jersey cubs fan

If there is any group think on this topic it is all the people who are convinced Mark Prior doesn't care that he's injured and doesn't try to recover.

That is a really stupid thing to say. I mean incredibly ignorant. Pitchers can't commit themselves to not get hurt, or get back from injuries.

what a stupid thing to say. You think the only thing keeping Prior from returning from injuries/surgery is a lack of effort in trying to come back.

He just had surgery last year. There have been multiple problems found with Prior's arm since he was exposed to Dusty.

no, of course he's not. no one is suggesting anything in that ridiculous scenario. i think the notion that he's spending "hours upon hours" working out is equally as absurd, though. knowing the mark prior that we all got to know in his brief time in the cubs organization, i cant see the guy busting his ass to get back. dont you think that he'd be back and healthy by now if he had tried busting his ass in the past? it's a pretty fundamental approach. to getting healthy, that is. We aren't talking about a guy with weight issues who needs to get on the treadmill. We're talking about a guy who withstood serious abuse by a horrible manager and who sustained very serious arm injuries in the process. You can't just decide to bounce back from those things with extra effort. sure you can. you either commit yourself to do something or you don't. i'm questioning his commitment. i don't doubt that he wants to be a major league pitcher for one second. i do, however, doubt his effort to do so. No, you can't. That's just coach speak/trainer jargon. There's no telling how any pitcher will bounce back from arm injuries, especially hidden injuries that lingered for years. Prior was treated with extreme negligence by the Cubs. He was messed up, and pitchers can take years to bounce back from surgery, or never bounce back. It's not a matter of will or desire.

no, of course he's not. no one is suggesting anything in that ridiculous scenario. i think the notion that he's spending "hours upon hours" working out is equally as absurd, though. knowing the mark prior that we all got to know in his brief time in the cubs organization, i cant see the guy busting his ass to get back. dont you think that he'd be back and healthy by now if he had tried busting his ass in the past? it's a pretty fundamental approach. to getting healthy, that is. We aren't talking about a guy with weight issues who needs to get on the treadmill. We're talking about a guy who withstood serious abuse by a horrible manager and who sustained very serious arm injuries in the process. You can't just decide to bounce back from those things with extra effort.

Nomar getting most of the starts at 2B against LHP, and allowing Lee and Ramirez to each take 20-30 games off would be fine with me, but I doubt Hendry would go this route or Nomar would be interested. He finally got to the west coast after years of rumors that's where he wanted to go, and it will probably take a lot to get him to move.

Really? How?

I hate that they went this route too (specifically trading DeRosa) but you would have to throw in both the money saved and the 3 pitching prospects in order to get a fair comparison. I'd imagine they'd wind up saving ~1M. Probably the difference between whatever suckhole backup catcher we sign and Koyie Hill. Oh, and those prospects, unless they happened to be coveted by the Padres are garbage. Maybe in 2009. But Miles's contract goes through 2010, and they will be stuck needing more veteran infield help that year because Cedeno won't be around. A lot of moves Hendry makes are perceived as moves he "had to make", but those moves are only made because of the condition he left the team in the first place.

I hate that they went this route too (specifically trading DeRosa) but you would have to throw in both the money saved and the 3 pitching prospects in order to get a fair comparison. The money saved isn't going to be all that much, if they sign Aurillia. I doubt he gets the minimum. And the pitchers aren't anything to rave about.

That's probably true, which is scary in and of itself.

I would still be surprised. I've prefer the 11 man staff, but the Cubs have gone with 7 relievers almost fulltime for several years now. They have multiple health/durability questions on the staff, no set 5th starter eating innings, and a nearly unknown bullpen situation. I just don't see them going with 6 relievers.

He's a 37-year old extremely limited defensive player that can't come close to producing the numbers necessary at the positions he's stuck at, 3B and 1B. Teams just aren't throwing money to garbage guys like Aurillia this year. The demand for major league names to fill spots just isn't that high. Why pay a veteran $800,000 to take up at bats that a $400,000 kid who might have a future can do it? In normal times the kid is the better option, in uncertain economic times when tickets haven't even gone on sale yet it's even more of an obvious option.

Oh joy. What a terrible waste of a roster spot that would be. http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/chi-15-cubs-bits-chicagojan15,0,6211292.story I'd be a little scared about the role they had for him, but I don't mind him if he's just here to get a few spot starts at 1st and 3rd and come off the bench to hit left-handed pitching (which he is inconsistent with but still solid against). I think he fits onto this particular team a little better than Cedeno does. Cedeno's reverse splits really hurt him in a bench role because he's either the last guy off the bench against right-handed pitching or he gets sent up there against left-handers where he's terrible. Aurilia would actually get used in pinch-hitting situations where he could be moderately successful, and I'd rather have him get those starts at 3B than Miles. He did well last year, but was pathetic the year before. I don't think you can say he's still solid against RHP. He could just as easily do as poorly as he did in 2007. The problem I see is this leaves Miles as the only legit backup at either middle infield position*. Aurillia really can't play those spots. Cedeno can backup SS, and while he's probably not going to add much, if any offense, he could do as much as Aurillia. *Furthermore, it leaves the Cubs with no quality defensive SS on the team.

