A few thoughts....

* Felix Pie needs to concentrate more at the plate.
* Alfonso Soriano needs to concentrate all the time.

The prior postings (in the last set) have been some of the most honest and pointed commentaries I've ever read. I hope we see a major overhaul of this team, and it's management sooner than later. And while I won't start a campaign against Pinella here, I truly think we missed the boat on a long-term, and fundamentally sound manager in Joe Girardi. I predict that if things don't turn soon this team will stop responding to Pinella (ala Bulls/Skiles) and he'll collapse in the long list of failures.

ok so im sick and tired of all the junk i keep hearing from people i know. they are just in love with this guy pie. why? what has he proven? ill tell you what he has proven: nothing. the guy has no plate patients and worse yet, piniella thinks it is wise to bat him in the 8th spot. sorry sweet lou, but i think your a good enough manager to know that the 8th spot in the lineup is one of the hardest spots in a National League line up to hit. pie is offered absolutely no protection with a pitcher up behind him. my first suggestion to solve this problem is for lou to send pie down to triple-a and allow johnson to play. if you keep pie on the team he is just going to ride the bench and not learn anymore patience. if this is not an option, maybe lou should think about taking a page out of the brewer's recipe book and bat pie 9th with the pitcher 8th. the last option i can think of is to bat pie 2nd and hope to god he can bunt some of the time if alfonso soriano ever reaches base again.

Yours Truly,
An Already Bitter Cubs Fan

Mark, Im dont think the problem lies with Lou. Yet. I think its simply a few players on the roster, that may have a bit of swollen head syndrome. This is a team game, and no one is bigger than the team. So if I were Lou, Id be on guys for swinging for the fences, and swinging too much in general, and preaching the basics of getting them on, getting them over, and getting them in.
And, honestly, everyone on this board knows who Im talking about.

I think most everyone on here is a little agitated with Soriano and probably myself for defending him. I'm almost afraid to mention it but in his defense... the ball did hit under the padding on the wall (around 6 inches from the ground to start of padding) and bounced off the bricks (with english) much harder than it would have coming off the padding. I know I am going to get rediculed for defending the "prima-donna"/"ME" ballplayer but I am sticking with my guns on this one...

Sorry... I just have a real hard time turning on a player of Soriano's talent level after 4 games in April.

MARK - OMG!!! ARE YOU KIDDING ME? GET RID OF LOU???

It is only 4 games into the season people!!!

You know what... you are probably right. I mean he only led us into the playoffs last year after finishing LAST in the division the year prior. He is only one of the most respected managers in baseball (by some of the biggest names (see arod)). He only led our Cubs to the BEST record in baseball for much of last year after a terrible start.

You want to see a major overhaul of this team on APRIL 4th?

AGAIN... ARE YOU KIDDING ME!?!?!?!

You realize most every sportswriter in the industry has predicted we will either win or compete for the division title? After making the playoffs anything is possible (see '03 marlins, '06 cards). You also realize it has only been FOUR games?!?!?!

WOW!?!?!?!?!?!

I think I am going to have to take a break from this site for a few days... I thought this was the site for the Cubs Faithful?

Cliff,

I agree with you. Now is not the time to panic. I try to look at the good things that are happening, e.g. Fukudome, Soto, and for the most part the pitching. Hey guys, keep the faith! GO CUBS!

"You realize most every sportswriter in the industry has predicted we will either win or compete for the division title?"

lol ---

The Cubs haven't reached the playoffs in consecutive seasons since our Grandfathers were toddlers..

I second that cliff... Some players are playing bad right now..no doubt. It is frustrating and I understand that sentiment. But seriously, its April 4th.

Soriano is bad right now, but he's still a stud. Lou is an amazing manager.
This team needs a few additions, (one or two better starters), but a "major overhaul"? Give me a break.

Since when did the "Cubs Faithful" become so pessimistic and jump to conclusions so quickly?

