Cub Tracks Shows Character

Links, hints, allegations, for your perusal.

From ComCast Sportsnet Chicago:

• CSN will air an exclusive documentary on Joe Maddon's homecoming. No information on who he invited, or what the theme is, but it's going to be on TV. Thursday, after the Blackhawks game. Here's the trailer.[VIDEO]

From CBS Chicago:

• Kerry Wood hosts fifth annual Woody's Winter Warmup. "When pitcher Kerry Wood retired a Cub, he knew he wanted to stay in Chicago and give back." He hopes to raise $175,000 for his mentoring program. Celebrity bartenders will serve drinks to raise money for the foundation.
  

From ESPN Chicago:

• Buster Olney [Insider -- $] MLB's top 10 rotations:The Cubs are not number one.
• David Schoenfield: The Fred McGriff Hall of Fame debate. Crime Dog yes or no? Tom Verducci has taken up the cause. Veterans committee may decide.
• Jesse Rogers: Loaded Cubs set for fan convention -- then 2016 season. "The Cubs knocked on the door last season and now, armed with a few more veterans and a deeper roster, they’ll try to break it down."
  

From Cubs.com:

• Carrie Muskat: Inbox: What's Cubs' plan for Kyle Schwarber? "The most important thing is to keep his bat in the Cubs' lineup." Perspective.
• Muskat: Cubs first spring workout dates announced. Cubs pitchers and catchers will report Feb. 19 and work out the next day, and position players will have their first workout on Feb. 24.
• Richard Justice: Cubs headline list of offseason winners. "While this offseason isn't over, we've seen enough to start drawing up our lists of who won and those who, well, didn't." Winning the regular season is what counts, though.
• Muskat: Pat Hughes named 2015 Illinois Sportscaster of the Year. Well-deserved award for Cubs radio man. This is the 10th time Hughes has won a Sportscaster of the Year award and his seventh time in Illinois.

From the Chicago Tribune:

• Cubs Convention archives photogallery: 70 choice pictures.
• Mark Gonzales: Andre Dawson to be honored at scouts' dinner. Dawson isn’t scheduled to attend next weekend’s Cubs Convention, but the former Cubs great will be recognized Saturday night for his achievements.

From the Chicago Sun-Times:

• Kyle Thele: Addison Russell marries Melisa Reidy over the weekend. "In just one year, the Cubs shortstop has been called up to the big leagues, become a star, had his second child and is now married."

From Bleacher Nation:

• Brett Taylor: Lazarito cleared to sign with MLB. As reported here previously, Cuban prospect Lazaro Armenteros is now eligible to sign with a major-league club.
• Luis Medina: What's up with Jorge Soler's 1-WAR ZiPS projection? Seriously? That would have him upright about as much as Otis Campbell. This is the second straight season in which ZiPS threw up a cautionary flag with regard to Soler’s projection.
• Taylor: Cubs hoping to land a bargain like Yovani Gallardo? Reports say they could be. A Nick Cafardo column provides fuel for speculation.

From Cubs Insider:

• Evan Altman: Watching the NFL playoffs made me all the more appreciative of the Cubs' focus on strong mental makeup.
  

  Just because you are a character doesn’t mean that you have character.
  -- Winston Wolfe, Pulp Fiction

Miscellaneous:

• Chicago Cubs Online: Rays and Cubs had targeted trade talks, could match up on deal in the future.
  

  Matt Silverman, the Rays President of Baseball Operations, led off Sunday’s Front Office (MLB Network Radio) and talked about his team’s off-season with Jim Bowden and Jim Duquette. "We had lots of conversations and we’ve had lots of conversations with a number of clubs," Silverman said. "But they were more targeted with the Cubs."

• Wrigleyville -- Baseball Prospectus: Cat Garcia: How Joe Maddon has added hidden value to the Cubs. "He creates a winning environment because of his personality and what he believes," David Ross said. The article elaborates on that premise.
• Wrigleyville -- Baseball Prospectus: Carlos Portocarrero: Can the 2016 Cubs survive a serious injury to a starter? Good question, even if you don't remember 1985. Last year's Nationals would be an object lesson.
  
• Baseball Essential: Nick Schaeflein: 2016 Chicago Cubs top 20 prospects. "The next wave of talent is ready to contribute in big ways."
• Jon Lester wins the internet. A tweet to behold.
• Ariel Cheung: Area around Wrigley is just not that great, Cubs chairman tells the Score. If you find bar crawls bogus and late-night revelry repulsive, you've got a friend in Cubs Chairman Tom Ricketts. Family-friendly confines.
• Fangraphs: Dave Cameron: An early look at the projected standings. Analyzing the future. Cubs fever -- catch it!
• How the Cubs killed the offseason. It's not dead yet!
• Kyle Schwarber to meet and greet in Downers Grove 1/17. Right across from the Metra Station. I wonder if the candy store is still there.
• Sports Mockery: Aldo Soto: Cardinals fan freaks out when he finds out his nurse is a Cubs fan. [VIDEO]

Food for thought:

• Making light of light. [VIDEO] The cosmic microwave background explained. You can't use it to heat up burritos, and Europe isn't going to play. Maybe Disaster Area will.
• The case of the missing quasar. It disappeared from the plant at 53rd and Keeler years ago. No, really -- astronomers can’t find any sign of the black hole at the center of a quasar.
• His stress is not like her stress. Scientists puzzle over why men and women react differently to pressure.

Thank you for reading and remarking. Enjoy your day.