CubsWin

So, we're not supposed to say good job when our GM makes a good move? That's news to me. What are we supposed to do? Complain? Sorry, I meant that more along the lines of how we had to worry about whether he'd actually make an obvious move like picking up Walker's option. CR, Just curious, what led you to believe that Hendry might not pick up Walker's option. Did I miss something? The rumblings and rumors that he wouldn't pick up the option and wanted to move in a different direction in regards to second base. Oh. I must have missed these rumblings and rumors. Did they appear in an article or something? I mean, if they were just rumors or talk on a message board, then whatever, but if there was some truth to these rumors then I can understand the doubts. Regardless, Hendry did what I think was the right thing by picking up both Williamson's and Walker's options and, in the end, he will be judged by his actions and not the rumors that preceded them.

Unless the Cubs are moving Murton to SS in a double switch. That would prove the existence of the "Dusty Dice". And be hilarious. While they're at it they should move ARam to CF, Lee to C and Barrett to closer. I think you are really on to something here, USS. Ramirez would give the Cubs their best offensive CF ever! And Lee would easily be the best offensive catcher in the majors. Plus, he is used to blocking throws in the dirt, so he has a leg up on the position defensively! Barrett's got a heck of an arm, too, so he could easily make the switch to closer. The main problem would be to get him to stop throwing the ball to 2nd base all the time. But I think Rothschild can get him pointed in the right direction. With Lee at catcher, the Cubs sign Konerko to play first. They bring up Pie to play 3B and move Dempster to RF. Done.

it wouldn't be. i'd be fine with this, as long as it meant neifi was as far away from this team as possible. I agree. I was asking UMFan83, though. :wink:

So, we're not supposed to say good job when our GM makes a good move? That's news to me. What are we supposed to do? Complain? Sorry, I meant that more along the lines of how we had to worry about whether he'd actually make an obvious move like picking up Walker's option. CR, Just curious, what led you to believe that Hendry might not pick up Walker's option. Did I miss something?

What makes you think that if Walker is playing 2B, the Cubs wouldn't have Nomar at SS? And, while I believe in Cedeno, I'm not sold that he would put up better numbers than Walker would next season, so why would it be so bad to have Cedeno backing up both Walker and Nomar?

That is good news. That makes two consecutive solid performances by Angel. It doesn't change anything about his ability to stay healthy, of course. The number of innings he has pitched in the AFL don't amount to much, but the fact that he is starting to get guys out at least gives him the chance to be a viable prospect again. What good would it be for Gooz to be healthy if he weren't any good? Unfortunately, the overwhelming trend with him is that he will tantalize during the first part of Spring Training and then something will go wrong health-wise. Here's hoping the past is in the past.

Unfortunately, based on your report, it was the hosts who discussed the Cubs, not his agent. That's basically the same as us discussing it here. Of course, there's a decent chance we're one of those 12-15 teams (although that's probably a bit of an exaggeration). I won't lie, though. I'm glad to hear that the Cubs were at least talked about. I just don't think it means that much. Come on, davhern, that is a lot more meaningful than some Cubs fans chatting about Giles. These are San Diego sports talk radio hosts. If they aren't plugged into more information about Brian Giles than some Cubs fans on an internet message board, then something is wrong. They might not be as informed as some of the sports writers in San Diego, but they should know more about San Diego sports than us, thats for sure. :wink:

That appears to be what is happening, viz. Orel as next GM. Really? Cool. Source?

Do you have news we don't? I agree that he is a candidate, but so are three other guys according to that article. On topic, strange move by McCourt. Two years isn't enough for a GM to build a team to his specifications and be accurately judged on the job he did. However, I serioulsy doubt this firing results in Dusty coming to LA, though I would be overjoyed if he was managing the Dodgers next season.

Does anybody know how to find an archive to their previous projections? I look around that site, but couldn't find any.

Totally agree, the Cubs should look at Patterson and learn from their mistakes. I agree also, but I'm so tired of reading about Patterson's lack of bunting ability as a knock. How many other players have hit 20 HRs in the Southern League and gotten knocked for not bunting well enough? Yep. Couldn't agree more. Someone forward this to Mr. Hendry, please...

