don_kessinger_was_good

If he was an extra base threat 3 teams would not have given up on him. He's a walk threat, that's it. Limited RBI's, and that is what you want from a PH/1B and he really doesn't provide that. You're all wet. In 320 ABs (roughly half a season), Choi put up a line of .253/.336/.453 with 15 HR, 15 2B, 2 3B, 42 RBI. His IsoP was a whopping .200, and it's been 200 or better his entire ML career other than his brief stint with LA at the end of the 2004 season.

Cuban would dump Dusty for Bobby Valentine in a heartbeat. Bobby V and Cuban are good friends.

You simply MUST sign Furcal at this point, everything else depends on it. We can get a #2 hitter for CF, but Furcal is our only real option for SS and leadoff that makes sense for us. Yes, he'll be overpaid, but we are between a rock and a hard place, and Hendry has roughly $30MM to spend here. Get it done.

I've said several times that a trade with LA that brought both Milton Bradley and Hee Seop to the Cubs would be terrific for us, and I hope it's something Hendry pursues. With Hollandsworth gone and Walker sure to go too, we need a backup 1B. More important, we need SOMEONE off the bench late in games that is an actual extra-base hit threat, preferably batting LH, and Hee Seop fits the bill, perfectly. Plus, I think everyone in Chicago and all the fans still like Choi, I know I'd love to have him back on the bench. I would SO prefer Bobby Hill over Neifi, too, but that's never going to happen. Too bad, because Hill covers the same bases Neifi does (2B, SS and 3B), with better OBP, better SLG, and better speed. Shoot, I'd prefer Hill over Hairston for the bench, as far as that goes. We won't mention any gremlin issues.

FWIW, Lowell can play some 2B and 1B. What if we sent Patterson, Cedeno, Williams and Hill to the Marlins for Beckett, Pierre and Lowell, and the Marlins pick up half of Lowell's contract? Cedeno becomes their new SS, Williams and Hill replace Beckett and Burnett in their rotation at the ML minimum, and Patterson would be their 4th OF, playing behind Hermida. And, they clear out a good $13MM in payroll. We, OTOH, get the extra starting pitcher Hendry wants; a new CF and leadoff man; and Lowell can platoon with Neifi at 2B. My package sounds a lot better than Texas', so why not? And we could always flip Lowell elsewhere if desired.

You overvalue Sing. Look at his winter league numbers. He has some potential, he can certainly take a pitch and has legit power. But he's no young pup, and no team would give up serious value for him, you'd get a similar quasi-prospect from the AA level or so in exchange. Yes that's something, but not enough to get worked up over. If some team out there actually thought well of Sing, you can be assured he would have been traded, just like they dumped Leicester. As dumb as I think Hendry is, even HE probably knew several weeks ago which players he was going to protect and which players he wasn't. So if Sing gets claimed by KC let's say, and he can stick all year, then good for him, he seems like a nice guy. Anyone from Joliet can't be all bad...

Like everyone else, I agree Hendry is a buffoon when it comes to managing his 40-man roster. Yet another reason he needs to go. I don't have a problem with exposing guys like Sing, Greenberg, Brownlie and Fontenot per se--each is a marginal contributor at best, there is no Andy Sisco in that bunch. But since each does have some potential value, it is just inexcusable to waste a spot on a deadbeat like Jose Macias. Again. What the hell is Hendry's problem? How is it that he is the ONLY guy in baseball that can't seem to figure this out? Does Macias have incriminating pictures of Hendry doing something illegal? I mean, that's the only conceivable explanation at this point. Settling down a bit, I thought Greenberg or Sing could be a viable 5th OF option, and I certainly think Fontenot can hit as well as Neifi, so I'm disappointed as usual with Hendry, but not livid like I was last year with Sisco. As for Brownlie, it would have been nice to see if he could develop into a useful ML middle reliever, but we already have a logjam there, so I can understand that decision no problem. If Brownlie can't start, he has marginal value.

Other than the fact that I don't see Jones signing onto a plan like that (and that there's no way Dusty would sit Jones for Murton), it's an interesting idea. Looking at the numbers more closely, I guess I'd want someone other than Burnitz, but the other three absolutely. Jones' split against RHP: 814 OPS. Murton's split against LHP: 1006 OPS. Mench's split against LHP: 980 OPS. Those are some fearsome numbers. Who could the 4th OF be, a lefty bat, instead of Burnitz?

I know Dusty is the wrong manager to correctly implement something like this, but what if you went with a "super platoon" system in the OF? Murton and Jacque Jones in LF, Kevin Mench and Jeromy Burnitz in RF? If you play to their split strengths, the offense would be pretty good, and the bench would be dramatically improved. And, the combined $$ cost of Jones + Mench + Burnitz would be about equal to one Brian Giles.

