MeatampPotatoesMan

Blanco is worth $1.5M IMO, but the rest is wasteful.

Z next, please.

Take away the few million we gave to scrubs like Rusch and Neifi and money becomes less an issue with Prior and Z (b/c we'd have more freed up). I'd want to keep those two as happy in Chicago as possible. I'm going to be supremely upset if Z and/or Prior walk in FA.

doh! sorry. :(

His core muscles do need to be strengthened. According to Hendry, Aramis is doing that. The leg/groin injuries really woke Ramirez up to that. He's developed chronic issues in his lower body and it isn't due to lack of stretching, but rather strength issues (according to Hendry on ESPN 1000).

I'd like an explanation of how Cedeno or Murton are not ready to be #2 hole hitters, yet Neifi is? Neifi had a .300 OBP as a #2 hitter last year. How many of his GIDP's were from the 2 hole last year? Neifi had a .263 OBP as a lead off hitter last year. I'll take my chances on Cedeno or Murton before I let Neifi anywhere near the top of the order, thank you very much. i agree. i think Neifi would really impact Pierre's basestealing threat. he spoils so many pitches without making solid contact. he's not good with the hit and run either. all we need in the 2 hole is plate discipline. walker, hairston, or murton would do ok. cedeno just doesn't walk enough. i have a feeling he is going to be really streaky until he develops his eye. i doubt dusty would let him bat 2nd anyway. he just hasn't had the time to break him in like he has Murton. dusty says he likes to bring players along so they'll succeed. ronny in the 2 hole before the ASB isn't too likely, even if he could handle it.

no problem. i'm just happy murton and cedeno look to be opening day starters (hendry isn't saying they have a chance to compete...it sounds like they are locks). i think ronny really solidified his place with his performance in Venezuela (the Hendry crowd doesn't care about avg. driven obp or no walks). i'll take ronny over neifi any day. at least there is the promise of offensive improvement. hendry did say that murton and cedeno could be 2 hole hitters in the future, kind of implying that they weren't ready quite yet. solid performances at the beginning of the year will help their chances i would imagine. murton would be a solid 2 hole hitter b/c of his plate discipline, but if he develops too much power, he might be better at 5 or 6. i just don't want neifi batting 2nd, lol.

cubs.com link Wilken left the Jays (he was VP at the time) b/c "I decided I needed to look for more opportunities and to make more of a contribution to an organization." - source: Toronto Sun. Here's a list of Wilken's last 10 top first round picks: 1996 Billy Koch, rhp Out of baseball 1997 Vernon Wells, of Blue Jays 1998 Felipe Lopez, ss Reds 1999 Alex Rios, of Blue Jays 2000 Miguel Negron, of Blue Jays 2001 Gabe Gross, of Blue Jays 2002 Russ Adams, ss Blue Jays 2003 Aaron Hill, ss Blue Jays 2004 David Purcey, lhp Blue Jays 2005 Ricky Romero, lhp Blue Jays 1997 draft really stunk. the top 16 picks were: 1.Matt Anderson, rhp, Tigers 2.J.D. Drew, of, Phillies 3.Troy Glaus, 3b, Angels 4.Jason Grilli, rhp, Giants 5.Vernon Wells, of, Blue Jays 6. Geoff Goetz, lhp, Mets 7. Dan Reichert, rhp, Royals 8. J.J. Davis, of, Pirates 9. Michael Cuddyer, 3b, Twins 10. Jon Garland, rhp, Cubs 11. Chris Enochs, rhp, Athletics 12. Aaron Akin, rhp, Marlins 13. Kyle Peterson, rhp, Brewers 14. Brandon Larson, ss, Reds 15.Jason Dellaero, ss, White Sox 16. Lance Berkman, Astros Wilken did a good job with Wells. The only name i saw that was available for selection that comes close to Wells is Berkman. other Wilken successes: from a BA Article

it seems like that view comes from Zalinski and Hendry trusts Zalinski (scout). That doesn't mean that I'm not gonna blame Hendry if Jones is a bust. Or give him credit if he perfroms well. Hendry committed the guy to a three year deal after two bad years. It was his choice to follow that scout's advice. Hendry better hope he's right. i completely agree, although i am somewhat comforted that it was Zalinski, who has a good track record with guys like Barrett and Rusch (scrap heap special), rather than a general impression of the scouts. i've given up all hope that Hendry knows what OBP is, so we'd better pray Zalinski is on the money.