I have NO PROBLEM with people criticizing play, or players, when they deserve it. But this knee-jerk, Monday morning QB stuff is just ridiculous.

When this team rattles off 10 in a row, wins the Central, and competes in the playoffs (for two years in a row under Pinella , a huge milestone by the way), I wonder what all the naysayers will be saying then? Most likely they will be jumping on board with all the rest of the media and bandwagoners.

The sad thing is that anyone can jump on when things are going well; it takes a little bit of faith to see that this team is going to win this year.

I pose as a Cubs fan on this site to stir the pot... my heart belongs in Bridgeport.

I know it seems to some that a majority on here are making knee-jerk reactions, but please see my post from the game day commentary about OBP and the effects on a team's success

Please, I understand it's April freaking 4th, and we have 158 games to go......but this is the same argument year after year, and we haven't won it....NOw, I'll be the first to eat crow if we win it all, believe me, and I'll gladly do it, but as proven by the statistical analysis and that of prior champion's successes, this team is NOT constructed to make a championship run. I mean, this is the same management that was after Marlon freaking Byrd for CF. Are you kidding me? Luckily Johnson was cut from the Jays, or that would've been a huge misfortune for us. To top it all, we still haven't solved our shortstop problem. We came close with an aging and declining Nomar. Everyone had placed so much emphasis on replacing Santo from all those years, but we haven't had any shorstop of note at all in many years. Our shortstops might as well have been pitchers, because they've been just as easy of an out.

You look at other teams in the majors, and usually their best players are shorstops or CF, which happen to be the best athletes on their respective teams. Think Jeter, AROD, Nomar (in his prime), Larkin, Griffey (again, in his prime), Beltran, Hanley Ramirez, Edmonds (in his prime), Rollins, Kemp, Furcal, Hardy, Gwynn Jr., etc., etc.

Let's see, we have the light-hitting Theriot, and Pie. Prior to that we had the no-hitting Izzy, and one of our biggest disappointments---Jones...before that, we had Cedeno and a whole host of fill-ins in CF.

THe point being, Soriano is NOT a lead-off hitter, and never will be again. As mentioned, usually a team's SS and CF will be the lead-off man, as they are also the best athlete. Soriano is well past his prime with his deteriorating health with his legs and utter lack of plate discipline and overall effort. Theriot can't meet those qualities either.

I don't have the answers either...just visions of missed opportunities. I was practically begging the Cubs to pick up Ankiel when he was placed on waivers, as he was a tremendous athlete and we needed an athletic CF at the time with Jones lacking the skills we'd need in a CF, Pie not ready, but we created a logjam by sticking with Floyd. Hamilton was also thrust into our arms, and we rejected him. Everyone knew his talent, but were wary of his off-field troubles. We needed an athletic CF, yet we refused him. Why? What did we have to lose anyway, with Pie not ready.......hmmmmmmmmmmmm...So, the Reds took a chance, then traded him away for quite a nice return. It's prudent moves like this that make a good GM. It's prudent and shrewd moves like that, that get a team with a century of bad luck into a great position to win a World Series.

Yet, Hendry is sitting here, twiddling his thumbs, eating a box of cracker jacks, praying that his ONE acquisition---Fukodome---gets us into the WS. Yet, it was lack of speed (double plays)that killed us last year, lack of OBP (which caused many a good start by Hill and Marshall last year to go to waste). We had glaring holes at SS, CF, RF, 5th starter, and closer. He left SS, CF, and 5th starter the same, got Fukodome for RF, and simply moved our weakness at closer to 3rd starter. WOW!!!!!

