The Ex- Factor

Well, playoff baseball certainly had a Chicago feel to it last night, didn’t it? What that means depends on perspective, I guess. For the Rangers, let’s skip over Marcus Semien and note instead ex-White Sox Dane Dunning, who started for the Rangers (and got pounded in a 10-3 Astros’ win). Dunning had a breakout season, going 12-7 with a 3.70 ERA. Who would I want right now, Dunning or Lance Lynn, who we traded Dunning for back in December 2020? Youth before girth, I always say. Beyond that, Dunning’s record is more a reflection of what the team did for him than vice versa. Think Jim Coates (11-5, 3.44 ERA) or Rollie Sheldon (11-5, 3.60 ERA) with the ’61 Yankees. Take away Mantle and Maris, and those win totals would’ve plummeted. Take away Seager and Garcia… As for the Astros, Jose Abreu hit a three-run home run, giving him four this postseason along with eleven RBIs. I’ll say it again—good for Abreu, but that was never going to happen with the White Sox, unless maybe they’d kept Dunning and Semien (and Jake Burger). This was a divorce that had to happen. Sort of like Kyle Schwarber and the Cubs. Schwarber has had himself an interesting postseason, hitting three homers, driving in four and batting .200. Sort of what you’d expect from the poster child of saber-analytic leadoff hitters, you know, like the one who hit forty-seven homers in the regular season while driving in 104 and scoring 108. Oh, and batting .197. And, if the Cubs had resigned Schwarber, then what? I’m thinking his production fits better some places, like Philadelphia or Boston, than others, like the North Side. Once that Cubs’ core from 2016 started moving out the door, it just didn’t make sense to keep someone who hit the ball long and hard, when he hit it (.230 BA in six seasons). The Phillies could’ve used Schwarber’s power last night in their 2-1 loss to the Diamondbacks (made possible by ex-Cub and White Sox reliever Craig Kimbrel, and who misses him?). Schwarber went 0-3, along with fellow ex-Cub Nick Castellanos. Can you see both of them still wearing Cubbie blue? I can’t. Castellanos would’ve wanted a ton of money, per his agent, Scott Boras. That might’ve slowed down the Cubs’ teardown, but it wouldn’t have prevented it. Anthony Rizzo, Javy Baez and Kris Bryant were all going to go or get resigned and start getting injured. By not signing Castellanos, the North Siders managed a quick rebuild that would’ve been impossible with him around. So, enjoy your favorite ex-Chicago players. Just don’t wish they were still here. Except, of course, for Marcus Semien. Talk about dumb moves….