nolanwood

The Peter principle. Littlefield wasn't good at balancing the information available to him to make decisions, and he wasn't the one watching the players. As a scout, he's the one evaluating the player in person, something he's much better at doing. I can see that line of thinking to a certain extent. However, passing on Wieters in the draft cause they were afraid to pay him, then turning around and trading for Matt Morris( and his 9.5 mill salary the following year) is insane.

Definitely. Gorzo>>>>>>>Hart How can Littlefield be such an excellent scout if he was such a pathetic GM?

I think he had better worry about making the playoffs first. Actually, the Cubs have needed another lefty in the bullpen since Cotts imploded. Gorzelanny and Marshall add a lot of depth to the starting rotation in case of injuries, poor performance, or team matchups. Also, don't forget the impact of this trade on the future. If Grabow doesn't meet expectations, he could net the Cubs 2 draft picks. Marshall and Gorzelanny could step right in as possible starters if Harden isn't resigned. I wouldn't agree with that line of thinking I suggested in regard to the postseason, just wondered why he has picked up this many lefty arms/projects the last couple months... Grabow won't be netting us two draft picks, and I honestly don't see the need for him and his career 1.45 whip. Sounds like a luckier, lefty version of Heilman. If we needed a loogy, why get one who lefties hit .275 against? Heilman - 47.1 ip, 40K, 30BB, 46 hits, 4.56 era, 1.61 whip Grabow - 47.1 ip, 41K, 28BB, 43 hits, 3.42 era, 1.50 whip I like the high upside with Gorzo, though.

Do you think Hendry's lefty obsession is a result of thinking ahead to the postseason with Utley/Howard/Ibanez?

The Cubs should let him wear 34 if he wants. Fans loved Kerry Wood, but its not like he did anything to deserve to have his number retired. Grabow was on ESPN 1000 and said he will wear 43 this year. Cubs management won't allow him to wear 34. =D> Woody will always remain my favorite Cub.

Why did we give anything up for two more lefty turds? Have we not acquired enough of those this year?

Again...why do we need Grabow?

As an ace, no. As a back of the rotation starter, yes. He's been pitching well long enough now to prove that it's not a fluke. i remember hearing the same thing in regards to sonnanstine When has Sonnanstine posted #'s similar to Wells this season, or pitched well long enough to prove that he wasn't a fluke? Through 130 ip's his rookie year he had an ERA over 2.5 points higher than Wells through 96 ip's so far. he still hasn't had a chance to face teams multiple times, only atlanta and houston so far if i am correct i will believe he is for real when he has quite a bit more starts under his belt I agree; however, what does that have to do with Sonnastine? He has never had success in MLB...

As an ace, no. As a back of the rotation starter, yes. He's been pitching well long enough now to prove that it's not a fluke. i remember hearing the same thing in regards to sonnanstine When has Sonnanstine posted #'s similar to Wells this season, or pitched well long enough to prove that he wasn't a fluke? Through 130 ip's his rookie year he had an ERA over 2.5 points higher than Wells through 96 ip's so far.

I'm not defending him at all, I know what he said. I'm not blind. You used Len and Pat as an example though when you should have used Ron and Bob to compare Stone because Stone's job description is the same as Brenly's and Santo's. I know what you're saying and I know what he's saying. Wrong. I merely responded to his claim. If you've got a problem, take it up with the poster who made the initial comparison. As an "announcer" you can compare Stone's abilities to any "announcer" in sports if you desire. If we're comparing PBP guys it's a different story...

I disagree. I've never liked him, and I'd much rather listen to Len or Pat... Uh, ok. Next time you should read the entire conversation before opening your mouth...like maybe this part: he's ten times the baseball announcer than anyone in the Cubs booth, both the TV and radio side. :thumbsup: Comparing color guys to PBP announcers is just stupid. That's exactly the point I was trying to make. He stated Stone is better than A N Y O N E in the tv/radio booth. It could not be any clearer. You've got a funny way of making a point... I lived down in C'dale for over ten years - what are you smoking? Can you get me some?

