The most important aspect of the Theo Epstein regime—outside of the fact that he's not Jim Hendry—is the culture change he's bringing to the Chicago Cubs.
It appears players' late-night carousing will no longer be tolerated. Team officials said as much at the love-fest that is known as the Cubs Convention, where they mentioned there are certain standards expected of the players.
That's something that wasn't done previously.
I remember a friend telling me about running into former Cubs pitcher Kyle Farnsworth at a party several years ago. Farnsworth was still there the next morning at 9 AM, even though the Cubs had ...
The second day of the three-day Cubs Convention did not have quite the excitement as the first, though there were a few noteworthy items to come out on Saturday.The first was new manager Dale Sveum being asked once again about the possibility of Prince Fielder to the Cubs.Sveum, keeping in line with his various quotes throughout the winter, stated once more that the Cubs have not had serious discussions with Prince Fielder, and that Fielder will not become a Cub.Sveum's exact quote was: "It's just not going to happen. We have Bryan LaHair and Rizzo waiting in the wings."Sveum's ...
While Chicago Cubs fans are constantly hoping that the team will improve its roster to finally bring home a World Series, one thing they typically hope the team won't change is the state of Wrigley Field.Turns out, that may be the only thing getting a major improvement this offseason.According to Carrie Muskat of MLB.com, the Cubs are planning on opening up a new section in right field to replace what was the far end of the bleachers.Between sitting and standing room, the new area will be able to hold 150 people. The team will have boast packages that will offer all-inclusive food ...
In the NFL, they hand out yellow flags for interference. In Chicago, it is hailed as a great move. Such is the love affair known as the Kid K phenomenon with the Cubs.Cubs owner Tom Ricketts admittedly got involved to make sure that Wood re-signed with the team, essentially telling Theo Epstein to offer more money and make it happen.Cubs fans, you may love Woody, but this is not a good thing if it becomes a trend. One of the reasons that Epstein wanted out of Boston was the meddling president Larry Lucchino.When Epstein was hired, Ricketts promised to leave ...
With a flare for the dramatic, Theo Epstein pulled a Kerry Wood out of his hat, appeasing the throng of Cubs fans on hand at the annual Cubs Convention. Theo really knows how to play a crowd, but this move smacked of the past regime throwing the fans a bone.
Listening to Epstein talk, I thought he was above pandering, but now I'm not so sure.
Cubs fans universally love Kid K, but he's no longer the phenom who struck out 20 Houston Astros in just his fifth major league start.
If you watched him pitch that day, you would have assumed the ...
Day 1 of the Cubs Convention had no shortage of events. Players from Hall of Famer Andre Dawson to Jose Cardenal to Todd Walker all were introduced with various levels of reaction.New President of Baseball Operations Theo Epstein received a rousing ovation from the crowd in his first fan-oriented appearance since taking over in October. His reaction was only topped by the news that Kerry Wood had been re-signed. Wood then emerged from behind a blue curtain to welcome the rowdy fans.Wood's new deal will pay him $3 million in 2012, with a team option for 2013, also at $3 ...
Just as we all suspected.The Chicago Cubs and Kerry Wood reached an agreement in the minutes before the Cubs Convention's opening ceremonies, and announced the deal to an "insane ovation," according to Dave Kaplan via Twitter.The deal is worth $3 million for one year, with a club option for 2013. Wood posted a 3.35 ERA with 57 strikeouts over 51 innings in 2011.Wood really had us going these past few weeks, leading many to believe that the Philadelphia Phillies or even the Boston Red Sox may be signing him away. It appears that Wood may have been leading them on in ...
When the Chicago Cubs pulled the trigger on a deal sending young pitcher Andrew Cashner to the San Diego Padres for a young first base prospect in Anthony Rizzo, people essentially assumed that Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer were officially taking themselves out of the race for All-Star free agent Prince Fielder.Apparently, we were all wrong.According to Jason Stark of ESPN.com:"One source with ties to the Cubs brass insists the Cubs are NOT totally out on Fielder, despite the Anthony Rizzo trade. His assessment: The Cubs will "be in it till the end—just in case Scott has to do a deal somewhere" ...
Regardless of whether the sexual assault allegations leveled against Starlin Castro are true or not, the Cubs have no choice but to keep him out of the public eye until the matter is resolved. According to CBS Chicago, Castro is being accused of sexually assaulting a woman in Chicago before heading home to the Dominican Republic for the offseason. Sources say she and a friend left the bar at 3 a.m. the following morning and went to the 21-year-old Castro’s apartment on State Street nearby. The woman claimed she passed out at Castro’s apartment and woke up screaming, finding him on top ...
Kerry Wood spent some time with the Cleveland Indians and the New York Yankees in 2009 and 2010, but the dude is a Chicago Cub. Through and through.According to Jon Paul Morosi of Fox Sports, Wood is this close to being a Cub for at least one more year:Additionally, Cubs president of baseball operations Theo Epstein spoke openly about signing Wood on Wednesday, and he made no secret of the fact that signing Wood is an easy choice to make.Courtesy of Bruce Levine of ESPNChicago.com:We said all along we want to get this done. We have a world of respect for Kerry ...
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