If Not Peavy....Maybe Randy Wolf?

Less than 24 hours after Bruce Levine reported the Cubs interest in Aaron Heilman, the story breaker mentioned if the Cubs are unable to land Jake Peavy they might turn to Randy Wolf.

During Talkin' Baseball on Saturday morning Bruce Levine changed his optimism on the fact the Cubs could still pull off a trade for Jake Peavy, citing both the Cubs and Padres ownership changes as the reason. A week ago Levine put the Cubs chances at 80% to land Peavy, on Saturday he said Jeff Moorad may want to keep Peavy and build his team around the ace.

The Cubs pursued Randy Wolf before he signed with the Dodgers prior to the 2007 season....and was rumored to be interested again last winter before Wolf signed with the Padres. Wolf was excellent in 12 starts with the Astros last season after he made only 18 starts for the Padres.

Wolf posted a combined 12-12 record with a 4.30 ERA and a 1.38 WHIP in 33 starts for the Padres and Astros. He was 6-2 in 12 starts with Houston, that included a complete game gem against the Cubs, with a 3.57 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP.

Randy Wolf is 2-4 in 8 career starts at Wrigley Field with a 4.38 ERA and a 1.42 WHIP....he has allowed eight home runs in 49 1/3 innings.

On the Jake Peavy front, the announcement was made on Friday that Peavy will pitch for Team USA in the upcoming World Baseball Classic. Peavy is on the preliminary roster for Team USA.

According to a report from the San Diego Union Tribune, if Jake Peavy is traded "he might forgo the WBC to train with his new club." Barry Axelrod told the Union Tribune that Peavy would probably want a "full spring camp" with a new pitching coach and training staff.

Other Tidbits from Bruce Levine:

The Cubs are hoping to get 25 starts from Rich Harden next season.
Levine called Sean Marshall the Cubs' "Super 6 Starter". Levine thinks Marshall will make at least seven to eight of Harden's starts and will be used in the rotation elsewhere if Lou Piniella decides to skip someone's turn. Levine mentioned Marshall should make between 12-15 starts in the upcoming season.
Milton Bradley is not worried about receiving the same taunts from the Wrigley Field crowd that Jacque Jones and LaTroy Hawkins received. Levine said he could not repeat on the radio the same language Bradley used.
Bradley's vesting option for the third year of his contract is not based on games played but at bats made in the first two guaranteed seasons.

Well, that's the latest....and I'm sticking to it!

AaronB

I would love to see Hill bounce back. Maybe with no pressure and no one really talking about him he'll be able to put it back together.

I don't see any reason to waste money on Wolf - a dominate lefty in the pen is our biggest need.

Joe S. (San Diego)

I think Levine is right with Marshall. I think he will be used in the same role as he was last year. Lefty in the pen, and a fill-in starter for Harden (or others) when needed.

That leaves the 5th spot open. Could Rich Hill be given the shot? It's either that or he gets traded. I have to believe last year was a fluke.

If not Hill, Wolf wouldnt be a horrible choice. That is assuming the Jake Peavy deal is dead, which I am still not certain is the case.

I also agree with JimK and we should try and nab Scott Downs back from Toronto as they try and dump salary.

Matt Haggard

Ummm...didn't we just trade our own Randy Wolf in Marquis??

Why would we do this again exactly?

JimK

Unfortunately, it was Wood and DeRosa, who weren't protected by no trade agreements, who had to be traded if JH were to bring in new players. While we shed about $12 mil with Howry, Lieber and Eyre leaving, we had about $25 mil in remaining contract add-ons. Lilly and Dome get $11.5 mil more in 2009, and Z, ARam, Sori and Marquis combined for another $11 mil. So JH needed the Wood, DeRo (and Marquis) savings for Demp and Bradley and some in-house needs.

I'm with joe d on going young with a trade if we need another starter. As some have mentioned, I hope that JH can move two or three of our AAAA guys like Cedeno, Hart and Pie(who could get better elsewhere with a lot of playing time) for some new prospects or another young guy on someones 25 man roster.

I thnk we need a lefty reliever more--although the veteran Wolf could do both. My guess is that we're looking at contracts under $3 mil going forward--although I would try to squeeze in $4 mil for a proven lefty reliever like Scott Downs. His 1.78 ERA in 70 IP for the salary dumping Blue Jays looks mighty good.

joe d

If I was looking to shed some salary, I would never have picked DeRosa, and I would've at least offered something respectable to Kerry Wood for 2 years. He expressed a great desire to stay. If they don't flip these minor leaguers in a deal for Peavy, a lot of fans have a right to be disappointed. DeRosa's contribution was immeasurable, and I think Marmol would've benefitted from one more year as the set-up man, though he'll be far above the league average as a closer. Landing Peavy would create one of those kinds of rotations (think 90s Braves) that could go down as one of the best in the history of the game, and a fairly young one at that. Randy Wolf is not really an upgrade from Jason Marquis, at least not for $5 mil. Why not find someone cheaper and younger through a trade to compete with Marshall?