Final Cubs post
Of the week. Perhaps. I guess there's still this afternoon that something could happen to either induce my rage or my shock, surprise and glee. Glee?
Anyways, during the GM meetings there's always a lot of talk about teams making offers for certain players, certain players appear likely to be going to this team, etc., but you don't really hear a lot about which teams are talking to which players, as most if it really isn't newsworth and is nothing but pure speculation. Which is kind of shocking because a lot of articles at this time of year are pure speculation anyways.
But, as I've now discovered, MLB Trade Rumors is doing a great job with a lot of the rumors, and is usually one of the first to break news. Of course, they get their breaking news from Ken Rosenthal who is with Foxsports or something, but that's not the point. The point is it's a great place to get rumors that may or may not be anywhere near true.
And today they've noted that it appears J.D. Drew looks set to sign with the Red Sox for a two-year deal. But wait. Apparently the Cubs matched the Red Sox offer. Surprisingly, the Cubs may be trying to sign Drew.
I think signing Drew would be an awesome move. While he's kind of fragile, he's also pretty solid. And his OBP was near .400 this year, which is pretty insane. And he can play center or right, so should we fail to get Soriano, we still have a solid cf.
But I think I also like where this leaves us in regard to possible moves we're considering making. If we sign Drew (a 2 year deal is nothing) and still go after Soriano, perhaps that means we'll kiss Jacque Jones goodbye. Which is fine. He had a solid year offensively, and I'm sure there are people willing to take on what is only a two-year deal for a lefty who managed to hit nearly .290 while possibly having a sore elbow.
If we sign Drew and still go after Carlos Lee (who I'm not sure we're going after) then it also probably means that Jacque Jones would be gone. It would also mean that Murton was moving to right most likely.
What I don't like is the possibility that we sign 2 outfielders (Drew being one) and then we keep Jacque Jones and move Murton to the bench. Piniella worries me in that regard. Also, Murton deserves to be playing everyday, not in a platoon. We might as well just trade him if we're going to put him on the bench; he's too good for that.
What could we get for Jones? Well, we also have a plethora of pitching in our bullpen, and we have a lot of young guys with a little major league experience in there who could be viewed as possible gold mines with live arms. So we could add a pitcher or two to the deal and possibly get back a starter, say a Cliff Lee or Jake Westbrook from the Indians. Or we could trade for an outfield prospect if a team is salivating for a lefthanded bat. This would probably happen closer to spring training after all of the free agents are signed. Jones is by no means way overpriced, so he's cheaper than free agents, and, again, he only has 2 years left on his deal.
Or maybe we could throw in a Cesar Izturis and get a Khalil Greene. Of course we would need something else in return. But I like the idea of having Khalil Greene slightly more than I like the idea of having Izturis, because I assume Greene would OBP over .300. And a smaller park can't hurt him. Ok, I checked, Greene's OBP was .320 last year. So, not great, but not far from Juan Pierre's level.
Currently I'm in my somewhat satisfied state for the day. I like the prospect of Drew and another outfielder, and then maybe signing a tier-2 starter, and getting rid of Jacque Jones in a trade for another starter. I also just like the prospect of Drew in general, hoping he doesn't get hurt. In addition, I'm intrigued by the idea of using Neal Cotts in the rotation. Apparently he tore up the A's system in the rotation. He could translate well. He could also have an ERA of 5.17. We'll just have to see on that one.
So I guess we'll see later this afternoon, or after this weekend, how I'm feeling towards Jim Hendry.
Anyways, during the GM meetings there's always a lot of talk about teams making offers for certain players, certain players appear likely to be going to this team, etc., but you don't really hear a lot about which teams are talking to which players, as most if it really isn't newsworth and is nothing but pure speculation. Which is kind of shocking because a lot of articles at this time of year are pure speculation anyways.
But, as I've now discovered, MLB Trade Rumors is doing a great job with a lot of the rumors, and is usually one of the first to break news. Of course, they get their breaking news from Ken Rosenthal who is with Foxsports or something, but that's not the point. The point is it's a great place to get rumors that may or may not be anywhere near true.
And today they've noted that it appears J.D. Drew looks set to sign with the Red Sox for a two-year deal. But wait. Apparently the Cubs matched the Red Sox offer. Surprisingly, the Cubs may be trying to sign Drew.
I think signing Drew would be an awesome move. While he's kind of fragile, he's also pretty solid. And his OBP was near .400 this year, which is pretty insane. And he can play center or right, so should we fail to get Soriano, we still have a solid cf.
But I think I also like where this leaves us in regard to possible moves we're considering making. If we sign Drew (a 2 year deal is nothing) and still go after Soriano, perhaps that means we'll kiss Jacque Jones goodbye. Which is fine. He had a solid year offensively, and I'm sure there are people willing to take on what is only a two-year deal for a lefty who managed to hit nearly .290 while possibly having a sore elbow.
If we sign Drew and still go after Carlos Lee (who I'm not sure we're going after) then it also probably means that Jacque Jones would be gone. It would also mean that Murton was moving to right most likely.
What I don't like is the possibility that we sign 2 outfielders (Drew being one) and then we keep Jacque Jones and move Murton to the bench. Piniella worries me in that regard. Also, Murton deserves to be playing everyday, not in a platoon. We might as well just trade him if we're going to put him on the bench; he's too good for that.
What could we get for Jones? Well, we also have a plethora of pitching in our bullpen, and we have a lot of young guys with a little major league experience in there who could be viewed as possible gold mines with live arms. So we could add a pitcher or two to the deal and possibly get back a starter, say a Cliff Lee or Jake Westbrook from the Indians. Or we could trade for an outfield prospect if a team is salivating for a lefthanded bat. This would probably happen closer to spring training after all of the free agents are signed. Jones is by no means way overpriced, so he's cheaper than free agents, and, again, he only has 2 years left on his deal.
Or maybe we could throw in a Cesar Izturis and get a Khalil Greene. Of course we would need something else in return. But I like the idea of having Khalil Greene slightly more than I like the idea of having Izturis, because I assume Greene would OBP over .300. And a smaller park can't hurt him. Ok, I checked, Greene's OBP was .320 last year. So, not great, but not far from Juan Pierre's level.
Currently I'm in my somewhat satisfied state for the day. I like the prospect of Drew and another outfielder, and then maybe signing a tier-2 starter, and getting rid of Jacque Jones in a trade for another starter. I also just like the prospect of Drew in general, hoping he doesn't get hurt. In addition, I'm intrigued by the idea of using Neal Cotts in the rotation. Apparently he tore up the A's system in the rotation. He could translate well. He could also have an ERA of 5.17. We'll just have to see on that one.
So I guess we'll see later this afternoon, or after this weekend, how I'm feeling towards Jim Hendry.
posted by Jtrouble at 11:24 AM
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