Cub Tracks wins an oscar

Last time through, Cub Tracks parked it. Now we’re moving on down the line...

Staring out the window is getting old. So I went out on the links today and found a few weiners. MY bologna has a first name. Here’s some other cold cuts from the Hot Stove League. As always * means autoplay on™ (directions to remove for Firefox and Chrome).

Today in baseball history:

• 1962 - Lou Perini sells the Braves to the Chicago-based Lasalle Corporation, led by 34-year-old insurance broker William Bartholomay for $6.2 million. Team president John McHale, one of the primary stockholders in the purchase, will take the brunt of the wrath of the fanbase when the new ownership makes clear their intent to move the team out of Milwaukee.
• 1976 - California signs free agent Don Baylor to a six-year, $1.6 million deal.
• 1979 - Former Red and Expo infielder Tony Perez signs as a re-entry free agent with the Red Sox.
• 1989 - Kevin Bass, who batted .300 for the Astros last season, signs as a free agent with the National League champion Giants.
• 2002 - Dusty Baker, after piloting the Giants for ten years and winning this season's National League pennant, leaves the organization, inking a four-year deal to manage the Cubs.
• 2009 - Chris Coghlan edges Phillies right-hander J.A. Happ, the only player named on all 32 ballots, to become the third Marlin in franchise history, along with Dontrelle Willis (2003) and Hanley Ramirez (2006), to win the National League Rookie of the Year Award.
• 2011 - Joe Maddon wins the American League Manager of the Year Award for the second time after guiding the Rays to a 91-71 record.
• Happy birthday Harry Chiti

Cubs news and notes:

At age 28, Chicago Cubs 1B Anthony Rizzo lands a spot on Forbes' coveted 30 under 30 list. Rizzo is a three-time All-Star as well as a Golden Glove and Silver Slugger winner. Also from MLB, Houston Astros 2B Jose Altuve makes the cut. — ESPN

Not beefing about Vienna:

“Good hitters don't just go up and swing. They always have a plan. Call it an educated deduction. You visualize. You're like a good negotiator. You know what you have, you know what he has, then you try to work it out.” — Dave Winfield

• Evan Altman (Cubs Insider): Despite ‘unique challenges,’ Epstein says fans should expect division title. “He’s talking not of what he promises to deliver, but of the standard to which Cubs fans should hold their team.”
• Carrie Muskat (MLB.com*): Jed Hoyer discusses options at GM Meetings. "I think we know the options," Hoyer said. "The only question is how this market is going to play out over weeks and months...”
• Patrick Mooney (NBC Sports Chicago*): How the Jose Quintana deal changed everything for Cubs and White Sox this winter and beyond. “Imagine how a front office that fired multiple coaches from a staff that went to a third straight National League Championship Series might react to not playing in October.”

• Gordon Wittenmyer (Chicago Sun-Times*): Welcome to ‘Playoffville’ as Scott Boras fires warning shots at Cubs. “This is not about the ability to pay; this is about the choice to pay. And what you want to provide your fans,” said Boras.
• Paul Sullivan (Chicago Tribune* {$}): Boras makes pitch for Cubs to re-sign Jake Arrieta. “When you have a guy like that out there, I don’t know why you would not want him and not want him long term, because he brings a dimension to you that few teams have.”
• Mark Feinsand (MLB.com*): Arrieta's big-game pedigree could pay dividends. "Playoffville” has few residents.
• Bruce Levine (CBS Sports Chicago*): Cubs hold preliminary discussions with Orioles about Zach Britton. “...they’re preparing to make a run at a fourth straight postseason berth with yet another new ninth-inning stopper.”
• Michael Cerami (Bleacher Nation): Cubs Steamer projections for 2018: The pitchers. “Justin Wilson looks ready to bounce back in a BIG way. Please?”
• Brett Taylor (Bleacher Nation): Miles Mikolas references taking over – who is this dominant NPB pitcher the Cubs might pursue? “...Mikolas’s stateside formative years took place in the Padres’ farm system when guys like Jed Hoyer, Jason McLeod, and Jaron Madison were running the show...”
• Jon Becker (MLB Daily Dish): 2017 MLB offseason preview: Chicago Cubs. “A look at what the Cubs could do this winter.”

• Brendan Miller (Cubs Insider): 2018 Steamer Projections show big improvements for Ben Zobrist, Addison Russell, Kyle Schwarber. “...don’t let their recent performances completely overwhelm their entire portfolio.”
• Zack Moser (Wrigleyville-Baseball Prospectus): Assessing the Cubs defense in a metric-less world. “...we simply don’t know the usefulness of the metrics we currently enjoy.”
• Joe Reed (Wrigleyville-Baseball Prospectus): 2017 player profile: Tommy La Stella. “La Stella figures to return to the same role he has held during the last three seasons...”
• Randy Holt (Wrigleyville-Baseball Prospectus): Cubs offseason target: Christian Yelich. “...perhaps the most well-rounded option to fit the Cubs’ needs moving forward.”
• MLB.com : Andre Dawson wins Lifetime Achievement Award [VIDEO].

Food for thought:

• Mitch Leslie (Science): Mutation in blood clotting gene may extend human life span. “The aging process seems unstoppable, but a new study suggests that a gene mutation has extended the life spans of some Amish people.”
• Stephanie Pappas (Live Science): 280-million-year-old fossil forest discovered in…Antarctica. “Understanding ancient polar forests might help researchers develop predictions about how trees will react as man-made climate change warms the globe.”

Thanks for reading.