Fanzones trumpet

It's a gamble either way because even if he is legit, several things can happen between now and then to dissolve a deal. Remember the Bruce Levine rumor, I have every reason to believe it was true, but something happened (like Remmy getting hurt) and deal never came true and Levine looked like an idiot. Levine is legitimate media with a proven track record. Doesn't it strike you as odd that the Cubs are about to acquire the best player on the team they've been playing the last two days and none of the Chicago media that's been in town for 3 days has an inkling? Nobody really believes this will happen but enough people really want it to happen and are bored so what the heck. I'm fine with discussing the merits of a trade. I hate to see guys come on here to get peoples' hopes up, then turn around and laugh at them for their gullibility. Remember a couple of months ago some guy reported that Dunn and Graves were on a flight to Chi.?

It's a gamble either way because even if he is legit, several things can happen between now and then to dissolve a deal. Remember the Bruce Levine rumor, I have every reason to believe it was true, but something happened (like Remmy getting hurt) and deal never came true and Levine looked like an idiot. Levine is legitimate media with a proven track record. Doesn't it strike you as odd that the Cubs are about to acquire the best player on the team they've been playing the last two days and none of the Chicago media that's been in town for 3 days has an inkling?

Methinks you protest just a bit too much. Previous posts end with identification as a Cardinals fan, and laughing at the Cubs' fans who fell for the gag as being "desperate." Your post is too similar to the other hoaxes in multiple respects for me to believe otherwise.

B, but based on the pattern, as close to A as possible without actually knowing his identity.

The Fanzone Trumpet post kinda surprised me. It was pretty harsh of this sweetpotato guy. But why? Fanzone, are you just guessing, or do you know this first-time poster from another board? I don't Fanzone or Sweet, so for now I'll trust the starter of this thread because he's telling me what I want to hear :) I know the pattern from previous false alarms; it's uncannily similar. In fact, I could have mentioned other things like the trade happening in 48 hours and the fellow claiming to be a regular poster on Cubs and ESPN who would NEVER troll. Granted, but let me put it this way. In a bad cop movie, the guy they arrest always says, "I didn't do it!" and the cop says, "That's what they all say." That movie would be as bad as that argument, because even the innocent ones say they're innocent. Whether he's telling the truth or not, he's going to phrase it like that. All I'm saying is that when you called him out a few pages back, you didn't leave a lot of room for doubt in your phrasing. I don't have any doubt based on similar hoaxes that have been perpetrated in the past. I'm not saying a Dunn trade to the Cubs won't happen, although I think it's pretty unlikely for the package proposed; there are credible reports on this board and elsewhere that the Reds have offered him around. But I'm very confident, based on past experience, that this poster has no more inside information than you or I. If nothing happens in the next 48 hours, we can expect a post from the originator telling everyone that they're fools.

The Fanzone Trumpet post kinda surprised me. It was pretty harsh of this sweetpotato guy. But why? Fanzone, are you just guessing, or do you know this first-time poster from another board? I don't Fanzone or Sweet, so for now I'll trust the starter of this thread because he's telling me what I want to hear :) I know the pattern from previous false alarms; it's uncannily similar. In fact, I could have mentioned other things like the trade happening in 48 hours and the fellow claiming to be a regular poster on Cubs and ESPN who would NEVER troll.

The Fanzone Trumpet post kinda surprised me. It was pretty harsh of this sweetpotato guy. But why? Fanzone, are you just guessing, or do you know this first-time poster from another board? I don't Fanzone or Sweet, so for now I'll trust the starter of this thread because he's telling me what I want to hear :)

interesting..... in that case, this Sox The real scoop may be Fanzone's advanced trolldar. Maybe I didn't really read things correctly but he never said to ban him and he also admitted that his "source" was a low ranking Reds person who would catch the occasional bit of big news before it happened. His first post says his source usually has access to information and the moderators can ban him if he's wrong.

The originator of this thread is a troll, and the first post fits his pattern. He always reports a rumored high-profile trade involving the Cubs, claims to have a well-placed source who has never been wrong before, and tells the moderators to ban him if he turns out to be wrong. After a while, he comes on, and tells every one who believed him that they're fools. If I remember correctly, we saw a post like this a couple of years ago with Mike Lowell.

