Cubs acquire Jody Gerut from Cleveland for Jason Dubois

[Peoriaman]

Here's a thought:

 

What if the Cubs did this because they're going to trade Hollandsworth?

 

Okay, back to my theory i brought up a couple minutes ago, only revise it.

 

Maybe cincy wants Hollandsworth, but first, Hendry wanted to get someone to replace him.....still. Couldnt dubois have done that.

 

 

<--------- wants dunn.

 

Seriously, I know you guys all love Dubois but get over him. He was absolutely nothing special. He is a AAAA player if I ever saw one.

 

 

Hear hear. He could never play regularly in the National League. He was an absolute butcher in left field. He is just another Cub prospect that the fans have over rated.

[Backtobanks]

I don't get it. Gerut was OK in '03 but hasn't done much in his career. Why not hold on to Dubois?

 

Dubois wasn't ever going to play for the Cubs and couldn't hit off the bench. It's pretty obvious that Dubois had fallen behind Pie & Murton as OF prospects and he is 26 years old (don't forget that Patterson is younger than Dubois). I liked Dubois, but as a LF he looked like a great DH.

[katway]

Gerut, unlike Dubois, can field and hit for a decent average while not striking out soo much. His power numbers dipped because of a knee injury, but he appears to be healthy now. In light of his fielding skills and plate discipline, he made more sense for the cubs than Dubois, who clearly is an AL player.

[katway]

Could we see Gerut in center?

 

Cubs general manager Jim Hendry said. "He's an above-average defensive player. He's more suited to play either corner, but he can play center. He played center for Stanford, and he's a guy who can help a club down the stretch."

[CubFanPhilly]

The Sosa deal, he may have got screwed financially, but Hairston is a key to our offense right now, Fontenot looks like he could be a fine utility guy & they still owe us a prospect (Plus looking at Sosa's stats, he simply don't want that on this team)

 

Hendry did not get screwed financially in the Sosa trade. In fact, financially it turned out to be brilliant. The Cubs managed to convince the Orioles to pick up $9 mil. of the remaining contract and got Hairston and Fotenot back in the deal. What would we be saying about the deal if we were O's fans?

 

If there was a screw-up it was MacPhail for signing Sosa to a four year deal. But, on the other hand, the Cubs got several years of cheap production from Sosa. His contract was only bad in the last couple of years.

 

 

Now back to Gerut/Dubois. (Head scratcher, IMO.)

[XZero771679666304]

While I can see how some view this as a somewhat lateral move, I cannot understand how anyone could think this was a bad trade. Hendry traded a player who was old for a prospect, a butcher in the field and had a gaping hole in his swing. What he got in return was a player who is relatively young, can work the count, has decent power and is a stellar defender.

 

Dubois may develop, but I sincerely doubt he will ever become the .280/.330 guy with 30+ homers that some here envisioned. IMO, Dubois best projection is Jody Gerut with a few more homers and awful defense.

 

I also sincerly doubt this is a move that Hendry sees as a "problem solver". He traded a spare part for one of higher quality, IMO. And there's nothing wrong with that.

[Illini Iceman]

Could we see Gerut in center?

 

Cubs general manager Jim Hendry said. "He's an above-average defensive player. He's more suited to play either corner, but he can play center. He played center for Stanford, and he's a guy who can help a club down the stretch."

 

IMO if this is going to lead to anything else it is a trade that will move Hairston to a team looking for a 2B and Gerut then gives Hendry an option to play CF if Corey doesn't get it together. Hairston has pretty good value right now, the Cubs still don't seem very high on him, and I believe he is a FA next year. For now, however, I think Gerut is a bench guy because Murton is doing too well to bench and Dusty likes Holly (plus he has been hitting pretty well the last month or so). He may get some starts in CF against RH pitching just to see how he can do out there. I think the logical roster move is Mitre goes down.

[Mizzou]

It's pronounced "Garrett" right?

[bmkhawk]

Here is my take on the trade.

 

Doobie has DH written all over him. He can produce enough to overcome the massive hole in his swing, but not the hole and the fact he is a butcher in the field. One thing that people seem to be missing is that while Gerut's offensive numbers are similar to Grieve and Holla's, his defense is far superior to either, and thayt does count for something. He can work the count, strikes out infrequently and is a wizard in the OF. He is simply a better player than Jason is. IMO, if Doobie has a shot at becoming an everyday player, it is as a DH.

