Cameron signs with Red Sox

[Sever82]

Its unfair for anyone to criticize the Ricketts at this point, if anything its dumb. They barely came into ownership and to say they're cheap eventhough they already are implementing plans to improve the park for FANS... is kind of ridiculous. They already have the third highest payroll in baseball and why would they increase their payroll if their GM keeps handing out foolish contracts. The latest from Bruce Levine to me suggests that the Rickets might be thinking about firing Hendry if he doesn't work his way out of the awful moves he has made. I'm not one to give Hendry another shot because he has been a moron lately. He could've had ibanez, abreu, etc last year but instead he picked up bradley. Then he wasted money on miles when he probably could've made some moves to sign a better player in hudson. For him to keep denying that the bradley move isn't holding up anything is kind of dumb because its obvious that it is. He was stupid for suspending him last year and ruining any value he had and also making it inevitable that he would be traded. I want bradley back instead of having to trade him eat salary, etc.

[SouthSideRyan]

 

Soriano has to be somewhat better than he played last year, but what can we really expect out of him at age "34"?

 

I can only assume by the quotes around his age that you think Soriano is going to be found out to be older than his stated age...again?

 

Soto is an interesting case. He was basically not very much of a prospect until 07, he played awesome, started out 08 very well, kinda dropped down a bit later in the year but was still above average, and then the bottom dropped out in 09. Which Soto is real? Do we just assume that the 07-early 08 Soto is the legit Soto, or is the Soto that had a .795 OPS the last 100 games of 08 and fell apart even worse in 2009 the real one?

 

Judging by his BABIP last year, I'd say not close to last year.

 

After that who else do you really have that you'd expect to have a much better season? A full season of Aramis will certainly help if that's the case, but who else had a bad year that you'd expect to be better in 10?

 

Fontenot and Marmol.

 

Are there guys likely to regress the other way? Of course, but last year's team way underachieved. The problem isn't so much that last year's team wasn't good enough, it's that we're actively removing talent from last year's team without replacing it with similar level players.

[jersey cubs fan]

Its unfair for anyone to criticize the Ricketts at this point, if anything its dumb. They barely came into ownership and to say they're cheap eventhough they already are implementing plans to improve the park for FANS... is kind of ridiculous. They already have the third highest payroll in baseball and why would they increase their payroll if their GM keeps handing out foolish contracts. The latest from Bruce Levine to me suggests that the Rickets might be thinking about firing Hendry if he doesn't work his way out of the awful moves he has made. I'm not one to give Hendry another shot because he has been a moron lately. He could've had ibanez, abreu, etc last year but instead he picked up bradley. Then he wasted money on miles when he probably could've made some moves to sign a better player in hudson. For him to keep denying that the bradley move isn't holding up anything is kind of dumb because its obvious that it is. He was stupid for suspending him last year and ruining any value he had and also making it inevitable that he would be traded. I want bradley back instead of having to trade him eat salary, etc.

 

I have to agree with most everything, except the part about the suspension. There's no reason why a suspension had to lead to an inevitable trade. Players don't have to get traded after being suspended. There is no such thing as a point of no return.

 

I didn't have a problem with the suspension. I do have a problem with the unprofessional manner with which Hendry has handled the issue since.

[davearm2]

JUST GIVE JIM A CHANCE YOU GUYS. i know he keeps making terrible moves, BUT HE MADE AN AWESOME TEAM IN 2008. just give him this 18th chance and you won't regret it this time

 

Aren't we a little dramatic? I wasn't asking you or anybody to ignore bad moves Hendry has made or asking you to give them a chance. I said hey lets see what the heck we do this offseason, before we complain how mediocre the team is going to be. Also if you think Hendry is not capable of making good moves, then I don't know what to tell you. But lets at least see what moves we make this offseason before we make these type of judgements or start killing people.

 

Yep, the Cubs are better than their performance of last year. Not to say that they aren't missing out on chances to be even better, but just standing pat would make them strong contenders for a playoff spot.

