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Backtobanks

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  1. Backtobanks
    Murton has two strikes against him: he's not left-handed and he doesn't hit for power.
  2. Backtobanks
    From Ken Rosenthal: The Cubs not only will pursue the best available starting pitcher — C.C. Sabathia? — but they also have shown interest in Rockies closer Brian Fuentes, a left-hander who would help reduce the late-inning load on righties Carlos Marmol and Kerry Wood. Fuentes, a free agent at the end of the season, could fill a variety of roles — matchup specialist, setup man, closer — making him appealing to virtually every contender . . .
  3. Backtobanks
    Also, Griffey is owed a ton of money from previous years in which he deferred part of his contract.
  4. Backtobanks
    Here's a deal that makes sense: Brian Roberts for Rickie Weeks. The Brewers, who recently had two scouts watching the Orioles, are interested in Roberts, but it remains to be seen whether they are ready to give up on Weeks. Roberts, a more accomplished leadoff hitter and better defender than Weeks, is a more natural fit for a contender. The Orioles, meanwhile, could be patient with Weeks defensively, much as the Twins are being patient with the erratic Carlos Gomez. Weeks would be another young, athletic building block to go with Adam Jones and Nick Markakis. A straight-up deal might be out of the question, considering that Roberts is a free agent after next season while Weeks is under club control through 2011. But the Orioles could add a young pitcher or even one of their veteran relievers while perhaps getting another piece back in return. One thing is certain: The Orioles no longer can get the same deal for Roberts that the Cubs offered during the off-season. One reported package included right-hander Sean Gallagher, shortstop Ronny Cedeno, Class AA left-hander Donald Veal and Class A righty Jose Ceda; another proposal substituted outfielder Matt Murton for Veal, according to a source. BRob plus a young pitcher for a career .240 hitter is quite a comedown from the Cubs' offer.
  5. Backtobanks
    Gallagher, meanwhile, is showing progress in the Cubs' rotation and drawing raves from new teammate Jim Edmonds. "He's the first guy I've seen in a while with Carpenter stuff," Edmonds says, referring to his former Cardinals teammate, Chris Carpenter.
  6. Backtobanks
    Burnett, Harden, and Lowe interest me, but Wolf, Meche, etc. aren't worth the cost. We need a pitcher that could dominate a game, not just back-of-the-rotation filler. We have enough #4 and #5 candidates with Marquis, Lieber, Gallagher, Marshall, Hill, and Hart.
  7. Backtobanks
    Haha, especially at the Hoffpauir part. I'm sure the Royals are just dying to unload a premium trading piece for a 28 year old career minor leaguer with a sub .800 career minor league OPS. Those other guys don't have much value either, unless they are throw in guys around a centerpiece. I was thinking of Marshall/Gallagher plus 2 of Hoffpauer, Cedeno, Murton, and Patterson. If that's not enough, add a 3rd player from the group. Just forget it. These days guys with Greinke's profile are being dealt for the likes of Delmon Young and Josh Hamilton. That's what is meant by "very good, cheap, young MLB-ready hitter," not the collection of benchwarmers you've assembled. The only guy we've got that fits the description is Geo Soto. I wouldn't make that trade, but it's certainly the right ballpark. One article suggested that the Royals have a ton of holes both at the ML level and at AAA. While none of those players are a "Josh Hamilton", they certainly would help both at the ML level and AAA. Basically, I'm suggesting overwhelming them with quantity over quality. It's certainly worth a try since all they can do is say no.
  8. Backtobanks
    Haha, especially at the Hoffpauir part. I'm sure the Royals are just dying to unload a premium trading piece for a 28 year old career minor leaguer with a sub .800 career minor league OPS. Those other guys don't have much value either, unless they are throw in guys around a centerpiece. I was thinking of Marshall/Gallagher plus 2 of Hoffpauer, Cedeno, Murton, and Patterson. If that's not enough, add a 3rd player from the group.
  9. Backtobanks
    MLBtraderumors.com in an article about the starting pitcher market mentions Greinke's name again: Zack Greinke, Royals. To trade him, the Royals would probably need a very good, cheap, young MLB-ready hitter. "very good, cheap, young MLB-ready hitter" could describe Hoffpaur, Cedeno, Murton, Patterson, or a combination of them. I mentioned before Greinke would be a great pickup as a pitcher with experience and youth (24). Some posters weren't enamored with the original discussion of DeJesus and Greinke, but getting Greinke without DeJesus should satisfy the naysayers.
  10. Backtobanks
    Presumably we'd get at the very least a strong indication of signability before making the deal. I don't think that will happen with the Yankees, Mets, Red Sox, Dodgers, Angels, and Rangers willing to outbid each other. We're one of the big spending teams too. But we're not as desperate as some of those underachieving teams with deep pockets.
  11. Backtobanks
    If you can find a team with deep pockets and a great offense, you might be able to trade him for a low-level prospect. Don't forget that the team that gets him will get a draft pick if he leaves, so some team could take a chance on him if the Cubs eat part of his contract.
  12. Backtobanks
    Presumably we'd get at the very least a strong indication of signability before making the deal. I don't think that will happen with the Yankees, Mets, Red Sox, Dodgers, Angels, and Rangers willing to outbid each other.
  13. Backtobanks
    I read somewhere that the draft is pretty thin and probably will result in more trades instead of taking draft picks.
  14. Backtobanks
    I'm certainly not defending him, but doesn't that make him the best 5th starter in baseball?
  15. Backtobanks
    If he nets us Sabathia, I will not miss him Any Sabathia deal should hinge on him signing to an extention, otherwise he's not worth Pie. I disagree enormously, considering Sabathia would make us the favorites to win the World Series. But I don't want to clear out the farm (considering we'd have to send Hill, probably) for a rental. I'd want some long-term assurances. I agree with you. I've been a fan for 54 years and I would love to see the Cubs win it all, but suggestions of giving up Pie and Hill for possibly a 2-month rental with no guarantee of winning the WS seems outrageous.
