Hendry to Nomar: Feel free to find a better fit...

[Guest]

A shortstop who can hit .300/.350 has more value than a 2B who can but Cedeno doesn't lose value because he plays 2B in our lineup. He doesn't forget how to play SS and he still has that value. His production isn't more or less valuable within our lineup depending on whether he's playing SS or 2B on the field.

Yes, Cedeno would likely provide the same offense no matter where he played, but the opportunity cost would be different. If Ronny plays second the Cubs need to find another shortstop, while if he mans short they need to find another second baseman. As a general rule second basemen are more productive than shortstops, so a lineup with Ronny at short + a typical 2B would likely be more productive than a lineup with Ronny at second + a typical SS. Looking at the Cubs specifically, a DP combo of Cedeno/Walker is likely to be more (offensively) productive than a DP combo of Furcal/Cedeno. (To say nothing of the prospect of a Perez/Cedeno combo. Shudder.)

[MPrior]

There are so many things I want to respond to that I can't even begin to quote them all. So I'll try and briefly say what I have to say:

 

1. Someone said that they don't want to pass on Furcal just for the possibility of getting Giles. Well, I don't think anyone's suggesting that that's what we should do. What people ARE suggesting, however, is that, at the start of the offseason, rather than pursuing Furcal, it would have been wise to sign Nomar (for various reasons), which would allow us to go hard after Giles. Also - going after Giles does not preclude us from signing Furcal. So we wouldn't have to "pass" on him to do so.

 

2. As far as reasons for signing Nomar, I actually think that there were plenty of good reasons to do so: 1, his injury this year was kind of a fluke accident. He's highly unlikely to have a comparable injury. Injuries, yes. Missing 2/3 of the season? Probably not. 2, he would be very very cheap, for a number of reasons: he's a perceived injury risk, so his value is at an all-time low; and secondly, he badly wanted to come back to Chicago - he's building a house there, and by all accounts, really enjoyed his time with the team. He would have wound up costing much much less than Furcal (even if his incentives kicked in, probably), and for only one year. 3, when healthy, he FAR outproduces Furcal. 4, he would probably have to be spelled a couple times just to keep him fresh. This would give Cedeno more playing time, which is something we want and he needs. It would also allow us to ascertain whether he'd be a feasible option to start at SS for us in the future.

 

3. Cedeno at 2B is significantly less valuable to us than Cedeno at SS - Bob's Keeper made this point well, so I won't go any further.

 

4. Giles is, without doubt, the single best FA acquisition we can make this offseason. He improves the team in a way that no other FA can (except maybe Roger Clemens - ha), and WE CAN AFFORD IT.

 

5. Giles' production shouldn't decline too heavily over the next 3-4 years, for two reasons: one, his plate discipline isn't something that will decline with age; two, getting out of Petco should actually increase his power production, so in 3-4 years we might be seeing something just a little below his current numbers at Wrigley.

 

6. The need for a leadoff hitter can fairly easily be addressed elsewhere (Walker works, trading for Pierre, signing Kenny Lofton, trading for Jason Michaels, trading for Luis Castillo, etc., etc.)

 

Okay. I'm done. Sorry for the long post.

[Roast]

"One of the things I wanted to do was to make sure that the guys who can really catch the baseball like Neifi don't get away. Neifi is not concerned about who else might come in. He loves playing for Dusty [baker]. He likes it here and has found a home here after a couple of years of struggling. His defense alone is well worth having."

 

Oh my God ...

 

:wall:

[mlarner]

"One of the things I wanted to do was to make sure that the guys who can really catch the baseball like Neifi don't get away. Neifi is not concerned about who else might come in. He loves playing for Dusty [baker]. He likes it here and has found a home here after a couple of years of struggling. His defense alone is well worth having."

 

Oh my God ...

 

:wall:

 

Yeah, Id love playing for Dusty too if my incentaves were all based on at bats and games played while I had a manager who refused to play anyone with less than 5 years of major league experience... #-o

[frostwyrm]

"One of the things I wanted to do was to make sure that the guys who can really catch the baseball like Neifi don't get away. Neifi is not concerned about who else might come in. He loves playing for Dusty [baker]. He likes it here and has found a home here after a couple of years of struggling. His defense alone is well worth having."

 

Oh my God ...

 

:wall:

 

The organization has totally fallen in love with Neifi. As long as he plays good defense I can't see him being cut or traded, even if his hitting regresses to his KC numbers.

[MPrior]

"One of the things I wanted to do was to make sure that the guys who can really catch the baseball like Neifi don't get away. Neifi is not concerned about who else might come in. He loves playing for Dusty [baker]. He likes it here and has found a home here after a couple of years of struggling. His defense alone is well worth having."

 

Oh my God ...

 

:wall:

 

The organization has totally fallen in love with Neifi. As long as he plays good defense I can't see him being cut or traded, even if his hitting regresses to his KC numbers.

 

It's terrifying to realize that Neifi could REGRESS... :shock:

 

(that's my first use of a smiley, ever. Just thought I ought to somehow document this historic occasion)

[CaliforniaRaisin]

(that's my first use of a smiley, ever. Just thought I ought to somehow document this historic occasion)

 

Congrats!