Cub Tracks closes in

Welcome to today’s edition of Cub Tracks news and notes™, a greatest-hits collection of Chicago-style beat writers and bloggers, ground from #Cubs, #MiLB, and #MLB baseball, overheated, and then cold-brewed overnight for maximum flavor.

In the news:

Ex-Cub pitchers are busily keeping themselves out of the playoffs. Scott Effross, Craig Kimbrel, and David Robertson have so far managed the feat. Reports say Drew Smyly and his people are meeting with Cubs people. Other reports both confirm and deny that Willson Contreras is on his way somewhere else and/or being tendered a qualifying offer. Cubs brass is talking the talk. But wait, there’s more... sources say Seiya Suzuki is going to get some WBC at-bats, Carlos Correa is going to opt out, the Cubs minor leagues keep producing tomorrow’s heroes. And then there’s Yu... but mostly it’s about polishing the brass today.

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• Evan Altman (Cubs Insider*): That itty-bitty ‘ting’ in Tom Ricketts’ letter makes all the difference. “Substantially”
• Patrick Mooney (The Athletic {$}): Cubs president Jed Hoyer welcomes pressure to sign a big free-agent shortstop. “... one person will ultimately be held accountable for building “The Next Great Cubs Team.””
• Gordon Wittenmyer (NBC Sports Chicago*): How new playoff format informs Jed Hoyer’s vision for Cubs. ‘Oh, getting a bye is a massive advantage.’
• Marquee Sports Network*: Cubs GM Hawkins looks ahead to 2022 offseason [VIDEO]. Brett Taylor interprets.
• Brett Taylor (Bleacher Nation*): Being aggressive in Free Agency this year *IS* “intelligent spending” for the 2023 Chicago Cubs. Well, if they intend to win, yes. Evan Altman agrees. SI has words. Sahadev Sharma {$} cleans up. Meghan Montemurro restarts the order {$}. Maddie Lee legs one out.
• Tim Stebbins (NBC Sports Chicago*): Yu Darvish has amusing reaction to bizarre Musgrove inspection. “Anybody can come up and touch my ears, touch my nose, touch my wherever,” Darvish said through an interpreter Tuesday, flashing a slight smirk as the assembled media broke into laughter.
• Tim Stebbins (NBC Sports Chicago*): Matt Mervis earns high praise from Hoyer, organizational honor. “I thought Matt had one of the best minor league seasons I’ve been around,” Hoyer said Monday at his end-of-season press conference.
• Ben Silver (Sports Illustrated*): Should the Chicago Cubs bring back Franmil Reyes in 2023? “Despite a rather disappointing end to the season, Reyes was a shrewd pick-up.”

Food for Thought:

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