Lollygaggers

7 Games In

2009-04-13T18:38:00.002-07:00

Well our beloved have actually come out of the gate pretty well so far and that sure beats the hell out of the alternative. Still it's awfully early and we all realize injuries could throw a monkey wrench into the whole operation.

Soto and Bradley are nicked up and we can only hope this isn't a precursor of things to come. But their are other weaknesses that could rear their ugly head apart from injuries and hopefully they won't be summarily dismissed because the team is winning.

Of course Lee's performance this far at the plate won't continue all season any more than Soriano will continue hitting home runs at this torrid pace. But Lee has been showing a decline in production for a couple of years now and I can't see the reason why he should receive more AB's almost every game than Ramirez. Lee should be hitting no higher than 5th and I'm being generous saying that.

The Cubs are also presented with a more fundamental problem with their SS. We all love Theriot's effort and while his torrid pace thus far cannot be sustained, clearly shows he is more than capable to get on base with the regularity needed from a hitter with so little power. The concern lies with the size of the gray matter between his ears especially on the bases and his decision making on defense. That doesn't even bring up the lack of arm and only average range for someone playing one of the most defensively challenging positions on the field.

The last concern is already starting to appear in the long relief of the bullpen. I'm not concerned if it's Marmol setting up Gregg or the other way around, but someone other than Heilman has to start showing some ability to throw strikes and get hitters out. It's fine to throw Marshall into the mix now when the schedule allows some flexibility with the 5ht starter, but when the season has those 15-20 game stretched with no days off, that luxury won't be available.

Swing Batter Batter, Swiiiiiing, Batter Swiiiiiiiing

2009-04-05T16:20:00.006-07:00

Well the 2009 season starts in about an hour with our beloved men in blue opening up tomorrow night in Houston. I know it's a long season but I can't help but get a little pumped up for the Cubs first game of the new campaign.

What do you think will be the lineup? Will Zambrano go at least 6 strong innings? Will Fukudome screw himself totally into the ground when he swings and misses?

Whatever happens Lollygagger Girl Kerry, wishes every Cub fan a season to remember.

Go Cubs!

Questions That Must Be Answered Correctly.

2009-03-15T08:45:00.005-07:00

If the reasoning behind having Soriano bat lead off isn't flawed, then wouldn't hitting Bradley in the lead off spot be superior?

Does anyone still believe D Lee is the best hitter on the team? If he isn't, why is he still projected in the 3 hole?

We know that spring training stats don't mean that much but can anyone tell me they think Miles will be anywhere near as effective as Fontenot, and why Theriot doesn't deserve to hit lead off?

If Ramirez, the best hitter on the team the past two years is willing to hit in the 5 hole, what beef could any other hitter have hitting there?

What hitter other than Soto, is on the upswing of his career?

With the history of how this lineup has performed, is there any justification to bat Fukudome any higher than 8th?

What's wrong with the following lineup?

1) Theriot
2) Fontenot
3) Bradley/Ramirez
4) Bradley/Ramirez...Soto if Bradley isn't in the lineup
5) Soriano
6) Soto...Lee if Bradley isn't in the lineup
7) Lee...Fukudome/Johnson if Bradley isn't in the lineup
8) Fukudome/Johnson/Gathright

Bench Strength?

2009-02-27T07:48:00.008-08:00

Let's face it folks, Jake Fox, Joey Gathright and Micah Hoffpauir are bench players for a reason. It's often a combination of things but whatever these players shortcomings are, they will need to play an effective role for the 2009 Cubs.

The Cubs have only played 2 games this spring but a grand slam and outfield assist from Hoffpauir, a 3 for 3 plus stolen base from Gathright, and a 3 run HR from Fox, are good signs from the three of them. Every team needs complimentary players that can provide some bench strength, versatility and insurance for the team's starters. It's a likely scenario that either Fox or Hoffpauir won't make the MLB roster when they break spring training, but hopefully the players that do go north with the Cubs will be important spokes in the Cubs wheel for 2009.

The One/Two Punch

2009-02-22T15:55:00.007-08:00

Much to my delight on this lazy Sunday afternoon, MLB network re-broadcast what they called "The Sandberg Game" from 1984. This was the game Ryno blasted 2 HR's off Bruce Sutter, one to tie the game in the 9th and the other to tie it in the 10th as the Cubs went on to beat the Cucking Fardinals.

Although much of the heroics went to Sandberg and deservedly so, another stat came to light from the broadcast booth. Before Sandberg belted his two HR's, it was noted that the lead off man Bobby Denier and the two hitter Sandberg, were 6 for 8 in the game and 17 for their last 28 AB's. When a team has two hitters at the top of their order that get on base so frequently, it is certainly easy to understand the great opportunities it provides them to score.

Of course anyone who was around during that season knew the Cubs just didn't have a run of the mill lineup behind Denier and Sandberg, but a murderous middle of the lineup with the likes of Sarge, the Bull, Zonk, Davis and the Penguin.

So how does our present day Cub lineup compare against that '84 lineup? Well as long as the Fonz is in the lead off spot, the lineup is weaker than it needs to be.

For your frame of reference, here is the '84 Cubs most used lineup...

Denier CF 278BA 356OBP 718OPS 63BB 60K 3HR 26DB 3TR 45SB
Sandberg 2B 314BA 367OBP 887OPS 52BB 101K 19HR 36DB 19TR 32SB
Sarge LF 291BA 410OBP 838OPS 103BB 97K 14HR 21DB 2TR 17SB
Bull 1B 279BA 369OBP 874OPS 69BB 86K 23HR 30DB 4TR 16SB
Zonk RF 279BA 326OBP 748OPS 34BB 71K 16HR 17DB
Davis C 256BA 315OBP 736OPS 47BB 99K 19HR 25DB
Penguin 3B 240BA 324OBP 766OPS 61BB 108K 25HR 27DB
Bowa SS 223BA 274OBP 542OPS 28BB 24K 0HR 14DB

So share your opinions on how to best set our Cubs 2009 lineup.

If a 1 turned out to be 5

2009-02-18T06:44:00.012-08:00

Piniella is now publicly suggesting he is going to explore moving Soriano out of the lead off spot. He states that he has spoken with Soriano and his star player is
willing to do so as long as he isn't bounced around between his new spot and his previous one, lead off. So the stage now seems set for their to be a legitimate open competition for the 1 hole in the lineup.

Much has been debated on Soriano's effectiveness in the lead off role even before he came to the Cubs. When Soriano was with the Yankees, he so frustrated Joe Torre that he was jettisoned down in the order before being jettisoned out of town.

Soriano is a hybrid player similar to Ricky Henderson, amazingly gifted athletes with speed and power. However, that is where the comparison ends. The main function of a lead off hitter is to get on base and create havoc for the opposing pitcher with the threat of stealing a base. Why Henderson was so valuable in the lead off role was that he could work the count and also get on base via the walk, which was reflected in his career OBP of 401. Soriano on the other hand does not have a good command of the strike zone and avoids walks like the plague, which is reflected in his career OBP of 329.

A more apt comparative player to Soriano is Carl Crawford of Tampa Bay. Crawford is another one of those hybrid players with not quite as much power. He was a staple in the lead off role for the Rays until they brought in a manager that realized how not having a patient hitter in the lead off spot hurt the team. Crawford ehibited many of the same characteristics that Soriano had with great speed and good power, but a poor OBP. Crawford's career OBP is 330.

Now Tampa Bay's manager moved Crawford to the 5 hole and explained to Crawford that in fact he was still given the opportunity to steal bases when the 3 & 4 hitters in front of him had the ability to clear the bases. Crawford also wouldn't be hampered by trying to do something he wasn't capable of, exhibiting patience. Crawford moving to the 5 hole would also allow him to approach is AB's naturally as the free swinger with power that he is. Piniella should take a cue from his replacement in Tampa and move Soriano into the 5 hole.

Playing Time

2009-02-05T13:22:00.014-08:00

Pitchers and catchers report to spring training a week from Friday and I'm pumped, so I thought this little YouTube Video would get you all in the mood as well.

With much of the Cubs off season wheeling and dealing appearing to be over, I thought I'd propose how and who should make up the rotation and starting lineup. Of course we have a considerable number of givens here, but even though these suggestions may only mean small incremental improvements in the teams performance, why shouldn't they be done? Don't we often throw shit at the TV when a player makes a bonehead play or a manager makes an ill advised pitching change?

Givens in the rotation are fairly easy baring any injuries as Big Z, Dempster, Lilly and Harden in no particular order mind you are your first 4 starters. The 5th starter seems to be an open competition with the most deserving based on past performance being Marshall. I know we've all read how Piniella likes having Marshall as a swing-man but is that really what's best for the rotation? Do the Cubs really need a LHP that is most likely their best 5th starter to be the long man out of the pen? It's not like Marshall is going to be the 8th inning LH specialist to get that one monster LHB out is he?

Marshall as the 5th starter gives the rotation 2 LH starters which also helps negate some of the more prolific balanced lineups like the Phillies. The argument that Harden won't make all of his starts doesn't hold water if you use another pitcher on a consistent basis in the rotation that isn't as good as Marshall does it? I don't know who Marshall has to blow to get in the rotation but unless he's a total bust this spring he helps the Cubs the most in the rotation.

The number of givens in the everyday lineup is also pretty much set with Soriano LF, Bradley RF, Ramirez 3B, Theriot SS, Fontenot 2B, Lee 1B and Soto C. Most of the early press has centered on the platooning of Fukudome and Johnson in CF and this is where I have some reservations.

Fukudome's preference and for that matter his best defensive position is RF. Now I couldn't give a shit about what Fukudome's preference is but when we expect that Bradley may need a platoon partner for possibly as many as 60 games, that is who Fukudome should be platooning with. Fukudome would have to show me that he could be more productive offensively than Gathright to play more than that, which he most assuredly will if he platoons with Johnson in CF.

Now Gathright is a light hitter but does a number of things a top of the order guy must do and this is my point. Moving Soriano out of the lead off spot will increase the teams production. Gathright has plenty of speed and knows how to get on base via the bunt. In 279 AB's last year he had 15 bunt hits and platooning him with Johnson who had over a 350OBP last year, will mean no disruption in the lineup to accommodate the lead off hitter.

No one would be happier than me if Fukudome could hit 280 and bang out 20HR's, but unless he can show he has abandoned the twirly bird AB's this spring, his offensive production won't be as valuable to the team as the superior CF'er Gathright would in the lead off spot. If Fukudome has a great spring then I'm fine with him platooning in CF but if he reverts back to the pirouetting style that he employed the second half of last season, he has no business getting over 100 starts.

We all realize that other starters will get a blow especially during those long summer stretches of no days off but one player who might have the most productive replacement from an offensive standpoint is D Lee. M Hoffpauir is certainly not the typical replacement type player as most replacement players provide good defense but usually very little offense, which is not the case with Hoffpauir. Hoffpauir doesn't bring a lot to the table defensively but 1B is his strongest position and would hurt the team less there. He also should get some starts in LF and both of these positions are the least challenging defensively.

We've all seen Lee isn't the same run producer he has been in the past and more time off could only help him. Soriano has had some leg issues the last two seasons and especially in those hamstring tightening cold spring months could sure use a day off now and then.

Anyway, I'm sure some of you might disagree with some of my evaluations but who and when you give days off to and the replacement Piniella uses when he does, can when added together get the most out the talent he has to work with.

Sorry but I just can't help myself, here is one more YouTube Video for you.

He used to be good, now he's Wuertz

2009-02-03T08:18:00.005-08:00

I always liked Michael Wuertz, the RHRP with a nasty ass slider, who now has been jettisoned to the Oakland Athletics for Richie Robnett, a minor league outfielder with a career BA around 250 but has been said to have some raw power and Justin Sellers, a minor league middle infielder whose batting average is so low it fell off the chart and his biggest asset is he is a slick fielder.

I would think Hendry would much rather have received one player that could do both, but no other sane GM was going to trade for the $4M L Vizcaino, so Wuertz gets sent packing.

I'm scratching my head on this trade and will reserve my judgement after I see Vizcaino perform.

Over the Hill

2009-02-03T07:37:00.007-08:00

Rich Hill, the former can't miss prospect of the Chicago Cubs, who started game 3 of the 2007 playoffs against the Arizona Diamondbacks has been sent packing to Wrigley Field East, the Baltimore Orioles.

The southpaw Hill's MLB career numbers, 18W 17L 4.37ERA 337IP 291H 309K 137BB 1.27WHIP,
on most any objective appraisal would appear to net the Cubs more than the infamous PTNL, but with Hill out of options and little chance of making the Cubs opening day lineup, he's gone for virtually nothing.

The story behind Hill's numbers is the real reason for his box of used jockstraps value, Hill had about as much intestinal fortitude as a spoiled Mama's boy.

Clearing The Deck

2009-01-29T08:10:00.003-08:00

The Cubs are trying to get as much value as they can from players that are out of options and are blocked by others that are a known quantity. It first happened with Pie and now Cedeneo is traded for Hendry's long coveted pitcher Aaron Heilman.

These moves can be questioned but IMHO, the Cubs are serious playoff contenders and in essence moving Pie and Cedeneo actually netted about as much as could be expected.

Heilman is only 30 and except for last season was very serviceable out of the pen for the Mets. Heilman has long wanted to start and the move provides him this opportunity while at the same time providing the Cubs pitching depth and legitimate competition this spring for the 5th. starters spot.

Bye, Bye, Miss American Pie

2009-01-18T21:18:00.005-08:00

Unfortunately Pie's package, no not those five tools he was noted to have but his "ouch it hurts me to even think about it" almost gelding like surgery, is what we'll remember as the most significant bit of news for the Cubs most recent position player failure.

The Cubs sent Pie packing to "wrigley field east" where Andy McPhail is still looking for validation of his GM tenure when with the Cubs. The Cubs did receive two pitching prospects from Baltimore and when added to the three pitching prospects acquired from Cleveland in the DeRosa deal, might give the Cubs the prospects needed to pry Peavy from San Diego. In any event, Pie days with the organization were numbered and the prospects received for him probably was as much as could be expected.

Good luck Felix. You deserved a better shot at making it in the bigs with the Cubs.

The Holy Triumphant!

2009-01-07T21:19:00.009-08:00

Many teams success derives from having better players to be sure, but when constructing a team most people in charge stand by the principles of the Holy Triumphant, pitching first, defense second and offense last.

The dynamic of placing these three aspects of building a team in this order is based on the assumption that every run allowed requires the team to score two runs to overcome. We all cringe when our pitchers walk hitters and our defense gives the opposition extra outs in an inning through errors for this reason. Now it is certainly true that a superior offense can make up for some of these shortcomings in the other areas, the fact remains that scoring runs even with the most prolific offense is the most difficult facet of the game to rely on day in and day out. I'm not saying it's even possible to build the perfect team, but to gamble on the quality of the pitching and defense in favor of offense is just neglecting reality.

So if we apply this model to the Cubs as presently constructed, we get an idea of what can or should have been done within certain budgets constraints, to build the most competitive team.

Pitching...Starters

The Cubs rotation is probably one of the best in baseball. The talk of possibly adding a pitcher like Peavy would certainly improve the already formidable rotation and if the other areas of the team are up to snuff, it certainly makes sense to improve the biggest known factor in effecting the outcome of a game.

Pitching...Bullpen

The Cubs have certainly weakened the bullpen by not resigning Wood, but most teams have budgets constraints and usually other weaknesses to address. Still, we have seen over and over again how many a strong team has faltered repeatedly by not being able to hold a lead provided. I have confidence that Marmol will be an effective closer but that most certainly leaves a tremendous hole for the present setup candidates to fill with Marmol's departure to the closers role. Also the team is short of an effective relief specialist to negate many of the oppositions best LHB's.

Defense

One glaring hole exists at the most important defensive position on the field not considering the catcher and that is SS. While slick fielding SS's don't grow on trees, the Cubs SS is ranked as one of the worst fielding SS's in either league. This is an area that cries out for improvement and Hendry should deem this weakness as one of his most pressing needs.

Offense

Apart from a legitimate lead off man, the Cubs offense is poised to score a shitload of runs. The moves made this off season have addressed the unbalanced lineup and added a significant offensive hitter as well.

If indeed money is available to acquire a salary the likes of Peavy, we should also consider that money isn't the only thing that it will cost the Cubs. A tremendous number of players will be forfeited as well by trading for Peavy and if the Cubs feel they need to add another starter, I'd much prefer a FA.

In Conclusion

Still it is questionable if adding another starter is the best use of additional payroll. Our old trading partner the Pittsburgh Pirates, are desperately looking to dump J Wilson's $7M salary. The Dodgers were interested before they resigned Furcal and I think the Pirates might even eat a million or so of Wilson's salary if they could receive a couple of young pitching prospects and a ML ready SS. If it took throwing in a Pie and/or Cedeneo as well, it's still a deal Hendry should make.

Theriot is coming off a career year at the plate and his value will never be higher, and the Pirates are a small market team that routinely needs to move players they can no longer afford. Wilson's range and fielding percentage rank only behind Tulowitzki and Furcal and if Hendry has more payroll at his disposal, upgrading a position that anchors the infield defense with one of the best fielding SS's who will most likely replace Theriot in the 8 hole in the lineup would seem to be the best use of that payroll.

Bing, Bang, Boom

2009-01-06T20:21:00.005-08:00

Happy New Year you Hammerheads. Two of most Cubs fans wishes for the new year have finally happened. Marquis is jettisoned a mile high to the Rockies and the big left handed banger has been signed to patrol RF for the second year in a row. Of course this year we signed a player who has actually hit MLB pitching, and boy has Milton Bradley hit MLB pitching by putting up the highest OPS in the American League last year.

Many have decried the signing of Bradley due to his checkered past but Bradley is only 30, can still play defense at no worse than a league average level, and is a stud from either side of the plate.

Marquis departure was purely a salary dump and the Cubs cleared around $5M as a result. The Cubs did acquire L Vizcaino, a RHP pitcher that has never been anything better than average if that, but like I said, this freed up payroll to go after Bradley. Marquis was probably one of the better 5th starters in baseball but at almost $10M was a no brainer to move when a younger LHP Marshall that costs zip, will probably be better than Marquis and give the Cubs a second lefty in the rotation.

All in all, a good day for the Cubs who have implemented many of the priorities this off season by balancing their predominant RH lineup and becoming more athletic. I think they could still upgrade the bullpen with another LHRP, but I'm more than willing to go to war with this new version in 2009.

Happy New Year...Go Hawks!

2009-01-01T10:30:00.003-08:00

Hot Stove Rumors a Flyin'

2008-12-31T09:26:00.012-08:00

No, she can't hit or catch but she can sure shake things up.

Still, when Marquis, Vizcaino, Bradley, Miles, DeRosa, Peavy, Marshall and prospects all hit the press in the span of 24 hours, it still deserves at least a Wow! Just when everybody was in their break between post Christmas and pre New Year naps, all hell breaks loose. Of course we all know the problem of getting hyped up over rumors, but it has been such a dull and slow off season, unless you're from the Bronx, that this is a pretty eventful newsday for the Cubs. So let's try and sort the rants from reality.

There has been no mystery of the Cubs intention to show Marquis the door and the recent rumblings seem to point to a legitimate trade with the Rockies for RHRP L Vizcaino. From what we hear, the Cubs will clear around $5M of salary to pursue other free agents.

There also seems to be no mystery on the Cubs pursuit of M. Bradley and reports seem to think a deal will be done in a week or so. Of course I'm mush more skeptical of these reports than the Marquis deal but the movement of Marquis can only help with acquiring the best free agent position player available for the Cubs.

