in 2025.
Carlson??
Re Marquee, it’s headed for the dumpster. It was ill-conceived to begin with. As much as I enjoy Boog & crew, they’re gone half the time with sick, vacation, other commitments. Never seen primary broadcasters gone so much. NO ONE is that good.
Brickhouse, certainly Harry or even the umbearable guy who went to the White Sox were always there. Boog’s gone at least once a week to ESPN. I like him, but not that much. I’m just gonna wait till August or so, to see if the Cubs are worth $20 a month. In the meantime catch em occasionally on ESPN or St. Louis channel. 😉
It’s going to be a really fun season!
He is not going to be in the lineup opening day, at this point Cubs can only hope he can get an at-bat by end of April.
If he decides to ride the injury expect his season to diminish quickly into longer DL stints.
He kneed the ground on a rough slide lol relax
Next update: leg needs to be amputated.
Hope not. As much as they want Shaw to b ready, he’s not ready w the bat or outfield (if ever). Conforto, is also not the answer.
By the end of the season shaw will be eligible everywhere except pitcher and catcher. Book it.
lol. Why not catcher too?
He might just to say he did it. Who knows. They have some depth there too which is why I don’t see it happening.
👍🏿
Alcantara is just 23 and debuted in 2024. I doubt very strongly that he’s in his final option year.
He is. They even had to go to MLB to get an extra year to be this year. Last year was supposed to be his last option. How old you are makes absolutely no difference. It depends on when you signed and how many years you’ve been in the minors. He’s been around awhile.
Makes sense; thanks.
Not when you sign and years in the minors, when you’re added to the 40 man. That’s the biggest con of signing/drafting super young players, they become rule 5 eligible so early in the minor league career.
Unless they hit.
Option seasons hinge on when the player was added to the 40 man roster. As Alcantara was an international signing that the Cubs didn’t want to lose to the Rule 5 Draft back when, this probably is his last option season.
We don’t even need to wonder. Fangraphs shows you players’ remaining options and Alcantara is indeed down to 1.
Ya he is in his final opt year. If he was in the plans then he would be on the team already. I would not over think it.
He lost a opertinity last year and ended up having core surgery in the off season. At this point I don’t even see him as a option in RF if Seyia goes on the 60. They would rather have a platoon of 2 players that won’t break 30 HR combined over 162 in leveraged PA’s.
Losing Seyia your #3/4 hitter and going to a 8/9 hitter replacement is going to derail the season. Screw development. Cubs are in a winning window.
That is why Alcantara will not be a Cub unless they throw away 2026
Alcantara was added to the 40 man roster in November of 2022 to protect him from the rule 5 draft, 2023 was his first option year.
Once you’re added to the 40 man, if you’re assigned to a minor league team, that’s an option year. It has nothing to do with when a player makes his debut, it’s when he’s added to the 40 man.
Mike is correct, Alcantara’s last option year should have been last year but the Cubs were granted an extra year due to his limited MLB experience
I hope he’s okay. I don’t know why he’s trying to steal 2B wit two outs. It doesn’t make sense.
Maybe he was hungry. What a morally upright man will do late at night for a snickers bar
Well, he definitely didn’t have a Snickers bar before the game. He wasn’t himself trying to steal a base.
You dont steal 2nd base, when there’s two outs? Why?
You absolutely should just not in the first inning with a non base stealer..
Suzuki has hurt himself sliding before, and he shouldn’t have been doing it in a stunt series. We’ll see what the injury is, but based on the way it looked and past experiences, he will probably be out about 6 weeks. And the thing about Suzuki is, when he finally gets back from his injuries, he doesn’t hit for a month as he’s trying to get his swing back. This is a bad blow for the Cubs.
They should put Alcantara in his place and see how he does. He might not do well. But if he can keep his strikeouts in the reasonable range, he gives the lineup a different style of play, a different affect and self-presentation, and a diversity that is in itself a good thing and one that the team has lacked.
I think it is fascinating that the “anonymous scout” for the Athlon magazine commented that the Cubs seemed last year to be playing “stressed.” Yes, they did. Part of that was the malevolent presence of the hyper-aloof Tucker, a strange guy by any measure– but part of it was the composition of the rest of the regular lineup. Only PCA departed from the grit-your-teeth-and-grind-it-out affect of the others, and he did so in a way that seemed more desperate than happy. IF Alcantara can show he has the skills, of course, he also has the swag, and that is part of what has been missing from the team since Hoyer took over.
