Wuertz has made the team?

[cubweiser03]

Hurray.

[soapy]

Yay

 

Since you didn't say it...

 

Wuertz for closer.

[cheapseats]

Yay

 

Since you didn't say it...

 

Wuertz for closer.

 

He'd certainly be a better choice than Dempster. It's really nice to see the Cubs making some intelligent decisions this spring, but there are still lots of areas where they could improve.

[YearofDaCubs]

Lou knows Wuertz has been good and that not everything depends on spring performance.

YES!

 

I am just continually impressed with Lou.

 

Was Dusty really this bad? That with every Lou decision I rejoice?

Dusty was that bad.

[Jehrico]

OK... so all of Dempster, Howry, Eyre, Wuertz, Guzman, Cherry, Cotts, Ohman, Wood would make the roster if ready for the roster. What happens to 2-3 of them when all are ready? Which 2 miss the opening day cut?

 

Looks like Cotts and Wood right now. Cotts still has 2 option years, I believe, and Wood may be getting primed for a quick DL stint with this triceps strain.

I still think one or two relievers get traded before opening day.

 

What could Eyre, Jones, and Pagan bring?

[goonys evil twin]

OK... so all of Dempster, Howry, Eyre, Wuertz, Guzman, Cherry, Cotts, Ohman, Wood would make the roster if ready for the roster. What happens to 2-3 of them when all are ready? Which 2 miss the opening day cut?

 

Looks like Cotts and Wood right now. Cotts still has 2 option years, I believe, and Wood may be getting primed for a quick DL stint with this triceps strain.

I still think one or two relievers get traded before opening day.

 

What could Eyre, Jones, and Pagan bring?

 

Hopefully ARod or Cabrera.

 

I'm still holding out hope for a trade of some of those guys for somebody that can really help the team. Eyre is the expensive reliever I think the Cubs could stand dealing, while Jones is the low OBP OF that could be replaced. I really don't know what they could bring in a deal. Teams are always looking for bullpen help, including Boston and New York.

[radarluv1]

i'm really surprised to hear this after so few appearances. lou must be looking quite a bit at past performance, or maybe rothschild is a big weurtz fan and lou is listening.

[kente777]

i'm really surprised to hear this after so few appearances...maybe rothschild is a big weurtz fan and lou is listening.

 

That's my bet.

[Jehrico]

OK... so all of Dempster, Howry, Eyre, Wuertz, Guzman, Cherry, Cotts, Ohman, Wood would make the roster if ready for the roster. What happens to 2-3 of them when all are ready? Which 2 miss the opening day cut?

 

Looks like Cotts and Wood right now. Cotts still has 2 option years, I believe, and Wood may be getting primed for a quick DL stint with this triceps strain.

I still think one or two relievers get traded before opening day.

 

What could Eyre, Jones, and Pagan bring?

 

Hopefully ARod or Cabrera.

 

I'm still holding out hope for a trade of some of those guys for somebody that can really help the team. Eyre is the expensive reliever I think the Cubs could stand dealing, while Jones is the low OBP OF that could be replaced. I really don't know what they could bring in a deal. Teams are always looking for bullpen help, including Boston and New York.

I'd want some payroll relief coming back the other way too :D

 

Seriously, I doubt we'd get anyone who could help us this year for any of our potential trade candidates. I think a couple of B++ prospects is about the best we could hope for.

[Transmogrified Tiger]

Yay

 

Since you didn't say it...

 

Wuertz for closer.

 

Word.

 

Dempster, Wood, Eyre, Howry, Wuertz, and Ohman make 6. I get the impression that Cotts is Iowa bound, and that Cherry's fate is pretty much in Guzman's hands. If Guzman wins the 5th starter spot, then Miller's going to be sent packing and Cherry gets the 7th BP spot(I think with the uncertainty of the staff and the lack of offensive options Lou takes a 12 man staff, barring a trade for a bench bat), otherwise Guzman will slip into the long man role over Cherry if Miller/Prior finagle their way into the last rotation spot.

