Bruce Miles
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Everything posted by Bruce Miles
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Wuertz has impressed me (overall) with his fearlessness and his ability to change speeds like a veteran. Let's see what a day or two of rest does for him. Wellemeyer is much the same way. He's learning to change speeds, and he's not afraid, either. Beltran needs to get over the hump yet. I think Dusty did well Tuesday night letting him pitch the ninth in a mopup situation. Don't count him out over the long haul. We need to see more of Mitre, but he's another good "makeup" guy. I foresee no problem with him if he has to be a swingman or long reliever this year.
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Larry believes there is no set pitch count. He asked me one time, "Have you ever been in a weight room?" I said yes. He said, "Does everybody lift the same amount of weight?" I said no. In other words, Larry goes by the kind of outing a pitcher is having before making a recommendation to Dusty. They work pretty well together on this. If I see Tom House or if I have chance to talk with him, I'll ask him. As a former pitching coach himself, I'm sure he'll use professional courtesy and not be overly critical of the Cubs' handling of pitchers, especially since he's not with the Cubs to know intimately what's going on every day.
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My guess is the Cubs will be able to go up several million, to about $95-97 mil. Yes, the early fan suppot was expected, but I'm not sure about a virtual season sellout. It may indeed affect the budget. The Prior mystery is not at all tied to the desire to sell tickets. I'm as cynical as they come, but they don't mess with serious medical issues like that.
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Yes, the Cubs will go back to 11/5, and it will be timed to Grud's return. I was told there was no deal with Atlanta without Lewis. My feelings about the trade are well known here by now. The Cubs like Cedeno's fielding ability. Yeah, they probably overreated in protecting him. McClain was never an option for the 40-man. He was a great spring story, but he's in Japan now when oter big-league teams could have had him. Great guy, but maybe a AAAA player. The Cubs are still lukewarm on Anderson, and the jury is still out on Rusch.
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As I've said, the Cubs won't pick up Alou's option. Right now, I believe it's no better than 50-50 he'd be back at all. But if he wants to play for, say, $2 million plus incentives, you never know.
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Sandberg has done a heck of a coaching/instructing job with the Cubs. He worked with the infielders and hitters, giving Michael Barrett some helpful pointers. A fresh set of eyes can never hurt. I see Ryne getting back into the game full time at some point. Dunston is enjoying retirement. In another year or two, he may become a coach. I believe Dawson may be still invovled with the Marlins.
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Your assessments are right on. I've mentioned Renteria earlier. Don't rule him out. Perhaps Walker will come back at second. I believe the 5 starter will come from within, and the Cubs would love for Jackson, Kelton or Dubois to be the left fieldler.
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Harris could well make the club next year, but I think the Cubs are quite taken with Walker right now. He'd be the guy I'd bet on. Harris might have gotten a call-up early this year had he not been hurt. I wouldn't rule out September if he does well. Let's see it play out.
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I've been waiting for this question. LOL. Hendry is a self-proclaimed "old-school scouts guy" who believes baseball is a people business. He points out that the only guy in the Pittsburgh deals the sabermetrics crowd liked was Lofton. I don't know if that's true or not, but Simon sure wasn't the darling of the stats crew. The Cubs have moved Chuck Wasserstrom from PR to baseball operations to provide statistical analysis. As long as Hendry is there, the Cubs will take sabermetrics with a grain of salt. They'll use stats, and they do use stats, but it's not the bible for them. Hendry said a manager like Baker can look into a guy's eyes and see if he has what it takes in the seventh, eighth or ninth inning. Overall, I think they've got a pretty balanced approach between stats and scouts' input.
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What verdict do expect the "jury" to reach? So far, the return on the trade looks shaky at best. Thanks. Odds are slim that either Alou or Gonzalez will be back. The Cubs won't address Sosa until next year at the earliest. I didn't like and still don't like the Cruz trade. I think he'll turn out to be a good pitcher and that the Cubs will regret trading him.
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The bullpen is the most difficult spot in baseball to fill. Just ask the Yankees. The injury to Remlinger certainly hurt the Cubs, and Borowski will need to show that he can regain his old form. Dusty will stick with him for now. Farnsworth has been pretty good overall. I like Wuertz a lot. He just needed a rest. Beltran still has plenty of potential, and last night's outing can help. Pratt was terribly miscast.
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They like him as a catcher, and he willingly made the switch. As you know, this is an area of great weakness for the Cubs. That's part of the reason for the stockpile.
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Check it out today at dailyherald.com. I talked one-on-one with Rem yesterday and he said he "feels like a pitcher again." He should be up on the mound later this week and in Arizona next week for extended spring training. As a reliever, he'll need less rehab time. There is no set date for him to come off the DL, but mid-May or maybe a little earlier seems reasonable.
