muntjack

This signals to me that Girardi will be the new manager. Interviewing the 2 in-house candidates looks an awful lot like a formality.

Cabrera Manny Arod Crawford Zito Andruw Drew Hendry's list: Geoff Jenkins Luis Gonzalez Russ Ortiz Brett Tomko

Just ask A-Ram who he wants, and hire him.

All I want is a manager who won't bat Izturis in the 2 hole, and won't sac bunt every time a player reaches first with no outs. I think the most likely of the three to comply is Brenly.

I would offer Florida Donny Veal, Felix Pie, Jake Fox, Scott Moore and Sean Gallagher for Miguel Cabrera. I would offer Atlanta Jacque Jones, Sean Marshall and David Aardsma for Andruw Jones. I would sign Jason Schmidt Theriot Murton Cabrera Lee Ramirez Jones Barrett Izturis Zambrano Schmidt Hill Prior Miller

I sincerely believe we are not going to be giving starts to players like Les Walrond or Ryan O'Malley next year. Nor should we have to rush half a dozen AA kids into major roles on the staff. Considering what we went through this year, an ERA under 5.00 is incredible.

Andruw Jones> Vernon Wells Jones would also likely cost less talent, considering his larger contract. Jacque Jones and Sean Marshall could very well do it if we take the full brunt of the contract.

This is just the typical spin that upper management gives to the media when firing personnel. I don't think we should infer too much from this. To start talking specifics today is self-defeating from his point of view. It is quite possible that Hendy's plan is contingent on Aramis' decision. What kind of position would he be putting himself in to say "Our plan is to win the World Series next year" and then have Aramis declare he won't be back tomorrow?

But why hasn't he talk to them yet? What's he waiting for? He was waiting to fire Dusty. He also said "I told Dusty I would talk to him before any of the coaches"

It's pretty obvious by Hendry's comments that the coaches are gone. He said, among other things, "It's not appropriate for me to comment without talking to them first."

Was the Griffey HR his fault? No. What about the Edmonds HR off of Remlinger? What about his obsession with R/L matchups that often put bad players in difficult situations? What about trotting Shawn Estes and Glendon Rusch out to slaughter OVER and OVER again when there were better options? What about the countless other times he ignored or misinterpreted stats, and it cost us a game? Dusty may not swing the bat, or throw the ball, but he has control over who does. He lost many, many games for the Chicago Cubs.

Four years later, and the nightmare is over http://images.encarta.msn.com/xrefmedia/sharemed/targets/images/pho/t048/T048749A.jpg His attitude the last few months and in the article tonight really keeps me from having ANY sympathy for the man. He refuses to take responsibility, which he should do if he feels it's true or not. Goodbye Dusty, you are a poor manager.

Sadly, the offseason is generally the best season for the cubs fan. We can pretend we're going to acquire the top free agents, make blockbuster deals, and set ourselves up as front runners for the world series. I know I get an immense satisfaction speculating and armchair GMing this time of year.

I just want to state for the record that while I want to see Jim Hendry and his antiquated approach to player evaluation gone, I know that he is still FAR from the worst option out there. There are many other potential GM's with a poor understanding of statistical analysis who would not be able to pull off a Lee for Choi or Nomar deal. I think Jim's philosophy of building the system from the ground up is the correct one, and his recent attempts to acquire younger talent instead of McGriff types are admirable. If he just valued OBP% more, I believe he could be a very good general manager. I fear Gary Hughes.

1 for 3

What did he say? MLB.tv cut off.

I've always been confused how a guy can't be judged for a job based on 100+ AB's during the regular season, but he can be judged for a job based on fewer ABs during the spring. Why is regular season performance less valuable than spring training performance when judging a young player's ability?

Miguel Cabrera is the best pure hitter in all of baseball.

If I am Tampa Bay, no way do I trade Crawford for Dontrelle. Willis is a solid #2 or 3, not worth giving up a young all-star caliber outfielder. If I am Atlanta, however, I would pull the trigger immediately. Francour (The anti-Dunn) is just as overrated as Dontrelle, and the Braves could use the pitching.

Just to chime back in, I really am torn on what I want the cubs to do with Theriot. On one hand, it is not unprecedented for a player to arrive in the big leagues at age 26 and simultaneously hit his stride, eclipsing his minor league numbers in the majors. On the other hand, it is certainly common for a player to run hot for his first 100 ABs before coming down to earth. I found myself wondering what it is about Theriot, if anything, that makes me think he can continue to produce at a level near this. 1. It's obvious to me that Ryan has a good understanding of the strike zone. His K/BB ratio has been above average throughout his minor league career. I see no reason that ability will diminish, so I have to believe that his IsoD will remain above league average. As long as he keeps his average above .275, he should have a healthy OBP%. 2. In the short time I have been able to watch Theriot on the basepaths, it is evident that he is fundamentally sound ( he did make the one glaring mistake), and possesses above average speed. His high success rate in stolen base attempts is in too small of a sample size to make a positive prediction of future success, though he seems to get good jumps and time his attempts well. We all know speed doesn't slump, so it is likely that Theriot will also continue to be an above average baserunner. 3. It would be one of the great statistical anomalies in recent baseball history if Ryan continued to show power at the rate he has so far. There simply has been no sign of this at any level in his career. I can't see him slugging .500 over the course of a season at any point in his career. Any continued development in this area would have to be viewed as a bonus. 4. At 2nd base, Ryan seems to have an average glove, slightly below average range, a good turn, and at least average instincts. There is nothing remarkable about him defensively, but he will probably not butcher the routine turns, and will make the occasional great play. Would you take a .280/.355/.420 line with average defense at 2nd base next year? Personally, I would like to try and contend next year, and I think we can get a better line from an affordable free agent. Basing my decision on those numbers, I make Ryan our utility guy. Then I remember that he recently stopped switch hitting, and he is entering his prime, and even with those numbers above Ryan would be producing on par with Ichiro, and I realize how tough this decision will be for management. Consider what Hendry would overpay to a veteran who will slightly outproduce those numbers, and how that money could be the difference between Padilla and Zito. Are .295/.350/.475 and Padilla > Theriot and Zito? If we can sign Alfonso Soriano to play second base, it is worth relegating Theriot to the bench and worth the difference in salary . Any other free agent will not outproduce Theriot enough to justify the salary difference, imo.

With a minumum of 100 ABs, the player with the highest OPS is......? Can anyone guess without looking it up? Answer in white below: Ryan Theriot at .910

Kerry Wood should be a cub for life. It's very unfortunate that he hasn't been healthy enough to reach his potential. Regardless, he single handedly provided me with the greatest game I've ever seen, and for that I will always be a Kerry Wood fan.

If we're selling the farm, call Florida first, please.

He said yesterday he wants to play here next year, which is better than the "I'll just let my agent handle it" mantra we've been hearing, imo.

His curveball sure looked good last time out. If he can just get that fastball back to 93 or so, he'd make a great 3rd starter.