[Jehrico]

i'm really surprised to hear this after so few appearances...maybe rothschild is a big weurtz fan and lou is listening.

 

That's my bet.

Mine too. If true, it's just another sign that Dick Pole was really Dusty's pitching coach, and not Rothschild, because he sure didn't listen to him.

[RichHillIsABeast]

Yay

 

Since you didn't say it...

 

Wuertz for closer.

 

Word.

 

Dempster, Wood, Eyre, Howry, Wuertz, and Ohman make 6. I get the impression that Cotts is Iowa bound, and that Cherry's fate is pretty much in Guzman's hands. If Guzman wins the 5th starter spot, then Miller's going to be sent packing and Cherry gets the 7th BP spot(I think with the uncertainty of the staff and the lack of offensive options Lou takes a 12 man staff, barring a trade for a bench bat), otherwise Guzman will slip into the long man role over Cherry if Miller/Prior finagle their way into the last rotation spot.

 

Supposedly Lou hasn't seen enough innings from Wood to take him north. I think Wood starts the year in extended spring training.

 

Miller's got the 5 slot all but locked up.

[Amazing_Grace]

Lou knows Wuertz has been good and that not everything depends on spring performance.

YES!

 

I am just continually impressed with Lou.

 

Was Dusty really this bad? That with every Lou decision I rejoice?

 

Yes, Dusty was really that bad. They could have brought a trained chimpanzee from the circus that would make better decisions than Dusty.

[Rob]

OK... so all of Dempster, Howry, Eyre, Wuertz, Guzman, Cherry, Cotts, Ohman, Wood would make the roster if ready for the roster. What happens to 2-3 of them when all are ready? Which 2 miss the opening day cut?

 

Looks like Cotts and Wood right now. Cotts still has 2 option years, I believe, and Wood may be getting primed for a quick DL stint with this triceps strain.

I still think one or two relievers get traded before opening day.

 

What could Eyre, Jones, and Pagan bring?

 

If we threw in Izturis and a bit of cash, we could probably get Renteria.

[biittner77]

Is Reneteria good anymore?

[David]

Is Reneteria good anymore?

 

.293/.361/.436 for Renteria last year

[biittner77]

Is Reneteria good anymore?

 

.293/.361/.436 for Renteria last year

 

Well that definitely qalifies as better than Izturis but didn't he have a pretty forgetable 2005 or am I thinking of someone else?

[Transmogrified Tiger]

http://www.baseball-reference.com/r/renteed01.shtml

[biittner77]

Thanks,

 

It seems like 04 and 05 were very Izturisesque for Renteria. Though his best season was with the Cards so maybe that means something returning to the NLC.

 

The SS I was thinking of was Orlando Cabrera.

[Exile on Waveland]

I'm very happy about this. I'm also very impressed with Lou so far -- logic seems to be involved in decision making for him, unlike his predecessor.

[98navigator]

Wuertz may not have made the team afterall:

 

Sullivan/Tribune

 

Lou Piniella said before Tuesday's game that his final roster was almost set, but he was forced to reconsider after some developments in the Cubs' 13-10 victory over the Royals.

 

Piniella previously had said Michael Wuertz was on the team, but Wuertz served up home runs on back-to-back pitches in the fifth inning and may be on his way to Triple-A Iowa to build up arm strength.

 

"I am a little bit concerned," Piniella said. "Only because he missed quite a bit and he's behind. I really haven't seen his good stuff yet. The slider is not really sharp, the fastball … he's not quite ready."

 

The final decision rests on whether Piniella takes 12 pitchers north. Wuertz's ineffectiveness, combined with Matt Murton's questionable fielding on a ninth-inning fly ball that dropped just inside the foul line, caused Piniella to rethink the issue.

 

"Was the play in left field a layup? No," Piniella said. "But you need to make those kinds of plays to win games."

 

If Wuertz doesn't make the team there could be an opening for Cherry and Guzman (assuming 12 pitchers).

[Hall7810]

I'm not sure if you wanted to shift the debate a certain way, but the full article makes it sound as if Lou is pondering Pagan on the roster.