Now for some fact, A. Miles seems to have reached a two year deal with the Cubs. No numbers have been released apart from that but he is a versatile career backup that might be needed if the following rumor is in fact true...

...the Peavy talks on back on. During the winter meetings when the Peavy trade was front and center, DeRosa was mentioned in a possible trade in order for the Cubs to sweeten the pot with prospects for the Padres. This is probably the impetus behind the Miles signing.

If a Peavy trade is possible, DeRosa will likely be moved as I'm sure Marshall will as well. I only hope Hnedry holds fast on his reluctance to include Vitters in any such trade package for Peavy.

That's it for now, but as always feel free to opine with your take on the recent rumblings.

Ho Ho Ho!

2008-12-24T12:24:00.008-08:00

In and Out?

2008-12-17T08:35:00.008-08:00

Well we know now that Gathright is in, does this mean Pie is out?

I'm as sad as anyone to see Pie not turn out, but he was never developed right from the jump. Gathright does the little things that make the most of his abilities, like 15 bunt hits last year in 279AB's. Pie never took that approach and we can only wonder if it was his resistance to learning or the organizations incompetence of developing those skills.

I believe the latter, only because Pie isn't the first speed guy to come up through the organization who failed to deliver on all the promise that was projected. Patterson was the other example of a young speed guy that had surprising pop in his bat that only digressed when coming to the majors. Pie like Patterson, were both blessed with many tools but the organization never got them to develop them to best make use of them.

Now I'm not saying that all prospects that are blessed with abilities like Patterson and Pie are surefire major league studs, but it seems that with the Cubs long history of bringing so few position players of any value to the majors, that there is something fundamentally wrong down on the farm.

Anyway, if Pie is actually gone, I wish him and his package, ouch, nothing but the best.

Winter Meeting Observations

2008-12-12T13:01:00.010-08:00

With the Peavy soap opera behind us at least for now, a few things that were not quite so apparent have come into more focus now.

First, there was the misinformation being disseminated from the Tribsters that with the uncertainty of the economy and sale of the Cubs, there may not be much money to improve the club. We have now come to know, that while the Cubs won't spend like 2006, there seems to be plenty of cash to address many of the Cubs needs.

Second, Hendry seems to be willing to wheel and deal but only from a position of strength, and that is never a bad approach. I have often bashed Hendry's approach in haphazardly throwing around dollars and length of contracts with little foresight to see how those decisions might hamper his ability to maneuver effectively in the future. He has seemed to learn his lesson here, at least with respects to Peavy and I must give him his due on this one.

It seems now Hendry can devote his full attention to his preliminary discussions to land Milton Bradley. Out of the remaining free agent LH outfield free agents, Bradley is if not the best, is at least in the top two offensively. Bradley is also the youngest, not turning 31 until April of 2009 and the best defensively. Bradley came up as a CF'er and has played all outfield positions. This will give Piniella a tremendous flexibility in the field and with Bradley being a switch hitter, the tough righty or lefty matchups with opposing pitchers will be a non-issue.

Next it would seem through the failed Peavy negotiations, that as many as 8 or 10 teams would be interested in DeRosa. There is no doubt that Derosa's flexibility is a plus for any organization and if the Cubs can move him to free up a spot for a legit lead off man, DeRosa's value will never be higher coming off of a career year. If DeRosa numbers don't fall off the planet in '09, he will probably price himself out of the Cubs lineup when his contract expires at the end of next year anyway.

Hopefully Hendry will explore what he can garner for DeRosa, and a possible target in need of some power out of 3B like the Angels, may be willing to go for DeRosa, allowing them to let Figgins walk instead of offering the free agent a new deal. Figgins brings much of the same flexibilty as DeRosa does to play all over the field and is better than DeRosa defensively. What Hendry would give up in power with DeRosa, Figgins would give the Cubs in more speed, athleticism and a proven lead off hitter.

Bang for the Buck!

2008-12-04T09:29:00.005-08:00

It seems that economic conditions have given tremendous cover for Hendry and the Cubs to go on the cheap for improving the ball club for 2009.

Without discussing the validity of this spin we can assume that if the offense is significantly upgraded, Hendry won't be able to address both the need for a legitimate leadoff man and a left handed power hitting outfielder. That begs the question, if the Cubs can go after only one, which should it be?

Well there are two camps here, so let's do a little plus/minus with the present roster and see what conclusions we can come up with.

Realistically looking at the Cubs big free agent acquisition of last year, the best we can hope for is a modest improvement. This of course still doesn't make Fukudome worth the money, but if can cut down on the strikeouts and put the ball in play more often, it might make the expense a little easier to swallow. Fukudome is still a plus defensively and brings another LHB to the lineup. He should start next season as the everyday RF'er and if he doesn't improve, waive his ass.

The Cubs once again find themselves in a position of having too many second baseman, and our SS may be best suited to play there as well. This is a real problem as only Cedeneo has superior defensive range and athleticism as a middle infielder but is one of the weaker ones offensively. I think Cedeneo would improve offensively if given the chance to play everyday but the Cubs probably only have a two year window with it's big guns to win it all and I just can't see Piniella going this direction.

The Cubs do have a LHB that plays 2B and although his sample of AB's is not large (479), his line of 290BA 369OBP 826OPS with 34 Doubles 5 Triples and 12 HR's is not to shabby. It's in the Cubs best interests to give Fontenot every shot to be the Cubs everyday second baseman this spring and plan accordingly. I know we have DeRosa's bat that needs to be in the lineup, but with his defensively versatility in the field, I think he can get his AB's and still be productive. DeRosa is coming off a career year and considering he may revert to his norm, his role as a bench player may not be as big a loss offensively as it looks on first blush.

If we look at the Cubs defensive shortcomings other than the Fonz in LF, which no one will replace his offensive numbers, the middle infield is the most susceptible. Theriot like DeRosa, is coming off of a career year and both of their trade values will probably never be higher. If Hendry can get a left handed hitting, superior glove to replace Theriot, it would help the team immeasurably. The team's first defensive priority should be as strong up the middle as possible. With Fukudome able to play CF if Pie doesn't make the team or is traded, the Cubs would be an excellent defensive team while adding at least 2 LHB's to the lineup.

A player like Furcal, would give you more bang for the buck as he would be both an offensive and defensive upgrade to the team while being a similar cost to adding an Abreu or Ibanez. Neither of these free agent outfielders is superior to Fukudome. There is no doubt both Abreu and Ibanez have displayed an ability to rake, but Abreu at this point in his career is an average RF'er at best and Ibanez hasn't played but a handful of games in RF his whole career.

The Cubs have plenty of thumpers, but have serious shortcomings with their leadoff man and SS. Come next seasons trading deadline, it will be much easier for the Cubs to replace an outfielder than a quality defensive SS that can leadoff.

A lineup that could feature up to four LHB's if Pie is able to make the team, you will have balanced the lineup significantly by replacing Theriot's bat with Furcals and DeRosa's bat with Fontenots. With Pie in CF, you've improved the overall team defense and speed, upgraded the leadoff spot and improved Soriano's RBI production. Against tough lefties DeRosa could spell Fukudome or Fontenot and Johnson could spell Pie. This allows Piniella offensive flexibility while still having the ability to make late inning defensive replacements.

Most people don't get second chances but Hendry does now. Go get Furcal now Jimbo, and don't make the same mistake twice.

Small Changes

2008-11-26T11:23:00.015-08:00

Much has been made of two consecutive postseason sweeps of the Cubs with players, manager and fans, scratching their heads how a team on a roll entering the 2007 post season, and a team that won 97 games entering the 2008 post season could fail so miserably.

If we look at the pitching staff while not lights out, it's hard to say other than Dempster's walk-a-thon in the first game against the Dodgers, had very little to do with the Cubs losing the series. It can be argued that Piniella's game one decisions in 2007 and 2008 certainly didn't help the Cubs to victory, but the impotence of a season long productive offense, especially in 2008 was the big culprit.

It's not hard to understand that many players don't perform up to their regular season numbers during the post season as they are usually facing quality rotations where the 5th. and quite possibly the 4th. starter never start a game.

It doesn't discount the fine offensive season most of the Cubs had but it does shed some light on the fact that against quality pitching, many of the Cubs didn't perform as expected.

The point of this article is to see why, and explore some options that might help many of these same players be more productive.

First, there are very few playoff teams I can think of that start their lineup with a free swinging power hitter, even if he has speed. Sure there have been a few Ricky Henderson types, but anyone that isn't living under a rock understands that Alfonso Soriano isn't a Ricky Henderson.

The big boondoggle that has been perpetrated here is that Soriano is a leadoff man because he has so much experience hitting leadoff. Well if Soriano has all that experience, how come he isn't any fucking better at it?

Leadoff hitters work the count, not because they can't hit and are hoping to get a walk, but precisely the opposite. These are the most patient hitters on the team and they have the ability to spoil pitch after pitch until the pitcher makes a mistake or walks them. Building up those pitch counts for the opposing pitcher is the other important responsibility of a leadoff man and Soriano just fails at it miserably.

Of course Soriano has speed and when coupled with his power, it is the narcotic that clouds the minds of otherwise sane managers into thinking he can be a leadoff man, especially when the team doesn't have a proven option to replace him with.

Soriano has to move out of the leadoff spot. You just can't have an undisciplined whiff machine, getting more AB's than anyone else come the post season.

Second, it has been long acknowledged that a teams most productive hitter bats third in the lineup. You know the type, good average, low strikeouts, and good power with a knack to drive in runs. Do the Cubs have such a player? The closest player they have is Aramis Ramirez.

Derrick Lee has been the number three hitter since 2005 and while he still has a good BA and OBP, his power numbers have been declining and he still whiffs way to often. However if Lee hit in the 5 hole, he could provide protection for an undisciplined hitter like Soriano, hitting immediately behind him. If Soriano were to get on base, the patient Lee would allow Soriano to still run and possibly cut down on the 27 double plays Lee hit into last season.

This revised middle of the order would prove to be more effective with Soriano's power sandwiched between two of the more disciplined power hitters on the team and still afford Soriano plenty of AB's and opportunities to still steal a base.

Third, now that Soriano is out of the leadoff spot we need a replacement. As I mentioned earlier, you need a disciplined hitter to fill that role and for that matter the 2 hole as well. Ryan Theriot demonstrated last year that he can perform well for a whole season and actually had some experience, albeit with mixed results as a leadoff man. If Theriot was told from the jump that the leadoff role was his to lose, I think he could perform well there.

Many of the runs scored last year came as a result of having the high on base hitter Theriot, on base in front of the big bangers. If Theriot is inserted in the leadoff spot, the Cubs will need to replace him with an equally proficient on base machine in the 2 hole.

The righty/lefty tandem of Mark DeRosa and Mike Fontenot, would be the best suited to address the need for another disciplined hitter in that crucial 2 hole in the order. Both have shown discipline at the plate and of course that is the key ingredient of hitters at the top of the order.

Fourth, even without securing a power left handed bat, which I still hope is possible, I can't imagine Fukudome performing worse than he did the last half of 2008. If no acquisition is made, certainly Pie and possibly Hoffpauir, depending on how Fukudome is performing will see more time in the outfield. Of course the platooning of Reed Johnson in the outfield and DeRosa just about everywhere, will help the Cubs against the tough left handed pitchers.

This Cubs lineup is quite formidable and I haven't even mentioned our Rookie of the Year catcher Geovany Soto. He's a stud and will play most every game.

Hopefully a quality left handed bat for the middle of the order can be acquired before we enter next season but if not, the small adjustments mentioned above could get more consistent production out of the lineup against the top pitchers in the league.

Money, Money, Money, Monnnnney, MONEY!

2008-11-25T20:14:00.006-08:00

It seems the Cubs quest so far to improve the team for next year is to make the bullpen weaker, resign a 31 year old starter for 4 years and $52M coming off a career year and Mark The Fuck Teahan?

Those of you willing to buy into this, we haven't sold the team yet and the economy is bad bullshit, are just as full of it as Hendry is trying to make us swallow this jerkshake of an explanation.

Do you really think that the Trib couldn't afford another $30M in expanded payroll for the one commodity that will bring them any significant return? Bullshit!

What I can't believe is how readily the papers, blogs and fans are buying into this nonsense.

Just ask yourself this, didn't the Cubs franchise turn a profit last year and maybe a bigger profit than ever before? Of course they did on both counts and crying poor mouth regardless of the countries economic conditions is just absurd. Even if Zell took the lowest bid to buy the Cubs, which is a deal that could be consummated immediately, he would still realize a tremendous profit.

So wake up folks and let your voices be heard. Payroll was recently expanded because Zell thought it would increase the value of the Cubs and maximize his fleecing of the next owner. Just because it's a buyers market, doesn't mean it's in Zell's best interests to not improve the team.

This is the problem that corporate ownership brings to a sporting franchise. It also is why a man like Cuban, even if squeaky clean would never be voted in as a MLB owner. The last thing MLB wants is another owner like Stienbrenner, who is hell bent on fielding a winner at any cost.

Budget Pressure

2008-11-20T07:25:00.003-08:00

The big question for all Cub fans is how can the team be more productive in the playoffs? We've seen with horror how a fine 2008 regular season came crashing down in the playoffs, but can we excuse this outcome with the alibi that a short best of five playoff series is really a crap shoot?

While I believe that the short series format is absurd when MLB has extra days off built into the playoffs, but that's another issue for another time. The truth of the matter is that there is some validity to the belief that a team enjoying success throughout the regular season can still be only slightly better than 50/50 come playoff time.

If we breakdown the major aspects of any successful team we know it all starts with pitching, but the defense and offense can't be afterthoughts. Now there is no doubt that the Cubs where leaders or in the top echelon of MLB in all three of these categories during the 2008 season. So does the crap shoot theory in the playoffs explain the Cubs exit? Not hardly and here is why.

Yes it's is true that anything can happen in a short series and with that caveat, the better team isn't guaranteed to come out victorious. But let me ask you this. Did it look like the Cubs were even in the same league as the Dodgers? We know that the numbers said that the series should have at least been competitive, if not favor the Cubs outright. So WTF happened? Let's look at the following...

Pitching

A definite strength of the Cubs, but who could have expected that Dempster would shit in his pants on the big stage? The Cubs down 0-1 at home placed even more pressure than the short series already has on any team and certainly contributed to the tight play of it's players in game two.

Defense

We've all heard that you build your teams defense up the middle first, and while the Cubs were above average statistically, anyone with eyes to see understand the range and ability of our middle infielders was sub par.

Offense

Once again, the Cubs led most offensive categories, even the one least likely OBP. OBP had been a major Achilles heel for the usually free swinging Cubs, but during the regular season the Cubs made great strides in addressing this issue. So what happened in the playoffs?

When you look a hitters numbers over the course of a season you have to understand that much of their success comes from facing the weak sisters of baseball and that even when you play a potential playoff contender, quite frequently your team can often miss that teams number one starter.

When the playoffs role around, there are no weak sisters to play and your team will most certainly face the other staffs ace at least once if not twice. This can explain how a teams regular seasons offensive numbers can quite often be misleading. Superior pitching does in fact negate many teams hitters and that's why a balanced lineup can play such a key role in victory.

There just isn't much room for error with most playoff teams having superior rotations. So the teams that demonstrate the most patience at the plate and pay error free defense usually succeed. Looking back at a Cubs lineup that featured their least disciplined batter getting more AB's than most anyone else, you can see how that shoots to shit the idea of plate discipline and making the opponent's pitcher pile up his pitch count.

Soriano is like many successful hitters that fail miserably in the playoffs. He accumulates most of his good numbers during the regular season by beating up the back end of most opponent's rotations. When you consider the short supply of quality starting pitchers in the league, it's not hard to imagine how many above average hitters put up some pretty good numbers over the course of the season.

Did Soriano alone scuttle the Cubs offense this post season? Of course not. In any playoffs series, especially a short one when there is such a premium on every win and especially the first game, Piniella's decision to replace the highest BA and OBP hitter on the team Theriot, in the two hole with the worst hitter on the team Fukudome, really set the stage for the Cubs offense to fail. Not much chance for small ball with those two at the top of the order. This decision I suspect didn't go unnoticed by the rest of the lineup and once they fell behind in game one, it's understandable although not acceptable, that the team looked lost offensively.

The batting order on most teams places a premium on having their best OBP hitters at the top of their order, and with good reason. The Cubs lack of a true lead off man may not make the difference during the course of a long season, but in the playoffs when every base runner is at a premium, it is an absolute must that the top of the order have the hitters than can get on base by every means possible and work the count.

When considering the direction that Hendry has followed this off season so far, we only hope he understands the need to address the teams need for a quality, proven lead off hitter. More balance is also needed in a lineup that can fall victim to a predominant right handed pitching rotation. Hendry just can't secure any LHB to hit in the middle of the order, he has to acquire a quality run producer.

These two offensive weaknesses mightily contributed to the short circuit of the Cubs offense in the postseason. We can only hope Hendry has enough payroll left to address the Cubs biggest reason for their recent playoff failure. If not, committing the dollars to resign Dempster will have been for naught.

The way the rotation is set, there has been no significant upgrade and the bullpen may even be weaker. If the quality additions mentioned are not made to the offense, a likely repeat of last years playoffs is more likely than not.

Demp Gets His Due

2008-11-18T19:41:00.008-08:00

Ryan Dempster is reportedly being resigned to the tune of 4 years at $54M. Now the question swings to if the Cubs could have spent that money more wisely.

Although Dempster may well not achieve a season like last year, there is every indication that he will perform as well as many the Cubs could have signed as free agents.

Here is a list of this years possible free agent pitchers...

