The Amato Report - Cubs
- Jim Santora
- 12 minutes ago
- 3 min read
KPSL's Mike Amato give a comprehensive report of each team in the KPSL. Today's team is the Chicago Cubs:
Newbie Rob Lyons takes over for Mr Borenstein and is already wheeling and dealing. He is fully aware of the shortcomings of this team and what needs to be done as the current bottom dwellers. I think we all agree that this team needs a "re-tooling" season, but they aren't really that far off. But they need a LOT to happen.
NOTABLE OFFSEASON TRANSACTIONS
Acquired: Ronny Mauricio, Spencer Strider, Jordan Lawlar, Michael McGreevy, AJ Smith-Shawver, Dylan Crews, Jesus Sanchez, Adrian Del Castillo
Departed: Adrian Morejon, Randy Rodriguez, Clayton Kershaw, Gary Sanchez
Strengths
The Cubs have some valuable assets in Geraldo Perdomo, Pete Alonso, Kyle Schwarber for this season. Depending on how the season goes for these guys in real life, they could be packing their bags at the SOM trade deadline. But these 3 alone will keep Rob in a lot of games.
Opportunities
I think this question is more meant for 2027. The Cubbies do have pitching, but most had down years or were injured (Flaherty, Musgrove, and Strider). Strider's velo dipped coming back from TJ, but I suspect he'll be back to his old self in 2026. If 1 or 2 of these guys bounce back, this team is already looking brighter heading into 2027. But the pitching simply won't be good this year and Rob knows that.
For this year the infield looks bright with Alonso and Perdomo. But at bats are needed at 3B and 2B. Nick Gonzales isn't the answer (I was a truther!) and Mauricio only has 1/3 of at bats. The OF is egregious with some of the worst defense I've seen (Teoscar Hernandez, Jorge Soler, Oneil Cruz). That said, Teo and Cruz have shown what they are capable of...well, offensively, not defensively. I am also curious if Perdomo can replicate 2025.
I liked the Smith-Shawver move, but he had TJ surgery and is out all of 2026...sooooo he won't be really valuable until 2028 at the earliest. But he's young and has some innings for this year.
Players to watch out for in 2026
Eury Perez. I'm biased because I have a personal collection of his baseball cards, but the kid had elite stuff and major hype prior to TJ and it'll be interesting to see how he rebounds now going into a fully healthy 2026 season. He had about 1/3 of a season in 2025 and showed flashes of what he's capable of. Rob could have an ace on his staff for years to come (my card collection also prays for this).
Oneil Cruz. Bob Nutting decided to kind of care and spend enough money to have a formidable enough lineup to make the Pirates compete in 2026. But does Oneil Cruz care? Will this wake him up? The talent is there, so if he can actually care enough to be a good OF this would give Rob a super valuable card in 2027. Who knows, though.
2026 SOM projection: back-to-back bottom dwellers as a "welcome to the league" moment. That said, I like the moves being made and fully trust Rob's vision for this rebuild (youth + shots in the dark). Rob entertaining deals for Schwarber and Alonso are right moves, and older vets with no futures with decent cards should also look to be moved. I suspect more moves will be on the way once the new manager gets settled in. For now, Rob focusing on getting warmed up to the league should be priority #1. The wins will come.