he didn't say anything about making more moves. i don't know if that implies he's done. my opinion: we're not done if the right deal came along. it sounds like hendry has been tied up doing the arbitration work with Prior, Z, etc. so the deal-making period may have cooled off for us. we're pretty set other than a starting middle infielder (possibly), but it sounds like Cedeno is getting a starting SS job and we have 3 guys who can play 2B (Perez, Hairston, Walker).

it seems like that view comes from Zalinski and Hendry trusts Zalinski (scout).

- i enjoy ST unless we lose guys right off like in '04 - my kid is a big cubs fan phone ------------ i've coached HS over 20 years. team chemistry is an intangible. great players don't equate to winning...arizona and anaheim for example. do you as GM get involved in that capacity or stay in clubhouse. important to have good clubhouse. we haven't not won b/c of clubhouse. at pro level, it goes hand in hand with winning. it snowballs when winning, or pulling out of a bad stretch, like the WSox did last year when they ran the table after slumping. we added high character guys in offseason. the bigger the market, the more scrutiny. chemistry goes hand in hand with winning players. ----------------- dusty's contract (and yours) - i don't worry about it, never have - you shouldn't presume extensions are there - live out the contract - we need to do better than last year - our main goal phone --------------- in sept. Aramis was announced would undergo offseason workout program. capable of having monster DLee numbers. young guy, 27 years old. hitting is natural for him. groin has become a chronic problem for him. he's in great shape. our guys have visited him in Dominican. -------------------- - ARam hasn't been negligent, but usually it takes a jolt (like Prior who never had a twinge in his life until last year). changes at Wrigley (bleachers, restaurant) - haven't been out there a whole lot (arby contracts kept me busy) - we've enhanced Wrigley w/o harming ballpark - get more people in the seats and help us stan zalinksi (scout) - great scout who wants to stay with hs and college kids - can rely on for pro trades - Barrett and Rusch were his guys - scouted Jacque Jones (felt Jones would surprise some people) are we right there with houston and st. louis now? - they deserve the recognition they've gotten - we need to get out of the gate better - cards have been ahead of us big time by may - division will be tight battle - don't assume cards are worse b/c of losses - we improved defensively and athletically Clemens - don't know if he'll continue to pitch - great pitcher, hopes goes to another team besides houston if pitches, lol later Jim! DLee is coming on soon. 8)

You have to be crafty and switch it up once on air. :wink: :lol: :wink:

more pressure on b/c WSox won - i guess - we had such a bad year and they had a great year - we won 79 games - we were knocking on the door (2003) and it hasn't happened - the bar was raised in '03 - we were better than '03 in '04 - it's my responisibility for the things that don't go well phone ----------- if OF is solidified, why not move Pie or trade him? only plays OF. no deal was offered that was appropriate and had no desire to trade him. most GMs ask for Pie up front even in the average type deals. he's not untouchable. anybody is possible to be traded if it makes the team better. ------------ Break Time

haha, the screener won't let me on air b/c my question isn't nice. :cry:

all new OF - will be a very productive OF - Pierre will ignite offense, quality defender, good teammate - happy with Murton's progress; hit for power and average - Jones isn't getting hoopla, but is very good player and is productive - ability is there to get hits, but we didn't have timely hitting last year - more hitting and running, and running - cedeno and murton could eventually be #2 hitters - we think we have some good candidates for the 2 hole phone ----------- excited about pierre as cub. how does he mesh with jones? we needed a lefty hitter. our scouts felt jones was a much better player than the last couple lines on his bubble gum card. he plays outstanding D and will be much more productive than he was last year. ------------ Felix Pie had unfortunate winter - hairline stress fracture in June - should have been here same date as Murton but injury happened - didn't get a chance to get a good look at him - missed a lot of time - off to a slow start b/c of a lack of playing - needs to play more in the system - w/ missed time won't be ready to go opening day in MLB

haha, that was funny how he threw in that bit about Dusty loving the kids and the reason he has that label is that he didn't get any quality youngsters to play in SF. :lol:

