frostwyrm

:shock: Put me down! I am down! That could quite possibly be the worst trade I've ever heard (from the Mets standpoint). You really don't have to go very far back to find a worse one in Mets history. Kazmir/Zambrano is the gold standard of stupidity.

this might mean the inside rumors are that the Cubs are closest so their division rivals are chiming in to drive up the price. just a thought. I like the way you think. Hopefully that is the case because if the Astros or Cards get Schmidt and we get Lilly, it will be rough. Jim needs to pony up. 4/60. I want a WS. Schmidt is a solid #2 and IMO will be worth about 3 years of that. Agreed. Paying for players in FA is so much more complicated than comparing a price tag to a stat line. Maybe Schimdt, in a vacuum, is not worth $60M or whatever. But the difference between the Cubs rotation with him compared to without him is immensely significant. I'm not saying he's the missing link to WS ring, but he changes the dynamic of the team. All of a sudden, it seems like any price (remember, it's not OUR money at stake here) would be a worthwhile deal. I say see what it will take to get him for three years, Pay it. There's a report that Ted Lilly might get 4/44. If that happens there's no way in hell Schmidt could be had for only 4/60.

It's the new normal. I don't believe this is normal at all. 4/44 for players like Lilly is not a sustainable price structure. This is a bubble market, and it's the worst possible time to try to take a team from last to first all in one offseason.

It's astounding that 4/40 for an average #4 SP actually sounds like a fair price today. That's an absolutely crazy situation and it won't last. Jimbo is going to financially cripple the Cubs for a very long time just so he can save his job.

Not sure if this has already been posted. I guess Lilly will give us Nolasco type performance at 25 times the price. What a bargain. http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2685697

link Doesn't mean Murton is untouchable. I'm sure he could be had for the right price.

WV Mountaineer, meh. http://www.coachrod.com/TheMountaineer_images/NEW-MountaineerMontage.jpg USC Trojan, guy in a skirt and a rubber mask = funny. http://www.usc.edu/student-affairs/IMREC/spirit/mascot/mainpages/tommychunk01.jpg

Ted Lilly getting 4/40 from the Cubs would make me even happier that they gave away Ricky Nolasco for a overrated rental player that they inexplicably held onto at the trading deadline.

Not sure if this has been posted elsewhere, but Fonz won't be playing winter ball, per Hendry's request. I doubt this will come as a surprise to anybody here.

I hope he is older so the Cubs can void his contract when he starts to decline and become a salary-sucking millstone.

So if Pujols gets voted MVP but his team misses the playoffs, wouldn't his principles and his manly honor demand that he decline the award?

If Sammy brings peace and democracy to Iraq I will love him again.

I'm just not convinced the future has been expensed. The talent is all still intact. And if any of those guys were any good, they will also be cheap for a good while longer, so that value can makeup for overpaying older guys. There is definite risk to the future. But you can't win in this game without taking risks. You have to be in it to win it. I know you have to take risks to win, but this is a bubble market and the Cubs needed a major rebuilding. It's an exceptionally awful time for the Cubs to have a GM who has to win now to save his job.

Source: http://insider.espn.go.com/mlb/features/rumors Hendry will bid 4/60 soon. Would rather have written off 2007 and given our stable of 4A pitchers a chance to earn a rotation spot, then evaluate and address needs in the offseason. Sadly that ship has sailed(sigh). Was there even a ship to begin with? Outside of Hill, our current crop of youngsters ain't too pretty. I'm thinking some of them will improve, but do you really think any of them until Veal and Gallagher would improve THAT much? I don't know, but it would have been nice to find out. Not having humongous bubble-year contracts on the books for the next half decade would have been cool too. Hopefully you weren't one of the people saying "please I don't care what you have to do, just win a World Series" during last season. Look the fans want to win now, and that is what the management is trying to do. I know its completely short sighted and we'll regret it, but within reason, I'll worry about the future in the future. In terms of our 'crops' of pitchers, I saw enough of that last year. No, just the opposite. I wanted a quick fall from contention in 2006. I thought the Cubs could make a nice run in 2007 if they played their cards right, but they didn't. Thanks to a big increase in payroll the Cubs look possibly viable as a 2007 contender, but only at the expense of the future. IMO far too much of the payroll is going to be locked up in multiyear deals that we will regret.

Source: http://insider.espn.go.com/mlb/features/rumors Hendry will bid 4/60 soon. Would rather have written off 2007 and given our stable of 4A pitchers a chance to earn a rotation spot, then evaluate and address needs in the offseason. Sadly that ship has sailed(sigh). Was there even a ship to begin with? Outside of Hill, our current crop of youngsters ain't too pretty. I'm thinking some of them will improve, but do you really think any of them until Veal and Gallagher would improve THAT much? I don't know, but it would have been nice to find out. Not having humongous bubble-year contracts on the books for the next half decade would have been cool too.

Source: http://insider.espn.go.com/mlb/features/rumors Hendry will bid 4/60 soon. Would rather have written off 2007 and given our stable of 4A pitchers a chance to earn a rotation spot, then evaluate and address needs in the offseason. Sadly that ship has sailed(sigh).

Oh yeah, give me 1 example of a team that didn't work for. No statistics, please. Last years Cubs. Spending a bunch of money on relievers is stupid if you completely neglect the starting rotation and offense, as the Cubs did last year. If you address all three areas, then sure, go get yourself some reliable relief help. [sarcasm]Defense, speed, and relief pitching win championships.[/sarcasm].

one's who don't want their bones to explode at age 50 do Or they take a calcium tablet with breakfast, like I do.

I'll be VERY surprised if Hendry allows Fons to play. Hendry's job is on the line and if Fons is allowed to play winter ball and gets hurt Jim can start packing his bags.

I don't think I'm going too far out on a limb to predict that Izturis will not last past the deadline as the starting SS. A combination of poor hitting and extreme fragility will prompt Hendry to seek a replacement. It's not unlikely that Neifi could be coming back as a rental.

There is an inherent danger involved in drawing statistical inferences from limited sample sizes. Case in point...... Cedeno's performace in 2005. I'd imagine you were equally impressed by that limited sample size, too, eh? .300/.356/.375 in 89 PA .328/.412/.522 in 159 PA I sincerely hope nobody was equally impressed by those two lines. With a better manager Cedeno would've had at least 250 PA in 2005 and we would have gone into 2006 with a much better picture of Cedeno's ability level. Instead we got to watch Neifi save the day.

That would only be a foolish move if he were guaranteed to have another year like last year. And he's not. I tend to agree. Sometimes I sense an assumption that contracts will continue to increase each offseason, but that hasn't been the case historically. If I were V Wells, I'd at least negotiate. Wells certainly should negotiate. He's coming off a great season and IMO this is a bubble year for MLB salaries. I simply cannot believe that contracts like 5/50 for Gary Matthews jr. represent a sustainable market situation. I would advise ANY player who had a great 2006 to test this market ASAP.

You had a chance to title a thread "Jacque on the blaque?" and you passed it up?

5/60 for Zito, in a year when Gary Matthews JR. gets 5/50? I know salary comparisons between pitchers and hitters are difficult, but clearly Zito >>> GMJ. I expect 5/80 is more realistic for Zito.

Phil Rodgers' column today says the Cubs want to trade Jacque. So who would play CF? Lugo?