Kris Benson rhp
1 year (2008)
released by Philadelphia 8/30/08
agent: Gregg Clifton
ML service: 8.000 (through 2006)

A.J. Burnett rhp
5 years/$55M (2006-10)
signed as a free agent 12/05
$6M signing bonus
06:$1M, 07:$12M, 08:$12M, 09:$12M, 10:$12M
Burnett may opt out of the contract after 2008
agent: Darek Braunecker & Mark Rodgers
ML service: 8.038

Paul Byrd rhp
2 years/$14.25M (2006-07), plus 2008 club option
2 years/$14.25M (2006-07), plus 2008 club option
signed as a free agent 12/05
06:$7M, 07:$7M, 08:$7.5M club option ($0.25M buyout)
2008 option may increase to $11M, with $1M buyout
agent: Bo McKinnis
ML service: 11.072

Shawn Chacon rhp
1 year/$2M (2008)
placed on release waivers by Houston 6/26/08, released 6/30/08
agent: Dan Horwits
ML service: 6.140

Matt Clement rhp
1 year/$1.5M (2008), plus 2009 club option
released by St. Louis 8/2/08
agent: Barry Axelrod
ML service: 9.024

Bartolo Colon rhp
1 year (2008)
signed by Boston as a free agent 2/25/08 (minor-league contract)
$1.25M on Major League roster ($18,000/month in minors)
deal includes up to $5.75M in roster, performance bonuses
contract purchased 5/21/08
placed on suspended list 9/19/08
placed on restricted list 9/25/08
agent: Mitch Frankel
ML service: 10.112

Shawn Estes lhp
1 year/$0.55M (2008)
free agent 10/5/08 after refusing outright assignment by San Diego
agent: Dave Meier
ML service: 10.101

Josh Fogg rhp
1 year/$1M (2008)
agent: Dan Horwits
ML service: 6.030

Freddy Garcia rhp
2008 contract purchased by Detroit 9/17/08
signed as a free agent 8/12/08 (minor-league contract)
agent: Peter Greenberg
ML service: 9.000

Jon Garland rhp
3 years/$29M (2006-08)
agent: Craig Landis
ML service: 7.071

Tom Glavine lhp
1 year/$8M (2008)
signed as a free agent 11/19/07
perks: suite on road
agent: Gregg Clifton
ML service: 20.052

Mike Hampton lhp
8 years/$121M (2001-08), plus 2009 club option
$20M signing bonus ($1M to charity, $19M deferred to 2009-18 at 3% interest)
01:$8M, 02:$8.5M, 03:$11M, 04:$12M, 05:$12.5M, 06:$13.5M, 07:$14.5M, 08:$15M, 09:$20M club option ($6M buyout)
agent: Mark Rodgers
ML service: 14.073

Mark Hendrickson lhp
1 year/$1.5M (2008)
ML service: 5.056

Livan Hernandez rhp
1 year/$5M (2008)
agent: Greg Genske
ML service: 11.097

Orlando Hernandez rhp
2 years/$12M (2007-08)
$1M signing bonus
07:$4.5M, 08:$6.5M
agent: Greg Genske
ML service: 9.117

Jason Jennings rhp
1 year/$4M (2008)
agent: Casey Close
ML service: 6.039

Randy Johnson lhp
2 years/$26M (2007-08)
agents: Alan Nero & Barry Meister
ML service: 19.020

Byung-Hyun Kim rhp
1 year/$0.85M (2008)
released by Pittsburgh 3/26/08 ($0.3M buyout)
agent: Scott Boras
ML service: 8.009

Jon Lieber rhp
1 year/$3.5M (2008)
agent: Rex Gary
ML service: 13.077

Esteban Loaiza rhp
3 years/$21.375M (2006-08), plus $7.5M 2009 club option
released by Chicago White Sox 7/25/08
agent: John Boggs
ML service: 12.052

Braden Looper rhp
3 years/$13.5M (2006-08)
signed as a free agent 12/05
06:$3.5M, 07:$4.5M, 08:$5.5M
$1M annually in performance bonuses (GF & other categories)
agent: Hendricks Sports
ML service: 9.012

Derek Lowe rhp
4 years/$36M (2005-08)
signed as a free agent 1/05
05:$7.5M, 06:$9M, 07:$9.5M, 08:$10M
agent: Scott Boras
ML service: 10.100

Greg Maddux rhp
1 year/$10M (2008)
acquired by LA Dodgers in trade from San Diego 8/19/08
agent: Scott Boras
drafted 1984 (2-31)
ML service: 21.021

Pedro Martinez rhp
4 years/$53M (2005-08)
$3.5M signing bonus (paid 05-08)
05:$10M, 06:$14M, 07:$14M, 08:$11M
$10M of 06-08 salaries deferred at 5% interest
agent: Fern Cuza, SFX
ML service: 15.026

Mark Mulder lhp
2 years/$13M (2007-08), plus 2009 club option
re-signed as a free agent 1/07
07:$5M, 08:$6.5M, 09:$11M club option ($1.5M buyout)
agent: Gregg Clifton
ML service: 7.167

Mike Mussina rhp
2 years/$23M (2007-08)
agent: Arn Tellum
ML service: 16.066

Russ Ortiz rhp
1 year/$0.38M (2007)
agent: John Boggs
ML service: 9.125

John Patterson rhp
1 year/$0.85M (2008)
released by Washington 3/20/08
agent: Casey Close
ML service: 4.126

Carl Pavano rhp
4 years/$39.95M (2005-08), plus 2009 club option
signed as a free agent 12/04
05:$9M, 06:$8M, 07:$10M, 08:$11M, 09:$13M club option
($1.95M buyout)
agent: Gregg Clifton
ML service: 9.161

Brad Penny rhp
3 years/$25.5M (2006-08), plus 2009 club option
signed extension 6/05
$3M signing bonus (paid 2006-08)
06:$4.5M, 07:$7.5M, 08:$8.5M, 09:$8.75M club option ($2M buyout)
agent: Greg Genske, Brian Peters
ML service: 8.000

Odalis Perez lhp
1 year/$0.85M (2008)
agent: Pat Rooney
ML service: 9.027

Oliver Perez lhp
1 year (2008)
won in arbitration 2/22/08 ($6.5M)
agent: Mike Fischlin, Scott Boras Corp.
ML service: 5.034

Andy Pettitte lhp
1 year/$16M (2008)
agents: Hendricks brothers
ML service: 13.000

Sidney Ponson rhp
1 year (2008)
contract purchased 6/27/08
signed as a free agent 6/18/08 (minor-league contract)
agent: Barry Praver
ML service: 8.167

Mark Prior rhp
1 year/$1M (2008)
signed as a free agent 12/26/07
$4.5M in performance bonuses
agent: John Boggs
ML service: 5.131

C.C. Sabathia lhp
2 years/$17.75M (2007-08)
acquired in trade from Cleveland 7/7/08
signed extension 4/05 (Cleveland picked up 2006 option at same time)
07:$8.75M, 08:$9M
may earn $7.75M in award & performance bonuses:
up to $2M in 2006, $3M in 2007, $2.75M in 2008
award bonuses for top 5 finish in MVP vote or top 2 finish in Cy Young vote ($0.25M for 2007 Cy Young)
2007 Cy Young increases 2008 salary to $11M
$0.1M award bonus for All Star selection
agent: Scott Parker, Brian Peters, Legacy Sports
drafted 1998 (1-20)
ML service: 7.000

Curt Schilling rhp
1 year/$8M (2008)
agent: Ed Hayes
ML service: 17.134

Ben Sheets rhp
4 years/$38.5M (2005-08)
$4.5M signing bonus (paid in 3 installments, from 4/05 to 10/06)
05:$4.5M, 06:$8.5M, 07:$10M, 08:$11M
full no-trade clause 2005-07
limited no-trade clause for 2008 (may be traded to only 8 clubs)
agent: Casey Close
ML service: 7.000

John Smoltz rhp
1 year/$14M (2008), plus 2009 & 2010 options
signed extension with Atlanta 4/07
08:$14M, 09:$12M option, 10: club option
2009 option guaranteed with 200 IP in 2008
2010 option: $13M (200 IP in '09) or $12M (less than 200 IP in '09)
agent: Lonnie Cooper, Career Sports & Entertainment
ML service: 19.072

Steve Trachsel rhp
1 year/$1.5M (2008)
DFA by Baltimore 6/10/08, released 6/13/08
contract purchased 3/27/08
signed as a free agent 2/11/08 (minor-league contract)
1 year/$3.1M (2007), plus 2008 club option
signed as a free agent 2/07
07:$3M, 08:$4.75M club option ($0.1M buyout)
performance bonuses: $0.25M annually
agents: Levinson brothers
ML service: 14.017

Kip Wells rhp
1 year/$3.1M (2008)
signed by Colorado as a free agent 12/13/07
$1.5M in performance bonuses
signed by Kansas City as a free agent 8/19/08 after being DFA 8/10/08 (KC pays pro-rated portion of $0.39M ML minimum, with Colorado responsible for balance of Wells' $3.1M salary) released by Kansas City 10/24/08
agent: Hendricks Sports
ML service: 7.116

Randy Wolf lhp
1 year/$4.75M (2008)
acquired in trade from San Diego 7/22/08
agent: Arn Tellum
ML service: 8.115

Jamey Wright rhp
1 year/$1M (2008)
agent: Casey Close
ML service: 9.110

When you consider acquiring a free agent as fickle as a starting pitcher, I think Hendry decided to go with whom he knew. As you can see from this list, many of the pitchers are not in the same league as Dempster, many that are or have a more dazzling resume are on the wrong side of their career, and the few that do compare in age and salary range just didn't many any sense for Hendry to go a different direction unless of course Dempster would have forced the issue by trying to get every dollar possible.

Yeah there are some studs out there. The big one being CC Sabathia, will be asking for the moon, Derek Lowe is 36 and wants the same number of years Dempster took and AJ Burnett and Ben Sheets while talented, will not come much cheaper if at all and pose a health risk that make Kerry Wood look like a sure bet to stay off the disabled list.

The only other course of action for Hendry to take would have been to gamble on a youngster from the organization. Of course this is not Hendry's MO, especially when the team has to perform in the next year or two. Actually I would have prefered to trade Marquis and go with Marshall, but Marquis is due $9.5M. Unless the Yankees swing and miss on the 2 or 3 big starters left, what team would trade for him and absorb Marquis's salary?

The main problem with the Cubs having a rotation with over $50M committed, there isn't much payroll left to acquire the quality leadoff man and power hitting RF unless the budget is expanded. Even with a slightly increased budget, Hendry would still have to be creative with a trade to address the Cubs biggest postseason weakness, a balanced offense. More on that later.

End of an Era...

2008-11-13T16:23:00.015-08:00

KERRY WOOD is gone. You'll pardon the caps on WOOD'S name, but some one has to show KID K some fucking respect.

Is WOOD'S departure understandable? The conventional wisdom being spouted out by an organization that has been less than forthright with it's fans certainly would seem so. You know the company line, "it's a poor economy and budget constraints from the uncertain sale of the team, blah, blah, blah, blah blah." All this is true as far as it goes but what this reasoning doesn't address, is the piss poor manner in which this team was assembled with excessive, multi-year, back loaded contracts.

The shame of it all is that WOOD, went through hell to morph himself into a viable asset to this team and now is out the door.

Do I want what's best for the team as a whole? Of course I do. But when you look back at some of the knucklehead long term, expensive contracts for players of significantly less value, you wonder why at this time Hendry cries poor mouth over the only player that has gone through hell and back for the team and city he loves.

Of course this move is par for the course from an organization that holds back season tickets so their own ticket scalping firm, Prime Tickets, can stick it to their own fans.

WOOD exemplifies everything Hendry and the Cubs organization isn't, CLASSY!

Peavy?

2008-11-12T06:50:00.008-08:00

It's unrealistic to expect much movement this early into the offseason, but the Padres desire to trade Peavy as soon as possible is certainly feeding the rumor mills in the cities of Atlanta, San Diego and Chicago.

One question that most of us here in Chicago have to concern ourselves with is, other than the Padre's intent to slash payroll, why the rush?

The Cubs must be very careful and leave no stone unturned to determine if Peavy is completely healthy. It's not as if Peavy hasn't had a couple of episodes on the DL with both his shoulder and elbow.

The Cubs already are relying on Harden, who most likely will need to have at least some accommodations made in his rest between starts to keep him healthy. If their is any question about Peavy's health, is it wise for the Cubs to pursue him?

There is no doubt if Peavy is healthy, he is a certifiable ace. Still, health issues aside, Peavy's Home and Away splits are not so great. Petco Park is definitely no Wrigley Field and if his present away numbers become the Cubs home numbers, Peavy certainly is no bargain at sixty-some million.

It's not like the Cubs don't have other options and the full court press by the Padres to move him ASAP, should give cause for concern.

What are your thoughts?

Off Season Musings

2008-11-03T08:31:00.007-08:00

I'd like to discuss the strengths and weaknesses of what players the Cubs already have, to determine if they have reasonable alternatives to some of their present starters. If they do, we could possibly achieve a better balanced lineup while freeing up money for a Free Agent or two.

The 2008 starting rotation was a strength last year but we have R. Dempster filing for Free Agency. He most certainly deserves a big, long term payday, but is resigning him in the best interests of the team?

There is no doubt his numbers were awfully good last year, 17-6, 2.96 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, .227 BA and 200 + innings. With that said let me ask you this question. Did anyone think Dempster's line would look anything like that? I know I didn't, and this is the problem with signing a player at 31, who is coming off a career year.

We also have to consider Dempster's own admission that the significance of the playoff moment made it a problem for him to stay focused. A pitcher's biggest asset is his ability to out think his opponent, regardless of the stuff he has on any given day. Therefore if he is rattled, he loses one of his most important weapons. Dempster's Free Agent status makes resigning him an expensive risk that needs to be seriously questioned.

If the Cubs don't resign Dempster, could S. Marshall have a similar breakout season? It's a tall order I know but at least Marshall demonstrated that the pressure of the moment in last year's playoffs didn't faze him. Marshall also has been ready to assume a starter's role with the Cubs, but has had big money contracts in the rotation blocking him.

IMHO, replacing Dempster with a LHSP like Marshall who costs nothing, is no more of a risk than last year's gamble that Dempster would work out. With the difference in salary and commitment between the two of them, it's a no brainer for the Cubs to give Marshall the opportunity he has earned.

I know everyone has an idea concerning J. Marquis's value to the Cubs, but at $9.5M for 2009, I just can't see who would take him in a trade without the Cubs eating at least half of his salary. Marquis may not be worth what the Cubs are paying him, but when you consider eating over $4M if they trade him, his real cost is cut in half. At that cost, the Cubs could certainly do worse for a #5 starter.

No matter what course of action the Cubs take on the rotation, the bullpen was also was one of last year's team strengths, and it too has an expensive Free Agent in K. Wood to consider resigning. Wood like Dempster, deserves a big multi-year contract and again we have to ask ourselves, if it's in the best interests of the Cubs to resign him.

If the Cubs have any strength in their organization it is pitching. With Marmol chomping at the bit, it wouldn't be a stretch to see him as effective as Wood in the closer's role at a fraction of the cost.

There are other holes in the bullpen if Howry and Lieber are not resigned, but I doubt anyone would shed a tear to see either of these past their prime pitchers leave. Gaudin should be healthy, Guzman looked good after his September call up and Samardzija should only be more effective after him getting his feet wet this season. The bullpen is short of lefties and although Cotts is serviceable, he is not the typical shut down LHRP the Cubs need. There are Free Agent LHRP's available in Feuntes and Marte, that could fill that role and I can't believe they would cost the Cubs anywhere near the money that a commitment to Wood will.

If these moves in the rotation and bullpen are made, the Cubs could save some $15M to 20M in payroll and have more flexibility to address balancing the lineup with a legitimate lead off man and more productive LHB's.

Dollars and Sense?

2008-10-29T06:44:00.004-07:00

The spin from the Trib recently is trying to brace the faithful that money needed to be spent for next years version of the Chicago National League Ball Club may not increase very much. No hard rational is being given for this approach, but it seems that the Trib is hoping the Cubs fans will buy into the fact that the 2008 Cubs won 97 games, and only some minor tweaking will be necessary to get them to the World Series.

Well I'm not buying it, are you?

If we breakdown the current roster we notice that without resigning Dempster, Wood, Howry and Lieber, the payroll due to backloaded contracts will increase from $104M in 2008 to $111M in 2009. Now the Cub's total 2008 payroll was $118M, which means that some $14M went to the other nuts and bolts on the team. If that ancillary $14M remains static in 2009, the payroll would sit at $125M without doing a thing to upgrade, or replace Dempster, Wood, Howry and Lieber.

Pretty grim facts for Cub fans when the bean counters feel they only need a moderate increase in payroll to tweak the team.

Direction

2008-10-21T06:38:00.004-07:00

Well now that we have the top of the organization locked up for good or bad, how are the Tribune bean counters going to approach the budget? Changes are going to be made and to what extent an increase in budget is necessary, Hendry has to make his case that "whatever it takes" is the attitude the Tribune should have. The Tribune has deemed Hendry 'The Man," so to tie his hands with a limited payroll would be the ultimate slap in the face of every loyal Cub fan.

Here is a list of the contracts for 2008 and 2009 for the major players on the Cubs.

Zambrano
$15.000 2008
$17.750 2009

Ramirez
$14.000 2008
$15.650 2009

Soriano
$13.000 2008
$16.000 2009

Lee
$13.000 2008
$13.000 2009

Lilly
$7.000 2008
$12.000 2009

Fukudome
$6.000 2008
$11.500 2009

Dempster
$5.500 2008

Marquis
$6.375 2008
$9.875 2009

DeRosa
$4.750 2008
$5.500 2009

Harden
$4.500 2008
$7.000 2009

Wood
$4.500 2008

Howry
$4.000 2008

Lieber
$3.500 2008

Blanco
$2.800 2008
$3.000 2009

Totals
$103.925 2008
$111.275 2009

As you can see the back loaded contracts are increasing the payroll even without the resigning of three relief pitchers, Howry, Lieber and Wood, and the one starter, Dempster. Of course the ancillary contracts of the rest of the team will remain somewhat static and the main increase of the budget will come from Hendry's acquisitions through trades and free agency.

As I've noted in previous posts, even if next years pitching staff performed as well as last years, the Cubs have to deal with the lack of productive LHB's.

So here is your chance to play GM and tell us all what you would do. I'll post my thoughts later.

2008 World Series Matchup

2008-10-20T17:59:00.003-07:00

Well here we are on the eve of the fall classic with the worst to first Tampa Bay Rays vs. every baseball fans favorite team, the Chicago Cubs. What an historic event, hey?

Of course the 2008 World Series does not have the Chicago Cubs representing the National League, it has the first franchise to 10,000 losses, the Philadelphia Phillies. A point that should not be lost on those few faithful left in Cubdom, that milestones of futility don't necessarily mean good things can't happen.

When you look at the series matchup you are however struck by some striking differences in how these teams are constructed opposed to the Cubs. There are a number of stats for sure on the face of it, that you could argue the Cubs compare quite favorably. However, on closer examination the raw numbers, BA, OBP, Runs Scored and ERA don't accurately show the true makeup of the teams.

Characteristics like balance, managerial decisions and that never give up attitude are hard to quantify but let me try.

First, when you see the Phillies in 5 games dispatch the Dodgers, who had just swept the Cubs, you have to ask yourself, WTF just happened?

Second, when you see the Red Sox down 3 to 1 come back from a 7 run deficit with just a handful of outs left in an elimination game, then almost win the damn series you have to ask yourself, WTF just happened?

Third, when you see the Rays bring in a rookie pitcher that had only one month of MLB experience into a bases loaded situation in a 2 run game in the 8th inning then, let him close out the game you have to ask yourself, WTF just happened?

When you take a closer look at the Cubs you can see how these intangibles while they do not alone take the place of talent, are key ingredients in a teams ability to advance against the elite teams vying for a championship.

First, the lack of balance in Cubs lineup really pokes you right in the eye when looking at the above mentioned teams. The Cubs lack of quality LHB's in their lineup made a good Dodger RHP staff all look like Cy Young.

Second, I think we all saw the value of defense throughout the playoffs and I can't think of one team that wasn't extremely strong up the middle.

Third, where was the fucking passion and grittiness of the Cubs? Outside of the helmet bashing, bat flinging of Lee in game 3, were the rest of these lames sleep walking or what?

Lastly, can you ever imagine Piniella relying on the rookie pitcher Price, in a do or die situation?

Still Hendry and Piniella are given extensions, WTF!

Balance

2008-10-17T11:52:00.010-07:00

After witnessing the dominant RH pitching staff of the Dodgers getting pantsed by the Phillies, we must realize that one of the Cubs most glaring weaknesses is not having a balanced lineup.

The Cubs had five players that hit 20 or more HR's and all of them were right handed.

Soto is a young quality defensive catcher that doesn't cost anything so moving him makes no sense.

DeRosa's versatility defensively is invaluable and isn't much of a hit to the payroll either.

Soriano's contract makes it almost impossible for the Cubs to move him.

Ramirez plays a position that there aren't many in all of baseball that could come anywhere close to his production, not to mention the ones that do aren't free agents or a LHB.

That leaves Lee. If there ever was a position with the exception of LF where you could afford to not have a Gold Glover, it would be 1B. The Cubs have a young power hitting LHB in Hoffpauir that certainly does not compare favorably defensively to Lee, but playing 1B is still his natural position. Hoffpauir doesn't cost anything and Lee, even with his no trade clause could garner some significant talent in return if he granted a trade.

