Blueheart05

I might be wrong here, but weren't all of his alleged throwing sessions behind closed doors? LOL, no. As TT has already remind us there are photos of Prior throwing off a mound.

Did anyone even see him throwing? I wouldn't put it past them to have lied about that too. Yes, I know The Score reporters in Mesa saw him because they talked about it. Hasn't Miles also seen him?

Dan Berstein, and Rotoworld, love to put a sarcastic slant to everything. I heard him too and his rant about the Cubs was no different than most of his other rants (but even he said that there may not be a real problem; This could all be a pain tolerance issue with Prior,

Yeah but all except the special box seats were sold in Feb. The Cubs have had weeks to drop this bomb.

I don't know what to say about Rothschilds comments. Thankfully, Prior's going to see the doctor tomorrow so they can find out if there is a real problem and how to alleviate it quickly. Part of me still thinks Prior is hypersensitive to pain. Last year he was delayed and pitched well until the line drive incident. Previously, he complained of pain and after extensive tests they found no problem. IIRC, he also had his own doctors look him over...

LOL, Prior was also quoted as saying there was nothing wrong which leads me to think this just happened.

He certainly was informed about the comments because he summoned Walker to a conference...

Looks like all the pessimistic Cubs fans and the White Sox fans have jumped on this one early. :lol: :lol:

I'm usually not a chicken little, but the same bunch also had Wood pitch in relief after they decided he should have shoulder surgery. I'm really, really frustrated with my favorite team right now. Well, that's a different scenario. They believed that Wood pitching wasn't going to do any further damage. The main problem with that was that him pitching was delaying his surgery. Here, if they knew something was wrong before, pushing him could cause more damage. They would have just shut him down and sent him to see a specialist. I think they screwed up the Wood situation, but I don't think they're that incompetent. Yeah, let's give the team some credit. Wood's knee surgery is a recent example of the team being overly cautious; by all accounts the procedure was precautionary. If the Cubs had an inkling that Prior was hurting before now they would have shut him down completely and sent him to the specialist two weeks ago. There is no incentive in waiting 2 weeks before opening day.

This DLee thing might just be the Cubs protecting their interests. I wouldn't be surprised if they called Martinez, following the game against Japan, to ask him to sit Lee. The team may be ordering this doctor's visit as a precaution (remember, the talk is that the Cubs wanted to extend him before the season starts. I'm sure they want assurances that he's healthy first). :fingers crossed:

Maybe he is. This could just be a coincidence. He even said on The Score that he wasn't really sure. Most likely it was a guess.

Why do you do this to me? LOL, just reporting what I heard. It freaked me out initally but I'm not ready to jump yet. I want to find out if there is a real problem or just some regular discomfort. The Cubs might be taking the extra cautious road here for both players. After the strange way he's been handled all spring, there's no way he's completely okay. Shoulder soreness, especially for a guy who has pretty much been babied for the last five months, is a serious issue. He's been hurt all along. Healthy pitchers aren't treated like he was. This is absurd, and it's an insult to Cubs fans everywhere. IIRC, Prior has had some discomfort every season to start the year. He could just be one of those guys who needs to ease into throwing (in a different manner than most other pitchers). Maybe he's hypersensitive to pain.

Why do you do this to me? LOL, just reporting what I heard. It freaked me out initally but I'm not ready to jump yet. I want to find out if there is a real problem or just some regular discomfort. The Cubs might be taking the extra cautious road here for both players.

On the bright side, there might not be anything wrong with either guy. Soreness might not mean anything major... I'm going to reserve my panic for the Dr's diagnosis.

You can't really mispell a personal name. People come up with lots of creative ways to spell names... Shawon Shawn Sean Chone etc.

The Score is reporting that Prior is having some shoulder issue and will be seeing Dr Yokam. They also said soemthing about Derrek Lee going too (but I came in on the end). Apparently, DLee is injured too.

Really? I think it makes perfect sense. Perfect sense? I'd be interested in hearing your definition of the word perfect. They have 3 candidates for a job and have told all three they wish they weren't candidates for the job. They've let the guy who should be the lead candidate know they don't even want him on the team. The only candidate they have consistently supported in the past is the guy least qualified for the job. Nothing this team has done has made perfect sense. Regardless of what Hendry may have said, if I were Neifi I'd feel pretty damn good about my chances of taking Cedeno's job, and I'm sure that's why he re-signed with the Cubs. You could tell from Neifi's latest quotes that he believes there is a good chance Cedeno won't last as the starting SS, and that he actually wants Cedeno to fail. Hairston would then get 2B in a Walker-less scenario, and Hairston knows that. Walker wasn't even supposed to be here at this point, so re-signing made a lot of sense for both Neifi and Hairston. Neifi resigned because the money and security were good (especially for a guy who's been a backup more often than not). His comments are suspect; he too should keep his mouth closed because it sounded suspiciously like he was hoping for Cedeno to fail (while playing up his "veteran" status). Cedeno's starting spot should be fine as long as his defense is consistent. I think it will take an absolute collapse, defensively, by Ronny for him to lose his starting job. Baker has already said he plans to bat Cedeno 7th or 8th so he shouldn't have too much pressure to contribute offensively. I think he will be fine once he relaxes and stops pressing. I agree with Neifi, I don't think Cedeno's job is safe at all. Neifi wasn't going to be offered a starting job by any team, but backing up a right-handed-batting rookie for a Dusty Baker team is the next best thing. We'll see. Only time will tell but Neifi's true asset is his glove. If Cedeno holds his own defensively he will be fine.

