USSoccer

Such has been our luck since October of 2003..... I think Dusty can go get him now, before his arm melts off...

Roids. Clearly. I know you're kidding, right? Of course. As in 94% of my posts. gotcha.

Roids. Clearly. I know you're kidding, right?

Good news: Cubs finally find a 3B at least as good as Santo was. Bad news: His legs are about as good as Santo's are now. :cry: [-X [-X [-X [-X [-X [-X Kat, that was *harsh*.

based on what? Hopefully it's just a nasty fall, and after a day off he'll be okay to go Friday.

Any update on Aramis's injury, for those of us chained to a cubicle?

We have one, in Premium.

Tried to hustle to first and screwed up his quad. So is this going to be good enough for the people who complained about ARam taking it easy on his leg? :roll: Hate to say I told you so if he is done for awhile, but... :x

Aw crap. Crap crap crap crap crap. What happened??

You're kidding, right?

I think guys like Hank Aaron, LaTroy Hawkins and Willie Randolph would disagree with your statement. OK. Let them disagree. The issue isn't about how much he makes. I think JC's point is that the arguments would have a lot more merit and be taken much, much more seriously if Bradley wasn't a loon in the first place. The argument and topic have merit, the messenger doesn't.

Given how hard Hendry tried to remove the "cancerous" elements of the 2004 team, I doubt he'd bring in a player notorious for erratic behavior into a clubhouse this loosely run. I just cannot see it happening. The media here in Chicago would have Bradley whipping chairs into the bleachers by May.

But, Dusty's biggest strength is managing a clubhouse. *ducks*

JC, The very mention of Jeff Kent as a Cub would be enough to send Hoops into fits of joy and bliss. And for the record, i'd trade for Kent in a second. He's a much, much better player than Walker.

You really think Hairston will be back? The current braintrust doesn't seem to like him too much. I'd guess he's gone, regardless of what I'd do. Outside of that, I agree with everything you said and hope the Cubs management does as well. He's under contract for 2006, so unless we deal him, he's ours.

So are we officially done being "in the race" yet? Don't we have to go like 30-7 the rest of the way to win 90 games? Go...Cubs.

He may have an affordable option, but he may not fit into Hendry's strategy for 2006. I think his option should be picked up , and then he should be dealt in the offseason. Hendry may view it as he can get more for him now, so he may deal him before September 1. We don't really have any in house options for 2B that could step in right away and produce on a level that Baker/Hendry would be comfortable with, unless they want to start Hairston. I can't see Hendry dealing Walker unless there is an obvious fill in. And you hit the nail on the head. Having Hairston around does give Hendry the ability to deal Walker. Is Hairston better than Walker? Of course not. Is Hairston servicable at 2B? Yes, he is. Could Walker net us something in a trade? I believe so. I think the net-net could be positive. At the very least, it should be explored. I do believe that Hendry will try hard to get Soriano in the offseason, or if he signs Furcal, could even convince Nomar to play 2B, despite the reports today that Nomar wouldn't sign a 3/4 year $27M deal with San Diego last offseason because they wanted him to play 2B. I don't get the impression that Hairston is a favorite of Hendry/Baker, though. Also, Hendry aquiring Soriano in the offseason could be dicey, since player aquisition costs always are higher in the offseason. Also, if Nomar did make a move to 2B, if almost guarantees that Perez is resigned to back up SS/2B, and it also leaves Cedeno out in the lurch. I doubt very much that Hendry and Baker would go with a rookie backup to those poisitions.

He may have an affordable option, but he may not fit into Hendry's strategy for 2006. I think his option should be picked up , and then he should be dealt in the offseason. Hendry may view it as he can get more for him now, so he may deal him before September 1. We don't really have any in house options for 2B that could step in right away and produce on a level that Baker/Hendry would be comfortable with, unless they want to start Hairston. I can't see Hendry dealing Walker unless there is an obvious fill in.

Would you give Billy Wagner 3 years and $24M? What do you think it will take to sign Giles? I'm thinking somebody will offer him 3 years and $30 million. I personally think the Cubs will target Wagner before BJ Ryan, but I don't think they'd go as high as 3/24. I think they'd go 2/14 with an option year, but I can easily see Hendry thinking that he can go into 2006 with Dempster as his closer. I wouldn't go 3/24 for Wagner. I wouldn't guarantee the 3rd year. With Giles, I can see Hendry offering a deal similar to what Alou got when we signed him in 2002. Wasn't that 3/36? I personally would go 3/27 and frontload the money to protect yourself from a decline in the 3rd year when he'll be 39. Giles fits the profile of what Hendry seems to target-veteran LH power with tools.