 

Now of course this could be part of a bigger picture, but I would rather have Gerut in LF than Grieve, Holla or Dubois.

 

Finally, a reasonable post.

 

I don't get some of you...you revere OBP on such a high level, and then we get posts like "I prefer Preston Wilson to Gerut". Makes little sense.

[XZero771679666304]

It's pronounced "Garrett" right?

 

Yup.

[bmkhawk]

In regards to the trade, ugh.

 

Let's hope this doesn't turn out to be a Bear Bay for Bartosh trade. SO far Cleveland is 1/1 this year in trades with us.

 

There's still a possibility that trade could end up being a bust for bust trade.

 

Minor league performances are awesome and everything, but, you gotta go with ML performance to evaluate trades.

 

I disagree. Even if Bay turns out to be a bust, the Cubs didn't optimize his trade value - they surely could have gotten more for him than Bartosh (and if not, they should have kept Bear).

 

Yes, I just read the whole thread. :shock:

I re: Bay...it's not always that simple. Bear would have had to been placed on the 40 man this year or have been risked being exposed to the Rule 5 draft. Now, it is probably unlikely that he would have been taken, but it is certainly another factor to consider.

[bmkhawk]

While I can see how some view this as a somewhat lateral move, I cannot understand how anyone could think this was a bad trade.

 

Because some around here tend to overvalue Cub prospects? I really think it is that simple. While this wasn't a trade that brought in major improvement, I think it improved the team just the same. I guess we'll see.

[Elrhino]

Because some around here tend to overvalue Cub prospects?

 

Agreed. Dubois was always overvalued.

 

This is a swap of two flawed players, who's strengths better fit what their new clubs need.

[Cubzfan64]

While I can see how some view this as a somewhat lateral move, I cannot understand how anyone could think this was a bad trade.

 

Because some around here tend to overvalue Cub prospects? I really think it is that simple. While this wasn't a trade that brought in major improvement, I think it improved the team just the same. I guess we'll see.

 

I think it improved the team as well - maybe not drastically, but every little bit helps.

 

I also agree wholeheartedly that teams and fans in general tend to overvalue their prospects more than other teams and that's where you have to put at least some faith in your GM to know what he's doing.

 

Hendry has done more good things than bad imho, so he gets a "pass" by me on every trade until I feel like I can make a decent evaluation on my own.

 

In this case, I think the Cubs let go of a DH (maybe 1B down the road) who may hit 20-30 HR's but will likely strike out once every three at bats and be unable to effectively field in the outfield. In return they got a quicker player who has a bit more proven ML experience who can definitely field, work the count, make contact and show maybe half the power that Dubois shows - he's also a lefty.

 

I don't see how anyone can rate this as a bad trade - especially not yet.

 

As an aside, I see so many posts suggesting trading a package of our crap for 1 good player from another team. Does anyone really think there are THAT many GM's out there who sit back and say "well, let's see - 3 of your crappy players aren't enough - my quality guy is worth at LEAST 5 or 6 crappy players."

[Derwood]

Good morning!

 

It's interesing to me that when Murton and Greenburg were called up, the specualtion was "This has to be a precursor to a trade/These guys won't last up here/WTF????" Now that a trade has been made, people are confused by the number of OF's on the team.

 

Did anyone actually think Murton/Greenburg would last on the roster all year? Wasn't it clear that they were simply keeping the bench warm for someone else when Dubois/Patterson were sent down? I don't think it would have mattered if Murton hit 1.000 while up here, he still wasn't going to last the whole season (not that he's the one Gerut is replacing, just saying...)

 

In summary, go back and read your posts when the AA guys were promoted and see how they jive with what you're saying now. I don't think they do.

[USSoccer]

Because some around here tend to overvalue Cub prospects?

 

Agreed. Dubois was always overvalued.

 

This is a swap of two flawed players, who's strengths better fit what their new clubs need.

 

I don't know that Gerut fills a role on this team that's not already filled by the 2 other lefty left fielders.

 

I don't know that DUbois was overrated, but I know many people here thought he could put up decent numbers if played everyday. It didn't pan out, though.

[USSoccer]

Good morning!