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I'm not sure whether you think Bobby Hill was a prospect or not. You seem to mention him in different lights in two places. But let's see: Where was the outcry when Dontrelle Willis was traded? I'm sure he'd like to have that one back, but at the time, Willis was in the low minors. Hinske had a great first year, but how will be do long term? If any big-market GM could have gotten Ramirez, why didn't they? The Cubs got an absolute steal there, so much so that Matt Bruback didn't last with the Pirates and Bobby Hill isn't playing every day. Tell me again who the Cubs gave up to get Randall Simon, who helped the Cubs immensely last year. The jury is still out on the drafts, and it's "John" Stockstill. Hawkins was a key signing and had offers elsewhere. The Cubs wanted to pre-empt another team from getting him. "Arm-grinder" Baker has a pretty good record of keeping his pitchers off the operating table. Can "geniuses" such as Tony La Russa and Dave Duncan say the same thing? Nope. Yes, there are clinkers: Alfonseca, Estes, Guthrie, Veres (and not keeping Beck last year), but every GM has those too.
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Honestly, I'm not that well-versed in the White Sox' system. But I'll try to get some objective reports for you.
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Hard to tell at this point. Hendry has always liked Edgar Renteria, but of course, the Cubs can't do much about that until his deal is up. Guys like Mark Kotsay (not so much now, but in the past) and Ryan Freel seem to be Hendry's type of guys. That doesn't mean they're "after" them, but those guys are the types of players the Cubs like.
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Dusty is loyal to players who have helped him in the past. For that reason, I believe Grudzielanek will start most games, provided he's healthy. However, if Walker continues to play well, Baker may have no other choice but to find playing time for him. It will be an interesting situation to watch, and it will test Dusty's vaunted people skills.
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The Cubs are in a good position here, and they won't rush into things. They wanted Clement to take a multiyear deal last winter with some payroll relief this year, i.e., less money for '04. When that didn't happen, they rolled the dice. If Clement does well and helps the Cubs win, great. If not, they wouldn't want him back anyway. If his demands are way up there this fall, the Cubs feel they have enough depth in the organization that they can go cheaper and still be strong.
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Another great question. As a beat writer, and I'm in my seventh year with the Cubs, you walk that fine line of objectivity. You owe it to you readers to report the truth and to be honest and fair in your criticisms. This being a people business, you also must be respectful of those you cover. I try to do all that. I've had my honest differences with those I cover, but it's never gotten personal, and I won't attack people personally. All managers have to be evasive on some issues because of secrets they want to keep from other teams. That's a big key. They don't mind us knowing some things, per se, but they don't want another manager to know a guy might not be available, for example. Dusty does like to have fun with reporters. But when I've asked him about stuff like walks, on-base percentage, use of pitchers, he's giving what he believes are honest answers. He's the most unique guy I've been around.
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If you guys have read the Daily Herald (dailyherald.com), and sorry for the shameless self-plug, you know I don't like this trade. They did feel a need for a second lefty in the pen, but for the life of me, I don't know how they expected a kid with one game of experience to succeed. I do also know that they would not have done the deal without Lewis in it. As far as Cruz goes, Rothschild should get a lot of credit if he blossoms in Atlanta. Larry did a lot of work with Cruz this spring. I feel the Cubs could have used him right now. All that said, Cruz still has some growing up to do. That's one of the biggest reasons for his inconsistency over the last couple of years.
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Combination. Walker has made a good impression so far. He's getting on base and is showing that he's reasonable inthe field. At short, they'll make a trade or try to sign a free agent. In left, as I've mentioned, they'd love for one of the kids to come in and take that job. Harris could be up later this year and he could stick on the opening day roster next year in some role.
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Great question. As you guys know, Hendry is more of the "old-school scouts guy" as opposed to the new-school Moneyball-type guy. For a long time, he loved Barrett's "tools" and athleticism. The Cubs and Hendry also are big on attitude and I've seen few better than Barrett's. The guy is really a joy to be around. The Cubs felt Barrett would hit if he could stay healthy, and he's showing signs that he indeed will. He's getting better behind the plate, too. Last night, he and Rothschild were studying the tape of Zambrano's game.
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At first, I didn't think so because Hendry didn't seem to make it a priority. But now I do think they'll make a big effort to sign Ramirez to a multiyear deal next winter. It happened with Wood and Lee, and I think you'll see the same type of thing with Ramirez. I believe his agent is Adam Katz, a guy with whom the Cubs work reasonably well.
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The Cubs really had trouble isolating the source of the Achilles injury. I'm told the MRI and bone scans showed no significant damage to the heel or elbow. They showed that Prior's key elbow ligament was sound and strong. I'm looking at early June for his return. But I really don't think the Cubs have been lying or intentionally misleading anybody.
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Left field is looking pretty good with Alou in the early going. That said, they will not pick up his option for next year, and at this point, it's iffy whether they'd even seek a lesser deal with him. I know the Cubs had hoped that Kelton, Jackson or Dubois would be ready to take over in LF next year and provide some payroll relief. Beltran is certainly the most attractive option out there, and with the Cubs shedding the contracts of Alou, Gonzalez and perhaps Clement after this year, Beltran is not out of the question, especially with the Cubs generating new streams of revenue.