Backtobanks

Buehrle: good left-handed starter going from AL -> NL Pierre: Crappy baseball player. the comparison is obvious. My point was that we aren't (or shouldn't imo) trade Marshall and other prospects for a 1/2 year rental, especially when getting Buerhle doesn't guarantee that we will even be in the race. If he signs an extension with us, then do it. Otherwise, don't bother.[/quote] If he signs an extension with us, it would probably cost Hill and Pie instead of Marshall. I think Marshall is replaceable after this year, especially since he is so similar to Hill and Lilly.

If we offer the best deal they'll bite. They aren't going to trade Buerhle for a worse combination of players just to spite us. I agree. The rumors that I've been hearing are that the Sox are asking for their two of their three best prospects, but will probably end up having to settle for a team's top prospect. Without knowing other team's situations, I would think that a good, young, major-league ready, left-handed pitcher along with a mid-level prospect, plus a platoon OF and a savings of a few million dollars should be a reasonably competitive offer.

Especially since the Cubs are trying to catch his old franchise. Sure smells like conflict of interest to me.

Since the White Sox are rumored to be one of the interested teams in Jones, why don't we try a Marshall, Jones, plus a lower prospect for Buerhle? Without re-signing him, we would get 2 draft picks at the end of the year while solidifying the rotation for the rest of this year. It doesn't address the SS, C, or RF offensive problems, but I'm a little shaky with the inconsistency of Lilly, Hill, Marquis, and Marshall. Would the White Sox do it?

That wouldn't make sense if Lou wants to add a pitcher.

Buehrle would be crazy to sign for $50 million. Unless something horrible happens in the second half, he is probably going to get offers in the $75-$80 million range.

Those aren't starter numbers, those are All Star numbers for a 2b.

Found this interesting tidbit: Keith Law, on ESPNEWS yesterday, reported that the Mark Buehrle-to-Boston rumor is bogus and almost certainly planted by the White Sox front office

I'm betting that the surprise at 2B will be Darryl Ward. Now that would be a surprise.

Obviously, what the Cubs need is consistency. You can't lose a series to Texas and then sweep the White Sox. The next 4 series will make or break the team (Rockies, Brewers, Nationals, & Pirates). A 9-4 or 10-3 record is what they need in the 13 games. I'm not sure they can sweep the Brewers, but if they did and beat up the Nationals and Pirates after that, they would definitely be right in the thick of things. With all of the impending sale talk, I can't see adding a really expensive player. All that being said, a 6-7 or 5-8 record would just about end any serious talk about catching the Brewers.

On the pre-game show today, they had a Sun Times reporter who said he thought there was a 50-50 chance that the Cubs would make a deal today and that the leading candidate was Jones.

The bottom line is that Buerhle will sign with whoever pays him the most, just like every other free agent.

Can't say I understand the move if/when it happens. You mean Cherry has been worse than Cotts? Hard to believe after looking at those stats.

Also, Pie's numbers would look better if they sat him down against a few more left-handers: Against RHP: .269/.330/462 (93 AB's) Against LHP: .129/.129/.129 (31 AB's) There's no need to acquire another player for CF-if the Cubs really want to play for this year, they just need to platoon him a little more. I'm a big fan of Pie, but I'm surprised Lou doesn't platoon him with Pagan when facing a tough lefty (or maybe any lefty).

If Erstad could stay healthy, I would love to make that deal.

Whether it's Griffey or someone else, the Cubs have to get another solid bat in the lineup. Floyd isn't an everyday player and Fotenot has been hot, but a lineup that includes Theriot/Izturis, Bowen/Hill, Jones/Pagan, and Pie along with a pitcher isn't going to scare many other teams.

I'm sure the Yankees will jump at that deal.

My guess is that this host heard a rumor about Griffey going to Chicago, and he mistaken assumed the Cubs, and made up the rest himself. I've heard plenty about him going to the Sox, and zilch about the Cubs. I'm certainly willing to be proven wrong, but I really think we'll see Hendry go more for a Tejada than a Griffey. The White Sox have pretty much eliminated themselves from the "buyers" category. They will be dumping players, not adding them.

One of the MLB rumor sites reported that everyone on the Rangers is available except Michael Young. Since there will be teams after Texeira and a few of their relief pitchers, maybe we can find a way to swing a 3-way trade and pick up a SS by using some prospects, Izzy, and Jones.

Benmaller.com is reporting: The Los Angeles Dodgers designated Brady Clark, an outfielder the Rockies liked this past winter, for assignment. He bats right-handed, and the Rockies' current need is for a left-handed bat off the bench.. A left-handed bat off the bench sounds a lot like Jones. Pay part of his salary and take some low prospect from the Rockies.

With Zambrano pitching, you can go to the "defensive" catcher because Zambrano will make up for the lost offense that Barrett provides with his own hitting ability.

Just what we need.......a 7th OF.

I have no doubt Minaya loves Z very much. But, not that much. There are 3 options at this point. Option 1) Sign Z to a long term contract Option 2) Let Z walk at the end of the year Option 3) Trade him Considering the Cubs organization is somewhat in limbo due to the sale, signing him is probably not likely. Considering what Z will command on the market if he becomes a free agent and how much the Cubs already have stockpiled in guaranteed contracts, some other team will easily outbid the Cubs for Z. Z has expressed loyalty, but money talks when the bidding starts getting serious. If you let him walk at the end of the year, the return is probably 3 or 4 years down the road, and the potential for no reward on that return is high. Trading him makes sense. If you want to be stubborn and hold out for Jose Reyes, expect Option 2 to happen. There are trade partners right now. Anaheim and NYM seem like the best candidates. Colon has been horrible and Anaheim looks like a serious threat to make the playoffs. They will likely show lots of interest in Z. Moreno, IMO, would be VERY intersted. They have many prospects worthy of a close look, like Mathis, Adenhart and Brandon Wood. The Mets have some really good looking prospects as well, like Pelfrey, Martinez, Gomez and Milledge. There probably isn't a person here who wouldn't trade Z for Reyes straight up right this very minute. However, it takes two to tango, and the Mets won't be on that dance floor. Z has a ton of value in this market. But, he's a free agent at the end of the year. That decreases his overall value. His workload over the last several years also weighs heavily on his overall value. A team is just not going to trade a franchise player for a 1/2 year rental that's not performing at his highest potential. They might mortgage their future for a shot at the World Series by trading some really quality prospects, and that's the most likely scenario. If you are going to hold out for Jose Reyes, be prepared to watch Z walk at the end of the year with compensation picks as the lonely return. I agree that the sale of the team has thrown things into limbo, but if Zambrano regains his form, I think Hendry will find a way to sign him. Also, don't forget that in the weak NL Central the Cubs will be contending and trading your ace pitcher wouldn't look very good.

They're probably thinking of the new contracts they could sign with such a rich owner.

YAY! What all of this has proven to me is that the Cubs have taken a decent platoon OF (Jones) and a good young OF with potential (Murton) and turned them into worthless trading pawns by not giving them enough consistent at bats. Playing 2 games and then sitting 4 has been a disaster for both of them.