The Rundown: Driving Home, Cubs Finally Sign Conforto, Mo Baller Arrives at Camp, Kent Hates A-Rod

ʻIke aku, ʻike mai, kokua aku kokua mai; pela iho la ka nohana ʻohana.

My aunt passed away peacefully last night, so I’ll ask for your grace as I reminisce for just a bit before getting to the baseball stuff. I was going to identify her as my Aunt Barb, but didn’t want to get her confused with my other Aunt Barb. Or my grandmother, Bubba, who is also Barbara. I was also wary of calling her my favorite aunt just in case any of the others are reading this, but I suppose the cat’s out of the bag now.

She moved to Hawaii as a 40th birthday present to herself, so I’ve made more trips out there than most over the last 30-plus years. I believe I’m at six and counting, though two of those were for work. One was to Maui, and I wasn’t able to hop over to Oahu to see her. I did, however, spend some time with my lifelong best friend, who had retired from his previous job to construct a home for a surgeon in Hana. He was living in a tent next to a black-rock beach and doing his business in the adjacent jungle, but that’s a story for another time.

Most of the stories about Barb are best reserved for other times and places as well, though I’m compelled to share something she told me decades ago. A frequent traveler, both stateside and abroad, she told me that driving in a city affords you a measure of ownership over it. Not from a consumerist perspective, but more like a kinship that made you part of the city than you would have been otherwise.

I understood that much better once I’d had more travels of my own, and I have experienced the opposite now that I use Uber or Lyft with greater frequency. When I would rent cars, I developed a deeper familiarity with a place and felt like I was a little freer. But in Minneapolis, a city I have visited often without ever having driven myself, I am at a complete loss when it comes to geography and direction.

My wife and I took our kids to visit Barb and enjoy the island during fall break in 2015, which just happened to be when the Cubs faced the Mets in the NLCS. I remember waking up at 3 or 4am local time to do a phoner with a Chicago radio station (not The Score), and getting tattooed at Electric Paradise in Waikiki while watching the Cubs fall in Game 4. The artist was a native Hawaiian whose father was a retired soldier from Chicago, so this guy was a Cubs and Bears fan too.

I’ll never forget watching my kids boogie board and play in the waves, or the character breakfast at Disney’s Aulani resort, or seeing a moray eel swimming right next to me while snorkeling at Hanauma Bay, but one of my favorite things was driving. I had rented a convertible, something the kids still talk about it to this day. We drove around the eastern shore of the island, stopping at various scenic points before grabbing lunch in Kailua and heading back.

During my most recent trip, which was several years ago now, I again rented a convertible and kept the top down even though it was raining lightly. I can’t recall many times before or since that I’ve felt freer. That was also the last time I saw my aunt. I drove from the airport to her home in Waianae without the use of GPS because, just as she had promised, I knew the place.

Barb was clearly less of herself than she’d been before and it wasn’t the most enjoyable visit I’ve ever had, but I’m glad I was able to be there. I’m also thankful beyond words that my sister was able to be with her over the last few days. I’ll get out to Hawaii again at some point, and I’m going to make sure to rent a convertible so the breeze can carry my worries off.

That opening line above is a Hawaiian proverb that translates to: Recognize others, be recognized; help others, be helped; such is a family relationship. I’d like to think that’s kind of what we’re trying to do here when we’re not just posting recaps and video highlights. Thank you all for how you help me and each other.

Cubs Sign Michael Conforto

In news that would have been way cooler three years ago, the Cubs have signed outfielder Michael Conforto. Jon Heyman was first to report the agreement, and it has since been clarified that it’s a minor league deal. The Cubs can still create a 40-man spot by transferring Shelby Miller to the 60-day IL, which is going to happen regardless, but it wouldn’t have made sense to give said spot to Conforto.

He’ll turn 33 on March 1 and is coming off the worst season of his career with the Dodgers, which followed the two previous worst seasons of his career with the Giants. The Cubs were heavily connected to Conforto before he signed with San Francisco, and we know how Jed Hoyer likes to revisit old haunts. In this case, it’s a seasoned lefty batter who can play all three outfield positions.

The Cubs don’t have any level of certainty when it comes to the last bench spot, hence bringing in Chas McCormick and Dylan Carlson to compete with Kevin Alcantara. The switch-hitting Carlson was the only competitor for that spot who bats from the left side, so this is yet another insurance policy. Timing is also a big factor, as the Cubs will be without both Pete Crow-Armstrong and Seiya Suzuki for a while due to their WBC obligations.