He has also put us in a position to overpay for talent with a slow start. Baltimore knows this too...MacFailed certainly knows this---the corner that Hendry has backed himself into. We have a listless team at the top of the order. Pierre and Castillo almost single-handedly thrust the Marlins into the '03 WS with their pesky play at the top of the order, creating havoc for other teams. Podsednik did the same for the WHite Sox....Ditto Pedroia for the Red Sox. And while I never liked the Pierre trade, if we just would've gotten a solid #2 hitter, how great do you think we would've been? Pierre alone doesn't do jack squat for your team, but if you combine him with Luis Castillo, then you have gold. Pierre would slap hit, or bunt himself on, steal second and possibly third, then Castillo would slap hit him in for a run....BOOM!!!, you're already down 1-0 in the first, with Miguel Cabrera ready to knock in Castillo with the 2nd, and possibly 3rd runs of the game. That's the kind of championship lineup you build, NOT the sorry excuse we have for a lineup. Soriano and his .330 OBP, and Theriot with his .325 OBP vs .348 for Pierre and .368 for Castillo.....175 hit average for Soriano and 145 for Theriot vs 200 hit average and 185 hit average for Castillo........ .281 avg for Soriano and .275 for Theriot vs .301 avg and .294 for Castillo

Does anyone else understand what I'm saying?!?1?! As a manager, all you can do is just throw out what you got.....What other options does Piniella have? Okay, replace Theriot with Cedeno or Fontenot, and you get the same results...maybe even worse. Okay, flip Theriot and Soriano in the order...How is that better? Bless his heart, Piniella is doing the best he can with what he has, but make no mistake about it, Hendry has survived 3 different managerial changes, and it's ALL been with product he's put on the field....As a GM, you are in charge of supplying your team with what they need to win. Hendry hasn't, and by his own admission, if he didn't get Fukodome, there was no Plan B....and Johnson happened to fall into his lap, otherwise that would've been another failure---not providing a right-handed hitting OF back-up. That is by no means, a prepared and effective GM.

I don't care how you shake it, Hendry has given Piniella a three headed monster in the IF with Theriot-Cedeno-Fontenot.....evoking thoughts of the last three-headed monster including Izzy. Pie hasn't proven he can hit major league pitching, so Fukodome leading off or in the two hole is the only other option you'd have, then you'd leave no protection for ARAM.

I'm still amazed that Hendry outlasted everyone in the organization from Riggleman to Baylor to Bruce Kimm (remember him) to Baylor, to Baker, to MacFailed to Piniella, and even the Tribune Company.......Is he permanently on his knees or what??!?!? He has a responsibility to put the Cubs in the best position to win it all, and yet we are ALWAYS several pieces short of accomplishing it, and yet he is still around....Some on here love to boast about his trades for ARAM, Lofton, Grudz, Karros, Lee, Ceda, etc., but they fail to realize that he simply has no game plan, or logical template to get the Cubs to the World Series....no emphasis on proven qualities of effective hitters, OBP, slugging %...and low WHIP for pitchers, along with quality starts

Anyway, sorry I rambled on, but it just baffles me that people still say, "it's just the 4th game of the season"......because it's not......this is what we have guys----a predominantly free-swinging, impatient lineup with no true lead-off or 2 hole hitters.....and a suspect pitching staff all the way from #2 in the rotation throughout the whole bullpen, except for Marmol. I get the feeling that some of you think we will just morph into this playoff-caliber team---you know, one like the Brewers. You're dealt the cards you have, and what we see is what we get. And we all know that the talent we have in the minors isn't anything to brag about....so the outlook, barring some other-worldly creativity out of Hendry, is pretty bleak

Sorry for posting yet again after my...ahem....sermon....but I just thought of an EXCELLENT trade that would definitely work, and definitely benefit both teams:

Alfonso Soriano and Jason Marquis

to the Angels for:

Chone Figgins, Brandon Wood, Nick Adenhart, and Nick Green

Why it works: Figgins is so versatile and good at everything that he easily replaces Pie in CF and lead-off, allowing the Cubs to bring up Matt Murton for LF. Wood replaces Theriot at SS, giving us much needed power from the position. Green and Adenhart provide depth in our pitching system. If we need to throw in Marshall, then I say do it, because Adenhart is worth it. Additionally, this trade frees up Pie to be included in the trade with Baltimore for Roberts, landing DeRosa in a utility role, where he belongs.