 

It's interesing to me that when Murton and Greenburg were called up, the specualtion was "This has to be a precursor to a trade/These guys won't last up here/WTF????" Now that a trade has been made, people are confused by the number of OF's on the team.

 

Did anyone actually think Murton/Greenburg would last on the roster all year? Wasn't it clear that they were simply keeping the bench warm for someone else when Dubois/Patterson were sent down? I don't think it would have mattered if Murton hit 1.000 while up here, he still wasn't going to last the whole season (not that he's the one Gerut is replacing, just saying...)

 

In summary, go back and read your posts when the AA guys were promoted and see how they jive with what you're saying now. I don't think they do.

 

Greenberg I can see going down, but why would they demote Murton? He hasn't done anything yet to warrant a demotion.

[XZero771679666304]

Because some around here tend to overvalue Cub prospects?

 

Agreed. Dubois was always overvalued.

 

This is a swap of two flawed players, who's strengths better fit what their new clubs need.

 

I don't know that Gerut fills a role on this team that's not already filled by the 2 other lefty left fielders.

 

I don't know that DUbois was overrated, but I know many people here thought he could put up decent numbers if played everyday. It didn't pan out, though.

 

Gerut is a far superior defender than either Grieve or Holla, and is the offensive equal of either. Dubois had no future with this team.

 

Worst case scenario: Hendry slightly improved the club or added some trade bait.

 

No one can logically say this was a bad trade, IMO.

[USSoccer]

Because some around here tend to overvalue Cub prospects?

 

Agreed. Dubois was always overvalued.

 

This is a swap of two flawed players, who's strengths better fit what their new clubs need.

 

I don't know that Gerut fills a role on this team that's not already filled by the 2 other lefty left fielders.

 

I don't know that DUbois was overrated, but I know many people here thought he could put up decent numbers if played everyday. It didn't pan out, though.

 

Gerut is a far superior defender than either Grieve or Holla, and is the offensive equal of either. Dubois had no future with this team.

 

Worst case scenario: Hendry slightly improved the club or added some trade bait.

 

No one can logically say this was a bad trade, IMO.

 

I posted career numbers for Gerut and Grieve like 300 pages back, but the gist of them was that Grieve is slightly better offensively. I'm not sure how Gerut stacks up against Hollandsworth, but practically speaking I don't know that there's really any difference between the 3 other than age. Defensively, I'm not sure what Gerut's range factor or whatever is compared to the other 2, so you might be right.

 

I don't really think it was a bad trade; I think it is a redundant one. That said, it's not the first move this year that seems redundant to me. Carrying Wilson, Macias, Perez and Hairston all at once seemed to be redundant as well, so who knows.

[XZero771679666304]

Because some around here tend to overvalue Cub prospects?

 

Agreed. Dubois was always overvalued.

 

This is a swap of two flawed players, who's strengths better fit what their new clubs need.

 

I don't know that Gerut fills a role on this team that's not already filled by the 2 other lefty left fielders.

 

I don't know that DUbois was overrated, but I know many people here thought he could put up decent numbers if played everyday. It didn't pan out, though.

 

Gerut is a far superior defender than either Grieve or Holla, and is the offensive equal of either. Dubois had no future with this team.

 

Worst case scenario: Hendry slightly improved the club or added some trade bait.

 

No one can logically say this was a bad trade, IMO.

 

I posted career numbers for Gerut and Grieve like 300 pages back, but the gist of them was that Grieve is slightly better offensively. I'm not sure how Gerut stacks up against Hollandsworth, but practically speaking I don't know that there's really any difference between the 3 other than age. Defensively, I'm not sure what Gerut's range factor or whatever is compared to the other 2, so you might be right.

 

I don't really think it was a bad trade; I think it is a redundant one. That said, it's not the first move this year that seems redundant to me. Carrying Wilson, Macias, Perez and Hairston all at once seemed to be redundant as well, so who knows.

 

I put zero stock in defensive stats, and for good reason. All you have to do is look at the lists for ZR and RF to see how flawed they are. I am saying Gerut is a far superior defender because I have watched him play. The man plays on another level when comapred to Holla and especially Grieve.

 

The bottom line in my mind is that while the trade is a bit lateral, we got a better player than the one we gave away, and I am sure more moves are to come.

