Backtobanks

Well, let's start with Neifi. His problem is basically Baker has used him wrong. He has a terrible OBP and was used at the top of the lineup for much of the year. I do agree that he has down okay when you consider that he is a 2nd string SS. Unfortunately, he has had to start all year. Putting Burnitz in CF is okay in an emergency, but he doesn't have the speed and range to play CF everyday and especially in a big ballpark. Until Patterson returns or Pie is ready, Hairston needs to be in CF. As for Damon, I think he will be looking at 3-4 years and $28-40 million and the Cubs are committed to Pie by 2007, if not next year. As for the bullpen, let's hope Woody is okay. Remmy is over the hill, Novoa is still inconsistent, and Dempster has been good, but scary at times. If Lawton, Nomar, Wood, and Williamson all contribute the way we hope they will, I think the Cubs have a good shot at the Wild Card.

The whole Royal roster plus their whole farm system for Pie. (Royals pay all salaries)

Obviously, statistics mean a lot, but don't forget a lot depends on what city you play in. If you play in NY, the media automatically builds you into a superstar. Also, the attention you get from playing on championship teams goes a long way in HOF balloting. The success of the Cards helped Smith gain the notariety he needed for the HOF, while Dawson played most of his career in Montreal. Look at the individual statistics that Santo has and tell me that playing on a losing team (for the most part) hasn't cost him a place in the HOF. Players from places like Toronto, KC, Florida, and Tampa Bay will have to put up numbers far superior to their peers from NY and LA to be considered for the HOF.

What makes you expect that Lawton will be a Cub next season? Or Burnitz for that matter? I'm not as certain as you are. I don't know what to expect when it comes to those guys. I have to wait until the off-season and see what options are on the table. Dunn could be traded. Kearns could be traded. Patterson might continue to struggle in AAA and we'd have to see how he does in the AFL or winter ball if he agrees to go. Nomar might want a lot of cash, I doubt it, but its a possibility. If Cedeno continues to hit after he returns to AAA, he might be given a chance to be Nomar's back-up and they might let Neifi go. Dusty might not be in Chicago if the team fails to make the playoffs. Lots of factors are up in the air at this point. I think Lawton's future as a Cub depends on what he does for the next 2 months. As for Burnitz, I think everyone in the Cub organization appreciates what he has done this year and they will resign him. There is no way Nomar could command a lot of cash and I think him and his wife have settled into Chicago and would want to return at a more reasonable salary. Dusty will be back because of his contract and the built-in excuse of injuries. After 2006, Dusty & the Tribune will part ways with kind words on both sides. As for Neifi, if a small market team offers him a starting job he might take it, but it wouldn't surprize me to see him back as a sub. Patterson has a lot to prove in AAA and over the winter. Murton and Cedeno's futures depend on who is resigned or brought in on a trade. If they're both with the Cubs in the spring, they need to really impress people in spring training.

I know there are 1000 posts on Dusty as a manager, but Hendry must be getting worried that Dusty's reluctance to play and correctly use rookies not only affects the Cubs future but also the value of these prospects in a trade. The most recent case is Mitre who has probably lost all of his value in a trade. When a rookie comes up and sits for weeks at a time, or plays and not allowed to make a mistake without being replaced in the lineup, it has to mess with their minds and confidence. While I like the trade for Lawton, it sure looks like their won't be much room on this team for rookies next year. I expect them to bring back Nomar, Neifi, Burnitz, Lawton, and Walker next year, so the only spots that I see are in the bullpen. Murton might hang on as a 4th OF unless he's dealt in the off-season. So again, if these prospects aren't going to play for us, they need to be able to bring us something in a trade.

Don't bet on that the way he is hitting down there. He'd better get it together or his brother will be playing in the majors before he gets back.

In addition to everything else stated here, it is also the cnterfield camera angle most teams use in there TV coverage. Most often, the camera sets up to the third base side the pitcher. That angle makes lefties to appear to have a more pronounced sweep on breaking pitches. Hat Thanks Hat, I did wonder about that.

Never. Besides I believe Farnsworth is a FA, a RENTAL. So I doubt Farnsy stays in Atlant beyond this season. Either Farnsworth will listen to Mazzone and become the elite closer in the NL or he will be gone at the end of the season. As we all know, it's a matter of Mazzone being able to get inside his head. I don't think Atlanta will tolerate Farnsworth if he won't take Mazzone's instruction.

While it's not the blockbuster trade everyone was hoping for, it does add to the depth and versatility of the team. As of right now, you have 3 options for LF, 3 for CF, 3 for RF, 3 for 2B, 2 for leadoff, etc. Unfortunately, instead of Hairston replacing Macias as supersub, I'm sure Cedeno will go down to AAA. Hopefully, the Cubs will cut Remlinger when Williamson and Wood return. Who knows, maybe they can get a little something (very little) for him when he goes on waivers.

When I saw Arizona's lineup with all of those lefties, I knew the Cubs were in trouble today. Maddux has trouble with lefties.

There's a good chance 2 out 3 of those guys might be starting.

