Cub Tracks’ age of reasons

Well, the Dodgers won, which sucks, and Justin Turner ran out and took the opportunity to re-infect his teammates, who should be outraged but apparently are not, and meanwhile life goes on for most of us in this, the first year of the new reality.

Here at Cub Tracks News and Notes, we are closing in on our eighth anniversary overall and also it’s my birthday. I’m not planning any big celebrations. I am planning to invoke my spirit animal, the giant ground sloth, instead of all the time channeling Howard Beale, and to consume leafy greens, and perhaps to consult the experts at Doordash for cheesy comestibles. 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 on this page as sarcasm font. (In the comments section, use @ before and after your remarks @ to produce sarcasm font.)

In a statement released Wednesday, MLB said Turner “chose to disregard the agreed-upon joint protocols and the instructions he was given.”

“While a desire to celebrate is understandable, Turner’s decision to leave isolation and enter the field was wrong and put everyone he came in contact with at risk,” the statement read. “When MLB Security raised the matter of being on the field with Turner, he emphatically refused to comply.”

FREE AGENT LIST, team by team. (NBC Sports Chicago*)

• Patrick Mooney and Sahadev Sharma (The Athletic {$}): The World Series is over. The Cubs’ reboot is about to begin. “It’s going to be a long, dark winter for baseball.”
• NBS Sports Chicago*: Jon Lester signs with Braves and other Cubs bold offseason predictions. Selections from and a link to their podcast.
• Paul Sullivan (Chicago Tribune* {$}): Analytics are spoiling the fun. And spring training games are unnecessary. Here are 7 things we learned from an unusual 2020 baseball season. “Fittingly, the 2020 season ended the only way it could, with baseball’s version of “Dumb and Dumber.””
• Mark Gonzales (Chicago Tribune* {$}): COVID-19 has affected the Chicago Cubs’ finances — but they still face key decisions on Anthony Rizzo, Jon Lester and other free agents. “Here’s a look at the most urgent decisions ...” Russell Dorsey also talks of this.
• Maddie Lee (NBC Sports Chicago*): How catching helped prepare David Ross to manage Cubs bullpen. “... 1/3 of Major League skippers this season were once pro catchers.”
• Evan Altman (Cubs Insider*): Converted 1B/OF Jerrick Suiter impressing on mound during Cubs instructs. “If it sounds odd to say that a guy who has only thrown two innings at Double-A could be part of an MLB bullpen, that’s because it is.”
• Tony Andracki (Marquee Sports Network*): State of the Cubs: Designated Hitter. “In an ideal world, the Cubs would add another veteran “professional” at-bat to the mix who could slot in at DH on a regular basis when Contreras is catching.”
• Brett Taylor (Bleacher Nation*): I can’t believe tendering Kris Bryant a contract even has to be a conversation. “Your only real alternative here is the sides getting together on an extension ...”
• Cubs birthdays: Mark Baldwin, Richie Barker, Arismendy Alcantara. Also notable: Will Venable.

Food for thought:

Thanks for reading.