There was a sense of excitement in the air today as pitchers and catchers reported to Mesa for the Cubs 2017 Spring Training. The Cubs find themselves in a place that they haven’t been in since the 1909 season — defending World Champions.
In case you’re wondering, the Cubs won 104 games in 1909, but finished second in the National League, 6½ games behind the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Cubs had won the pennant the previous three years and would win it again in 1910.
So, if history holds true, the Cubs will finish second in the NL Central this year before they re-emerge to win the pennant again in 2018 right?
I call bullshit.
There wasn’t a sense of complacency at all during Day 1 of Spring Training and all the players have talked about how great last year was, but are well aware that 2017 is a brand new season. And what better way to get that message across by putting a catch phrase on a t-shirt?
And for once, it’s not an idea by Joe Maddon.
A new message saying that the time has come to officially move on from the 2016 season has now been mentioned by fan favorite Kyle Schwarber.
After the new “Maddonism” was introduced today, Schwarber was asked if he had any ideas for a t-shirt.
Schwarber's new #Cubs t-shirt idea…"turn the page" & put David Ross's face on the back. That was always his catch phrase…not bad🤔
Leave it up to Rossy to be the inspiration for a new t-shirt even after he’s left the team. I have to admit that this is a pretty damn good slogan as most of us Cubs fans are still celebrating 2016. Now that 2017 is officially underway, I think it’s in everyone’s best interest to take heed to Rossy’s famous catch phrase, “turn the page.”
The St. Louis Cardinals received some awful news on their top prospect 22-year-old RHP Alex Reyes, who is undergoing an MRI on his sore elbow and could miss the entire 2017 season.
I am told : Potentially season ending injury for Alex Reyes. Tough tough blown for Cardinals.
Now, the Cardinals are no strangers to injuries in their starting rotation as it seems like the club has been perpetually dealing with one of their aces sustaining a major injury for the last decade. Guys like now retired Chris Carpenter, Adam Wainwright, Michael Wacha, and even Carlos Martinez have all spent time nursing injuries. In 2016 alone, the St. Louis players spent a collective 1228 days on the disabled list, ranking 24th in the baseball according to Baseball Prospectus’ PECOTA.
With Reyes’ entire season in jeopardy, the Cardinals are losing a possible ace and need some starting pitching depth with Lance Lynn being the only pitcher on the roster with real starting experience. And while Lynn adds a level of insurance for the rotation, he’s coming off Tommy John surgery that shut him down for all of 2016 and was not expected to have to contribute right away this season.
The Cardinals No. 2 overall prospect, and No. 81 in top 100, RHP Luke Weaver is close to being MLB-ready as well but he has been slowed down some after sustaining a left wrist fracture at the start of 2016. Most scouts believe Weaver is ready to be a major league pitcher, but if he has a rough spring and needs more time in the minors, the Cardinals have no proven options to turn to.
With all the tremulous injury history St. Louis has dealt with over the last decade, it might make sense for the club to pursue a more reliable option to add to their rotation.
Enter Jose Quintana.
The White Sox have been trying to move the 26-year-old lefty all offseason, and reportedly have come close a few times, but each deal has had GM Rick Hahn fixated on acquiring more elite hitting prospects after stockpiling an incredible amount of talented, young pitching from the Red Sox and Nationals this offseason.
Luck for both clubs, the Cardinals have a few intriguing bats they could dangle in front of Hahn in exchange for Quintana and his incredibly team-friendly contract that has four more years of team control. Now, it would take St. Louis parting with a player like Harrison Bader, Delvin Perez, or possibly breakout catching prospect Carson Kelly to make this deal to come life, but I would find it hard to believe Hahn would turn down a deal centering around any of those three players.
The Cardinals did have a serious log-jam at the starting spot with really seven semi-decent options for their rotation, but losing Reyes is a major blow to St. Louis and to baseball. Regardless, St. Louis needs more stability in their rotation and while they may have a few options to choose from in-house, adding a reliable and cost efficient arm like Jose Quintana to their roster could help soften the blow of losing Reyes. Plus, it would allow the Cardinals to take their time grooming Luke Weaver,
and the White Sox add another promising bat to their offensively starved farm system making this deal on paper a win-win.
But, for now, everything will be put on hold until Reyes is officially done for the season. If the young ace is lost for the entire season, expect the Cardinals to be major players for Jose Quintana as the 2017 season starts to take shape.
