CubfaninCA

I don't think Manny wants to come to Chicago. :(

Can't see this deal going down and good points about the Cubs not having the right type of starting pitcher for Philly. Perhaps Jerome Williams turns into the right type of guy by mid-July. Am glad some people realize the lack of good RF's in the game. Also, Jones can be traded next year or moved to CF. Several teams had interest in him...

The Red Sox intend to platoon Youkilis at 1st Base with Snow, in addition to spelling Lowell on certain days. I believe Youkilis had 1 hr and 9 rbi's last year - god knows he can walk though. He's a nice #9 hitter, I guess. Am assuming Crisp & Loretta bat 1 & 2.

I thought Theo was Boston's GM again?? The lineup doesn't look too potent. 1b. Snow - defensive player 2b. Loretta - coming off injury SS. Agonz - defensive player 3b. Lowell - see 05 for more.. LF. Manny - Great hitter, awful attitude and d. Cf. Crisp - Very nice player Rf. Nixon - injury prone C. Varitek - Very nice player DH. Ortiz - great player Of course, they're better than the Cubs cause they have a DH, but a lineup w/ Snow, AGonz, Nixon & Lowell is a little shaky. No guarantees.

Newcomers should be welcomed, not mocked.

I disagree..I don't think the pitching is as good as it was once perceived to be, and not quite on WS level yet. Zambrano is really the only proven commodity in the rotation at this point, and although we paid big money to improve the pen, I still reserve the right to see it in action first. That's also banking on Baker being able to actually use them correctly as well. Sure, there is loads of talent, but thats been there for years. In 03, it almost got them to a WS, but every other year, it hasn't done anything for the Cub fans except give them another reason to hang their head in shame. If Wood & Prior are 100% , the Cubs are serious contenders. The Cubs are due for some good luck for a change. Also, 1-2-3 would be better than 2003, when Zambrano wasn't on All Star level.

The Cubs definitely will be in the market for a pitcher next offseason. They'll still have Prior and Zambrano, but with the 12 million or so to Wood and the 9 million to Maddux coming off the books, I could see a run at Mulder or Zito or maybe even Schmidt happening. I see them going after a lefty. I don't think they can get any of those three without a long term deal though so I won't count on any of them signing. Agree that they'll go after a lefty, but the more serious organizations (NY, Boston, Anaheim, etc.) will beat them out as usual. :(

My feeling is that Pie could develop into a solid hitting centerfielder but would be average or slightly below average on an outfield corner - unless his power really develops (and that is a possibility). Do you think Abreu's cost will go down at the deadline? I can't see giving up Prior for him at that point (or at any point actually). If they're out of it by the deadline, their demands should change. Since they're looking to contend, they want a proven pitcher who's quite good. If they're out of contention, they should be more open to picking up pitchers w/ lots of potential and be looking to cut some payroll so they can restructure the team.

By adding lots of pitching depth (Rusch, Miller, Eyre, Howry..), the Cubs should have some good trading chips.

yea, should have got giles while we could have. now we have to trade for a RFer. Hopefully, Philly sucks & we can get Abreu @ the deadline.

Nice list of pitchers. Looks like no RF's though.

The 2004 team was clearly the best team he put together. 04' & 05' the Cubs were decimated with injuries & teams like the Astros & Cards, had very healthy pitching staffs. Health/depth will be the main determining factor on how good the Cubs will be in 06'. Right now, there is no depth in the outfield. Maybe he still plans on addressing that before they head into Spring Training. If not, the outfield is going to be a major concern for the 2nd year in a row. You think he considers Pie as OF depth?? If someone goes down in June for an extended amount of time, perhaps Pie is the guy he has in mind to fill in.

Ready for what? Soft tossing? According to reports, he is soft tossing already & will be ready to throw off the mound in February. Supposedly, what will take the most time is to get his velocity & stamina back. Ah, I was just being sarcastic, but hope he will be ready by opening day. Or at least the first time he would be slated to start. Hope so. Then everyone can focus on squabbling over who will be the #5, Williams or Rusch. :)

Wood ready by opening week. Well... Well.... :D

Jim - For some reason Vlad, Abreu and Dunn didn't fall in our lap. Me - I've never asked for a superstar in RF, just someone who can do more than "catch the ball" for $16M/3. Smartass. Oh, and do something about that hair. Jim - Who's not a superstar, but does more than catch the ball?? Me - Hardcore Cub fans set their sights way too high this offseason considering what was available. The Cubs need to try the novel concept of developing their own talent and not relying on free agency to fill need after need. Meat - Are you kidding me, Hendry? Have you seen Jones' numbers in relation to other qualified RFers over the last two years. He's in the bottom third offensively. ---------- Oh, and how long will it take to develop our own position players (that are actually decent)? How old will Prior, Zambrano, Lee, and Ramirez be at that time? Setting our sights too high? No, just don't fill the roster with the likes of Neifi and Jones with multi-year deals. I'm not asking for the all-star team, just more prudent decision making. Who likes the Jones signing? Neifi? Rusch? 3 boneheaded moves. Who should Hendry have got then? I'd answer, but you'll just say he wasn't really "available". Ah, what the heck...he should have overpaid whatever it took to get Giles. Meat never asked for a superstar tho. :)

So the prognosis on Schilling's good?