If Fukudome doesn't improve much and Edmonds retires, the Cubs will have a less balanced lineup than last year.

Fortunately free agents have no conscience and with money as their mantra, there are two that would greatly help balance the Cubs lineup.

1) R. Furcal is a switch hitting SS with great range, a cannon arm and is a legit lead off man.

2) M. Bradley has better power numbers than anyone presently on the Cubs roster and is the type of outspoken feisty leader I think the Cubs sorely need. I know he has a history of injuries but is a stud when healthy. For a frame of reference, JD Drew also had such a past, but it didn't stop the Red Sox from signing him and as this post season has proved, Drew can come through in the clutch.

A CF and RF consisting of Bradley, DeRosa, Johnson and Fukudome, could produce the flexibility needed for Piniella to mix and match his lineup effectively.

You could let Fontenot compete with Theriot for the 2B job and have a legit backup when the dust settles.

Unfortunately Pie is out of options, which further exacerbates the foolishness of the Fukudome signing. Great job scouting department. I'd be willing to give Pie a shot but Fukudome isn't going anywhere, and you'd be hard pressed to think Pie would put up numbers as productive as Bradley. If Bradley is signed, Pie and Cedeneo should be packaged to a small market team where hopefully the Cubs take a quality arbitration eligible player that the small market team could not or would not be willing to pay up for.

Is It Chess Or Checkers

2008-10-15T18:46:00.006-07:00

I've always been of the belief that during the season, a team with a decent amount of talent wins without much difficulty approximately 4 out of every 10 games. On the flip side, that same team loses another 4 out of every 10. These games both on the win and lose side are essentially blowouts. It's the other 2 out of 10 games where the manager can have a profound affect on the teams success or lack of.

Some managers, just like players are better than others and when as much as 20% of your games hang in the balance, it's important as hell that we have a manager that can not only rally his troops but is strategically one step ahead of his opposition if possible.

Probably no other aspect of the game magnifies these strategic decisions more than late game pitcher changes. I have my own opinions of Piniella, but I'd like to encourage all of you to give your assessment if you think Piniella is playing chess or checkers when making his strategic decisions. After you've all had your say I'll post my thoughts.

Two Thru Nine

2008-10-11T06:57:00.011-07:00

As we look over the Cubs starting position players we will first look at how each of them rate at their position, then later look at how they compliment each other from a team aspect.

Catcher...Soto

It's hard to complain about a catcher that is above average defensively and has the power numbers of Soto, but to have a catcher like Soto that performs that way as a rookie is outstanding. Soto also handled the pitching staff like a veteran. He is young and it seems willing enough to accept instruction to fix some of the holes in his swing. Soto is a real keeper and it gives Cubs fans a sliver of hope that the organization can actually produce some position player talent.

First Base...Lee

Lee is a superior glove man and again put up good numbers offensively, but at a position like 1B where the league has an abundance of power hitters, Lee rates out little better than average. High strikeouts have always plagued Lee and although he still carries a high OBP, his power numbers have gone down. If we look realistically at Lee's career numbers we find that before his 2005 season, he batted in the 5 hole. Comparing Lee to elite first baseman that play solid defense and hit in the 3 hole as Lee presently does, ie; Berkman, Pujols and Howard, to name just a few, Lee's $13 million salary is hefty and since he has 2 years left on his contract with a no-trade clause, he may not be easy to move. Still, the organization should explore all interests in him and if unable to trade him, move him down in the lineup to no higher than the 5 hole.

Second Base...DeRosa

DeRosa is coming off one of his finest offensive years but only plays average defense at second base. His real value to the team, sorry to say this Mark, is as a super sub or a corner outfielder. The problem is the Cubs have a shitload of money tied up in left and right field. DeRosa could get some steady playing time in RF if Fukudome struggles this spring and is willing to go down to AAA and see if he can get his stroke straightened out. However, the prospects of a $12 million, 32 year old being able to change his approach at the plate or the organization being willing to dump him is highly unlikely. With the Cubs in short supply of LHB's, Fontenot's performance this year should stand him in good stead at next year's spring training to win the 2B job outright.

Third Base...Ramirez

Ramirez has steadily improved to a quality defensive third baseman. His power numbers and low strikeouts make him a dangerous middle of the order presence and he even hustles on the base paths now. Ramirez had about half of his HR's hit after the 7th inning this year, and while many Cub fans are on the rag about his and many of the other teams big bangers not producing in the playoffs, let me share this little bit of information. Ryan Howard is 2 for 19 with zero HR's, 1 RBI and 7 K's this postseason.

Shortstop...Theriot

Theriot had an outstanding year offensively, but there may be no other SS in baseball with as little range as him. With almost 3/4 of his hits being singles and his propensity to take the ball to RF, he is an ideal hitter in the 2 hole. Still defensively Theriot is best suited for 2B, and if he were moved there, it would bring back the nightmares of past Cubs teams that had no SS and a half a dozen 2B. Rafeal Furcal is a free agent after this season. Furcal hits left handed, has loads of speed, is an accomplished lead off man, and is a superior glove man with a strong arm. The Cubs should make every attempt to sign him this off season.

Left Field...Soriano

Almost 200 post season AB's is not a small sample and Soriano's numbers are abysmal. He doesn't run like he used to and his total lack of plate discipline make him a nightmare in the lead off role. Once again we have a monstrously expensive back loaded contract with a no trade clause that would make it almost impossible to move him, not that any other GM would be interested in assuming that contract. The Cubs are going to live and die with Soriano for the next 6 years, and a more suitable spot down in the order is a must for the Cubs roster to be as productive as possible.

Center Field...Edmonds/Johnson

Theses two players that were picked up off the waiver wire provided about as much defense and offensive production as could be expected from most full time CF's. Still Edmonds probably will retire and it's time to see if Pie is a legit major leaguer. Pie will most likely platoon with Johnson and the defense will be solid, but there will be a drop off in the power numbers. If Pie can approach his plate appearances like Johnson and learn to steal bases, that's a big if I know, the team will do just fine. Otherwise it looks like a platoon of Fukudome and Johnson in CF and all I can say is YUK! How many pitchers do you think we need to trade for Josh Hamilton?

Right Field...Fukudome

Well Fukudome certainly is no Suzuki or Hideke Matsui. Not even a Iwamura or Kaz Mutsui. Still, Fukudome has 3 years at $12 million with a no trade clause left on his contract. K. Matsui also struggled when he first came over with the Mets and was booed out of town. After arriving in Colorado, he went down to the minors and resurrected his career. I don't know if Fukudome at 32 can do that, but if he can't the Cubs will have the most expensive defensive replacement in baseball. How many pitchers do you think we need to trade for Josh Hamilton? I know that's a redundant question but the Cubs sorely need a LH power bat.

In Summary...

The Cubs need a lead off man, more speed and LHB's in the lineup.

Furcal addresses all of these needs and the only thing it will cost the Cubs is money. Furcal should be priority number one.

The Cubs also need more power from the left side.

If Lee can be moved, there is another free agent on the market this off season, Mark Teixeira. Teixeira is a switch hitting monster first baseman and again would only cost the Cubs money.

Bullpen Decisions

2008-10-08T13:37:00.004-07:00

The Bullpen this year for the most part didn't sabotage many games and quite often was a strength. Still, middle relief started to raise some questions by years end.

Wood and Marmol, with the exception of some minor blips performed admirably. Wood is a free agent, and with the evaluation process of predicting a relief pitchers effectiveness from one year to the next pretty much a crap shoot, the Cubs would be well served to resign Wood.

Cotts being the only LHP in the pen will most assuredly be back and performed about as expected. Still Cotts is not would be described as a LH specialist and the Cubs could really use such a reliever. Fuentes of the Rockies and Marte of the Yankees are two excellent LHP candidates and either one would greatly help balance the bullpen.

Gaudin was performing well until his freak accident and should provide some quality middle relief innings.

Samardzija is raw but shows tremendous upside and should be able to land on spot on the 2009 roster.

Guzman, Hart and Wuertz should be battling for the final bullpen spot if a lefty isn't signed this off season. Howry's spotty performances in 2008 coupled with the fact he had a large contract and is now a free agent makes it hard to see how he's in the mix for next year.

The following is a list of the potential free agent relief pitchers...

Jeremy Affeldt CIN
Tony Armas Jr. PIT
Luis Ayala WAS
Joe Beimel LAD
Joe Borowski CLE
Juan Cruz ARZ
Brendan Donnelly BOS
Alan Embree * OAK
Scott Eyre CHC
Kyle Farnsworth DET
Casey Fossum DET
Brian Fuentes COL
Aaron Fultz CLE
Tom Gordon * PHI
LaTroy Hawkins HOU
Mark Hendrickson LAD
Trevor Hoffman SD
Bobby Howry CHC
Jason Isringhausen STL
Steve Kline SF
Brandon Lyon ARZ
Damaso Marte * NYY
Tom Martin COL
Julio Mateo PHI
Guillermo Mota MIL
Will Ohman CHC
Hideki Okajima * BOS
Darren Oliver LAA
John Parrish SEA
Chris Reitsma SEA
Dennys Reyes MIN
Juan Rincon CLE
Francisco Rodriguez LAA
Brian Shouse MIL
Rafael Soriano ATL
Jorge Sosa NYM
Mike Stanton * CIN
Salomon Torres * MIL
Derrick Turnbow MIL
Oscar Villarreal ATL
David Weathers CIN
Dan Wheeler TB
Dave Williams NYM
Matt Wise NYM
Jay Witasick TB
Kerry Wood CHC

Once again I'd like your thoughts and we'll discuss the potential starting position players next.

Update On The Rotation

2008-10-08T11:55:00.002-07:00

Well it seems Harden doesn't need shoulder surgery and the Cubs have exercised their 2009 option for Harden for $7 million. I still think we need to make a strong push for CC Sabathia, especially if we don't resign Dempster and trade Marquis. Trading Marquis with only one year left on his contract and coming off one of his best seasons seems like a no brainer, especially with Marshall ready to move into his slot in the rotation.

What Happens To The Starting Rotation?

2008-10-07T18:32:00.010-07:00

The 2008 Chicago Cubs starting rotation was at or near the top of the league all year long. If there is one area of the Cubs that needs the least tinkering. Dempster is a free agent, Harden has an option the Cubs could pick up, Marquis is in his walk year and Zambrano and Lilly seem to be no brainers.

Although Dempster seemed to have crumbled in the bright spotlight of the postseason, his value this year was undeniable. Much will depend on what the terms are of resigning him. If other options are available the Cubs need to look at them, but barring any outrageous hard line negotiations, I think he deserves to be resigned and will be a valuable asset to the team.

Harden has ace like stuff but his durability has to be a concern. I can't see how his option can be picked up when the Cubs can and should make a run at Sabathia. As valuable as Harden can be, do we really want to be holding our breath when his next start will be?

Marquis may have been more effective than any other fifth starter in baseball, but if trading him can improve the team elsewhere, Marshall seems more than ready to fill that role.

The following is a list of the potential free agent starting pitchers available this off season...

Kris Benson PHI
A.J. Burnett TOR (may opt out)
Paul Byrd BOS
Ryan Dempster CHC
Jon Garland LAA
Tom Glavine ATL
Mike Hampton * ATL
Rich Harden * CHC
Orlando Hernandez NYM
Jason Jennings TEX
Randy Johnson ARZ
John Lackey * LAA
Esteban Loaiza CHW
Braden Looper STL
Derek Lowe LAD
Pedro Martinez NYM
Mike Mussina NYY
Jamie Moyer PHI
Mark Mulder * STL
Carl Pavano NYY
Brad Penny * LAD
Odalis Perez WAS
Oliver Perez NYM
Andy Pettitte NYY
Mark Prior SD
Horacio Ramirez CHW
C.C. Sabathia MIL
Ben Sheets MIL
John Smoltz * ATL
Julian Tavarez ATL
Steve Trachsel BAL
Brett Tomko SD
Claudio Vargas MIL
Randy Wolf HOU

So share your thoughts folks and we will discuss the bullpen next.

Assessments

2008-10-07T11:07:00.002-07:00

There are some broad guidelines a GM would use when constructing a team that can advance deep into the playoffs. Of course input from his scouting department and field manager are important but the GM should understand what makes for a quality playoff contender.

Good players are simply not enough. Most playoff teams have plenty of talent or they wouldn't be a playoff team in the first place. The eventual champion usually doesn't have a major deficiency ie; power, speed, bench, rotation or bullpen, and their manager and coaching staff have instilled a team philosophy that promotes heads up play that the players buy into.

When assessing the 2008 Chicago Cubs, it was fair to say that they didn't have a major deficiency. But the lineup wasn't balanced and the manager didn't have a game plan. Hitters were undisciplined and the pressure of the moment seemed to affect key personnel, including the manager.

Much of these shortcomings were a result of not having a game plan and team philosophy. If these little things that have nothing to do with talent were stressed during the season, players incapable or unwilling to adhere to the game plan could be replaced. The team then would be better able to handle the postseason pressure knowing if they were off their game, another teammate is more than capable of stepping in and doing the job.

It's that team philosophy and belief in the manager's game plan that inspires the confidence our 2008 Chicago Cubs seemed to lack.

Posts in the future will address the team's coaching staff, pitching and position players. So I encourage all of you to start formulating your own opinions and telling me where you agree or disagree.

Reincarnation

2008-10-06T21:01:00.011-07:00

Due to work related issues, I took leave from this site to contribute occasionally on John Dooley's GOPN site. But since the wild ride of 2008 has come crashing down with a thud for our beloved men in blue, I thought I'd recommit to posting regularly here on Lollygaggers.

Something is wrong with our Cubs and we all need to vent our opinions and offer suggestions to the new fearless leader who buys them.

So have at it folks and I'll follow up with my observations right after they release me from the mental ward.

Does D. Lee Belong Hitting Third?

2008-04-04T06:55:00.010-07:00

If you believe so, you might want to consider the following...

2004
A Ramirez

G-145 AB-547 R-99 H-174 2B-32 TR-1 HR-36 RBI-103
TB-316 BB-49 K-62
.373OBP .578SLG .318BA

2005
A Ramirez

G-123 AB-463 R-72 H-140 2B-30 TR-0 HR-31 RBI-92
TB-263 BB-35 K-60
.358OBP .568SLG .302BA

2006
A Ramirez

G-157 AB-594 R-93 H-173 2B-38 TR-4 HR-38 RBI-119
TB-333 BB-50 K-63
.352OBP .561SLG .291BA

2007
A Ramirez

G-132 AB-506 R-72 H-157 2B-35 TR-4 HR-26 RBI-101
TB-278 BB-43 K-66
.366OBP .549SLG .310BA

Ramirez averaged over the last four years, a 362OBP, 564SLG and 305BA. More importantly, Aramis has only averaged 63 K's. Lets face it, the man puts the ball in play. This would create more opportunities for opposing defensive miscues that could lead to cheap RBI's.

For comparison, our current number three hitter D. Lee, excluding his injury shortened 2006 season, has posted an average over that same time of a 391OBP, 560SLG, 310BA and 117K's.

Pretty comparable numbers with one exception, Strikeouts. It's also safe to assume that Ramirez would have even a higher slugging percentage hitting in front of Lee instead of behind him along with a corresponding jump in his RBI totals.

We also have to remember Lee has benefited from Ramirez hitting behind him, where Ramirez has had no such protection in the lineup. Sandwiching Soriano, between Ramirez and Lee, would provide him with the much needed protection he doesn't receive in the leadoff spot.

Who then bats leadoff? Fukudome, is the easy choice. The Asian import is an on base machine with sufficient speed to handle the leadoff role. Fukudome also has enough power to drive in runners that most assuredly will be if on base with at least one if not two outs.

I also believe Pie and The Riot, should switch hitting second and eighth. Pie would benefit hitting with the big bangers immediately following him versus the pitcher.

The Riot, is slowly showing none of the discipline to be a top of the order hitter. Pie, hasn't shown much plate discipline either, but his ceiling is significantly higher and being left handed, would make the job of advancing the leadoff hitter much easier.

Piniella has shown a disdain for piss poor performance and I can only assume if this club continues to struggle offensively, changes like these aren't far from becoming a reality.

Lineups, Lineups, Lineups...

2008-02-23T07:50:00.009-08:00

What's poor Piniella to do? After last season's college of coaches experiment with the lineup, Uncle Lou has pledged to have a more set lineup and rest his star players more frequently to keep them fresh for the stretch run.

If this is true, let's see who on the present roster would be a productive replacement and how the everyday lineup should be set to provide the most production.

First let's look at our likely everyday lineup.

There is no getting around the fact that if Pie and Theriot don't improve, when considering the pitcher's spot, the Cubs have three easy outs. That is at least one to many, no matter how you rearrange the lineup.

If this is a correct assessment, it shows Hendry does not understand the need to make use of the window of opportunity for the Cubs to win now and make a trade for a legitimate leadoff hitter.

The absence of addressing this issue is what will derail any legitimate hopes of the Cubs advancing deep into the playoffs.

It's no surprise that powerhouse teams like the Yankees and Red Sox, produce runs by the boatload because they lead the league most years in walks, not HR's.

Piniella's hands are going to be tied with his present options and Hendry must do whatever it takes to address the team's piss poor lack of OBP, especially at the top of the order. Piniella needs to have the two best OBP hitters in the lineup hitting 1 and 2 period.

With the present lineup, that would mean hitting Fukudome in the leadoff spot and D. Lee second. Even then, the weak bottom third of the order with Theriot, Pie and the pitcher, would suck major donkey dick.

If a key addition is not made, what bench players are going to make a difference without weakening the defense as well?

Ward can replace Lee, Fukudome or Soriano to give them a day off here and there and most certainly should be used more frequently than last year, but that move doesn't improve the team offensively or defensively.

DeRosa likewise can replace A-Ram and Theriot, but that even further weakens the offense and defense.

The key is for the Hendry to add a legitimate leadoff hitter. Much has been made about Hendry paying to high a price for Roberts, but could he possibly pay more for Roberts than he did for Pierre?

It's time, way overdue in my opinion, for Hendry to ship up or shape out.

Tradin' Times

2008-02-08T09:09:00.000-08:00

We all realize that the free agent crop this year was sparse and how that development has brought back the trade as the more prevalent venue for teams to upgrade their rosters.

Now more than ever, a GM must be as knowledgeable and shrewd as possible.

With that said, who should our fearless leader be willing to part with and for who?

Most of the trade talk surrounding our beloved men in blue this off-season has centered around B. Roberts, 2B Orioles, so that is the trade I'm going to address.

Everyone needs pitching and the Orioles are no exception, especially with the impending departure of Bedard to Seattle. Still, the Orioles are looking to dump high priced players and Hendry should use that to his advantage in his negotiations.

The most valuable prospects the Cubs have are Sean Gallagher and Felix Pie, but that doesn't mean they should be included in a deal, especially for a 30+ year old who mans a position the Cubs already have a competent player in DeRosa.

The Cubs don't have a center-fielder and Pie just has to much upside. Gallagher has excelled at every level and is probably the Cubs best pitching prospect. Not to mention both of them are only 22 years old.

If the Orioles won't make the deal for Marshall, Veal and some other assorted cast then screw 'em.

Point is, Hendry not McPhail is bargaining from strength and if the Orioles don't want to deal on the Cubs terms, let them see if they do better elsewhere.

Hendry has to remember, trading players is a game of chess, not checkers.

CF and OBP

2008-01-24T20:34:00.000-08:00

Like most of you, I would like Felix Pie to win the starting CF job outright next year. Still, there are serious questions about his ability to get on base with enough regularity to justify him getting the job, no matter how much his upside might be.

