Bravo Cubbies

Good!!!

I am disappointed that Crane "I believe in curses" Kenney and the Tribune get to influence the future of the franchise for another four years due to the slow pace the team's sale. As for Jim Hendry, without Lou telling him what he wants and a pocketful of cash from the Tribune for dressing up the product for sale he has been a very average GM, not the type that will get this franchise to the WS and win it. Something had to be done but it is very disappointing to me that Jim Hendry will be the architect of the team for the next 4 years.

I am glad for Brenly that he might be given the shot in Milwaukee. I think he will do well there but unfortunately he knows the Cubs very well and I am sure he will try to exploit the teams weaknesses. Should be interesting to see how he plays it against the Cubs if he gets the gig.

If Brenly goes, do you think that Stoney maght come back. I think almost every Cubs fan would love to see Steve Stone in the booth again.

Jim Hendry deserved to stay. The fact he is the only GM in our history to oversee 3 playoffs is deserving in and of itself.

I don't know if Stoney would bolt the new contract he just signed with the Sox....suppose its possible since The Hawk was really pissed that he lost DJ....

I do think Stoney is to the Cubs what Foley is to the Blackhawks and the Cubs need to do what the Hawks did and make things right......

Very interesting.....is this a read between the lines situation? Look at the difference in statements from Hendry regarding free agents Ryan Dempster and Kerry Wood:

Regarding Dempster:
"Ryan knows we want him to stay here, and he's never expressed a desire that he wants to leave," Hendry said Monday. "Certainly, the year he had and type of clubhouse presence he is and total team guy, we certainly have every intention of trying to keep Ryan."

Regarding Wood:
"We're going to get our plan together, and we'll try to move forward with what we think is best for the organization," Hendry said. "Kerry has done a terrific job in the closing role. But at the same time, there's a lot of conversations that have to happen with his representatives and him as to what his desires are and what type of contract he's looking for."

VERY different tones there. Could it be that a solid healthy closer is what is on the mind of Hendry?

Interesting Note:

All the speculations about the outfield and such....this indeed should be a make or break...or trade..year for Felix Pie as he is out of options. He can no longer be shuttled to AAA Iowa. He's either our starting CF, or he will be in a trade package.

Well deserved extension!
3 playoff appearances in 6 years, this is very acceptable.

Special Football Note:

Former Bears great Mike Singletary was just named head coach of the San Francisco 49ers!!

Would we want to take the chance, and how big a risk is it? We might well be able to acquire Delmon Young in a trade with the Twins. Reading between the lines a little, Young and his very large upside are thought to be more "big city-urban" than "Minneapolis traditional values". Young was traded (essentially) for Garza (who now has the Rays in the World Series).

Young is only 23 and can play right or left. He was runner-up for ROY in 2007, and his 186 H, 93 RBI's and 38 doubles were only surpassed by a rookie three times in the last 50 years. The surpassers were Tony Oliva, Nomar Garciapara and Albert Pujols. He hit 13 HR's in '07. His production dropped a little in 2008 to .290-10-69 with 14 SB's, 35 W and 105 SO's in 575 AB's. In 2007 (160 games) he had an impressive 16 assists and a not so good 7 errors--mostly in right field. A critic or two have implied that he has some prima donna in him--but I don't know the validity of the criticism. His dad was a navy pilot and is now a commercial airling pilot--which sounds like a solid role model background. His older brother is Dimitri Young.

The Twins are looking for a shortstop and a third baseman. I'm guessing that Theriot, Marshall and Fox gets us Young and either top five lefty pitching prospect, Tyler Robertson (Hi A) or top 10 RSP prospect, Kevin Mulvey (AAA) who went from the Mets to the Twins in the Santana deal. Maybe top 5 catching prospect, Wilson Ramos (Hi A) could be the second player in the deal. We also likey would get infielder Brendan Harris in the deal--who could be a versatile back-up.

That deal raises some questions too--about who plays SS for us. My take is that the deal likely gets us a true #3 bat--that could mature into all-star-level success. Young bats right, but he hits right handers well. Any thoughts, Faithful?

A word on GM Hendry.

I've been harsh on him, and part of the reason was that I didn't see much change. Hendry operated through budget control, then after a taste of the virgin Cubbie year of a 2003 Baker, our GM favored overspending, but the "safe" way by signing veterans who showed their prime.

But excuse me to leave those forementioned here and there, we can discuss those again another time. And turn to the credit the man deserves.

