Cub Tracks’ Yu who?

I’m going to miss Yu Darvish wordplay and Victor Caratini’s considerable abilities. No two ways about it, and that was a trade that revealed all too much of the Cubs’ intent to soft-pedal the 2021 season, ride out the absence of the 2022 season (which is part of the lost-revenue lament, as ownership nervously anticipates that self-caused debacle), and try once again to mismanage player development with an eye toward the year 2525...

But I’m over it, or was. It took a three-month-old puppy dying to move me off that square, but I’m off. My grand-daughter, who owned the puppy, on the other hand, is a huge KB fan. She thinks he scores touchdowns, but I still don’t want to tell her he does that somewhere else.

Times are hard, man. I’m having trouble summoning my inner Walt Kowalski today. But I think I might be able to, if I keep reading about Willson Contreras going, too. I told Al that we’re back to the mid-70s, now.

He said I was over-reacting. Ok, my specialty. I can own that. But I suspect I’m under-reacting. The Ricketts clan wanted a piece of metal to hold up so that they could hold up the entire fanbase with the other hand. They think of it as hyperopia, I bet, eyeing generational wealth.

I think very little of them. Their near-future plans are fuzzy and indistinct as long as you’re looking close. It takes perspective to appreciate what they’ve done, how myopically they’ve thrown away fan goodwill in order to conduct the business of business.

To me, it isn’t betrayal. It’s confirmation. And I hate it.

Part of me wants them to fail so spectacularly that the Ricketts stand in the soup line. Another part wonders if they can be cured with lime, if we ship them out to sea. The other part is just sad and isn’t sure that the World Championship was worth this gamethread word.

I expect that I’ll miss that happy place more than the lost players. Goodbye, and good riddance, 2020.

Here’s Cub Tracks News and Notes, your every-other-day-except-on-weekends escape from the humdrum. 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.)

Trading Darvish to the Padres — sources confirmed the outline of an agreement Monday night — feels like wait until next year and the year after that. — Patrick Mooney.

• Jeff Passan (ESPN+ {$}): Why the Darvish trade is frightening for all of baseball. “... a clear reminder that inaction isn’t just an on-field problem.”
• Brett Taylor (Bleacher Nation*): LIVE: Jed Hoyer talks Yu Darvish trade (updates aplenty). Great stuff for those of us who don’t get Marquee.
• Jesse Rogers (ESPN*): Chicago Cubs made Darvish trade to extend window as MLB contenders. Wait, what? “There are teams that never had that opportunity or chose not to take it,” Hoyer said of retooling. “The Giants and the Phillies and the Tigers are examples.” Jordan Bastian explores this nonsense.
• Patrick Mooney, Sahadev Sharma and more (The Athletic {$}): Appreciating Yu: Darvish’s impressive Cubs turnaround changed his Chicago story. “:.. our Cubs writers gathered round to reminisce...”
• Mark Gonzales (Chicago Tribune* {$}): Evaluating the NL Central: A look at the offseason plans for the Chicago Cubs’ division foes. “I don’t try to put too much stock in things that aren’t consistent over the last couple years,” Cubs manager David Ross said.
• Maddie Lee (NBC Sports Chicago*): Hoyer delays GM search, cites COVID-19 pandemic challenges. “... I feel like it’s really important for me to spend time with the person that we’re going to hire, to have multiple dinners together, to meet their family, to be able to (do those things) on both sides.”
• Paul Sullivan (Chicago Tribune* {$}): Chicago Cubs used to compete for the pennant. Now they’re content with just contending for a division title. “As we come to the end of (a six-year window), it’s really important to think about the future,” Hoyer said during a teleconference. Also: The Yu Darvish trade is a cost-saving move — and it starts the undoing of the Chicago Cubs. So much for those ‘wheelbarrows of cash.’
• Patrick Mooney (The Athletic {$}): The Cubs rebuild is here: Why stop now after trading Darvish? “... Cubs fans have seen these types of deals before.”
• Russell Dorsey (Chicago Sun-Times* {$}): Cubs must decide whether they want to be a big-market team. “Not just sometimes or during the good times but all the time.”
• George Castle (Chicago Baseball Museum): Rosey saved his best for last with his support of Swedish Hospital’s women’s center. “Jack Rosenberg had to be the ultimate people person with the persuasive touch ...”
• Bob Goldsborough (Chicago Tribune* {$}): Ex-Cubs player Ben Zobrist listing home near Wrigley Field for $2.1M. “... with Zobrist no longer playing for the Cubs, the couple are ready to move on...”

Food for Thought:

Thanks for reading.