Filed: February 27th, 2009
Milton Bradley(Source:AP)
Now see, that didn't take long.
Actually, it took all of 24 hours from the start of Spring Training games for Milton Bradley to turn up lame, this time from a "tight quad" that as the Chicago Tribune reports, is likely to keep him out for the next few days.
Bless Milton and the Cubs for not worrying about it. It's all precautionary, of course. And as Milton replied:
"Spring is spring. I had like five at-bats last spring and hit .320 [during the season]. So spring is overrated."
Yeah. In the meantime, I'll hope he'll forgive the rest of us for wondering how a player 12 times on the disabled list -- including four for leg injuries -- will hold up in the first few months of the season in freezing Chicago climate, when he's having trouble staying loose on the warm, dry Arizona playing fields.
I think the folks over at The Disabled List Informer said it best:"He might as well legally change his name to "Strain".
Filed:February 25th, 2009
Cubs 2009 Spring Training (Morry Gash/AP)
Well, first things first.For the reader who chided me about using a Spring Training photo featuring Matt Murton in an earlier post, sorry. We take the photos here as we get them, especially when they have to be licensed. I hope that this one is a bit more to your liking.But onto baseball, where finally we get to see -- or hear -- the sights and sounds of a real game again. The Cubs kicked off the Spring Training slate with a game this afternoon against the Dodgers. They won 5-3 by the way, on a Micah Hoffpauir grand slam.It's only the first in a long line of meaningless games over the next six weeks, but listening to it, there were three thoughts that struck me. Besides the fact that few sounds are better than that of the crack of a bat.I know the Hoffpauir fans loved the grand slam, and it does give gravitas to the notion of keeping him as a power bat off the bench. But I keep hearing people make the case for Luis Rivas to make the team, and as long as Lou Piniella keeps giving him -- and others -- long looks at third base like he did today, I see their point. Micah will probably do well keep his old land lady in Iowa on speed-dial.Nice way to begin for Jeff Samardzija too, who worked two innings to start the game. You know, he sailed through the first inning, and then got into all sorts of trouble in the second. I won't worry too much about it at this point in the spring, as conditioning and endurance may have a bit to do with that. But you know, at some point, he's really going to need to throw a few consistent innings together against major-league hitters before anyone is convinced that him working as a starter is a good idea.But watching listening to him work, coupled with scoreless innings of work from Jeff Stevens and David Patton makes me feel just a bit better about that bullpen than I did a week ago. There's an incredible amount of youth and inexperience there, but good depth, and a lot of promise. Baseball is back..and I couldn't be happier.
Alfonso Soriano – Cubbie Nation file
Filed:February 17th, 2009
Well, that didn't take long. Position players aren't even due to report yet, and the pot in Cubdom has already been stirred with news that Lou Piniella will try hitting Alfonso Soriano further down in the lineup.
Specifically, when asked about middle portion of the batting order, Piniella had this to say:
''We've got a combination of Derrek [Lee], [Milton] Bradley, [Aramis] Ramirez, and I'm not going to [rule] out the possibility of throwing Soriano in that mix, either.''
You know, it's not only the prerogative of the major league manager to experiment with his roster during Spring Training, it's practically an obligation. Unless you're coming in at the bottom of the competitive cycle -- and your GM has committed to you for the duration of the rebuilding phase -- managers generally don't have the luxury of giving guys much time to develop in season. And by develop, I mean not only rookies looking to stay on with the club, but guys who you want to do different things, or take on new responsibilities. One need only look at the Soriano in center field experiment of a few years ago to see my point.
No, you've got to try some things, let some guys reach a bit, let some fail, and really look at how to maximize the collective talent. It's just not enough to keep doing what you've been doing.
Here's the thing though. Soriano pounding AA and AAA pitchers in the thin Arizona air for a few games is not going to changes seasons worth of experience that shows he's a poor middle-of-the-order bat. New York tried this experiment. Texas tried this experiment. Even the Cubs tried it for a few games. Want to know what they found?
Alfonso is a rally killer, who receives a disproportionate amount of breaking balls when batting lower in the lineup -- breaking balls that he can't hit. A few seasons ago, he was considered a middling slugger in Texas, with feast or famine tendencies. Good for making the Baseball Tonight highlight reel, but worthless for making the club any better on the field.
Traded to Washington, Frank Robinson wisely sticks him in the lead-off spot. Soriano see more fastballs, as teams try not to put him on base, fearing his speed and the likelihood of extending the inning. He prospers, and re-invents himself into the 130-million dollar man that we know him as today.
This isn't small sampling either, with over two seasons worth of at-bats hitting third through seventh in the order to prove it. Think about a 100 point OPS drop, and you'll start to get the picture.
You know, in the financial markets, you normally make decisions based off of either the fundamentals, or the technical analysis. When they both converge in agreement, there's just no question really. In Soriano's case, both show he's a marginal power hitter lower in the lineup, and with no superior replacement to take the lead-off spot in his stead. Aaron Miles or Ryan Theriot? Please. That just makes a bad idea that much worse. Lou needs to sell on this idea. Quickly.
Source:AP
Filed:February 13th, 2009Pitchers and catcher report.You know, the only thing better than the beginning of Spring Training is the first pitch of a new season, and the last out of the World Series for the winner. Not that I’d know anything about that.