I agree; however, the comment made was that Stone is a better announcer than ANYONE in the Cubs radio or tv booth. I enjoyed the entirety of Stone's stay on the Northside and had zero problems with him calling out the Cubs. I always found him to be a pompous turd, though...

I could care less about his ego. The problem is that he's ten times the baseball announcer than anyone in the Cubs booth, both the TV and radio side. I don't want to be friends with him, I just want a quality baseball broadcast. I disagree. I've never liked him, and I'd much rather listen to Len or Pat... Uh, ok? Stone's an analyst, not a PBP guy. I'd still take Stone over Brenly, and that's not a slight against Bob. It sucks how his tenure with the Cubs ended and he has every right to be bitter at the Cubs organization. Wouldn't you be bitter towards a former boss of yours if you spent close to a decade working with that organization before being forced out for basically telling the truth about what was going on? I like announcers that tell it like it is. Brenly seems like he has his favorites (Theriot, Fontenot, etc) while others like Soriano can do no right. Stay consistent. Uh, ok. Next time you should read the entire conversation before opening your mouth...like maybe this part: he's ten times the baseball announcer than anyone in the Cubs booth, both the TV and radio side. :thumbsup:

I could care less about his ego. The problem is that he's ten times the baseball announcer than anyone in the Cubs booth, both the TV and radio side. I don't want to be friends with him, I just want a quality baseball broadcast. I disagree. I've never liked him, and I'd much rather listen to Len or Pat...

http://espn.go.com/chicago/columns/blog?post=4354314&name=levine Why in the hell would the Cubs be interested in Gorzo to solve the "left handed starting problem" when we have Sean Marshall? Why the hell would the Cubs be interested Tom Gorzelanny when we have guys who arent Tom Gorzelanny? An even better question.

http://espn.go.com/chicago/columns/blog?post=4354314&name=levine Why in the hell would the Cubs be interested in Gorzo to solve the "left handed starting problem" when we have Sean Marshall?

I really like this move for the Cardinals; however, their chance at winning the division hinges on whether or not the Cubs under perform in the second half.

How is that the first in a series of moves except by a loose definition considering all trades a series of trades? How does swapping out Duncan for Lugo open up anything, unless they trade Brendan Ryan and Bo Hart for Halladay? They are looking at Dunn and Holliday, who are both outfielders, and just traded Duncan, who was an outfielder. Seems pretty simple to me. Ankiel, Ludwick, Schumaker, Rasmus, DeRo, and Stavinoha can all play the OF. Add in the Glaus experiment when/if he returns. Couldn't they have traded Duncan because they had a massive logjam in the OF and need a SS?

Sanchez WAR totals over the past three seasons prior to 2008 were 3.2, 4.8, 3.8, and 2.6 so far this season. His career defensive metrics are slightly above avg, which is better than the defense we've had at 2nd the last few seasons. I'll gladly take him and hope he has a solid year next year, too.

Absolutely. Everyone seems to be quoting weei now, so I'm assuming it's Diaz & Strickland for LaRalleyKiller. Garrett Jones just hit his 9th hr. He came up when Nyjer was traded. So, that's 9 in a couple of weeks. Jones = Chris Shelton, circa '06. Hmmm, Shelton finished that season in the minors, I believe, and was really never heard from again. But how they came up was different. Jones had a long minor league career. He was putting up some good numbers in Indy. Shelton wasn't in the minors that long. It'll be interesting to see what Jones does in the long run. Yeah, I don't think Jones is gonna end the year in the minors. I just read where Shelton was up with Seattle now, and it made me think of that explosion of power he had in a few games. Wasn't really comparing them as baseball players...just hot streaks. I'm surprised they have that much faith in Jones, though, with such a brief look at him in the bigs. What happens to the younger LaRoche when Alvarez eventually comes up? Possible move to first?

Absolutely. Everyone seems to be quoting weei now, so I'm assuming it's Diaz & Strickland for LaRalleyKiller. Garrett Jones just hit his 9th hr. He came up when Nyjer was traded. So, that's 9 in a couple of weeks. Jones = Chris Shelton, circa '06.

http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-angels-fyi19-2009jul19,0,6304068.story According to that article the O's are looking for two top prospects in return. I'll pass. Sherrill is nothing more than a loogy/setup guy whom the O's are selling high on due to his two months of success this season.

I don't recall seeing more than one rating system that had Rasmus as a top 5 prospect for 2009... The Blue Jays can ask for whatever they want being as they don't have to trade him, regardless of whether some Cardinal fan thinks they are delusional. Baseball America ranked him number 3 behind Wieter and David Price. Who said they had to trade him? All I said is if they think they are getting a Rasmus/Wallace for him, they are delusional. That isn't going to happen. No team is doing that or even come close to giving that. That would be silly. Baseball America would constitute as one rating system, not more than one... http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/columns/story?columnist=law_keith&id=3840355 http://mlb.com/mlb/minorleagues/prospects/y2009/ http://thebaseballgods.blogspot.com/2008/12/2009-top-100-prospects-rankings-only.html (local STL homer) http://www.topprospectalert.com/ http://fantasybaseball365.wordpress.com/2008/10/30/hot-prospect-corner-mlbcoms-top-25-rookies-for-fantasy-2009/ Furthermore, even many in the STL area viewed the Baseball America ranking of Rasmus at #3 a joke given the off year in 2008 (and yes, I live in STL and know all about the injuries, etc). That is all beside the point. Here's a recent writeup ( http://scoutingthesports.com/?cat=3) discussing what the Angels would possibly need to give up to acquire Doc: Who's "OD'ing" on the kool aid? So, you think those other ranking systems hold the weight of Baseball America? LOL. Only two serious ones are Baseball America or Baseball Prospectus (Who ranked him 8th), the others are not ones I take seriously, nor do most people who don't have an agenda. And prospect rankings of him before the season aren't really relevant as the fact he has been the Rookie of the Year in the NL in 2009 so far, which you like to ignore. Being a top 10 in some random Joe Schmoes preseason rankings, does not match up with being a top 5-10 in the two most respected/established ranking and actually PERFORMING in the Majors. Why didn't you address the package suggested that the Angels would be giving up and compare how that is equal to what you proposed? Who said I ignored he is the potential ROY? How old are you? Could we please refrain from the use of "LOL"?

I don't recall seeing more than one rating system that had Rasmus as a top 5 prospect for 2009... The Blue Jays can ask for whatever they want being as they don't have to trade him, regardless of whether some Cardinal fan thinks they are delusional. Baseball America ranked him number 3 behind Wieter and David Price. Who said they had to trade him? All I said is if they think they are getting a Rasmus/Wallace for him, they are delusional. That isn't going to happen. No team is doing that or even come close to giving that. That would be silly. Baseball America would constitute as one rating system, not more than one... http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/columns/story?columnist=law_keith&id=3840355 http://mlb.com/mlb/minorleagues/prospects/y2009/ http://thebaseballgods.blogspot.com/2008/12/2009-top-100-prospects-rankings-only.html (local STL homer) http://www.topprospectalert.com/ http://fantasybaseball365.wordpress.com/2008/10/30/hot-prospect-corner-mlbcoms-top-25-rookies-for-fantasy-2009/ Furthermore, even many in the STL area viewed the Baseball America ranking of Rasmus at #3 a joke given the off year in 2008 (and yes, I live in STL and know all about the injuries, etc). That is all beside the point. Here's a recent writeup ( http://scoutingthesports.com/?cat=3) discussing what the Angels would possibly need to give up to acquire Doc: Who's "OD'ing" on the kool aid?

I don't recall seeing more than one rating system that had Rasmus as a top 5 prospect for 2009... The Blue Jays can ask for whatever they want being as they don't have to trade him, regardless of whether some Cardinal fan thinks they are delusional.