Go, EPatt! I am really pulling for him to make good and be the Cubs 2nd baseman of the future. Ramirez, Cedeno, Patterson and Lee. I doubt it will happen, but they could be good. And maybe Koronka is on the Chronic? When pitchers relax good things can happen... i am very much hoping for the same thing along with murton & pie in the of. why do you doubt it can happen? murton & cedeno are ready to start in the majors next year imo and epat & pie might be ready by 2007. with prior and z already established & guzman, pinto, nolasco on the verge of breaking out, the cubs would have the vast majority of their starters being developed by their farm system. I have doubts that both Cedeno and EPatt will succeed as starters at the major league level because it so rarely has happened in the past for the Cubs, and most other teams for that matter. I believe that it is possible, but it would be the exception to the rule thus far. However, rules, especially these kind, are meant to be broken. As far as the rest of your list (Guzman, Pinto and Nolasco) is concerned, there is a difference between succeeding in AA and the majors. Some guys succeed at the AA level with major league stuff and some succeed with AAA stuff. The word on Nolasco is that he has really good AA stuff. We will see. Guzman's right arm is made of glass. Talent isn't his problem, but the most games he has pitched in one season is 22. Maybe he would be better served in the bullpen. Again, we will see. Pinto is the one pitcher from that list that has the combination of major league stuff and durability. If one of them has a lasting impact on the Cubs starting rotation in the future, I think Pinto has the best chance of doing it. But there are so many things that can cause a player who puts up great numbers in the minors to fail at the higher levels that I think a team would consider themselves lucky to introduce one rookie position player per year and get something out of him. If you can get two, you are way ahead of the game. With Murton, Cedeno, EPatt and Pie, you are talking about 4 in two years. Possible? Sure. Likely? Something you want to count on and plan around? I wouldn't. i thought guzman's problem had been his shoulder not his arm. i agree that its unliklely but staying withing the farm system seems to have worked well for the braves. assuming they are not traded, hill and williams are ahead of the guys i mentioned anyway but i think mitre & welly are most likely gone by next year so nolasco, pinto & perhaps guzman are the next level of almost ready to be tested prospects. perhaps marmol can also be put in that catagory. as far as aa stuff goes, i would say its more of a matter of a aa head. i would say that the vast majority of guys who make it to the majors have the talent to stay but if they never stick its more of a mental weakness.if a pitcher can throw strikes and spot the ball he can get alot of guys out with average stuff. I was using the term "arm" euphmamistically. Whether it is his elbow or his shoulder or his bicep, his "arm" is still made of glass until he can show us otherwise. Not all AA hitters are talented enough to hit in the big leagues, some are, but most aren't. That makes it easier for a pitcher to put up good numbers at that level without really being major league caliber. I'm not saying that Nolasco won't ever make the bigs. I'm just reporting what I've heard and read. His rep is that he doesn't have what it takes to be considered a true prospect at the major league level. Maybe those scouts or whoever they are that believe that about him are wrong. It wouldn't be the first time a scout has misjudged someone, thats for sure.

Doesn't mean much at this point, but Todd Walker is not listed as a free agent, so at least they haven't declined his option yet. Here is the full list of free agents as reported on mlb.com.

Well, its official. Brian Giles is a free agent. Can we put this rumor to bed now?

I personally have him down the list of priorities for the Cubs with Giles being at the top. But maybe someone out there can show me the light on why he should be higher. I know Tim had originally pushed for Burnett and B.J. Ryan, if I'm not mistaken. Do you still feel that way, Tim? Anyone? I'm still very high on Burnett if he comes at the right price, which he may or may not. I'm a little less high on him than I used to be, thanks to Goony pointing out his limited road success in recent history. But he has simply overwhelming stuff when he's on. I guess my feeling about it is that between he and Wood, one is likely to stay healthy and be the dominant start we want in addition to Z/Prior. I think my offseason priorities right now look like this: 1 - Giles -- big gap -- 2 - SS (I'm actually starting to lean towards Furcal over Nomar after looking more deeply into the defensive difference between the two) 3 - SP (I like Burnett best, but wouldn't overpay to get him at this point. So I probably wouldn't) 4 - RP -- one of the available setup men for the eighth. I think the rest of the pen is pretty well set. If Maddux's opts to retire, then I can see putting starting pitching ahead of SS even. I still think he will return, but I did recently talk to Maddux's cousin, and he seemed to think he was going to call it quits. I don't put much stock in that, however. He was pretty drunk at the time. Assuming Mad Dog does return, I think Williams can be really solid as a 4th starter. But it would be great to acquire someone more count-on-able than Rusch or Hill or Wood to be the 5th. That way, if Wood does come back and stay healthy, the Cubs have a really good problem on their hands. I'm just not sold that Burnett would be worth it. I also agree with vance that CF does need to be addressed. Only if Giles is acquired could the Cubs go into the season with Corey still in CF. The other internal CF options like Hairston are okay, but if the team can be improved (like by signing Lofton and platooning him with Hairston) then why not? Thats what the off season is for...supposedly.

What throws fuel on the fire of any rumor these days *cough*dustytothedodgers*cough**hack**cough* is that MLB frowns upon teams announcing much of anything during post-season play. I mean, they COULD have agreed to huge mega deals and they just can't SAY anything because of pesky Selig. Right?!?! I think that's accurate. We've heard it several times before. If the deal for Giles is done, we won't know until the day after tomorrow. :wink: That would prevent a story about it showing up on the official Padres website, but not the other sites. How do you explain those? Don't the papers in San Diego have to turn a profit like everyone else? And yet, nothing. Are they afraid of the wrath of Selig also? How should I know? I am speculating just like everyone else. May be the source isn't one the papers typically use. I recall earlier this year that Bruce Levine reporting that a major deal would go down within 24 hours. It never happened, and no other Chicago media oulet reported it. Stuff happens. That's my point. The radio report that Giles had resigned with the Padres was followed by a deafening silence from every other Padres news outlet. So maybe we shouldn't jump to conclusions. Everyone thought the report from The Mighty 1090 AM in San Diego meant that Giles was signed. They started assuming that Hendry was going to have to make a trade in order to get a good RFer for next season. But then there were some of us that said this wasn't over quite yet. That got countered by the argument that no official announcements would be made about any signings until after the WS was over. Well, the WS is over, and there is an article about Seanez becoming a FA on the Padres official website, but nothing about them signing Giles. Now, it is still quite likely that Giles will resign with the Padres. I always thought it was a bit of a longshot for Hendry to get him. But sometimes longshots do come in, and all I'm saying is that this one is still out there.

