CubinNY

No.

That's the best Cub news I've heard in a long time. A) he's out of the booth. B) he's managing a division rival.

The is like This is Spinal Tap and you're all the band and I'm Tommy Pischedda

He's from Northwestern Indiana and grew up a Cubs fan. I pretty much guarantee he's not accepting a trade to the Padres. I'm pretty sure he was a White Sox fan. But baseball is a business. I'm a Cubs fan if I could get more money playing for another team you bet your ass I'm gone. Nevertheless, I basically understand what people are saying here.

Why would Samardjiza not want to get traded? Why do people think that a NTC means a player can't be traded? Maybe he wants to be a starter and the Cubs tell him he won't be starting for the Cubs. I don't know I could come up with many reasons why he would agree to a trade. Doesn't a NTC only mean that the GM has to get permission?

Why can't you take into account where a guy plays his home games? Because the player had nothing to do with his surroundings. It's not like Wrigley is a great hitters park.

Yes. It is not just my estimation though. I guess that's the debate. It's a meta-debate. Why would people not think Santo is worthy for the HOF. There are the arguments I've heard: 1. No WS victories 2. O_O's one 3. People didn't like him 4. Billy Williams, Fergie Jenkins, and Ernie Banks are already in. That's it. If one goes by the standards by which players are judged, he's in. He's not border line.

Why not? I love playing devil's advocate. It causes you to step out of your bias and look at things from a different perspective. Sometimes there are two sides and sometimes there are not two sides. The only debate would be is if Santo was the best 3rd baseman of his era or the 2nd best. Either way, he deserves to be in the HOF.

New Yorkers hate Soriano. Mets fans hate him because he was a Yankee and Yankee fans think (rightly so?) that he's a chocker at crunch time. There is no way I could see Soriano being traded to the Mets. The Cubs are stuck with Soriano for a long time. We better get use to him.

I've never heard of Santo being a jerk when he played. That's interesting, can you enlighten me? If you read the whole article, he brings up the point of win shares of the 1960s. This is what he said about the win shares: I'm just playing devil's advocate here though. That article is probably the most convincing I've read as to why he shouldn't be in the HOF, but not nearly enough to change my mind. From what my dad told me he was a talker on the field and smart alec to the sports writers. I don't think other teams cared too much for the heal clicks either. It was a different time. Players on the other team didn't talk to one another and the game still had a little of the old intensity to it (spikes up slides, brain balls, etc.).

Against Santo: http://www.dugoutcentral.com/blog/?p=1933 Excerpt: I'm guessing 99% of posters here (myself included) support Santo in the HOF, but lets try to have a balanced discussion, with some playing devil's advocate and making points for both arguments. There are no points for the other side. Each player should be judged by the era in which they played. If that's the case Santo is a no brainer. The problem is that he was sort of a jerk when he played and it has cost him, dearly. The anti-santo guy is a dill-weed. You cannot penalize a guy for where he played his home games. Helton will be in the HOF someday, so if that's your comp, you lose.

If he starts he will start in the majors if he isn't good enough he will be in the bullpen. We just aren't simply going to throw a very good relief pitcher to the minors just so he can be a starter. A good starting pitcher>>>>> A mediocre starting pitcher>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Middle relief=A bad starting pitcher. He has much more value as a starter. Whether he can start and maintain his "stuff" is an open question. If the Cubs think he can start they will put him in AAA. I don't know what Wood will ask for but I'm guessing the Cubs will pay it. I think it will be described as a "fair" deal.

If Fontenot or DeRosa is the centerpiece of the deal, The deal isn't happening.

Is there anyone against Cuban at this point? MLB owners?

Would he accept a trade to Baltimore? We do know he doesn't like fans that boo. Do they boo in Baltimore? We also know that Baltimore likes him as they nearly traded for him before we stepped in and stole him away. The Cubs didn't steal him away. The owner wouldn't give him an extension so the deal fell through. Hendry was there to get sloppy seconds. It turned out to be a good trade for the Cubs but it wasn't exactly a steal. Considering the way Hee Seops career went, and how much Derrek Lee did for the Cubs the past 4 years, yeah, it was almost as much of a steel as the Ramirez trade. Here's a tip: Read the post before responding to it. Lee wasn't stolen from Baltimore. The deal between the Marlins and the Orioles was dead before Hendry made his move. Lee wasn't stolen even if it was a good deal for the Cubs.