Alcantara has a .826 OPS and a 29% strikeout rate at AAA. If he improves this year on both accounts, he will be the starting RF in 2027 because he’s still young. I think that if he can show better plate discipline and get the strikeout rate down to 23-24% against garbage AAA pitching, he will be in Chicago for good by the All Star break. But right now he would only get 3-4 PA/week because like it or not Shaw and Ballesteros are both above him in the development hierarchy.
@Brick: But they aren’t outfielders.
No but there are only so many PA to give to the four roster spots (DH and three bench guys). Last year the top 9 position players in PA accounted for all but about 850 PA out of 6162. Shaw had the lowest number of PA of the 8 non-catchers with 437. After that there was a big drop to Justin Turner with 191 mostly wasted PA.
I don’t see how Alcantara gets 250 PA even if he is on the roster the entire season, even if you bench Shaw except when he is giving the infielders a DH day.
He’ll get his swing back quickly this time. It’s a contract year.
Cubs are determined to make the Cultist Shaw a super utility player. I also don’t think Cubs had any takers on him. IF Shaw ever hits, it won’t b for a couple years, if then
Jefferson Rojas is coming along and is more of a bat-first MI who is likely going to spend the entire season in Iowa so they don’t start his service time clock. Shaw is likely to end up as the 400 PA/year cost-controlled six-position top backup on a four man bench at least through his ARB-1 year.
If his hitting improves, Shaw might end up as the everyday LF once Happ departs. Don’t forget that Happ started out as a 2B who didn’t have the arm for 3B or RF and has carved out a solid but unspectacular career.
Aside from the injury to the hapless Suzuki, and the problem of significant players being hurt in stunt series…
All thoughtful fans know that the World Baseball Classic is garbage in the first place, a stupid distraction from the serious business of spring training. And it is philosophically objectionable.
Major-league baseball, and major-league sports in general, are cool not because there is a natural link between the teams’ players and the geographic entity that they represent, but precisely because there is NOT such a link. Players on the Tigers don’t come from Detroit. There is no particular reason why people in Chicago should have a rivalry with people in Cleveland or St. Louis. What makes MLB cool is that the distribution of the teams and the players on them was (and is) entirely arbitrary, but then, over time, the relationships between the teams and the fans developed, and constantly redevelop, in an organic way.
The mysterious glue of fandom lies in that. What makes a fan’s love for his team valuable is that it has, or should have, nothing to do with that most fungible element of the sport, its players. I would never think of being “for” specific players because they come from places where I was born or have lived, or for any other reason. I am for my team because it is my team. I submit that is a higher level of thinking and a higher level of fandom.
So the WBC is not just irritating and trivial; it is based on a flawed and corrupt concept. What it really does is encourage ethnic tribalism and fetishize the performance of individual players–which is all wrong for any team sport. And it insults the bonds between major-league teams and their fans, which have been forged now over many decades at least, and longer for the original sixteen, in a natural way, not via a manufactured gimmick.
Of course dramatic match-ups–Ohtani vs. Skenes, Oh boy!–can be created by public relations departments–but they shouldn’t be. That cheapens the sport, and it cheapens the experience. Those things should either occur naturally, or not at all.
I’ve never cared where any player was born. I’ve never had a “favorite player.” I’ve never had a favorite Cub. I am for the Cubs, whoever they are, as players pass by from season to season.
When a guy from Northbrook (Jason Kipnis) almost hit a World Series-winning home run against the Cubs in the bottom of the ninth a few years ago, I promise you, I was rooting hard for it to go foul. (It did, as you might remember.)
I personally don’t see Suzuki missing a beat. He’s going to get a few days off to be sure but he was going to ANYWAY. Not like he’s fighting for a spot or anything. It just looked like a dumb slide where he went head first for no reason, And landed on his knee. I’m gonna play Doctor and just say it’s a bruised knee and move on to things that really matter. Like how many retreads Hoyer is going to put into the Iowa rotation so that Wiggins, Assad, Brown, Noland an Sanders sit and do nothing. He does it every year. How many Velasquez’s do we need really? People wonder why the Cubs own pitchers develop slowly. Gee I wonder? Look I’ve never been a fan of Carlson’s and I used to laugh as loud as anybody when Cardinal fans used to think he was worth a TOR starter. But if he’s swinging it good then get him a shot and if he goes backward launch him. It’s not Rocket Science.