 

Exactly, Cameron was the top guy I wanted and I'm disappointed we didn't get him. But the Cubs still have a very talented team, and they still can make some good moves to make them better this offseason. Especially with so many guys still on the market. This will probably be a slow moving market with good players still out there in mid to late January. So people need to be patient and not call this a horrible offseason, because we haven't done anything yet in mid December.

Don't you get it?

 

Last year Hendry screwed up by diving into the free agent market early, and missing out on the great bargains available later (Dunn, Abreu, etc.)

 

This year he's screwing up by letting other teams acquire guys for full price before XMas.

 

Duh!

[cubsfan26]

Soriano has to be somewhat better than he played last year, but what can we really expect out of him at age "34"?

 

I would say at least a 100 point higher OPS(maybe 150). Lets not pretend 34 is super old. Soriano still has a few good years left before we can start saying he's old.

 

This is incredibly old. You were towing this line last offseason and will almost certainly be towing it next season as well.

 

LOL no it's not. At this point you are just commenting on my post to comment. Last offseason I said hey lets give some of these moves a chance after people were jumping all over Hendry. Since he made a bunch of moves before that people didn't love and they worked out. I only made those comments after watching people calling for Hendry head after he just had a very good 08 season as GM. In hindsight I will admit you guys were mostly right to bash the moves he made last offseason. That though has nothing to do with what I'm saying right now. I'm saying lets see WHAT WE DO FIRST before we judge the TEAM. We haven't even added any players to the team yet, so our offseason hasn't really even started. Yet people are talking like this team is ready to go to Spring training. If people don't like the moves Hendry ends up making thats fine. But lets at least make some moves before we call this a horrible offseason.

 

 

They won 83 games last year. In what make believe world were they better than mediocre?

 

With the way the players performed last year they weren't better then 83 and 78. What I questioned if the team is mediocre right now. Since I expect a good amount of players on the roster to have better seasons and I think our bullpen has a chance to be better as well.

Edited December 15, 2009 by cubsfan26

[Guest]

Don't you get it?

 

Last year Hendry screwed up by diving into the free agent market early, and missing out on the great bargains available later (Dunn, Abreu, etc.)

 

This year he's screwing up by letting other teams acquire guys for full price before XMas.

 

Duh!

 

Managing a budget isn't about how fast to spend it or to spend it slower the next year if you spent it too fast the previous year. It's about spending it wisely, which Hendry is absolutely clueless at. It's about getting the best talent you can for the best price you can.

 

I would have been thrilled if Hendry put the Bradley money back in the bank if he elected not to spend it on any of the free agents last year if it meant getting Matt Holliday this year.

 

All the best players that change teams always seem to be changing teams when Hendry doesn't have any money to spend. The list of players who have changed teams during Hendry's tenure is simply amazing. And what does he have to show for it?

[A-Cal]

If I were Hendry, Theo Epstein has done everything I would do this offseason.

 

Obviously, the money isn't there for Lackey. However, the Hermida, Bonser, and Cameron signings are top-notch.

 

My Red Sox fan friend called me yesterday all excited, and it bummed me out something awful. Although I am happy for him, days like yesterday make me glad I also am a fan of the Rangers.

 

I don't even know what to hope for from Hendry now.

 

Byrd - do not want

Pods - do not want

Burrell - do not want

Sheets - I better stop thinking about it

 

The only thing I am excited for next season is Starlin Castro.

[Rob]

Are there guys likely to regress the other way? Of course, but last year's team way underachieved. The problem isn't so much that last year's team wasn't good enough, it's that we're actively removing talent from last year's team without replacing it with similar level players.

 

Adding to that...

 

Harden was our best pitcher last year. However, he didn't get anywhere near the best results. Replacing his production from last season shouldn't be so terribly difficult. Likewise for Bradley. Provided we don't make any more moves (aside from Bradley for a PTBNL), I'd expect us to win about as many games as we did last season despite replacing Bradley with Fuld and Harden with Gorzelanny/Marshall/Samardzija/Diamond.

