BWcubs21

sounded like a fun game to go see. I havent been up to a game at the Metrodome for a long time, were talking since the Twins last world series. Was that the game where the fan ran on the field?

Well I am sorta depressed now, only the Pirates and Royals are worse then us! Is there a Texiera type bat availabe at the top of the draft next year? If so I can take a little solace in that fact.

He should be the one who goes. The Angels would be stupid to remove anyone else from the rotation. Didnt Jeff turn down a multi-year deal? Big mistake if he did!

Yep it sounds as though he is available, but I dont know that we have what they want.

No one player can solve all the problems. But some players can solve more than others. And there are plenty of guys who can solve more than Crawford. Carl would be a nice piece of your team, if he was already on your team. But if you have to give up a load to get him it defeats the purpose. Ok, well I agree with you then it that sense. If he is going to cost an arm and a leg then I would probably pass as well. I thought you were contending that he just was a ho-hum player. I would rather save top prospects for someone such as Cabrera.

I don't think there is anything ideal about hitting a guy, for whom a .346 OBP would be a career best, near the top of the order. He doesn't have much patience, strikes out too much in comparison to his walks to really think he's going to emerge as a truly great player. I'm basing this on the careers of guys in baseball who truly are difference makers right now. Guys like Vlad and Nomar can get away with this type of approach and still produce, but that player is few and far between. David Wright is a young player with difference maker written all over him. He hits for average, draws walks and has fantastic power. He outpaces Crawford in everything that matters most. Carl has been no better than Orlando Cabrerra this year, who is certainly not a difference maker. He's been a hair better than Joe Crede, who has never been confused with a difference maker. Like I said, I dont think he will be one of the best players in the game (such as Wright could be), but he will be very good. If you only want to add players such as that to our team then you are delusional becuase it will never happen. Now if you are saying that teams or people have him hyped up to be that kind of player and he will cost us way to much, then I can understand your not wanting to aquire him. To say he is just a ho-hum player and assume is his never going to improve, well then that is completly inaccurate. Yes his .346 OBP is a career high, but he is only 24 years old, I would be much more concerned if he was 28 and that was his career high. One last thing, look at his patience this year as opposed to last: 2006 16/26 BB/K 2005 27/84 BB/K

Cabrera is a realistic possibility to be trade bait. Abreu is still capable of leading a good team from the heart of the order. If not him, then Burrell might be on the block. Drew may be dealt by the new Dodgers regime. I'm not a big fan of either, but Carlos Lee and Soriano would probably have more impact than Crawford, and both could be on new teams sometime this season, if not next. To me he's Corey Patterson, without the blown out knee and time spent screwed around by the Cubs. I wouldn't have a problem with him in CF (assuming he can play), but you'd really have to do something to the rest of the lineup to truly solve the problems on this team. I dont think there is one player who can solve the problems that this team is having, but thats a whole different discussion. Obviously Cabrera would be incredible, but there are going to be a ton of teams throwing top prospects at the Marlins. I would love to get Carlos Lee for next year as a FA. BTW I would assume the Cubs would put Crawford in CF, not in a corner outfield spot, but then again assuming things with Dusty in charge doesnt always work.

I'm not saying he's worthless and can't continue to improve. I just think he's overrated by the hype, hasn't done enough as a pro to warrent all the excitement, and isn't capable of being a cornerstone corner outfielder. I think he might peak at a little higher level than Jacque Jones, and probably make a lot of money as a major leaguer for many years. But I don't think he's worth giving up a ton of talent, because I don't think he can be a difference maker. Guys who walk as infrequently as him have to be one of a kind talents to have great success. He's no Vlad, or even Soriano. You dont think Carl Crawford can be a difference maker?!?! On what facts are you basing this, because everything I see leads me to believe he is an ideal #2 hitter. He has great speed (possibly the best in the game), impoving strike zone judgement (16/26 BB/K ratio this year), developing power (25+ potential), gets on-base at good rate and that aspect is showing vast improvements. I am not going to pretend to be a stats expert, but I would be interested to know the average OBP of a #2 hitter. Like I have said before I dont think he is going to be the best player in the game, but he will become a very very good player. Also as HawkeyeCub said, if Pie was doing this we would be hailing him as the next great Cub. Crawford is ONLY 24 and is not yet a finished product.

This team turned their team over to the fans. http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2486187 Could you imagine the possiblities if the Cubs did that?!?! Go ahead and dream :D

I wouldnt mind picking him up either! Its crazy how much talent that the Rays have in the outfield.

Now there's a moron that cost himself a lot of money!

Loaiza was doing 120mph on a highway and was apparently drunk. What an idiot!

How is he "not good at getting on base"? He's got a .346 OBP this season (at the age of 24). I'd say .346 is good, ecspecially when you consider how young he is. He doesn't strike out too much (26 Ks in 242 ABs so far this year), has a decent OBP, has some good power, and a ton of speed. If this is the best he'll get, then I don't think he would command "an arm and a leg", but he's very young and improving. He also has stolen bases at a 81.5% success rate over his career. You think .346 is "good.... :roll: . .346 is pretty average for a "leadoff hitter" with his speed and pop. Not to mention Crawford career OBP is .323, so...as of right now...if I was the DRays I would jumped on Santana/Crawford deal before the Angels reconsider. Having Kazmir/Santana at the top of the rotation, would finally give the DRays pitching hope for the not so distant future. Unless it's a decent offer, I would pass on Crawford. First of, the whole rolling eyes thing is getting old and its unnecessary. .346 for this team would be great. Beats any OF we have. I never said I wanted him to lead off, either BTW. I think saying his career OBP is lower than his current, is not a good way to prove your arguement. If it wasn't, I'd be worried. I think it shows signs that he's developing and maturing into a good hitter. I expect his OBP to continue to rise. The reason I said that his OBP was good (other than the fact that it's better than practically anyone on our team) is that he is very young, and only going to get better. I agree, dont look at the career numbers of a 24 year old that is improving each year and say that is what you are going to get out of the kid.