[98navigator]

I'm not sure if you wanted to shift the debate a certain way, but the full article makes it sound as if Lou is pondering Pagan on the roster.

 

No it doesn't, the Pagan decision is separate. Sullivan is the one speculating that the decisions are linked. Lou said he's worried about Wuertz's lack of arm strength. Separately, he said he was also worried about the outfield defense late in games.

 

If Wuertz is in AAA that still leaves one, possibly two, spots unaccounted for in the bullpen. In the Cubs.com article, Muskat hints that Guzman could be the odd man out if Piniella goes with Pagan. However, that article does not have a quote from Piniella saying anything directly about Wuertz (whereas the Trib article says specifically that Wuertz's spot could be in jeporady). In this article, Muskat assumes Wuertz position is safe...

 

Piniella got a little confused with which position he's looking at on Tuesday. Michael Wuertz, whom Piniella has already said made the team, wasn't sharp pitching in relief. Piniella was asked if he would reconsider the decision.

 

"I'm not going to get into any of that right now," Piniella said, "but the more I see this thing, I'm looking at the possibility of 12 outfielders."

 

Twelve outfielders? If outfielder Felix Pie hears that, he'll be camping outside Piniella's office door. Then Piniella laughed heartily -- he meant 12 pitchers.

 

Who knows, Lou may have been caught up in the emotion of the postgame conference but Paul Sullivan certainly makes it sound like Wuertz could be optioned.

 

1. Zambrano

2 Lilly

3. Marquis

4. Hill

5. Miller

 

6. Dempster

7. Howry

8. Eyre

9. Ohman

10. Cotts

11. ? (Wuertz)

12. ??/ or utility OF (Guzman)

Edited March 28, 2007 by 98navigator

[Hall7810]

From the same article you posted.

With Murton and Cliff Floyd manning left, Piniella will need a defensive replacement late in games. Angel Pagan fits that role perfectly, but the only way he can make the roster is if the Cubs go with 11 pitchers instead of 12, putting more strain on the pitching staff.

 

"It's going to be interesting here over the next few days," Piniella said. "It's food for thought."

 

Pagan is hitting .222 but is the Cubs' best defensive outfielder.

 

"If I'm going to carry an extra outfielder, at the end of the ballgame I'm going to have the best defensive outfielder I can have," Piniella said. "That would be the sole purpose of doing something like that. If I'm not going to use him, we might as well not even talk about the extra outfielder and just stay with the 12 pitchers and leave it at that."

[98navigator]

From the same article you posted.

With Murton and Cliff Floyd manning left, Piniella will need a defensive replacement late in games. Angel Pagan fits that role perfectly, but the only way he can make the roster is if the Cubs go with 11 pitchers instead of 12, putting more strain on the pitching staff.

 

"It's going to be interesting here over the next few days," Piniella said. "It's food for thought."

 

Pagan is hitting .222 but is the Cubs' best defensive outfielder.

 

"If I'm going to carry an extra outfielder, at the end of the ballgame I'm going to have the best defensive outfielder I can have," Piniella said. "That would be the sole purpose of doing something like that. If I'm not going to use him, we might as well not even talk about the extra outfielder and just stay with the 12 pitchers and leave it at that."

 

I read the whole article but if you read the Cubs.com piece you get a different take. It sounds more like Wuertz is safe and Guzman is on the bubble (Again, since there are no direct quotes from Lou, about Guzman, I have to think this is speculation from Muskat)--which is why I'm saying the Wuertz issue is most likely separate (and because Sullivan's article has concerning quotes from Lou about Michael).

 

Wuertz can be sent down, because of lack of arm strength, and Pagan still not added to the roster if Lou decides to go with 12 pitchers.

 

He also says this on Cubs.com

 

"I'm not going to get into any of that right now," Piniella said, "but the more I see this thing, I'm looking at the possibility of 12 outfielders." ...he meant 12 pitchers.

 

This is why I said there could be an opening for Guzman and Cherry if Wuertz is optioned to get more work, and Lou takes 12 pitchers.