 

Seeing what's on the market at this point, I'd start to seriously consider standing pat. We do have prospects close to the majors and the necessary trade chips to make a bigger splash at the deadline, similar to how the Cards started off last season.

[YearofDaCubs]

Soriano has to be somewhat better than he played last year, but what can we really expect out of him at age "34"?

 

I would say at least a 100 point higher OPS(maybe 150). Lets not pretend 34 is super old. Soriano still has a few good years left before we can start saying he's old.

 

This is incredibly old. You were towing this line last offseason and will almost certainly be towing it next season as well.

 

LOL no it's not. At this point you are just commenting on my post to comment. Last offseason I said hey lets give some of these moves a chance after people were jumping all over Hendry. Since he made a bunch of moves before that people didn't love and they worked out. I only made those comments after watching people calling for Hendry head after he just had a very good 08 season as GM. In hindsight I will admit you guys were mostly right to bash the moves he made last offseason. That though has nothing to do with what I'm saying right now. I'm saying lets see WHAT WE DO FIRST before we judge the TEAM. We haven't even added any players to the team yet, so our offseason hasn't really even started. Yet people are talking like this team is ready to go to Spring training. If people don't like the moves Hendry ends up making thats fine. But lets at least make some moves before we call this a horrible offseason.

 

 

They won 83 games last year. In what make believe world were they better than mediocre?

 

With the way the players performed last year they weren't better then 83 and 78. What I questioned if the team is mediocre right now. Since I expect a good amount of players on the roster to have better seasons and I think our bullpen has a chance to be better as well.

You honestly believe Soriano has a "few" good years left? I disagree. The guy started breaking down the moment he put on a Cubs uniform. We'll be lucky to get 2-3 "good" years from him.

[A-Cal]

Are there guys likely to regress the other way? Of course, but last year's team way underachieved. The problem isn't so much that last year's team wasn't good enough, it's that we're actively removing talent from last year's team without replacing it with similar level players.

 

Adding to that...

 

Harden was our best pitcher last year. However, he didn't get anywhere near the best results. Replacing his production from last season shouldn't be so terribly difficult. Likewise for Bradley. Provided we don't make any more moves (aside from Bradley for a PTBNL), I'd expect us to win about as many games as we did last season despite replacing Bradley with Fuld and Harden with Gorzelanny/Marshall/Samardzija/Diamond.

 

Seeing what's on the market at this point, I'd start to seriously consider standing pat. We do have prospects close to the majors and the necessary trade chips to make a bigger splash at the deadline, similar to how the Cards started off last season.

 

Can someone help me to understand where this "Harden was our best pitcher last year" thought process is coming from?

[Sammy Sofa]

You honestly believe Soriano has a "few" good years left? I disagree. The guy started breaking down the moment he put on a Cubs uniform. We'll be lucky to get 2-3 "good" years from him.

 

They've already gotten 2 very good years from him.

[YearofDaCubs]

You honestly believe Soriano has a "few" good years left? I disagree. The guy started breaking down the moment he put on a Cubs uniform. We'll be lucky to get 2-3 "good" years from him.

 

They've already gotten 2 very good years from him.

I meant to see 2-3 more good years.

[jersey cubs fan]

You honestly believe Soriano has a "few" good years left? I disagree. The guy started breaking down the moment he put on a Cubs uniform. We'll be lucky to get 2-3 "good" years from him.

 

They've already gotten 2 very good years from him.

I meant to see 2-3 more good years.

 

Yeah, I'm hoping for 2 out of 5, I think asking for a third would be greedy.

[Rob]

Are there guys likely to regress the other way? Of course, but last year's team way underachieved. The problem isn't so much that last year's team wasn't good enough, it's that we're actively removing talent from last year's team without replacing it with similar level players.

 

Adding to that...

