Levine Tidbits: Ibanez/Bradley......(met with Bradley pg. 6)

[RammyFanny]

Both Raul Ibanez and Milton Bradley are on the Cubs' radar according to Bruce Levine. Levine talked to their agent (Bradley and Ibanez share the same agent) during the GM Meetings. Levine added the Cubs will be looking further at Milton Bradley as a possible fit to fill their needs for a left-handed right fielder.

The Cubs have discussed a possible trade with the Marlins for both Jeremy Hermida and Scott Olsen according to Bruce Levine. Levine broke the story earlier during the GM Meetings but once the Cubs got deeper in the Peavy discussions, the Hermida-Olsen deal took a backseat. Levine reported the if the Peavy trade falls through then the Cubs would reengage the talks with the Marlins on dealing both Hermida and Olsen.

 

The Cubs view Hermida has being a good young player but not a starter. They would throw him into the mix and see what happens. Hermida has good power but strikes out a lot. The Cubs are looking for a way to become more athletic and balance out their roster like the Phillies and Rays....remember MLB and the NFL are very much copycat leagues.

The final numbers for the 2008 have varied from report to report. Some have claimed the Cubs spent a little over $118 million to field the 2008 squad and others have placed that number closer to the $130 million dollar mark. Bruce Levine revealed on Saturday morning that Kerry Wood hit a lot of his incentives and turned his $4.2 million dollar base salary into an $8.5 million dollar paycheck in 2008.

 

Levine thinks the Cubs payroll in 2009 will be in the $150 million dollar range.

The Cubs do not have any interest in trading for Brian Giles this winter. However, the Cubs had a deal in place at last year's trading deadline that Giles rejected. It was reported that Giles stopped the possible deal involving the Red Sox, but it was not mentioned at the time he rejected a trade to the Cubs as well.

Cubs are very interested in Rafael Furcal.

http://chicagocubsonline.com/archives/2008/11/cubsrumors11808.php

Edited December 9, 2008 by RammyFanny

[tfarks]

Furcal is risky...He sucked all of 07' and was injured almost all of 08'. I wonder what kind of contract he is looking for.

[YearofDaCubs]

Milton, Furcal and Peavy? You couldn't ask for anything better IMO.

[17 Seconds]

Milton, Furcal and Peavy? You couldn't ask for anything better IMO.

 

That would leave our bullpen in trouble. Plus I don't think we could afford all 3 of those guys.

[imb]

wow, way to go woody

[OleMissCub]

I was looking at Raul Ibanez's stats, and he has surely been one of the best bargains in baseball the past few years.

 

The past four seasons he's earned an average of 4.5 million a year, despite averaging .288/.354/.478, 121 OPS+, 24 HR, and 107 RBI on mostly crummy teams.

[Schwarber Fan]

Man, and we thought this was going to be a quiet offseason...

[RynoRules]

I think we can safely say that this is the most proactive Cubs front office any of us have ever seen.

 

BTW, I fail to see how this would leave the bullpen a "mess". Sign Wood and the bullpen will be fine.

[Jehrico]

Hopefully this article will prevent there being any future suggestions ever that we should or could somehow acquire Brian Giles, and we'll never see the idea on NSBB again.

[Sammy Sofa]

BTW, I fail to see how this would leave the bullpen a "mess". Sign Wood and the bullpen will be fine.

 

Definitely. The bullpen is nowhere near being a disaster or even really a liability. Bullpen pitchers are typically such crapshoots anyway. The Cubs hae a bunch of cheaps guys they can plug in there...sign Wood, boom, done.

[Jehrico]

BTW, I fail to see how this would leave the bullpen a "mess". Sign Wood and the bullpen will be fine.

 

Definitely. The bullpen is nowhere near being a disaster or even really a liability. Bullpen pitchers are typically such crapshoots anyway. The Cubs hae a bunch of cheaps guys they can plug in there...sign Wood, boom, done.