Alan, Jason Kipnis did not almost hit a game winning home run in the World Series. The ball flew all of about 280 feet.
facebook.com/watch/?v=1123537967992272&vanity…
This. This is all a money grab and they have fans now thinking this is the olympics.
Wow. No wonder you were kicked out of bleacher nation
Yep…Alan quick to point out Seiya getting hurt at WBC but no mention of Long, Wicks, Hodge, Austin getting being injured at spring training.
Just like him pushing his racist Cub agenda in the post before.
Seven paragraph posts with big words does not make one intelligent.
Think about having to live inside that head. Absolutely insufferable.
@MRSHOW: Correct. Brett doesn’t like good writing like mine, and he LOVES stupid hype festivals like the WBC.
“Hapless Suzuki”
You really are a hoot, Alan.
@wood: It’s not a season for Suzuki if he can’t miss a month or two of it with avoidable injuries. I stand by my characterization of him.
Couple flaws in this diatribe. Firstly, WBC is about growing the brand in nutty places where Soccer is king, like England & Italy. Secondly, it’s for revenue & it’s more watchable than ST games.
@devhog: You lost me at “diatribe.” A thoughtful, well-written essay like mine, which would make Roger Angell proud, is not a diatribe.
And, I am a fan, not a businessman. I couldn’t care less about “growing the brand” or any other buzz phrase you read once. I care about the integrity of the game and its cultural importance in the US.
If Suzuki is out any extended period of time, give Alcantara a shot. The jaguar has been up and down, back and forth for awhile now and it could be make or break for him. Could be a valuable asset if he can have some regular playing time to prove himself?
Jaguar can’t hit in cold. He would be awful in march/ April at wrigley
Kind of agree, but Cubs really can’t afford to b experimenting. They probably should have traded him for pitching depth or another hitting prospect.
Another WBC injury!
BREAKING NEWS: Playing baseball is the leading cause of baseball injuries.
No duh.
We should cancel spring training because players get hurt, oh and the regular season too. The only baseball games that should ever take place are the World Series and it’s the Dodgers versus whichever AL team drew the shortest straw.
Playing golf as a met is also a leading cause of injuries
Oh no not the dreaded discomfort.
If Suzuki has a good year he’s looking at 25m a year for 4 yrs I doubt he gets longer but might if he has a monster summer
Touting Suzuki’s base stealing is a joke. One of the worst base runners and instinctual players I have ever seen.
And head first!
If it was me, I wouldn’t let my team members play in any outside tournaments where they could possibly get hurt.
Normally that would make great sense but these are baseball players. They get hurt opening their eyes in the morning. They as a group get hurt more than anyone else I’ve ever seen or heard of.
Not really. They just don’t/can’t play through injuries like the other sports.
Overall your comment makes no sense. Baseball is a non contact sport that for the most part is pretty easy going. My point was more about the never ending injuries most of which are preventable with conditioning and proper training. That part seems to get lost with a lot of people. I’ve been watching baseball a long time. These guys get hurt doing the simplest things.
We shoukd cancel spring training too because players get hurt during that, plus the regular season, and the playoffs.
Matt shaw – your time to shine!
PCL Strain, I’m not sure I want him hitting or running the bases at Wrigley in March.
The first three series are all cold weather: WAS, LAA, @CLE. They really should be able to go 4-2 to start even without Suzuki.
Stick him on a minimum IL stint and let him rehab and get swings at the complex, and have him ready for the home series against the Pirates on April 10.
I’m sure it will be sunny and 70 in Chicago on April 10th, unless it snows.
Ugh
Good point.
Better a PCL sprain than a PCA sprain. A PCA sprain requires goofy hair and face. Hear those can be a real pain in the arsenal.
Which is worse ACL or PCL?
PCA s worse. Could regress.
Fear of going to Iowa PCL cubs is strain
“There’s an argument to be made, then, that Suzuki has been among the most complete hitters in baseball in recent years.”
“Then” adds nothing to the sentence and only interrupts the syntax. It should be removed to ensure the sentence flows optimally.
The Grammar Division of the SS is currently hiring if you’d like to submit an application.
ICE has a grammar division?