Cubzfan64

Are you listening, Jim Hendry? This man knows what he's talking about. I'm torn on Giles - he's definitely past his prime and it would just feel too much like picking up one of those guys who ends his career playing below average baseball, but if you can sign him to a short term contract that isn't too excessive I guess I'd do it. I would have no problem with Burnett, but I honestly believe since it's such a thin free agent market and there are so many teams with money who will be looking to bolster their pitching that we'd end up severely overpaying for him - I just have to believe some team out there will "sign him at all costs" and make him rich and I don't know that I want that to be the Cubs.

I hate the Cardinals and their fans as much as anyone, but if I were in their shoes I'd be laughing my a*& off at our Cubbies too. Dontcha kinda wonder if there might be some hit batters and bench clearing brawls this weekend? Whatever we may think about our players, I'm positive the vast majority of them are competitive enough to be angry and embarassed - bring in the division leader who happens to be our biggest rival and perhaps our guys will take out a bit of their aggression on the Cardinals. I kinda miss Kyle Farnsworth :-)

And as far as losing streaks go, this one has been a real classic one!! Losing over and over (often BADLY) to teams who've been right around us in the WC hunt - losing in some of the most unimagineable ways - looking like a team that's ready to pack up and go home for the season etc.... It's been a disaster and the frightening thing is we still have another month and a half to go :-(

If this turns out to be true that there are that many names, I'll be shocked. MLB has allowed this to become a mess in the first place by not being proactive when the first rumors of steroid use began years ago - the PU deserves a big fat amount of blame also. What would really shock me though is that MLB would actually hold back the names for a lengthy period of time (as apparently they did with Palmeiro) for PR purposes after categorically denying these rumors. I honestly don't get this huge worry about PR - the public already pretty much suspects any and every guy who performs above his career averages and seems to have bulked up any. Heck, I even heard some sports guys saying they think Giambi is back on the juice as well (he'd outrank Palmeiro as the #1 idiot if he is). MLB should announce player's who test positive as soon as it's been proven by whatever crazy policy they're using now - whether that's multiple testing on a first positive or whatever. MLB itself already has a huge stain on it's pants - announcing names isn't going to make it any worse for them - it'll only make it worse on the players who get outted. What a mess this season has turned out to be all in all - between the steroid scandals and rumors to one of the biggest collapses I can remember seeing a Cubs team fall into.

Just to promote even more discussion.... I'll start by saying I like D. Lee - I think he's above average offensively and superb defensively. That said, the Cubs have a vast history of selling low and buying high - as much as I like D. Lee, as others have said here, his value right now is VERY high and I believe he's a free agent after the 2007 season and will likely command big time $. I know Theo Epstein has coveted D. Lee for at least 2 years now AND Boston is in definite need of a 1B for 2006. Realistically, how much talent do you think we could get back from Boston for D. Lee or a package of D. Lee and a pitcher like Rusch, Maddux or Wood (providing the last 2 would be willing to move)? Boston has at least 3-4 pitchers in AAA and AA (likely being moved up to AAA next season) who look to have very very good arms - guys like Del Carmen (in Boston now), Papelbon, Sanchez, Lester and Ramirez at SS and Pedroia (sp?) at 2B who look to be close to coming up next season. How much of this talent do you think we could get back from them if we were offer them Lee, one of the pitchers I listed and perhaps Patterson or Walker? Do you think they would be willing to give us Manny and 2 of their 3-4 top pitchers? At first I doubted it, but I have to think there's a trade to be made between our two teams that could benefit both teams. Manny would make up for the loss of Lee's offense, we sign a capable 1B (like an Olerud, Mantkiewich (sp?) or "gasp" even Kevin Millar to take us through 2006 and if we get 2 pitching prospects they should be ready sometime late 2006 or by the start of 2007 which would allow us to use the free agent market at the end of 2006 to spend some $ and shore up 1B and any other empty spots. I'm at work and don't really have time to think all this through, but I swear that Boston's needs and our wants could be tied together somehow to both of our benefits. The question is how much does Theo REALLY want D. Lee? Any thoughts?

They were talking about it this morning on WEEI Boston - "unnamed players" apparently told 1 or 2 of the sports guys in Boston that there may be as many as 12-14 more names out there that MLB has knowledge of failing the drug test and that 1 or 2 are more high profile players than Palmeiro. Hard to put too much stock in "he said, she said," but considering how long they knew about Palmeiro and kept it quiet, it wouldn't surprise me if there were more names out there to be released.

