A Chicago Cubs Fan Community Since February 9, 2005
Here we have a photo of Ron Santo and Rusty Staub, two players who were significant contributors to their teams for many years. Santo’s in the Hall of Fame, as you all know. Staub played 23 MLB seasons and is definitely a Hall of Very Good player, with 2,716 career hits, 292 home runs and […]
12 days ago | 1 read
We cover the coverage like PCA covers center field. MLB ‘insiders’ are everywhere, fighting the clickbait for space in the attention economy. It seems like that term refers to anyone who ever watched a major league game from a pressbox. And these yutzes refer to each other for confirmation and the A. I. articles quote […]
12 days ago | 0 reads
Here is a more recent Cubs photo, sent to me by BCB reader Clark Addison. What do we know about this photo? It’s 2015, because the “14” patch honoring Ernie Banks was worn only in that season. You’ll recognize, of course, Joe Maddon, Javier Báez and Anthony Rizzo. But who are the catcher and the […]
13 days ago | 0 reads
Happy Friday, everyone! We hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving and are recovering from your food coma. Now, before you get into your Black Friday shopping, we have a little bit of a news post to start your day. There’s a little bit of everything, but of course, the biggest news is one of the […]
13 days ago | 0 reads
Taylor Davis has his EYE on you, and other stories. Happy birthday, Taylor! 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. Today in […]
13 days ago | 0 reads
Thanksgiving greetings to everyone, and I hope this holiday finds you healthy and happy and spending the day with friends and family. For your entertainment today, Marquee Sports Network has you covered (all times Central): schedule I am thankful for all of you and the great community you have made here at Bleed Cubbie Blue. […]
14 days ago | 0 reads
We cover the coverage like PCA covers center field. Ryan Helsley? Edwin Diaz? These are two of the names floating out there in the aether as the Cubs cast their net for next year’s relief corps with an eye toward qualifying for the postseason and garnering some of that sweet postseason lucre. This is supposing […]
14 days ago | 1 read
It’s the night before Thanksgiving here at BCB After Dark: the coolest club for night owls, early risers, new parents and Cubs fans abroad. Come on in and have a pre-holiday beverage with us. It’s cold out there, but it’s warm in here. We still have a couple of tables available and none of them […]
15 days ago | 1 read
When Jon Lester came to the Cubs, he was a terrible hitter. No, seriously. He had gone 0-for-36 in his American League career, and that carried over to his first year with the Cubs in 2015. Lester went 0-for-30 in his first 16 Cubs starts, finally breaking that 0-fer with a single off his friend […]
15 days ago | 1 read
George Altman, one of several Black players signed to the Cubs by famed scout/coach Buck O’Neil, has died, aged 92. Altman had two outstanding years for the Cubs, in 1961 and 1962. In 1961, he batted .303/.353/.560 with 27 home runs and played in both All-Star Games that year (for four years from 1959-62, MLB […]
15 days ago | 0 reads
MacKenzie Gore was one of the starting pitchers most mentioned in trade rumors last July. In the end, just as was the case for every big-name starting pitcher, he wasn’t traded, largely because it was perceived that the Nationals were asking for more in return than teams were willing to give. Gore had good numbers […]
15 days ago | 2 reads
In the last collective-bargaining agreement, MLB owners agreed to create a bonus pool of money to be paid to certain players not eligible for arbitration. Each team contributes $1,666,667 to the pool, making a total of $50 million to be distributed among eligible pre-arb players. Pre-arb players eligible for this pool receive $2.5 million for […]
15 days ago | 0 reads
Good morning. The Cold Stove League is thawing.
15 days ago | 0 reads
Happy birthday to Matt Garza* and other former Cubs! 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. Today in baseball history: Cubs Birthdays: […]
15 days ago | 1 read
It’s Tuesday evening here at BCB After Dark: the hippest hole-in-the-wall for night owls, early risers, new parents and Cubs fans abroad. Come on in and sit with us for a while. Get warm. We can take your coat for you. There’s no cover charge. The hostess will seat you now. Bring your own beverage. […]
16 days ago | 1 read
One of the secrets of the 2025 Cubs success was above average production from just about every position on the diamond. That includes catcher, where Carson Kelly, Miguel Amaya and Reese McGuire combined to put up 4.2 fWAR last season. You can see FanGraphs’ summary of production by player position and role at this link. […]
16 days ago | 1 read
The last weekend of May 2015 was unseasonably cool and rainy in Chicago. When the Cubs defeated the Royals at Wrigley Field May 31, the game-time temperature was just 47 degrees — that’s almost 30 degrees below the average high for the date, 75. And the game the day before had been rained out. The […]
16 days ago | 2 reads
Let’s pivot from looking at possible Cubs free agent signings and instead, check out some starting pitchers who will likely be available by trade. Some of these guys were the same starters that many teams, including the Cubs, tried to acquire at last summer’s deadline. Exactly zero of these pitchers were traded, reportedly because the […]
16 days ago | 3 reads
We cover the coverage like PCA covers center field. It gets old, repeating the same non-news every day, or every other day. The nature of this team’s management group means that they’re frustrating to root for. But nonetheless we persist, and try to err on the positive side, if possible. Several sources report that Evan […]
16 days ago | 1 read
It’s another week here at BCB After Dark: the coolest club for night owls, early risers, new parents and Cubs fans abroad. We’re so glad you decided to stop by. It’s always good to see a friendly face. There’s no cover charge. We still have a few tables available. Let us know if you need […]
17 days ago | 1 read
The Cubs today announced that infielder Jonathon Long was the winner of the Buck O’Neil Cubs Minor League Player of the Year and that right-hander Jostin Florentino was the Vedie Himsl Cubs Minor League Pitcher of the Year. Long, 23, was a ninth-round pick out of Long Beach State in 2023. In his third season […]
17 days ago | 1 read
The stove is hot and even the normally cautious Cubs front office is getting in on the early moves, signing righthander Phil Maton (first noted by Michael Cerami) to a two-year deal, with an option for at third year, on Friday. Maton will turn 33 before the season starts and has bounced around the league […]
17 days ago | 2 reads
The Cubs were in the midst of a pretty dismal season, their third losing year in a row. They were 18 games under .500 at 43-61 and 14.5 games out of first place when they hosted the Rockies in the second of a three-game series under the lights on a Tuesday. This game started out […]
17 days ago | 0 reads
This look is so early that we don’t have a salary number to add for Phil Maton, who the Cubs were reported to have signed late last Friday. We’ll do more of these as the offseason continues, and at some point someone will report what Maton will be getting in his two-year deal (with a […]
17 days ago | 0 reads
Well, the MLB non-tender deadline has passed, and with it, some interesting new names have been added to free agency. It also means that teams can now really begin trading and signing players in earnest. The Mets and Rangers wasted little time getting some big names moving, as they put together a Marcus Semien/Brandon Nimmo […]
17 days ago | 1 read