Jim - For some reason Vlad, Abreu and Dunn didn't fall in our lap. Me - I've never asked for a superstar in RF, just someone who can do more than "catch the ball" for $16M/3. Smartass. Oh, and do something about that hair. Jim - Who's not a superstar, but does more than catch the ball?? Me - Hardcore Cub fans set their sights way too high this offseason considering what was available. The Cubs need to try the novel concept of developing their own talent and not relying on free agency to fill need after need. Meat - Are you kidding me, Hendry? Have you seen Jones' numbers in relation to other qualified RFers over the last two years. He's in the bottom third offensively. ---------- Oh, and how long will it take to develop our own position players (that are actually decent)? How old will Prior, Zambrano, Lee, and Ramirez be at that time? Setting our sights too high? No, just don't fill the roster with the likes of Neifi and Jones with multi-year deals. I'm not asking for the all-star team, just more prudent decision making. Who likes the Jones signing? Neifi? Rusch? 3 boneheaded moves. Who should Hendry have got then?

I think they're the team to beat in the West., but lots of question marks w/ that squad. Drew, Nomar, Gagne & Penny have health issues. Perez was ticked off w/ them last year. Lowe had some off-da-field issues. There's only 5 or so sure fire teams in baseball coming into 2006: St. Louis, Atlanta, the Yankees, Angels and Red Sox. Not so sure about the Red Sox though.

Jim - For some reason Vlad, Abreu and Dunn didn't fall in our lap. Me - I've never asked for a superstar in RF, just someone who can do more than "catch the ball" for $16M/3. Smartass. Oh, and do something about that hair. Jim - Who's not a superstar, but does more than catch the ball?? Me - Hardcore Cub fans set their sights way too high this offseason considering what was available. The Cubs need to try the novel concept of developing their own talent and not relying on free agency to fill need after need.

I'm probably among the most pessimistic Cubs fan after seeing what Hendry has failed to do the past 2 offseasons, but I can't agree with you here. For them to lose 90 they would have to have nearly unprecedented bad luck. I mean seriously, they gave 600 PA to Neifi last year and didn't get close to 90 losses. They started the year with the worst OF possible and didn't come close to 90. They could sleepwalk their way to a 75-78 win season. I don't think these guys are at risk of drafting in the top 5 next year. As I've said before, I think this team has locked in its mediocrity. I think they are a pretty safe bet to be around .500. The problem is not that they might lose 90, the problem is they've given themselves a very small chance of winning more than 90. So they're in the 76 to 86 win range? That's reasonable. Imo, with some real good luck where everything is clicking and there's few injuries, they can win over 90. With some real bad luck, they can lose 70 or less. I think teams like Houston, Philadephia, Washington, LA, SD, and NY fall under this as well. St. Louis & Atlanta will find some way to win 90+.

Jim - For some reason Vlad, Abreu and Dunn didn't fall in our lap.

How many teams in the NL are clearly better than the Cubs? The Cardinals, Braves and?????????? Houston may not have Clemens. Florida gutted their roster. No one in the NL West is very good. Altogether, most of the team's in the NL have question marks just like the Cubs. All the hatin is premature.

Well, nothing major was really done.. Say what you want about where the guy writes for, but the real reason people are hurt by it is because its true. A lineup of Pierre, Walker, Lee, ARam, Jones, Murton, Barrett and Perez/Cedeno exactly wasn't what I had in mind when the offseason began. That is the lineup of a 4th place team, not a contender. Who's going to hit for Jones against lefties? Why did we end up with Jones in the first place? Whos going to be there in case Murton isn't a MLB calibur starter? Even if Ronnie beats out Perez, is that even really an upgrade? And if Walker gets traded or injured, then are they just left with a Perez, Cedeno combo? The pitching staff really isn't that much better. There's Zambrano, Prior and...well, not much else worth mentioning at this point, at least, not as a positive point. Wood is obviously someone I am not counting on. Maddux, though I love the guy, is on his last legs, Williams is hardly going to scare anyone. The pen has Dempster as our closer..it will be interesting to see if he can duplicate his success. Then we have Howry and Eyre, who could be great, or could be busts. The rest are pretty much the same ragtag group from last tear. Was the DRay comment harsh? Yea, it was. But it's just not as far off as people here are taking it. Big difference between nothing & major. The lineup is nothing special, but the Cubs have the pitching to win a world series. Like any other team besides the Yankees & Cardinals, the Cubs have to rely on good health & some lucky bounces. The Yankees can buy both. The Cards are the team of choice amongst the baseball gods.

Anaheim couldn't sign him until after May 1st since they didn't offer him arbitration. It's likely down to Dodgers and Blue Jays and neither of those teams are going to give him six million. If Anaheim gets another catcher, it will Piazza who will be more of a DH than catcher. ah. some of these sports show in LA suck. they're acting like anaheim can resign molina any time they want.

so if the move is unimportant, why did you make this comment? the move was getting overhyped by some... Thomas turns 38 in May and has missed a considerable amount of time the past 2 years. The guy could be going the way of other great power hitters/steroid users like Sosa & Bonds. His body's probably shot, but if he gets on Giambi's HGH who knows maybe he'll play half a year.... What's up with the steriod talk? Are you privy to information no one else is or are you just spouting off? educated guess ~ lots of guys used them back in his heyday. thomas is huge and strong. thomas is getting hurt a lot now. i don't have hat size measurements tho.