Ok, on my way home from work today disgusted as usual at the overall performance and outcome of yet another game I started to work through scenarios in my head for the offseason. Let's be totally realistic - don't view this from a Cub fan point of view, but rather from a baseball point of view... 1. The free agent market for the 2006 season is one of the thinnest in recent history - there really isn't alot there that can turn this team into an overnight contender. 2. Given that #1 is true, the Cubs HAVE to improve this team via trades. 3. From a baseball sense, we really don't have a lot of talent to offer from a trading standpoint - and the guys who have the most value are ones that you would prefer not losing. 4. Other teams and GM's are generally not stupid - they know what kind of a position the Cubs are in and will be looking to make "steals" from the Cubs on trades because once again the Cubs will be forced to sell low and buy high because of how the past 2 seasons have gone. If all of these things above are fairly correct (and I welcome criticism), where does that leave us for 2006???? I have to tell you that from a purely baseball standpoint I think 2006 should be looked at strictly as a rebuilding year - one in which you find out which young guys can help make an impact in 2007 and beyond. I just don't see how we're in a position to do anything more than that. Personally I don't think there is 1 person on this current team that I would NOT entertain offers for in a trade - that doesn't mean someone wouldn't have to knock my socks off to get someone like Prior, Zambrano, Ramirez or Lee, but nobody should be taken off the table - NOBODY! Hendry and the "management" team should be spending every waking moment evaluating each MLB team and identifying their needs and what they have to offer in exchange. Then he needs to sit down on the phone and start working on deals - be creative, open minded and think outside of the box in an effort to get us to the trade deadline in 2006. By that moment, we should KNOW which guys in our minor league system will be capable of contributing in 2007, we should be in a position to perhaps make a deal or two from a position where other teams in the playoff hunt NEED something we have, and we should have $ free'd up to play in the free agent market to fill in whatever gaps we need going into the 2007 season. I feel in my heart that if we don't use an approach like this, we'll find ourselves bumbling along in the same position next year that we are today with a team comprised of too many cast off's, "potential" players who never pan out etc... and no strategy for 2007. Set aside your feelings as a fan and your desire to see us win a WS at all costs and tell me why you don't think this approach is a good one. I really want to hear comments here because I'm at a loss as to what else this organization can do to right the ship. And please - I don't want this to degrade into a "fire Dusty Baker" thread - if I had my choices, I would prefer a whole new coaching staff, but that's not what this thread is about - there's plenty of other ones out there on that topic. Thanks

My kingdom for a win! Seriously, this has been one of the worst stretches of baseball I recall seeing since.... well, the end of last season I guess :-(. We either get pitching with no hitting or hitting with no pitching - we've had a guy starting in CF who would likely not be picked up by any team in MLB if he were DFA'd, an "oft" injured starter tossing an inning here and there in the bullpen, a starting catcher who has trouble catching the throwing the ball etc.... If it weren't so disappointing it would humorous - I'm sure it is to the rest of the league.

Boston station WEEI announced on my way into work that Remlinger is coming to them for a minor leaguer. I hadn't heard this anywhere, but the guys on the station were talking about the fact that Remlinger is a bit of "an attitude" case - I had to get in to work so I didn't hear anymore.

Assuming Corey remains with the Cubs into spring training next year, has anyone heard any talk of him playing winter ball anywhere or doing SOMETHING special in the offseason to try to work on his ability to read the strikezone better? There HAS to be some coach out there or some system that can help this kid read the ball better coming to the plate doesn't there? I still have hopes for him because I just hate seeing raw talent wasted, but man, his time is running out :-(.

This is what I don't understand - how does a guy go from being a gold glove SS to being likely rated below average at SS in such a short period of time?? I know guys go into defensive slumps as well as offensive ones, but I'm telling you from watching him this year - he's been AWFUL defensively. I think he has 20 errors right now and I'd say there've been at least 5-10 more times the scorers could have given him errors. It's almost as though he's pulling a Steve Sax this year.

Renteria was apparently someone Theo Epstein had his eyes on for a few years and was able to sign him to a fairly expensive contract. It's been one of only a couple moves Theo has been second guessed on since he's been with the Sox, but it's hard to fault him. Renteria should have been penciled in for 15+ HR's, 75+ RBI (with that team) and a solid glove at SS, instead he's really struggled this season (although he's finally got his average up to around .280). The real surprise to me has been his really bad defense - that's just not like him to be playing such lousy defense. I've watched alot of games this year and so many of his errors have been on bonehead throws or not being able to hold onto the ball on double plays etc... He really has looked awful on defense, and for a guy who was a gold glover in the recent past, I think Boston has been shocked at his level of play. Think he just isn't adjusting to the AL or Boston? Is this just a flukey year for him, or has he been overrated for a number of years?

Manny was placed on waivers to clear up money for other reasons -- he was going to be dealt for ARod. Dan Duquette was the GM who signed him, and Theo wants to use that money elsewhere. I would not be surprised after Manny's latest episode if it happened again. The only difference I can see now is that Boston may prefer trying hard to trade him in the offseason and eating some of his contract in an effort to get something of value in return - especially with the free agent market looking pretty bleak. However if they were able to move Manny, that would free up more money to re-sign Damon if that's what they want to do. Hard to say what's gonna happen, but I'm tempted to bet money that Manny will not be a Red Sox next year one way or another.

