Cubs' Epstein: 'We need more pitching'
Chicago Cubs management has to be ecstatic with the strides the club made in 2015, but it's already looking into ways to improve the squad for next season.
President of baseball operations Theo Epstein addressed the media Thursday to discuss the future of the franchise, one day after the club was swept by the New York Mets in the NLCS.
"We need more pitching. That's obvious ... (we) want to continue to add impact pitching," Epstein stressed.
The Cubs, of course, made a splash last offseason when they inked southpaw Jon Lester to a six-year, $155-million deal. The emergence of Jake Arrieta into a legitimate Cy Young contender has also bolstered the pitching staff, but it still lacks depth behind the duo, which was exposed in the third and fourth games of the NLCS.
Epstein will have an abundance of top-end pitching options to consider this fall, as Zack Greinke, David Price, Jordan Zimmermann, Johnny Cueto, Yovani Gallardo, Jeff Samardzija, and others prepare to hit the open market.
Price interestingly said winning the World Series with the Cubs would be the "coolest" when he began fielding questions about his first foray into free agency in July of 2014, and he has ties with Cubs manager Joe Maddon from their time together in Tampa Bay.
The Cubs reached the postseason for the first time since 2008, but their last World Series title came way back in 1908.