The NHL is the fourth most popular major sport and that’s why the league is always striving to improve their product. They’ve realigned the conferences, made overtime 3 on 3 and even decreased the size of goalie’s pads. If the next topic ever gets approved, I believe the NHL playoffs will lose integrity. Thus, turning them into the NBA playoffs.
The latest talks, which are gaining more traction, involve creating a 3-point win system much like that of international play.
If you’re unfamiliar with how it works. It goes like this, three points for a regulation win, two for an overtime or shootout win, one for an overtime or shootout loss, and zero for a regulation loss.
The problem with the current system is that teams start to play safe late in the third period, when games are tied. The theoretical solution is, rewarding a team with an extra point would create incentive to play harder, instead of playing for the “loser’s point” and taking your chances in OT.
False Sense Of Parity
Some sportswriters feel this creates a false sense of parity in the league. The current NHL standings (as of February 13) have 28 of 30 NHL teams are within seven points of a playoff spot.
This seems like it would be a good thing but it creates a false sense of contention and that one point is extremely valuable in a race like this season’s. Coaches like the Blackhawks’ Joel Quenneville calls it “being smart” but San Jose Sharks head coach Peter DeBoer elaborates more.
“Maybe not early in the third, but definitely as the game wears on and you get in the last 10 minutes of the third, it’s impossible not to think that, ‘Hey, we’ll take the point and take our chances in overtime,’” said San Jose Sharks coach Peter DeBoer. “I think everybody does that.”
Organizations are also unwilling to make trades because they are, or believe they are, in the playoff hunt. Giving up your players to trades isn’t very appealing when you can still make the playoffs.
Ability To Make Up Points Faster
The international point system would allow teams to distance themselves from the pack but it would also allow them to make it up faster, according to the Blackhawks’ Stan Bowman.
“They always talk about how it’s going to separate the teams, but you can make up ground quicker. If you win seven games in a row in regulation, that’s a lot better than seven games in a row in overtime. I think it would give teams a hope that you could get hot. There would be more separation, but there also would be hope. Right now, it’s just so hard to make up ground on anybody. Because every night, you can win five in a row and really not move up because other teams are getting points when they’re losing.”
Also a valid point but if it’s harder to make up ground on the lead pack then it sounds like the winners are already being rewarded. I just don’t understand why people are so concerned with the regular season. I’m more concerned about the competition in the playoffs.
Decreased Integrity For NHL Playoffs
The NHL playoffs are the best of any major sport, without question. Every team that makes it, no matter what seed, has a chance to win the Stanley Cup. All it takes is getting hot if you have a poor seed and one player or one goaltender could lead the way to Lord Stanley’s Cup.
The new point system would be great to create excitement during the regular season. It would also allow teams to manufacture trades at the deadline, but it could also eliminate the chance of a Cinderella story. You wouldn’t want to see the key player from a fringe team get traded to an already superior team.
This would create super teams like that of the NBA and eliminate 4-8 seeds from ever winning. For reference, since 2010 only one number one seed has won The Cup and in that time a four, six and eight has won. In the NBA’s history, only two teams lower than a 3-seed have ever won the title.
The current system is working very well and the parity is for real.
I feel morally obligated to begin this article with a cautionary disclaimer that I believe the absolute worst, most inexcusably careless thing the Blackhawks could do this forthcoming deadline is to go all in as they did last season.
Long story short, Andrew Ladd, Tomas Fleischmann, and Dale Weise were monumental disappointments and the young, cost-effective, talented price the Blackhawks paid for this deplorable trio of forwards are now thriving elsewhere for teams not named the Chicago Blackhawks. See Phillip Danault’s production in Montreal this season, for example. The second year center in on pace for about 45 points. The duo of players Danault (and a second round pick) was swapped for in 2015-2016 combined for 52 last season to give some perspective.
Also, I love the talented group of youngsters the Blackhawks have at the moment. With their core players aging closer and closer to the age of colonoscopies with each shift, whether you choose to accept it or not, this group of rookies is the future of the organization. Forgive me for not supporting the idea of swapping this future for a rental you might only get three months out of — if you’re lucky. That said, no rental is worth the names Hartman, Schmaltz, Motte, Pokka, Forsling or Hinostroza
Now that you know my stance on the situation let’s go through some of the names connected with the Blackhawks. I’ll also give my opinion on the probability of the move and an overview of the player and all that fun stuff that’ll be sure to tickle your hockey fancies.
Jarome Iginla
Age: 39
Stats: 7 G, 7 8, -18 +/-.