Even if we sign Wood, there's still too much uncertainty in bullpens from year to year to call it a mess or solid. Wuertz could pitch like a dominant closer, or he could have a year that justifies him getting sent back to AAA, options be damned. We still have to find a replacement for Howry whether or not we keep Wood, and who knows if Wood would make it the year and be that great. Marmol may look like Cy-Young Gagne next year, or he could turn into Latroy when put in that closers spot. Gaudin is prone to hot and cold streaks as well, and I think will also do some starting next year as a 6th man. Hart, Ascanio, Ceda, Cotts, Shark, Gooz are all good enough where they could be outstanding contributors to the pen next year, or any or all of them could suck. Such is the fickle nature of bullpens, and why it's not a good idea to throw alot of money at them. It's better to throw a lot of guys at them, and hope you get a good idea early on who is in for a good season. Either way, I don't support calling the bullpen a "mess," we're potentially in as good of shape or as bad of shape as any other offseason as far as the pen goes in recent history. If anything, we're in good shape, as we have at least one guy who should be the lights-out stopper type. That's a good starting point in and of itself.

 

I'd like to get one more decent BP arm via FA or trade in the 2 million range (or maybe 2 if Wood isn't brought back), as we've got 6 good young candidates to relieve, but I wouldn't count on more than maybe 2-3 of them sticking at most at any given time. I don't count Marshall as a potential BP arm, as I think he's a sure bet to be traded in one deal or another.

[jiml60]

Hopefully this article will prevent there being any future suggestions ever that we should or could somehow acquire Brian Giles, and we'll never see the idea on NSBB again.

 

You would think so but I'm sure some posters won't get the message.

[vance_the_cubs_fan]

I wouldn't spend a lot on bullpen arms. There's always some guys out there later in the process that can feel needs. If we have a dominant rotation with Peavy, Zambrano, Harden, and Lilly the need for a lot of strong arms in the pen will not be needed as much.

[BigbadB]

BTW, I fail to see how this would leave the bullpen a "mess". Sign Wood and the bullpen will be fine.

 

Definitely. The bullpen is nowhere near being a disaster or even really a liability. Bullpen pitchers are typically such crapshoots anyway. The Cubs hae a bunch of cheaps guys they can plug in there...sign Wood, boom, done.

Even if we sign Wood, there's still too much uncertainty in bullpens from year to year to call it a mess or solid. Wuertz could pitch like a dominant closer, or he could have a year that justifies him getting sent back to AAA, options be damned. We still have to find a replacement for Howry whether or not we keep Wood, and who knows if Wood would make it the year and be that great. Marmol may look like Cy-Young Gagne next year, or he could turn into Latroy when put in that closers spot. Gaudin is prone to hot and cold streaks as well, and I think will also do some starting next year as a 6th man. Hart, Ascanio, Ceda, Cotts, Shark, Gooz are all good enough where they could be outstanding contributors to the pen next year, or any or all of them could suck. Such is the fickle nature of bullpens, and why it's not a good idea to throw alot of money at them. It's better to throw a lot of guys at them, and hope you get a good idea early on who is in for a good season. Either way, I don't support calling the bullpen a "mess," we're potentially in as good of shape or as bad of shape as any other offseason as far as the pen goes in recent history. If anything, we're in good shape, as we have at least one guy who should be the lights-out stopper type. That's a good starting point in and of itself.

 

I'd like to get one more decent BP arm via FA or trade in the 2 million range (or maybe 2 if Wood isn't brought back), as we've got 6 good young candidates to relieve, but I wouldn't count on more than maybe 2-3 of them sticking at most at any given time. I don't count Marshall as a potential BP arm, as I think he's a sure bet to be traded in one deal or another.

 

I don't consider the bullpen to be a concern, especially if they bring back Wood. Just eliminating Howry should make them better. If you have Wood in the fold, here is a list of potential bullpen candidates:

 

Wood

Marmol

Samardzija

Guzman

Gaudin

Wuertz

Cotts

Cashner

Ceda

Veal

 

Leave the bottom three guys in the minors to start the season, and you have a very solid 7 man bullpen.

 

I'm sure another lefty reliever will be on the priority list, since Cotts is the only real threat to break camp with the team at this point.

