Little Slide Rooter

I think were stuck with him, and in the end, hopefully he can stabilize inta a Kaz Matsui type, and be a serviceable, but not great player.

If they get Brenly, we get Uecker. and he had to bring Mr. Belvidere with him. Wesley too. its only fair.

That deal might be enough, but if I'm the Padres, I'd want Parra, Hardy, and Hart. Both ideas seem pretty fair, but if the Padres are rebuilding and they're presumably trying to cut salary, I'm not sure they'd want Hardy. He's a great offensive shortstop, but he hits arby this offseason and is about to get very, very expensive. My offer from Milwaukee would be something like Jeffress, Escobar, Hart, and a spare piece (Gwynn?) for Peavy and a spare piece. Parra's not quite as untouchable as Gallardo, but I don't think it would make a lot of sense for the Brewers to give away one of the few average-to-good starters they'll have left once Sabathia and Sheets leave to get Peavy back. It's probably why the Brewers aren't really a serious contender in these talks. One creative idea on Brewerfan is to get a third team into the mix, in order to get Prince Fielder involved. The Pads obviously have no need for Fielder since they already have Gonzalez, but they could possibly get a team like the Rays to take Fielder and supply the pitching to San Diego, while the Brewers supply a positional prospect slightly below the level of Escobar/Gamel/Jeffress. It has next to no chance of happening and doesn't make a ton of sense, but it'd be damn entertaining to talk about. Then theres the question that if the Brewers were to aquire Peavy, but end up giving up Hardy and Fielder, in the end, would they really be much better off than the Padres are now?

Hey maybe we'll even win a playoff game one of those years! Or at least try.

The Marlins, D Backs, Blue Jays, Mets, Angels, and Royals...yes, the soap dropping Royals all say Hi.

Seriously, they sure dont look like a 1 year wonder to me. That pitching staff is insane, and David Price will just put them over the top. Would it have killed the 2006 Cubs to have sucked just a little bit more? They wont be losing most of that young core for a few years yet, and in that time, they may very well dominate the AL. The Yankees and Red Sox can buy anything they want, but if these Rays players keep developing and getting better, there will be no stopping them. I pick them to win the WS in 5 games at the most. They took down both pairs of Sox, each with better pitching staffs than the Phillies. If they do win it all, while it is embarassing for the Cubs, its also equally embarassing for every '60s expansion team who has yet to win a championship.

As Ive said before, I find it unlikely that we land him, but I just hope that Hendry at least gives Towers a call and gets some preliminary discussions going. Cant hurt to make an offer.

after 100 years, yeah, its WS or bust for me. However, I would have settled for going down valiantly in the playoffs not yay, we won another division flag, vacation time.

i don't mind wood all that much, but man i am just waiting for the day not too long from now when i can be pissed off by reading something on here telling me that dempster will be a cub for another 4 years if hendry is smart and lets his emotions cool...letting dempster go will open this team up for a little more offseason wrangling Id be willing to bet on 1 big aquisition, be it through a trade or FA. I completely agree. Unfortunately I think it's inevitable that he's going to lock him up.

Maybe Darren Jackson? :) Dick Stockton We would go 0-162. Yeah, but wouldnt it be worth it to aquire such players as Eduardo Zambrano, Robbie Fontenot, Geovany Sanchez, Bill Harden, Argenis Dominguez...the possibilites are endless.

I wouldnt underestimate how much teams would be willing to part with for an ace pitcher like Peavey. The term ace is thrown around losely these days when simply refering to a teams number 1 starter. It should be a pitcher that has establised over time that they can repeatedly be their teams go to guy. I would not refer to guys like Lowe or Buerhle as aces, simply because they are their teams number 1 starter, or Dempster because he had a good year. The list of aces includes, to me Peavy Santana Halladay Sabathia Beckett Oswalt Webb Pitchers tht could be: Zambrno if he could keep his emotuons in check Harden, Sheets, and Carpenter if they could stay healthy for any length of time The there are guys like Hamels, Cliff Lee, Liriano, and Lincecom that appear to be well on their way, but even they need a bit longer before they can truely be established as aces.

Actually, you are starting with the least likely option. San Diego and LA are not going to make that kind of swap any more than the Cubs would trade their best player to the Cardinals. Sorry, I shouldnt have said most likely, what I meant was most enticing.