Now I think if we ask ourselves how successful organizations would treat this situation, we might find some answers. Did Boston start J. Ellsbury last year? He was quite highly thought of but Boston went with a competent veteran.

Wrigley Field does not have an enormous CF, so Pie's most MLB ready part of his game, defense, may not overcome his offensive weaknesses.

The Cubs should go out and sign an adequate defensive player to patrol CF who possesses many of the attributes the team does not have, speed and OBP.

A solid veteran like K Lofton, would provide another LHB who last year still posted in 490AB's, a 296BA, 367OBP and 23 SB's.

Lofton may not patrol CF the way he used to, but considering the Cubs need for a LHB with speed and a high OBP, he would be a solid pickup that could still bat leadoff and allow Soriano to move down to a more productive part of the order.

1060west RIP

2008-01-24T19:53:00.000-08:00

1060west.net (archives)
a crappy/unpopular Chicago Cubs baseball blog. (RIP: 10/7/04--1/21/08)

Just wish to express my gratitude to CCD, for the opportunity to contribute at 1060west. I know many who had visited there, will miss it as I do.

Go Cubs

Friends Of Lollygaggers, I Mean Kerry!

2007-05-10T10:13:00.000-07:00

Hey Dudes and Dudesses. I want to thank all of you that visit and post here because of the sparkling wit and insight provided by your humble host Clute. Ok,Ok, I know you really come here because of Lollyagger Girl Kerry, but I would be remiss if I didn't say thanks to all of you for your support.

I'm sure most of you have noticed that I'm not able to post as regularly as I would like or you deserve, but time constraints with starting a new business and my family have made it difficult to find the time.

I'm sure you can all understand and hope you still check back from time to time with us as I'll do my best to post when there are some major events shaking up Cub Nation.

I'd like to invite all of you to visit the outstanding site 1060 West, as I'll be contributing there. This will allow me the opportunity to still spout off on the state of affairs concerning our beloved men in blue without the obligation of posting regularly.

1060 West is really one of the most well written Cub sites and quite frankly, I can't figure why in the hell they'd welcome this bricklayer of a writer into their fold. I feel privileged to be associated with 1060 West and can only believe it will provide a larger audience to view my rants and ravings.

I just hope the gang over at 1060 West motivation to bring me on board wasn't based on getting Kerry's phone number? Hah!

Anyway, thanks again everyone and "Go Cubs!"

Clute aka Tony Almeida RIP

It's Starting To Get Old...

2007-05-04T20:18:00.000-07:00

Watching our Ace acting like a rookie. I have been as big an advocate of Zambrano as anyone, but his temper tantrums are wearing thin on me. What about you.

It's not like he is a rookie anymore. Though he's only 26, this is his 5th full season and his emotions are getting the best of him. Much to his credit, he righted the ship today, but is this the way we expect an Ace to act on the mound?

I know his stuff is filthy, but would you feel comfortable with him on the mound in the seventh game of a playoff series? If this continues, Piniells should suspend his ass and send a message. GROW UP you clown.

I've heard now for two years how he's going to win the Cy Young award. I'm not saying he doesn't have the stuff to do the job, but shut the fuck up already. If you're going to blow a gasket every time an umpire squeezes you a little you can forget the Cy Young and eventually the respect of your teammates as well.

Don't get me wrong, I want Zambrano to do well and I don't want to trade him but, Piniella has to knock some sense into this hothead or he'll never be as good as he thinks he is or be the type of guy we want to tie up for the next 5 years.

I hope Zambrano will finally grow up soon, otherwise it's Addios MF, at the end of the season and it'll be another major miscalculation by our crack front office.

The Two Hole!

2007-05-03T07:03:00.000-07:00

Now that The Riot, has been inserted into the lineup as a much of a regular as any other player besides the Big Three of Lee, A-Ram and The Fonz, it's time to look at who really belongs in that two hole. First clue, it's not The Riot.

Our fearless LSU alum deserves the leadoff spot. If Piniella can get over his man crush of Soriano, which I think he just might, the lineup would fall into place quicker than Rosie O'Donnell can say Gulf of Tonkin, Google it!

The Cubs are loaded with run producing hitters but are a little thin on high OBP guys.

I don't know of any successful lineup that is configured without it's most disciplined hitters at the top of the order. So who deserves to be in that two hole following The Riot?

Well first let's look at a couple of factors that are unique to the two spot in the order. First, besides a high OBP is the ability to advance the runner on base in front of you. Not usually a quality of a free swinging power hitter. Next, the ability to hit down in the count so as to allow the leadoff man an opportunity to steal. Again not usually a quality of a free swinging power hitter. Let's face it, when you have the team's best hitter on deck, a free swinger in the two hole just doesn't make any sense.

We now have to examine what is lost in the way of run production by placing an extra base hitting machine in the two hole. First, you weaken the bottom of the order's ability to drive in runs with fewer men on base in front of him. For example, even with Soriano's recent surge in hitting his OBP is still no higher than DeRosa's, Murton's or even Jones. It would appear that more RBI potential is lost with Soriano hitting second than having either of the aforementioned three, not to mention Soriano's lack of patience that doesn't allow him to advance the leadoff man or even allow him a chance to steal a base.

Murton and DeRosa have shown as RH sticks, the ability to hit behind the runner, there power isn't prodigious, therefore you're not sacrificing an RBI machine in the two hole who could produce more runs scored lower in the lineup, and you'd probably help them both with their batting average hitting immediately in front of Lee.

The 3, 4 & 5 hitters of Lee, A-Ram and The Fonz, would be as potent as any in baseball providing plenty of run scoring opportunities with high OBP hitters on base in front of them. You also still have a solid bottom of the order with Barrett and the Jones/Floyd/Murton/DeRosa revolving door depending on who's starting, therefore taking most of the pressure off Pie to contribute offensively.

The starting rotation has been more than solid enough for the Cubs to be at least be a 500 team, but the lack of runs scored is the sticking point even taking into account the bullpen has given up a few games. The Cubs just need more base cloggers on base before the middle of the lineup and the runs will come.

Piniella has to get Soriano out of the top of the order.

Questions Answered!

2007-04-30T18:21:00.000-07:00

After watching tonight's 3-2 loss to the Pirates, I hope you can all see why The Riot should be hitting leadoff. Only one stat I really need to give you, 3BB's. Now don't give me this shit he's hitting at the top of the order in the 2 hole, because what he gives you is negated by the whiff machine hitting in front of him, unless Soriano makes the last out of the prior inning.

The Cubs have to get the free swinging Soriano out of the top of the order and get anybody that understands that when you bat one or two in the order, your main job is to get on base, anyway you can, period! Top of the order guys usually have good speed but they also have good plate discipline, which results in a high OBP.

Let me use the example of another power hitting left fielder to illustrate my point. If the Cubs had Adam Dunn in left field instead of Soriano, it would probably be a wash in the power department and strikeouts. Soriano has tons of speed but Dunn is a plow horse. However, Soriano has an OBP of 301 and Dunn has a OBP of 363.

Now you certainly wouldn't put Dunn in the leadoff spot just because he has an excellent OBP and the Cubs shouldn't put Soriano in the leadoff spot just because he has speed.

Question Time!

2007-04-30T08:36:00.000-07:00

Piniella's starting to really shake things up, which is a good thing. Gone are the days of complacency under Baker and it looks as though Piniella has served notice to most everybody. Perform or ride the pine.

Of course I said most everybody, and I'm specifically referring to The Fonz, as being the exception.

So I have a few questions for you.

Does anyone think Soriano is an effective leadoff man?

A leadoff man's primary responsibility is to get on base, correct? Steal bases second, correct? Hitting home runs, is kind of down the list on requirements, correct?

Do you think that the primary reason Soriano was obtained this offseason was because of his speed or power?

If it was his speed, he's not using it much as his 301 OBP is lower than any other regular other than Izturis.

Soriano's career numbers shows he will steal bases and hit for power to be sure, but they also show his OBP is around 320.

So again I ask you, did the Cubs acquire Soriano primarily for his speed or power?

Piniella has to evaluate Soriano just like everybody else. The Riot has shown he can do the job at leadoff and we have Murton, DeRosa and even Barrett for goodness sake that have solid OBP and can do a credible job in the two hole. Who knows, a move of Soriano to a run producing spot in the order might even take a little pressure off him and get his bat going.

The Cubs would then have a devasting 3,4 5 punch with Soriano following Lee and Ramirez.

It's About Time For...

2007-04-23T12:44:00.000-07:00

Piniella to start making some moves that are in the long term interest of the Cubs. The club is 7-11 and that's not a winner anywhere but at the craps tables.

I've been saying this forever, but Piniella has to start looking at the long term ramifications of his lineup, even if Hendry didn't. It's early in the season, but it is becoming more apparent day in and day out, that the vaunted offensive Juggernaut is not all it's cracked up to be. The best offensive performers so far are Lee and Ramirez, and they were here last year. The problem, as it's always been, is having anybody on base in front of them.

Piniella has to forget this fantasy that Soriano is a lead off man and put him down in the order where he can do some real damage. Soriano's speed is just an extra asset to his game, not the key part of it.

The Riot has more than enough speed to lead off, not to mention a decent OBP and keen eye at the plate.

What the Cubs need in their lineup is more speed and better defense. Why? Because speed and defense never go in a slump.

With Soriano in the 5 hole in the lineup, imagine the fear the Cubs would strike in opposing pitchers hearts. The Riot and Murton at the top of the order puts the two highest OBP hitters in the lineup where they belong, in front of the Mashers.

The three kids, Murton, Pie and The Riot, have to be given an opportunity to play most everyday, regardless who's kicking and screaming for playing time. It's not like the team is going gangbusters with the veterans anyway.

Let the kids play their way out of a starting job. They just have to much potential to sit around and platoon. You already know what kind of player Jones, Floyd and DeRosa are. They all have some power it's true, but have horrible OBP's and are suspect at best defensively. An MO like that screams bench player, bench player, bench player.

Murton can play defensively on a par with Jones, Floyd and DeRosa. The Riot plays as good as defense as DeRosa and more importantly, because of his speed and OBP is more suited as a lead off man and allows for Soriano to move down in the order. Pie's defense alone, no matter what he hits, anchors a stinko of an outfield without him. I for the life of me can't figure out why it's ok to not worry about Izturis hitting but Cubs management gets their underwear all bunched up about Pie's. Who has a future with this team, Izturis or Pie. Case closed.

Piniella has to find out what these kids can do on an everyday basis as it's become quite apparent, the status quo isn't getting the job done.

Hendry Tied Piniella's Hands!

2007-04-18T07:00:00.000-07:00

It seems more clear to me that Hendry will lose his job because of this year. Not that any but the best of GM's would have much of a chance with a new owner coming in, but Hendry this off season, in his kid in the candy store approach to spend the twenty dollar bill he found, has brought in players with no thought to how they help the team.

Piniella is now faced with this absurd surplus of outfielder's of which none can actually field their position. If we look at this team objectively, you understand how Piniella's hands are tied.

Backup player's are the type player who brings something to the table the starter doesn't. Like Blanco for instance. When we look at the Cubs outfield personnel, that's not the case.

I'm sure Piniella would have felt comfortable going to war after spring training with Pie in CF, but how many damn outfielder's was he going to carry?

Hendry dropped the ball by not trading Jones and eating some salary if need be. Pie is the LH bat that replaces Jones and his superior defense, as evidenced in yesterday's game where at least Ohman wasn't brought in until Piniella had no one left, demonstrated that superior defense can help the offense just like a HR or RBI.

As Cubs fans we just don't see great defensive play very often. When was the last time you saw a Cubs outfielder defensively intimidate the opposition's base runners?

Pie's defensive play yesterday demonstrates how numb we've become and how clueless Hendry is realizing how great defensive play can help the team. When Soriano comes back are you going to tell me he belongs in CF after seeing Pie play there? Why should Pie be sent back down? Is it money? My answer is yes and I'll tell you why. Outside of Soriano, Jones is the biggest contract in the outfield. If it wasn't a matter of money, why wasn't Jones traded when Floyd was acquired? You guessed it, the Cubs would rather eat their children than eat part of a contract. Unless of course they are trading away a HOF pitcher. Don't you think the Cubs would've received a player like Izturis for Jones? Of course they could have.

Hendry's dumb moves go even further with the signing of DeRosa. Now don't get me wrong, I like the way DeRosa has performed, but why would you pay a career utility man starters money when you had The Riot on the team? The organizational scouting department is clueless.

There was a study done by one of these Baseball America type organizations that showed a player's stats on what percentage of the time he scored per plate appearance. This list included Pujols, Seizmore, Utley, Beltran and players of that stature as scoring with the greatest frequency per plate appearance. Do you know who was #1 on that list last year? Ryan Theriot aka The Riot.

The Riot has speed and more importantly knows how to steal bases, doesn't strike out much, good OBP, seems to play at least average defense, and cost what, $600,000?

Want more great Hendry moves? Ok let me ask you this. How does Guzman get sent down to bring up Pie and not Ohman? I'm waiting? Cat got your tongue? Let me share with you this little nugget. Do you know San Diego has zero LHRP's and they are leading the league in ERA? What good is a LHRP if he sucks? Guzman was sent down because he has options but Ohman should be released. It's to bad because we could've made a deal with the Indians this off season as their bullpen was and is still a mess. Come on, the Indians have 42 year old Roberto Hernandez as a setup man and 38 year old Borowski closing. But once again, Hendry's failure to make a trade and move Ohman in the off season means that after his showing during the regular season, the only option is to release him. Will Hendry do that? Ohman makes only a couple of million a year but that's still no guarantee they'll eat even that paltry sum. Enough said as I could go on and on.

So now what? Well if I had Hendry's ear, the first thing I'd tell him is that his only chance of keeping his job is to Win or at least be in the World Series. Then for him to make these moves.

Pie's defense has to be in the starting lineup even if he hits 240.

Jones needs to be traded immediately, even if it means eating some of the contract which they may not have to do anyway.

Option Ohman to the minors, he probably won't clear waivers but who gives a shit. His contract is peanuts.

If Miller struggles after a couple of more starts, option him as well and slide Guzman into the fifth spot and bring up Rocky Cherry.

This team is definitely a work in progress but Pinella seems more than willing to play his best people. If Hendry would clear some of the dead weight that ties Piniella's hands, the team will be in much better shape.

Quade Is Qlueless!

2007-04-17T16:51:00.001-07:00

Is Mike Quade the next Wendell Kim? You bet your ass he is!

You started to wonder in spring training when Quade held up runners but I tended to give him the benefit of the doubt as he might not be that familiar with his players.

Unfortunately it was a precursor of thing to come.

After the gaff in the Cubs 1-0 loss to Cincinnati, when he didn't send Soriano from 2B on a single to CF late in the game, I started to realize my previous doubts were confirmed. Soriano is our $138 million dollar speedster that is batting leadoff and single handedly creating at least a 5 degree wind chill drop in the temperature every time he whiffs. Now we finally have Soriano on base and he's held up at 3B? I don't want to here all this bullshit that you never make the first or third out taking the extra base. The Cubs are struggling mightily at the plate against Lohse that day and Soriano is after all, our $138 million dollar stud.

Now again today Quade shows how inept he is when in extra innings he calls time out in a critical stage of the game when The Riot was at the plate with a 3-1 count. When the camera panned around, after The Riot was called back into the batters box, it showed Quade raising his palms upward and shrugging his shoulders as if to say, sorry Ryan, I was trying to get the umpires attention as I just remembered the punch line to the joke I was telling him between innings.

Quade, you're the joke. You and that meathead Ohman. How the both of you are on this team and not riding a bus in Iowa is beyond me.

Well I'm pretty sure the Ohman situation will handled quickly, as the most likely reason he was retained when Pie was called up and Guzman was sent down, was because of Guzman's long relief appearance last night.

5 Games & Counting!

2007-04-16T18:38:00.000-07:00

It Looks as though Piniella is going to shake things up with the Cubs lineup. The lack of production can be directly linked to the lack of base cloggers in front of the middle of the lineup.

It's true they've faced some credible pitching, but when you give up a 5 run lead in the 5th inning and can't scratch across one run to take the game into extra innings, there is something wrong.

Hopefully The Riot is showing what a gamer he is and Piniella will move the kid into the lineup regularly. The Riot belongs in the leadoff spot followed by Murton. When Murton sits Piniella should insert Barrett into the 2 hole. Those three hitters, Murton, Barrett and The Riot, have the best OBP on the team without sacrificing much power in RBI situations.

Don't get me wrong, I like on how DeRosa is playing but not at the expense of sitting The Riot. The point is DeRosa doesn't have enough speed to move Soriano out of the leadoff spot, The Riot does. DeRosa can get plenty of AB's in RF platooning with Jones. If Murton and Floyd can platoon, so can DeRosa and Jones. DeRosa also can pick up AB's at 3B and 2B. It might be worth it to experiment with Soriano in the 2 hole where he would have the protection of Lee following him. Otherwise, whiff machines like Soriano and Jones belong down in the order where their lack of OBP won't hurt the middle of the lineup's production.

Uncle Lou says he breaks the season down into 10-16 game intervals, then he evaluates his players based on that 16 game stretch. Well the Cubs are 4-7 and the clock is ticking. 5 games to go for Piniella's shakeup if he doesn't get into a fist fight first.

You the man Lou, you the man!
Lou Piniella's 1st Cubs tirade on ChicagoSports.com

You Saw The Damn Game!

2007-04-14T06:28:00.000-07:00

What the Hell do you think isn't working?

I bring in a relief pitcher that's throwing 40' Curve balls!

I can start to see why this team has been Losing games they way they have!

Well I don't know about the rest of you Dear Cub Fans, but Piniella is showing his real pedigree here. He doesn't like losing, he doesn't accept excuses, and if things don't change, his shoe is going to find it's way up some players ass!

You see Piniella believes if you can't give him 100%, then you don't play, period! It doesn't matter if you're hurt or you're a Lollygagger. Piniella only wants players on the field that can give 100%.

Now Zambrano's act of getting in the umpire's face and his lack of maturity in picking up his teammates when there is a defensive miscue on the field behind him, is starting to wear thin on me. I don't know about you but Zambrano, although still young, is by no means a rookie. He is a great talent and been in the league long enough to understand he has to make adjustments. IMO, Zambrano's got zero chance of winning a Cy Young and being a true stopper in a rotation if he doesn't stop blaming everyone but himself for letting a game get out of hand.

Piniella hasn't seen these explosions by Zambrano as often as we have but I have no doubt, he's going to rip Carlos a new one, if Piniella hasn't already, if Zambrano doesn't grow up.

We've been watching this same thing over the years time and time again with Zambrano and everyone explains it away, myself included, with phrases like he just gets to amped up or he's just a hot blooded Latin but look how good his stuff is. Well let's face it Cub fans, for a pitcher it's not all about the stuff, it's about how you manage the game.

If you care to remember, about the same time Zambrano came up to the Cubs, there was another pitcher that was trying to break into the rotation that was initially thought more highly of than Zambrano and had just as filthy as stuff. His name was Juan Cruz.

Now the comparison I'm trying to make is not that Cruz is as good as Zambrano, but the reasons really don't matter. Cruz had such movement on his pitches that he just couldn't stay consistently in the strike zone. Zambrano on the other hand, let's his lack of maturity get in his way when things don't go his way.

Zambrano has to take a long hard look in the mirror and start realizing that he is his own worst enemy. Otherwise...

Cubs Most Offensive Stat? Defense!

