Backtobanks

The young players who don't have All Star seasons aren't ready, the veterans that play poorly apparently aren't the horses that Dusty refers to, the players that do have success had success because of him, the injuries, ad nauseum. Thank goodness he doesn't use excuses.

I don't know how you can answer the question until you get some idea of whether this guy can ever pitch again. Nobody is going to take him in a trade without knowing. I'm sure the Cubs (or somebody else) will offer him the same kind of deal that he has this year, but he has absolutely no value in the trade market until he shows something.

Let's hope it's not the second coming of Joe Borowski. Both did a great job while scaring us to death and then started losing it quickly (Borowski ended with an injury).

Many of the best power hitters "tear up Wrigley Field". It's a combination of bad Cub pitching and a favorable stadium to hit HRs. CLee has good (not great) career numbers, so he couldn't get all of those numbers at Wrigley.

Personally, I can't think of too many guys who are worth 5 years and $75 million. Unless the Yankees get the CLee fever, I can't see him getting that much or that many years.......maybe 3 years and $40 million.

Eating Jones's contract would not be a good idea. I'm all for trading him. But the point in trading him is that he's overpaid for what he brings to the table, not that he brings nothing to the table. You eat the contracts of guys' whose presence on the team takes away from your squad, ie. Rusch, Neifi, Womack etc. If you are going to pay Jones, you might as well play him. And I'd be all for a Murton/Jones platoon with a good corner OF on the other side. I guess it would depend on which team acquires Jones and when the trade happens. If it's not worth the Cubs time or money to trade Jones, then I agree that a Jones/Murton platoon in LF and a pickup of Andruw Jones (CF) or CLee (RF) would make for a much more productive OF.

I thought of that too. Getting someone like Andruw Jones in CF makes up for the lack of power at one of the corner OF positions. Andruw does make a ton of money though, but the money might effect the cost in players.

Batting average does mean nothing if that is all you are measuring. Sean Casey or Adam Dunn? Casey has a very respectable career AVG. Dunn does not. Who would you rather have? I'll take Dunn. Nobody is using only batting average to compare CLee and Dunn, but it is part of the statistics that are used to compare hitters. CLee has good numbers in the power areas and batting average. Dunn has more power and the ability to draw walks, but a lousy batting average. We have not discussed the availability and cost of either player, but obviously CLee is more available. Either player would be a very welcome addition to the Cubs lineup for next year. Only Cub fans could look at this pitiful lineup and find arguements against the likes of Carl Crawford, Abreu, Dunn, Tejada, or CLee. About the only thing everybody agrees on is Cabrera would be our first choice.

Two words: Jeff Blauser Comparing Jeff Blauser to Carlos Lee is ridiculous. If you're worried about his Wrigley Field numbers, then don't trade for Dunn either since he hits a ton at Wrigley.

During the offseason, many posters just drooled at the thought of getting Dunn to play LF. Also, many posters dismiss the availability of Carlos Lee. I admit that I'm an old-timer in regards to sabermetrics, but I would love to see Lee playing for the Cubs. A guy who averages 30 HRs and 105 RBIs while hitting .284 sounds like a pretty solid corner OF to my 1950s statistical mind. With Dunn, you have 3 choices......HR, SO, or BB. Neither is a great defensive OFer, but Dunn makes anybody look good. Abreu would be great, but at what cost and for how long? Obviously, I think we all agree that Cabrera is the answer, but CLee wouldn't be a bad second choice.

By the time the Cubs fire Dusty, Dusty will have lowered the trade value of half the team. Dempster is the latest example, preceded by Murton and Walker. Of course, there's the overuse of Wood and Prior. Knowing Dusty, he will continue to use Jones against lefties until his batting average plummets along with his trade value. I'm not defending Hendry, but he will be lambasted for the low-potential prospects he ends up getting for the likes of Jones, Walker, Maddux, and Dempster. If Murton is ever traded, I look for him to become a solid .300 hitter.

How many are left....10, 8,?

Not with the question marks of Prior and Wood.

That's the best laugh I've had in a long time.

How about Jones and Walker to the Yankees for one of their few top prospects. Walker might help now that Cano is injured. Both of them being lefties would look good in Yankee Stadium.

It might if they get shut out for the rest of the season.

I have no Idea why the bolded would interest anyone, even considering Blanco's hot streak. If the Cubs package the 4 of then for an unopened package of sunflower seeds plus pay their salaries, they might find a buyer.