Cap Hit: $5.33 mil
Probability: 4/10
Overview: No. Please no. But it’s not like my opinion matters, though. It all depends on how much Blackhawks GM Stan Bowman believes the aging, formerly-elite goal scorer has left in the tank. Personally, I believe Iggy to be a cracked, brittle shell of his former self. At this point in his long and illustrious career the only noteworthy aspect that remains of Jarome Iginla is his name. Publicity would be the only reason to go through the trouble of acquiring Iginla. The Blackhawks want championships, not spotlight. Think of the White Sox acquisition of Ken Griffey Jr for perspective.
James van Riemsdyk
Age: 27
Stats: 19 G, 24 A, -3 +/-.
Cap Hit: $4.25 mil
Probability: 2/10
Overview: Boy, the better half of the van Riemsdyk brothers would look nice on a wing beside Jonathan Toews. Unfortunately, he’s got another year remaining on his contract which essentially negates any chance of general management giving serious pursuit. Plus, Toronto is probably going to want a proven defenseman in return for JVR – which the Blackhawks do not have to give.
Gabriel Landeskog
Age: 24
Stats: 11 G, 11 A, -13 +/-.
Cap Hit: $5.57 mil
Probability: 0/10
Overview: Landeskog is a nice, young, power-forward who simply needs a change of scenery. His emancipation from the gutter that has become the Colorado Avalanche will not be through a trade to Chicago, though, as it would be utterly insane for the Blackhawks to add another pricey forward who is signed long-term to their already insolvent books. A “Trade Toews” person honestly has a better chance at splitting the atom or becoming president than the Blackhawks have of landing Landeskog (the latter end of this joke would have been much more effective a year ago). With the rough-and-tumble style of game Landeskog brings to the table, don’t be surprised to see the winger in a Kings or Bruins sweater in the near future.
Radim Vrbata
Age: 35
Stats: 11 G, 25 A, -17 +/-.
Cap Hit: $1 mil
Probability: 8/10
Overview: You heard it here. This is the subtle and safe move I believe the Blackhawks will make on, or shortly before, deadline day. Don’t let the age of the former Blackhawk deceive you. As his numbers prove, Vrbata still has plenty of offensive upside left in the tank. His 35 points currently lead a young Coyotes team that finds itself chained in the basement of the Western Conference. His 12 power play points and 17 minutes per game of ice time particularly stand out. Most importantly, Vrbata is a pending free agent who is making about 1/4th ($1 million) of what players of similar statistical output are making. In other words, the winger, who scored 31 goals just two seasons ago, is cheap, offensively relevant and very available for a team with a rich trading history with the Blackhawks organization. Arizona’s asking price is the only potential deterrence. Personally, I could live with coughing up a second round pick and a middle-tier prospect for Vrbata’s services. Another upside is that Vrbata’s cap hit is so low that a potential coinciding move for a depth defenseman could be made.
Martin Hanzal
Age: 29
Stats: 12 G, 9 A, -16 +/-.
Cap Hit: $3.10 mil
Probability: 5/10
Overview: Another Coyote forward. If I had to choose between Vrbata and Hanzal I’d take latter 99 out of 100 times. He’s big (6’6, 226), he’s versatile, and, most importantly, he’s a very effective two-way center when healthy. Career inconsistencies can be attributed to playing for often-bad teams and frequent injuries. Aside from the noted injuries, another potential red flag could be Arizona’s asking price which is reported to be a bit steeper than the Blackhawks might be able to afford. I’m willing to bet someone pays top dollar for Hanzal.
Patrick Sharp
Age: 35
Stats: 7 G, 6 A, -13 +/-.
Cap Hit: $5.90 mil
Probability: 4/10
Overview: Just the mere mention of a Blackhawks reunion with former fan-favorite Patrick Sharp is enough to make every female die hard between the ages of 16 and 50 tingly inside. Unfortunately for every fanboy out there who, to this day, continues to sport their #10 sweater, it’s probably not going to happen as the Stars are still not quite out of the playoff race. Sharp has a pretty critical role to play in Dallas’ playoff push and unless February proves monumentally disastrous for Lindy Ruff’s squad I don’t see the winger being moved. Sorry, ladies! I know it’s Valentines Day but you’ll just have to settle for your current, disappointing significant others. On top of this I just can’t see the Stars trading within their own division mid-season unless they were getting a hefty return – which the Blackhawks just aren’t going to cough up, I’d hope.
