Just a Bump in the Road

This is where I could point out that Chris Sale is going to the World Series with somebody else’s Sox or that in exchange for Sale my Sox received a package of “prospects” including a strikeout-prone infielder and a Tommy-John-fixed (I hope) pitcher, but I want to look at some other rebuilds instead.  Think of it as misery loving company.

Along those lines, consider the last three World Series winners: Royals, Cubs and Astros, all touted as model rebuilds.  Only the Royals, a mere three years from their championship, went 58-104 this season.  In fact, Kansas City’s playoff run lasted all of two years, 2014-15, and their string of above-.500 seasons ended at three.  Can anyone out there name the current core of rebuild talent in KC, different from the old rebuild talent?

The Royals were followed as champions by the Cubs, who’ve made the playoffs four straight years, the same length of time they been over .500 during the Theo Epstein regime.  But the North Siders seem to be going in the wrong direction, from World Series crown to losses in the NLCS and wildcard games the last two seasons, respectively.  That would indicate a downward trend, don’t you think?

I also wonder about the Astros.  Their vaunted rebuild has equated to one championship, one loss in the ALCS and four straight years over .500.  But all of a sudden star shortstop Carlos Correa has back issues, and perpetual-hitting-machine Jose Altuve has something going on with his hamstring, both of which could become chronic.  We’ll see soon enough.

Two playoff teams this year, the Red Sox and Brewers, have taken different approaches to stocking their rosters.  The Red Sox followed their World Series win in 2013 with two losing seasons and three 90-plus-win seasons after that.  They’re doing what I call a big-market rebuild, combining smart draft choices and international signings (Andrew Benintendi, Rafael Devers); trades (as in Chris Sale); and free-agent signings (J.D. Martinez).  As for the Brewers, they seem to be channeling former Sox GM Kenny Williams, circa 2005.  Milwaukee has done a little of this, a little of that on a modest budget.  Most of the time it’s not enough, but sometimes—2005, right Kenny?—you catch lightning in a bottle.

I wouldn’t be at all surprised if the Astros and Brewers go the way of the Royals.  The Cubs?  Well, they have the financial wherewithal of a major-market team, and they have the smarts of Theo Epstein.  That suggests aggressive moves to keep from sliding into White-Sox-like irrelevance.  I hope I’m wrong, though.