I found this quote from the article particularly interesting... Hmm, a culture of negativity that had brought the team down. Maybe the Cubs wouldn't the best place for this guy after all. :wink:

BA has a new members only article on A.J. Burnett being the top free agent on the market this off season. The Cubs are mentioned as being one of the teams in the running. I personally have him down the list of priorities for the Cubs with Giles being at the top. But maybe someone out there can show me the light on why he should be higher. I know Tim had originally pushed for Burnett and B.J. Ryan, if I'm not mistaken. Do you still feel that way, Tim? Anyone?

Sorry, dude. :P

Back on topic, I loved this Q & A. I was very impressed with Murton. I also came away impressed with Hendry's ability to get him included in the Nomar deal. The Cubs gave up very little in comparison to what they got in that trade. Maybe Giles should sign with San Diego. Hendry seems to do a lot better with trades than his free agent signings. :wink:

I'm going to agree with Rocket. It's diffrent than Dubois, who had maybe 25 major league AB's with which to judge him. Murton had 150, and played very well. Dusty respects production out of youth (albiet he needs it at a high level to make him shake dumb platoons), so I would expect Murton earned some stripes in Dusty's eyes. Expect a situation better than what Hee Seop Choi got, with Murton playing against all but the very toughest RHP. I agree with USSoccer who is agreeing with Rocket. It all comes down to production out of the young guys for Dusty. Basically, he manages out of fear. If a player doesn't have a proven track record of not being an embarrassment to his manager at the major league level, then he is going to have a very short leash with Dusty. That said, I would think that Murton's performance this season has earned him the shot Hollandsworth got this season. Dusty will likely give Murton a solid month or so of starts regardless of how he performs. But if he does what Todd did during April of '05, then Dusty will start experimenting. Again, he is going with the guy he thinks will give him the best shot to win that day. But the criteria he uses to determine who will give him the best shot to win seems pretty wonky to me.

Go, EPatt! I am really pulling for him to make good and be the Cubs 2nd baseman of the future. Ramirez, Cedeno, Patterson and Lee. I doubt it will happen, but they could be good. And maybe Koronka is on the Chronic? When pitchers relax good things can happen... i am very much hoping for the same thing along with murton & pie in the of. why do you doubt it can happen? murton & cedeno are ready to start in the majors next year imo and epat & pie might be ready by 2007. with prior and z already established & guzman, pinto, nolasco on the verge of breaking out, the cubs would have the vast majority of their starters being developed by their farm system. I have doubts that both Cedeno and EPatt will succeed as starters at the major league level because it so rarely has happened in the past for the Cubs, and most other teams for that matter. I believe that it is possible, but it would be the exception to the rule thus far. However, rules, especially these kind, are meant to be broken. As far as the rest of your list (Guzman, Pinto and Nolasco) is concerned, there is a difference between succeeding in AA and the majors. Some guys succeed at the AA level with major league stuff and some succeed with AAA stuff. The word on Nolasco is that he has really good AA stuff. We will see. Guzman's right arm is made of glass. Talent isn't his problem, but the most games he has pitched in one season is 22. Maybe he would be better served in the bullpen. Again, we will see. Pinto is the one pitcher from that list that has the combination of major league stuff and durability. If one of them has a lasting impact on the Cubs starting rotation in the future, I think Pinto has the best chance of doing it. But there are so many things that can cause a player who puts up great numbers in the minors to fail at the higher levels that I think a team would consider themselves lucky to introduce one rookie position player per year and get something out of him. If you can get two, you are way ahead of the game. With Murton, Cedeno, EPatt and Pie, you are talking about 4 in two years. Possible? Sure. Likely? Something you want to count on and plan around? I wouldn't.

Maybe the mods can break this tangent off into its own thread. That way this one can stay on topic and the tangent will be easier to find.

I honestly see him as a Cardinal next year. I think Jocketty has accepted the benefits of statistical analysis in a way that we could only dream of as Cubs fans. Boy, am I hoping you're wrong.

Go, EPatt! I am really pulling for him to make good and be the Cubs 2nd baseman of the future. Ramirez, Cedeno, Patterson and Lee. I doubt it will happen, but they could be good. And maybe Koronka is on the Chronic? When pitchers relax good things can happen...