MLB News Outside The Confines: Get your free agency shopping lists ready
Good morning.
about 1 month ago | 0 reads
Bleed Cubbie Blue
A Chicago Cubs Fan Community Since February 9, 2005
Latest Entries
Chicago Cubs history unpacked, November 7 — Hornsby, Beckert, Sutter, Garciaparra
The Rajah arrives, Glenn Beckert packs his bags for San Diego, Bruce Sutter wins the Cy Young, Nomar Garciaparra* heads for Chicago, and other stories. On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, Bleed Cubbie Blue is pleased to present a Cubs-centric look at baseball’s colorful past. Here’s a handy Cubs timeline, to help you follow the various narrative paths. “Maybe I […]
about 1 month ago | 2 reads
Kyle Tucker wins NL Silver Slugger Award
As the Cubs make a qualifying offer to Kyle Tucker that he will almost certainly decline, he takes home some hardware: Even while missing time with some injuries, Tucker batted .266/.377/.464 with 22 home runs and 25 stolen bases in 136 games for the Cubs. It was a calculated risk for Jed Hoyer to trade […]
about 1 month ago | 1 read
Cubs make qualifying offers to Kyle Tucker and Shōta Imanaga
Thursday was the deadline for teams to make qualifying offers to their players who are free agents and the Cubs did so for two such players. Kyle Tucker was an obvious choice to make the offer of $22.025 million. Just as obvious is the fact that he’ll turn it down and head toward another team […]
about 1 month ago | 1 read
Cubs walkoff heroes: Willie Smith, April 8, 1969
A version of this story originally ran April 8, 2019, the 50th anniversary of this historic event. I repost it here as part of this walkoff wins series, with some minor edits and a few notes on Willie Smith’s career. To understand the true meaning of Willie Smith’s walkoff two-run homer on April 8, 1969, […]
about 1 month ago | 1 read
Cubs, Colin Rea agree to one-year deal for 2026
The Cubs had a one-year, $6 million option for Colin Rea for 2026. They’re going to keep him for next year, but on a different deal: So that’s a slight increase in his 2026 salary from the previous option year, and if Rea does well enough in 2026, the team can keep him for 2027 […]
about 1 month ago | 1 read
Cubs free agent target: Michael King
Let’s shift gears a bit here and talk about the exact sort of free agent Cubs President of Baseball Operations Jed Hoyer seems to like to go after. Mid-range starter? Check. Injury history? Check. Had some success that could be built on? Sure. Michael King had several good years as a reliever/spot starter for the […]
about 1 month ago | 1 read
Chicago Cubs news and notes: Imanaga, Tucker, free agency, CBA
We cover the coverage like PCA covers center field. Ryan Brasier, Willi Castro, Aaron Civale, Brad Keller. Drew Pomeranz, Taylor Rogers, Carlos Santana, Mike Soroka, Caleb Thielbar, and Kyle Tucker have declared Free Agency. I’d bring three of them back. Your mileage may vary. The answer from my end is Keller, Pomeranz, Thielbar… with Thielbar […]
about 1 month ago | 1 read
Cubs BCB After Dark: Will Shōta Imanaga be a Cub in 2026?
It’s Wednesday here at BCB After Dark, the coolest club for night owls, early risers, new parents and Cubs fans abroad. Come on in out of the cold. We can check that coat for you. It’s always good to see you. There’s no cover charge. There are still a few tables available. Bring your own […]
about 1 month ago | 3 reads
Cubs walkoff heroes: Lindy McDaniel, June 6, 1963
EDITOR’S NOTE: A version of this article originally ran on the 60th anniversary of this game, in 2023. I’m reposting it, lightly edited, as part of the walkoff wins series. 1963 was a watershed year for the Chicago Cubs. The widely-mocked College of Coaches was quietly ended. Bob Kennedy led the team for the entire […]
about 1 month ago | 2 reads
Here is the Cubs 2026 Spring Training schedule
The 2025 MLB season just ended with a great World Series Game 7 last Saturday. Now it’s time to talk spring! As of the date of this post, we are just 107 days away from the Cubs’ Spring Training opener against the White Sox. Included in the 18-game Sloan Park home schedule is an exhibition […]
about 1 month ago | 2 reads
Cubs free agent target: Eugenio Suárez
You might say: “But the Cubs already have a third baseman!” Yes, they do. Matt Shaw did a credible job at third base, a position that wasn’t his original one. He did well enough with the glove to be a Gold Glove “finalist,” and posted 3.1 bWAR, which is very good for a rookie season […]
about 1 month ago | 1 read
MLB News: World Series, free agency predictions, Yu Darvish, Shohei Ohtani
The countdown is on for one of the biggest moments of the offseason. Not only are we coming up on all the major awards of the season, which will be given over the next two week, tomorrow free agency officially opens and the hot stove will be hotter than ever. There will be plenty of […]
about 1 month ago | 0 reads
Chicago Cubs history unpacked, November 5 — Johnson, Root and LaHair
On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, Bleed Cubbie Blue is pleased to present a Cubs-centric look at baseball’s colorful past. Here’s a handy Cubs timeline, to help you follow the various narrative paths. “Maybe I called it wrong, but it’s official.” — Tom Connolly, HoF Umpire. Happy birthday to Bryan LaHair, one-time Cubs All-Star! Today in baseball history: Cubs Birthdays: Charlie Newman, […]
about 1 month ago | 1 read
Cubs BCB After Dark: Should the Cubs pick up the option on Colin Rea?
