CubsInNC

Same. And worth it, to me. Over the other options I hear thrown about. Although, I'd just as soon stick with Jones in CF over those other options as well.

When did they trade for Arod?!? I'd rather have Pujols over ARod. I'd rather have Pujols at 1B over A-Rod at 3rd. But I'd take A-Rod at SS over Pujols at 1B. And I'd take Pujols at DH over all of them.

Would this be enough? Pirates get: J. Jones, Moore D-Rays get: Snell, Eyre, Marmol Cubs get: Baldelli I have a feeling the Rays would ask for more, but they're getting the BP help the desperately need, a SP on the cheap, and a future closer (likely). I can see the pirates asking for another pitcher as well, but the most I'd offer is Ryu.

According to the limited stats on ESPN in their "SABR" section, there are only 2 categories where Giambi led MLB for 1B; BB/PA, SecA, BB, . He also led in the all important stat of HBP. In those 3 categories, Morneau finished 22nd, 12th, 19th, and 13th (out of 24 qualified first basemen). Giambi was 2nd in P/PA, 24th in GB/FB ratio, and 4th in ISOP. Morneau in those; 21st, 20th, and 9th. Let's assume that the author mis-quoted and it's supposed to be AL, right? Morneau led in RC, 2nd in RC27 (Giambi led), 4th in ISOP (Giambi, Sexson, Konerko), 5th in SecA (Giambi, Teixeira, Sexson, Konerko), last in BB/PA (of 8), T-6th in BB/K (only ahead of Sexson), 7th in P/PA (led Overbay), 3rd in XBH (Teixeira, Sexson), and (oooooh) T-1 in SF. Giambi: 4th in RC, led in RC27, led in ISoP, led in SecA, led in BB/PA, led in BB/K, led in P/PA, 6th in XBH (13 fewer games in #5). With those stats at hand, I'll give Giambi the top 1B in the AL for the level of play he has on the field. But there's no way I can give Mornaeu 2nd in the AL, let alone in MLB. I'd say Konerko had a better season, and one could argue for Sexson, Teixeira, and Morneau to all be about the same on a 3rd tier behind Giambi and Konerko.

Well considering the price of gold is currently $20,107.08 per kilo, and Zambrano lists his weight at 255lb or just over 115kg. That puts his value at $2,325,595.73. I'd place his value (at his next contract) at about 57 times that ($132/6). If he has to undergo TJS this season, I'd still place his value at 5 times his weight in gold. For Carlos to be worth his weight in gold he'd have to weigh 6565 kg or 14,473 lbs. And he's no Rick Reuschel.

Nothing constructive to add. Just eww. Eww. Ewww. And ewwwwww. No thanks to the FAs. I'm not sure we're gonna get a better CF option than Jones. Don't think that there's one avail via trade.

Ya know, he woulda been smarter and saved face by paying a doctor $40k to lie for him, saying he was prescribing Adderall (dextroamphetamene) to treat Bonds' narcolepsy (which could explain his defense in LF) as well as determining if the off-label use could help his depression.

Upton was a full-time OF in 2006. Moreso because of Drew than his ability at SS, no? Trying to fit his bat in the lineup? Maybe I'm mistaken. He and Drew were on different teams, so that wasn't a major factor. They just felt that he wasn't going to be able to stay at SS long-term and felt they could hasten his progress to the majors by converting him to OF sooner instead of later. Ahh, then color me mistaken and remove Upton and insert another

Upton was a full-time OF in 2006. Moreso because of Drew than his ability at SS, no? Trying to fit his bat in the lineup? Maybe I'm mistaken.

Gordon (3B is a tough position to fill) Justin Upton (SS is another tougher position to fill) Andrew Miller/Delmon Young/Cameron Maybin OF/SP positions that are either "dime-a-dozen" or huge injury liabilities.

