Tag / Starlin Castro

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Against The Nationals All Time Leaders – Through 2021

nationalsIn the past, we’ve looked at the all time leaders in both offensive and defensive categories for all 30 teams. This offseason, we will take our first ever look at those leaders against all 30 clubs. We continue today with the Washington Nationals.

The Nationals began life in 1969 as the Montreal Expos.  When the Expos missed out on their best opportunity to win a World Series due to the work stoppage of 1994, followed by years of alleged mismanagement, fan support dropped away, and the team moved to Washington in 2005.  I’ve seen them play 18 times, 5 as the Expos and 13 as the Nationals, including one at their home stadium in 2019 and a neutral site game in 2004.

Home Runs

Name Total
Aramis Ramirez 4
Corey Patterson 2
12 tied with 1

Hits

 

Name Total
Aramis Ramirez 8
Ryan Theriot 7
Michael Barrett 6
Derrek Lee 6
Mark Grudzielanek 6
Juan Pierre 6

Runs

Name Total
Aramis Ramirez 5
Ryan Theriot 4
Derrek Lee 4
Moises Alou 4

RBI

Name Total
Aramis Ramirez 13
Moises Alou 4
Jeff Conine 3

Doubles

Name Total
Moises Alou 3
Jacque Jones 2
Ben Zobrist 2

Triples Continue reading →

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Adios Addison

When the Cubs first acquired Addison Russell on July 4, 2014, they thought they were getting a cornerstone of their rebuild that would roam the middle of the Wrigley Field infield for years to come.  In 2015, he supplanted Starlin Castro at shortstop and, the following year, he hit a grand slam in game 6 of the World Series, helping the Cubs win their first title in 108 years.  3 years later, his time with the team has come to an end, as the Cubs declined to tender him a contract on Monday.

On the field, Russell has failed to take that next step.  His OPS+ dropped in both 2017 and 2018, before rebounding slightly this year.  He was sent to Triple A this summer after admitting he needed to be “more familiar” with the team’s signs.  On top of his diminishing performance, his off the field baggage made keeping him untenable.

Russell missed the first 28 games of 2019 to complete his domestic violence suspension tied to a September 2018 Instagram post by his now ex-wife containing accusations of physical and emotional abuse.  After initially denying the accusations, Russell decided to accept the suspension without appeal and agreed to participate in a comprehensive treatment program.

By all accounts, the Cubs should have cut bait last offseason, but they decided to take a chance at recovering any value Russell still had and tendered him  a contract for 2019.  The same was not true this time around.  President of baseball operations Theo Epstein boiled down the decision to a financial one, saying, “We decided to non-tender Addison Russell today simply because the role we expected him to play for the 2020 Cubs was inconsistent with how he would have been treated in the salary arbitration process.”

With the emergence of Javy Baez, there isn’t a pressing need for Russell’s services.  Given the bad press the team has weathered over the past few years around Russell and their acquisitions of Aroldis Chapman and Daniel Murphy, it was time to cut bait.  To be perfectly honest, this is probably the best move for Russell as well, giving him the opportunity to re-start his career somewhere else, without the scrutiny of the Cub spotlight.

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What To Do With Addison Russell?

When the Cubs first acquired Addison Russell on July 4, 2014, they thought they were getting a cornerstone of their rebuild that would roam the middle of the Wrigley Field infield for years to come.  In 2015, he supplanted Starlin Castro at shortstop and, the following year, he hit a grand slam in game 6 of the World Series, helping the Cubs win their first title in 108 years.  And its been downhill since then.

On the field, Russell has failed to take that next step.  His OPS+ dropped in both 2017 and 2018.  He set career lows in home runs in 2017 and again in 2018.  His errors per chance increased both years.  That alone would leave reasonable questions about his future with the franchise.  His performance on the field, however, is nothing compared to the nightmare he has turned into off the field.

In June of 2017, an Instagram post by a friend of his wife’s accused Russell of domestic violence.  Russell denied the accusation and, while MLB opened an investigation, he wasn’t suspended.  At the 2017 All Star Game, Scott Boras, Russell’s agent, seemed confident that his client would be absolved of any wrong-doing.  “I think we know the facts of that and the foundation of social media,” Boras said that day.  “I don’t think there is any support to (the allegation).”

Everything was quiet until late September 2018, when Russell’s now ex-wife posted on Instagram, detailing some of the physical and emotional abuse that she claims Russell put her through.  Russell again denied the allegations, but was placed on administrative leave for the remainder of the season, including the playoffs.  On October 4, Russell was suspended for 40 games, retroactive to September 21 and spilling into the beginning of the 2019 season, becoming eligible to play on May 3, barring any early season weather issues.