I never hated the Ramirez trade, and I didn't bad mouth the Williams acquisition. I did question the Ramirez deal because I was hoping they'd lose somebody other than Hill. My big beef with the Ramirez deal was that he still needed to prove himself before everybody praised him. I was always intrigued by his ability and upside, and made a point to praise Hendry for at least going after a guy who had a chance to be a true impact player, and not the typical Cubs mediocre 32 year old. I don't have to eat crow on Williams. I said he hasn't impressed me much. He never has. I didn't predict doom and gloom with the guy. And remember, he's still got an ERA over 4 as a Cub and over 5 on the season. He's not lighting the world on fire. I'm also not badmouthing this deal, I just don't think it's all that great. But if it leads to something else, cool. Why don't you worry about your own opinions and stop trying to pick a fight with me? I've been wrong about many things, and I don't have a problem admitting it. But the fact remains, the Cubs have been nothing more than an 88 and 89 win team the past two years with a payroll at or near the top of the league, and they are barely on pace to win 83 games this year. Obviously the Cubs front office is not beyond questioning. If you're a Cubs fan I'd be a little more concerned with their track record than mine. I'm not trying to pick a fight with you, just pointing out that you've been very wrong before. (I think you were more negative on Ramirez, particularly with regard to his salary, and thought his 2001 season was a fluke) And worrying about others' opinions is what a message board is all about. The Cubs' front office is certainly not beyond questioning. But I believe that Hendry's track record in judging talent merits more respect that what you have given him. There are plenty of teams who have won less than 88-89 games with large payrolls. and it's a pretty safe bet right now that they're gonna win more than 83 games this year.

He's a retread because he was the odd man out in a terrible OF in Cleveland. He's an incredibly dull acquisition who does nothing great. I have no problem trading Dubois, but they needed an impact bat, not another excuse for Dusty to bench the Cubs bench leadoff option on a regular basis. Like many Hendry deals, this isn't a bad deal, but it's terrible redundant and barely helpful, at all. I guess he wanted a second chance to make up for that silly Bay trade. Hopefully they aren't stupid enough to send down a bat after this move. It's pretty clear, they don't need 7 relievers. Sergio needs to go down and get some innings. I'd have much rather seen Dubois added to a package for a more meaningful acquisition. Oh well, I've grown accustomed to pointless moves by the Cubs. It's not a pointless move; it's a very good move because it strengthens the bench significantly--particularly defensively, even if Gerut doesn't "break out" into an every day player. I feel compelled to point out that your track record on assessing trades isn't spotless. i remember you and I arguing about Ramirez at the time of the trade (you hated it). If I remember correctly, you also weren't high on the Lee trade. and I 'm pretty sure you're gonna have to eat crow on Jerome Williams too.

Excellent move. Dubois had no value to the Cubs this year or in the future; even assuming for the sake of argument that he could eventually play an adequate LF, Murton is obviously a much better prospect. Gerut should make a fine 4th OF next year and provides very good flexibility this year. Lee is going to need rest or he's gonna wear down like last year. With Gerut, Hollandworth can move to first and Gerut plays left against a tough righty. Burnitz is also gonna need rest and Gerut can spell him. Finally, the current CF is not an everyday player. Not to burst the bubble of perception, but Hairston was an everyday player in Baltimore; he just kept getting hurt. He was an every day 2B on a bad team who was eventually supplanted by Brian Roberts ; he was not an every day OF in Baltimore. and he's not an every day CF on a playoff team. He also stands a very good chance of being dealt in the next two weeks if you read between the lines.

Excellent move. Dubois had no value to the Cubs this year or in the future; even assuming for the sake of argument that he could eventually play an adequate LF, Murton is obviously a much better prospect. Gerut should make a fine 4th OF next year and provides very good flexibility this year. Lee is going to need rest or he's gonna wear down like last year. With Gerut, Hollandworth can move to first and Gerut plays left against a tough righty. Burnitz is also gonna need rest and Gerut can spell him. Finally, the current CF is not an everyday player.