Back to the topic here: what they want is 2 young pitchers and a near ML ready center fielder. Lets look at some fits here Lets start with the best Dodgers: Clayton Kershaw Corey Wade/Hidoki Kuroda/Kuo Matt Kemp/Andre Ethier This might be giving up too much, however, they could easily get Khalil Greene as well with this package and let Furcal go. Cardinals: Chris Perez Jaimie Garcia Colby Rasmus I hate to say it, but this could get the job done. Braves: Jair Jurrjens(Hed be the key to any deal) Charlie Morton Brandon Jones Less Likely: Cubs: Sean Marshall Rich Hill/Angel Guzman?Mitch Atkins/Kevin Hart/Don Veal Felix Pie/Tyler Colvin Brewers: Manny Parra Dave Bush(I doubt Gallardo will be moved, and if he was, the Brewers would be foolish) Corey Hart Astros: Wandy Rodriguez Brandon Backe Hunter Pence I know he says he wouldnt want to go to the AL, but it sounds like the Pads are just beggin the Yankees and Red Sox to go into a bidding war: Yankees: Phil Hughes Ian Kennedy Melky Cabrera Red Sox Justin Masterson Clay Bucholz Jacoby Ellsbury Again, this seems like a pretty big package. With jed Lowrie, they have no use for Khalil Greene, so the Red Sox might want a throw in. Heath Bell?

Maybe Darren Jackson? :) Dick Stockton

Would a deal of Pie + Marshall + Marmol get it done? Is it too much? Call me crazy, but Id be hesitent to move Marmol in any deal. If we re signed Dempster, or aquired something comparable, wed still have a steller rotaion. Our bullpen, however was shaky at best in the end, and with Marmol gone, there would be nobody reliabe to get the ball to Wood.

fixed

Makes you wonder, had we not made the Harden trade, would Gallagher, Marshall, and Pie done the trick, or even if Rich Hills 2008 hadnt been a complete disaster, Hill, Marshall, and Pie.

damn straight

Ive accepted the fact that we wont be getting Peavy. All I care is that he doesn end up St Luis, Milwaukee, or Houston.

Atlanta would be fine by me for him. Anywhere but Milwaukee or St Louis. For us, he would be great to have, but it would be more of a luxury, and the main task at hand should be finding a big bat.

Then later in the article.. Makes me wonder if he would take Randy Bush, leaving the Cubs without a worthwhile GM. http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/chi-081016-chicago-cubs-jim-hendry,0,582070.story Yeah I think there would be interest for Hendry then some think. I know many have not like some of his moves in the past, but even the best GM's make subpar moves.When it comes down to it Hendry has made alot more good moves then bad. Then when you consider he's put a competitive team on the field 5 of 6 years(05 team could have contended for playoff spot without all the injuries) he's been the GM, and has 3 division titles in 6 years. His resume is actually pretty solid, and I can see the Mariners, Blue Jays and a few other teams interested. But I would be surprised if Hendry isn't back, he seems to like it here, and the team is happy with him. I don't see his style working well with a mid-sized market team like Seattle. Hendry makes good moves, but he also throws a lot of money at his problems as well. I can't see him having the flexibility to do that in Seattle, a market that has let very good players leave due to money. And if they do give him some money to spend, are they going to give him more money to spend when he makes mistakes on some of his big money acquisitions? I don't think it's fair to predict what he would do in another market when his "style" is based on one job with a big-market team. He might be very flexible if put in a different situation. That's like saying Brian Cashman could never be successful with another team. Seattle isnt exactly a small market team. They're not the Cubs, Red Sox, or Yankees, but they have money, and they have spent it in the past. While I do agree that with a small market team like the Royals, Hendry would be screwed, but with Seatlle, he could make some noise.

Why do I feel like this discussion has just gone in a circle?

Throw-in, and not a very good one. He's had four seasons where he's spent significant time in AAA. Other teams have had opportunities to get him via the Rule 5 Draft and the Cubs haven't bothered to give him much time in the majors, even as a pinch hitter. His age hurts, too. I think that Hoff could be a solid major league starter, like a .285/.375/.450 type of guy if he were to get the chance. As for trade value, I agree that hed have to be a throw in.

Hitters come around every off season and are available every trade dealine, but a true ace pitcher, and by ace I mean like a Peavy or Sabathia, not a Dempster or Lowe dont come around very often.

I wonder if dodgerblue.com posted a stupid picture thread this time around.