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Speaker 1: Welcome into Northside Territory. Foul Territory Networks Cubs podcast. I'm

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Speaker 1: hat A Sharma with my partner Patrick Mooney. You are

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Speaker 1: your Cubs beat writers over at the Athletic and spring

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Speaker 1: training has started. The super Bowl is over, it is

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Speaker 1: baseball season. Figures and catchers have reported to Mesa. Patrick,

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Speaker 1: you're out there. Give me a sense of how things

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Speaker 1: are feeling. I've gotten people that you know, the vibes

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Speaker 1: are good, that's that's training to get right good vibes.

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Speaker 1: If the vibes are.

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Speaker 2: Bad, yeah you're in trouble.

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Speaker 1: Things aren't going well. But but there is optimism. It

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Speaker 1: comes camp. It feels like a little a little higher

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Speaker 1: than maybe the past uh whatever four years or so.

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Speaker 1: It's probably the most optimistic even non Cubs people are

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Speaker 1: about this team. How are how are things feeling? I

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Speaker 1: know it's just been a day that you're there, But

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Speaker 1: give us a little lay of the land.

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Speaker 3: Well as you had imagine the kind of biggest name,

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Speaker 3: most talked about name was not there. That is Alex

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Speaker 3: Bregman getting some flashbacks to the whole Cody Bellinger saga

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Speaker 3: last February. You know, yesterday the clubhouse opens very you know,

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Speaker 3: kind of standard. I think Jada Hoyric called it, you know,

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Speaker 3: the first day of school feelings, you know, everyone kind

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Speaker 3: of filtering in and out. But you know, with the

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Speaker 3: Cubs opening in Japan, they had to start things a

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Speaker 3: little earlier.

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Speaker 2: They have a very nice, convenient facility.

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Speaker 3: So guys, some guys already uh you know, live in

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Speaker 3: the area, I.

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Speaker 2: Mean justin Steele basically you.

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Speaker 3: Know, uh said what he said on on our podcast

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Speaker 3: a couple of weeks ago that basically has been there

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Speaker 3: almost every day. Guys get in there early, like the

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Speaker 3: Cubs make it easy for them to get there early.

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Speaker 3: So I wouldn't read too much into you know, early

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Speaker 3: arrivals and things like that. But I think the most

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Speaker 3: interesting part was Jed Hoyer really being pretty candid about

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Speaker 3: the uncertainty he feels in the last year of his

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Speaker 3: contract that you know, he's kind of I mean, you've

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Speaker 3: asked him this question on Zoom's before and he's like, well,

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Speaker 3: this is an opportunity, and he said that again, but

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Speaker 3: he also said it comes with some introspection, some anxiety.

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Speaker 3: He acknowledged how unusual his stability has been in Chicago

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Speaker 3: in the baseball industry, so that does inform.

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Speaker 2: The Bregnant negotiations on some level.

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Speaker 3: It does give us some context to the trade for

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Speaker 3: Kyle Tucker and the pressure that they're feeling beyond.

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Speaker 2: Those good vibes, right.

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Speaker 1: I saw those quotes some people shared them on Twitter,

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Speaker 1: and I that that was probably I mean, you know,

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Speaker 1: we we knew Alex Bregman was going to be a

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Speaker 1: topic of conversation, payroll, all that stuff. I expected that.

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Speaker 1: I you're right, like, we've asked him about that before

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Speaker 1: over the past couple of months, you know, any uncertainty,

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Speaker 1: any change in mindset, and he tries to he tried

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Speaker 1: tried to deflect. I mean he's admitted like, yeah, he's aware,

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Speaker 1: but not that was the most candidate I feel like

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Speaker 1: he's been about going into you know, for lack of

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Speaker 1: a better turn, lame lame duck season for him. Uh yeah.

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Speaker 1: I thought it was interesting and I am curious to

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Speaker 1: see what the next few months hold, Like is this

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Speaker 1: something that what if they get off to a hot start,

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Speaker 1: is this something that is addressed then, like if in

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Speaker 1: July they're leading the NL or chasing the Dodgers by

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Speaker 1: only a couple of games or something like that, and

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Speaker 1: they're clearly the class of the central through three months.

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Speaker 1: Do they knock it out? Did they get it out

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Speaker 1: of the way there, or is it something that it's like, no,

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Speaker 1: whatever is happening, this isn't being dealt with till the

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Speaker 1: end of the season. I don't think we have an

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Speaker 1: answer to that, But I just think it's going to

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Speaker 1: be a storyline because that's just what happens when you're

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Speaker 1: on a one year deal.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, I think it was.