Thanks for stopping by here at BCB After Dark: the hippest afterparty for night owls, early risers, new parents and Cubs fans abroad. It’s always good to see you. Come in out of the cold. There’s no cover charge. We still have a few tables available. The hostess will seat you now. Bring your own […]
about 1 month ago | 1 read
Cubs trade Andrew Kittredge to Orioles
The Cubs acquired Andrew Kittredge from the Orioles at last July’s trade deadline for minor leaguer Wilfri De La Cruz, who has yet to play in North America (he was with the Cubs’ Dominican Summer League team). Kittredge played well for the Cubs in his two months on the North Side, posting a 3.32 ERA […]
about 1 month ago | 2 reads
Cubs walkoff heroes: Gabby Hartnett, September 28, 1938
Gabby Hartnett’s famous “Homer In The Gloamin’” is not just the most famous walkoff home run in Cubs history — maybe the most famous Cubs homer, period — it’s one of the top walkoff home runs in all of MLB history, at least in a regular-season game. The BilL Mazeroski homer that won the 1960 […]
about 1 month ago | 1 read
A look at the ABS challenge system in the Arizona Fall League
MESA, Arizona — I attended the Mesa Solar Sox game Sunday at Sloan Park. Like most AFL games, many attendees were family members of friends of the players and scouts. There were a few of us there who were just plain ol’ baseball fans wanting to get more of the sport after the World Series […]
about 1 month ago | 0 reads
The Cubs have declined Shōta Imanaga’s option. He’s a free agent
There is surprising news today about Japanese left-hander Shōta Imanaga, and I call him “Japanese” instead of “Cubs” because… So as of today, Imanaga is a free agent. For the first season and a half of his time with the Cubs, Imanaga was one of the better pitchers in the National League. He was an […]
about 1 month ago | 2 reads
Chicago Cubs news and notes: PCA, Happ, Hoerner, Free Agency.
Ryan Brasier, Willi Castro,, Aaron Civale, Brad Keller. Drew Pomeranz, Taylor Rogers, Carlos Santana, Mike Soroka, Caleb Thielbar, and Kyle Tucker have declared Free Agency. I’d bring three of them back. Your mileage may vary. We cover the coverage like PCA covers center field. Like Ian Happ covers left. Like Nico Hoerner covers short. *means autoplay […]
about 1 month ago | 2 reads
Cubs BCB After Dark: Should the Cubs sign Kazuma Okamoto?
It’s the first week of the offseason here at BCB After Dark: the hippest hangout for night owls, early risers, new parents and Cubs fans abroad. Please come in out of the cold. We’re open for business. There’s no cover charge. The dress code is casual. The hostess will season you now. Bring your own […]
about 1 month ago | 1 read
Cade Horton is a NL Rookie of the Year finalist
This news was expected, and today, Major League Baseball made it official. Cubs right-hander Cade Horton is a National League Rookie of the Year “finalist”: Just to make it clear: There isn’t another election. The “finalists” are simply the players who were the top three vote-getters in the award voting that was completed when the […]
about 1 month ago | 1 read
Cubs walkoff heroes: Kiki Cuyler, August 31, 1932
Today, as the baseball offseason begins, I’m beginning a series on great Cubs walkoff wins. Instead of focusing just on the win, though, these will focus on the individual responsible for the win, in this case Kiki Cuyler, who’s a member of the Baseball Hall of Fame, though largely forgotten today. And so this isn’t […]
about 1 month ago | 1 read
Cubs in the AFL: Mesa Solar Sox Week 4 Update
Every Monday is an off-day in the Arizona Fall League, so it’s an excellent time to check in on how the Cubs Boys of Autumn are doing out in the desert with the Mesa Solar Sox. The Solar Sox had their best week of the season so far, going 5-1 and currently sport a four-game […]
about 1 month ago | 1 read
Cubs free agent target: Kyle Tucker
I’m going to preface this by saying that you know it as well as I do: The Cubs aren’t going to retain Kyle Tucker. That seems completely obvious to anyone who’s followed Tucker’s saga from being traded to the Cubs last winter, to becoming a free agent the day after the World Series ended. Why […]
about 1 month ago | 1 read