Baker and his staff need to be fired not only for the lack of fundamentals, but it is obvious that this team has quit on Baker. If he says nobody on this team has quit, he needs to be fired for being blind and stupid. I've defended Hendry in the past, but something drastic needs to be done by the All-Star break.

not will the Cubs win, but will the Cubs ever score again?

Derrek Lee was a possibility back in the 03-04 offseason. Florida was trying to move him for pennies on the dollar. A few teams showed some interest, but not enough to take on his entire contract. Derrek Lee was an average offensive 1b prior to his 2005 season with the Cubs. When the Cubs traded Choi and Nannini for Lee prior to the '04 season, I don't think anyone here could visualize Lee putting up the '05 season that he did. It was a total salary dump from the Marlins side of this deal. Hendry got a steal of a deal, as Lee not only made it a totally lopsided trade, but he went from an overpaid, mediocre 1b to an underpaid all star 1b in 2005. Do you consider a player with an OPS over 860 a bad player. Because in only one year since 2000 has Lee been below that and that was 2001. He always had a high OBP, always had atleast decnet power (since 2000 only one year below 28 homers), and you have to add in the facts he is great defensively and he is a great baserunner. DLee was always a very good player. He was just always under appreciated. Your example of the DLee trade is the perfect reason not to trade Aram for a prospect. You never trade a proven potential all star commodity for prospects, unless it is a complete salary dump. You could end up getting the shaft. Especially when the proven commodity is just turning 28. Yes, Aramis has his flaws but so does every player. That is what makes building a team so difficult. You need to find players who help to minimize their teamates flaws. You know Aramis has minimal range at third so you get a shortstop that has a lot. You don't put three sub standard defensive outfielders all in the same outfield. It can only lead to problems. You can live with one bad defensive corner outfielder if you have a great centerfielder. I know this gets annoying but i'm going to show you my perfect team for next year...that is reasonably possible for the Cubs to achieve. This is just to show how you need to build a team of players that compliment one another. 2b Walker C Barrett 1B Lee 3B Ramirez CF Hunter LF Jones/Murton SS Cedeno RF Pie You can count on Walker and Barrett both to have OBP around 350 or better. Then you can expect DLees to be around 400 and Arams aroudn 350 and then Hunter aroudn 330. Jones/Murton will be about 360 when they are platooned. This Cubs team really doesn't need a lot of work on the offensive end. They just need to sign the right player. By the way Barrett is the perfect 2 hitter. HE doesn't strike out much and he has a high OBP so he knows how to take pitches. Pitching it woudl be great to sign Zito and then go with Zambrano, Prior, Zito, Marshall, Maddux. The outfield will be much better defensively with Hunter and Pie that it shoudl help the pitching staff quite a bit. We may not have the speed that Pierre brings this year but Pie, Hunter, Lee, Cedeno, and Jones all have decent speed. I agree that the lineup you mentioned is very attainable for the Cubs, but I think Hendry will have to make a bigger splash in the lineup than adding Hunter and Pie to satisfy the fans. Secondly, he had better hire a manager who might arrange the batting order as you suggested since Dusty has had Walker and Barrett all season and hasn't tried them at the top of the lineup. I'm not a big fan of Zito (especially for the cost), but I guess it would solidify the rotation.

The bolded part sounds perfect for the Cubs.

The one complaint that I have heard about Mariotti is that he doesn't go to the clubhouse to get his stories. A friend of my wife works for the Sox and says that Ozzie is just "a pig". He verbally abuses his sons, women, his players, sportswriters, and opponents. I guess the best desciption of him is "classless". The amazing thing is that everyone is shocked by Ozzie after the Sox and the media have spent the last two years "pimping" Ozzie by celebrating his openess and candor.

Baker has said that he will not play the OF because of defensive liabilities and the Tribune article basically said that all parties understood that they needed him only until DLee got back. I'm hoping they can get something for him rather than releasing him and getting nothing.

In today's Tribune, Baker emphasized that Nevin is gone as soon as DLee returns. By the time he leaves (in a few days), he might be leading the team in HRs and RBIs. If only Hendry could find a team desperate for a right-handed DH and be willing to give us a decent prospect. Oh well, I can dream.

I don't think Aram is comfortable being "the Man" on the team. I think he plays (and hits) better when he is considered the 2nd or 3rd best hitter on the team.