Juan Pierre extension watch

[Backtobanks]

At this point, I'm not advocating one way or another whether the Cubs should re-sign him or not. I will merely share 5 observations:

 

(1) Other than Pierre (age 29), the only CFs, who are under age 35 and appear to be free agents after this season are Dave Roberts (34), Mike Cameron (33), Darin Erstad (32), Gary Matthews Jr. (31) and Eric Byrnes (30). Assuming Matthews gets re-signed by Texas, and Hendry has the sense to stay away from Erstad, would it make sense for Hendry to pick Roberts or Cameron over Pierre? In my estimation, it's not a slam dunk given their injury history. For some reason, Hendry stayed away from Byrnes after he was non-tendered last offseason, so I assume he views him as a platoon type of guy.

 

(2) Through yesterday's game, Juan does have a .342 OBP for the month of June. That's not great, but it is a huge improvement over April and May.

 

(3) I'm not an expert on the minor leagues, but my sources tell me Felix Pie doesn't project to be a major leaguer in 2007. He still has a lot of things to work on for his swing in their opinion.

 

(4) Derrek Lee is a huge fan and supporter of Juan Pierre.

 

(5) Are there realistically any good trade candidates out there? I mean I have heard Carl Crawford's name thrown around, but will Hendry pony up 3 pitchers like he did with Pierre? Doubtful. However, I will say I could see a deal for Andruw Jones - it does look like Atlanta will blow it up after this season.

Hoops

 

I thought of that too. Getting someone like Andruw Jones in CF makes up for the lack of power at one of the corner OF positions. Andruw does make a ton of money though, but the money might effect the cost in players.

[goonys evil twin]

I thought of that too. Getting someone like Andruw Jones in CF makes up for the lack of power at one of the corner OF positions. Andruw does make a ton of money though, but the money might effect the cost in players.

 

06:$13M, 07:$13.5M

[NCCubFan]

(To everybody)

 

Right now....who would you rather be a fan of:

 

The New York Knicks, or the Chicago Cubs?

At least the Knicks' ownership made it clear that they're going to demand major improvement next year or else Isiah is history. I wish the Trib had the guts to do the same. about the Cubs.

[BeerHere]

I thought of that too. Getting someone like Andruw Jones in CF makes up for the lack of power at one of the corner OF positions. Andruw does make a ton of money though, but the money might effect the cost in players.

 

06:$13M, 07:$13.5M

 

I'd take Jones over Pierre even at that price. Walker can lead off (never happen with Baker though)

[Transmogrified Tiger]

Juan Pierre's super awesome June: .266/.333/.339/.673

 

He's an embarrassment.

[Guancous]

Carl Crawford strikes me as a Hendry player. He's young, has speed, power and low strike zone awareness. He would make people forget about the whole Corey Patterson incident. Not to mention that he is far superior to Pierre. I would part with Marshall and Marmol for him but probably not both. I'd throw in Jones or Pierre too.

[RockTheIvy]

Carl Crawford strikes me as a Hendry player. He's young, has speed, power and low strike zone awareness. He would make people forget about the whole Corey Patterson incident. Not to mention that he is far superior to Pierre. I would part with Marshall and Marmol for him but probably not both. I'd throw in Jones or Pierre too.

 

Does Crawford have the arm for center? I suppose it'd have to be a pretty lousy arm to be a downgrade from noodle-armed Ivory, but I heard Crawford has a pretty weak arm.

[RockTheIvy]

Pierre doesn't really help ths team all that much, but he's pretty fun to watch. Damn. What about Vernon Wells? Is he a FA?

[frostwyrm]

I hate that incompetent management has forced fans to root for Pierre and other veteran bums to play well enough that they can traded, but not so well that management stupidly re-signs them.

[NorthsideAvenger]

Carl Crawford strikes me as a Hendry player. He's young, has speed, power and low strike zone awareness. He would make people forget about the whole Corey Patterson incident. Not to mention that he is far superior to Pierre. I would part with Marshall and Marmol for him but probably not both. I'd throw in Jones or Pierre too.