2007-04-12T08:59:00.000-07:00

Well folks, our beloved men in blue have me scratching my head. The Cubs have played three series and already have a three game losing streak. The weather seems to be the only thing colder than the Cubs offense as snow postponed the series finale against Houston. Your three and four hitters are doing their job, but once again the lack of players on base in front of them has put the offense in the deep freeze.

It also hasn't taken long for the team's defense to show it's shortcomings. The Cubs have opted to roll the dice on two of the more important defensive positions catcher and CF, in hopes those players offensive production will make up for their defensive lapses. Throw in a 3 error game by the other critical defensive position SS, and WTF! If this team doesn't hit, they'll have as much a chance of holding any lead as you would of eating soup with a fork.

Fortunately for the Cubs, the skipper won't stand long for this. He's has already shown the willingness to rotate players around and it hopefully won't take long for him to bench the whole starting lineup if things don't improve. Over/Under on base throwing or fisticuffs in the dugout, is dropping faster than the temperature.

The rotation is doing enough for the Cubs to win but as I've said over and over again, baseball is a zero sum game. Score more runs than the opposition, you win. I'm sure the offense will perform better as the season progresses, but as this early season has shown us, hitters go in slumps. If the Cubs want the best chance to be in every game, they need to place a higher importance on the defense. Blanco can hep prevent runs, he needs to start at least 25% of the games. Felix Pie needs to be called up to anchor that outfield defense, regardless of how much screaming you get from Murton, Jones and Floyd for playing time.

Unlike the offense, the defense never goes into a slump and when the team is struggling to score runs, could very well make the difference in a win or loss.

Cubs/Brewers Series Recap!

2007-04-09T06:10:00.000-07:00

Well another series in the book and this one has our Cubs on top 2 & 1. That's two series the Cubs have played against teams that no one could confuse with the Yankees and our buys in blue are 3 & 3.

Like the series in Cincinnati, the Cubs seres against the Brewers got two nice pitching performances from their starters and one stinko. We can only surmise that if the rotation holds on that course the Cubs will have a successful year ending with an appearance in the postseason.
A couple of observations from the Brewers series however seem to indicate some areas of concern.

One, although the teams approach at the plate seems to be much more patient than the free swinging clubs under Dusty, it still is quite apparent that this is a fastball hitting team and that crafty off speed pitchers just give them fits. Now don't get me wrong, Capuano would've been tough on anyone yesterday, still I can't recall many more ugly swings by Cub hitters this young season. Which means they didn't read those damn scouting reports or Chris Capuano is already having his Bust bronzed for Cooperstown.

Second, it seems that with all the talk about the Cubs having two many right handed bats in their lineup, that someone other than Ronny Cedeneo with his mighty stroke, could be coming off the bench late in the game. Now Cedeneo didn't pinch hit yesterday and has actually been doing better than I thought he would this young season. However, when the Cubs had the bases loaded late in the game Uncle Lou, had no choice but to trot out Daryle Ward, who struggles mightily against lefties.

Piniella in his excitement to load up the starting lineup with RH bats against Capuano, neglected to leave himself any viable RH power off the bench. The Cubs are very light hitting from the right side on the bench and it would've behooved them to have considered that when choosing the 25th. man for their roster.

All in all though the team is only going as far as the starters can take them, and I'm pleasantly surprised with them so far. As far as the lineup, hopefully things will become clearer to Piniella and some adjustments will be made as to how it's configured and who stays on the 25 man roster.

Up next, Home Opener vs: Astros. It's a wonderful day in the neighborhood, Go Cubs Go!!

Cubs/Reds Series Recap!

2007-04-06T06:15:00.000-07:00

Well one three games series surely isn't a season, but we can definitely make a few observations from the recent series in Cincinnati. Of course, the Reds performances are of little interest to me and I'll focus just on our Beloved Men In Blue.

First, the starting pitching performed well enough to at least win 2 of 3 instead of the other way around. Since most in the baseball world will concede a teams rotation is the biggest component to it's success, we should be pleased with the starters performances so far. The bullpen, reportedly the strength of the Cubs pitching this year, evidently thought the memo from Uncle Lou, to throw strikes and not walk anyone was meant just for the starters. Let's face it, walks are never a good thing but for a bullpen pitcher they are sure death. That needs to change.

Second, the defense performed average at best. Michael Barrett can't throw and is average at best fielding behind the plate. I know he's an above average hitter, especially for his position, but the truth of the matter is that your catcher is one of the most important defensive positions on the team. There is no reason Blanco shouldn't get 50 or so starts behind the plate regardless of his offense. Jacque Jones can't throw but is the best defensive outfielder on the team. Can anyone tell me why he's not in CF where his arm wouldn't be anywhere near the liability it is in RF? There is a reason most teams are willing to sacrifice offense for defense behind the plate and place their best oufielder in CF, they want to win! Defense never goes into a slump and hopefully Piniella will make these adjustments.

Lastly, the offense has been less than spectacular. This probably is the hardest aspect of the Cubs performance to effectively asses after just three games, but when men are in scoring position and consistently not being driven in, there is always cause for concern.

The Cubs have spent a lot of money on new players and a new manager. It is imperative Piniella continually evaluate this team and make changes accordingly.

Winning Baseball!

2007-04-05T08:12:00.000-07:00

The two games played by the Cubs in Cincinnati have shown what most of all fans already know. Winning baseball is primarily controlled by the pitcher.

In game one, it didn't matter that Zambrano was the Cubs ace when he's not in command of his emotions. To get fired up for the season opener is fine, everyone likes to see that. To lose your cool is not good. Yes he was squeezed by Home Plate umpire Randy Marsh, but Marsh's strike zone wasn't any different for Aaron Heurang. Big Z's loss of control had more to do with his temper than his arm not being in the right slot.

The Cub hitters further compounded the teams demise by failing to understand that Marsh was calling a tight strike zone and not demonstrating the patience needed at the plate. When Heurang had near 90 pitches thrown thru 5 innings and is able to go through 7 innings, you know the Cub hitters were clueless.

In game two, we saw the #2 pitchers for both teams that had great control. This again is where we see the positive effects of a pitcher staying cool and keeping his emotions in check. I'm sure that every pitcher wants to perform well, and maybe we'd see a different outcome in game #2 if Randy Marsh was behind the plate for that game instead of the opener. Still when your Ace's emotions get in the way of him adjusting his game plan and the hitters being clueless as to the advantage they have with a guy like Marsh calling balls and strikes, you have a recipe for disaster.

Thankfully Uncle Lou seems to understand this an will not put up with it. Last night's game illustrated this in spades. First Murton wasn't in the lineup. Yes I know Arroyo is tough on righties but Murton's performance on Monday made Piniella's decision automatic. Secondly, when Dempster went into his Farnsworth impersonation, Piniella didn't send Rothschild out to the mound, Uncle Lou went out there himself. I sure the only word spoken by Piniella that wasn't X rated was the word ball.

Baseball is more than any other sport, a game played between your ears. Let's hope Sweet Lou, can get this point through these hard heads or we'll be in store for some fireworks.

Bright Spotlight!

2007-04-03T08:17:00.000-07:00

Cubs lose 5-1 against the Redlegs. Well, no one thought the revamped Cubs would go 162-0 right?

Big Z still shows his propensity to get over excited on a big stage, but he'll have a Zambrano type of season and perform well. The playoffs of course will present another test for our hot blooded Latin hurler, as big stage will then be spelled with capital letters. We can only hope Randy Marsh, has a month long family vacation planned in October.

When Thunder Matt, has 3 pathetic AB's resulting in strikeouts, you know the pressure and spotlight got to him as well. Still, he'll perform well over the course of the season as his approach at the plate is one of the more fundamentally sound in the lineup.

In both instances however, patience was absent in either players approach yesterday, and this was one of last year's Cubs most inexcusable traits.

Last year's impatience was primarily the result of a lack of discipline, which this year appears will not be tolerated. Piniella is not going to have any Lollygagging on his ball club. But it is interesting to note, that controlling one's emotions with the spotlight on, is not easily mastered.

One game is just that, one game. Still the players will have to overcome the spotlight that is shining more brightly on the team than ever. Sweet Lou, has been there and seems impervious to the attention, but he doesn't hit, play defense or pitch. Can that "cool under pressure" mindset be taught? I don't know the answer, but it's definitely a trait that separates the pretenders from the contenders.

100 Years!

2007-04-01T07:35:00.000-07:00

As the 2007 MLB season gets underway tonight on ESPN, Lollygagger Girl Kerry, suggested we put her pic front and center to show her unwavering loyalty to the Cubs and her belief that the 2007 Cubs will not go 100 years between World Series Titles.

Girl's gotta a lot of heart, don't you think?

Play Ball!

Stats, Statistics, And More Damn Lies!

2007-03-28T12:07:00.000-07:00

I've finally decided to do a number crunching thing, not my forte mind you, to answer the pin heads out there that point to Soriano performing so much better out of the leadoff spot than further down in the order.

Since Soriano's career numbers are heavily skewed by the preponderance of stats accumulated batting leadoff, his numbers vary only slightly batting in a different part of the order. What I'd like to point out however, is his effectiveness to the teams total offensive production, or the total runs the team scores when Soriano hits in different spots in the lineup.

Soriano's greatest number of plate appearances other than leadoff come from the 5 hole in the order.

Leadoff
2227PA, 138DB, 9TP, 121HR, 281RBI, 117SB, 38CS

5 Hole
618PA, 37DB, 3TP, 34HR, 107RBI, 31SB, 3CS

When we look at Soriano's effectiveness hitting from these two positions in the lineup, we see some alarming variables.

As a leadoff man Soriano gets an extra base hit 12% of the time.
Out of the 5 hole he gets an extra base hit 11.9% of the time.

As a leadoff man Soriano attempts a stolen base 6.9% of the time and is caught stealing 24.5% of the time.
Out of the 5 hole he attempts a stolen base 5.5% of the time and is caught stealing a base 8.8% of the time.

As a leadoff man Soriano hits a HR 5.4% of the time.
Out of the 5 hole he hits a HR 5.5% of the time.

As a leadoff man Soriano has an RBI 12.6% of the time.
Out of the 5 hole he has an RBI 17.3% of the time.

There are two interesting facts to point out when looking over these numbers.

One, Soriano creates an out at a rate of almost 3 times the frequency attempting a steal when batting leadoff compared to hitting in the 5 hole. Negatively effecting the heart of the order's ability to score runs.

Two, Soriano drives in a run 37% more frequently out of the 5 hole in the order than he does hitting leadoff. Positively effecting the heart of the order's ability to score runs.

Throw in 150+ strikeouts and suspect defense in CF, and the team suffers mightily from the misuse of this wonderfully gifted athlete.

Consequences!

2007-03-27T06:04:00.000-07:00

I would just like to pose to your dear fans the game of "Russian Roulette" Piniella is playing with his lineup. Now don't get me wrong, Piniella is saying all the right things, but his roster and projected starting lineup looks to fly in the face of some of them.

You all understand the game of "Russian Roulette', where you gamble your life that the squeeze of the trigger has only a one in six chance of making it a bad day.

Well when Piniella dictates that his pitchers throw more strikes, the usual outcome is that more balls are put in play. Now with an outfield that should be wearing hard hats, it's like adding another round into one of the empty chambers.

We've often witnessed that come crunch time, the ball always seems to find the weak link in the field. The Cubs can help themselves out in this situation by fielding the best defensive team possible. After all, didn't Piniella proclaim that if you can't catch the ball you won't play?

There are two things that never go in a slump during the season and they are speed and defense. The Cubs are presently configured to be suspect in both of these areas. The question is why? Speed and defensive help were in camp this spring training and it's not like the players that exhibited these traits underperformed.

The game of baseball is a zero sum game. The team with the most runs wins. The fewer runs you give up, (pitching and defense) the fewer runs you need to score.

It is certainly a legitimate question to ask, just how stellar the Cubs rotation will be this year. So it seems more imperative the Cubs field their best defensive team.

Pie did nothing but have an excellent spring at the plate, the one concern of Cubs management, and would solidify the suspect outfield defense.

The Riot also piggy backed this springs numbers on an excellent last month or so from last year, showing he understands the importance of knowing how to get on base.

Both Pie and The Riot bring an element of speed to the team that's only real base stealing threat is Soriano.

How many HR's are the Cubs going to half to hit to make up for a suspect defense and turtles running the bases?

The issue that has seemed to force Piniella's hand with his lineup was the offseason signing of Floyd. That isn't what the Cubs needed for another LH hitter, an American League DH. Instead they could've got Lofton or even Finely for goodness sake. That way you'd have a little defense, speed and plate discipline from your backup outfielder.

The Cubs roster has plenty of mashers already on it with Soriano, Lee, A-Ram, Jones and Barrett. They could easily afford to play Pie and The Riot everyday to help the team with it's speed and defense.

My suggestion would be to option Ward and have Floyd take his spot as the number one hitter off the bench. Bring up Pie to play CF. Platoon Jones and Murton in LF, all you Murton fans relax please and have The Riot as your leadoff man at 2B. Murton and Jones could alternate in the 2 hole in the lineup and slide Soriano down to at least 4th in the order. DeRosa looks to bring more defensive versatility than The Riot and has demonstrated he can perform well in the super sub role.

A fact that is often overlooked on last year's Cardinals team success in the playoffs was, they were the best defensive team of the eight that were in the playoffs.

Lollygagger Girl Kerry's, 2007 Chicago Cubs Starting Lineup!

The Riot 2B
Murton/Jones LF
Lee 1B
A-Ram 3B
Soriano RF
Barrett C
Pie CF
Izturis SS

A lineup with plenty of power, above average OBP and speed in the leadoff spot, with better overall team speed and defense.

The Final Countdown!

2007-03-26T07:18:00.000-07:00

I've said it before and I'll keep saying it until "Sweet Lou", makes the change. The Riot belongs in the leadoff spot, not Soriano.

Through Sunday, and with just a week 'till opening day, the numbers are becoming more and more evident that what's in the best interest of the team is to have Soriano moved down in the order. I've detailed numerous times apart from this spring performances, why it's in the Cubs best interests so I'll just give you the facts on their performances this spring and let you make up your own mind.

Soriano
57AB, 16H, 2DB, 1TR, 3HR, 4RBI, 15K, 3BB, 3SB, 1CS, 281BA, 328OBP

The Riot
56AB, 21H, 5DB, 3TR, 0HR, 5RBI, 5K, 5BB, 5SB, 0CS, 375BA, 435OBP

Pretty amazing? Well considering Soriano's career OBP is below 330, it's not a big shocker.

With all the pontificating about the importance of being selective at the plate going on with the new hitting coach Perry, and the big man Piniella, you have to ask yourself WTF?

If all this talk about how glorious it would be to see all these fastballs hitting in the 2 hole between Soriano and Lee makes any sense. How much would our swing happy Soriano benefit from having one of the better OBP hitters with speed on in front of him, with Lee immediately following?

We're not splitting the atom here kids, this is as obvious as the Cubs 99 year drought since a World Championship.

Is this really what we want to see 150 times from our leadoff man?

85 to 93

2007-03-23T07:03:00.000-07:00

Well it looks as though the kid is alright, health wise that is. No pitcher goes from throwing 85 mph in one start, then follows it up with 93 mph in the next one if he's hurt. It seems that Mark Prior yesterday finally has had enough. Like the kid in grade school that just is teased unmercifully, Prior has finally remembered he's got a "Y" chromosome and, isn't going to take it anymore.

Actually I believe Prior hasn't been as motivated by words in the press as by his own dissatisfaction of what's transpired this spring. Sometimes life's changes good or bad, can come at you pretty damn fast and when your career path had done nothing but go in a straight line UP, most people have trouble adjusting. It's certainly true that many of Prior's injuries, although not of the magnitude of his teammate's Kerry Wood, have been legitimate. The collision with Marcus Giles in 2003 probably separated or came close to separating Prior's shoulder. The line drive off the bat of Brad Hawpe that hit Prior flush in the elbow was no make believe injury either.

The point is, Prior may very well be a little bit of a head case, he does hail from California not Texas after all, but he also was definitely abused like Wood, by "In Dusty We Trusty," makes you just want to hurl doesn't it. Prior's had every doctor from Dr Frank Jobe to Dr Joyce Brothers, give him a clean bill of health and it just looks like Prior has had a hard time believing it.

Prior's performance yesterday showed us and him two very important things. One, is that potential when unrealized can be spelled with FOUR letters and they're not STUD. Two, is that the shoulder is really healthy.

Prior may never be a damn the torpedo's and full steam ahead type of guy, but there is no doubt that healthy, he can DOMINATE!

The Cold Hard Facts!

2007-03-18T08:33:00.000-07:00

It's becoming apparent that Piniella is finally starting to see the true MO of his band of merry men this spring.

First, the offense is powerful, but the ugly scenario of having men in scoring position with less than two outs and not putting any runs on the board, is still a concern.

Second, the pitching staff has been mandated to throw strikes and so far the Cubs have actually taken more walks than they've given up.

Third, the defense with the reported projected lineup, is starting to show it's true colors. When the best defensive outfielder Jones, appears to be the one most likely traded, you know their is a problem.

Piniella has made it known that spring training isn't band camp. It's the time for a team that is overcrowded with talent for a number of positions, to step up and show you belong here. At this stage of spring training Piniella has to do more than just talk the talk, he has to walk the walk and field the best 25 man team possible.

Piniella has, much to my delight, been holding players feet to the fire and letting it be known in the press what he expects and demands from his team. His most recent comments illustrate just what a departure his tenure as manager will be from his predecessor's. Yesterday when he was asked what he saw in Neal Cotts? Piniella said, "I see he gives up runs every time he pitches." Priceless stuff I tell you.

Now Piniella has to actually back up his statements and walk the walk. If Prior can be shipped down to the minors to work out whatever it is he has to work out. Then Piniella has to do the same with the everyday roster. If defense is a problem then fix it. If we need more situational hitting, then fix it. There are players in camp that can do the job, if Piniella will back up his statements.

Say what you want about trading for Neal Cotts and signing Mark DeRosa. But it is becoming abundantly clear that they are not living up to expectations. Neither of them has a bigger contract than Mark Prior. If Prior can be sent to the minors, so can Cotts. The Riot is continuing to show that his speed and plate discipline will serve the Cubs best as an everyday player. DeRosa needs to assume his super-sub role, damn the contract. It won't be as bad a misuse of payroll as the $9 million three headed 2B of the past. That team wasn't close to being a contender, this one is.

The same goes for the porous outfield. If Piniella is willing to toy with the idea of Jones in the 2 hole when Floyd is in the lineup, why not Pie. Felix has already shown he has made strides in being more disciplined at the plate. If fastballs would be good for Jones in front of Lee and following Soriano, just think what the speedster Pie could do batting out of the 2 hole. Not to mention the defense he'll provide to make the outfield at least respectable.

If the Cubs have to trade Jones, then trade him. If DeRosa has to play super-sub, so be it. The speed and defense of Pie and The Riot, not to mention what appears to be superior plate discipline, just can't be ignored.

It's time to walk the walk Piniella. That's the cold hard fact of the matter.

Point Further Illustrated!

2007-03-13T09:23:00.000-07:00

To carry forward the previous posts position, let me try and explain it with the help of some visual aides.

Would you think this is the best use of Elisha Cuthbert aka Kim Bauer, incredibly gifted physical talents,

or this?

Case closed!

Updated Mission From God!

2007-03-13T06:57:00.000-07:00

As the Cubs move to make their first cuts of spring training, I'd like to show a couple of stat lines at this midway point.