Yeah, thats a lot of errors in a short period of time. Is his fielding going to be a barrier to making it as a utility guy? McGehee was drafted as a catcher so he has that on his resume to help as far as being a utility guy goes. He also played a few games at 2nd base which also helps. As far as the errors go, I always take errors in winter ball with a grain of salt because the fields aren't always in very good condition. His errors for the minor league season should give a much better indication of what his defense is really like. I think 7 of his 11 errors so far have been throwing errors though. But hes only had 3 in the last 100 or so ABs, so at least his rate is decreasing to an acceptable level. Maybe he just had a tough transition. Doesn't explain it all, but in perusing the latest box scores at least, it appears that the people manning 1B don't have a ton of experience. Edgar Quintero seems to be a career OF, and Adan Amezcua a catcher. While their ability to catch the ball should still be adequate, their ability to catch those throws that a only FT first baseman would, I have my doubts. And that wouldn't show up in a box score as an error for the 1B. And as Casey's adjusted to the league, they've potentially adjusted to fielding the position better.

If Miller/Prior are not healthy or completely ineffective, are you assuming Cotts is starting for the Cubs, at least in the colder months? That could change Iowa to allow Marmol or O'Malley to start the season in the rotation, if one of the top rotation candidates goes to Chicago.

Or at least a few key drops, a fumble, and many, many missed blocks. Oh, and 1 mis-run route that leads to an interception returned for a touchdown. But maybe that's just my dislike of Notre Dame.... :P

For your 2007, why sign Floyd? JJones-AJones-Soriano would be a better and more productive OF than Floyd/Injury Sub(Pagan/Roster Filler/Ward)-AJones-JJones. Then after 2007, Soriano wouldn't have to move positions, something the Cubs have come right out and said they wouldn't make him do. Pie steps in and plays CF, and Andruw Jones can play LF, or walk and we get a 1st round pick, and a supplemental pick. As much as I may hate it, we didn't sign Derosa to the deal we did to have him play supersub. They'll give him every opportunity to start every day. Part of me wonders if they want him as Murton insurance as well, should he stumble or be traded this year, they could put Derosa in LF and have someone else at 2B.

Jones is too young to play in SF. You need an AARP card to be a Giant. Cubs get: Baldelli or Crawford + Reid Brignac (ss prospect) Giants get: Jones, Dempster, $6mil from Cubs Marlins get: Benitez, Scott Moore, Giants prospect + $6mil from Giants D-Rays get: Cedeno + Nolasco + Marlins pitching prospects fair? Just trying to get a centerfielder outta the deal.

Do you have stats for number of pitches thrown per season during that era? Pitches per plate appearance have increased pretty dramatically since then. it sure doesnt sound like that is the case according to this quote from Ferguson Jenkins: "I hear in the clubhouse all the time about a pitcher having a twinge, and they go on the disabled list. I would have never won any ballgames if I would have missed a start with a twinge. "Pitchers are definitely protected," added Jenkins. "I used to warm up and throw 100 pitches in the bullpen and then throw 150 pitches in the game. I would throw nine innings, which they usually won't let these young men do right now." link: http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060709&content_id=1549169&vkey=allstar2006&fext=.jsp What was the average velocity that pitchers threw back in the day? what does that matter? if throwing harder is worse on a pitchers arm perhaps they should throw softer and learn how to pitch instead of throwing to a number on a radar gun. maddux and hoffman are good modern day examples of this imo. Velocity was my thought as well, but I've read things in the past that indicated while there weren't a million flamethrowers, some of the top pitchers, like a Koufax, could keep the ball in the mid to upper 90s the whole game. Don't remember an exact source.

I'm not opposed to that entirely, but I'm not convinced Felix is ready just yet.

