It's official....Jim Hendry announced moments after Wednesday night's game, during a press conference, that the Cubs have agreed to a contract with outfielder Jim Edmonds. Felix Pie was optioned down to Triple-A and will join the I-Cubs in Round Rock on Thursday.
Updated - 12:12am C.T. - According to a report in the Tribune, Jim Edmonds will be in a Cubs' uniform and in the starting lineup for Thursday's game against the Padres.
Update - Edmonds signed a 1-year deal with the Cubs worth $284,000....the prorated amount of the Major League minimum according to a report in the Tribune.
Thursday's game is likely the only one Jim Edmonds will start for the remainder of the homestand. Reports have indicated Lou Piniella will platoon Edmonds with Reed Johnson....the Pirates are scheduled to start all lefties in the 3-game weekend series.
One positive thought for those who get to watch the I-Cubs, we get to see a lineup that starts like this:
Patterson
Murton
Pie
Hoffpauir
Kroeger
PCL pitching watch out..
A top of the roation with:
Hill
Marshall
Lets get all of the above guys going in AAA. With that kind of protection around each other and the AA pitching all of those hitters should thrive.
Some of them have unfinished business here in Chicago and the others could bring in a considerable amount of booty come July.
As for our Cubbies -- Where do we hit Edmonds? Logic suggests 5th and have Fukudome 2nd. But do you really want to move Theriot out of the 2 hole? Soriano wont leave the leadoff spot.
Does Edmonds really deserve to hit 5th right off the bat..
Lou has some thinking to do.
AAA*
Matt i totslly agree. With the way Theriot is hitting you leave him be.
Edmonds will probably be hot for a month or two, and then come down to Earth. I just hope we have a backup plan and/or Pie gets his act together in AAA.
So who else does Hendry have his eye on? Here are some educated guesses:
Jeff Bagwell
Tim Wallach
Gary Carter
Lenny Dykstra
Will Clark
and, of course
Henry Cotto
I couldn't stand Will Clark. Killed us in the playoffs and then became a Cardinal and did the same.
Matt, Lou said with a smile that Edmonds would hit 9th.
Yeh, I caught that, haha.
My heart dropped to my stomach when I read it. "Oh no!"
Then I read that he apparently said that as a jest. Phew to that as well.
However, if Zambrano keeps hacking, he can have the eight spot.
Hey Jason, you forgot Scott Spiezio! HA! XD
One thing we all can enjoy is that the Cardinals will be paying Edmonds while he plays for us. That makes me smile.
Also Ward might go on the DL and Hoffpaur might get a callup
My guess is that Edmonds bats 7th after Soto or 8th after DeRosa--until he establishes how productive he is. Cubs are 6 and 4 in their fourth 10 game sequence earning the grade of Pass. Details to follow tomorrow.
Who cares how well Theriot is hitting...Fuku is an OBP machine which dictates he should go to the 2-hole.
I really don't get it. For everyone here that's played baseball, whether it be high school or college, you know you need consistent playing time to get better. What good does sending Pie down to Iowa when he hit .362 there last year? Ronny and him don't have anything to prove down there. Instead we turn the job over to a platoon of Johnson and Edmonds who are honestly not hitting well and can't play half the defense. What do we have to lose buy hitting Pie in the 8th hole everyday and seeing if he can perform. Sorry guys 20+ games over inconsistent playing time is not enough. We show such little faith in players it kills me. Look at Cedeno this year, we give him consistent playing time and he steps up. So what do we do? Bench him. I love this team, but come on I lived through the Dusty Baker (veteran's, Jose Macias) love affair and don't want to see it again. We talk about how are young guys never materialize, but we don't talk about how little faith we have. Sorry I'm venting, but I've played enough baseball in my life to know a little confidence can go a long way!
Unfortunately for RC Cola to get his shot, Theriot needs to return to normal.
Iunno what Pie has to do...maybe make his swing 800x faster and more compact.
Hey, did any of you see the sac bunt Theriot had on Tues night? Yeah, that is why Edmonds will bat 5th and Fuk will be moved to the 2 hole. Horrible. While I contend to leave Theriot in the lineup, his 55% SB ratio & inability to move over a runner cost us a run and we ended up losing by 1. Fuk is a perfect #2 hitter and can use his bat in any capacity we need. If Soriano ever gets on, the 2 hitter won't be stealing with him ahead of them on the bags anyway so it's a moot point. I also appreciate the fact the Deadbirds are paying a guy to play for the biggest rival, it's icing on the cake. My prediction for Hollywood Jimmie Edmonds... .250 w/ 13 HR's and 39 RBI's. However, come playoff time, I don't see how you can carry him given his defensive liabilities. Here's to Pie learning how to situationally hit in AAA. Viva los Hoffpauir.