 

As for Dubois and overrating prospects, I have to say I felt a whole lot better about Jason when he was tearing it up as a PH. When he had that stretch of nearly a month getting the majority of the starts, he looked positively exposed. I am not basing that on his numbers, but how increasingly overmatched he looked. That was the league getting a book on him and exploiting his weaknesses. He did tear up AAA, but I can't help but be reminded of Roosevelt Brown, who many thought of as highly or moreso than Dubois, and thought he just need a chance. Well a few orginazations and chances later, we know how that turned out.

 

I know alot of people here thought he would be good given time, including myself at one point. But a consesus does not the truth make. Hendry and his staff know a whole lot more about these things than we do.

[USSoccer]

Trust me, XZero, I'm not lamenting the departure of Dubois. I wanted him to succeed, but I did feel that he got a decent shot here, and he just wasn't up to it. Would it have been different for him had he played everyday? Maybe, but it's just as likely that the league would have exposed him sooner.

 

I'm just not sure why we traded for Gerut, unless, as I think Geech said, the club really, really doesn't think Grieve is a ML hitter anymore. Which, IMO is wrong. If it were me, and obviously Hendry probably has more insight to this than I do, I would have held onto Jason because he might have been valuable to a team as part of a larger package that might have had more of an impact for us than bringing in Gerut.

[wastra]

Actually, I think this dela signifies that they don't plan on recalling patterson this season.

 

The ONLY reason to exchange Grieve for Gerut is that Gerut can play center. If the Cubs planned on recalling Patterson, they'd likely wait a few days and let Greenburg be the defensive backup rather than waste a player on Gerut. However, if they don't plan on having Patterson this year, they'd likely want another guy who can play center with a slightly better bat than Greenburg (I'm not trashing his bat, just saying that he's probably not quite ready for the majors, and being in the minors will help him GET ready).

 

So, IMO, Gerut is the season long answer to backup CF and provide somewhat of a lefty bat on the bench. Nothing more.

[Guest]

Like many others here, my initial reaction to this trade is "What's the point?" If we were getting the Gerut of 2003 I'd probably be fairly happy with this trade, but we're not. We're getting a player who has seen his production decline steadily since his big-league debut. Of particular concern are his power numbers which have fallen off the map. (And you can't blame this on his ACL injury, either; his power numbers were way down last year as well.)

 

Gerut doesn't seem to fill any need the Cubs have. As others have pointed out, Greive and Holla are each at least Gerut's equal at the plate. As far as the defensive difference goes, I don't think that's a big issue on this team. (Keep in mind pretty much all of our pitchers get most of their outs via the groundball or K.)

 

I'm not horrified at the loss of Dubois as it was apparent that he wansn't going to be doing the Cubs any good in the near future. (As long as Dusty was around, at least.) I just don't see how this move improves this team's chances of making the playoffs, and I don't see Gerut as a long-term solution to any of our outfield holes. (He'll be 28 in a couple of months, meaning he's not likely to improve much over his current numbers.)

[XZero771679666304]

Actually, I think this dela signifies that they don't plan on recalling patterson this season.

 

The ONLY reason to exchange Grieve for Gerut is that Gerut can play center. If the Cubs planned on recalling Patterson, they'd likely wait a few days and let Greenburg be the defensive backup rather than waste a player on Gerut. However, if they don't plan on having Patterson this year, they'd likely want another guy who can play center with a slightly better bat than Greenburg (I'm not trashing his bat, just saying that he's probably not quite ready for the majors, and being in the minors will help him GET ready).

 

So, IMO, Gerut is the season long answer to backup CF and provide somewhat of a lefty bat on the bench. Nothing more.

 

You're right, IMO. Some of Hendry's fisrt comments were to point out and reinforce that Gerut could play center. Add in that the orginaztion is unhappy with Hairston and Patterson, and you have some motivation. I for one think we have seen the last of Patterson as a Cub, and possibly Hairston. Since Hairston is even less of a natural OF than Gerut, it is not outside the realm of possibility that Jody may even end up the everyday CF before all is said and done.

[ManEatingTarp]

Hey folks. I just wanted to chime in and say what a nice pickup I think this is for the Cubs! I think you just got a heck of a player. I was really hoping that Walt would steal him from the Indians.