Jones for a CFer would make the most sense. But would you be opposed to Jones+Hill+(Izturis - dream)+prospects for a CF, SS, & legit #2? Not that I expect that to be probable. Jones+Hill+Izturis+Moore+Veal+Ryu for Santana+Cabrera+Figgins+Aybar Figgins plays CF (and can sub anywhere else in an emergency) Cabrera at short Santana the #2 (I think Weaver makes him tradeable) Aybar the SS in the wings Jones plays left in Anaheim with Garrett Anderson and Juan Rivera at DH, Hill plugs in at the bottom of their rotation this year, and potentially a lot higher. Izturis is their backup plan at short, if wood is unable to play, and Veal and Moore can be spun for the 3B they want, or Moore can play 3rd. No, I suppose if we're going to trade Jones and Hill for a legit #2, I guess I'd go for that. I don't know about the deal you proposed (not a fan of Figgins, Cabrera; not as big a fan of Santana as some are). But if JJ & Hill could net us a real #2, ok. I'm just not convinced it could and given that I'm not real hopeful for the results Lilly & Marquis will bring, I'd rather hang onto Hill and just swap Jones, or Jones + prospects, for a better CF. I'm not that high on them, in particular. But I assume that if we're dealing with Anaheim, and they're wanting to play Wood and Kendrick this season, they're going to want to get rid of the 2yrs of Orlando Cabrera they have remaining. Chone Figgins I like as a #8 hitter, on this team, and a temporary solution in CF, where he can either be demoted to super-sub next year, or traded for parts/pieces if Pie shows he's ready for CF full time in 08. Aybar would be a pretty highly regarded SS prospect, I believe, if he wasn't in Wood's shadow. Not a sure thing, but, I think, a better bet than our current in-house options for the future. Santana is good, and I think, in the NL he'd translate as a #2. But yes, Jones for a CF would be good, and I'd prefer LH power. What would need to be done to a Jones/Figgins swap to make it palatable for both sides?

Jones for a CFer would make the most sense. But would you be opposed to Jones+Hill+(Izturis - dream)+prospects for a CF, SS, & legit #2? Not that I expect that to be probable. Jones+Hill+Izturis+Moore+Veal+Ryu for Santana+Cabrera+Figgins+Aybar Figgins plays CF (and can sub anywhere else in an emergency) Cabrera at short Santana the #2 (I think Weaver makes him tradeable) Aybar the SS in the wings Jones plays left in Anaheim with Garrett Anderson and Juan Rivera at DH, Hill plugs in at the bottom of their rotation this year, and potentially a lot higher. Izturis is their backup plan at short, if wood is unable to play, and Veal and Moore can be spun for the 3B they want, or Moore can play 3rd.

If we were hoping for the future, like we take fliers on pitchers, it could be a good deal. But I can't see counting on Wilkerson for this year, as aside from Jones, there's no plan B.

My question is who is going to pitch for the WS NEXT year. Trading for the usual suspects (many of whom are free agents to be) won't do much good if you don't have the pitching to compete. Don't forget Dye will be leaving after 2007 and Thome is getting older and injury prone. 3-Way Deal? Sox get: Penny, Hudson, A. Jones Braves get: Garland, Fields, Loney/Kemp/Ethier Dodgers get: Aardsma, Buehrle, Braves prospect Could work out well for all involved. Not likely though. Could then try to spin Hudson or Penny for Tejada.

According to Arizona Phil, teams with no room on the 40-man cannot select a player in the major league portion of the Rule 5 draft (since they are transferred directly to the 40-man roster). So no chance the Cubs will be picking up anyone for the ML roster. more of a 40 man question, but couldn't the Cubs move Prior and Rusch to the 60 day DL and temporarily open up a couple roster spots? No DL in the offseason. The best we could do is throw some money at Glendon to retire, to reclaim his spot this offseason.

Heck, I'd give em Sean Hill, Felix Patterson, and Donnie Marshall (go Malph!) for Church. j/k :P

The more names like Penny, Duke, Jennings, Westbrook, Garcia/Vasquez, Lieber, Lackey, etc are thrown around by their own teams, or media speculation, in trade talks this winter the weaker the trade-market for pitching could become. I personally like seeing this, as enough of the marketing of pitching could water down the value of those out there to be had via trade.

I would be very upset if the Sox ended up with my favorite pitcher. Why would the Sox want another starter? That rumor seems unrealistic Trade 2 starters to ATL for Hudson/Jones/Giles? Excess starting pitching in this market is incredibly (over)valued.