seanhopper

I started another topic, but it fits here as well. Could Shannon Stewart be available? If so, I would like to see the Cubs make a move for him to help ride this loss out.

With Soriano going down and the A's going nowhere, could Shannon Stewart be a good fit and available? He's having a pretty good year and plays LF. I need to look up his contract status, but if he only has one yr. left on his deal than they should go after it--problem is he may not get through waivers.

and acting like it as well. This guy definitely needs some help.

I thought this thread was going to be about Chicago native and recently tasered, Scott Olsen. I was going to advocate the Cubs trading for him after his last blow-up with his manager, but after this latest incident, I believe they better stay away.

My bad--I thought he signed a 2yr. contract. I was thinking he could serve as the CF this yr. and a 4th outfielder next--but a 3yr deal makes a deal for Roberts a real bad idea. No wonder everyone is trying to get Lofton. Texas will get some good prospects for him. For Gagne as well.

I've read some posters here who would like to see the Cubs bring Lofton back for another playoff run. He's having a pretty solid yr. and brings a bit of a swagger with him. Lofton will likely cost a lot due to his season and intangibles, so what about Dave Roberts as an option? He's not having that good of a yr., but he was coming off an injury and he was above avg. the last few yrs. in San Diego. He brings speed, has a decent career obp and can start in center or come off the bench for PH and PR. He'll cost less than Lofton and could be a decent alternative. SF is going nowhere this yr., so he will likely be in the mix for playoff contending teams.

I guess they felt that Derosa can fill in at SS or 2B if need be. They needed a better alternative for backup 3b (if Ramirez needs a rest) and for 1B with Fox. Based on Cedeno's play in Iowa, it does appear that he deserves another chance, but it's just not the right time due to the people who are injured and who are available.

This auditioning for a trade concept is a bit of a reach in my opinion. Professional scouts know what they're looking for in a player and they're not going to get too caught up in a week-10 day audition for a player in the majors. What if Moore or Fox get really hot for a week--does this mean they're now a big time prospect? I don't believe it happens this way. There's also the potential factor, which scouts see in a player like Pie. Yes, his first test was not a success, but it likely only made a small hit on his rating as a prospect. He's still considered the top offensive prospect in the Cubs system.

Rumor I heard is that Toronto is trying to acquire Jack Wilson. Guess they have been missing there idiot IF quota for the last year or so :P, gotta fix that! Maybe It will work out to be a 3-way deal where the PTBNL will come from the Toronto system? Tim Wilken can pick up one of his guys from their system.

To some extent, yes, there is something to be said for the quality of the pitching at the lower levels. Most guys you come across in the various levels of A ball tend not to have a well-developed arsenal of pitches, namely offspeed and breaking stuff, and hitters can have an easier time of things by just sitting dead red on a fastball in the zone in most at bats. It's part of the reason you see guys like Brian Dopirak and Ryan Harvey look like all-world talent in Peoria, then flounder at higher levels. However, there is an important distinction that I think needs to be made. While drawing walks can certainly be learned over the course of a player's career, a player has a much easier time of it if he already has good habits instilled in him at lower levels, be it in college or little league. A guy who displays plate patience at lower levels is going to have an easier time of continuing that as he advances. Harvey and Dopirak never displayed drawing walks as a plus tool in their arsenals. Remember, while the pitchers are not that advanced, neither are the hitters. Both sides need to keep adjusting to one another. So, in my opinion, there is much to be said for a hitter who displays an excellent IsoD (OBP-AVG) at any level. Strong points. I agree with your assertion that it's good to see a player at any level have a high IsoD. Patience is something the Cubs need to do a better job of teaching in the minor leagues (at least over the past few yrs.), so it's nice to see these new additions doing a better job. By the way, is Gary Hughes still with the organization? After reading some recent interviews, it appeared as if he was becoming a stubborn old time scout. I respect his views and of course his past record, but it started to sound as if he was relying on his old school scouting skills too much and almost stubbornly not looking at the available statistics when evaluating a player. Hendry really needs to put strong people around him if he ever wants to succeed.

Not to diminish their numbers, but at short season A ball, I would put more of the blame on the pitchers for walks than I would for an offensive player having a good eye. You often see higher walk rates in the low minors. It's still nice to see--but I wouldn't put too much emphasis on it.

