Cubs Focusing on the Frosting and Not the Cake

The other day Scott Boras addressed all things baseball through the lens of how it can assist him. As per the usge, Boras has many clients in the market and they are desirable players. Take Jackie Bradley Jr. for an example, he has a specific talent that many organizations could use, a solid defensive center fielder with tons of experience.

While Boras touched on many concerns of the state of baseball, he of course gravitated towards the Cubs. One reason, Kris Bryant’s status with the team, and another is his working relationship with the Cubs since a player like JBJ is one of his clients and the Cubs have an interest in him.

There is one quote from Boras that I have been resonating on, which does sort of help change my personal perception of the state of the Cubs and their roster.

“There are some real central decisions, obviously, that have to be made about pitching and (the Cubs) going forward.” Boras told reporters. “But I think the good news is when you have that many good players, it gives you an opportunity to really focus on the frosting rather than the cake.”

Put whatever you feel about Scott Boras to the side. Regardless if you think he’s bad for the game if he is only out to get the most money, or whatever else. He is the best agent in sports. Period. One thing that separates Boras from all other agents is that he does have a pulse on every team, he has to. He has clients on every roster in every city and he has constant conversations with every front office in the sport. He knows more about what is going on in any particular organization than anyone not currently in that organization (and sometimes he probably has a better gauge than organizational executives).

Now, when Boras speaks publicly he is self-serving (or serving his clients, which in turn serves himself). But, his comments have truth.

Yes, the Cubs have had offensive breakdowns over the last several seasons. Breakdowns that you don’t expect from such a talented core of players. Guys like Anthony Rizzo, Willson Contreras, Javier Baez, Kyle Schwarber, and Kris Bryant should be able to consistently produce runs. The inconsistency has been perplexing from those five players since the 2017 season. I mean, look at those guys, there’s a player that has been top 10 in MVP voting multiple times, a player that finished second in MVP voting, a player that many believe can be a future MVP caliber player, another that has won an MVP, and a guy that can hit 35+ home runs with incredible ease.

But the last four years have felt mostly wasted, in retrospect. While the team has made the playoffs in all but one of those seasons, the lack of production is very evident. That deficiency has led to Schwarber being non-tendered and the team willing to trade the best player on the roster the past two offseasons. It has also led the “kNoWlEdGeAbLe” fan to run to every social media platform and decree that the Cubs should get rid of them all and start it all over.

Boras reminded us that the cake is just fine, but perhaps instead of a vanilla frosting they may need some chocolate, or maybe add some fondant to the recipe. The core of Rizzo, Baez, Contreras, and Bryant is enough to get the Cubs in contention for the Central title. Then add redemption tours for several players in the final year of their deals and this offense will be the moistest cake we may have seen in some time.

I would be remiss if I didn’t add guys like Yu Darvish and Kyle Hendricks to that cake batter.

The frosting needs a little freshening up. Guys like Craig Kimbrel needs to bounce back, while he had a no-hitter in 2020, Alec Mills needs to find more consistency. What do they have in Nico Hoerner? Which Jason Heyward will the Cubs see? How about the rest of the bullpen, and who the hell will fill out the Cubs rotation!?

I believe in the core of this team. I do. But, we certainly need to strengthen the rest of the roster, or at least make sure it is a frosting that everyone likes.