Cub Tracks keeps it down

Some stuff to chew on below, and maybe some things that will stay down if swallowed, in this digest-size edition. Kap dumps on the Cubs. Evan Altman dissects the arb numbers and Todd Johnson offers part 10 of his organizational thumbnails. Jordan Bastian looks at the Opening Day roster.

Not quite a full plate, but more than a snack. We’ll take it, for now. I am not assuaged by Carlos Asuaje.

Yeah. More King Crimson — someone mentioned that they had seen this edition of the band live, and I’m jelly. 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.

The U.S. Tax Court upheld $72.7 million in penalties over the 2009 sale of the Chicago Cubs by Tribune Media Co. on Monday, granting the IRS a partial win in its challenge of the $845 million deal’s tax treatment. — Law 360 {$}.

• Evan Altman (Cubs Insider*): Let’s project Cubs’ arbitration salaries with numbers due Friday. “... teams are more likely than ever to take a hard-line stance and present a take-it-or-leave-it offer.” Brett Taylor has some thoughts on this.
• David Kaplan (NBC Sports Chicago*): Why the Cubs haven’t done anything this offseason. “... there is serious concern the Cubs’ championship window has slammed shut.” Scot Gregor addresses this.
• Bernie Pleskoff (Forbes*): Fan frustration simmers as a lackluster off-season continues for Chicago Cubs. “... they have watched the competition improve while their team seems to be running in place.” Seriously. VEB disrespected the Blue.
• Jordan Bastian (MLB.com*): Who might make the Cubs’ Opening Day roster? “Theo Epstein, president of baseball operations, has emphasized that he would not “force” anything in trade negotiations.”
• Dan Santaromita (NBC Sports Chicago*): MLB executive says there’s ‘no way’ Cubs trade Javier Baez. “... it doesn’t seem likely that moving Baez would be an option.” Basically a spinoff of the Kaplan article, along with this Kris Bryant companion article. Evan Altman offers his spin. Brett Taylor talks about what Ken Rosenthal said.
• Todd Johnson (Cubs Insider*): Cubs organizational breakdown, Pt. 10 – Couple lefty relievers from sparse crop may be ready. “... most of their lefty relievers will be at Tennessee and Iowa to start 2020.”
• Joe Posnanski (The Athletic {$}): The Baseball 100: No. 81, Ferguson Jenkins. “Jenkins hit more corners than sunlight.”
• Cubs birthdays: Dad Clarke, Kitty Bransfield, Al Todd, Alvin Dark, Dick Calmus, Doug Capilla, Alfonso Soriano, Jon Lester. Also notable: Johnny Mize (HoF).

Food for thought:

Thanks for reading.