Yeah, so much for adding onto payroll like Hendry has said over and over again. And we're pretty much stuck with Jones if Zell won't let the Cubs eat his contract. Fun times. As people have stated previously, I don't think this is Hendry's fault. And moreover, I don't think he knew about the inability to take on payroll until this deal. Talk about a wake-up call you don't want when your job is on the line. How is this not Hendry's fault. He signed Jones to a stupid 3yr. contract that he can't get out from under unless he pays virtually all of it for another team. It's another poor move by a gm who's really a glorified scout (one that goes on instinct and little based on stats) who's in over his head. Beinfest was raking Hendry over the coals for the 3rd time --Willis deal, Pierre deal and now this. Zell was making both a financial and a baseball decision, in my opinion, by rejecting this deal. It made no sense. Just take a step back and really think about the scenario--pay a player almost 90% of his salary while he's playing for someone else and get little to nothing in return.

Hendry should go add a big salary player or sign Zambrano already, if the current owners are actually allowing him to take on salary this yr. and in the future. Hendry can then shut these reporters up who never actually know anything. Of course, it seems like they're right at this point or otherwise the Zambrano deal would have been done by now. This is all the info. they need to make the same statements over and over again.

Can't say I understand the move if/when it happens. It appears to me that Bruce Miles was making a little jab or putting a "read between the lines" statement himself when he put Cotts' stats in the article. Almost as if he wanted the reader to question the validity of Piniella's statement about Cherry's command and why he's not ready to come back up. I'm no scout, but the sheer #'s don't appear to be a reason why Cotts would get called back up. Not saying Cherry is the right choice either at this stage, but is there anyone else.

Not fun--especially that both are shoulder issues. Shaver was one of the better performers in the Cubs system last year.

He's posting some strong numbers again this year --nice 5/1 K/B ratio (small sample size this year, but last yr. he was almost as good). I believe he has been more of finesse guy, but he could be a nice lefty out of the pen for the Cubs. Ohman has been on and off all year and we all know Eyre has been horrific. I really wish the Cubs could find a way to DL Eyre and then slot a guy like Pignatiello in there to see what he has to offer. It couldn't be worse. If they intend to turn Cotts into a starter than he makes the most sense to bring up. PCL 0 0 1.02 16 0 0 0 1 17.2 13 2 2 1 3 16 2.00 .203

<> He played for Piniella in Tampa and a player the Cubs have supposedly been enamored with in the past (probably the low OBP and lack of discipline). I know there's a glut in the outfield already, but he has some ability (that Hendry typically likes) and could start out in Iowa. Bring him into the system and see what happens--at the very least he could be a 4th-5th outfielder/pinchrunner for '08.

Good for the Sox. At least they have the balls to send out guys that are not performing. Hendry is such a puss when it comes to moving guys --they need to cut their losses and move on.

At least Len is getting paid to watch this crap. We're the one's suffering. BTW--didn't Len grow up a Brewers fan? He's doing just fine. The thing that really Sox about the last few years is just how absolutely boring and pitiful the Cubs play. I said it at the beginning of last year, I would rather watch a young, talented team lose than watch these boring vets. It's going to be too hard to get rid of anyone now, so there's really no going back. They have to figure this out.

The Cubs poor track record in the draft has led more to their poor record in the MLB than anything else--I believe. Hendry and his scouting staff have not done well evaluating and cultivating talent. They went for too many homeruns--and too many of them ended up as busts. I can name all the names, but you'll just puke in your mouth. I'm glad Stockstill is gone to Baltimore and we now have a scouting director that has a proven track record. In the long run, this will lead to a winning team on the field more than the $300 million spent in the offseason.

What about trading Sean Marshall to Balt. for some real prospects. Marshall is from the Virginia area and is pitching well in Iowa. I don't see him getting another shot for sometime and the Cubs could use him as a bargaining chip to get other prospects to fill other areas of need in the system--shortstop? I'm not for moving Marshall unless they can get something good in return.

It's also interesting because none of these people are from the Cubs organization. One of the Chicago papers (I honestly forget which one) mentioned that Larry Rothchild was the one who got him to focus on the mental part of the game. This may have been the case or, as we have seen in the past, this may just be PR ploy coming from the Cubs org.

<> He was the other arm traded in the Aardsma/Cott deal. He appears to be putting it together this year --he was pretty good in the past. I'm not too familiar with his rating as a prospect, but overall, the deal as it stands now appears to be leaning towards the Sox. Aardsma is one of the Sox's best pitchers out of the pen, His whip and k's are great so far. Cott's has done well for the Cubs--so it's not a bad deal by any means--at least not yet.

Guzman was going to be off limits for a minimum of 2 games based on his pitch count from yesterday. It actually makes some sense to send him down, see how Miller performs today and then decide to either let him remain in the bullpen or stretch him out in the minors and get him prepared to start in 10 days when he can be called back up (am I correct that a player that is optioned cannot be called up for 10 days?).