[RammyFanny]

Not sure if this was posted before, but from a couple days ago:

Seven other teams have expressed an interest in Furcal, including the Chicago Cubs, San Francisco Giants and Toronto Blue Jays.

 

"This could take a little while," Kinzer said.

http://www.latimes.com/sports/baseball/mlb/angels/la-sp-baseball5-2008nov05,0,2245652.story?track=rss

 

I have a hard time believing that this would be true with Peavy and one of Demp o Wood. I'm guessing it'd be without Peavy, but with him it would be awesome. They would pobably move Theriot and Fontenot into some sort of platoon at second, put DeRosa in right, and keep Furcal at short.

[KingCubsFan]

Milton, Furcal and Peavy? You couldn't ask for anything better IMO.

That's a lot of money on our DL between Bradley and Furcal

[erik316wttn]

Hopefully this article will prevent there being any future suggestions ever that we should or could somehow acquire Brian Giles, and we'll never see the idea on NSBB again.

 

If only the same could be said for Adam Dunn as well. He will never ever ever ever EVER be a Cub. Ever.

[erik316wttn]

Milton, Furcal and Peavy? You couldn't ask for anything better IMO.

That's a lot of money on our DL between Bradley and Furcal

 

I'd much rather have Ibanez than Bradley. He stays healthier and isn't a total nutcase.

[nilodnayr]

Hopefully this article will prevent there being any future suggestions ever that we should or could somehow acquire Brian Giles, and we'll never see the idea on NSBB again.

 

Well "could" and "should" are very very different things.

[JeffH]

BTW, I fail to see how this would leave the bullpen a "mess". Sign Wood and the bullpen will be fine.

 

Definitely. The bullpen is nowhere near being a disaster or even really a liability. Bullpen pitchers are typically such crapshoots anyway. The Cubs hae a bunch of cheaps guys they can plug in there...sign Wood, boom, done.

Even if we sign Wood, there's still too much uncertainty in bullpens from year to year to call it a mess or solid. Wuertz could pitch like a dominant closer, or he could have a year that justifies him getting sent back to AAA, options be damned. We still have to find a replacement for Howry whether or not we keep Wood, and who knows if Wood would make it the year and be that great. Marmol may look like Cy-Young Gagne next year, or he could turn into Latroy when put in that closers spot. Gaudin is prone to hot and cold streaks as well, and I think will also do some starting next year as a 6th man. Hart, Ascanio, Ceda, Cotts, Shark, Gooz are all good enough where they could be outstanding contributors to the pen next year, or any or all of them could suck. Such is the fickle nature of bullpens, and why it's not a good idea to throw alot of money at them. It's better to throw a lot of guys at them, and hope you get a good idea early on who is in for a good season. Either way, I don't support calling the bullpen a "mess," we're potentially in as good of shape or as bad of shape as any other offseason as far as the pen goes in recent history. If anything, we're in good shape, as we have at least one guy who should be the lights-out stopper type. That's a good starting point in and of itself.

 

I'd like to get one more decent BP arm via FA or trade in the 2 million range (or maybe 2 if Wood isn't brought back), as we've got 6 good young candidates to relieve, but I wouldn't count on more than maybe 2-3 of them sticking at most at any given time. I don't count Marshall as a potential BP arm, as I think he's a sure bet to be traded in one deal or another.

 

I don't consider the bullpen to be a concern, especially if they bring back Wood. Just eliminating Howry should make them better. If you have Wood in the fold, here is a list of potential bullpen candidates:

 

Wood

Marmol

Samardzija

Guzman

Gaudin

Wuertz

Cotts

Cashner

Ceda

Veal

 

Leave the bottom three guys in the minors to start the season, and you have a very solid 7 man bullpen.

 

I'm sure another lefty reliever will be on the priority list, since Cotts is the only real threat to break camp with the team at this point.

 

Ascanio, Hart, Wells, Caridad, and Roquet.

[Jehrico]

Hopefully this article will prevent there being any future suggestions ever that we should or could somehow acquire Brian Giles, and we'll never see the idea on NSBB again.

 

Well "could" and "should" are very very different things.

Yes they are. That's why I listed them both.

