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Popovich has won five NBA championships and 13 division titles and recently was named one of the 15 greatest coaches in league history. He has coached NBA 75th Anniversary Team members David Robinson and Tim Duncan, future Hall of Famers Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker as well as journeymen who found careers in San Antonio such as Danny Green and current NBA coaches Steve Kerr, Monty Williams, Ime Udoka and Doc Rivers.

Solidifying the infield defense is important behind a pitching staff that projects to rely on ground-ball outs for success, particularly Kyle Hendricks, Marcus Stroman and Wade Miley. Stroman had the 11th-highest ground-ball rate (50.8%) among 68 major-league pitchers with at least 100 innings in 2021, while Miley ranked 13th (49.4%) and Hendricks 32nd (43.1%). The Cubs were roughly at the league average in advanced defensive metrics last season.

“We’re obviously in the process, communicating with our guys, getting everyone out there (to Arizona) and preparing for how we’re going to get ready for opening day (April 8) in Detroit,” Hahn said during a video conference. “But it’s also like the winter meetings are going on at the same time in terms of the amount of dialogue, the conversations with agents (and) other teams late into the night (Thursday) and then once they pick up again (Friday) morning.

That was it, an unfortunate and unceremonious end to a run that once held so much promise yet ended with an undeniable fizzle. Mack’s four seasons in Chicago, while solid overall, ended with only 36 sacks and zero playoff victories. He wound up on injured reserve last season with a left foot injury he could never get on the right side of. Over the last two years, Mack spent time on the injury report because of issues with his back, shoulder, knee, ankle and foot.

It’s unknown how Poles, his staff and the coaches evaluated Jackson on film from 2021, but the safety wasn’t an impact player, and the tape certainly doesn’t say $11 million. That salary would make trading him a challenge. The Bears could approach Jackson about a pay reduction, but it’s unknown how he would react. Releasing him would create $18.56 million in dead cap space, more than the space he would take up on the roster.