How is he "not good at getting on base"? He's got a .346 OBP this season (at the age of 24). I'd say .346 is good, ecspecially when you consider how young he is. He doesn't strike out too much (26 Ks in 242 ABs so far this year), has a decent OBP, has some good power, and a ton of speed. If this is the best he'll get, then I don't think he would command "an arm and a leg", but he's very young and improving. He also has stolen bases at a 81.5% success rate over his career. You think .346 is "good.... :roll: . .346 is pretty average for a "leadoff hitter" with his speed and pop. Not to mention Crawford career OBP is .323, so...as of right now...if I was the DRays I would jumped on Santana/Crawford deal before the Angels reconsider. Having Kazmir/Santana at the top of the rotation, would finally give the DRays pitching hope for the not so distant future. Unless it's a decent offer, I would pass on Crawford. First of all .346 out of the leadoff spot would be heaven this year, but thats a whole different story. :) I think with his developing power that he may be better suited hitting in the 2nd spot (if you have a traditional leadoff hitter). However he is showing more patience this year and is still a few years away from his prime. Is he ever going to be a great OBP guy, probably not, but its not out of the question that as he matures into a very good OBP guy. But you have a Manager and GM that live in the stone age so I doubt they would aquire him to bat 2nd. True. Its sorta sad that in some ways I dont want the Cubs to trade for the guy because they will probably stifle his progress if not make him regress.

How is he "not good at getting on base"? He's got a .346 OBP this season (at the age of 24). I'd say .346 is good, ecspecially when you consider how young he is. He doesn't strike out too much (26 Ks in 242 ABs so far this year), has a decent OBP, has some good power, and a ton of speed. If this is the best he'll get, then I don't think he would command "an arm and a leg", but he's very young and improving. He also has stolen bases at a 81.5% success rate over his career. You think .346 is "good.... :roll: . .346 is pretty average for a "leadoff hitter" with his speed and pop. Not to mention Crawford career OBP is .323, so...as of right now...if I was the DRays I would jumped on Santana/Crawford deal before the Angels reconsider. Having Kazmir/Santana at the top of the rotation, would finally give the DRays pitching hope for the not so distant future. Unless it's a decent offer, I would pass on Crawford. First of all .346 out of the leadoff spot would be heaven this year, but thats a whole different story. :) I think with his developing power that he may be better suited hitting in the 2nd spot (if you have a traditional leadoff hitter). However he is showing more patience this year and is still a few years away from his prime. Is he ever going to be a great OBP guy, probably not, but its not out of the question that as he matures into a very good OBP guy.

CPatt is also 2 years older. Look at Crawford's numbers over the course of his career and its easy to see how much he is progressing. Any person in baseball will tell you that Crawford is the superior player. I am not saying he is going to be the best player in the game, but he has the ability to become a very very good player with the potential to hit 25+ homers and steal 60+ bases. He can play CF and that would be great production.

Wow, what happened to Huff??? Hitting below .200 with 3 homers...roids?

Also I do believe he splits time between CF and LF and I heard is moving to CF full-time because of the return Baladelli (no clue how to spell his name). I could be wrong about him moving there full-time, but he does have the ability to play CF.

He has a ton of talent, is only 24 years old, plays good D, incredible speed, he has developing power, etc... This is a guy who could very well hit 25+ homers and steal 60+ bases.

Per CBS Sportsline it looks as though the Angels are offering Ervin Santana in exchange for Crawford. http://cbs.sportsline.com/mlb/teams/page/TB

Also it sounds as though they are asking for an arm and a leg (probably your first born as well).

I dont know if this has been posted yet, but the Cubs have supposedly contacted the Rays about Carl Crawford. Here are some links. http://games.espn.go.com/cgi/flb/request.dll?PLAYERNOTESARCHIVE&Param0=6870 http://www.sptimes.com/2006/06/15/Rays/If_Crawford_s_availab.shtml I hope the Cubs are seriously exploring the possibilities, but I wont believe it till I see it.

Don't forget that comes to :shock: 0.98 WHIP. If he velocity comes back, maybe 2007 might not be a longshot. I don't think the velocity will be that big of a deal; it will be mentioned but it shouldn't affect his game too much as long as he mixes his pitches and his speeds good enough. What is he throwing? Last I heard was around 90, has he shown any improvement?

Hey I like that cheesy song!!! Anyways, I am excited for Prior's return and he has supposedly been looking good. Hopefully he can give us a bit of a boost. He is still like a week away, isn't he?

They'll be fine if they start the season with a long road trip. They won't have to worry about October. It can still get cold on occasion into early May, especially if they are playing night games, but it shouldnt be that bad. Whats bad is that the Vikings are thinking about an open-air stadium.