iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Probably doesn't matter, but I don't really get using Aaron Civale down 7 runs

131

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

It will never cease to amuse me that the NL MVP walks up to an MGMT song

020

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

Aaron Civale in 11 games since his first Cubs appearance this year: 24 IP, 23 K, 6 BB, 0.75 ERA, 2.25 xERA, 2.18 FIP

020

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 25/08/2026

Felt like Zeferjahn needed to see a clean inning regardless of how he got there. Maybe notable that he threw majority sinkers after only throwing a couple as a Cub.

030

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 25/08/2026

Michael Conforto has his hardest and third-hardest hit balls of his season tonight.

010

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 24/08/2026

Trent Thornton before 7/1: 2.63 ERA, 5.74 xERA, 5.71 FIP Trent Thornton since 7/1: 2.04 ERA, 2.82 xERA, 2.46 FIP 36.8% K% in his last 6 outings with 0 walks Aaron Civale since his first outing with the Cubs: 1.02 ERA, 2.12 xERA, 1.95 FIP

020

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 23/08/2026

David Peterson might be in line for a playoff start if the playoffs started today. His velo was up a tick today and he got a season-high 17 whiffs and 8 strikeouts.

120

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 15/08/2026

I'm a bit worried about Michael Busch being a 130+ wRC+ guy again. Never an amazing athlete, his bat and sprint speed have decreased each of the last 3 years. Made strides against lefties this year, but he's not crushing righties. Defense is great, but overall not a traditional 1B profile.

110

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 14/08/2026

Possibly a random thing, but I wonder if the Cubs tweaked Clay Holmes' cutter. 5" more drop, thrown 3 MPH slower than average this year.

010

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

Right up there with Hunter Greene and Dylan Cease for opposing starter performances against the Cubs this season

010

Reposted by Ben Bailey

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 27/07/2026

We don't need to pretend Eric Lauer is good, its okay

002

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 05/08/2026

Very different roles, but Ryan Rolison's success is one reason I like the Garrett acquisition. If there's one thing I trust the Cubs to do, it's get good results from lefties with fastballs that have natural cut.

030

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

Brief deadline takeaways... Jed Hoyer clearly believes in the current Cubs team I don't love giving up Rojas for rentals. I assumed you could get a controllable starter with him as the main piece. If an extension is worked out, it would feel better, even though it's not baked into cost (1/3)

140

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

Braxton Garrett has started a Marlins playoff game more recently than Sandy Alcantara

000

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 03/08/2026

Braxton Garrett and Ryan Zeferjahn, the 4 seam fastball horizontal movement reverse leaderboard sort strikes again

020

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 03/08/2026

Bateman and Southisene are fun, but they have a combined 6 professional HRs. Easy deal for Gausman.

030

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 02/08/2026

If the playoffs started tomorrow, I don't think there's a rumored to be available pitcher I'd want starting more than Reid Detmers. Big question (besides acquisition cost) is how he would hold up for the remainder of the season and in a much more competitive environment.

010

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 01/08/2026

In sentences that were never said before this year...how sure are we that George Kirby is significantly better than Emerson Hancock?

010

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 30/07/2026

northsidebaseball.com/news-ru... Bump

010

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 29/07/2026

Curious what teams think about Pedro Ramírez compared to Matt Shaw (outside of Shaw's wrist injury). Shaw has pedigree, more game power to this point in the majors, and more positional flexibility, flashing plus defense at three positions, though the bar isn't ideal for a corner OF. (1/3)

100

Reposted by Ben Bailey

Matt Trueblood @matrueblood.bsky.social · 27/07/2026

Jacob Webb has a new breaking ball—the product of a pitcher with good feel being scooped up by a Tyler Zombro-Tommy Hottovy pitching outfit. Will that make him a good enough leverage arm to let #Cubs focus on their rotation instead this week? northsidebaseball.com/news-rumors/...

northsidebaseball.com

Jacob Webb's New Pitch Softens Cubs' Need for Reliever at MLB Trade Deadline

He's not a traditional relief ace, but Jacob Webb loves his high-leverage role with the Cubs—and the new breaking ball he and the team engineered has made him viable in it.

143

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 27/07/2026

We don't need to pretend Eric Lauer is good, its okay

002

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 25/07/2026

Here's my list of above, on, and under the radar controllable starting pitchers I'd look at if I were the Cubs as the trade deadline approaches cubofcoffee.com/a-list-of-co...

cubofcoffee.com

A List of Controllable Starters...