Per a statement, Russell decided to accept the suspension without appeal and will also participate in a confidential and comprehensive evaluation and treatment program, which will be supervised by MLB’s Joint Policy Board.  “After gaining a full understanding of the situation, I have concluded it’s in the best interest of my family to accept MLB’s proposed resolution of this matter,” Russell said in the statement released by his attorneys.  “I wish my ex-wife well and hope we can live in peace for the benefit of our child.”

The Cubs had an easy out at that point, but instead decided to tender Russell a contract for 2019 last month.  President of baseball operations Theo Epstein called the decision a “procedural step” and said it did “not represent the finish line nor rubber stamp his future” with the club.  “It does, however, reflect our support for him as long as he continues to make progress and demonstrates his commitment to these important issues,” Epstein added.  In a statement released by the Cubs, Russell said, “Since accepting my suspension, I’ve had time to reflect on my past behavior and think about the next steps I need to take to grow as a person.”

Earlier this week, more details about the abuse were released by Russell’s ex-wife while additional allegations were made by a former girlfriend and mother of Russell’s daughter.  Unfortunately for the Cubs, they can’t rid themselves of Russell now even if they wanted to.  Until Russell signs a contract for 2019, he is in a bit of a limbo.  That is, assuming, that the Cubs want to rid themselves of Russell and the headache that he brings to the table.

With the emergence of Javy Baez and the availability of Ian Happ and Ben Zobrist, there isn’t a pressing need for Russell’s services.  Given the bad press the team has weathered over the past few years regarding their acquisitions of Aroldis Chapman and Daniel Murphy, one would think it would make sense for the Cubs to move on at this point.  It would also likely be beneficial for Russell to re-start his career somewhere else, without the scrutiny of the Cub spotlight.

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Single Game Batting Leaders Revisited Revisited

MLB: Cincinnati Reds at Los Angeles DodgersIt’s been 3 years (to the day) and 121 games since we last looked at the single game leaders in offensive categories for all the games I have attended in person.  There are some new names of the list that weren’t there when we first looked in 2012 and again in 2015.

Home Runs

Name Total Date
Sammy Sosa 3 6/5/1996
Moises Alou 3 7/4/2003
Manny Machado 3 8/7/2016
Enrique Hernandez 3 10/19/2017
119 with 2 Most recently on 6/16/2018

Hits

Name Total Date
Scott Rolen 5 4/22/2007
Mike Fontenot 5 6/25/2007
Mark DeRosa 5 9/17/2007
Alfonso Soriano 5 5/17/2008
Derrek Lee 5 6/28/2008
Ryan Braun 5 8/2/2010
Prince Fielder 5 8/2/2010
Danny Santana 5 8/3/2014
Melky Cabrera 5 6/21/2015

Runs

Name Total Date
Chris Burke 5 6/13/2006
Gary Ward 4 8/14/1984
Paul Konerko 4 6/28/2002
Continue reading →
by jim

The Starlin Castro Era

Starlin+Castro+Chicago+Cubs+v+San+Diego+Padres+2sR4jFdXnUplBefore Kris Bryant, before Addison Russell, before Anthony Rizzo, there was Starlin Castro.  Hailed as the next big star when he debuted as a 20-year old in 2010, Castro quickly became a bright spot on what had become a disappointing Cub team, finishing 5th in Rookie of the Year voting.  2 years later, he signed a long term deal intended to keep him on the north side of Chicago through 2020.  Unfortunately, continued defensive lapses, sagging offensive production, and, chiefly, the emergence of Russell as the new long term solution at shortstop made Castro expendable.  Yesterday, the Cubs announced they had come to an agreement to send Castro to the Yankees for pitcher Adam Warren and shortstop Brendan Ryan.

Castro’s tenure with the Cubs had its ups and downs.  A 3-time All Star, Castro was the lone young star on the team when Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer took over baseball operations following the 2011 season.  During the long rebuilding process, he, along with Rizzo, were the faces of the franchise.  But his frequent defensive lapses, where he would lose concentration and find himself unaware of what was going on around him, caused embarrassment and occasional punishment.  This past season, as the rebuilding efforts were starting to bear fruit, Castro found himself losing his starting job and relegated to a part-time player at a new position.  His Cubs tenure ended with a 2 for 16 performance in the NLCS loss to the Mets.

The Cubs wasted little time in replacing Castro, announcing the signing of Ben Zobrist to a 4 year deal prior to announcing the trade.  Zobrist had been a favorite of Joe Maddon’s in Tampa and looks to be the starting second baseman for the Cubs heading in to 2016.  Meanwhile, the expectation is that Starlin Castro will now fill that same role for the Yankees.

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A Dog & Pony Show

cubseventOver the weekend, the Cubs put on a number of presentations for their season ticket holders reviewing the progress over the past year and the plans for the upcoming year.  I attended the early presentation on Saturday, which featured President of Business Operations Crane Kenney, general manager Jed Hoyer, and radio play by play man Pat Hughes.

