biittner77

Is Hairston still on this team? It seems to me that Baker has 4 options: 1. Hairston leads off with Murton 2nd. That's what most sane people would do but since Baker is still the manager.... 2. Hairston leads off with Perez batting 2nd. If this doesn't happen then I'd say Hairston has played his last game as a Cub 3. Macias Leads off and Perez bats 2nd. Frightening, especially since it could actually happen 4. Perez leads off with Macias 2nd. The worst possible option and sadly the most likely to be used by Baker. I realize that these games don't really mean anything but I hate to see the Cubs lose with these clowns on the field.

At this point does it even matter if the Sox makes the playoffs? I can't see them winning a series against any of the other AL teams. I really want the Indians to make the playoffs but I'd almost rather see the Sox limp in if it's ahead of the insufferable AL East teams.

Is there a possiblitity that Maddux might enter a tie game as a reliever to try to get that 15th win? I'm not sure I know what the Cubs would do in that situation.

I wonder if other teams would overlook Marmol due to his lack of pitching experience.

Brian Roberts is going to have surgery on his injured shoulder and will be out 6 months meaning that he will miss the beginning of next season. This might be a way for the Cubs to get involved in a deal that the O's are involved in by sending either Walker or Hairston to Baltimore. Like many people, I'd rather keep Walker. The O's likely value Hairston more than any other team would (or should). While the fact that they traded him might seem to contradict that notion, the O's have a habit of trading players and then getting them back the next season.

Why do I get the feeling that the Cubs would consider signing Bernie Williams for his veteran presence and winning attitude?

I can understand playing the most veteran lineup possible against the Astros but what about the Brewers? Surely they don't have any WC aspirations at this point.

If the Cubs had Nomar, Giles, Lee, Dunn, Ramirez, Walker, Barrett as 2-8 in the order, I could hit leadoff and they'd still score a ton of runs. But I was a slap hitting switch hitter with dubious speed. Therefore, if Baker is still manager I would lead off.

I remember when The Cubs first hired Baker. A lot of Giants fans warned us about Baker and 3 things stand out: 1. They said Baker hated young players. At the time I believed that it was more a matter of the Giants system being terrible. The Giants fans disagreed. We have no way of knowing on that one 2. The rule of 7: "A starting pitcher will stay in the game until he has pitched 7 innings or has given up 7 runs, whichever comes first. Kind of funny when you think about it. 3. Forfeit Sundays: Baker fills out some bizarre lineup cards. At the time I thought Baker was a pretty good manager as he had won with Barry Bonds, a good closer and basically nothing else. It cannot be denied that the players, for the most part, love playing for Baker. This includes Cedeno and Murton. Granted, they do not have the luxury of speaking their minds but the fact that they say good things as opposed to saying nothing at all actually says a lot. :wink: Nevertheless, what rubs most people here the wrong way is that Baker always has an excuse. For example: Baker says: "You have to make an impression when you get your chance, that's what I did" or words to that effect. Murton goes 3-4 in his first game but still gets benched and then sent down. So much for making an impression. When he finally starts giving Murton more time, his success is due to "The other team doesn't have a book on him yet." While there is some truth to that, isn't it also true that when a pitcher and a hitter face each other for the first time that the pitcher has the advantage? Also, if experience beats inexperience shouldn't the experienced pitcher have yet another advantage? Given no other option, Baker plays Murton every day. When he continues to hit Baker says "see, my system worked". What's missing from Baker's system is a fundamental part of the learning curve, namely, that it is also possible to learn from your failures. apologies for this Russian Novel of a post. Congrats to anyone that made it this far.

I though it might be time to start re examing where things stand. The bolded players have already been added to the 40 man roster. * I don't see Van Buren on the list but he's on the 40 man as well It's hard to imagine exposing Sing or Pie. I doubt they'll protect Dopirak. Tim, did you put the pitchers in most likely to be drafted order? Ryu is probably safe but the Cubs should protect Nolasco. Could a team effectively hide Marshall?

I'd be interested to see where minor league attendance numbers are nation wide. Part of what fuels minor league attendance is a connection with the MLB team. I take it that there are lots of Cards' fans in Jackson so that may be part of the problem. We have a Low A team here. They had very strong attendance the 1st few years but numbers have been dropping steadily ever since. Part of the problem here is that the O's aren't as good as they once were and interest has waned as a result. The other big complaint I hear is that aside from the ticket prices which are next to nothing ($6-$12) everything else is pretty expensive. I don't mind paying $4 for a bag of peanuts at Camden Yards but don't see why I should have to pay the same at Perdue Stadium. Our team still has it's share of die hards but it's also hard to sustain that enthusiasm when the roster almost completely turns over every year.