Hendry - "we had to address some glaring weaknesses" - 7th and 8th inning pitching - leadoff hitter (only 5-6 great ones in game) - Howry and Eyre to be outstanding 8th inning pitchers - big name closer would have been a splash, but we had Dempster is the season going to depend on Wood and Prior? - we've obviously added depth to the staff - mentioned Angel Guzman as competing for a spot in ST - confident Mark Prior is completely healthy - Wood should be ready open week (or at worst a couple weeks behind according to doctor who did surgery) - Rusch and Williams are fine - we took a chance with Miller - Z is on the road to stardom - Maddux "can still pitch" on Rusch... - said Rusch's contract is very, very fair - pitches well against St. Louis and Cincy - owns left handed hitters - Cinci matched up well against our right handers Maddux hired a trainer in offseason (first time in 20 years he's done that) - Greg has been really getting after it phone line time! ----------------------- Murton got sent down after performing fantastically. if goes 0-4 opening day, will we see grissom from then on? - we are very committed to playing Murton and Cedeno every day. - Ronny is unanimous ROY in Venezuela (close to being MVP of league) STATION BREAK

it's on right now.

food for thought on the scouting front: Wilken is new scouting director

I'd rather keep Prior & Zambrano b/c one of them is what the Reds would have asked for. The Cubs would had to overpay for Kearns, since the Cubs & Reds are in the same division. A combination of Williams & other prospects wouldn't have done it for the Reds. IIRC, there were reports during the GM meetings that JH had talks with the Reds about Kearns & that the cost was too much. They didn't ask for Prior or Z. :wink: It might have cost us as much as Rich Hill. Did Jim tell you this? :roll: be nice. all media reports i read mentioned hill or someone of his caliber. none of them mentioned Z or Prior for Kearns.

how does that fit in with what Prior wanted and what the cubs offered? i do like Hendry's policy of not letting players go to arbitration. =D> edit: viewtopic.php?t=28484 Prior - $4.0 / $3.3

I'd rather keep Prior & Zambrano b/c one of them is what the Reds would have asked for. The Cubs would had to overpay for Kearns, since the Cubs & Reds are in the same division. A combination of Williams & other prospects wouldn't have done it for the Reds. IIRC, there were reports during the GM meetings that JH had talks with the Reds about Kearns & that the cost was too much. They didn't ask for Prior or Z. :wink: It might have cost us as much as Rich Hill.

personally, i'd rather have kearns, injury concerns and slumps included, over jones on the payroll for 3 years at 16M. kearns isn't my favorite option for RF either, but he was available (still is) and doesn't make a ton of money. he would be easy movable (or just dropped) in the future should some stud RF come along in FA or via trade. jones is not going to be easily movable if he tanks. jones doesn't catch the ball well enough to justify giving him 3 years. i'd rather pay a couple million more for Burnitz (1 year contract), who played solid D with comparable offensive numbers.

Jim - For some reason Vlad, Abreu and Dunn didn't fall in our lap. Me - I've never asked for a superstar in RF, just someone who can do more than "catch the ball" for $16M/3. Smartass. Oh, and do something about that hair. Jim - Who's not a superstar, but does more than catch the ball?? Me - Hardcore Cub fans set their sights way too high this offseason considering what was available. The Cubs need to try the novel concept of developing their own talent and not relying on free agency to fill need after need. Meat - Are you kidding me, Hendry? Have you seen Jones' numbers in relation to other qualified RFers over the last two years. He's in the bottom third offensively. ---------- Oh, and how long will it take to develop our own position players (that are actually decent)? How old will Prior, Zambrano, Lee, and Ramirez be at that time? Setting our sights too high? No, just don't fill the roster with the likes of Neifi and Jones with multi-year deals. I'm not asking for the all-star team, just more prudent decision making. Who likes the Jones signing? Neifi? Rusch? 3 boneheaded moves.