-Let go of Perez, Hollandsworth, Burnitz, Lawton and Rusch. -Sign Giles and Millwood. Bid for BJ Ryan (I don't think we get him.). Sign Mark Sweeney as your LH bat. -Start Murton in LF, start the season with Corey in CF. Call up Pie in June if ready. -Attempt to trade Hill, Williams, and some of our glut of relievers for Adam Dunn or Kevin Mench. If you fail, Murton in LF. -Use Aardsma and Van Buren in the pen.

Couple quick observations: #1-Hendry might need to bank some of the freed up money in case Aramis decides to opt out of his contract after 2006. He also might not need to, since Maddux's $9m would come off in 2006. But it's still something to consider. #2-If history is any indication, and Baker is still here, our bench will likely be about the same. I think you can bank on Hairston, Perez and Blanco being back with the team. Worse, Hendry has a very poor track record when it comes to evaluating backup players and then offering them much more money than they are worth. #3-I would not hold my breath on being able to sign Damon, Burnett or Giles. Those are the 3 marquee names out there, and I would be shocked if the Cubs came in competitive on any of them. Millwood is more likely, but I can see the Yankees going after Milwood harder than Burnett, depending on if Cashman or Steinbrenner is calling the shots. #4-I doubt the Cubs will go after BJ Ryan. I can see them chasing after Billy Wagner, but I doubt they will pony up the years or cash to sign him. Keep in mind that the Cubs have not signed a major FA since Greg Maddux (and the wise-ness of that decision is debatable), and before him it was Moises Alou. The Cubs do spend money on their own players, but rarely do you see them getting in bidding wars. Personally, I would wave goodbye to Perez, Lawton, Hollandsworth, Rusch and Burnitz. Lawton is a bad player. He's an absolute butcher in the field, and has taken 1 walk since he was aquired. I would only resign Garciaparra if it was at a rate around 60% of 2005 guaranteed money, and cram the deal full of incentives. I would exercise the option on Walker, only because there's not much better out there. I would sign Giles to play RF, stick Murton in LF and bat him 2nd, have Walker lead off, and let Corey start off the year in CF, and call up Pie in June if ready. I would sign Millwood, and attempt to trade Williams and Hill for Adam Dunn. If they don't bite, Williams takes Rusch's role as swing in the pen, and Hill waits for the inevitable injury to someone on our staff in AAA. Zambrano Prior Millwood Wood (Williams til ready) Maddux I would attempt to sign BJ Ryan, and if that didn't work, I'd build my pen like so: Williams Williamson Ohman Aardsma Novoa Van Buren (SU) Dempster (CL) I would let Dempster walk if we aquire Ryan, but I think that's a cheap, young bullpen with ability. Spending money on a bullpen can be a colossal waste of money, since relievers are so up and down anyways. You have a lineup of: Walker Murton Ramirez Giles Lee Garciaparra Walker Barrett Patterson. I accept that you need a LH bat on the bench, and a 4th OF. I'd like Mark Sweeney as the LH bat. I'd have Cedeno back up SS, Hairston back up CF and 2B, and Blanco back up C. That leaves one spot open for either the token veteran stiff, or a young player like Greenberg. I think that team fits the budget, is a bit improved as far as OPB goes, and more consistent pitching-wise. It also has room for improvement as the year goes on. You can ditch CPatt and bring up Pie, or trade for a CF. If Walker gets hurt, you have room to deal for Soriano at 2B. If Murton stinks as an everyday LF, you can deal for a corner OF.

If Macias counts as an OF, than Hairston should too. I guess, but both are pretty *meh* out there...

I'll say this also: No reason for Wellemeyer to be on this team right now. Carrying 12 pitchers is dumb. I don't care if we're in Colorado. The Rockies suck. If they beat up our staff we don't deserve to contend.

Wow. Just...wow. I can't wait until Hendry is interviewed on this move. I guarantee it'll go something like "he needs to play everyday, he'll be back Sept 1st, but we want him to get more experience against RHP, Jerry is versatile, veteran, etc..." We're back to 3 utility IF on the roster, and we don't have a single RH OF bat except for Macias. Hendry is really making short work of the farm system he built.

Technically speaking, if he's cleared waivers, Hendry can't just claim him per se. If he's cleared waivers, all 29 other teams have a shot at making a deal with the Mariners. He's got 2 player options - $4M in '05 and $4.25M in '06, so any club getting him is on the hook for $8.25M minus whatever a team can get Seattle to pick up. If I'm Seattle, I don't pick up any cash unless I get a stud prospect in return. What trade idea do you have in mind? I know we have a lot of Rule 5 bubble guys...Do you think Seattle would take bulk over 1 stud prospect? If Seattle won't take bulk then pass. No way is Guardado worth even a semi-stud prospect, though I'd take him. The reason that he would be worth a top prospect is his contract. In order to get Seattle to eat some salary