don_kessinger_was_good

Mark Prior.

He's hardly cheap. Unless the Phillies pick up a chunk of his contract, he's very expensive. So what? The Cubs have money, and plenty of it. Let them spend it.

Count me in on this. The Cubs have no brains, but they do have money. They should begin trying to buy their way out of this mess. I don't care what their defense is like, this offense is patently offensive, it needs a major upgrade and badly. Burrell, Jones and C-Lee in the 2007 OF, with Lee, Ramirez and Barrett on the IF corners. That's a good start on a nice offense. Yankee-esque no, but not a punchless paper sack either. Add a top-of-the-order, middle infield guy and you're all set, let Theriot and Cedeno compete for the other middle IF spot, and address the pitching next.

Yo, who's the girl in your avatar, mega-cute.....

Going on record here as being 100%, no doubt about it, are you kidding me, how can you not like this, would salvage something out of this rotten season etc...--yes for A-Rod, and twice on Sunday. Aramis, Pierre or Jock, any reliever the Yanks want, and if they'll give us a couple of their prospects, we'll give them a couple of ours. Aramis, Jock, Williamson and Rich Hill for A-Rod and Eric Duncan, how about that? Then, if I'm Jim Hendry, I get on the phone and start up that Prior for Tejada business again. This time, I pull the trigger. If Prior eventually becomes a stud, bully for him. I want the bat. I keep Todd Walker. Cedeno I move in a later trade. A-Rod, Tejada, Walker, Lee and Barrett for your infield. Got more offense than that out there? Anybody? Sign one FA outfielder this winter, let Murton, Pie, Pagan and other youngsters fight over one OF spot. Sign one FA starting pitcher. You're basically there at that point. So, A-Rod gets the ball rolling. Do it.

Definite keepers: Zambrano, Lee and Ramirez (though note that's $30MM right there for three players) Probably keep: Barrett, Cedeno, Prior, Eyre, Marshall, Marmol. I would be willing to trade any of these guys in the right deal, but it would have to be a convincing argument. I'm no big fan of Barrett, but he's not expensive and there aren't many good catchers out there. I don't think Cedeno is a future all-star, but he's OK, shortstops again there aren't TOO many good ones, and he's cheap. Prior, the potential is too high, and his value too low right now, to move him unless the deal warrants it like a Tejada trade would have. I like Eyre because his money is reasonable and he's a reliable lefty reliever, hard to find them. Marshall and Marmol look like solid 3/4 type starters long-term, you don't regard 3s and 4s as untouchable, but you tend to not want to trade them. Everyone else is on the block, including anyone in our minor league system. Players I DEFINITELY trade if I can find a willing partner? Jones, Maddux, Pierre, Wood, Walker, Neifi, Rusch and Williamson top the list, because I don't see any of them fitting in to the long-horizon success of the team. I recognize some of these guys have little to no value (Rusch) or are untradeable because of injury (Wood and Williamson), I'm just saying if you can save money and move them, you do it. For instance, I'll take nothing for Rusch if I could just get a team to pick up a portion of his 2007 money, that alone would be a victory and an improvement. Same thing with Neifi. Targets? Slugging outfielders, young middle infielders, starting pitchers. For hitters, high OBP is a must. For pitchers, health and reliability, along with control and pitch count efficiency, are musts. Money is no issue as I see it.

Free agent crop is weak (again), Cubs need to rebuild via trades. I'd start by stockpiling as much young talent as I can between next week (June 15 trade deadline) and July 31. Get me some youngsters that have upside please, in exchange for veterans that cannot help us this year and/or we do not plan on bringing back. 1. I ask Maddux if he wants to be traded. 2. If I can get anything of value for Pierre, I take it. Now. 3. I move Jones while his value is about as high as it'll ever be. 4. I think you can get some very good value for one of our late inning relievers. Personally, I'd try to trade Dempster and give Howry the closer's job, but that's me. I'd willingly trade Howry or Eyre as alternatives to Dempster. 5. With (the awful) Phil Nevin now here as a placeholder until Lee returns, and with the season already in the tank, trade Walker while his value is high and you can get something for him. 6. If someone wants to talk Michael Barrett, Matt Murton, Aramis Ramirez or one of our AAA starters, I'll listen, but it's not as high a priority. I confess I'm beginning to sour on Murton as a long-term corner OF solution. My hope would be that out of all the above, Hendry could acquire young talent this year that can be ready to help out next year. One starting position player, one middle to late inning reliever, and one strong bench player would be a nice haul. If you then AGGRESSIVELY hunt down one FA starting pitcher (Zito) and pursue a bigtime offseason trade for an OF bat (Abreu?), you could start making some progress here. If you could move Jones, and assuming there's no way Wood, Maddux or Pierre return, I see an immediate what, $32MM windfall? If you trade one of Dempster or Howry, and Williamson and Miller won't be back (Miller never here!), that's another $8MM. So, you go with a $60MM to $70MM payroll team and a lot of youngsters, an option I can live with. Or you let Hendry waste millions on washed up zeroes like Neifi and Rusch and Friends. Guh.

