Outside The Confines: The non-tenders are free!

I’m as sad as anyone to see the Cubs part way with Kyle Schwarber. Not, perhaps, because of his results last season, but more because of the presence he brought to the team. I won’t dwell on this too long, because it might risk becoming a Cubs-themed post rather than a general MLB post, but darn it all, I’m going to miss the guy, so bear with me for a moment.

There will be other writers here who will write with more eloquence and depth, perhaps, about what Schwarber meant for the team, or give statistical analysis of why it was the right time to part ways with him, but lost in all of that is remembering that this is a person, not just a name on a list, and he’s a person who played a role in one of the greatest moments of any Cubs fans memory.

We’ll miss ya, Schwarbs.

Now that the moody dwelling it done, it’s time to let ourselves get a bit excited about the prospect of things moving forward for the stagnant free agency market (well, once that whole stupid DH rule finally gets figured out.)

In the meantime, can I interest the Cubs front office in a now free agent Eddie Rosario?

Let’s dive into the links.

• Yogi Berra is famous for his iconic turns of phrase, but Brandon Riddle is here to tell us that one of his most famous quotes might never have been said at all.
• David Laurila chats with 60s slugger Jim Gentile.
• J.T. Realmuto is going to be a hot target this winter and David Shoenfield looks at some likely places for him to land.
• Rob Manfred needs to get his act together and decide if the DH is coming to the NL permanently, writes Matt Snyder.
• MLB is close to finalizing their 120-team minor league system, but some teams might be close to kissing MLB goodbye instead, writes Evan Drellich. (The Athletic subscription required.)
• The Players Alliance hosted their first event in support of Black communities.
• Barry M. Bloom looks at the difficult road to the Hall of Fame that will face starting pitchers in the future.
• Speaking of the Hall of Fame, Joe Posnanski’s “The Outsiders” continues to rank the top 100 players left out of those hallowed halls. (The Athletic subscription required.)
• Matt Martell gives us the four key decisions that could be the key to the Yankees 2021 season.
• Good guy Adam Wainright has raised money for over 30 charities, just by playing fantasy football. Story by Jesse Rogers.
• R.J. Anderson has the top non-tendered players, and yes, Schwarber is on his list.
• Ken Rosenthal tries to determine what the non-tender deadline might mean for free agent value going forward in the offseason. (The Athletic subscription required.)
• Ichiro Suzuki has found the next stage of his career, and according to Michael Clair, it involves coaching a high school baseball team. Lucky team.
• Steve Cohen might one day prove to be a terrible owner, I can’t predict the future, but his Twitter presence is one of the greatest gifts to baseball of this entire year.

And tomorrow will be a better day than today, Buster. Make it so.