Thoughts on the Chicago Cubs after every game

120

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 24/07/2026

"We're willing to trade our young catcher because we have Luis Torrens" is not really a ringing endorsement of the young catcher

110

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 08/07/2026

Braxton Garrett doesn't seem to be a priority for the Marlins anymore, and I wonder if (despite competing with each other) the Cubs and Marlins could match up in a trade. Garrett is a softer-throwing lefty with a cut fastball and two breaking balls, a profile the Cubs have worked well with.

000

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 23/06/2026

Any of these guys would be great, but there's already reporting that Detmers, Soriano, and Webb are not available, Alcantara has been solid but not amazing, would Texas trade Gore right after trading for him…Ryan is the best fit but the Twins may not move him either…

110

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

Lots of talk about how the Cubs are trying to pull the ball in the air too much…they're only 8th in baseball. The month in which they pulled the ball in the air the least was their worst offensive month. Similarly, Nico Hoerner's Pull Air % was highest in March/April and lowest in May.

010

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 16/06/2026

Velo was down last night, looked uncomfortable, and was visited by the trainer but still finished the inning. I'm sure he said he was fine, but it's a bad look.

000

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 02/06/2026

May 2026 was no better than the third-worst calendar month of Dansby Swanson (32 wRC+), Seiya Suzuki (54), and Nico Hoerner (62)'s careers.

020

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 27/05/2026

If the Cubs had a superstar hitter like Juan Soto or Yordan Alvarez maybe he could carry the team. This is why the Mets and Astros are so good this year. The pitching is an issue, but the hitters who are supposed to hit just have to hit.

111

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 25/05/2026

Good news and bad news: that single was Bregman's hardest hit ball in 3 weeks.

000

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 24/05/2026

Joe Ryan is tricky to value with 1.5 years of control left. As far as I can tell, there haven't been many SP that good traded with that much team control in the last few years. The most recent example may be Eflin in 2024, though he had a shorter track record. Better comps Montas or Castillo (1/2)

131

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 11/05/2026

One name I’d be curious about for the Cubs at the 2026 trade deadline is Clarke Schmidt. He’s coming back from elbow surgery and the Yankees already have five solid starters before Gerrit Cole comes back. A six pitch pitcher who can cut his fastball…

110

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 09/05/2026

The Cubs wouldn't be where they are this season without unexpected contributions from their bullpen. I compiled a list of 12 of my favorite unexpected relief outings from the season so far cubofcoffee.com/the-12-best-...

cubofcoffee.com

The 12 Best Cubs Relief Moments of the Season So Far

The Cubs have the best record in baseball at 27-12, despite many pitching injuries. A large part of their recent success has been relievers stepping up and performing way above expectations. Because t...

020

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 08/05/2026

Freddy Peralta is probably the fourth most likely Mets starter to be traded to the Cubs at the trade deadline

020

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 06/05/2026

One unique thing about Ryan Rolison is that this year he's throwing three distinct breaking balls as a reliever, to go with a fastball that moves more like a cutter. Don't think he'll maintain this all year, but I think there's something there.

020

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

Jameson Taillon Strike %: 2023: 66% 2024: 66% 2025: 67% 2026: 61%

010

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 24/04/2026

Great work by Riley Martin today to come in to replace an injured Caleb Thielbar down in the count to Trea Turner with Schwarber and Harper up next and getting out of the inning unscathed. That's a hard spot for anyone, much less a rookie.

040

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 21/04/2026

Dansby Swanson's home run was the hardest-hit ball of his career.

062

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 17/04/2026

Something to note early: after ditching his sinker in his first few appearances, it’s been Edward Cabrera’s primary fastball against righties so far this afternoon

010

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 17/04/2026

Cubs need some new Oblique Strategies

000

Reposted by Ben Bailey

Meghan Montemurro @mmontemurro.bsky.social · 16/04/2026

Shota Imanaga's 26 whiffs tonight vs. the Phillies are the most by a pitcher in MLB this season. Imanaga's 26 whiffs also tie Yu Darvish (Aug. 23, 2020) for the most whiffs by a Cubs pitcher in the pitch tracking era (since 2008).

0519

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 15/04/2026

4 hits in the Cubs/Phillies game, 0 on pitches in the strike zone

010

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 12/04/2026

Obviously very different roles and it won’t last, but it is very funny that Conforto is outhitting Kyle Tucker

040

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 09/04/2026

Jameson Taillon’s four-seam fastball shape looks better this year. Unfortunately, it’s slower, his command has been worse, and his changeup is doing something weird. If he can somehow alleviate those things and keep the new fastball shape, it could help him hold down the back of the rotation

000

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 09/04/2026

What a start to the season for Nico Hoerner after his extension: .333/.453/.548 for a 183 wRC+, third in the majors in base running value, and tied for the league lead in fWAR.

020

Ben Bailey @benfb.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

The Cubs’ three backend starters are throwing 20 combined pitch types

020