Cub Tracks goes round in circles

Man this has been a WEEK. I don’t even want to talk about it. But the weekend is here, and the Winter Meetings are upon us, and hey! We have the great Dan Winkler and his spin rate. Notable Cubs birthdays, a few good words, and hopefully an enjoyable Saturday for you, dear reader.

Here’s today’s Cubs News and Notes. As always, * means autoplay on, or annoying ads, or both (directions to remove for Firefox and Chrome). {$} means paywall. {$} means limited views. Italics are often used here as sarcasm font.

• Jordan Bastian (MLB.com*): Cubs view Winter Meetings as decision time. “Shoring rotation, reshaping bullpen and game-planning up the middle are key focuses.”
• Brett Taylor (Bleacher Nation): ESPN proposes a Kris Bryant-Rangers trade, mostly just highlighting the problem with these two as trade partners. “... the Rangers do not have an elite farm system, and also don’t have the kind of superfluous young big league talent that would be a really compelling part of the return in a Bryant deal...”
• Tim Stebbins (NBC Sports Chicago*): Cubs free agent focus: Will Harris. “... Harris has quietly been one of the game’s best relievers since 2015.”
• Brendan MIller (Cubs Insider*): Changing Dan Winkler’s mechanics could unlock potential of elite spin rate. “... the former Brave has showcased top-tier spin rate in his 100.1 MLB innings.”
• Tim Stebbins (NBC Sports Chicago*): Astros have shown interest in Willson Contreras, report says. Patrick Mooney and Sahadev Sharma {$} reported that the Astros “went into this offseason” with interest in Contreras.
• Tony Andracki (NBC Sports Chicago*): Cubs ‘open-minded’ on where Nico Hoerner fits in 2020 equation. “We put Nico in a really challenging spot and he couldn’t have responded better,” said Jed Hoyer.
• Evan Altman (Cubs Insider*): Cubs Trade Rumors: Braves OF Ender Inciarte joins usual suspects as leadoff target. “... hamstring, quad, and back issues limited Inciarte to just 230 plate appearances in 2019.”
• Mark Gonzales (Chicago Tribune* {$}): Cubs officially announce Dan Kantrovitz as the VP of scouting and hire Jasmine Horan as a scouting analyst. “Horan’s concentration with the Cubs will be on draft analytics and strategy.”
• Robert Channick (Chicago Tribune* {$}): Feds probe whether Cubs’ $1 billion Wrigley Field renovation meets accessibility requirements. “... the team is defending itself against a lawsuit brought by a wheelchair-bound fan who alleges that seating in the ballpark is not compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act and is in fact worse than before the renovation.” Jon Seidel has more of this.
• Jeff Agrest (Chicago Sun-Times* {$}): The Voice: Pat Hughes’ sound, style are worthy of Hall of Fame. “He’s among eight candidates for the Ford C. Frick Award, which will be announced Wednesday.”
• Cubs birthdays: Ed Morris, Don Johnson, Jorge Comellas, Mark Freeman, Don Cardwell, Scot Thompson, Ryan Theriot, Mike Baxter, Kyle Hendricks. Also notable: Johnny Bench (HoF).

Food for thought: