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katway

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Everything posted by katway

  1. katway
    Dusty must not have much love for Derrek Lee.
  2. katway
    Notwithstanding the no trade clause, Wood has little value and we would have to eat half his contract. (We can't think of it as getting $11 million off the books because no one is assuming that contract.) So, essentially, we would save an estimated $5.5 million if he is traded this offseason. For $5.5 million, I am doubtful that we could get a pitcher with the potential of Kerry Wood, so we should at least keep him and see what happens. Hopefully he can be effective in the bullpen at the very least, that would be worth $5.5 million right there.
  3. katway
    Yes. I heard it. It was also in the Tribune yesterday or day before that Dusty thinks he has to play Neifi after all Neifi has done for this team. Again, winning is not Dusty's priority.
  4. katway
    Their all rally killers anyway, why not let them kill their own rally instead of killing off an opportunity before Lee gets to the plate. I could easily understand this if Neifi had OBP, but arghhh.....
  5. katway
    This game against Vasquez reminds me of that big pitching duel him and Prior had going on one game in early 2003 when Vasquez was with the Expos. I hope our bats come to life today.
  6. katway
    I think we have a left fielder in Murton, but clearly Dusty is reluctant to play him everyday. I just wonder if we should give up prospects to get a left fielder when the solution is sitting on the bench. It's frustrating to see a need to trade for players because a coach doesn't play the best cards in the deck. If we do trade for a left fielder this year, then I think we have to seriously consider moving murton to right next year and letting Burnitz go. That's a difficult prospect because Burny is such a pro. So, ultimately, a trade for a left fielder means no Burny next year since we need to get Murton some playing time.
  7. katway
    Unfortunately, Epstein has been very reluctant to trade Kelly Shoppach and Dustin Pedroia. For good reason, they are both excellent prospects. Shoppach is going to be a good catcher and is known to have leadership skills. Pedroia is a good solid second baseman prospect that appears ready and would have been called up to replace Bellhorn earlier if not for a wrist injury. But, they may very well need to trade Pedroia and move top prospect Hanley Ramirez (a shortstop) over to second since they already have Renteria at short. However, the proposed trade would clearly be a rental player move from Boston's perspective since they wouldn't keep Soriano (Ramirez needs to play in the bigs and they prefer him as an infielder) and I don't see them paying that much for rental players.
  8. katway
    Excellent post. I agree entirely. Personally, I would be happy with Dusty if he simply improved situational managing and took control of putting performance and winning ahead of his need to be liked by the players. He overuses role players because he feels like they deserve playing time based on their veteran status and once in a blue moon controbution even if their performance is not helping the team win. He also lets players dictate their role to the detriment of the team. Corey asks to lead off, so Dusty lets him lead off knowing that Corey hasn't changed his approach and still needs to shorten his swing... how many games did that move cost us? Dusty needs to take control of the team... this isn't about being their buddy, this isn't a team of players that can manage themselves, this is a team in need of a manager. Sometimes, Dusty fails to fill that void... he simply punts his managing duties. The priority of this team should be to win, I'm not sure Dusty shares that priority.
  9. katway
    Would love to see Manny in a Cubs uniform. Other than that, there probably aren't manny available bats that I would like and I'd rather see relief pitching. Primarily, I just keep hoping we can ship Dusty somewhere for a player to be named. If anything, such a transaction would go further to improving this team than any other. As I recall, Houston made the big run last year only after Williams was canned. It's time for us to get the same kind of spark to lift this team from a functioning mediocrity.
  10. katway
    I agree with murton starting in left. The only hesitation I have with Gerut is that he is recoverring from knee surgery and, by his own estimation, about 75%; so, I just don't know about his playing center, but he did make one heck of a catch in left today.
  11. katway
    Chacon has been highly thought of in the past. People used to say it was pitching in Colorado that ruined his stuff, but he actually has had a 5.21 ERA away from home the last 3 years. So, it's hard to say if the change in venue will improve his stats. But, he certainly is the kind of player that has the potential to rise to the occassion under Joe Torre and Mel Stottlemyre. In addition, he may have an initial advantage in changing leagues since batters will not be familiar with his stuff.
  12. katway
    They've had several poor games in that stretch, but we've had some of the Washington National's type luck. That luck is going to run out, we've gotta start playing better ball and executing early in the game.
  13. katway
    I think Neifi was bunting for a hit, and he nearly got it. Yeah it was a drag bunt trying to get on base and he was out by a half step. Not a bad play. At the worst it moves the runner to 3rd with only one out and at best he beats it out and we got guys at the corners with nobody out. If Hollandsworth executes we at least chip one run off that lead... Couldn't tell from computer screen. But, why would a bunt "surprise" the other team for a hit in that situation? Just seems odd to me. Then again, maybe it would surprise them because it's a bad thing to do when your down 3 runs.
  14. katway
    Did we just sacrafice a guy when we are 3 runs down? :roll:
  15. katway
    Looks like a classic Cubs breakdown. So, when does the Bear's exposition season began?
  16. katway
    We have to be the worst in the league in this situation. We need more players that think like Murton "With the tying run on third, it was very important that I stay away from the double play," Murton said. "I went up there trying to be sure I would not roll my top hand over the ball so I could get some elevation. If I got it up, it could be a sacrifice fly..."
  17. katway
    Cedeno having some bad swings. He's probably been sitting on the pine too long.
  18. katway
    Cubs lead by 22 runs this season. They also have a BA that is .018 above the D-backs and a SLG that is .038 above. The D-Backs have a slight (.002) advantage in OBP. I'd say the Cubs offense is better. You know what I don't get? We are ahead of the White Sox in OBP, SLG, and BA, but they have seriously outscored us. What's up with that? Podsednik. He has 51 SBs. We have 46 as a team. Despite all those SBs, Walker has been more productive than Podsednik. Walker has 32 runs scored to Pods 57. Pods is an All-Star at the top of their lineup. Those steals put pressure on the other teams. Watch a Sox games where this guy gets on base and the pitchers just start to collapse. they cant focus on the next guy up. I'm not saying that accounts for the run differential entirely, but you combine this fact and the fact that they just seem to be more "clutch" than the cubs and the runs will score.
  19. katway
    Cubs lead by 22 runs this season. They also have a BA that is .018 above the D-backs and a SLG that is .038 above. The D-Backs have a slight (.002) advantage in OBP. I'd say the Cubs offense is better. You know what I don't get? We are ahead of the White Sox in OBP, SLG, and BA, but they have seriously outscored us. What's up with that? Podsednik. He has 51 SBs. We have 46 as a team.
  20. katway
    As much as I hate to say it, we still need Neifi as a backup if Nomar comes back simply because of Nomar's injury history. If Nomar gets injurred again, then Cedeno can take over, but we wont have a back up for him at that point.
  21. katway
    He's an excellent defensive outfielder. Had a gold glove in 2003. In addition, he was in the top 10 in walks in 2003 and 2004. He was also in the top 10 in sacrafice flies in the last 2 years. (We could really us someone who can come through with a few of those.) In any event, since he has shown some patience at the plate, has some power, above average speed, and knows how to drive runners on 3rd base home with less than 2 outs, I think he would be an excellent addition as a 4th/5th outfielder. I realize we traded for Gerut (a similar type player), but he is still recovering from his knee injury and appears uncomfortable as a pitch hitter. I'd let Gerut recover in Iowa and pick up Cruz in a minute.
  22. katway
    I'm not embarassed to be a Cubs fan. I think what those fans did was uncalled for, but they can't be real fans of the game in the first place if that's their reaction. In other words, I don't think of them as true Cubs fans.
  23. katway
    I recall when Nomo refused to go to AAA with the Cubs, so he never pitched a regular season game for us... How times have changed. Now, he's signing minor league contracts.
  24. katway

    Murton

    katway replied to moorecg's topic in Chicago Cubs Talk

    Murton definitely should be getting the chance to play everyday. This is not a CPatt situation where you need to work him in. Murton is a college grad that has always had a good approach to hitting. He shouldn't be lumped in with every other player out there; he stands on his own like any individual. The question isn't whether AA ballers are ready for the majors, the question is whether Murton is ready for the majors. From what I've seen and read about Murton, I would have to say he is ready and I look forward to Dusty or the next coach coming to that realization.
  25. katway
    Perhaps Dusty's strategy is for the team to keep coming to his rescue with all his bad decision. A little reverse psychology? Just kidding, we all know Dusty is very lucky today.
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