The Angels need starting pitching, but more importantly, a power source, and Soriano definitely provides that, and would probably be thrust into the DH role with Hunter, Matthews, and Guerrero in the OF. If they balk at just Marquis, I'd throw in Marshall as well, giving them 2 major league pitchers and a power hitting Outfielder. Yes, it'd be a risk for us with Green and Adenhart, but including Wood and Figgins, I think it'd definitely be worth it.

sorry, guess this didn't show on the last post....

the trade to the Orioles would consist of Pie, Gallagher, and DeRosa, Fontenot, or Patterson

our lineup would be:

Figgins
Roberts
Lee
ARAM
Fukodome
Soto
Murton
Wood

Now tell me that wouldn't win a championship. speed at the top, makes you think of Pierre and Castillo's peskiness, .350 OBP's and higher at the top, then even higher with Lee, ARAM, and Fukodome, potential with Soto, OBP with Murton, and power potential with Wood.

I'd do that trade in a heart beat, ten times over

How bout we just countinue to support this Cubs team!This team is gonna come together eventually, and everyone will be supporting the players on this 2008 CHICAGO CUBS team! Sori is gonna hit just like you hear the other players say, they believe in each other.Players have bad games, sometimes streaks, and I know it sucks When we dont get a win,but plain and simple they just have to go out there and play good hard baseball and Win the game! You are all right when you say this team needs a bit of a tune up,and it wouldnt even change the true power of this team. they just allneed to get hot play like they know how,

please don't post under someone else's nickname -- whoever that was... :) -- own up to your pointed criticism..

I have read plenty of comments here and on other boards reminding everybody that it's only 4 games into the season. Although true, the unfortunate reality is that these last 4 games looked exactly like a continuation of the 07 season. Hence, the reason for early despair. Fukudome was an 11% improvement from last year's team, but that amount just won't cut it. Why bother putting together a competitive team that may win more than they lose? The object is to win a World Series, right? Especially if you are a Cubs team that has had entire generations of fans who have been born and died before witnessing one. That's just down right pathetic.
Short term solution? Start today with a lineup of:

Fukudome
DeRosa
Lee
Ramirez
Soto
Soriano
Pie
Cedeno

By the end of the month and to win it all this year:

Roberts
Fukudome
Lee
Ramirez
Soto
Soriano
Theriot or Cedeno
Lofton/Johnson

DeRosa as super sub. If he could play short, I would just leave him there.
Soriano, I would just bury him in any lineup configuration. His lifetime stats prove he can't come through in the clutch. He's the master of the bases empty 2 out hit.....when he does hit. And while I am at it, until the Cubs stop letting teams come into their own house and letting teams embarrass them in front of their fans, they will never gain the respectful pride needed to win it all.

Batters usually won't heat up until the weather turns warmer around May or June. But fielding... didn't DeRosa got 28 errors last season? And he already fielded many misplays both in the Dempster game and this one?

I am not too positive next time, when Marquis and Z will be on the mound. We need solid infielders, not bloppers.

Aaron...It's very clear that your heart is in the right place, and that you can do some math. But your knowledge of what makes sense for the other team is highly suspect. Why would the Angels want the Soriano that you don't want and his mega-contract when they have their new $90 million man, Tori Hunter whom you don't mention at all, to go along Anderson, Guerro, Matthews, Rivera and Willits? Why would they want Marquis when they and others expect Adenhart to be a starter in a month or two and to be both better than Marquis and to have his future ahead of him at age 22? Wood and Adenhart are the Angels #1 and #2 prospects and I think they rank in the top 40 of all teams' prospects. We have Vitters in that category.