Even though most of you aren't for the signing of Edmonds we have stole a little of STL's thunder at there expense literaly. I also think that since that Edmonds will take the meetings with STL a little more seriously than some and as much as Marquis, it would be kinda cool to have Edmonds announced at home at his first at bat against the Redbirds with the theme song of Darth Vader from Star Wars with the heavy breathing and say "Tony, I am your Father". LOL Wrigley would go nuts. You have to admit this is alot cheaper Band-aide and only for the most, a year and thats better than some of the other options.Besides Pie needs the confidence that he can hit and he needs to be put in the inviroment to which he doesn't have the tough crowd on him when he doesn't come through. Besides the expectation of him is real high and look at this way if Edmonds falls short for us Pie looks better.
just as long as Pie is not traded come July.
By the way, are we still trading Soriano????
Not really trying to be smart but just a lesson to everybody that wanted to trade Soriano just a week ago, dont be so critical, so quickly.
To all the Soriano apologists and man lovers that comment here,
The debate was never wether Soriano would hit or not. It was a debate over wether Soriano would stay healthy, or play the outfield with the heart of a Reed Johnson. If you combined Soriano's ability with Reed Johnson's heart, you would have a player worthy of the mega contract he got, but an oft injured, streaky hitting prima donna is just not worth what he gets. The kind things he does that I can't stand, are like what he did a couple of night ago. He stood there like it was a "no doubter" and watched a home run that only landed in the first row of the bleachers. Would I trade Soriano for an As' Joe Blanton or a Pads' Chris Young? In a heart beat.
Fukudome's OBP is only one point higher than Theriot's, and Theriot doesn't strike out as much as Fukudome. Judge a guy who is hitting .335 (Team Leader) based on one failed bunt attempt. Theriot is a good bunter. I only bat Fukudome 2nd if I'm batting Theriot 1st.
The season's Fourth 10 Game Sequence is in the books and our Cubs PASSED with a 6 and 4 record. Over the 4 grade periods, the Cubs have 1 high pass, 2 passes and 1 fail.
With a record of 24-16, the Cubs are on course to win 96 regular season games. Only D. Lee has played all 40 games, and it seems past time to give him an occasional day off.
Our Showoffs (top performers)include (He's Back!) Alfonso Soriano with 7 R, 15 H, 3 HR and 9 RBI. Theriot stands out with 7 R and 14 H, and Dome had 12 H. Lee and Soto had 2 HR and Johnson and Soto with 7 and 6 RBI, respectively, ranked 2nd and 3rd behind Soriano's 9.
Z and Lilly were outstanding--going 2-0. Michael (Remember Me!) Wuertz's exceptional 5 innings of relief, allowing 0 Runs and 1 Hit were matched by Carlos Marmol.
There were not many No Shows (poor performers), but Lieber allowing 5 runs in 7 IP and Marquis allowing 9 runs in 11 IP must be cited. Both were 0-2.
The next 10 games will show us what Gallagher, Eyre and Edmonds can do. Let's hope that G lives up to his potential and that Eyre and Edmonds find that Advil, Elixir of Old Style and cheering throngs greatly diminish the effects of old age and arthritis.
I know that the name on the front of the jersey means more than the name on the back, but this signing just bothers me. I specifically got Wrigley early once just to sit in CF bleachers just so I could heckle Edmonds. I hope the guy contributes and makes me fell better, but it won't erase the fact I threw up in my morning coffee when I read it in the paper.
Like many of you, seeing Edmonds in pinstripes brings up feelings similar to those of seeing David Duke as chairman of the NAACP. Ryan R, I also have showed up early to the Bleachers at games vs. the Deadbirds just to heckle Edmonds. He was fun to heckle because he always had some way of letting you know that you were getting to him. He actually personally flipped me off once. But, I had it coming since I insinuated I had been in the sack with his mother the previous night, which had been Mother's Day.
Anyway, the fact that St. Louis will be paying him more than we will for the rest of the season is kinda funny, but only if he can re-discover his youth with us. While with the Tards, his most run-productive away ballpark was Wrigley. And by reports from the scouts, his batting stats are on an upswing. However, I dont see the wisdom in sending Pie back to Iowa. He's done his time there and proven himself there. Any more time he gets there, he's just spinning his wheels. Given our current line-up, there's no better place for him to be than batting 8th and getting some much-needed exposure to ML pitching. Although watching him strike out a third of the time is exasperating, he's not going to make any progress or gain any confidence if we boot him back to AAA right now.
What do you think will be Wrigley's reaction to Edmonds today? $50 says he gets booed... and loudly.
Sure Gary, I alway judge a guy on his hussle by whether he runs after homerun balls.
He's only play for 10+ years, dont you think he might know or at least have a good idea whether a ball is a homerun or not.
Yes he's streaky. He's better then average most times and then is awesome other times.
Your argument doesn't hold water.
HE HAD A BAD MONTH. When Lee has his bad month lets trade him.
What would make you happy if he bats .380 and hits 60 homers a year.
Your holding him to unreasonable standards becuase he's getting paid a lot of money. Guess what, if we wouldn't of offered him that contract, he wouldn't be playing for us. He would be playing for another team. We would of not won the division last year and would not be a world series contender this year. We wouldn't have Fukodome, Z may or may not have resigned with us. ETC., ETC.
Do I have players I like better on the team , Yes. But in no way shape or form should he be trade now or later.