Ryan Theriot aka The Riot
29AB 2DBL 1TRP 0HR 15TB 5RS 1RBI 3BB 2K 1SB 0CS 455OBP 379BA

Alfonso Soriano aka The Fonz
27AB 2DBL 0TRP 1HR 12TB 3RS 2RBI 1BB 6K 2SB 1CS 286OBP 259BA

It's a small sample I understand, but if The Riot continues with a stat line anywhere near this when camp breaks, how does he not when piggybacking these numbers on last year's, make the most sense to start at 2B and bat leadoff?

DeRosa is slow and has demonstrated the versatility to play multiple positions, a key to being an effective utility player.

Soriano has a career OBP under 330, a big negative out of the leadoff spot.

Soriano has already gone on record that he is willing to play and hit anywhere Piniella thinks he'll be the most effective. The jury is still out on his ability to handle CF, but it doesn't look like he'd have any chance to win the CF job if the Cubs didn't have a surplus of outfielders that would be beating down Piniella's door for playing time.

Yes it's a valuable asset to have a strong bench with quality players, but not at the risk of undermining the effectiveness of the lineup and weakening the defense.

Soriano batting leadoff and playing CF does both! If it means playing Jones, a proven CF'er until he's traded, and pissing off Floyd because he won't get enough AB's, who gives a shit? How in the hell can't Soriano be more productive hitting fourth than leadoff? Speed for a power hitter is just a bonus, not a criteria for hitting leadoff. Soriano's power and strikeouts dictate he hit in the middle of the order, where he would see better pitches to hit with A-Ram protecting him in the 5th. spot, than he would with a 2 hitter following him batting leadoff.

The leadoff spot belongs to a player like The Riot. He's showing he has enough speed and discipline at the plate to be a better option at leadoff than anyone else on the team, and it's not like he's replacing a gold glove, stud hitter with a huge contract at 2B.

It's a "NO BRAINER," Piniella! Get over your man crush on Soriano and do the right thing already, will ya?

Performance Evaluations!

2007-03-11T06:45:00.000-07:00

We've all had them. That wonderful time at work where our employer now has to pony up with a raise for job well done. Of course in the world of MLB, we're sometimes left scratching our head, wondering he makes WHAT? For HOW many years?

In the everyday world of us mere mortals, most of our ceilings don't even rise above the basement, let alone reach the floor of the pay scale as professional ball players. Not to mention, they actually get to play a game for a living. Damn, if my father had only been 6'5" instead of 5'6", I'd have been of Hall Of Famer! lol

However, in the brave new world of Uncle Lou Piniella, it seems that many of the players in spring training will be faced with the ramifications of some ugly performance evaluations. This has all been made possible by changes in the Cubs front office that have resulted in a plethora of talent brought in to try and fix the 20+ years of neglect by the Cubs absentee owner, The Tribune Co.

So when March 20 rolls around, the Boss will call each player into his office. It is imperative that Piniella, regardless of a player's pedigree or contract, to not only swing the axe to cut the dead weight, but possibly more important, reward those that have shown they are deserving of a starting spot in the rotation or as an everyday player.

The youth on the ball club is starting to strut it's stuff. Piniella has to demonstrate his baseball pedigree, by damning the torpedo's and full steam ahead. He has no reason at age 63, to care about appearances or what anyone else thinks. All of the planets are properly aligned, as Piniella has zero history with his players and the front office's proclamation to "Just Win Baby", has given Piniella the opportunity send the message, "without exceptions, your playing time will be dictated by how you perform between the white lines."

It would be as refreshing a sign for all of us Cub fans, as the first sun kissed day of spring, to see our team actually have the best 25 men they could possibly have in the clubhouse come opening day. Who can say if the Cubs have enough talent to win it all, but to see the best players we have, used by a manager that actually understands how to manage a game, would be good enough for me.

I'm On A Mission From God!

2007-03-06T07:50:00.000-08:00

I've decided to get out front on the issue of our new leadoff man, The Fonz! I don't support him batting leadoff, not now, not ever.

We have a little history on Soriano, so let's look into it.

Soriano in 2006 had 46HR, 41DB, 41SB, 17CS, 160K and 95 RBI. Can you tell me why a player with 87 extra base hits should bat leadoff? How is that using his ability to best serve the team? It's not, pure and simple. When you have 87 extra base hits and only 95 RBI's, you start to see the fallacy in this scenario.

Oh but you say, he stole 41 bases and we don't have a proven leadoff hitter. Well when you're CS 17 times, you've taken yourself off the base paths 41% of the time when you attempt a steal. Do you think those 17 outs cost the team more runs than the 41 extra bases contributed to scoring runs? There is no doubt that the outs were more damaging.

Since baseball is a zero sum game where runs scored and runs allowed both have equal weight when you want to chalk up a game in the win column, let me put it to you this way.

If Soriano had the top of the order up in front of each of his AB's, do you think the team would score more runs than if he has the bottom of the order up in front of each of his AB's.

If Soriano is caught stealing with the heart of the order following him, do you think the team would score as many runs if he didn't steal a base at all?

The answer is quite clear. Soriano can generate more runs for the team batting in the middle of the order than his legs would provide at the top of the order.

If Soriano hit between Lee and A-Ram for example, he'd have protection following him in the order to make sure opposing pitchers have to pitch to him. Soriano doesn't have that protection with the 2 hitter following him in the order.

Any two hitters the Cubs have that have a high OBP, it doesn't matter if it's Murton and Barrett, they will give the Cubs their best opportunity to score the most runs. They both have the two best and above average OBP's with excellent bat control, who cares if they can steal a base. You can't steal first base and the team isn't sacrificing a monster run producer in the leadoff spot. It's a no brainer, the Cubs would have significantly more run scoring opportunities with those two at the top and Soriano's big bat following them then the other way around.

Let me give you another one of the most common occurrences in the NL. Punch and Judy are usually bringing up the rear of the lineup with the pitcher to follow. When either of those hitters get on base in front of the pitcher, what happens? The pitcher bunts that man to second base, that's what. Now we have Soriano coming to the plate with first base open and the 2 hitter on deck. Do you think the opposing pitcher is going to pitch to Soriano or walk him?

Baseball is the same today as it was when I played. At Oklahoma State, the emphasis was always put on being patient at the plate and learning how to hit defensively if you got behind early in the count early. That's the way I was taught and the way I coached in HS as well, and it is a key fundamental of any high run scoring team. The players that were the most disciplined at the plate, unless they had prodigious power, hit at the top of the order, period. It's no different today in the majors. Sure you need some power hitters but many teams have power hitters and don't have a good runs scored total. When you look at teams like the Yankees and Red Sox, who lead the league or are in the top 5 in OBP year after year, you see the value of giving your team the best opportunity to score as many runs as possible when the run producers are at the plate.

This is a leadoff man.

This is not.

The Upside Down Show!

2007-03-05T07:12:00.000-08:00

Overheard from a White Sox fan at yesterday's Cubs/Sox game at HoHoKam Park, "Maybe if you spend another $100M the Cubs might be 500."

Unfortunately I wasn't there to deliver a right cross to this lame's jaw but what he said was just what I would've said if the shoe was on the other foot.

Piniella sees the same thing that all of us do, with few exceptions the Cubs are just Lollygagging their way around in these games.

Thankfully we seem to have a manager that isn't going to stand for it and heads will start to roll, maybe even before Piniella's foot finds a players ass.

The White Sox bring three starters to the game, against the Cubs mighty revamped lineup that has a starter at every position but catcher, and pound out 5 HR's and score 13 runs? WTF!

The Cubs exhibited in true Dusty fashion yet again, the lack of ability to understand the game situation. The first inning says it all.

Soriano swings at first pitch and hits a double, Juan Pierre with power but clueless with a glove so far in CF. Mind my words, he won't go 3/3 everyday and his lack of OBP is going to hurt this team, just like Pierre did. Any idiot can see the his offensive skills are wasted in the leadoff spot. No matter how many bases Soriano steals, and if memory serves me correctly, Soriano didn't have as many steals as Pierre last year, did Pierre help the team in the leadoff spot?

Murton does his job at the top of the order and should be a poster boy for every hitter on the team. However Murton, will most likely suffer the most by being the number one guy asked to sit so Floyd can get his AB's. Insane I tell you, INSANE!

D. Lee gives a valiant effort after getting behind early in the count to eventually work it full before striking out. Like Murton, Lee seems to have understood the game situation where the Cubs had a terrific opportunity to rough up a stud starter from the White Sox and put a big crooked number up.

A-Ram, the next object of our desire or is it Ire, swings at the first pitch, then almost falls flat on his face doing his best "Charlie Hustle" imitation 358' to early, and hits into a double play.

I know it's only spring training and many of these players are going to be on the bus tour soon, but Piniella needs to take a long hard look at his lineup and understand that having two hitters at the top of the order that are tough outs and can extend the opposition's pitcher, are vital components of having an effective offense. You have to look back no further than 2003 with Lofton and Grudzelianek at the top of the order, to see how successful two tough outs can be in the 1 and 2 hole.

The Riot should be given a chance to not only earn the 2B job, but the leadoff spot as well. If spring training is the time to find out who can do what and help the team the best, why isn't that happening?

PS Has DeRosa even been on base yet?

Medical Concerns!

2007-03-02T10:28:00.000-08:00

Well the bloom is certainly off the rose now. It seems that this is definitely going to be an entertaining year with Pinella at the helm. If that translates into a significant increase in the win column is the burning question.

The Good: Marquis threw 14 out of 20 pitches for strikes and didn't walk anybody.

The Bad: He's not fooling anybody either.

The Good: The Cubs staff yielded only one walk.

The Bad: They only had one strikeout.

The Good: The regulars played credible defense.

The Bad: Ronny Cedeneo and Scott Moore should be bagging groceries instead of playing baseball.

The Good: Piniella is calling a spade a spade and doesn't mind saying so publicly.

The Bad: At age 63, he will most likely need to start or increase his blood pressure medication.

All in all a very forgettable day between the white lines in Mesa except for Piniella asking if the Cubs have a PPO or HMO plan.

Wood's New Approach!

2007-03-01T08:19:00.000-08:00

Kerry Wood has gone through quite a metamorphosis since his decision to move into the bullpen. He has undertaken an extensive off season training program and worked tirelessly on rehabbing his shoulder to make sure he's in the best physical condition possible. However, Wood insists it's his new mental approach that what will make him a dominant force again.

Wood states that using the positive visual imagery of firing each pitch in the ear hole of Albert Pujols, has been the key.

Daily Reviews!

2007-02-28T16:48:00.001-08:00

Since I've purchased the MLB Internet spring training package, I'll receive 150 games. Of course I probably won't get all of the Cubs games, but I can assure you that I'll give you the skinny on those I do.

By the way, the lovely eye candy from 24 Kim Bauer, wants to let you all know she's a Cub fan, but if she sees any lollygagging from coaches or players this season, she's going to tell her daddy and Big Jack will come down to the park and shoot them right in the eye. Hugs and kisses, Kim.

Now that's the type of hard hitting, crack reporting you can expect here at Lollygaggers!

Hard Nipples!

2007-02-28T10:36:00.000-08:00

Lollygagger Girl, Kerry can't wait to see her first spring training game tomorrow and is suiting up already. So her headlights are on and I for one, as I'm sure most of you all are as well, ready to get down for some action, on the field of course.

Hence I'm publishing her pic a day early to get you all up for the game. Enjoy!

Piniella vs: Kornheiser!

2007-02-26T14:48:00.000-08:00

Piniella's stare was more than enought to render the Kornheiser interview on today's PTI show to one in which Kornheiser shuddered like a deer in your headlights.

Be Prepared!

2007-02-26T06:27:00.000-08:00

Besides the bevy of new faces on the 2007 Chicago Cubs, the club is also reported to be sporting a little swagger.

Now swagger is usually the by-product of accomplishment, and if the Cubs do have or plan to have it, it has to be more than lip service.

A good sign that the Cubs are doing more than flapping their gums are reports from the desert of the work ethic being exhibited. It seems that Piniella and his charges are of the attitude that if 50 ground balls is good, then 100 ground balls are better and he seems to have chosen just those type of taskmasters for his coaching staff. Piniella has also gone on record that hitters with notoriously slows starts at the plate will get extra ABs this spring in the minors. It won't matter if your name is D. Lee or Joe Smow, the theme of this training camp seems to be, whatever it takes to get you prepared to start the season in full stride. Sweet Lou has already sent the message loud and clear about playing time once the season starts as well, stating if you're not 100% expect your ass to be riding the pine until you are.

This work ethic is a welcome surprise and greatly appreciated by the fans from the city of big shoulders. Piniella's tongue and cheek humor is also an indication that although he's serious about winning, he knows you have to keep your guys loose and have some fun. His pedigree was evidently forged not only from his success as a player but from his time spent and observations with successful organizations like the Yankees.

It is certainly a legitimate question if the Cubs have the necessary talent for playoff success, but the success or failure of the team won't be determined because they were not prepared.

Piniella Makes Plea!

2007-02-25T06:42:00.000-08:00

IZTURIS: "Really Roberto, I was an All Star in 2004 and almost hit 300." "You can look it up."

NOVOA: Trying to show some compassion while fighting back tears of laughter places his arm around Izturis and says, "Sure you were little buddy."

Piniella makes plea to the troops after watching Izturis for the third straight day take his cuts in the cage without hitting the ball out of the infield. "WTF, can anyone else play SS?"

Hank White & The Law!

2007-02-24T06:54:00.000-08:00

It seems Blanco is assuming a bigger leadership role now that his new fiery, fellow Latino manager has his back.

The grizzled veteran catcher Blanco is laying down the law. Walking the opposition's hitters will no longer be acceptable, and if any of the Cubs pitchers doubt it, Barrett's right to the jaw of Pierzynski last year will feel like a love tap compared to Blanco doing a Farnsworth, and pile driving their ass to the ground for a real woopin'.

Changes!

2007-02-23T06:47:00.000-08:00

There are so many changes happening with the Cubs this spring training that you'd think the dysfunctional tag may finally be cast off.

For the first time in many moons, the team is not forced to bring up kids from their system due to gaping holes in the lineup and rotation.

When you look at a successful organization like the Braves, you see that unless their is are serious mid-season injury, the rookies are allowed the time needed to fully develop in the minors before being called up. That is why so many of their prospects, as well as good scouting of course, perform exceptionally well when they arrive to the Bigs.

The Cubs, with the exception of SS, seem to be pretty well covered on their big league roster with above average quality in the starting lineup and their rotation. Their bench also, which is no place for a rookie, see The Riot, is also pretty deep with some quality veterans.

The Cubs may have spent a shitload to accomplish this, but at least they didn't have to trade from an already thin minor league system. This will serve them well in the future and hopefully they can, with the direction of Tim Wilken, start the laborious process of rebuilding the farm system.

It seems even Pinella is showing that although he doesn't need Pie on the roster just yet, that he's not stubborn enough to sabotage the outfield defense even further by insisting Soriano, play CF. Brian McRae states in an article today by the Tribune's Paul Sullivan, that it's hard to learn the position in Arizona and thinks Soriano will wind up in RF.

This would strengthen the outfield defense for a number of reasons. One, Jones came to the Bigs as a CF and two, Soriano's arm would help the team stop the merry-go-round we witnessed last year with the opposition's base runners.

It also paves the way for the ascension of Pie if he has lights out numbers in AAA, therefore making Jones, whose stock will only rise if he demonstrates he can play CF well, a desirable trading chip for the Cubs that could actually land them some real value in return before the trading deadline.

It's certainly a demonstrable change in the way the Cubs have operated in the past, and I for one, see the benefits for not only Pie, but also any of the young starters that where worth a damn last year, to fully develop before being called up.

And no, I haven't been put on the Cubs media payroll, just drinking a little Blue Kool Aid. :)

Go Cubs Go!

Mesa Musings!

2007-02-22T07:55:00.000-08:00

Pinella tells Hendry he's happy for him that he can finally wear horizontal stripes but says he could still lose a few more pounds, and if he can find time between his workouts at the gym, how about making a deal for a real SS like A-Rod. Sweet Lou points out that the team is really weak at that position and there is no way that goofy SOB Cedeneo, is getting anywhere near the 25 man roster.

Overheard In Mesa!

2007-02-21T08:06:00.000-08:00

Barrett refuses to go behind the plate when he discovers plan of pitchers Kerry Wood and Wade Miller. Apparently Wood and Miller had planned on crossing up Barrett when he called for a curve by short hopping fastballs.

Jonesin' For Some Love!

2007-02-18T07:41:00.000-08:00

I'm sure most that read here know that I've often bashed Jacque Jones unmercifully. I've never tried to put myself really in his shoes, or even cared to for that matter. His struggles last year were for all to see and with an under performing team, and a contract that a the time seemed excessive, Jones became an easy target for my ire.

I know that I've been in a situation in the workplace when I felt my performance wasn't appreciated and you know what? I was bitter about it. I can just imagine if the media was inflaming the issue and putting their usual spin on it to enhance readership how I would have reacted. There would've been shit smashed and broken all over the place.

Jones performance last year had good and bad, but if the Cubs crack scouting department had done their homework, see Mike Remlinger, his troublesome shoulder would've never made it across the Illinois border except when Minnesota played the White Sox.

We all must keep in mind that Jones is a 2007 Chicago Cub. Are some of his problems fixable? Well much will depend on how much the reported off season therapy on his shoulder has strengthened his arm. If Jones arm is pain free, his throwing should be respectable.

Does Jones still have some issues? Of course he does, but so does Michael Barrett. It's Jones mindset that will lead to him performing well if healthy, and in lieu of the verbal and printed abuse he took last year, it seems that he's mentally tough enough to not have it effect his offense.

After listening to Jones on Comcast this morning, he didn't impress me as the type of player that is full of himself. He is soft spoken and I for one was quite shocked. My impression of him before the interview was one that was 180 degrees different. So I'm willing to give the man a second chance. It's quite possible much of his attitude has been overblown and misrepresented in the press. I'm not going to ask all of you to join hands with me and sing, Cum By Yah, but Jones seems to be a respectful man and deserves IMO the same in return.

Will Youth Be Served?

2007-02-15T08:09:00.000-08:00

I must admit that I am as big as optimist as any concerning the Cubs chances every year. However this year the Cubs management has actually tried to support my optimism. I can't say that we have the best man in the GM position, as I probably would've spent $300M a little differently, but hey, they at least started spending.

I know that wild spending in and of itself is not a recipe for success, but contrasted to the vanilla approach towards acquiring talent in the past, I'll take the Donald Trump approach embraced by the new Cubs Prez.

So the Cubs have now assembled a cast that will compete for the 2007 campaign and hopefully the overall needs of the club will be evaluated, not just a players raw stats.

As I look at teams that have succeeded in past post seasons, I have a few observations as to what approach Pinella should take on assembling the 25 man roster to break camp with.

The pitching may not be spectacular but should be deep enough to produce a healthy rotation that will at least be on par with any other NL Central foe and the bullpen regardless of Dempster, should be one of the best in the entire NL.

The offense becomes light years more productive, with just the Soriano addition and the healthy return of Lee.

Even with the lighter than light hitting Izturis at SS, it's hard to imagine that he won't produce better at the plate than Cedeneo.

What concerns me most is the defense.

Their is no question in my mind that Hank White has proved he can be more than just a no hit, all glove backup, and with the number of day games the Cubs play, Pinella would be wise to start him about a third of the time. I'm as big a fan of Barrett as the next guy, but in probably the most defensive demanding position on the field, I think it's a mistake not to make better use of Blanco's superior defensive skills, especially against above average running teams. The Cubs offense can surely afford Barrett not starting say 50 games a year and that would keep Barrett fresh as well.

