Chicago Cubs 2019 Season

#426      
with all due respect to my fellow Cub fans who feel AR should have been flat out released:

As I have said, I am rather indifferent to AR coming back to the MLB roster....
but, just about everyone in society deserves due process. There are those few who should just get wild wild west justice on a horse and tied to a rope. But 99.9% of people deserve to get heard and allowed to go through the process.

We would not be doing AR , or his kids or ex's , justice , if we took away his way of making money and cast him off like yesterdays newspaper. I find his past actions pretty bad. But, it does not mean he cant correct his behavior. I wish him well on his last chance to prove himself.

If he succeeds , I want to be first in line at the HOF to embrace him
If he fails, I want to be first in line to kick his butt out of the clubhouse

Its all on him at this point to prove to all of us who he really is.

But dont pretend that about fully 20% of the guys in the MLB HOF were just as bad as he's been. Different place . different time.

I am all for Russell making the changes necessary in his life to he a better person. In fact, the best possible outcome I hope for is that he can own that what he did was abusive, genuinely apologize for these actions, and be a changed father for his children.

That being said, these actions should have consequences. If you or I were found to do what Russell did, I can imagine we would lose our jobs and be forced to pick up the pieces as they land. But this is a case of a rich and talented man being keeping their position because they are in a position of power. If this was a AAAA fringe MLB roster player, do you believe we would be having the same discussion?
 
#427      

South Farms

near Ogden & Rt 83
No one I know disputes that for many many years, the fact that athletes, entertainers , and politicians got a better deal in our system than Joe SixPack.
I understand your frustration of the American process of the rich(er) getting a better deal in a law based society than the poor(er), but this is not about that.

This is about a ball player getting the due process afforded him by the CBA that he is part of . It is what it is. I don't like it, but I need to respect the process for what it is. Its better than 99.9% of the world's process.

If guilty :
Me? I would be in jail and stripped of all assets.
AR? not at all

doesn't make me angry with or at him. Just the way things are. Life's not about fair and not fair.
 
#428      
I am all for Russell making the changes necessary in his life to he a better person. In fact, the best possible outcome I hope for is that he can own that what he did was abusive, genuinely apologize for these actions, and be a changed father for his children.

That being said, these actions should have consequences. If you or I were found to do what Russell did, I can imagine we would lose our jobs and be forced to pick up the pieces as they land. But this is a case of a rich and talented man being keeping their position because they are in a position of power. If this was a AAAA fringe MLB roster player, do you believe we would be having the same discussion?

Yea I agree, that's the whole thing. Russell's "2nd chance" should have been not going to jail for the things he did to his ex-wife and family. However, that narrative got shifted to "everyone deserves a 2nd chance at being a professional baseball player" and that's a pretty warped view of it.

The Cubs had the perfect opportunity to just walk away. Russell wasn't under contract this offseason, he was under team control but didn't have to be tendered a contract; Cubs could have walked away completely free of any financial obligation. And from a strictly baseball talent position, Russell hasn't put up an above average season since 2016, so it's not like they were walking away from Willie Mays.

Full disclosure, I'm a Cardinal fan. However, I'm a human being first that wants to see crap like what Russell did (and so many others do, unfortunately, everyday) stop. Don't care what uniform the guy is wearing, people like him (and Chapman, and Roberto Osuna, and Jose Reyes, and unfortunately way more players) shouldn't get the opportunity to play MLB baseball and make millions of dollars again. And the teams that give them that opportunity should be held responsible to explain themselves constantly.
 
#429      

bdutts

Houston, Texas
I was talking about the Sheryl Ring tweet that set the whole thing off, and then others corroborating with another sources. Ignore deadspins conclusion but here's the paragraph with all the writers coming forward saying they were intimidated or threatened to lose access if they wrote negative Russell stories:



Maybe it's all misunderstanding or embellished by the sources, but if the organization would have handled this "perfectly", this kind of stuff wouldn't be out there.

I think the only "perfect" way to have handled this was to no longer employ Addison Russell, but that's my opinion and reasonable minds can disagree there.

The Sheryl Ring thing came because of her pal Julie complaining about having to remove a tweet.
 
#432      

South Farms

near Ogden & Rt 83
geez, I had no idea his leave was about anything that serious. Doesn't sound too good. Its obviously been weighing on him, per the comments from Joe .
 
#445      
I'm heading to the Dodgers @ Reds game tomorrow afternoon. I'll be sure to try and bewitch Great American Ballpark for recent dud to the end to that series yesterday.
 
#446      
[ W ] #26

Nice to see Schwarber, Almora, and Contreras bust out some power.

Oh and Bryant hitting three dingers.
 
#448      

breadman

Herndon, VA
That was certainly fun to watch last night! 14 - 6!
Also, I will be at the game this Sunday night on ESPN!
Look for me!
 
#449      

Illiniaaron

Geneseo, IL
It's kind of interesting how the Cubs' offense has performed this season with a couple of guys like Baez and Contreras having great seasons and very consistent, with Bryant and Almora coming on of late after quiet starts. Rizzo has been very streaky and hasn't found his groove yet but has been productive. Hayward carried the team early but has had a horrible May, hitting only .161 the past thirty days and now down to .229 on the season.