It's already begun. Ozzie/the team is a fraud. This smacks of bitterness and jealousy. Yes, they had a bad serious against Oakland (the A's have had their number and are playing excellent ball right now), but they are hardly, imo, about to begin some slide. The team is not a fraud and are headed for the post-season. It's going to be very hard for them to miss the playoffs, but I think it's worth pointing out that they've had a really easy schedule so far (lots of games against KC, TB and interleague against the weak NL West), and things are going to get a lot tougher for them the next 7 weeks. Their August schedule is absolutely brutal. Minnesota is only 8 back, and Cleveland has a cupcake schedule the rest of the way. If the Sox play a bad series against Cleveland this weekend, there could be problems.

I don't want Klesko. I'd be interested in Brian Giles as a FA. Isn't he a FA after this year? Although his power #s are way down from Pittsburgh days, his OBP is still very high, and there's a possibility his power #s will spike going from Petco to Wrigley.

I don't see any point in trading him unless you think his performance to date is a fluke. You'd just be back in the same boat next year trying to fill a critical position that the Cubs have been trying to fill long-term for 20 years, and likely overpaying to do it. One of the positives from this year is that the Cubs may be able to build a very good bullpen for next year for less than $10 million, which is less than what they're paying Hawkins, Remlinger and Borowski this year. You wouldn't be in the same boat. For one, you'd have Williamson available. But more importantly, you'll have a lot more money to play with than Hendry had this offseason. JoBo, Latroy, Remlinger and Dempster would all be off the books from the bullpen. Then of course the Sosa money would be free. The more success Dempster has this season, the more expensive he'll be in the offseason. One way or another you'll be paying a high price for relief help. I'm not talking about just letting the guy go. But if the closer market heats up this month, and the Cubs fall out of the hunt, they shouldn't turn down all requests for Dempster just because they've had bad luck looking for closers recently. Remember, this is a team that has employed about 8 of the top 20 saves guys in the history of the sport. It's not impossible to find guys to fill the spot, in spite of all the angst between 2004 and earlier this year. At this point, you don't know how effective Williamson will be; in fact I'm not aware of any pitcher who's had 2 Tommy John surgeries and been effective. Dempster shouldn't be too expensive--4-5 million. There's no guarantee the Cubs could get Ryan or Wagner (who's contemplating retirement), and even if they did, it would cost them much more than Dempster. Right now, it looks like the Cubs are gonna have to replace their entire OF next year. Why not husband all resources towards improving that area, and building a first rate bench?

I don't see any point in trading him unless you think his performance to date is a fluke. You'd just be back in the same boat next year trying to fill a critical position that the Cubs have been trying to fill long-term for 20 years, and likely overpaying to do it. One of the positives from this year is that the Cubs may be able to build a very good bullpen for next year for less than $10 million, which is less than what they're paying Hawkins, Remlinger and Borowski this year.

I think the issue here is that this will never happen. Do you see Dusty playing Hairston full time in LF? I don't. Just because Dusty won't put Hairston in LF doesn't mean you go out and get somebody he will play who won't be much better. This stinks of the Bellhorn deal. Dusty refused to play Bellhorn, so Hendry goes out and gets Hernandez. He won't put Hairston out there for a reason; he simply can't play a corner OF position defensively for an extended period of time. He did last year in Baltimore and made 1 error in 42 starts. Most of those starts came in the corner OF (24 RF, 15 LF). He's much more comfortable on a corner. I respectfully disagree. I live in Md., and saw him play many times last year. He misplayed balls repeatedly as a corner OF. So the fact that he was charged with only one error doesn't tell the whole story. In fact, things got so bad thay he publicly complained about having to play out there. He's more comfortable as a CF, but no great shakes there either. And apart from the defensive issues, there are also serious durability questions.

I think the issue here is that this will never happen. Do you see Dusty playing Hairston full time in LF? I don't. Just because Dusty won't put Hairston in LF doesn't mean you go out and get somebody he will play who won't be much better. This stinks of the Bellhorn deal. Dusty refused to play Bellhorn, so Hendry goes out and gets Hernandez. He won't put Hairston out there for a reason; he simply can't play a corner OF position defensively for an extended period of time.