Thomas Vanek
Age: 33
Stats: 14 G, 22 A, 3 +/-.
Probability: 5/10
Cap Hit: $2.60 mil
Overview: I see what you’re doing, Vanek. I see through this resurgent smokescreen you’ve conjured. Well guess what? Stan Bowman isn’t falling for it. Not after the bullshit disappearing act you pulled on Long Island, in Montreal and in Minnesota. You are a living, skating manifestation of Q’s infamous doghouse. You can be someone else’s disappointment for 20-30 tail end games.
Follow me on Twitter @BforanNHL for more hockey related ramblings.
The Sun has reported that terms have been agreed upon for a Floyd Mayweather vs Conor McGregor boxing match. Official terms have not been released yet and the contract remains unsigned because of a third-party hold up. It has been said the fight date could be set in the next couple weeks.
Coming to terms was the hard part for the UFC lightweight champion and the undefeated (49-0) Mayweather. The easy part will be putting on the show for the fans.
Conor McGregor has been preparing for this since last year when he received a boxing license in the state of California and he has also released sparring footage recently. He could just collect a paycheck but it looks like he wants to make this fight legitimate.
Floyd Mayweather feels McGregor has disrespected him because he doesn’t have the resume. Money is a champion many times over with a 49-0 record and has dominated his sport for over 20 years. All this while McGregor has only been relative for less than handful of years.
Whatever happens, it will be the most bought pay per view of all time and both competitors will receive the biggest paychecks of their careers. Add that with all the money changing hands for betting purposes and there will billions of dollars changing hands for this fight.
Hopefully all the antics come before the fight and fans of boxing can enjoy a fight they can be proud of. The only thing that could go wrong is if it turned into Thunderlips Vs Rocky.
CHICAGO, IL - OCTOBER 02: Alshon Jeffery #17 of the Chicago Bears waits to be introduced during player introductions before a game against the Detroit Lions at Soldier Field on October 2, 2016 in Chicago, Illinois. The Bears defeated the Lions 17-14. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)
The Chicago Bears Alshon Jeffery situation is coming to a head. After failing to reach a long-term contract agreement in 2016, it was hoped the franchise tag might be them time to work something out. As the weeks pass by though, the signs are growing that the 26-year old wide receiver may have played his last season in Chicago.
@MikeGarafolo reporting that #Bears offered WR Alshon Jeffery around $12M per year last year. Talks never really progressed.
The Bears seems to think Jeffery isn’t worth top five money, which goes above the $15 million per year mark. His camp seems to disagree. Both sides have their points. When thrown to often enough in a game, Jeffery has that ability to take over drives, quarters and halves out of nowhere. Then again he continues to struggle staying healthy and didn’t help his cause by getting suspended for a PED violation.
Throw in the fact that he wasn’t drafted by GM Ryan Pace and it’s understandable why the two sides haven’t found common ground. Perhaps there may yet be hope for something to get worked out, but the number of doubts are growing. Could this be a colossal blunder in the making for Chicago?
After sitting out the Bulls’ lopsided loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday, Dwyane Wade sat down with Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical for the latest episode of his podcast. They talked about everything, ranging from the creation of the original “Big Three” in Miami to Wade’s thoughts on being back home in a violence-stricken Chicago.
Dwyane also offered up his thoughts on what exactly will go into his offseason decision regarding his player option. Will the comfort of being back home in Chicago be enough to keep him with the Bulls? Or will he look for a more likely championship contender, perhaps with one of his guys from the “Banana Boat Crew”? Speaking of which, Wade gives his funny take on the origin of that nickname.
Here are some of the best quotes from Wade’s interview with Woj:
The Unexpected
Woj asked Wade if his first season with the Bulls has been a greater struggle than he anticipated.
“I didn’t really have a lot of expectations because I didn’t know the guys on the team. I played against a few of them, I knew they were young. So I needed to get into training camp, I needed to get around them before I had expectations…Once I got into it I realized we have myself, Rondo who’s won a championship, and then we have Jimmy who’s made himself an All Star in this league. But outside of that, it’s a lot of guys that don’t have any experience. This isn’t even playoff experience, this is just basketball experience… I knew it was going to take a while. And you just hope to hit a stride at some point. That’s your goal. When you’re with a new team…you hope that you guys figure out your game, you figure out what it takes to win. And ya’ll can finally hit that stride at some point throughout the year. There’s still time. You hope you can still do it, but time does tick away on you too. I’ve been on teams where the clock ticked out on us.” – Dwyane Wade
Sounds like Wade is aware that the Bulls (26-29) are flirting with the clock ticking out on their season. But, as he said in his introductory press conference, this is a young and inexperienced team. Championship contention was never a reality this season.