Request for Photoshop expert to get a picture of Wood on the mound with a huge fork sticking out of his back.

George the Chili King, just off Merle Hay Rd and Hickman. Yum.

Maddux has a NTC, he has said before there is no way, no how he will go to the AL for any amt of $$. Can't say I blame him. Arizona and the three NL California teams are the only ones Maddux would conceivably consider in a trade, along with (I'm guessing) a return to the ATL.

Beat me.

I must have missed the part where Restovich showed he could hit major league pitching with us. Or the Pirates. Or the Twins.

Aramis Ramirez for Rich Harden.

I'm not sure the GM's between Santo and Ramirez would agree! Bill. Madlock. I'm on record as being the biggest Madlock fan on the board, dang I was heartbroke the day he was traded. Along with Ryno and Big Daddy, my three favorite Cubs of all time.

I saw Milledge in spring training this March in Florida, I have to say, I wasn't all THAT impressed. He'll be a big leaguer, but he sure didn't look ready to me just two and half short months ago. FREE SWINGER a-la Corey Patterson.

Yes, it already does look good. Murton is at .362 right now, which is just about thirty points above average (.333 IIRC). Thanks for playing. But when a righty is on the mound, Murton is at .318 (.305 slg). That is terrible for a left fielder. Given his youth, he deserves this year to see if he can improve upon it. But if he doesn't, he's likely to end up a platoon or 4th outfielder. If the Cubs had a genuine slugging corner OF, a Murton/Jones platoon would be most acceptable for the other corner spot. It would also lessen the pain of Jones' contract, given that Murton makes league minimum. If Pie is ready to play next year, Hendry's biggest tasks will be to acquire a GENUINE cornerstone OF, and a QUALITY middle infielder. Do that, and the offense will look one whole lot better. He'll need to do it via trades, because Carlos Lee looks like the only bigtime OF on the FA market this coming winter, and frankly, I've never been a big Carlos Lee fan. (...and then he whispered....) Mark Prior for Jason Bay? I'm serious.

I would gladly, happily, jump up and down trade Wood and Ramirez for A-Rod. Shoot, we'd SAVE money on that deal, we'd probably have to send George some $$, hah! And if I got A-Rod, I'd put him back at SS where he has max value, it's a lot easier finding a 3B instead. Prior's value is as low as it will ever be right now, so I keep him out of the two, even though I like Wood better (at least Kerry pitches when hurt). OTOH, I don't see any way Wood returns to the Cubs next year, so if you can get value for him now, shoot yes, I trade him. A-Rod is pie in the sky though, unfortunately.

An 841 OPS would rank Sammy what, the leading slugger on the Cubs right now? I'd much rather see Sammy swinging from the heels and occasionally sending one 450 feet than watching the deadbeats we have on the field right now. Sammy rules.

That 1980 bunch was baaaaad. Absolutely no pitching. 74, was that the year Bonham lost 20+ games? Wouldn't doubt it, it was the first full post-Fergie, Santo, Williams team if I recall. This team will be competitive with those by year end. I'm calling a 95 loss season at this point.

Have you seen our hitters? Help--shoot, they need resuscitation.

WE WANT SAMMY! WE WANT SAMMY! WE WANT SAMMY! WE WANT SAMMY!

All need some pitching help. I'd like to get Dustin Pedroia here, and for the Yankees, Colter Bean and Eric Duncan might be interesting. Give me a second prospect to go with Pedroia, and I'll send Boston Bobby Howry come June 16th. The Yankees, if Slappy could just do SOMETHING, I think I could get them to take Pierre off our hands. I'd give them Will Ohman too, if they'll just take him. Here's another interesting idea. Mets are getting antsy, they want some pitching. Sean Marshall for Lastings Milledge, straight-up. Would be an excellent trade for both teams, addressing areas of weakness. I like Marshall a lot, but we need offense desperately for next year and beyond. Milledge and Pie in the OF could be something special.

Count me in for Cuban and Bobby V, that I would like.

He's not very smart because his team has been sucking, showing no life, his team is getting the crapped kicked out of them by the in city rival and he gets barrelled over and knocks the crap out of the person that barrelled him over? So Barretts a jerk, but AJ's not for slapping the plate like an idiot? I think it was great, Barretts the only one on this team that gives a crap. I've been in a few fights in my life so does that make me a jerk, Iq of about 50? What did you want him to do? If he just took it and didn't act like anything was the matter, people would be jumping on him cause he didnt' show any fire.. I don't get it.. 1. The rundown play. 2. The run-in with Oswalt. 3. The fight with AJP. 4. The incredibly dumb called pitches. 5. The impatience at the plate. 6. The quotes in the press. The guy is a dim-witted moron. So he hits 270 every year, big deal. He still sucks, and he is not a long-term solution, contract notwithstanding.

Barrett is a jerk and has an IQ of about 50. He's been doing stupid crap since we got him, I honestly DO think he's just not very smart. I don't like him, I don't like his game, I don't like his bonehead mistakes. When the new Cubs GM is ready to trade him, I won't complain.