Really? I think it makes perfect sense. Perfect sense? I'd be interested in hearing your definition of the word perfect. They have 3 candidates for a job and have told all three they wish they weren't candidates for the job. They've let the guy who should be the lead candidate know they don't even want him on the team. The only candidate they have consistently supported in the past is the guy least qualified for the job. Nothing this team has done has made perfect sense. Regardless of what Hendry may have said, if I were Neifi I'd feel pretty damn good about my chances of taking Cedeno's job, and I'm sure that's why he re-signed with the Cubs. You could tell from Neifi's latest quotes that he believes there is a good chance Cedeno won't last as the starting SS, and that he actually wants Cedeno to fail. Hairston would then get 2B in a Walker-less scenario, and Hairston knows that. Walker wasn't even supposed to be here at this point, so re-signing made a lot of sense for both Neifi and Hairston. Neifi resigned because the money and security were good (especially for a guy who's been a backup more often than not). His comments are suspect; he too should keep his mouth closed because it sounded suspiciously like he was hoping for Cedeno to fail (while playing up his "veteran" status). Cedeno's starting spot should be fine as long as his defense is consistent. I think it will take an absolute collapse, defensively, by Ronny for him to lose his starting job. Baker has already said he plans to bat Cedeno 7th or 8th so he shouldn't have too much pressure to contribute offensively. I think he will be fine once he relaxes and stops pressing.

I've been listening to Santo laud Hairston as well and IMO, the Cubs haven't told him anything (especially knowing he isn't the most savy individual. He's the same guy who makes it a point to tell listeners when he returns from the bathroom so I don't see him being trusted with any roster secrets...) I think that Ron is just giving his opinion about what he'd like to see at 2B.

Really? I think it makes perfect sense. Perfect sense? I'd be interested in hearing your definition of the word perfect. They have 3 candidates for a job and have told all three they wish they weren't candidates for the job. They've let the guy who should be the lead candidate know they don't even want him on the team. The only candidate they have consistently supported in the past is the guy least qualified for the job. Nothing this team has done has made perfect sense. Well, if you read my post in its entirety it does make sense. The situation at 2B isn't what the club wanted, we all know that because they tried long and hard to get other players. Walker, Perez, and Hairston know this too. The "competition" has only been made possible by the Cubs inability to get another SS. I'm not trying to argue but it is true that the Cubs didn't want any of these guys starting. If anything, the candidates should be happy that there is a starting job for them to strive for (they watched the reports all winter and no doubt were worried about their own standing with the Club. Even Perez, with his 2 year deal, had/has to be questioning where he fits in).

Really? I think it makes perfect sense. I think Hendry is saying that there was no secret that the team wanted to go in a different direction (in the middle infield). I don't think we can argue this considering what we know now. At the time, some people, including me, weren't sure if acquiring another SS meant that Cedeno was going to be traded or benched. Plus, many people speculated that Perez would be the 2B starter when rumors of Walker trades became public. Now we know definitively that Hendry intended to start Ronny at 2B. The club's inability to acquire another SS means that Cedeno is now the starter and they have an unforseen competition at a position they had hoped would be set. There's no doubt in my mind that the cubs wanted/want to trade Walker. They didn't really want any of these guys (Perez, Walker, or Hairston Jr) to start but now they have an opportunity to change minds.

There is competition because the Cubs have three guys at 2B that they never hoped to start this season. Let's not forget that the Cubs wanted to acquire another SS and were willing to move Cedeno to 2B. In a perfect world, the Cubs would have gotten Furcal (or Tejada), Walker would have been traded by now, and Perez and Hairston Jr. would be bench players while Ronny starts. Link Hendry on Walker and competition

No it's not. It's unlike just about any other workplace situation. And I still don't see what all the fuss is about. We have to agree to disagree. I believe that the rules of the workplace apply here (if not directly then in essence). He can't go about trashing the manager and or GM (directly or through insinuation) and think that there will be no repercussions (some would view his behavior as insubordination). I don't see how this helps his case. Even if the Cubs can't trade him they don't have to play him. I think Walker realizes now that he's stepped over the line. It has been reported, on the radio, that Hendry talked with him about the "liar" comment. Since that time he's been very conciliatory and offered public apologies.

He was asked if the limited no trade clause covered Spring Training and conceeded that it probably did not. The Cubs may still be able to trade him anywhere before the regular season begins.

In 2004 Walker signed as a backup so he had no right to be frustrated. In 2005 he was promised a starting position and when he wasn't injured he was the starter. I don't believe that Hendry promised him anything with regard to picking up his option; Walker has retracted his own statements about this issue. The Cubs made a business decision not unlike other teams. Walker can't have it both ways; that is, he can't publically say he loves the team and wants to play then insinuate that he's been lied to (then claim to be misquoted). Whether he likes it or not he is at the mercy of the Cubs (just as most players are to their team). He agreed to the team option. This situation is very similar to any other workplace. While it is true that he will be paid, even if released, it is also a truism for other players yet it is the exception and not the rule to have open disagreements with management (unless the goal is to be traded which Walker says he doesn't want). I still contend that his loose cannon ways with the media are hurting his chances on this team and possibly with other teams as well.