The outfield is the next concern as hard hats may be required if the early prognostications of who plays there holds to be factual.

I could care less if a 20 man platoon needs to be implemented in the outfield. If Pie can hit 250, he'll more than make up for the loss of Jones HR's with his superior defense. Pie's a natural CF'er and has a strong enough arm to play RF, but with Soriano attempting a new position, why put Soriano in CF?

2B is the next weak link in the defense I'd address. It doesn't matter that DeRosa was brought in to be the everyday 2B, he's played there a little over 40 games his entire career. The insertion of The Riot, assuming he doesn't pull a Cedeneo on us, will give us at least as strong a glove as DeRosa, not to mention some speed.

Outside of Soriano, the Cubs have some real plow horses clogging the bases and the addition of Pie and The Riot would address the issue.

Can you tell me that the Cubs can't afford the loss of Jones and DeRosa offensive production when the team defense and speed, two of the team's bigger weaknesses are upgraded significantly?

It's time for youth to be served!

Also From Our Cubs Fans On 24!

2007-02-14T12:05:00.000-08:00

And in the words of Rusty from Vegas Vacation, "Who would've thought my sister would have the lungs, or was that the legs, of a thoroughbred". Little Audry is all grown up.

To Get You In The Mood!

2007-02-14T11:58:00.000-08:00

Contest!

2007-02-14T08:40:00.000-08:00

I've decided to solicit Lollygagger Girl, Kerry, to offer a prize to the commentator who pegs the opening day lineup in Cincinnati this year. So bring it on kids and let us know your opening day batting order with their respective position in the field.

I hope we can accomplish, with the slew of talent we've acquired and the rookies invited to camp, a more fundamentally sound and productive team at the plate and in the field.

We all understand that the baseball world revolves around pitching, so I'd like for you to include your projected starting 5 man rotation as well as who and how many relief pitchers the Cubs break camp with.

I also have a couple of prop bets in case a tie breaker is needed.

1) Will Soriano hit a home run?

2) Will the starter go at least 6 complete innings?

3) If Super Jock is in your lineup, how many hops will his first throw back to the infield have? Opening line is 4.

Level Playing Field!

2007-02-14T07:51:00.000-08:00

We can only hope as pitchers and catchers report to spring training today, that Uncle Lou will give everyone in camp a fair shot at making the club and earning a spot in the starting lineup. By all of Pinella's previous pronouncements, it seems there will be a level playing field for all invitees.

This of course is an 180 degree departure from Dusty's method of employing his pets, ie; Macias, Perez and their ilk.

This fresh attitude, along with a size 13 in the ass for not playing heads up ball, will finally bring a level of accountability to the clubhouse that has been so sorely missing in the past.

The tag of Lovable Losers can be finally jettisoned and with that, a degree of respect from all of the Cub haters. I for one am sick and tired of hearing and reading from the so-called baseball experts, about the fundamentally weak Cubs organization. Pinella must use his Yankee and world champion pedigree wisely and make it clear to everyone in the clubhouse, that performance is what dictates playing time, not off season moves about who was acquired to play what position or size of contract.

So my advice to Sweet Lou is this, throw a base or two or twenty and change your hair color as often as Dennis Rodman if you like, just make sure you send the message loud and clear, if you play team first, heads up ball, you'll get in the game.

Home Runs & Stolen Bases!

2007-02-13T08:13:00.000-08:00

A number of articles have begun to surface concerning the effectiveness of the Fonz, as a lead off man. Although I've expressed my concern before about the new gun hired this past off season batting lead off, I'd just like to present the relationship of his Home Runs and Stolen Bases on the teams ability to score runs.

As recently as 2003, the Cubs had a legitimate lead off man in Kenny Lofton. Lofton in the mold of every excellent lead off man, exhibited patience at the plate with the ability to steal bases.

We saw last season with J. Pierre, how ineffective the Stolen Base was when the OBP suffered. Not only did Pierre's lack of willingness to work the count for a walk hurt the meager scoring opportunities for the Cubs but Pierre compounded it by being thrown out attempting a stolen base at an alarming rate.

In 2004, the Cubs had a Home Run mashing team that still barely cracked the top 10 in runs scored. We all know that the lack of scoring runs was widely attributed to the lack of runners on in front of the middle of that potent order.

We are now days from the 2007 Cubs opening of Spring Training, and are prized free agent acquisition is purportedly penciled in as our new lead off man. Is this the most effective use of this multi-talented offensive weapon?

Let's look at some historic numbers for a moment and see what we can glean from them about filling the lead off spot with Soriano.

In 2006, The Fonz was a 40/40/40 man with the Nationals hitting in the lead off spot, impressive to say the least when you consider he carried an OBP of 351. However, Soriano has never had an OBP over 332 in his career. His career OBP is 325 and his 2005 OBP was 309, Yikes! Soriano does have some pretty impressive numbers hitting out of the 5 hole however with Texas. In 497AB he hit 270 with 30HR and was 24 for 26 in SB.

The question Pinella has to ask himself, is the 351OBP from 2006 the real thing? I say no way.

Pinella would be wise to take a page out of T. LaRussa's book and bat the offensive Juggernaut Soriano, in the 2 hole like LaRussa did with L. Walker.

The opportunity to have opposing pitchers intentionally walk Soriano after a pitcher advances a runner to 2B is to easy a decision for an opposing manager to make when the next hitter will be a considerably less potent RBI threat. If the Fonz were hitting out of the 2 hole, he would be immediately followed by Lee and Ramirez. This would force opposing pitchers to not pitch around him and in the above sacrifice scenario with first base open, pitchers would now face the best OBP hitter in the Cubs lineup. This allows for a possible walk of the lead off man or scoring the runner from 2B without an extra base hit.

I understand Pinella's desire to give Soriano as many AB's as possible and use his prolific speed at the top of the order, but let's be real here, aren't both of those options still available with the Fonz hitting from the 2 hole?

Pinella should realize that he loses very little with Soriano hitting second. Soriano will see better pitches to hit and increase his RBI opportunities.

Let's face it, when all is said and done, baseball is a zero sum game. The team with the most runs wins, period. Not maximizing the the Cubs run potential, just makes our already questionable rotation all the more susceptible.

Dirty Word!

2007-02-11T09:01:00.000-08:00

The mindset of most professional ball players requires them to think of themselves in such terms as, 5 Tool, Starter and Everyday Player. It is a humbling experience and one many ball players have trouble adjusting to when the dirty word, Platoon Player, is used in conjunction with their name. However many ball players are just that, or if not are just unfortunate or fortunate enough depending on your perspective, on a team that has other more considerable talent at their position.

The 2007 Cubs are a team that has a considerable number of players that possibly could find themselves in this position. How these players accept this situation will determine to a large extent the success of the Cubs this season.

Of course players like Lee, Ramirez, Soriano and Barrett, will only be subbed for in order to get a days rest here and there. Izturis, if healthy will also most likely be an everyday player if only because of his purported skill in the field. The Cubs could live with a 250BA out of the 8 hole if he can really pick it.

That leaves LF, RF and 2B, as positions that could benefit from a regular platoon.

Unless Jones is traded, he should ride the pine against all LHSP with DeRosa, who actually has more time playing in RF than any other position, filling in for Jones with a southpaw on the mound. Jones struggles against lefties and DeRosa murders them, so it should be a no-brainer for Pinella to use them accordingly.

Murton and Floyd both believe the LF job should be theirs, but their willingness to accept a platoon role needs to be embraced by them both. When the dust settles, if either one is truly dominant over the other, we can expect Pinella to reward the deserving player with more and more playing time.

DeRosa is projected as the starter at 2B, but a strong spring by The Riot could change that scenario. Especially since DeRosa will find extra AB's because of his versatility at a number of IF and OF positions.

The key to this platoon working will be Pinella's ability to convince the players it's in the best interests of the club as a whole. This new attitude will go a long way in changing the role of a platoon player, from a dirty word to a description of a key player that puts the success of his team first.

Spring Training!

2007-02-09T20:23:00.000-08:00

I don't know about any of you, but I've got a major chubby now we're less than a week before spring training starts. I've purchased my MLB off season package on the Internet and hope to overdose on every pitch. Any of you other psychopath's planning on a trip out to Mesa, for an up close glimpse of our beloved 2007 men in blue, leave a comment or email me with the particulars and maybe we can hook up for a cold one at a game. You never know, maybe Lollygagger Girl, Kerry will make an appearance.

It's nice for the Cubs and us fans to see some real competition at a number of positions and in the rotation. Hopefully Uncle Lou, will be a fair talent evaluator during camp and break for the regular season with the most deserving in the the best positions for the club to compete. If he does, the Cubs will have a respectable season and the playoffs should be a realistic possibility.

To go far in the playoffs though, it would seem to rest on the enigmatic Prior. His resurgence as a solid force in the rotation would be a welcome surprise and equate to as big an off season acquisition as any.

I look forward to tipping a few cold ones with you in Mesa, Go Cubs Go!

Back In Black!

2007-02-07T09:36:00.000-08:00

Ok, I've finally sobered up from the painful death of the 2006 season.

What a disgusting performance by the pint sized, disco dancing, little girl handed, unathletic, Lovie embraced QB, Grossman. If the midget Grossman, is given anymore of a chance to make the 2007 Bears than Ronny Cedeneo is this spring with the Cubs, I'll be breaking shit all winter long.

Oh yeah, and F$@& you too Ron Rivera, for that shameless prevent defense played for the entire game. If that was an audition for the Cowboys, guess what, you blew it.

If I had heard any more cooing coming from the Colts and Bears before and after the game, I'm sure I would've vomited from a sugar overdose. Where was all the swagger and cracking of skulls from this make believe, were about to take our own place in Chicago defensive lore team, that was so indicative of the real Monsters of the Midway, the '85 Bears.

The Bears exhibited the same vanilla approach and stubbornness to adjust their game plan that spelled doom for them in 2005 against the Panthers.

Re-up Lovie Smith? Are you kidding? I'm beginning to think he resembles Baker, more and more.

Had Da Not Coach Lovie, showed a little flexibility, the game could've been had by the Bears.

So I offer this little bit of advice for the head bean counter Ted Phillips, save the dough on re-upping Lovie and successfully lock up a real bone crusher in the mold of a true Bear linebacker, Lance Briggs.

Thank God there is only 8 days until spring training, as wearing black out here in California just makes my blood boil more than it is already after the debacle in Miami.

Lock Down Mode!

2007-02-02T19:59:00.000-08:00

I'll be traveling to Chicago tomorrow, so I'll be in lock down mode. Bears Victory means drunk 'til at least Wednesday. I don't even want to think about what will happen if they lose.

Go BEARS!!!

Speed & Defense!

2007-02-01T11:01:00.000-08:00

There are two things in baseball that never take a day off, they are speed and defense.

Unfortunately for the Cubs, speed and defense are two of the their more glaring weaknesses. However there are two positions in the lineup, one in the infield and one in the outfield, that the Cubs can address to help with both of these deficiencies.

Felix Pie and The Riot can bring the speed and defense necessary to overcome whatever if any, offensive shortcomings they may have. Defense, can and should be considered an offensive category as it helps prevent the opposition from scoring runs. Speed, more recognizably helps the offense as runners can create more disruption of an opponents pitchers and defenses, therefore helping the Cubs manufacture more runs without the big extra base hit.

The Riot playing 2B, could hopefully come close to duplicating last year's performance, at least in steals and plate discipline. This could eventually allow Pinella to move Soriano out of the lead off spot and down to a more run producing spot in the lineup.

Felix Pie playing CF or RF, could transform a suspect outfield defense into a superior one. Pie's inexperience at the plate would be offset by the superior speed and defense he'd bring to the team.

Remember Lou, speed and defense never go into a slump and with a respectable bench to provide some added pop if needed late in the game, The Riot and Pie help balance the team where they are weakest.

6,7,8 Open Thread!

2007-02-01T06:47:00.000-08:00

Why would your two highest OBP hitters bat at the back of the order? Well one reason is that you had the first 5 Yankee hitters in the lineup. Of course the Cubs don't have those players and having Barrett and Murton hitting 6 and 7 respectively just doesn't make much sense.

Uncle Lou said in his introductory press conference, that having 8 midgets taking walks wasn't a bad way to increase the Cubs woeful OBP, and while his comments were tongue and cheek, the statement speaks volumes for the hopefully fresh approach that will be implemented with the Cubs.

Barrett or Murton both have what you look for in a 2 hole hitter and barring any revisions to the media's projected starting lineup, it would appear either could produce in that role. The nod of course should go to the player that would bring some speed as well and this would most likely rule out Barrett.

That's what so puzzling about the insertion of DeRosa in the 2 hole as he is hardly fleet of foot.

It seems Izturis is destined and rightfully so for the 8 hole. We can only hope Pinella isn't confused by Cesar's switch hitting, which normally is a valuable commodity in the 2 hole. As like N. Perez before him, switch hitting doesn't mean jack, when your career OBP is below 300.

We have all seen how the lack of OBP from the 1 and 2 hole have crippled the Cubs chances of significant run production, even in the years when they've had a healthy middle of the order.

The projected lineup of,

Soriano RF
DeRosa 2B
Lee 1B
A-Ram 3B
Jones CF
Barrett C
Murton LF
Izturis SS

emphasizes speed in the leadoff role and a plodder in the 2 hole, while sacrificing production in the middle of the order.

Do you think this lineup is making the most of it's players? Does it even have the best players in their respective positions?

Let's hear your take on it.

Change Found Between Cushions!

2007-01-31T14:27:00.000-08:00

Prior and Cubs avoid arbitration and agree to a one year deal for $3,575,000. Tribune reports that there still is plenty of money left to extend Zambrano as the resources used for the Prior deal was funded solely by change found between the cushions in the couch of Andy McPhail's office.

3,4,5 Open Thread!

2007-01-31T06:01:00.000-08:00

If Pinella decides to use Soriano as the lead off hitter next season, does it have a negative impact on the middle of the order?

If Jones is traded, Floyd definitely couldn't play CF and do we want to count on Floyd to be an everyday player?

If Pie can make the team out of spring training, doesn't the middle of the lineups production suffer?

The decision where Soriano bats in the lineup could very well make or break the lineups production, so does his speed at lead off justify the the loss of production in the middle of the order?

I'd love to hear your take on this.

The 2 Hole Open Thread!

2007-01-30T07:32:00.000-08:00

It seems most of you believe Soriano is a done deal in the leadoff spot, but the point of these open threads on the lineup is to solicit your opinions on if players belong in these spots in the lineup.

The 2 hole in the lineup is a critical one in most lineups as the player designated for this role must demonstrate excellent plate discipline. The Chicago Media has DeRosa as the Cubs starter at 2B and hitting out of the 2 hole. ???

I don't even know if he belongs as the starter let alone batting second, your thoughts?

Lineup Open Thread!

2007-01-29T09:14:00.000-08:00

I've been agonizing like I'm sure most of you have, as to how the starting lineup is going to shake out after spring training. Since you're all somewhat familiar with my thoughts, I'd like to solicit your sentiments in this thread.

Please feel free, or should I say I would expect you all to give your reasoning behind your positions. Since this could be a rather lengthy reply if we covered the whole team, let's brake it down into a few segments.

Today I'd like to hear about who you think should bat leadoff. If the player you think isn't projected in the starting lineup, please explain why you think he should be.

The Chicago press has projected a starting lineup as follows;

Soriano RF
DeRosa 2B
Lee 1B
A-Ram 3B
Jones CF
Barrett C
Murton LF
Izturis SS

Have at it folks and we'll breakdown the rest of the lineup in the following days.

She's So Persuasive!

2007-01-28T10:25:00.000-08:00

What can I say, with the lack of any substantive news about our beloved men in blue, the other passion of mine, Lollygagger Girl, Kerry, wanted a fresh look a few days early. Kerry made a very thorough and articulate argument. Ok, Ok, she just winked and whispered in my ear.

Kerry also wanted me to pass along a message for all of you. She wants everyone to keep it up, I mean she wants everyone to keep their spirits up, as spring training is just around the corner and she's getting very excited.

It's Hard to not give it to her, I mean it's hard to not give in to her, when she's so persuasive, so I'll just zip it up for now.

Hell, you know what I mean.

Dog Days Of Summer!

2007-01-25T07:01:00.000-08:00

However the starting lineup shakes out for the start of 2007, the days of grinding down players with the abundance of day to night home games will be non-existent.

I'm sure all of us have our favorite players and want to see them on the field, but no other team in baseball has such a preponderance of day baseball games on their home field. Therefore the Cubs of yesteryear with their weak benches, have actually had a home field disadvantage.

This now has been addressed for the first time since I can remember. With the depth of the bench, even the stalwarts have capable replacements that can actually give them a day off, not just pinch hit. The importance of having a capable bench is important on most winning teams but critical for the Cubs.

With Mark DeRosa and Daryl Ward, you have players that can spell Ramirez and Lee for a much needed day off. The Riot can do the same for the two middle infield positions, and with a starting outfield of Murton, Soriano and Jones, you have Floyd, Ward, Pagan, DeRosa and possibly even The Riot and Pie, to spell relief for them.

Pinella will have the flexibility to mix and match his lineup and keep all of his players sharp, knowing that playing time will be dictated in the best interests of the team. Of course the studs will garner most of the playing time, but the depth and quality of the bench will provide many more options for Pinella, and quite possibly allow one of the bench players to crack the starting lineup if their numbers justify it.

Regardless of our sentiments of who deserves to start or not, we have to understand that Pinella comes into the season not beholden to any player. Gone are the days of Dusty's pets, Macias, Perez and their ilk. Pinella understands the importance of players earning their playing time, and the competition for it can only make the team stronger.

Hot Dog & Beer!

2007-01-23T07:28:00.000-08:00

Sorry for the lack of posts lately. I'm in the middle of launching a new marketing campaign and it is consuming much of my free time.

As some of you might know, I reside in So Cal, so I can't really add any first hand reporting on the Cubs Convention, wish I could. The lack of any other hard news about our beloved men in blue has also made only the purest of speculation possible on my part.

I haven't ever intended this blog to be a stat geek rag, as other blogs seem better equipped and more inclined to pour over such numbers.

I would however like to encourage an open discussion among those of you as to the debate amongst many other blogs, regarding Zambrano's fate with the Cubs. Should big Z be traded? Given a raise for this year in the hopes of hammering an extension in mid season? Or, just pay him the damn money?

Just remember whatever happens with Zambrano, you'll still need to bring your Visa Gold Card, to buy a hot dog and beer at the game.

Notre Dame Kids Really Are Smart!

2007-01-20T08:58:00.000-08:00

Jeff Samardzjia must have at least minored in math at Notre Dame, as he caught his first pro contract from MLB, specifically the Chicago Cubs, not from the NFL.

The economics of an non guaranteed NFL contract, for an average speed, white slot receiver, just doesn't compare to the guaranteed money in pro baseball.

Samardzjia, for all his accomplishments on the gridiron, was not a John Elway or Bo Jackson type of football talent, and his recognition of this fact speaks volumes for the young man being mature. He realized that although his passion for playing two sports was a long time dream, he was now about to become a professional and like most of us in this world, had to make a career choice.

So great, Samardzjia makes a sound decision for himself. What does this mean for the Cubs?

The Cubs are banking on another live power arm being nurtured into a pitcher. Their past has been somewhat sketchy on developing their young arms, but barring any medical issues, Samardzjia seems to have the mental makeup needed to succeed. Forget that he's somewhat behind in his development for his age. Samardzjia has the one thing you can't develop, a live arm, but more importantly has the other thing you can develop, a brain.