Outshined_One

Maybe they want Walker as a bench guy? ESPN News said Lowell might be off to SD.

Kip Wells to the Red Sox apparently is almost a done deal.

Day to day according to ESPN.

Big surprise. Orioles' FO and ownership are a joke. If half the deals they were reportedly offered for Tejada were true, I couldn't agree more.

Their farm system is below average in terms of quality of talent. Their top prospect is C George Kottaras, who's down in AAA. He hit well in AA, but is struggling a bit down in AAA. P Cesar Carrillo has a nice upside, but has an injury history that's a bit problematic. Other than that, I can't say I know much else about the guys they have.

Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh... Okay then.

Buster Olney just came on ESPN and said Lidge wasn't going anywhere. Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm...

An update on the Soriano situation from Rotoworld: Given the source, take it with a grain of salt.

Apparently they're going to stick him in the bullpen and look for a starting pitcher.

Here's my take on Maddux: 1) Considering that it's almost August 1st and we're more than halfway through the season, I'd have to believe Maddux has taught guys like Marmol, Marshall, Guzman, and Ryu a fair amount by now. Maybe he hasn't taught them everything he knows, but he's likely taught them enough to last them a lifetime during these past months. With only two months left to go in the season, how much more can Maddux really teach these guys? 2) While I appreciate the job Maddux has done with these younger pitchers...it should fall on the pitching coach to be the main source of help and coaching for these guys. You hear them all talk about how helpful Maddux has been, but how often do you hear them talk the world of Larry Rothschild? Shouldn't Larry be the one teaching these guys more than Maddux? Doesn't that just speak really poorly for Larry, or am I missing something? 3) The Cubs are incredibly far out of contention. There's no bleeping way they're going to make the playoffs this year, much less get to .500. From here on out, the only reason veterans will get playing time over promising rookies is for the coaching staff to pad its resume. Unfortunately for guys like Hill, Ryu, and Guzman, Maddux is taking up a spot in the rotation that could be valuable for their development time. While Maddux's coaching can definitely help them, the best way for them to learn is through experience. 4) If it's true that teams like the Padres, Giants, and Dodgers are after Maddux and are willing to fork over a good prospect or two for him, why not trade him? This organization lacks position prospects who could seriously vie for a starting spot out of spring training next season. Pie's got a bright future, but he needs more time in AAA to work on his plate discipline and base stealing. Theriot, Fontenot, Hoffpauir, and McGehee could all end up being good bench guys, but they are nowhere near the level of guys like LaRoche, Kemp, and Kottaras. We all know how much help this offense needs, so why not address it? 5) Along that same vein, one of the daunting problems coming into this offseason will be the acquisition of a starter. The Cubs need a reliable and competent guy in the #2 slot. Wood might come back at a reduced price, but can he be trusted? Maddux might come back again, but can he put up the numbers the Cubs need? Will guys like Guzman and Marshall be able to remain healthy despite their injury histories? Will Marmol and Hill be able to gain better control and command? Maddux (and/or Ramirez) could potentially fetch that from another team. He's done a terrific job with the Cubs and I'd love to see him return as a pitching coach after his playing days are over. But right now, he's most valuable to the Cubs as a trading chip for a team looking to overpay for a starting pitcher.

Can Kenny beat the Williams/Aardsma deal Hendry got for Hawkins? He's crazy enough!

I'd do the Fields for Williams/Wuertz/Murton deal if Rammy gets traded.

Who? Danks-Volquez-Diamond Three of their top pitching prospects.

Word is Purpura might be trying to kill two birds with one stone by offering Oswalt and Lidge for Tejada.

If the Astros are throwing Oswalt's name around like this, I'd be worried about his health. There's no reason the Astros should be willing to trade him like this unless they know something everyone else doesn't. This isn't making any sense otherwise.

Personally, chorizo is one of my favorite kinds of sausage. I like it about as much as good Italian sausage and better than most other types. Brown sugar and cumin are usually in it, plus it typically renders enough fat to make cooking with other foods easy (and delicious). It goes really well with spinach and makes for really tasty tacos/enchiladas, imo.

http://img191.imageshack.us/img191/3839/urfuq2.jpg Words fail me.