 

Carl Crawford is nice, but I rather keep Marmol and Marshall. Now, when Pawelek, and Veal are ready...maybe rethink the idea, but right now, I would hold onto any young, and cheap pitcher, with both hands.

[Bluescale]

It sure would have been nice to have Patterson's .284/.325/.436 in center over Pierre. He's outhitting Pierre in every single category.

[Lefty]

How far are we from an extension ...?

 

Friday, August 4th, before the Cubs-Pitrates game.

[Hacking Out Machine]

From Mike Kiley's article today:

 

 

Don't be too hasty to insist there is no way the Cubs will re-sign leadoff man Juan Pierre after a difficult first half. He is showing signs of a rebirth with a .276 average in June after hitting .226 in May.

 

As long as his financial demands aren't out of sight, the Cubs should seriously look at bringing Pierre back. He wants to stay in Chicago.

 

"I would like to be, if it was in my hands,'' Pierre said. "I know I haven't performed well, but I know I can play. Hopefully, I will be around.''

 

http://www.suntimes.com/output/cubs/cst-spt-cubnt29.html

 

 

What he has done since June 1st, and for that matter, what he does for the rest of the year is irrelevant. His horrific play during the first two months of the season is one of the biggest reasons that the rest of the season is now garbage time.

 

The fact remains that the guy never walks. Throw in the possibility that he's lost at least a step from home to first, seriously cutting into his infield hits, and you have a guy who's overwhelmingly likely to repeat his performance again. Just because he's had a period of competence(if you can call it that) when the Cubs are 20 under .500 and hopelessly out of the race does not mean that you resign this offensive cipher/out machine just because he's a good guy who tries hard and wants to come back. The first two months of the season(when things actually mattered) told you all you need to know. We've all already emptied our stomachs at the thought of our GM giving up 2 great arms for a guy that any Triple A hack could have out-produced...let's not get all excited just because a couple of his grounders have found holes this month. If Mike Kiley is actually suggesting that an extension is a good idea, then I have to question whether that's really been him submitting all those game stories for the Sun Times, because he sure hasn't been paying attention to the games.

[E.J.]

Suntimes[/url]"]You can take it to the bank that Lee and Ramirez will be back with the Cubs next season. But expect Hendry to try another high-powered bat in left field for next season.

 

Lee, Ramirez and the new acquisition would bat 3-4-5 in the middle of the lineup. That would slot Jones in at sixth.

 

And the way Juan Pierre is improving, look for the Cubs to seriously consider re-signing him as a free agent after the season.

[CubinNY]

Suntimes[/url]"]You can take it to the bank that Lee and Ramirez will be back with the Cubs next season. But expect Hendry to try another high-powered bat in left field for next season.

 

Lee, Ramirez and the new acquisition would bat 3-4-5 in the middle of the lineup. That would slot Jones in at sixth.

 

And the way Juan Pierre is improving, look for the Cubs to seriously consider re-signing him as a free agent after the season.

 

vomit

[CubColtPacer]

It sure would have been nice to have Patterson's .284/.325/.436 in center over Pierre. He's outhitting Pierre in every single category.

 

I bet that Pierre will be ahead of Patterson in 2 of those 3 categories by the end of the season. He is catching up-very fast.

[CubinNY]

It sure would have been nice to have Patterson's .284/.325/.436 in center over Pierre. He's outhitting Pierre in every single category.

 

I bet that Pierre will be ahead of Patterson in 2 of those 3 categories by the end of the season. He is catching up-very fast.

 

Your on.

[frostwyrm]

It sure would have been nice to have Patterson's .284/.325/.436 in center over Pierre. He's outhitting Pierre in every single category.

 

I bet that Pierre will be ahead of Patterson in 2 of those 3 categories by the end of the season. He is catching up-very fast.

Maybe, but Corey was productive while his team was still in contention and Pierre wasn't.

[Bruno7481]

Who knows what will happen here. It is obvious Pie is not ready, unless he goes on a tear to finish the year I think it would be a mistake to hand him the CF job next season.

 

Maybe they will investigate extending Pierre, or maybe they will look outside of the organization.

[Lefty]

Now no one doubts this anymore, right? Hendry probably thinks all he has to do is sign Carlos Lee and everything will be fine.