[Jehrico]

Hopefully this article will prevent there being any future suggestions ever that we should or could somehow acquire Brian Giles, and we'll never see the idea on NSBB again.

 

If only the same could be said for Adam Dunn as well. He will never ever ever ever EVER be a Cub. Ever.

Maybe, but for different reasons. Giles will never, ever be a Cub because he would never come to play in the midwest for any team. Dunn would if the Cubs wanted him and made a fair offer and were able to convince him to come here over any other suitors. However, who knows who the next owner will be, and that could open the door to the Cubs taking more of an interest in guys who are in the same mold as Dunn.

[nilodnayr]

Hopefully this article will prevent there being any future suggestions ever that we should or could somehow acquire Brian Giles, and we'll never see the idea on NSBB again.

 

Well "could" and "should" are very very different things.

Yes they are. That's why I listed them both.

 

I remain completely unconvinced.

[Jehrico]

BTW, I fail to see how this would leave the bullpen a "mess". Sign Wood and the bullpen will be fine.

 

Definitely. The bullpen is nowhere near being a disaster or even really a liability. Bullpen pitchers are typically such crapshoots anyway. The Cubs hae a bunch of cheaps guys they can plug in there...sign Wood, boom, done.

Even if we sign Wood, there's still too much uncertainty in bullpens from year to year to call it a mess or solid. Wuertz could pitch like a dominant closer, or he could have a year that justifies him getting sent back to AAA, options be damned. We still have to find a replacement for Howry whether or not we keep Wood, and who knows if Wood would make it the year and be that great. Marmol may look like Cy-Young Gagne next year, or he could turn into Latroy when put in that closers spot. Gaudin is prone to hot and cold streaks as well, and I think will also do some starting next year as a 6th man. Hart, Ascanio, Ceda, Cotts, Shark, Gooz are all good enough where they could be outstanding contributors to the pen next year, or any or all of them could suck. Such is the fickle nature of bullpens, and why it's not a good idea to throw alot of money at them. It's better to throw a lot of guys at them, and hope you get a good idea early on who is in for a good season. Either way, I don't support calling the bullpen a "mess," we're potentially in as good of shape or as bad of shape as any other offseason as far as the pen goes in recent history. If anything, we're in good shape, as we have at least one guy who should be the lights-out stopper type. That's a good starting point in and of itself.

 

I'd like to get one more decent BP arm via FA or trade in the 2 million range (or maybe 2 if Wood isn't brought back), as we've got 6 good young candidates to relieve, but I wouldn't count on more than maybe 2-3 of them sticking at most at any given time. I don't count Marshall as a potential BP arm, as I think he's a sure bet to be traded in one deal or another.

 

I don't consider the bullpen to be a concern, especially if they bring back Wood. Just eliminating Howry should make them better. If you have Wood in the fold, here is a list of potential bullpen candidates:

 

Wood

Marmol

Samardzija

Guzman

Gaudin

Wuertz

Cotts

Cashner

Ceda

Veal

 

Leave the bottom three guys in the minors to start the season, and you have a very solid 7 man bullpen.

 

I'm sure another lefty reliever will be on the priority list, since Cotts is the only real threat to break camp with the team at this point.

Hopefully, and I think the same, but as with most any bullpens, there's alot of question marks as far as exactly how many innings and/or what kind of performance we can get from Gooz, Wuertz, Cotts, or any of the bottom three guys. We also don't know whether they want to bring Shark back for the pen (at least initially), or if they're going to commit to getting him more starting experience in the minors. If Shark is out of the equation to open the season, Wood isn't brought back, and if any of our injury concerns in the rotation force Gaudin to fill in, then we're nearly out of options if any relievers struggle. We have enough good options in house already to field a good pen, we just need a little more depth.

[Transmogrified Tiger]

150 million would be very nice. As long as you traded Marquis, you could easily fit Peavy, Dempster, and Wood. Or Peavy, Wood, Furcal. Or Dempster, Hermida, Olsen, Wood(you probably don't need to lose Marquis' salary for this one, but he has no place to play). Or Peavy, Wood, trade Lee, Teixeira. You get the idea.