  16. Backtobanks
    i guess you missed it... greinke got good again. Perhaps, but good over 2 months isn't worth whatever prospects we have left If we're lucky, some of those prospects might turn into a 24-year-old, 120+ ERA starting pitcher Agreed. A this point, the Cubs farmhands, are closer to being suspects then actul prospects, with the excpetion of a few players. Understood, that is why the few that have some value all shouldn't go in the same trade for a suspect pitcher and a CF that is really not needed I totally disagree with your description of Greinke as a "suspect pitcher" and DeJesus as a "CF that is not really needed". Greinke is an excellent pitcher who has proven himself for a last place team and is only 24 years old. DeJesus is a solid, proven major league CF who is only 28 years old. You're right that DeJesus (and Greinke) are not needed right now because everything is clicking for the Cubs. Later in the season when things like Edmonds starts feeling his age and Dempster and Gallagher start feeling the effects of starting during 162 game schedule, you might see the need for this deal. Also, I pointed out, their ages would allow the Cubs to go into next year with two less holes to fill.
  17. Backtobanks
    For all of their problems so far, the AL Central is so bad this year that they could get back into it with a minor winning streak. The White Sox have won, but their hitters are showing signs of old age and Guillen's rants will add to their downfall. The Twins always seem to be competitve, but they're a flawed team. Who knows what happened to the Tigers.
  18. Backtobanks
    There's always Fontenot, who is the worst of our 4 middle infielders at this point Yeah, but don't forget he's a lefty bat.
  19. Backtobanks
    The latest Ken Rosenthal report on Foxsports.com talks about the possible availability of Brad Penny and Zack Greinke. The reason emtioned for Greinke is that the Royals are seriously in need of position players and prospects at AA and AAA. How about a blockbuster deal: Greinke and DeJesus for Pie, Cedeno, Marshall/Gallagher, Patterson, and Murton. If more (or different) names are needed use Hoffpaur and Veal. Both Greinke (24) and DeJesus (28) are young, cheap, and could be counted on to help in the future in addition to 2008. Soriano Zambrano Theriot Dempster Lee Lilly Ramirez Greinke Fukudome Marquis/Gallagher/Hill/Marshall/Lieber Soto DeRosa DeJesus =D> =D> =D> =D> =D> =D> =D> =D> =D>
  20. Backtobanks
    Pass, pass, pass, pass. Pie is either our immediate answer in CF or he's our best trading chit for a legit impact player. DeJesus is decent, but that's just not enough straight up. Then we lose a little more value in the Cedeno/German swap. I can't imagine the pitching prospect being anyone good enough to make the difference. It's an idea I'd float if I were the Royals GM, but if I'm Hendry I'd say "for a package of decent players, you can get decent prospects. If you want a great prospect, offer a great player." I stated that I'm not sure I would consider the deal, but we (Cub fans)have a tendency to overrate our prospects in trade proposals. I'm a big Pie fan, but unless he starts showing some offensive skills at the major league level, he will lose trade value quickly. Also, Pie is our top prospect, but isn't rated in the "can't miss" category outside of Chicago. Giving up Pie for a left-handed bat or a mediocre starter that's a 3 month rental might be a good idea to win it all in 2008, but it still leaves the same holes for the future. For all of the hopes and wishes of NSBB posters, Cedeno looks to be a utility IF now and in the future for the Cubs. On the other side, DeJesus is still reasonably young (28) and is a solid, cheap CF. I guess I probably wouldn't make the deal, but it's not as bad as it sounds initially.
  21. Backtobanks
    http://www.ranyontheroyals.com/2008/05/i-had-idea_30.html Proposes trading Pie + Cedeno for DeJesus, German, + pitching prospect. I'm not saying I would do the deal, but he analyzes each player and how the trade would possibly work for both teams. Dejesus isn't the big, impact, lefty bat we were looking for, but he's a solid CF with an attractive contract.
  22. Backtobanks
    It's not a bad start, but it still won't work. At least not for now. First, Blalock is out with carpal tunnel syndrome in his wrist. He's going to have to come back and show his power before any team gives something of value for him. I also think the Cubs would have to send significant money to the Rangers to get them to take Marquis or they would have to add another player. I was going to add "when healthy" to Blalock's name, but I forgot. I'm not sure why the Cubs would have to send "significant money" to the Rangers to take Marquis since Blalock is making almost as much. Maybe send then $1-2 million.
  23. Backtobanks
    So the Rangers get 3 pitchers for Blalock? Seems like they should be sending something else to Cleveland. I'm assuming you're counting Marquis as a pitcher. :lol: Usually when I come up with these deals people complain that the Cubs don't give up enough. Maybe the deal could be tweaked a little (Texas sends prospect to Cleveland?), but I think it works out pretty well in solving each team's needs and the money issue isn't too far out of whack for any team. The Cubs' rotation would look pretty good with Zambrano, Lilly, Dempster, Westbrook, Hill/Gallagher/Lieber without giving up anything that would seriously impact the 2008 roster.
  24. Backtobanks
    It's been awhile since I proposed a 3-way trade, how about: Cleveland gets: Blalock (Rangers) and Murton (Cubs) Texas gets: Marquis, Marshall, and Wuertz (Cubs) Cubs get: Westbrook (Indians) Cubs get a solid starter, Indians get offensive help at corner IF and OF, Rangers get much needed pitching help.
  25. Backtobanks
    Well, it would be nice for a little dissent to keep the Brewers down. Hope they get frustrated enough to trade Hall. I'm sure there would be a lot of interested teams.
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