I figured this thread was in order given the fact that the trade deadline is coming up at 4 PM. There's going to be a flood of threads on everything from crazy rumors to the more realistic. There can be some centralized discussion here instead of 200 discussions spanning over 30 different threads. The questions remain: Who will be a Cub when all is said and done? Where's Soriano going to end up? Will guys like Jason Schmidt and Barry Zito be on the move? Can the Red Sox pull off a multi-team deal in their quest to acquire a starting pitcher? Are teams like the Reds, Yankees, and Rangers done dealing? What surprise trades will happen? Is there any hope for Hendry acquiring some one like Andy LaRoche or George Kottaras in exchange for Maddux? All this and more will be answered after the 4 PM deadline! Stay tuned. :D

Todd Walker's gotta be pleased with those rumors.

Box Scores Iowa lost 4-0 Box Score CF F. Pie 0/3, BB, 2 K 2B M. Fontenot 0/1, 3 BB, K, CS (4) 3B C. McGehee 1/4, 2 K RF M. Restovich 2/4, K 1B M. Hoffpauir 2/4, K SS B. Coats 1/3 C G. Soto 0/2, BB, K SP R. O'Malley 7 IP, 8 H, 4 ER, 1/3 K/BB, 14-6 GO-FO West Tenn won 5-2 Box Score CF C. Walker 0/4, 2 K 2B E. Patterson 0/3, RBI, K RF M. Negron 1/3, BB, R 1B B. Dopirak 0/3, 3 K 3B S. Moore 2/3, 2 R, RBI, HR (16) C J. Fox 1/3, R, 3 RBI, HR (3), K SP I. Pavlik 7 IP, 4 H, 2 ER (both inherited), 3/2 K/BB, 5-13 GO-FO RP E. Campusano 2 scoreless, 1 H, 3/2 K/BB, 2-1 GO-FO Daytona lost 4-0 Box Score SS J. Mota 2/4, 2 K 1B M. Craig 0/4, K RF R. Harvey 1/4, 2 K C J. Muyo 0/3 SP D. Veal 6 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 6/3 K/BB, 7-4 GO-FO RP G. Johnson 2 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 1/0 K/BB, HR, 2-3 GO-FO Peoria lost 3-1 Box Score CF D. Gregg 0/3, BB, K C M. Reed 0/4 LF J. Valdez 0/4 1B R. Norwood 2/4 SS R. Chirinos 1/4 RF Y. Carter 0/3, BB, 2 K 2B A. Garcia 1/4, R, K SP W. Miller 4 scoreless, 3 H, 5/0 K/BB, 3-4 GO-FO RP J. Santo 4.1 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 5/2 K/BB, 6-2 GO-FO RP M. Avery .2 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 1/0 K/BB, 1-0 GO-FO Boise lost 1-0 Box Score CF M. Camp 0/3, BB, K PH DJ Lewis 0/1 LF T. Colvin 1/3, 2 K 1B R. Canzler 0/3, 2 K DH J. Lansford 1/3, K RF A. Joseph 0/3, K 2B S. Clevenger 0/3, K 3B E. Puello 0/3, K C M. Mercedes 0/3, K SP M. Pawelek 5 scoreless, 1 H, 4/1 K/BB, HBP, 5-5 GO-FO RP J. Pina 1 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 0/1 K/BB, 0-3 GO-FO Mesa won 8-2 Box Score 2B V. Heredia 3/5, 2 R, RBI, 2B (2), SB (18) CF D. Rundle 2/5, R, RBI, SB (1) DH C. Gilbert 2/5, 2 R, 2 RBI, HR (3), K 3B M. Gonzalez 1/4, 2 RBI, 2 K, E (7, fielding) LF C. Andersen 1/3, BB, R, K SS F. Tirado 2/4, E (3, fielding) SP M. Carrillo 3 scoreless, 1 H, 1/0 K/BB, 6-1 GO-FO OVERALL: 2-4

Clearly they think so given that they offered him as a part of a package for Tejada.

I'll take full credit for the LaRoche hype and dreaming around here. He's been on my wish list for awhile now and would be the perfect guy to take over for Ramirez next year (if Rammy opts out or is traded). I've been thinking out loud with him on these boards. :D However, I also know that the odds of it happening are really slim. Ah well, I can dream. :pig:

Bingo. He was supposed to be a first rounder coming out of HS, but was waylaid by TJS. Everyone figured he was going to college (UNC I think?), but the Angels nabbed him and threw a boatload of money his way. He's impressive and has a heck of a ceiling. I'd absolutely love to see him in this system.

Santana definitely would make any offseason problems involving the rotation easier to handle. If Hendry doesn't botch these trades, the Cubs could have a very good young team in place to compete in 2007 and beyond.

The Cubs getting a AAA pitcher and a AAA hitter for Maddux from LA? LaRoche and Miller plz.