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Speaker 3: You know, he acknowledged these things don't occur in a vacuum.

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Speaker 3: So when the Cubs are discussing Bregman, it's, you know,

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Speaker 3: a lame duck executive presenting it to an ownership group

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Speaker 3: that has said that plans to own the team for generations.

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Speaker 3: There is a labor deal that expires after the twenty

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Speaker 3: twenty six season. It's kind of another variable here the Cubs.

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Speaker 3: There is at least a perception that the Cubs have

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Speaker 3: been kind of treading lightly, very cautious about going beyond

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Speaker 3: twenty twenty six. They have a lot of deal line

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Speaker 3: up through twenty twenty six, although I think some of

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Speaker 3: that is just was just the circumstances of when those

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Speaker 3: deals presented themselves.

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Speaker 2: But you know, Jed.

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Speaker 3: Multiple times had said, we're trying to optimize all of

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Speaker 3: the resources within our budget. You know, we're in a

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Speaker 3: window if you're gonna be really good, We're really trying

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Speaker 3: to maximize every dollar that we have.

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Speaker 2: And so.

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Speaker 3: I think reading between the lines there, Bregman is in

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Speaker 3: a lot of way is gonna come down to ownership.

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Speaker 3: Like that doesn't mean Tom Ricketts is gonna call up

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Speaker 3: Scott Boris.

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Speaker 2: But yeah, when you look at the rough estimates of.

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Speaker 3: What the Cubs have committed thus far, you know they're

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Speaker 3: gonna be around that CBT number. We don't know how

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Speaker 3: high Jed has been authorized to go. It may not

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Speaker 3: be the CBT number because Tom As indicated that some

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Speaker 3: of that depends on how the market shakes out, what

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Speaker 3: they do with the trade deadline, if they really compete

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Speaker 3: for playoff spot, and so as the Cubs are having

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Speaker 3: these conversations, clearly ownership is going to have to give

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Speaker 3: a thumbs up or a thumbs down at some point

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Speaker 3: here pretty soon.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, that's another thing that when I was reading your piece,

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Speaker 1: I guess I hadn't like, yes, we've talked about the

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Speaker 1: CBT or the not the CBT, the CBA and how

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Speaker 1: that may impact decisions. But I guess I I guess

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Speaker 1: I didn't fully think about like, oh, extensions, like there

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Speaker 1: may be someone else's that that may be on someone

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Speaker 1: else's plate, like another GM where a team president's plate,

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Speaker 1: so that that kind of hinders things or puts things

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Speaker 1: in pause. I think that's interesting. I think, Okay, does

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Speaker 1: Tom want jedhor making these long term decisions right now? Uh?

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Speaker 1: We don't really have an answer for that, and there's

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Speaker 1: nothing that shows that he is, Like what what contracts

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Speaker 1: are going that long? It's it's Dansby Swanson and that's it.

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Speaker 1: So Uh, that's a that's an interesting wrinkle that I

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Speaker 1: hadn't fully like contemplated, And now I'm just like, Okay, well,

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Speaker 1: does that mean all these things are kind of on hold?

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Speaker 1: Extension for uh Kyle Tucker can't even really be talked about,

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Speaker 1: even if as unrealistic as we've we've always said, it

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Speaker 1: is like it's not really something that they're they can

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Speaker 1: go full force into until Jed Hoyer and the rest

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Speaker 1: of the front office have some stability. Uh. Bregman is

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Speaker 1: kind of you know, one foot in, one foot out.

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Speaker 1: Because of that Uh, it's just a it's an interesting

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Speaker 1: dynamic that makes it a little tougher beyond just the

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Speaker 1: financial constraints that have been put on them. You know,

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Speaker 1: it's not like they're crying poor and they're spending like

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Speaker 1: the Pittsburgh Pirates, but like we've said, they're not spending

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Speaker 1: like the Chicago Cubs. Should spend commensurate with the rest

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Speaker 1: of the league. So it's a that's that's probably like

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Speaker 1: those two things I didn't expect to get like a

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Speaker 1: new Like a lot of times, you know, you open

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Speaker 1: the season in the open spring training and there's like

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Speaker 1: these It's like, yeah, we've talked to Jed about all

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Speaker 1: this stuff already. We were at Cups convention. We you know, whatever,

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Speaker 1: whatever it is, we you know, you end up talking

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Speaker 1: to him about a lot of these things. These it

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Speaker 1: seemed like there were some things that were touched on

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Speaker 1: that weren't fully we didn't fully dive into prior to that,

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Speaker 1: which is which is a good thing.