 

Harden was our best pitcher last year. However, he didn't get anywhere near the best results. Replacing his production from last season shouldn't be so terribly difficult. Likewise for Bradley. Provided we don't make any more moves (aside from Bradley for a PTBNL), I'd expect us to win about as many games as we did last season despite replacing Bradley with Fuld and Harden with Gorzelanny/Marshall/Samardzija/Diamond.

 

Seeing what's on the market at this point, I'd start to seriously consider standing pat. We do have prospects close to the majors and the necessary trade chips to make a bigger splash at the deadline, similar to how the Cards started off last season.

 

Can someone help me to understand where this "Harden was our best pitcher last year" thought process is coming from?

 

xFIP

 

Based on his peripherals, you'd have expected him to have had the best results. He had some bad luck and a very flukey HR/FB rate.

[soapy]

Don't you get it?

 

Last year Hendry screwed up by diving into the free agent market early, and missing out on the great bargains available later (Dunn, Abreu, etc.)

 

This year he's screwing up by letting other teams acquire guys for full price before XMas.

 

Duh!

 

You're right, he's done a damn good job putting together that impressive 587-545 record with one of the top payrolls in the league. Let's just give him some time, fellas. At this point, he really doesn't have any kind of track record or body of work on which to base our criticism.

[davearm2]

Don't you get it?

 

Last year Hendry screwed up by diving into the free agent market early, and missing out on the great bargains available later (Dunn, Abreu, etc.)

 

This year he's screwing up by letting other teams acquire guys for full price before XMas.

 

Duh!

 

Managing a budget isn't about how fast to spend it or to spend it slower the next year if you spent it too fast the previous year. It's about spending it wisely, which Hendry is absolutely clueless at. It's about getting the best talent you can for the best price you can.

 

I would have been thrilled if Hendry put the Bradley money back in the bank if he elected not to spend it on any of the free agents last year if it meant getting Matt Holliday this year.

 

All the best players that change teams always seem to be changing teams when Hendry doesn't have any money to spend. The list of players who have changed teams during Hendry's tenure is simply amazing. And what does he have to show for it?

Not sure what your point is. Every player currently on the Cubs' roster (except for Zambrano) "changed teams during Hendry's tenure".

 

Lee, Ramirez, Lilly, Dempster, Fukudome, etc. etc. are what he has to show for it.

 

Granted this offseason is an exception, but usually the Cubs are right there in the hunt when the top names come available on the trade or free agent markets, be it Beltran, Peavy, Roberts, and on and on. Hendry catches his fair share of the big fish -- for better or for worse.

 

Now if you want to take issue with the guys Hendry's targeted, that's fine, but to insinuate that he's perpetually sitting on the sidelines is just ridiculous.

[davearm2]

Don't you get it?

 

Last year Hendry screwed up by diving into the free agent market early, and missing out on the great bargains available later (Dunn, Abreu, etc.)

 

This year he's screwing up by letting other teams acquire guys for full price before XMas.

 

Duh!

 

You're right, he's done a damn good job putting together that impressive 587-545 record with one of the top payrolls in the league. Let's just give him some time, fellas. At this point, he really doesn't have any kind of track record or body of work on which to base our criticism.

There's plenty to criticize Hendry for.

 

Folks just come off looking pretty foolish when he does things one way, and then the opposite way, and both times he gets slammed.

[Banedon]

There's plenty to criticize Hendry for.

 

Folks just come off looking pretty foolish when he does things one way, and then the opposite way, and both times he gets slammed.

 

I'm just gonna throw this out there....maybe each year is different. Maybe each year requires a different approach based on the free agent market, the demand for those players, the salaries being bandied about, the perceived quality of the players you currently have under contract, the number of holes you need to fill, and the moves that your division rivals are making.

 

Maybe.

[jersey cubs fan]

Granted this offseason is an exception, but usually the Cubs are right there in the hunt when the top names come available on the trade or free agent markets, be it Beltran, Peavy, Roberts, and on and on. Hendry catches his fair share of the big fish -- for better or for worse.

