The Cubs spent a weekend trying to rally current season ticket holders to renew their seats for the next season(s). The Cubs thanked the fans for their loyalty and patience, but still wanted the renewal deposits this week.
In all the buzz words of how the Cubs are going about their rebuild, there is little time table for success being given as the goal line for the plan. In interviews, Epstein says the team is a
"couple years away" from the start of the core prospects making it to the major league roster. The team continues to stress that the farm system is now ranked in the top 5 in major league baseball. There are plenty of good prospects on the horizon. Patience and loyalty will be rewarded.
That is all fine and good for the long term. But most fans want to know about the present and near term. Since Ricketts purchased the team, it has set futility records.
Cub fans have inherit qualities to root for the underdog. Top prospects are now the underdogs that fans can root for as they make their way out of Class A ball. When die hard fans know more about the Daytona Cubs than the Chicago Cubs, that is a problem because the revenue core must be generated at the major league level to support the entire organization.
More and more fan comments have fallen on the side that the Cubs are being run like the small market Kansas City Royals. That is not a compliment. If ownership and the team have limited revenue resources being in a small population center, and relatively smaller advertising and broadcast rights markets, then the emphasis must be on developing one's own talent. But even the Royals trade their talent to acquire quality players and sign free agents to fill need positions on the major league roster.
In all the off-season talk so far, the Cubs have not outlined what they are going to do this off-season to improve the major league club. They have said that the team will not be in the big money free agent market place, so top talent like Choo, Cano, and Tanaka are off the radar. In addition, the Cubs current roster is not blocking any of the prized prospects from promotion this year or next year. Even signing a quality free agent for two years is not going to upset the rebuilding and promotion of prospects long term.
The concern for the fan base is that 2014 is going to be a repeat of 2013, another non-competitive punt season. Field position works as a strategy in football, but in baseball there is a constant need to look at, evaluate and upgrade every position on the roster. The fan base does not get any sense of urgency from Cub management.