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Speaker 4: Patrick.

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Speaker 1: All right, Patrick, I guess the fans want to know,

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Speaker 1: is was there any any clarity on Breakman, like do

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Speaker 1: we get anything? There was like, do you have even

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Speaker 1: like a feeling after spending whatever it's been a little

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Speaker 1: over twenty four hours in Arizona that that gives you

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Speaker 1: any any what's the vibe check on? Alex Bregman.

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Speaker 3: I'm glad you asked that because I was kind of

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Speaker 3: thinking of how to phrase it, and I hope this

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Speaker 3: is a good answer of like, I honestly would not

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Speaker 3: be surprised either way, meaning when we first heard about this,

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Speaker 3: you know, weeks ago, it was like, really come on,

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Speaker 3: like doubt it at this point now, Like I wouldn't

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Speaker 3: be shocked. I mean we we as a group at

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Speaker 3: the Athletic like work ahead on some of this stuff,

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Speaker 3: like in case it does happen, Like that story is

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Speaker 3: filed somewhere like in a Google doc of like, you know,

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Speaker 3: if the cup sign, Like I would not be shocked

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Speaker 3: by that. I also will not be surprised if say

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Speaker 3: Jim Crane calls up Scott Boris and they get something

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Speaker 3: done or you know, we seem to think that maybe

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Speaker 3: you know, the Toronto Blue Jays have been very aggressive

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Speaker 3: with lots of players over the last couple of cycles

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Speaker 3: and haven't landed them. It would not be surprising if

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Speaker 3: they have some money left over and kind of overpay

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Speaker 3: as a team that kind of has to do that

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Speaker 3: to get certain players on board. You know, the Red

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Speaker 3: Sox and Tigers I think still have the need. They

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Speaker 3: have some resources. Again, they're from the Jed Hoyer tree,

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Speaker 3: the theo Epstein tree, probably looking at Bregman the player

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Speaker 3: in a very similar way. And just the more you

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Speaker 3: and I have reported this out, I don't think there's

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Speaker 3: many questions about the baseball player, like this guy's a

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Speaker 3: very good fit for this team right now and would

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Speaker 3: catapult them from you know, maybe a mid to high

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Speaker 3: eighties bubble team to like a very solid ninety wind projection,

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Speaker 3: which is what everyone around the Cubs has talked about

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Speaker 3: for years of setting that standard.

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Speaker 2: And so this again I think will come down to ownership.

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Speaker 3: In a lot of ways, and how Jed presents it.

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Speaker 3: I still don't have a great feel for like what

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Speaker 3: Bragmant and Boris are thinking beyond aiming very very high,

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Speaker 3: Like he still seems to have more options than Cody

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Speaker 3: Bellinger did last year, that he has kind of a better, better,

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Speaker 3: a more consistent track record, and as such maybe a

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Speaker 3: better reputation just as a guy to like bed on

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Speaker 3: longer term. I don't think the Cubs will go six

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Speaker 3: or seven years at all. I'm not sure how short

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Speaker 3: Regman would go on a deal like that. But if

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Speaker 3: you're him, if you're willing to leave Houston and kind

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Speaker 3: of separate that part of your legacy, it doesn't seem

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Speaker 3: like he wants to play in Toronto. That would just

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Speaker 3: be my guess. I don't, you know, necessarily have hard

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Speaker 3: information on that. You know, Detroit not the most glamorous

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Speaker 3: place for free agents, and you know, Boston has been

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Speaker 3: probably even more cautious than the Cubs resent or are

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Speaker 3: on a very similar path of kind of trying to

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Speaker 3: thread the needles. So I don't really see them jumping

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Speaker 3: out and going crazy, though they did, you know, bid

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Speaker 3: heavily for once. So so oh, it's a long long

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Speaker 3: way of saying, my I guess my thinking has evolved

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Speaker 3: to where I do it's more likely.

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Speaker 2: But yeah, we'll see. Like when I drive into the

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Speaker 2: Mace a lot this morning.

