Cubs @ Reds: Series Thread (Games 111-113)

The Cubs and Reds play three this weekend, starting with the 2022 Field of Disappointment Dreams. Following a Friday off, they continue the series with two in Cincinnati. See below for maychups.


Game 111, Thursday, August 11, 6:15 pm central

CHC: LHP Drew Smyly (4-6, 3.97 ERA)

CIN: LHP Nick Lodolo (3-3, 4.40 ERA)


Game 112, Saturday, August 13, 7:40 pm central

CHC: RHP Adrian Sampson (0-3, 3.83 ERA)

CIN: RHP Graham Ashcraft (5-2, 3.94 ERA)


Game 113, Sunday, August 14, 12:40 pm central

CHC: RHP Keegan Thompson (9-5, 3.36 ERA)

CIN: RHP Justin Dunn (0-1, 5.79 ERA)

Comments

lineups out...

madricorn (2nd) - contrercorn (C) - wisdocorn (3rd) - suzukorn (RF) - coerner (SS) - happcorn (LF) - velázmaíz (DH) - higgcorn (1st) - cornel (CF)

contreras is...still in the game?

okay.  wow.  never seen someone go down like that and then go slap on the gear and return to catching a game.

tatis jr popped for PEDs...80 games.

straight up steroids (clostebol), no grey area.  dee gordon got popped with the same thing a few years ago.

2018/19 cubs minor league roster filler wynton bernard made his MLB debut tonight at age 31 for COL.  he turns 32 next month.  he went from 35th round pick, to minor league and indie ball journeyman, to the bigs.

got his first hit (single), followed by a stolen base, and eventually scoring.  ever see parents totally lose it with pride and happiness over something a 31 year old kid is doing?  good stuff.

Color me mildly surprised that no one has yet commented on the Weekend at Bernie's quality Harry Carey hologram leading the 7th inning stretch. I've never seen the old Star Wars Christmas Special but I hope they never show that hologram again, either. 

f.reyes with his 1st homer.

he's hitting well so far.  they still haven't let him play anywhere but DH (4th game).

[ ]

In reply to by JoePepitone

let's go all-in.  have him play SS for 5 innings, then finish out behind the plate.  bat him leadoff.  let's goooooo.

seriously, though...i am ready to see him in the corner OF...especially with the ivy/brick of wrigley.  even with a warning track, that OF wall makes some people timid.

if happ goes in the offseason, i dunno if counting solely on velazquez is a solid idea.  reyes/velazquez seems a bit more comfortable if reyes is able.  reyes at least has a quality arm, though the rest of the D is below average.

[ ]

In reply to by crunch

I was just thinking he's had the kind of year that makes a guy wonder if he's turning into an Addison Russell as he hits 27. Letting him build on some success might be good for his mental approach before taking on more challenges. That being said, I know nothing about the guy, so it's just my WAG (wild-ass guess) about the situation!

[ ]

In reply to by JoePepitone

he has bat/power potential, realized potential.  37 homers in 2019 (548 PA) and 30 in 2021 (466 PA)

that said, he's kinda patrick wisdom-ish with the bat...and that leaves the cubs with 2 patrick wisdom-ish bats...excessive amounts of Ks with above average pop.

the D is just bad.  iffy routes, bad speed...good arm, though.  seen worse in the OF get regular work.

the talk of his quality as a clubhouse presence goes from SD to CLE as above average and should pair well with the energy and enthusiasm of morel.  that's not everything, but it's something.

he could just flame out and be an after-thought before the season is over.  he's a 1.5m experiment to see if it's worth paying him 5m+ next year.  right now the club knows the D is below average and that's mostly set in stone even if tweaked.  he got let go by CLE because the bat was below expectation.  if the bat improves over what he was showing in CLE (the power/hits specifically) then where he plays becomes an issue.  but yeah, prove himself with the bat first and then worry about where he fits on the field vs DH.

It's very possible that after Drew Smyly's outing at the Field of Dreams on Thursday night the Cubs might have received a call from one or more contenders asking the Cubs to place Smyly on Outright Assignment Waivers, with a promise that he would get claimed. 

If that happened and the Cubs agreed to the request, the earliest Smyly could have have been placed on Outright Assignment Waivers would have been 2 PM (Eastern) on Friday 8/12, and if so he would clear waivers at 1 PM (Eastern) on Sunday 8/14 (the waiver ride lasts 47 hours). 

Since waiver claim priority is based upon the standings at 9 AM (Eastern) on the day the player's waiver ride ends, a club could not be sure of being awarded the claim, but as long as at least one club promises to claim the player, the Cubs would get their waiver claiming fee and salary offset no matter who wins the claim. 