 

Really? I wouldn't label any Cubs acquisition as a big fish. Nomar was closest but he was a banged up shell of his former self, and Soriano was not a top player. The Cubs have been named during rumor stages, but reports of interest aren't meaningful when compared with actually acquiring the players.

 

Ramirez was highly flawed, DLee was a second or maybe third tier 1b. Barrett was a nobody, Fukudome was intriguing, but not a top notch international free agent. Dempster was a rehab project.

 

Seriously, name a big fish he caught.

[davearm2]

There's plenty to criticize Hendry for.

 

Folks just come off looking pretty foolish when he does things one way, and then the opposite way, and both times he gets slammed.

 

I'm just gonna throw this out there....maybe each year is different. Maybe each year requires a different approach based on the free agent market, the demand for those players, the salaries being bandied about, the perceived quality of the players you currently have under contract, the number of holes you need to fill, and the moves that your division rivals are making.

 

Maybe.

Obviously.

 

Given the totality of circumstances, I'd love to hear the rationale for why moving swiftly was the wrong approach last year, but conversely playing wait-and-see is the wrong approach this year.

[davearm2]

Granted this offseason is an exception, but usually the Cubs are right there in the hunt when the top names come available on the trade or free agent markets, be it Beltran, Peavy, Roberts, and on and on. Hendry catches his fair share of the big fish -- for better or for worse.

 

Really? I wouldn't label any Cubs acquisition as a big fish. Nomar was closest but he was a banged up shell of his former self, and Soriano was not a top player. The Cubs have been named during rumor stages, but reports of interest aren't meaningful when compared with actually acquiring the players.

 

Ramirez was highly flawed, DLee was a second or maybe third tier 1b. Barrett was a nobody, Fukudome was intriguing, but not a top notch international free agent. Dempster was a rehab project.

 

Seriously, name a big fish he caught.

I guess we're just using different definitions of big fish. In my book Ramirez, Lee, Soriano, Fukudome, Bradley, Nomar, and Harden all count.

 

Those guys were all expected to be major differencemakers when they were acquired. Some have been, others not so much.

[dew1679666265]

Nomar was closest but he was a banged up shell of his former self

 

Nomar had an .867 OPS in 156 at bats with Boston the year Hendry acquired him. At SS, that's a very good OPS and is indicative of a big fish at the time he was acquired. He was only 30 years old when Hendry acquired him and ended up with an .819 OPS in his first year with us.

 

He underperformed in Chicago, but nobody could have expected it when he was acquired. He was definitely a big fish.

[dew1679666265]

There's plenty to criticize Hendry for.

 

Folks just come off looking pretty foolish when he does things one way, and then the opposite way, and both times he gets slammed.

 

I'm just gonna throw this out there....maybe each year is different. Maybe each year requires a different approach based on the free agent market, the demand for those players, the salaries being bandied about, the perceived quality of the players you currently have under contract, the number of holes you need to fill, and the moves that your division rivals are making.

 

Maybe.

Obviously.

 

Given the totality of circumstances, I'd love to hear the rationale for why moving swiftly was the wrong approach last year, but conversely playing wait-and-see is the wrong approach this year.

 

I think it has more to do with why he's waiting - the insistence to trade Bradley - than anything else. Also, this year's free agent pool is not very deep at all, while last year's was.

[SouthSideRyan]

Yeah, Nomar, Soriano, and Fukudome were all big fish.

[jersey cubs fan]

Nomar was closest but he was a banged up shell of his former self

 

Nomar had an .867 OPS in 156 at bats with Boston the year Hendry acquired him. At SS, that's a very good OPS and is indicative of a big fish at the time he was acquired. He was only 30 years old when Hendry acquired him and ended up with an .819 OPS in his first year with us.

 

He underperformed in Chicago, but nobody could have expected it when he was acquired. He was definitely a big fish.

 

Nomar was clearly on the decline from when he was one of the best at his position. And Boston was itching to get rid of him.

 

He was clearly very talented, but as injury prone as Milton Bradley and a defensive liability.