It would make sense from a baseball standpoint but the Trib probably doesn't look at this from a "we have the money let's spend it now" perspective when they can defer payment for at least 2 years. A big corporation like the Trib. would invest that money to make it grow rather than make a bigger, up front payment. There's also a psychological element. Would Giles, or anyone else for that matter, be as motivated if he has to take a sizeable pay cut 2 years in a row? I don't know much about Giles but sometimes you get what you pay for. Deon gets paid $4 million so Deon doesn't have to produce as much as Deon did when he made $6 million. Or is it Leon?

I'd look for Soto to start the next time Maddux takes the mound. With Barrett still out I can't see Baker running Blanco out there every single game. I don't see people clamoring for Soto. For me it's just curiousity. I've never seen him play. I know what Blanco can do.

Needless to say, if the Cubs did Acquire Torii Hunter he'd instantly become my favorite Cub because of the superflous i in his name. :lol:

What if the Twins picked up part of his salary? If the Cubs got him it would be close to taking him for free if they have to pay his entire salary. I'd expect that the Twins would have to pay part of it to get the quality they want in return. So how much is Hunter really worth? As far as defense goes, I don't really care about robbed HRs so much as preventing extra base hits by covering a lot of ground. It's been a while since I've seen Hunter play. How's his range?

If not Grennberg then perhaps Bacon. It would be nice to have some speed on the bench.

Isn't having them clinch on the road better than doing it at home? Ideally, I'd like them to back into the playoffs on the heels of a 24-0 sack-of-doorknobs whooping at the hands of the Cubs.

How about Pie for Quentin stright up? That solves the D'Backs problem in that they replace the high tier prospect they lose and gain a couple years before he's big league ready. The Cubs gain a guy that they can more comfortably play in the majors right now.

It's really difficult to compare tennis and golf. If a golfer does poorly in the first round he has already in most cases lost any chance of winning that tournament. In tennis if a player barely wins it doesn't count against him in his next match. There are also a lot of factors that are beyond the player's control in golf such as weather, course conditions, tee times and plain old bad luck.

Taking advice from the baseball person most notorious for saying just about the stupidest thing ever. Brilliant!

I think Barrett meant that the fans are proud of the way that the Cubs have played lately. They've played well even though the games don't really matter. That's more than can be said for a lot of teams this time of the year. High expectations are good but they need to be tempered with realism. Was a championship season really an attainable goal this season? Given the glaring flaws that this team had coming out of ST, the goal should have been make the playoffs and see what happens. When Todd F Hollandsworth is your everyday LF for more than half the season expecting to win the WS is insane. The goal should always be to get better. Winning a championship is the ultimate level of improvement. The Cubs are a failure this season because they didn't get better, they didn't make the playoffs not because they didn't win the WS.

His stats, while very good- great for a catcher are very ordinary for a LF. The Expos tried him at 3rd and he was horrible. His defensive woes carried over to his offense. If and when Pie is ready and contributing the Cubs could afford to carry a light hitting catcher. With Patterson struggling, Hairston being mediocre at best and no other in house options, the Cubs need solid offense from the catcher position.

Mitre is already on the 40 man roster so the Cubs don't have to worry about him as far as the rule 5 draft goes. In order for Mitre to be removed from the 40 man roster he'd have to clear waivers. I can't see that happening. Mitre is out of options so he's either brought in to compete for 5th starter or traded. I'd guess they'd trade him before Williams or Hill. I'd think there'd be some interest there.

Then we would see how good Lee really is on defense. If Baker is coming back why do I get this sinking feeling the 2 boy toys will be too? I don't think I can do this 3 years in a row. If someone is willing to let Perez start he'll be gone. It may be wishful thinking but I don't believe Macias will be back next year. I haven't looked it up but it seems as though Macias has gotten a lot fewer starts this year than last. Were it not for PH appearances we wouldn't have seen much of Macias. I can't help thinking Baker would like to have someone with more power for PH duties.

Some general thoughts Giles Contract will not be front loaded nor would any other players for that matter. From a business standpoint it makes more sense to delay the biggest payment as long as you can. I could see Nomar accepting a move to LF but I can't see him becoming a super sub at this stage of his career. The question is do his numbers as a LF justify his salary vs. what say Murton could do for much much less? Long term Nomar is better off going to a team that will start him at 3rd base or SS. At those positions he is an asset. As a LF his numbers are probably average to slightly below average for a corner OF. I do like the idea of Nomar at SS with Cedeno backing him up if Nomar is willing to play 3rd to rest Ramirez on occasion. That could give Cedeno 60-80 starts and ease him in to the starting lineup at SS for 2007.