We had a good farm, and Hendry kept most of our minor league coaches who spun out marvelous pitchers and batters, these kids moved up to the Big fairly quickly.

We witnessed some of them gone fairly quickly the past few seasons, too, but in general, we nurtured an irreplaceable position, good catchers. We have Soto (Rookie of the Year?), had Donaldson (with pop and now with the A's), have Chris Robinson (a solid Canadian; I like how he played in the Olympic), others. Good catchers are tough to get, and Hendry got to bring up plenty.

We saw some recent pick ups, good platoon performance out of Johnson and Edmonds. We have a .600 ballclub that marked some record ever since 1908.

We may quickly conclude, Hendry isn't the best of best, but he learned through the hard way. But not close the book, I hope, hopefully, he'll get better on his trade.

JimK,

I haven't seen much of Delmon Young play, but I'll say the Rays traded him for a reason.

Part of the reason might be his inability to grow into a better hitter. He looks like some flash of happy soul at short. He doesn't get on base more than Theriot. Though, he should have better defense, if we consider how hard Metrodome and Tropicana are.

If we want to reach deep in the postseason, good fielding and pitching are more necessary. Young might be an option (I don't like Theriot on the field when we don't get much runs), but I rather see someone like Kuroda or Garza.

We don't Peavy, just good pitching.

I have to say JimK has some of the most bizarre and creative trades I've ever seen....guys I've never even heard of in any way shape or form, even on most of the team's websites....However, I do like his thinking.

Theriot is a great team guy, but he's probably not a SS long-term for us. He'll eventually have to move his weaker arm and limited range back to 2B. Similarly, he sees the opening for Young, and I too have read about the Twns looking to possibly move him. But, I'd have to also say, consider the teams that have traded/wanted to trade him...both the Rays and Twins are great at developing outstanding talent, and getting rid of bad attitude guys like Elijah Dukes, Luis Castillo, etc. But I do like the thinking of adding a guy like him who might thrive in a bigger market, which is pretty rare.

Also, I'm wondering if Rich Hill might be able to turn his career around much like Cliff Lee, and allow us to trade Marshall, perhaps, and/or Marquis, and insert him in the rotation.

I'd love to see Hendry step up to the plate and add a big power lefty bat (Bradley, Beltran, or Dunn), and jettison a big contract like Lee or Soriano.

However, the jackasses over at the Trib (speaking mainly of Kenney) probably won't allow it. If you read the article on cubs.com about Hendry's extension, you'll see a blurb from Kenney, where he basically states that they won't be adding anyone. Plus, they might not even go after Wood---one of our best bullpen arms this year (if you read into Hendry's words). This concerns me because...

1) Kenney seems to think we have the pieces to succeed next year, which is laughable.
2)Lee has clearly shown his age, Soriano shows up only when he wants, and doesn't even believe the team is geared for postseason (terrible admission by him)
3) Wood and Marmol were our only semi-consistent relievers last year and we might lose Wood. We also lack in power arms, so that would hurt even more.
4)Edmonds, one of our most clutch bats last year will likely retire.
5)Dempster, if signed, will NOT be as good as last year (historical stats people...historical stats, that's what you go off of, especially his age).
6)Our pen has obvious holes, and a gaping one if we let Wood go.
7)No power lefty bat
8)Fukudome is a joke
9)Hendry still hasn't made a move to shake up a team that obviously isn't getting it done

One of the biggest motivating tools a GM can use on players is fear of being traded/not wanted. What do you think caused the surge in Edmonds' production? Ballplayers are just like average Joe's, in that they need to be wanted, and when they're not, their competitive instincts kick in, and they start producing. What do you think motivated Dempster to get in the best shape of his life? It was because nothing was guaranteed for him after this year. A lot of players step up in contract years to prove themselves. THey rise to the occasion to meet escalators in their contracts, etc. Point is, when players aren't getting it done, and they already have security, you have to take that away from them, and make some trades to shake up the roster.

I love the idea of Hoffpauir and first, and trading Lee, and whatever you get is gravy. One, it gives us a power lefty bat, and two, do you honestly think he can't produce a .285-.290 avg, 20 HR, 85-90RBI, and a .350-.360 OBP? Cuz that's what you're getting from Lee. Lee would at least fetch a couple decent prospects, so why not go for it, then sign Dunn for RF.

Kenney's a joke, and if Hendry doesn't do something, the next owner better fire him, because there is no single GM in the game that would stand pat after getting swept two years in a row in the playoffs.