Chicago Cubs: 5 things to be excited about in 2020
By Jason Parini
A new second baseman
In perhaps the most exciting move of the 2019-20 offseason thus far, the Cubs announced that embattled second baseman Addison Russell would not be tendered a contract for the 2020 season.
After being suspended for abusing his ex-wife, Russell returned to the club and failed to produce for the remainder of his career with the Cubs.
His character was unquestionably bad, his offense was atrocious, and the controversy surrounding him and his actions was undoubtedly a huge distraction for the Cubs and the locker room.
It was far past time for Russell to go, and now Cubs fans can move on and enjoy baseball that isn’t marred by the controversy over character issues (and less importantly, bad baseball).
Though the club’s approach for second base isn’t set in stone, they have numerous in-house options including youngsters Nico Hoerner and David Bote.
It’s also pretty hard to regress from a player who hit .237/.308/.391 and clearly was tone-deaf to the issues around him, both on and off the field.
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It’s just hard to support your favorite team when they employ a person with such character issues and abusive actions, so 2020 will be a huge relief for fans everywhere.