[CubColtPacer]

Here is the strange thing about Juan Pierre. If the Cubs lineup were stocked with good OBP guys, then Pierre would not be a good fit, because his speed would not be as necessary. However, if the Cubs are not a good OBP team, Pierre is a great leadoff hitter for them. Why? Because Pierre scores runs when he gets on base. When Pierre gets on, it usually only takes him one hit to get him in. When you don't have high OBP guys behind him, it is nice to only need 1 hit to get your leadoff man in. So, with this strange logic, if the rest of the team remains the same or close to it, the best leadoff hitter for this type of team is Juan Pierre.

[BigbadB]

When Pierre gets on, it usually only takes him one hit to get him in.

 

What blows me away is how Dusty can continue giving the bunt sign on the first pitch after Pierre gets a single. That might be the dumbest call in the history of sports, and he does it frequently. Why?

 

Waste an out to get a guy to 2nd base that 9 times out of 10 Pierre can get without anyone else's help.

 

Not only is this team horrible in relation to OBP, but they also waste precious outs way too often when they do have runners on base.

[goonys evil twin]

Here is the strange thing about Juan Pierre. If the Cubs lineup were stocked with good OBP guys, then Pierre would not be a good fit, because his speed would not be as necessary. However, if the Cubs are not a good OBP team, Pierre is a great leadoff hitter for them. Why? Because Pierre scores runs when he gets on base. When Pierre gets on, it usually only takes him one hit to get him in. When you don't have high OBP guys behind him, it is nice to only need 1 hit to get your leadoff man in. So, with this strange logic, if the rest of the team remains the same or close to it, the best leadoff hitter for this type of team is Juan Pierre.

 

This is not only strange logic, it's illogical logic. The best leadoff man for a team with bad OBP is a leadoff man with bad OBP?

[goonys evil twin]

When Pierre gets on, it usually only takes him one hit to get him in.

 

What blows me away is how Dusty can continue giving the bunt sign on the first pitch after Pierre gets a single. That might be the dumbest call in the history of sports, and he does it frequently. Why?

 

Waste an out to get a guy to 2nd base that 9 times out of 10 Pierre can get without anyone else's help.

 

Not only is this team horrible in relation to OBP, but they also waste precious outs way too often when they do have runners on base.

 

This is an absurd use of outs by Dusty. Instead of calling him out for terrible decisions, however, most people simply applaud his willingness to "make something happen".

 

But isn't it more like 7.5 times out of 10, instead of 9 out of 10?

[CubColtPacer]

Here is the strange thing about Juan Pierre. If the Cubs lineup were stocked with good OBP guys, then Pierre would not be a good fit, because his speed would not be as necessary. However, if the Cubs are not a good OBP team, Pierre is a great leadoff hitter for them. Why? Because Pierre scores runs when he gets on base. When Pierre gets on, it usually only takes him one hit to get him in. When you don't have high OBP guys behind him, it is nice to only need 1 hit to get your leadoff man in. So, with this strange logic, if the rest of the team remains the same or close to it, the best leadoff hitter for this type of team is Juan Pierre.

 

This is not only strange logic, it's illogical logic. The best leadoff man for a team with bad OBP is a leadoff man with bad OBP?

 

I'm arguing that when a team has bad OBP behind him, speed becomes the next important thing. Pierre creates runs with his speed. Let's take an extreme example of this. A player who is so slow he can only advance one base at a time has a 1.000 OBP. He walks every single time, so the team puts him at leadoff. The team behind him only has a .200 OBP, so they are only going to knock him in about 1 out of every 10 times. A player like Pierre with a .750 OBP only gets on 3 out of 4 times, but he only needs 1 hit to get him home, not 3. Therefore, the team knocks him home more often statistically then the player with the 1.000 OBP. Yes, this is absolutely absurd, but it works just as well with actual team numbers. A player with a .400 OBP is wasted if the team behind them can not string together hits to get them home, and so a player like Pierre with a .330 OBP is actually statistically more likely to get home with one hit from the hitters behind him with his speed. The best scenario is to get a lineup who has great OBP hitters, but for this team Juan Pierre has the best statistical chance of scoring per at bat.