Ok, I'll bite. You? No, I said the primary reason for dealing DeRosa was to get more lefthanded. The only way they've done that so far is by adding Miles. Miles was acquired because he could switch hit and is "versatile".

Which would differ from their winter plans, how?

Unless Hendry has Peavy in his back pocket and is just waiting for the announcement of a new owner, his comments on Marquis make absolutely no sense at all. If Hendry has a trade ready for Peavy, all of these perceived dumb moves (picking up Gaithright, trading Derosa, looking to sign Aurillia, trading Marquis, looking to get rid of Pie and Cedeno..) start to at least explainable. But to trade Marquis for a subpar reliever and then to say that it is going to be hard to replace Marquis and that your still looking for a 5th starter? Something isn't adding up. An alternative explanation would be that he is strapped for cash and really wanted Miles. Which would be just as perplexing.

he'll say go Pro. they interviewed him before the Rose Bowl and he more or less said that he encourages his kids to go pro if their draft stock is high. yeah and this is the perfect time for him to go. it's a weak qb class and he probably projects to be the #2 qb selected, behind stafford. next year he'd be picked behind mccoy, bradford, and possibly a couple other guys. Really? I would think he'd be a better pro than both of those guys. i guess you might think that, but consensus around the league does not agree with you. I (although I have no voice in the league what-so-ever) would tend to agree with jersey here. Mccoy over Sanchez? no way. i guess i would pick mccoy over sanchez, but i've never had the boner for the rocket arm that nfl teams have. bradford is ahead of sanchez everywhere i've seen mock drafts, though. I hold a grudge against all gimmicky spread offense type QB's though. The Big 12 QBs all had the benefit of playing horrible defenses.

I agree with you about the fear of a Ramirez injury. Nothings perfect in this world, though. Get stronger in one area, get weaker in another. /shrug Also, another poster in this thread is right, and this isn't directed at anybody, but some people on this board just complain to complain. How can one honestly think Miles was only acquired due to his ability to hit left handed? It's just ridiculous. http://blatherwatch.blogs.com/photos/uncategorized/2008/07/12/old_man_yells_at_cloud8.jpg Who is saying he was only acquired due to his ability to hit left handed?

Oh joy. What a terrible waste of a roster spot that would be. http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/chi-15-cubs-bits-chicagojan15,0,6211292.story

Lock up your teenage daughters Chicagoland.

he'll say go Pro. they interviewed him before the Rose Bowl and he more or less said that he encourages his kids to go pro if their draft stock is high. yeah and this is the perfect time for him to go. it's a weak qb class and he probably projects to be the #2 qb selected, behind stafford. next year he'd be picked behind mccoy, bradford, and possibly a couple other guys. Really? I would think he'd be a better pro than both of those guys.

Hey Jim, maybe the reason people are mixed on the Marquis trade is because you dealt him for a crap reliever who costs a hell of a lot of money.

moot And if you think honoring your word is uptight, then, well, whatever. And it's moot because it would be absurd if it happens. Sorry, but you're wrong. It is not a generally accepted practice to back out on a contract to coach a football team a day later. If he did it, it would be a douchey move, just like when Belichik bolted on the Jets minutes before his introduction to the press and New England had to give up draft picks. I once committed to working at a firm, and passed up several other better job offers during my last year in school. I moved my family out of state and "kept my word" only to find out that after I had moved the firm was dissolving. Although things worked out great for me and I see your point, each person has to make their own decision and I don't see how MinnesotaCubs move was douchy. I'm sure if the firm that just hired him was contacted by someone "better" who would make them more money they would not hesitate to withdraw their job offer. Random firms dissolving are not the same as an NFL franchise. If you work in an industry where offers are withrawn after you accept, that's a product of a poorly run industry, and not at all related to an NFL coach accepting a coaching position and then looking for a new job the next day, which apparantly didn't happen here, in part because that is not an accepted practice for a "guy just doing what's best for him and his family."

moot And if you think honoring your word is uptight, then, well, whatever. And it's moot because it would be absurd if it happens. Sorry, but you're wrong. It is not a generally accepted practice to back out on a contract to coach a football team a day later. If he did it, it would be a douchey move, just like when Belichik bolted on the Jets minutes before his introduction to the press and New England had to give up draft picks.