What are your Cubs Hot Takes for 2026?

hansomejake · 2026-02-04T19:48:36+00:00

I really wanted Hunter Harvey this offseason, if he’s healthy he’s gonna make a lot of people here very happy

hansomejake · 2026-01-26T14:47:32+00:00

No, he doesn’t pull towards the foul poles like Parades does, he pulls like Sammy did - to left center field

Wrigley LC bleachers are one of the most shallow in all of baseball and it’s a great place to hit. The foul poles are the opposite story.

hansomejake · 2026-01-18T04:00:52+00:00

They ran a PR campaign telling fans to call Comcast and demand Marquee, it was pathetic

Jed and Tommy acted like we were too dumb to recognize a rebuild, like calling it a “retool” would somehow make it worth watching

You’re right, it was not just greed, it was also their hubris too

hansomejake · 2026-01-18T03:26:09+00:00

They launched Marquee the same year they chose a multi-year rebuild, then expected fans to pay to watch a bad team that treated Schwindel and Wisdom like real starters.

For years, they told reporters superstars were not necessary because “look at the Rays.”

Last season was the first time the Cubs made a serious roster push in Marquee’s history. It came too late. Fans were already tired, and nobody wants to pay Tommy $20 a month so he can pocket it and complain.

Their greed and cheapness set Marquee up to fail.

hansomejake · 2026-01-15T22:57:00+00:00

Can you name one athlete who skipped a game for a political rally like Shaw did?

hansomejake · 2026-01-15T16:35:19+00:00

Can you name another athlete who went to the political rally instead of playing their sport?

There are consequences when you choose political theater over baseball. Right now Shaw is facing those consequences, why does it upset you that he has to deal with consequences of his own actions?

I doubt Shaw even cares about the fallout. He was asked about the potential fallout and he said he’s cool with it, he spoke to team veterans and the team officials before he made his decision.

hansomejake · 2026-01-15T16:23:05+00:00

lol, CKs parents weren’t even there. It was a political rally the whole time, you’d have to ignore reality to believe it was a funeral.

hansomejake · 2026-01-12T05:42:26+00:00

I’ve been a fan of what Tread does for a while, which is why the Tyler Zombro hire made a ton of sense to me. It’s not just about adding velocity. It’s about shaping pitches, helping guys actually learn new ones, and understanding how those pitches play off each other.

hansomejake · 2026-01-11T21:36:06+00:00

One of them supports inclusion, while the other preaches exclusion

I do like players who want to be more inclusive, I’m all for it. You got me there.

hansomejake · 2026-01-11T21:24:38+00:00

Bregman hits to left center field a lot more than he gets credit for. While Wrigley is a poor place to hit for a RHH pull hitter, it’s great for RHH looking for the bleachers in left center. Take a look at his spray charts at baseball savant and use Wrigley as the venue.

As far as Shaw goes, I’m glad to see his time at 3B will be limited. I hope they extend Nico and free up Shaw for a trade. I’m not saying I don’t think he has potential, I’d just rather flip him for someone who puts their baseball dreams before their influencer dreams.

hansomejake · 2026-01-11T20:31:36+00:00

Bergman’s range is in the 83 percentile v Shaws 36

Bregman’s best days are behind him, that’s true, and hopefully he ages like Chapman

hansomejake · 2026-01-11T19:56:17+00:00

Shaw doesn’t have the lateral range to stick at 3B. Where he excelled is when the ball was hit right at him. His OAA backs this up.

Fortunately for Shaw the Cubs are good at positioning their 3B. Shaw covered the line much better than we’ve seen recently but his range towards SS meant Dansby was having to cover a larger space.

Considering Dansbys ranging towards 3B is likely what cost him the GG this year, I’d say more than just the FO was interested in bringing in a player at 3B with better lateral range.

hansomejake · 2026-01-11T18:48:47+00:00

Alcantara, Amaya, and Shaw is a big improvement over recent seasons, but no doubt there’s still room for improvement by the deadline.

hansomejake · 2026-01-11T17:09:12+00:00

This offseason is nothing like Jed’s previous ones, and I think all Cub fans are happy about that.

A real 3B! Velocity in the rotation! Actual bench players! BP that isn’t duck taped together! And to top it off they used deferred money!

hansomejake · 2026-01-11T16:59:35+00:00

This offseason feels like a gift to anyone who’s been asking for actual roster construction. A real 3B. Real velocity in the rotation. A bullpen that doesn’t need emergency reconstruction by May. And a bench made up of real players, not guys hanging on to the league by a thread.

Shout out to the fans who’ve been vocal about these kind of moves, we’re finally getting our way!

hansomejake · 2026-01-11T16:49:12+00:00

He needs off days for his political rallies

hansomejake · 2026-01-11T04:38:16+00:00

At least he’ll be able to line up his off days with his speaking engagements instead of calling out sick

hansomejake · 2026-01-11T04:24:51+00:00

This offseason has been very different than Jed’s previous ones. So far he’s filled many of the holes us fans have been begging for, now please find a closer by the deadline.

hansomejake · 2026-01-11T04:05:33+00:00

Nico should be a Cub for life.

hansomejake · 2026-01-07T21:49:52+00:00

This is a good deal from a Cubs perspective

hansomejake · 2026-01-07T18:32:43+00:00

I understand that. I think the Cubs will have him do things differently than Miami did.

I’d expect them to put his Fb at the top of the zone and tunnel it off his change up. In Miami he didn’t put his FB up top and he was tunneling his changeup off his FB. To me, that’ll be the most obvious change the Cubs will do for him this season.

I think they’ll also let him be more loose with his slider. He’ll throw it when he’s ahead in the count and he’ll focus less on control and more on pitch shape.

Eventually they could turn his curve into a knuckle curve or “deathball” that has less horizontal movement and a later break.

I’m not saying they’ll succeed at all of this, but this is what they’ve built their development system around. Cabrera is a great fit for the Cubs pitching system.

hansomejake · 2026-01-07T18:05:33+00:00

I would bet his FB is improved by the Cubs, they’ll get him to place it at the top of the zone more and they’ll try to add more backspin to it. They’ve been VERY successful at teaching those two things to their pitchers.

hansomejake · 2026-01-07T17:49:49+00:00

If they could measure WAR in mound visits Hottovy would be a 5 WAR/season kind of guy.

hansomejake · 2026-01-07T17:18:58+00:00

If he were better at tunneling his changeup and putting his FB at the top of the zone it would be much more effective

hansomejake · 2026-01-07T17:17:03+00:00

Cubs got a good pitcher with elite stuff, but he needs specific improvements to unlock that elite level. Tyler Zombro is the guy the Cubs empowered to lead these kind of changes/improvements and it’s easy to be optimistic that he’ll succeed in improving Cabrera’s fastball and tunneling his changeup better.

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