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Speaker 1: You know, yeah, yeah, I mean, I I agree. My

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Speaker 1: my thinking has changed that it changes the more information

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Speaker 1: you hear right, we used to the longer it goes, yeah, yeah,

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Speaker 1: the longer it goes, and the more we talk to people, Okay,

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Speaker 1: they may have a shot here, when early on it

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Speaker 1: was like no, they're just not They're not going to

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Speaker 1: be able to spend that type of money. Okay, well

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Speaker 1: it may look like a different situation now. Uh. And

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Speaker 1: I you know, we we've we've heard little things that

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Speaker 1: have come out about like he wants a longer deal

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Speaker 1: and and that's what the holdout is for. I also

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Speaker 1: wonder you know, we, like you said, we don't know

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Speaker 1: for sure that he doesn't want to play in Toronto

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Speaker 1: or Detroit, but does he want that big market?

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Speaker 2: Does he want Boston or Chicago?

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Speaker 1: So is that kind of what he's waiting for one

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Speaker 1: of them to step up with an even like just

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Speaker 1: a similar offer to what Houston or whatever Toronto may

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Speaker 1: have out there. Is that what he's waiting for? Is

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Speaker 1: it more? Is it less about trying to get that

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Speaker 1: sixth or seventh like that six or seven year monster

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Speaker 1: deal and more about who's offering the longer term or

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Speaker 1: the bigger or the get more guaranteed money. I do

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Speaker 1: wonder that. I don't know for sure, but maybe Chicago

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Speaker 1: and Boston has that appeal where it's like, Okay, I'm

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Speaker 1: ready for something new, and this is something new. I

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Speaker 1: want it to be in one of these storied franchises

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Speaker 1: that's not I don't think that's a ridiculous thought. I

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Speaker 1: think that could be part of what he's contemplating, because

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Speaker 1: Chicago and Boston, I mean, you're talking about two historic

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Speaker 1: ballparks to historic teams. I mean it's different. I know

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Speaker 1: Houston's won a lot lately, there's no denying that. It's

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Speaker 1: just different. The Cubs in the Red Sox, Yankees, Dodgers,

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Speaker 1: those there's a different feel to that in my opinion,

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Speaker 1: you know, but we don't know for sure what he wants.

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Speaker 1: I think it's going it's just like Bellinger, it's gonna

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Speaker 1: kind of hang over the spring training until it's done,

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Speaker 1: whether he comes to the Cubs or resigns with Astros

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Speaker 1: or goes elsewhere, until it's finalized. It's like, Okay, this

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Speaker 1: is kind of the story. And I like, I remember

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Speaker 1: last year, you were there for the first week. I

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Speaker 1: showed up and I had a bunch of Bellinger ideas

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Speaker 1: and he signed like twenty four hours after I arrived, Like,

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Speaker 1: let's hope you get to deal with whatever is happening,

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Speaker 1: and I don't, and he and Bregman doesn't take because

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Speaker 1: that would be full ten days from now, Patrick, we

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Speaker 1: need him to sign before February twentieth, all right, just

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Speaker 1: to get it out of the way and we can

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Speaker 1: move on to different story ideas. But I think also fans,

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Speaker 1: fans would probably need a respite from the constant Alex

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Speaker 1: Bregman talk and just you know, we can talk about

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Speaker 1: other things at a certain point, but right now it's

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Speaker 1: just the story.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, no doubt.

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Speaker 3: I mean that's as I'm thinking about what I'm going

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Speaker 3: to be writing this week, It's like, I think there

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Speaker 3: has to be like a Bregman or Bregman ad Jason

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Speaker 3: Engel almost daily.

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Speaker 2: And you know, we don't know Bregman.

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Speaker 3: Personally, but by reputation and by you know, frankly the

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Speaker 3: agency and representation that he's chosen. Like he's pretty confident

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Speaker 3: and people generally speaking know what they're going to get

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Speaker 3: when they hire Scott Boris, and he is he can

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Speaker 3: be very very patient and he's willing to take it

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Speaker 3: beyond you know, pitchers and catchers reporting beyond the first

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Speaker 3: full squad workout, maybe beyond the first Cactus League game.

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Speaker 2: And so that to me, I think the Cubs are

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Speaker 2: pretty dug in.