Well, I did read the majority of the thread, and I didn't say all posters were disappointed, I merely recaped the predominant school of thought. What other relievers are you wanting? Vance, how do we know what type FA Eyre is? Have those been established? I haven't seen the list. I'm still hoping for a bonafide 8th inning setup man, via trade. Jesse Crain in Minnesota, Rafael Betancourt in Cleveland, Mike MacDougal in Kansas City. Free agents Bob Howry and Octavio Dotel are also possibilities. I prefer some of these guys to others (Betancourt please!), but I'd be happy about getting any of them. My hope is that for once, the Cubs go into spring training with a quality, deep, effective bullpen. It will help any team win a lot of games, but given the tendency of our starting pitchers to run up high pitch counts and exit games early, a great bullpen should be especially valuable for this team. As evidence of the value of deep bullpens, I merely point to the White Sox, Astros, Indians and Angels last year. The Cardinals in 2004. Minnesota for most of the last half-dozen years. Most of these teams had average at best offenses (Cards excluded), but were still winning ballclubs. I don't think it's a coincidence that each had reliable middle relievers, a good 7th inning man, a good 8th inning man, and a good closer.

mhuber-- Since you don't want to read the thread....it would be inaccurate to say all posters are disappointed with the Eyre signing, and/or the terms of the deal. In fact, some are quite pleased with the signing and the attention Hendry is giving to the bullpen. And at least one poster hopes he isn't finished with bullpen changes.... :wink:

I would be very disappointed with that outcome, but to be fair: Cedeno would be an upgrade over Neifi 05; Pierre would be an upgrade over Patterson/Hairston 05; Soriano would be an upgrade over Walker 05; and Encarnacion (for example) would likely be an upgrade over Burnitz 05. With Murton obviously an upgrade over Hollandsworth 05. If the pitching staff were significantly strengthened, the field upgrades might be enough to get it done. Clearly I'm hoping for much more in the field, as is everyone else here, but the "worst case" scenario "upgrades" you list would still be upgrades from what we trotted out there last year. If that's worth a half-dozen wins, and an improved bullpen and healthy starters are worth a half-dozen wins as well, suddenly you're a 90 win ballclub. And that's the WORST case scenario? Things could still turn out pretty well, here. Give it time. I agree with most of this. Except what's in bold. You would be wrong. I'm not a huge Soriano fan, he's entirely too undisciplined at the plate for my taste. But you won't find anyone in baseball other than here that would claim he isn't a better overall player than Todd Walker. He is a far superior slugger, with speed where Walker has none. If both players hit lower in the order like #6, Soriano is a much more valuable player. Having said that, I was simply assessing the first poster's scenario in terms of whether it would be an improvement over 2005 or not. I am in no way advocating for Soriano, and I would be disappointed if that's a route Hendry pursues.

I would be very disappointed with that outcome, but to be fair: Cedeno would be an upgrade over Neifi 05; Pierre would be an upgrade over Patterson/Hairston 05; Soriano would be an upgrade over Walker 05; and Encarnacion (for example) would likely be an upgrade over Burnitz 05. With Murton obviously an upgrade over Hollandsworth 05. If the pitching staff were significantly strengthened, the field upgrades might be enough to get it done. Clearly I'm hoping for much more in the field, as is everyone else here, but the "worst case" scenario "upgrades" you list would still be upgrades from what we trotted out there last year. If that's worth a half-dozen wins, and an improved bullpen and healthy starters are worth a half-dozen wins as well, suddenly you're a 90 win ballclub. And that's the WORST case scenario? Things could still turn out pretty well, here. Give it time.

JW will make league minimum next year. Then that's even better news. Hendry has plenty of money.

Yup. I should note I forgot one guy: Jerome Williams. If he returns, he gets arb money I believe, he'd likely be around $1.5MM or so? The point is though, I think some are panicking a bit much regarding money. I agree Hendry does not use his available money as prudently as other GMs, but what are you going to do? So long as he has sufficient funds to get everything done, what do we care whether the payroll is 100MM, or 105MM, or 125MM?? All Hendry needs do is please his masters in the Trib Tower. For all we know, they've OK'd whatever it takes to put a winner on the field up to say, $120MM, Hendry knows that, and he's spending freely accordingly. C'est la vie, nice problem to have.

As I pointed out in the other thread, the final payroll for 2005 was $102MM; the Cubs are raising ticket prices (again) in 2006 and installing yet more seats at Wrigley; the White Sox are the defending world champions. Taken together, I believe the payroll will be more like $105MM. As for specific players above, Walker will almost certainly be traded, reducing your amount by $2.5MM. Jerry Hairston Jr. is not listed, but I think the Cubs will keep him; they control him now, and he's unlikely to get anything other than a trivial raise (if that) in arbitration. The Cubs need two bench outfielders, I think one will be Adam Greenberg, the other will be someone new, with power, that can play some 1B. In the end, I think Walker does get traded for a setup man. Add all that up, and I guesstimate you're looking at $30MM to spend on just three players: a new starting CF, a new starting RF, and a new starting SS or 2B. I think it's safe to say $30MM is MORE than enough money to get that done.