Add in the late arrival of Moisés Ballesteros, and the organization has a good deal more runway to see if any of these vets can get off the ground. Or if Alcántara can clip their wings. There’s no risk at all given the nature of the deal, so I guess we’ll just have to see what happens. Though he doesn’t figure to see much action against lefties, Conforto’s career splits (121 wRC+ against righties, 98 against lefties) are better than those of his new teammates/competitors.

Ballesteros Arrives After Multiple Delays

Visa issues have long been part of the annual spring training chaos, but they seem to be even more prevalent these days. Presumed primary DH Ballesteros was among those players whose arrival at camp came later than desired, but he made it to Sloan Park on Sunday. The Venezuelan native first went to Colombia, where he was stuck for over a week while he awaited approval. Then came a delay in Houston over the weekend.

“I was anxious,” Ballesteros told reporters via his interpreter. “But I’m happy now to be here, be with my team. I’m excited to talk to them and ready to be back.”

Craig Counsell said that Ballesteros will see time at catcher and first base, but it’ll really just be in a backup capacity. The bat is what got him to this point and it’s what’ll keep him in the bigs, so having the ability to play the field is secondary at best. Maybe he’ll see time as an emergency third catcher or as a first baseman late in lopsided games, so it’s good to keep the rust off.

The 22-year-old slashed .298/.394/.474 with two homers and a 143 wRC+ over 66 plate appearances across three stints in Chicago last season, setting the stage for more significant playing time this year. He looks like the Cubs’ best option at DH, though it’s likely they’ll platoon the left-handed hitter against tough southpaws. Look for him to get into a Cactus League lineup soon.

More News and Notes

• The Guardians have signed Rhys Hoskins to a minor league deal.
• Righty Triston McKenzie, who makes Carl Edwards Jr. look husky, fired what may have been the two fastest pitches of his career for the Padres on Sunday. Looking to make the team after signing a minors deal, Dr. Sticks’ first two pitches were 97.6 and 98.7 mph; his previous career high was 96.5 mph.
• A sewage leak at the Yankees’ spring training facility got into the team’s clubhouse and forced fans to navigate around pools of shitty water.
• I can only assume this is part of the competition in the AL East. The Blue Jays are shouting, “Yesavage!” so the Yankees countered with, “Yeah, sewage!”
• Former Cubs great Carson Fulmer has signed a minor league deal with the Pirates that includes a spring training invite.
• Class of 2026 Hall of Fame inductee and former Giant Jeff Kent left his filter at home before joining the venerable Jon Miller during the broadcast of their game against the Cubs on Sunday. Asked about a time when Alex Rodriguez slid into him at second base, spraining his knee, Kent didn’t hold back.
• “Yeah, I did,” Kent said about going to the IL. “He tore my knee up. He slid, rolled his fat ass past the base, the sonofabitch, and put me out for a while. I was not happy about that, ’cause he was a middle infielder and we were beatin’ ’em up pretty good. He didn’t need to be doin’ that.”
• Arizona’s Merrill Kelly was scratched from live BP over the weekend due to low back tightness.
• Twins righty and rumored Cubs target Joe Ryan was also scratched from his Saturday start with low back tightness, and a subsequent MRI revealed some inflammation.
• As Cubs VP of Pitching noted during a recent episode of The Tread Podcast with Ryan Flippo and John Lantigua, the Cubs supply all of their pitchers with Pocket Radars so they can track their velocity during the offseason. Those devices are also prevalent on the backfields at the team’s Sloan facilities, and everyone has seen the Catapult “sports bras” players wear during workouts. It’s all part of the increasing ubiquity of technology and data.
• It’s funny how something as simple as Pocket Radar, which literally anyone has access to if they are willing to spend $300, remains integral to MLB teams with much more advanced tools. Heck, we had to use my PR this past weekend because the facility’s Trackman had been loaned out for a Prep Baseball Indiana showcase.
• To end on a bit of levity, my son was taking live BP with his travel team on Sunday. He had fouled a ball off his shin/ankle a few days ago, so I suggested after his first AB that it might be a good idea to wear his leg guard. Next time up, he took a pitch to the kneecap. As they say, the ball will find you.

Trailer Time

I’m going back in time nearly a quarter-century for today’s trailer. The Fast and the Furious was released on June 22, 2001, at which time I was in Hawaii with my aunt following my graduation from college. I remember there being a lot of concern about how it might stoke the flames of what was already a strong and somewhat dangerous underground street-racing culture in Honolulu. I don’t know whether or how Vin Diesel and Paul Walker influenced that scene, but I do recall hearing a whole lot of high-pitched engines revving up as we left the theater.