The thing is, the Cubs won't place Smyly on waivers until they are sure at least one club will claim him, since he can only be placed on Outright Assignment Waivers one time in August if he is not claimed. Note that if waivers are secured and the player is not claimed, the player does - NOT - have to be outrighted to the minors. In this case, it's just a procedural thing. 

Since they didn't trade him by the MLB Trade Deadline, Smyly getting claimed off waivers is the only way the Cubs can get anything for him (the $50,000 waiver claim fee plus the claiming club assumes 100% of what's left of his salary).

Also, an MLB club or clubs cannot make some kind of side deal with another club to try and manipulate a waiver claim or to add a player or more money to the claim. The waiver claim has to be strictly a waiver claim with no strings attached (just the waiver claim fee plus the claiming club assumes 100% of what remains of the player's salary, plus any future buy-out). 

If Smyly does get claimed off waivers, I would expect Wade Miley to be immediately reinstated from the IL (he threw 66 pitches in a rehab start for AAA Iowa this past Wednesday) and replace Smyly in the Cubs starting rotation, Then if Miley throws a couple of good games in a row like Smyly has, the Cubs could do the waiver wire trick with Miley, too (and Miley is making twice as much as Smyly)...

[ ]

In reply to by Arizona Phil

including the buyout, this would pretty much fund the f.reyes experiment with a bit under a million saved.

im reading conflicting info on whether there was a buyout at contract end (2022)...5.25 total or 4.25 with a 1m buyout on the 2023 payroll.  either way, it would pay for f.reyes the rest of the season with loot left over.

uh oh...rain.

k.thompson is terrible in the rain...small sample size and all, but it's a terrible small sample.

[ ]

In reply to by crunch

31 pitch first.  8 pitches to the first 2 guys, for outs, including a K...then the rain started...walk, then 12 pitches to votto for a pop out.

rain seems to be tapering off.  thompson will go have 2-3 red bulls between innings and get back out there, hopefully without rain.

[ ]

In reply to by crunch

rain stopped, but he walked the first 2 guys in the 2nd on 15 pitches...then a 3 run homer on a 3-2 count, 7 pitches, all the strikes swinging and outside the zone.

batter after that gets a 3-2 count (6th 3-2 count batter in a row), but thompson gets a called strike 3 that wasn't in the zone.

doesn't look like we're getting 5 innings today.

we get 1.2ip...he leaves after 70 pitches with a guy on 2nd (double)

drew rasmussen (TB) is perfect through 8ip vs BAL with only 79 pitches thrown.  wow.

walking y.gomes and c.morel is back-to-back ABs should get a pitcher DFA'd.

31 walks in 489 combined PA for the 2 of them coming into those ABs.

Cubs MLB Roster

Cubs Organizational Depth Chart
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40 players are on the MLB RESERVE LIST (roster is full), plus three are on the 60-DAY IL

26 players are on the MLB ACTIVE LIST, plus two are on the 15-DAY IL, one is on the 10-DAY IL, and eleven are on OPTIONAL ASSIGNMENT to minors  

Last updated 5-25-2023
 
* bats or throws left
# bats both

PITCHERS: 13
Adbert Alzolay
Javier Assad
Jeremiah Estrada
Michael Fulmer
Kyle Hendricks
* Brandon Hughes
Mark Leiter Jr 
Julian Merryweather
Michael Rucker
* Drew Smyly
* Justin Steele 
Marcus Stroman
Jameson Taillon 

CATCHERS: 2
* Tucker Barnhart 
Yan Gomes

INFIELDERS: 7
Nico Hoerner
* Miles Mastrobuoni 
* Matt Mervis
Christopher Morel
* Edwin Rios 
Dansby Swanson
Patrick Wisdom

OUTFIELDERS: 4 
# Ian Happ
Trey Mancini 
Seiya Suzuki
* Mike Tauchman

OPTIONED: 11
Keven Alcantara, OF 
Miguel Amaya, C
Ben Brown, P 
Alexander Canario, OF 
Brennen Davis, OF 
Ryan Jensen, P 
Caleb Kilian, P  
Nick Madrigal, INF 
Keegan Thompson, P 
Nelson Velazquez, OF
Hayden Wesneski, P

10-DAY IL: 1 
* Cody Bellinger, OF 

15-DAY IL: 2 
Brad Boxberger, P 
Nick Burdi, P  

60-DAY IL: 3 
Codi Heuer, P 
Ethan Roberts, P
Adrian Sampson, P 

 




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