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At the onset of the 2015-16 offseason, the Chicago Cubs were viewed by many as the favorites to sign ace left-hander David Price. Ultimately, the Cubs never got seriously involved in the bidding war for Price, viewing a seven-year deal for a pitcher past the age of 30 as too risky. Instead, John Lackey was signed on a relatively cheap two-year deal. The Cubs did not have to give Lackey a third year, and he instantly slides into the third slot in the rotation behind old friend Jon Lester.
The addition of Lackey is a great, under-the-radar move for the Cubs. Like a fine wine, the right-hander appears to be getting better with age. Forget what the Boston media and fan base say, Lackey’s teammates love him. He is a big, hyper-competitive bear of a man, and will be a great presence in the clubhouse.
With Lackey in the fold, what do the Cubs need to do over the remainder of the winter to make this a perfect offseason? Here are a few moves that will strengthen the Cubs and go along with the type of team Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer are trying to build.
Have you considered that Schwarber needs a position to play? I would not sign a left fielder, because Schwarber has to play somewhere, and that is his best spot as we already have a starting catcher.
Either Gordon or Schwarber can play RF. Gordon does not have to be locked into LF.
you HAVE to keep Schwarbers bat in the lineup. Put him in R field and leave him there. Solar will be traded anyway. More balls will be hit to L field it will give him the time to learn R field at Wrigley. He will get better on defense.
Miller is a good choice, but Quintana is better. Send Soler & Baez to the White Sox for Q and watch the Cubs fly
Mike,don’t know QUINTANA fill me in.