Now, there could be a trade for Matthews, whom they regret signing to a $50 million deal--and who could play center field for us. And the Angels do have disabled two starters (Lackey and Escobar and reliever (Shields). So they likely would trade Matthews, Rodriquez (ss #6 or 7) and Green (#8 prospect) for Marquis and Marshall and Lansford. That could be a near term plus in the of, but would be a near term minus in pitching.

For the first 30 games the Cubs and everybody else are pretty much having to see what they have this year. It is too early to "back up the bus" as Leo used to say, and haul off several of our current players.

JimK,

I did mention Hunter....As for Anderson, Rivera, and Willits...Anderson is expected to retire this year, Rivera is oft-injured, and Willits, last I knew, was optioned to AAA

I think you underestimate Soriano's worth though, as the Angels went after him hard that offseason. True, Adenhart and Wood ar etheir top prospects, but they have really soured on Wood. in order to get value, you must give it up too, which is why Soriano is worth at least Figgins and Adenhart. As for Marquis and Marshall, I think they're worth Wood, or perhaps if we include Gallagher it might work, but it just makes sense....With Lackey and Escobar out, they need starters...and they've complained of lack of power in their lineup, so Soriano makes sense.....We've complained of OBP and no table-setter, and Figgins solves that. We don't have any SS prospect of note, and Wood has loads of potential. We need a young, up-and-comping starter, ready to jump in the rotation, and Adenhart is that guy. No way you trade Soriano straight up for Figgins. As I said, he's worth at LEAST Figgins and Adenhart.

Simply put, is Roberts worth all that the Orioles are requiring: Gallagher, Marshall, Cedeno, Pie, and possibly Ceda/Veal? That's quite a king's ransom for a mid-level impact player, yet that's what they've been rumored to want. But somehow, Soriano is worth less than that? I don't buy it. Prospects are worth less than proven players, which is why Haren was traded for so much, ditto Santana. AROD was traded for Soriano, which, granted, had the Rangers eating much of the salary, but the point is, Soriano is worth quite a bit.

As for Matthews, we might have to take his unwanted salary, but I'd only do it if we got Figgins and Adenhart...then we'd throw in more prospects

4 days. It's been 4 days. Not 40. It's not June. Are all of you the same people who said blow up the lineup last year around May 31st. If you are, get some perspective. My god. This is ridiculous. Aaron and others have fired all of management and traded 3/4 of the team and it is only 4 DAYS INTO THE SEASON.

This group would have fired Lincoln after the first battle in the Civil War and traded Patton because he lost one battle in N. Africa (sorry, reading some biographies right now).

I agree that lineup needs tinkering. Theriot at #8 and Fuke at #2 makes the most sense to me but I give Lou credit for making the right changes at the right time. But of course, I have patience.

Go get some lithium and prozac and chill. I'll start pulling the panic button when they are 12 games out and if it is after June 15. Until then, please, please take your meds.

JimK - That is the pot calling the kettle black isn't it? Aren't you the one that was proposing dealing our garbage to SF for Lincecum? No offense, truly. I like some of your posts and have enjoyed reading some of your articles on this site.

Do any of you guys play Poker? Do you know what the term Pot-stuck means? Basically that is the way I view this team. I wouldn't have built and assembled it the way it is but it is too late to have a major overhaul and to early to have a fire sale. We have to play the cards we were dealt at this point. NOW... similar to hold'em... the flop, turn, and river are coming up... I hope that the flop consists of our future leadoff hitter in Brian Roberts (still hoping for this). The turn may consist of a call-up from the minors or a current player turning the corner (pie/hart/marshall). Finally... the river comes in the form of a true #2 starting pitcher before the deadline (burnett?). Now, that is a team worth getting excited about.

ALSO... don't give up on this SOTO kid yet people. He has the tools AND has heart.

Now... Let's squeeze out a victory over Oswalt today and light up Backe tomorrow and get back to .500 with a 2 game win streak going into Pittsburgh.

Keep the faith Cubs Nation.