I think part of the reason the A's are as good as they are is BECAUSE they have such a low budget - they HAVE to learn to evaluate players extremely well, they have to continually look to improve their team through good trades and they "buy low and sell high." I think the higher your budget goes, the more lazy you become as an organization - the answer is usually to just throw more money at it.

This year, Manny has 12 assist and 1 error. Burnitz has 5 assist and 4 errors by way of comparison. I'm not saying Manny is a great fielder, but he's not as awful as the general perception. In any event, Manny will not be placed on waivers again. Boston did that 2 offseasons ago in order to try to clear some space for an ARod deal. the assists are there since everyone runs on him because he's a terrible fielder. it's worth the gamble, usually, but everyone's going to get caught sometimes. I've watched Manny and the Red Sox for 2 years now since I moved out here from Illinois and I watch A LOT of their games (I can't get WGN and I love watching baseball). Manny Ramirez is no All Star caliber OF, but I would say in comparison with other left fielders I've watched I would say he's average. I'll take an average defensive OF in LF who can provide the dominating offense he's capable of. I want to add a couple guys to the team next year who are PROVEN producers - no more of this "potential" crap. If we can swing it financially, I would take Manny Ramirez in LF in a heartbeat - even if it means putting up with some of the antics.

This year, Manny has 12 assist and 1 error. Burnitz has 5 assist and 4 errors by way of comparison. I'm not saying Manny is a great fielder, but he's not as awful as the general perception. In any event, Manny will not be placed on waivers again. Boston did that 2 offseasons ago in order to try to clear some space for an ARod deal. According to the Boston media, Manny has been placed on waivers at least 2 times (probably 3) since the new ownership took over. They like what he gives them offensively, but his contract is an albatross around Theo Epstein's neck that precludes them from making some other moves he would like to make. He was signed to that contract by a different ownership team and this one would like to get rid of it.

I can just picture Ronnie exploding on the team bus. Slapping Aramis and telling him to keep his head in the game... In all honesty, my guess is he's too disgusted to do much more than get teary eyed at how disappointing 2005 has been.

You are right, this just seems more painful than other failed seasons. Expectations + talent with a whole lot of mismanaging and poor GM judgement will do that to you. Add poor execution by our players and you have the formula that will be remembered as "the 2005 Cubs." It's been a heck of a long year, that's for sure :-(

I can't watch, did he say something or is he just generally downcast? A fan was yelling below the box and could be caught on the mic. Ron says "I'm going to shoot that guy." :camper: :shock: Yikes - well as others have pointed out, Ron Santo hates the Mets and hates New York, so being swept there in a most horrific fashion probably left him ready to punch the first person who says hello to him. What I wouldn't pay to be a fly on the wall on the plane trip home to Chicago - I wouldn't have to worry about being swatted to death - I think our hitters would mostly swing and miss :-P

That's an old, silly and completely irrelevant argument, as Baker's been doing stupid crap like discouraging patience and starting Macias since Day One. :roll: Ok....we play more day games than any other team by far. And we havent won a World Series in 100 years. How silly....why even consider it. I've been watching players, managers, GM's, Ownership, Hall of Famers, bums, and just about everything else, go through Wrigley Field for about 40 years except.......A World Series winner. They all come and go....but one thing remains constant. Wrigley.....Bad baseball teams..... and No World Series. For what it's worth, I've wondered that myself about Wrigley Field. My reasoning is a little different than yours though... I've often felt that the whole "stigma" of Wrigely being a home run hitters park and one where the wind is "always blowing out" etc... has caused a lot of hitters to change their hitting style to more of a free swinging upper cut type swing. Needless to say there are many many days where the wind is blowing in at Wrigley, but I've often wondered how many of our hitters have gotten into really bad habits trying to crank them over the walls during BP etc....

I can't watch, did he say something or is he just generally downcast?

sounds way to much like the movie, "major league" OMG - that's exactly what I thought too!!! I bet this just tears up someone like Santo - I personally don't care for Santo's announcing, but I do respect the fact that the guy lives, eats and breaths Cubbie blue - it's gotta be heartbreaking for him to have to watch this and maintain some sense of professionalism in the booth.

Is Ricky Henderson available? Hey, I heard Jamie Moyer is available. I heard Doug Dascenzo was at Ryno's induction ceremony - he was a CF wasn't he? :-P he held the major league record for consecutive errorless games at CF at one time. . . don't know if it has been broken or not. I think Macias is working on that - looks like he'll have to start it up again tomorrow though :-P

Is Ricky Henderson available? Hey, I heard Jamie Moyer is available. I heard Doug Dascenzo was at Ryno's induction ceremony - he was a CF wasn't he? :-P

Is Ricky Henderson available? I believe he is playing in an Independant League, so yah, I'm sure he'd be willing to come play for us.