Crane Kenney kicked things off with a review of that morning’s official ground breaking for the newly dubbed 1060 Project, the rehab and expansion of Wrigley Field.  He followed up on that with multimedia presentations covering, among other things, the new spring training facilities, the new baseball academy in the Dominican Republic, and the goals behind the renovations at Wrigley Field.

Jed Hoyer was next on stage, covering the baseball side of things.  His initial focus was on the development of the major league roster, including Anthony Rizzo, Starlin Castro, and, surprisingly, Luis Valbuena.  The pitching staff remains a work in progress and should be a focal point of this offseason.  Hoyer also went out of his way to point out that signing Edwin Jackson may have been a mistake.  Finally, Hoyer addressed the young future of the team, starting with Javy Baez, Jorge Soler, and Arismendy Alcantara, covering both the successes they had and the struggles they faced in the big leagues.  He followed that up with a look at the minor leagues, including Kris Bryant, Albert Almora, Addison Russell, Billy McKinney, and Kyle Schwarber.

When Hoyer was done, he was rejoined on stage by Kenney and moderator Pat Hughes for a brief Q & A session with the audience.  Nothing of much substance was covered during this part of the presentation.  Overall, it was a well put together event with only one downside: an audience full of demented Cub fans.

One older gentleman spent the time before the program began telling everyone who would listen that Theo Epstein has no business holding his job because he once attended a panel at the Cubs Convention wearing a red shirt.  While focusing in on red being a “Cardinal color”, this scholar has missed out on the fact that it is also one of the colors of, yep, you guessed it, the Chicago Cubs.  Another fun group of gentlemen were the mid-20s former frat boys sitting behind me who wondered 1) why there were so many women at an event for season ticket holders and 2) if throwing your wife down a flight of stairs should really count as domestic violence.  The Cubs spent the afternoon trying to convince their customers to renew their season tickets.  Some of their fans did their best to undo the efforts, just by being themselves.

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Blockbuster

SamardzijaAs we head towards the trade deadline at the end of the month, everyone expected the Cubs to move both Jeff Samardzija and Jason Hammel.  I don’t think anyone expected them to go as part of the same deal.  Which is exactly what happened Friday night, when word leaked that the Cubs would send both pitchers to the A’s in exchange for Addison Russell, Billy McKinney, Dan Straily, and a player to be named later.

Russell, a shortstop, was the A’s first round draft pick in 2012 and the top prospect in their system.  The 20 year old, who has been compared to Barry Larkin with power by one scout, joins the collection of middle infield prospects the Cubs have assembled, including Javier Baez, 21, and current starter Starlin Castro, who is still only 24.  Assuming everything pans out, the Cubs will have flexibility to use their surplus at shortstop to fill other holes, most likely in the rotation.

McKinney, the A’s first round pick in last year’s draft, is an outfielder who was the 2nd rated prospect in the A’s system.  Straily garnered some support for AL rookie of the year last season, but struggled with Oakland this year and was back pitching in Triple A at the time of the trade.

Samardzija had been with the Cubs since being drafted out of Notre Dame in 2006.  He made his major league debut in 2008, working out of the bullpen for the division champions.  He moved in to the starting rotation in 2012 and has been the ace of the Cub’s staff ever since.  Hammel was signed as a free agent this past winter with the intention of flipping him to a contender, should he have a good first half.  He certainly held up his end of the bargain.

Samardzija’s numbers in a Cubs uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:
Continue reading →

by jim

60 Million Dollar Man

The long-awaited contract extension for Starlin Castro will keep the young shortstop on the north side through the 2019 season, with a $16 million option for 2020.  The Cubs hope that they will get a deal by buying out Castro’s arbitration and first few free agent years.  They must also hope that a player who has had attention lapses in the past will not rest on his now very expensive laurels.

The Cubs have spent a lot of money the last few years to shed the long term contracts that helped bring them back-to-back division championships.  They still have been unable to move Alfonso Soriano’s albatross of a contract.  You can only hope that Castro continues to improve and does not become the latest in a string of disappointing long term deals.

by jim

The Dale Sveum Era Begins

The Cubs look to kick off a new era, featuring new manager Dale Sveum, new GM Jed Hoyer, and new team president Theo Epstein, with today’s season opening game against the Nationals.

Starting Pitchers

Ryan Dempster, Matt Garza, Jeff Samardzija, Chris Volstad, Paul Maholm

Ryan Dempster, who gets the Opening Day nod again this year, and Matt Garza are the only holdovers from last year’s staff.  Samardzija had a strong spring and looks to maybe have finally put everything together.  Volstad and Maholm beat out Randy Wells and Travis Wood, among others, for the final two spots in the rotation.

Relief Pitchers

Carlos Marmol, Kerry Wood, James Russell, Rafael Dolis, Lendy Castillo, Shawn Camp

Continue reading →