Would he accept a trade to Baltimore? We do know he doesn't like fans that boo. Do they boo in Baltimore? We also know that Baltimore likes him as they nearly traded for him before we stepped in and stole him away. The Cubs didn't steal him away. The owner wouldn't give him an extension so the deal fell through. Hendry was there to get sloppy seconds. It turned out to be a good trade for the Cubs but it wasn't exactly a steal.

They were also playing crap teams with bad pitchers. That's true, but they were playing crap teams with bad pitchers in the first half. They play in the NL West. I really doubt the only reason their offense improved was because they all the sudden started playing bad teams, and not because they added 4 solid hitters to their everyday lineup. (3 technically because Furcal only played a week) Look at their schedule. They played their division rivals down the stretch. They added one great hitter at the deadline. Overall, they are very mediocre and don't have a good lineup outside of Manny. If he goes into a slump they have a terrible lineup. Their only hope is that the Cubs get impatient and start swinging at junk. That's the only way they're going to win. Down the stretch they did, just as they probably had a long stretch in the first half when they played bad teams. I mean they play in the NL West. Those numbers also include their August schedule, when they faced the folllowing teams: vs. AZ @ STL @ SF vs. PHI (4) vs. MIL vs. COL @ PHI (4) @ WAS @ AZ Not an impossible schedule by any means, but its not like their September schedule. The way you are wording your argument is implying that the Dodgers played nothing but easy teams for the last 2 months of the season, while their numbers are bogged down in the first half by playing only hard teams. Certainly its not the case. The day before the Manny trade was made, the Dodgers put together an outfield consisting of Andruw Jones (.505 OPS), Juan Pierre (.655 OPS) and Matt Kemp (.799 OPS). Now its Manny Ramirez (1.031 OPS), Kemp (.799) and Ethier (.885). That's a sizable difference right there. They will also be upgraded offensively by replace Angel Berroa (.614 OPS) with Furcal (.764 career OPS, 1.012 in limited sample this year). They are not better than the Cubs by any stretch, but its pretty clear they are significantly better right now than they were in July. Well screw it then, the Cubs should just pack it in. They are a MEDIOCRE TEAM with Manny and bad team without him. This is the 84 win Dodgers we are talking about not the 1927 Yankees. This year's Cubs team is head and shoulders better than the Dodgers and should win easily.

They were also playing crap teams with bad pitchers. That's true, but they were playing crap teams with bad pitchers in the first half. They play in the NL West. I really doubt the only reason their offense improved was because they all the sudden started playing bad teams, and not because they added 4 solid hitters to their everyday lineup. (3 technically because Furcal only played a week) Look at their schedule. They played their division rivals down the stretch. They added one great hitter at the deadline. Overall, they are very mediocre and don't have a good lineup outside of Manny. If he goes into a slump they have a terrible lineup. Their only hope is that the Cubs get impatient and start swinging at junk. That's the only way they're going to win.

They were also playing crap teams with bad pitchers.

Somebody posted somewhere else that their #s weren't much better post-July. Like .1 R/G better. Hmm...well Furcal didn't return until this week, Blake hasn't been hitting to his potential, and Ethier didn't fully replace Pierre until September I believe, but that is surprising. Try to be optimistic for once. The Dodgers are best team in a terrible division who the Cubs beat 5-2 in the regular season. It's not a cake walk but the Cubs should beat this team in a 5 game series. All your fretting won't make things better if they lose.

I'm guessing that these numbers wouldn't be the same if we just went with August and September...or even just September. The Dodgers pitching has finished a lot stronger than the Cubs, mostly because Zambrano has stunk, and Harden has pitched sparingly. That's what SoS is for. The Dodgers also finished with teams that had little to no offense to speak of. I'm more confident of a Cubs series victory than I have ever been. The Dodgers are not good.

Good. You'll be happy when the Cubs sweep them out of the playoffs.

They are practically the same player. I mean Ludwick was a high school kid drafted in the 2nd round and made it to the majors by age 23. Huffpauir was a college guy drafted in the 13th round and made his major league debut at age 28. Even so, Ludwick isn't going to repeat these flukish numbers ever again. But, then again neither will Huffpauir. So, maybe they are alike.

Exactly. At the beginning of the season I didn't think the Cubs would make it to the post-season. I was way wrong; way, way, wrong. They have demonstrated that they are the class of the national league. Now all they have to do is show it. I'm excited as I've ever been about the post season.

Me too. Guzman misses bats.