Chicago’s very own Chance the Rapper became the first independent artist in Grammy history win an award, after the South-Side product took home three Grammys yesterday, all while making all his music free to the public.
While it may be hard to believe that there are people who didn’t know about the now superstar rapper before last night, but “Chano’s” rise has been meteoric since truly breaking onto the scene in 2014 with his 2nd mixtape, Acid Rap.
So, being the self-titled giant Chance fan that I am, I figured I’d try to let the public try and appreciate everything I love about my favorite artist currently. Here’s my list of ten things most people don’t know about Chance the Rapper.
Now, two more names have been thrown into the Bulls’ trade bait waters: Doug McDermott and Robin Lopez. Moments ago, Michael Scotto of Basketball Insiders reported that the Bulls are exploring the trade market for both players, hoping to land a first round pick for either.
Know Your Personnel
Let’s break this down by individual.
Robin
Testing the trade market for Lopez makes sense. He’s performing admirably for Chicago since arriving in the Derrick Rose trade last summer. He’s a stellar offensive rebounder, and his scoring skillset inside the arc is underrated. The big man also has two team-friendly years remaining on his current contract. Unlike his fellow frontcourt veteran Gibson, Lopez provides potential suitors with some guaranteed longevity in their team’s plans.
Speaking of that frontcourt, trading Lopez would open up opportunities for younger guys on this Bulls roster. Let’s say GarPax trade Robin but keep Taj. They could play Taj almost exclusively at center, going with more of a small-ball lineup. Cristiano Felicio could keep his minutes as the backup center, and Bobby Portis could finally get real minutes playing the four. The 2015 first round draft pick is enduring a down year, mostly because he’s averaging just 11.8 minutes per game in Fred Hoiberg’s ever-changing rotation.
Portis might not be what the Bulls thought he was when they called him “a steal” two years ago, but they won’t know if they don’t play him. Use the back end of an already-dead season to see if Bobby has potential and is worth a continued investment of time and money.
Doug
Similarly, the Bulls could give rookie Denzel Valentine more minutes in March and April if they trade McDermott. The Sparty kid is trapped behind too many guards in the backcourt, but he might be capable of playing small forward in the NBA. Like dealing Lopez and playing Taj at the five, this fits with a small ball lineup. Isn’t that what Hoiberg should be using if he wants to play with pace and space? (Hint: that’s a rhetorical question. The answer is yes.)
Unfortunately for GarPax, the market might not be big enough for either player right now. There’s a higher demand for power forwards than centers league-wide, and McDermott is a defensive liability who’s currently in a shooting slump. It’s a huge drag when you remember the Bulls gave up not only two first round picks, but also two second round picks to get Doug in 2014. He hasn’t developed into a player worthy of that investment, and it would be very surprising to see any team offer the Bulls one first round pick for Doug three years later.
If either player gets moved, I’d say Robin is the more likely candidate. Then again, the Bulls could trade Taj instead. In that case, they might decide to keep Robin as the veteran they need to help mentor and develop the younger guys in the frontcourt.
Follow @Bulls_Peck on Twitter for the latest Bulls updates as we approach the NBA trade deadline.
Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo (9) celebrates after scoring a touchdown on fourth down in a game against the New York Giants in the second half of NFL football action at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas Sunday, October 28, 2012. Cowboys lost to the Giants 29-24. (Vernon Bryant/The Dallas Morning News)
All a team can ask for in regards to their pursuit of a starting quarterback is that they at least have options. Too many times in the past, the Chicago Bears have picked the worst years to have a need for a new signal caller. Years like 2003 when the selections were beyond slim. Yet they couldn’t ignore the need any longer, so they went with the best guy they could get in Rex Grossman.
He got them to a Super Bowl, but he was nowhere close to what the franchise has needed for decades. Now GM Ryan Pace is about to take his turn, and some fear he faces the same exact predicament as his predecessors. He just hasn’t picked the best off-season to find “that guy.” The quarterback he can build his envisioned team around.
Often in these situations a GM may have to get creative with his solutions. The best methods involve not one quarterback, but two. A quarterback to solve the immediate problem of having to win and another with eyes towards the future. It’s been done before, but is difficult to pull off. Luckily the Bears may be getting some help.