With all of the discussion about Hill and comparing him to Zito and Estes, brought back memories of Koufax, Holtzman, Moyer, Spahn, etc. Is it that they just get noticed more or is it that lefties need to develop a big breaking curve ball. It doesn't seem like the right pitch to encourage lefties to learn since the ball would break in to the majority of batters (RH), but I still think that there the devastating curve ball seems to be thrown more often by lefties than righties.

As disappointed as most of us would be if the Cubs don't make a deal, we should then hope that there are no major trades (which is a distinct possibility). The reason is that we have 3 deals in the works on Friday (Nomar, Williamson, & Wood) and would stand to benefit more than other teams that don't make deals today. So let's keep our fingers crossed that Hendry can make a good deal today OR no big deals are made in the NL.

Why lefties seem to throw a more overwhelming curveball than righties. I know there have been righties with great curves, but it seems to me that the devastating curveball pitchers seem to be predominantly left-handed.

I still think that any trade by the Cubs involving Soriano is part of a 3-way deal (to the Mets for Floyd or Cameron?). I don't think Hendry would mess with 2B (getting rid of Walker for Soriano), plus Soriano does not want to play LF and come to the NL. While Soriano is a good young power hitter, a moody, expensive Soriano might be more trouble than he is worth.

I agree, Murton will be the starting LF and have a long and solid career, but it won't be for the Cubs because they will use him to get a LF. Too bad because I think he will be successful in the majors.

The Yankees new motto: "Quantity over quality"

I don't think there's any way on earth that the Cubs are going to get in the middle of Ramirez' contract. He is one of the 3 best right-handed hitters in baseball, but he is a total flake, lazy, and owed a ton of money. The Tribune won't do this kind of trade.

hill should be kept over murton, in my opinion. i like murton too, but he's a corner OF w/ little power and average speed. hill, on the other hand is a left-handed SP, which is a lot tougher to come by than a mark grace-lite in LF. like i said, i like murton (and he should be playing over hollandsworth), but his .500ish average is a product of a lot of bloop hits, infield dribblers and pop flies lost in the sun. i like soriano as well, but i don't know if i'd do patterson and hill for him. mainly because he's going to command a fortune in arbitration, and the cubs need all the $ they can get their hands on to keep zambrano and prior, who will break the bank when their times come. if you trade hill, lose one of those two guys to FA and never see wood in the rotation ever again, awesome young pitching is just a distant memory for the cubs. Sounds a little like some other OF I know ------ Ichiro.

I haven't turned 58 yet and my right shoulder bothers me, but I think I will start getting in shape----just in case.

"Again, no one said to sit Murton. We were only talking in context of future performance, and if that was good enough to not go after a bat in LF". My point is that unless he gets a chance to play how do you know if we need to go after a bat for LF. Wouldn't it be great if Murton became an everyday player with Mark Grace type of stats at the league minimum salary. Think of what all that the money we save and the prospects we save (by trading for a veteran LF) could turn into for the next 3-4 years. We have enough power, we need what Murton has shown so far in the majors and minors, the ability to get on base. Knowing the Cubs, they will make a deal and send Murton somewhere where he will be a solid everyday LF. In 2016, the Cubs will try to get Murton back at the trade deadline (Of course he will be old enough to play for the new Cub manager Darren Baker).

The Sox were crazy not to go after Randa. He would have been a perfect fit and not that expensive.

Isolated power: SLG-AVG Here we go with another obscure stat. The guy is hitting over .400 and we're worried about is ISOP. Assuming Nomar comes back with some power, we have at least average or better power at 1B, 2B (for the position), SS (for the position), 3B, RF, & C. The last time I looked, the WSox were running away with their Division without a power-hitting LF. I guess I'm too old to get excited about all of these new statistics. Give me the good old days when a guy hitting .400 should be playing. Instead, everyone wets their pants over a guy hitting .240 with 8 million strikeouts and thinks we ought to trade half our farm system for him. I don't disagree with Murton playing, but you don't seriously think he's going to hit .400 over the long run, do you? There's a difference between using stats for projection purposes (as they were used here) and deciding who should play today or who has performed the best. Since it's unlikely that Murton hits .455 for the rest of his career, people are trying to figure out what they should expect from him. i don't see why this bothers you so much. Well, I believe that when a guy is hot you play him and when a guy is in a slump you sit him. Murton won't hit .450 for the rest of his career, but there's a very good possibility he would outhit Hollandsworth. The Cubs are looking for a guy to get on base and then they platoon him. Thank God that Dusty sat him today against Tomko so that the veteran Hollandsworth could show him how it's done (3 strikeouts in the first 6 innings). Sometimes you need a little common sense instead of statistics.

Isolated power: SLG-AVG Here we go with another obscure stat. The guy is hitting over .400 and we're worried about is ISOP. Assuming Nomar comes back with some power, we have at least average or better power at 1B, 2B (for the position), SS (for the position), 3B, RF, & C. The last time I looked, the WSox were running away with their Division without a power-hitting LF. I guess I'm too old to get excited about all of these new statistics. Give me the good old days when a guy hitting .400 should be playing. Instead, everyone wets their pants over a guy hitting .240 with 8 million strikeouts and thinks we ought to trade half our farm system for him.

Did I hear that he has 2 grand slams in the last 5 days?