Are the Cubs showing more interest in Cespedes than anyone else?
Interesting...
I would love to see it, and it would make sense. I know the team seems to be conserving resources, but, the payroll projects to be way down from last year. Could this be the signing they have been saving their pennies for?
4 months ago
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Summary:
From reading some translations it looks like the Cespedes is quoted as saying the Cubs have shown more interest in him than other teams. They have taken him out to dinner multiple times etc.
Eamus Ursuli!
Aha - I guess the old saying is true then... "The way to a Cuban's bat is through his stomach."
Lou Brown: "My kinda team, Charlie, my kinda team..."
Maybe they should bring back these uni's
Might make these guys feel more at home uniform wise
Eamus Ursuli!
Heh.
Never liked those road uni’s, but it probably would.
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I'm going to venture a guess that the only thing that would make him home sick...
…is not being able to see his family. That’s mostly the reason why Cubans defect .
Guys, hitting is not about muscle. It's simple physics. Calculate the velocity, v, in relation to the trajectory, t, in which g, gravity, of course remains a constant.... It's not complicated. - George Costanza
Q 1
Theo “How do you get along with Jorge Soler?”
10-25-2011. Theo Epstein joins the Cubs. Now, the fun begins.
I'd rather the Cubs sign Soler over Cespedes
He’s younger and closer in age to the rest of what the Cubs hope will be there core for the next 10 years in Castro, Rizzo, & BJax……..
ditto
"You win because of the quarterback. We have to get that position stabilized. We're fixated on that." -- Jerry Angelo (12.30.2008)
Jerry Angelo trades for Jay Cutler! (4.2.2009)
Cespedes also has a .067 avg in 15 ab's with 5 K's
Sounds like it may take a while for him to get ready for major league pitching. I really think whoever takes him will be making a HUGE gamble, especially if he gets the $50 million they’re speculating he could get.
A LO PROFUNDOOO...NOO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NOO...DIGALE QUE NO A ESA PELOTA!!!
GANAN LOS CACHORROS DE CHICAGO!!
by Azul Cachorro on Jan 17, 2012 9:22 AM CST up reply actions
Eh, small sample size.
Where have you gone, Kiko Calero. A nation turns its lonely eyes to you.
Still
… he’s not facing MLB-quality pitching, either.
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15 ABs?
That’s nothing.
Where have you gone, Kiko Calero. A nation turns its lonely eyes to you.
True.
But 1-for-15 with 5 K’s against less-than-MLB pitching?
I think I’d wait and see for a little longer.
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That's what I'm somewhat worried about
I think he should adjust soon, but one still needs to be cautious about an extended period of waiting for him to make the necessary adjustments to even be an average player.
A LO PROFUNDOOO...NOO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NOO...DIGALE QUE NO A ESA PELOTA!!!
GANAN LOS CACHORROS DE CHICAGO!!
by Azul Cachorro on Jan 17, 2012 11:13 AM CST up reply actions
No question.
I’m not saying TheoJed should pull the trigger — just that they shouldn’t write him off based on 15 ABs.
Where have you gone, Kiko Calero. A nation turns its lonely eyes to you.
I agree with you
Especially since it’s been so long since he’s seen game action. It’s been what, 9 months?
While you’d like to see him do well, it’s not the end of the world if he doesn’t.
I don't think he'll get $50 million
But $30-35 million is realistic.
by Josh Timmers on Jan 17, 2012 10:03 AM CST up reply actions
5 @$30
~Ronald Reagan has held the two most demeaning jobs in the country; President of the United States and radio broadcaster for the Chicago Cubs~ George F. Will
by unretrofied93 on Jan 17, 2012 5:59 PM CST up reply actions
I tend to agree, depending on the price of Cespedes.
Where have you gone, Kiko Calero. A nation turns its lonely eyes to you.
I read this article
Cespedes is basically saying the Cubs have shown the most interest in him out of any other club, but that he’s not signing with the Cubs just yet. This interested was augmented by the fact the Cubs’ Dominican director of operations, Jose Serra, was there.
Sounds as if he’s trying to raise the bids for him. According to Cespedes, the six teams interested in him are the Cubs, White Sox, Tigers, Orioles, Marlins, and Indians.
His visa status is also close to being dealt with, so he should start receiving serious offers soon.
A LO PROFUNDOOO...NOO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NOO...DIGALE QUE NO A ESA PELOTA!!!
GANAN LOS CACHORROS DE CHICAGO!!
he might be trying to raise the bids
but not necessarily. Like he claims, he may just be telling it like it is. This seems to be pretty standard FA speak, but i still think its intriguing that the Cubs are clearly grabbing his attention/stand out to him.
All that said, I personally only approve of signing him if Soler comes with. I also don’t care how much they both cost, as long as we get both or just Soler.
"I'll play any day. I don't care if I'm 0-for-30, playing baseball is my PASSION. I'll go out and play." - Geo Soto
He's not allowed to sign with anyone yet
He has yet to clear the paperwork with MLB to have him declared a free agent. That kind of stuff can take a while, but it should be finished in the next few weeks or so.
by Josh Timmers on Jan 17, 2012 10:04 AM CST up reply actions
I think teams will shy away, at least from the big contract the way he is hitting right now.
Could the Cubs be trying to cultivate a home discount of such, make him feel comfortable and buy low?
