This was right after the Cubs won the WS and Bryant's MVP season?
I lol'ed. What else were the Sox giving up besides Sale when Bryants value was at it's Apex?
Don't believe this one, at all.
Yeah, doesn’t sound right. But even still, you could come up with multiple offers from the Cubs that would have made a lot more sense for the Sox than what they took from an American League rival.
And it’s very clear the Cubs would be in the same tier as the Astros, Yankees, Red Sox and Dodgers if they had Sale. He’s that one sorely needed piece they are missing. It is what it is. It’s just that you really need dominant pitching in the playoffs and the Cubs have very little of it. It needs to be addressed in the offseason.
Smyly could help the rotation this year and especially next year. If Hamels pitches well, I’d pick up his option as well. So you can’t go and get starting pitching, we have plenty of it and there will not be any dominant free agent SPs that would clearly supplant the guys we have. I suppose a trade is possible but who and for what.
As things stand today, I’d give Kimbrel and Miller whatever they want. Getting one isn’t enough given our rotation problems. Then I’d sign Garrett Richards, who like Smyly, had Tommy John and will be back late next year. He could be a cheap dominant SP moving to the NL.
So then you have a plethora of options at SP and an entire season to figure out which ones are the best. And regardless of how that shakes out, you’re really going to need Kimbrel, Miller, Morrow, Edwards, Cishek and Strop to carry the team through the playoffs.
For this year, we just need the bats to go an extended tear through October and Hamels to keep pitching lights out.