Plus another $2.5MM when Walker is inevitably traded. Now you're at $27.5MM. And that assumes $100MM, when I think $105MM is probably more like it. After all, they ended up last year at $102MM counting Sosa's salary. Let's just say a rough $30MM is still available to spend. That's a lot of dough, and could easily fetch for example, Giles + Furcal + Pierre + another reliever. The money is there.

If the Braves are going to keep Furcal, why don't we just trade for either Marcus Giles or Wilson Betemit? There isn't room in Atlanta for all three of them. There has been talk of Betemit being moved to 3B, but that doesn't makes sense, as Andy Marte is even better yet. So, Giles or Furcal or Betemit. Give me any one of the three, I don't care.

An 8th inning setup man is more important to the Cubs success than keeping Todd Walker. If I can trade Walker for Jesse Crain, or Mike MacDougal, or Rafael Betancourt, I do it happily. It is becoming more and more clear that Hendry is enraptured with the pitching and defense model, and given how "well" the alternatives have gone for us over the years, then what the heck, I'm all for it. At least it's a coherent strategy, even if ultimately flawed. Add a RH setup man in exchange for Todd Walker; sign another starting pitcher or trade for one with prospects. OK, I'm game.

After an arbitration raise to Zambrano, my guess is its closer to 20. Either way, it's drying up pretty rapidly with little to show. It's like eating out every night. Sure 10 bucks isn't much, but keep doing it every night and it adds up. This is just plain wrong. Prior to anything happening, the committed payroll was below $60MM. After taking into account the signings so far, and figuring roughly $3MM in raises in total to existing players under contract (Zambrano is the only arb-eligible player that will get a $$-significant raise), Hendry still has nearly $30MM to spend assuming a $100MM payroll, and more likely, almost $35MM to spend since I think the payroll will be closer in the end to $105MM. There is more than enough money available to get a big money corner OF, Furcal, a setup man, and a veteran starting pitcher. I don't know that Hendry is the man to get it done, but the money is still there.

I like the signing. The money, who cares? Hendry spends like a drunken sailor, we already know this. At least he got a contributor for the money. I disagree with the characterization that this is $3.5MM a year spent on a LOOGY. Eyre wasn't signed to be a LOOGY, that is Will Ohman's job, and he does it just fine. Eyre was signed to be a middle reliever, a 7th inning man to get the ball to the primary setup man. Bullpen, bullpen, bullpen. I've argued for years that bullpen strength, in terms of depth and quality, is what this team needs to get more production from our starting pitchers. I think the recent success of the White Sox, and Angels, and Astros and (last year) the Cardinals only adds further empirical evidence to the idea that in the modern game, deep and effective bullpens get teams to the postseason. In my view, the signing is necessary because as of October, the only relievers we had in-house that I had any confidence in were Dempster to close and Ohman in his limited loogy role. Wuertz is borderline IMO and Williamson is still unproven after his injury. I think little of the Roberto Novoa's and Todd Wellemeyer's of the world. I am hoping Hendry continues the theme and trades Todd Walker for our setup man. Signing Howry would be OK, but I still like the Walker for MacDougal trade rumor and hope it happens. You know the Cubs will go with a 7-man pen again. Rusch is your long man, spot starter, and Wood insurance; Ohman is the loogy; Dempster to close. You now let performance and the hot hand dictate which of Michael Wuertz, Scott Williamson, Scott Eyre and hopefully, Mike MacDougal handle the 6th, 7th and 8th inning duties. Folks, that is a loaded bullpen and will win us extra games over the course of the season, guaranteed. I like this very much. Get me my slugging corner OF, and leadoff man in CF or middle infield, and I am satisfied the offseason will be an overall success.

Cedeno isn't inspiring a lot of confidence so far in Venezuela. Can you say "Alfonso Soriano, hello?" Greenberg OTOH, I think he looks good for one of the reserve OF spots in 2006. Guy hustles, has speed, good defense, contact hitter. I like him. And his lifetime 1.000 OBP in the major leagues. :-)

If true, I still think I'd rather have Mike MacDougal for Walker than Heilman. But, the encouraging thing if true, is that it ought to take the Mets firmly out of the running for Furcal, and make it Cubs vs. Braves, right? Unless they plan on playing Walker at 1B and forget about Delgado, which seems hard to believe. So in the end, if moving Walker means you nail down Furcal AND get Heilman, I'll take that outcome.

Rule 5, not Rule V. Rule 5, not Rule V..........

Gah, that's why I wasn't happy seeing Cameron's name thrown around on this site for the Cubs. He's like Jeromy Burnitz in many ways--a veteran player with some skills, he's not a dog by any means. But winning ballclubs do better than plugging in so-so guys like that. For the Padres, a decent move then. Cameron has power, can still run, and of course, is an excellent glove man. But a career sub-800 OPS and average 150 K's per year, and poor BA, the guy is no star. Mets gain yet more salary room to go get Billy Wagner and Carlos Delgado. I only hope Rafael Furcal isn't added to the list.