But with the beginning of Spring Training, Chicagoans put aside all the memories of the last year, our cynicism about the off-season signing – watch how many fans change to the Bradley bandwagon – and start deluding ourselves that Winter in Chicago is almost over; as if.So, while the staff spends the day unpacking, let’s look at the Spring Training roster.New FacesPaul BakoMilton BradleyJoey GathrightKevin GreggAaron HeilmanAaron MilesDavid PattonRichie RobnettBrad SnyderJeff StevensLuis VizcainoThe DepartedHenry BlancoRonny CedenoMark DeRosaJim EdmondsRich HillBob HowryJason MarquisDaryle WardMichael WuertzKerry WoodThe hopefuls (Non-roster invitees)Edward Campusano Esmailin Caridad Andrew Cashner Chad Fox Ken Kadokura J.R. Mathes Rocky Roquet Matt Smith Mike Stanton Jason Waddell Bill White Welington Castillo Steve Clevenger Mark Johnson Darwin Barney Andres Blanco Luis Rivas Bobby Scales Doug Deeds Jason Dubois So TaguchiI’m still amazed at the amount of turnover that took place within a single off-season. Nevertheless, it’s a good team; good, but not deep. Looking over the personnel closely, I’ll make three early predictions: Jeff Samardzija will the fifth starter, Lou Piniella anoints Kevin Gregg the closer, and Andres Blanco takes the 25th spot on the rosters.First practice is tomorrow. I’m dreaming of summer already.
Michael Wuertz(Cubbie Nation/File)
Filed:February 3rd, 2009
My Christmas has come early -- or late, depending on your view -- with news that Michael Wuertz has been traded to the Oakland A's for minor leaguers Richie Robnett and Justin Sellers. Additionally, Rich Hill has departed, traded to the Baltimore Orioles for a PTBNL.
Neither will be missed. I know, I know. I'm in the camp that you never give up on a young lefty, if he's even had an ounce of success at the major-league level. Frankly, we're not quite right in the head, tend to be terrible late bloomers, and it's not like most have ever had to rely on velocity to get hitters out, so the 30's can be very productive once those guys find their niche. There's a reason that Jesse Orosco pitched into his 60's, you know. Just kidding Jesse.
And yeah, I've heard from the Cubs blogosphere commenting how that may be a move that the Cubs come to regret. Frankly, they're right. Get Rich Hill back in a more relaxed environment, some time to work on his issues with the major-league coaching staff -- a few of whom he's worked with previously in the minors -- and somebody teaching him a decent third pitch, and I could see where he'd be a serviceable starter again in a year or two.
Unfortunately, buried behind easily a dozen guys in camp who can actually throw strikes, and are likely to get hitters out with more certainty, it wasn't going to work here. And as for Michael Wuertz, well, one need only lightly tap the surface of his resume to see that he just wasn't getting any better, and really wasn't all that good to begin with. Personally, I found him completely unusable in pressure situations, which was hidden by a deceptively low ERA, and the occasional quick inning of work with no runners on. My only regret was that he wasn't spun last year to the Tigers when they came calling. Probably would have gotten a better haul.
But let me tell you what really fascinates me about these trades. Never in the history of the Cubs has mediocrity been so strongly rebutted. Guys who were supposed to be the cornerstone of the franchise just two years ago have been shown the door, and with little hesitation.
Sweet Lou at work? Probably. It's obvious that his voice is getting greater attention within the organization. And while I'll put aside the indictment of Jim Hendry in his ability to construct a legitimate philosophy and plan for the creation of a consistent winner for a moment -- instead deferring to whatever big-name manager is leading the franchise this year -- the change in personnel alone is nothing short of spectacular. It's as if Lou looked around, told the club you've got an organization full of lame-os, head cases, and M.A.S.H. unit patients, and I want them gone. And they were gone.
Consider the list of player who've left from last season alone:
Rich Hill
Felix Pie
Ronny Cedeno
Michael Wuertz
Kerry Wood
Jim Edmonds
Jason Marquis
Bob Howry
Daryle Ward
Henry Blanco
Stevie Scott Eyre
Jon Lieber
Sean Gallagher
Mark DeRosa
Am I missing anyone? I can't recall any team in recent memory -- especially on a championship contender -- who's turned over a third of their 40-man roster inside of a single year. Will it make them better. I don't think so, but in a season where 60% of the MLB teams appear to be writing off this season due to economics -- and more likely to cry broke at the deadline -- even a 90-win Cubs team has to be considered among the favorites in the NL.
No, the real story here in my opinion is the condemnation of Hendry and the Cubs brain trust by Piniella, who seems to require nothing less of a organizational exorcism to take the team to the next level. But what do you think?
Filed:February 1st, 2009
Paul Bako (Cubbie Nation/File)
He bats left-handed. Yeah, that's about the kindest thing that I can say about the Cubs official move this week, re-signing catcher Paul Bako to a one-year deal. The contract guarantees $500,000 for the 2009 season.
You know, when they signed Milton Bradley, and paid 30 million for the privilege, it was a little odd. When they grabbed Joey Gathright as a backup outfielder, it was a bit weird. Now, being so crazed for left-handed bats that they sign Paul Bako -- at the rumored insistence of Lou Piniella to specifically have a lefty catcher -- I'd say yeah, it's hit full-on lefty madness around here.
I like Bako. He calls a nice game, appears to be a good clubhouse guy, and I know many Chicago fans are fond of him from his time here as part of the 2003 playoff run. But he can't hit. And frankly, his defense isn't all that great. Given that he isn't likely to outhit Mark Johnson -- already in camp, and coming off of a great season -- , nor be better defensively than Koyie Hill, the signing leaves me scratching my head. All have at least the ability to hit left-handed, by the way. And of course given that Henry Blanco, who recently signed with the Padres for only $250,000 more, outhits the trio against RHP, I'm seriously left wondering about the true depth of this team. Nice balance on paper, but it's not like grabbing Jim Edmonds and Reed Johnson last season. I would be absolutely terrified at the notion of any of these signees getting extended playing time next season.
At the end of the day, I see where the Cubs are going with this. I understand the benefits of having this balance. But must the guys that they sign as part of the plan be so....ordinary?