Backtobanks

I agree with you. I've been saying to all the JH critics that I have faith in him to get the players we need one way or another. Right now, I see Patterson, Walker, Rusch/Williams, Mitre, and Welly as available trade bait. Obviously some of our prospects are also in that group. Other possibilities (depending on who we obtain) are Hairston and Novoa. With all of those possibilities and money to spend, I think more than one big transaction is going to happen.

So much of this "reporting" has to do with spin. A player asks for $100 million and a team says they're not going to get into a bidding war with other teams. I think Hendry has a good idea as to how much a player is worth to the Cubs and if the bidding is too high, then he should move on to plan B. Giles is a perfect fit for RF, but not at $13-$14 million over 3-4 years. It would be great to get Dunn for RF, but not if it's going to cost us Prior and Pie. If we have Furcal (Lugo or Cedeno) at SS, Cedeno (or M. Giles, Castillo, etc.) at 2B, Pierre (or Bradley, Wilkerson, etc.) in CF, and Mench (Floyd, Giles, Abreu) in RF, we could win the division assuming some semblance of health. We aren't going to win if we have prolonged DL stints from Zambrano, Prior, Wood, Lee, or Ramirez no matter who we put in those other positions.

It would be interesting to see what Boras would ask for if he had a real star free agent this year. Looking at these numbers, Pujols would be looking at $500 million over 15 years, Zambrano would be worth $200 million over 10 years, and Cabrera would be worth $400 million over 15 years. What a joke, cut the money and years each in half and you might have a starting point.

I'm not sure this is a great deal. We spend another $7.5 million and we still don't have a SS, CF, RF, or lead off man. Soriano is a good player, but let's fill some holes first before we try to upgrade a position that's filled.

By my count, that means the Cubs are interested in every available SS, RF, SP, RP, lead off man, and power hitter. If half of these reports are true, Hendry will have met with about 700 agents.

Except Cedeno looks like he can hit.

I know Dusty doesn't like him, but I think Hairston has more value on the team than on the trade front. I don't think you'll get very much for him. Assuming we get Pierre and get rid of Patterson, Hairston might be the only guy who could back up CF.

Is there anyone that Todd Walker isn't being traded for?

I love Sammy, but I'm not crazy enough to agree to give him $1 million to sit on the bench. Let's take that $1 million and add it to the "Furcal Fund" or "Giles Fund".

Also, M. Giles might be available, if Furcal re-signs with the Braves and there have been rumors about Castillo.

I think Sosa's future is in Japan. He could go over there and make a lot of money, hit a lot of homers, and be idolized. He's not going to do any of those three things in the majors anymore. I really don't think Sammy's ego could take sitting on the bench and pinch hitting once a week.

Does anyone really think Sarge would have any idea of who Hendry is after?

Cliff Floyd is the perfect fit for RF assuming he stays healthy. That has always been the question mark about him. The stats you provided show what he's capable of doing as long as he stays healthy.

Thome, to me, is a perfect player for the AL. He can be an excellent 1B, but with his back problems the future is more likely part time 1B/part time DH.

I think having Wilkerson would be fantastic, but do you think they are looking at him as a CF or as a RF? Furcal Murton Lee Giles/Abreu etc Ramirez Wilkerson Barett Cedeno Wow. Wilkerson doesn't have the production numbers to play RF. Bradley or Wilkerson have great numbers for a CF, but would be below average in production for RF.

I agree with you, I just don't see what Hendry is sseing in this guy. To put him on the same "untradeable" level as Pie is ridiculous. Having said that, I hope Hill learns a third pitch and proves me wrong.

That would be good I haven't been a big Pierre fan. I've been pretty interested in picking him up as a salary dump, while paying little. If Cubs also acquire Furcal, and trade for Pierre and he bats second, he might lose all his SB value; how often will he try to steal in front of Lee and Aram? When there was talk of Pierre for Corey, I was enthused about that, because Corey at $2.5 is way expensive for a guy who isn't going to start. He's an expendable guy, so if Corey is a central piece, add in a Mitre and you've maybe got a deal, awesome. But with "young arms" plural, it depends on the arms. Now we aren't just talking about unloading Corey's lousy contract. Thinking it's going to be Wellemeyer/Novoa types, guys we don't want anyway, is wishful thinking. Nolasco and Marshall, that's a different equation. Nolasco and Hill, that's a different equation. I see Corey, Mitre, Wellemeyer, and Novoa as guys who are expendable. Corey's salary is too high and he's pretty worthless if you've acquired an every-day CF. Mitre and Wellemeyer are out of options, and don't seem qualified to make the team, so they'll need to be exposed to waivers come March. Even if they do make the team, they seem unlikely to be productive players. So giving up guys like that, great; that's sacrificing nothing, really. But if it's two out of the Hill, Nolasco, Marshall, Guzman, Mateo pool, that's a different and much more serious cost. I would hold on to Novoa if possible. I thought he did a pretty good job last year. Of course if a big time trade depended on including Novoa, then go ahead and do it.

The Tribune reported that the Twins are looking at Frank Thomas, Mike Piazza, or Nomar for DH next year.

I think out of all these positions, CF is the only one that doesn't have any players the Cubs would be interested in in free agency. Giles and Furcal should be top starters, there are a handful of innings eaters avaliable and the market is always rich in relievers. The only position I'd be weary of adding in free agency is RP, because they're so inconsistant. For example, two years ago Howry was signed as a minor league free agent, now he's looking for a 3-year deal. The reason might be that we have players that are out of options, rule 5 players that we might lose anyway, and extra players clogging the roster (Patterson, Walker, etc.) if certain players are acquired.

So much for signing Furcal by Monday.

Ichiro would get about 80 bunt hits on the Wrigley turf.

If Furcal wants more than 4 years/$36 million, don't forget the other option besides Nomar. Move Cedeno back to SS and trade for Castillo, M. Giles, etc. to play 2B. Also, trading for Lugo to play SS at about half of Furcal's price might be an option. Getting Pierre and using Castillo or M. Giles solidifies the defense up the middle and gives us a #1 & #2 in the lineup. Call his bluff JH.

I could see the Sox including Garland in a trade for Helton or Delgado, but never to their crosstown rivals.

Pie for Pierre ---- No way. The Cubs need to remember what happened in the Lou Brock trade. The only possibility of trading Pie should be to acquire a young, established, and cheap star.

How about Pete Rose? He kept getting those hits until he was about 40.