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Speaker 3: I think there's some flexibility in terms of what ownership

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Speaker 3: could do to make it work this year. I mean

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Speaker 3: Jed sort of an acknowledged when I asked him, like,

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Speaker 3: is this essentially to sign someone like that you'd have

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Speaker 3: to borrow against the trade deadline? And he said that,

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Speaker 3: you know, that's always a factor, and it was probably

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Speaker 3: using up maybe all of the money that.

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Speaker 2: They would typically set aside. And I thought you made

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Speaker 2: a great point.

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Speaker 3: I think last time we chatted of you know, the

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Speaker 3: needs on you know, the day after the super Bowl

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Speaker 3: may not be the needs that you have in the

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Speaker 3: middle of June, Like just stuff happens. And you know,

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Speaker 3: for now they're talking up Matt Shaw. You know that

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Speaker 3: they're not gonna anoint him, they're not gonna there's no

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Speaker 3: entitlement program, but there's a lot of opportunity there and

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Speaker 3: they think he's gonna be a really good Maisle player.

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Speaker 2: For a long time.

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Speaker 1: So uh.

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Speaker 3: That so that is kind of where you know, what

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Speaker 3: does Bragmann ultimately want? And I think you're right that

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Speaker 3: liking a big market team certainly platform makes sense.

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Speaker 2: And also like, look, the Ashers have one for.

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Speaker 3: A long time, but if you're looking at like an

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Speaker 3: organizational outlook for the next five years, like are they

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Speaker 3: gonna be able to constantly kind of like you know,

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Speaker 3: move these parts and bring in these players, Like do

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Speaker 3: they have enough coming besides cam Smith.

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Speaker 2: In their farm system?

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Speaker 3: And when you look at the Cubs in Red Sox, like, yeah,

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Speaker 3: they've been disappointing over the last couple of years, but

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Speaker 3: you know they're at or near the top of those

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Speaker 3: farm system rankings. They their payrolls, while not to the

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Speaker 3: satisfaction of most of their fans, are still like pretty high,

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Speaker 3: and you know, they have proven managers, they have you know,

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Speaker 3: some established players like and they have an opening for

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Speaker 3: a guy like Bregman.

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Speaker 2: So that's you know, kind of kind of seems to

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Speaker 2: be where it's at right now.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, and I mean beyond Bregman. The only thing, uh,

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Speaker 1: like in I caught like clips and stuff like that

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Speaker 1: of what Jed said and what a council said, I

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Speaker 1: thought it was interesting what Council said about some of

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Speaker 1: the rookies, some of the young kids that will he

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Speaker 1: basically said, like, oh, in case he will play this year.

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Speaker 1: Moyes's b Bystairs will will be up at some point

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Speaker 1: Matt Shaw. Obviously we all know that. But I thought

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Speaker 1: that was semi like kind of interesting in the sense

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Speaker 1: like we probably knew that, right, I mean just by

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Speaker 1: like they're all in triple AU. But I think that's interesting.

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Speaker 1: I like how console kind of just like flat out

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Speaker 1: set it. Yeah, these guys are going to make their

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Speaker 1: debuts at some point this season because that's kind of

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Speaker 1: how it works, and and he's going to you know,

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Speaker 1: we'll we'll start to see these young guys trickle in

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Speaker 1: and it'll be a little bit a preview of what's

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Speaker 1: to come, I guess down the line. But other than that, yeah,

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Speaker 1: I think it's it's Bregman, Uh twenty four to seven

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Speaker 1: for you, Patrick, So good luck getting at the clubhouse. Yeah,

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Speaker 1: the clubhouse will will be more forthcoming. Right, Well, we'll

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Speaker 1: they're all gonna say like, yeah, sign that, sign that dude.

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Speaker 1: Let's get him. Let's get him to make as soon

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Speaker 1: as possible, which is always fun. So we'll see we'll

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Speaker 1: we'll you'll be on top of it this week and

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Speaker 1: the next I'll be out there soon enough and uh

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Speaker 1: and it'll be Bregman Watch until it's not. Uh So,

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Speaker 1: thanks everyone for listening. We'll have another episode for you

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Speaker 1: later this week. Keeping on top of things out in

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Speaker 1: Mesa and all things cubs, make sure to rate, review

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Speaker 1: and subscribe to north Side Territory. Subscribe to the YouTube channel.

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Speaker 1: Make sure to subscribe to The Athletic Where Cubs Are,

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Speaker 1: Where Patrick and I are on top of all things cubs.

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Speaker 1: Thanks so much for listening to everyone. Take