We'll miss you Big Boy. #10 is going into the Hall of Fame!!
this could also be the Cubs posturing for Soler.
drive the price up on other teams thinking the cubs are in big time, and they swoop in behind the scenes and lock down Soler. who knows. also, did anyone else notice the article referred to Cespedes as 27 years old?
Most of the new numbers I'm reading are in the $6-7 million range
Annually, of course. That’s CoCo Crisp or Marlon Byrd money. Doesn’t have to be anywhere near an All-Star to make that contract pay. A player that is a 2.5 Win guy every year of that contract has the team coming out well ahead in that deal.
Generally I would agree with your analysis - but Cespedes is much higher risk
Crisp and Byrd have much narrower possible outcomes – if they are healthy a team knows what they are getting. Cespedes still has a substantail possibility of being a 100% bust – he has never been tried against MLB pitching and is coming in at an age without physical upside. To compensate for the risk, he had better be something really special.
The only risk is money....
which we have plenty of…if he ends up getting a deal worth 30-40 million or so over a long deal..It’s not really a bad signing even if he completely busts. We took a risk on an investment that could be big time and only spent money..not really a way we can lose unless he costs much more than that. That being said..I’m not big on him, but I won’t be upset. Soler >>>>> Cespedes, IMO, however.
If Soler goes first, and we get him
scratch Cespedes
10-25-2011. Theo Epstein joins the Cubs. Now, the fun begins.
The risk is outweighed by the possible reward
It’s possible Cespedes is a 5 Win player, just as it’s likely he’s a 1 Win player. More likely than either, he’s a 3 Win player (mostly defense, baserunning and power influenced).
As you said, Byrd and Crisp are much more well-known products. They are likely at least 1.5-2 Win players. But they are also very likely to be no more than 3 Win players.
Cespedes would have to have almost zero defensive and offensive value to NOT be worth $5-7 million a year. Given the inflation of the value of a Win to about $5 million due to the new CBA, he only needs to be a 1.5 Win player. His ceiling, as mentioned above, is much higher.
Not disagreeing,
but he has relly struggled against breaking stuff in thefew Winter Ball games he’s played.
10-25-2011. Theo Epstein joins the Cubs. Now, the fun begins.
For sure
And it definately is concerning, given what some of the scouting reports have said. But, you also have to remember that it is his first competetive baseball in at least 9-10 months. Hell, some guys look that bad in ST, after only 4 months off.
Winter ball
The guy has less than 20 AB. Go back and look at any ML’ers first 20 AB of spring training and I’ll bet you see some pretty ugly numbers, and that is against pitchers who haven’t been pitching either.
I am as skeptical as anyone about his ability to make the jump to the ML level. That said, I doubt that the Dominican Winter League is a substantially higher talent level than the Cuban League he has been playing in, or, for that matter the WBC that he performed well in (as I recall).
Eamus Ursuli!
What?!
You think the DWL has more talent than the WBC? The WBC is full of MLB all stars.
No, not at all
Sorry, my point was that he has performed well in leagues with as much or more talent than the DWL. Thus, to look at his poor numbers after 20 AB in the DWL is not a good representation of his skills.
Eamus Ursuli!
What about
More likely than either, he’s a 3 Win player (mostly defense, baserunning and power influenced).
Shouldn’t he get extra wins for his Core Strength?
by Josh Timmers on Jan 18, 2012 12:02 AM CST up reply actions
For sure
Possibly another .5 Win for having a vertical of 40 inches. Didn’t Joey Gathright get that much added for jumping over the car?
which got Gathright
to -.4 WAR
10-25-2011. Theo Epstein joins the Cubs. Now, the fun begins.
As always, depends on cost.
If the Marlins want to go crazy for him as they’ve alluded… then be our guest.
"Stuff like this is why they should shut off the internet."
by Orval Overall on Dec 17, 2010 1:19 PM CST
Why not...
Sign both Cespedes and Soler. The combined price with still be less than half of what it would take to sign Yu Darvish.
Grow the farm!!!
Sooner or later we’ll find some pitching too. I hope we draft pitching-heavy this summer, and that Garza starts the season pitching way above his talent level, and we can move him for a couple more future aces.
-- Jerome Horwitz
by KO Stradivarius on Jan 17, 2012 4:05 PM CST reply actions 1 recs
Fangraphs on Cespedes
http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/index.php/is-yoenis-cespedes-a-good-fit-for-the-chicago-cubs/
Clay Davenport did this stats analysis:
http://claydavenport.com/?p=97
Davenport comps Cespedes to Adam Jones; Fangraphs says he is a better version of Marlon Byrd.
Let's assume a 5 year deal
I think that would be close. Since it will be a (modified) NRI Contract, what should be Theo’s price point? I’m guessing that anything below 30 mil would be a very Cubs-friendly deal. 30-38 would be a decent enough offer. Over 40 a moderate reach. Over 45, not so good.
10-25-2011. Theo Epstein joins the Cubs. Now, the fun begins.
If so inclined,
what would be your levels on Soler?
10-25-2011. Theo Epstein joins the Cubs. Now, the fun begins.
Cespedes hit his first home run in the DWL.
For your viewing pleasure, here’s a clip. Source: MLBTR.
by Naveen Nallappa on Jan 18, 2012 10:53 PM CST reply actions
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