Talkin' Baseball

Bruce Levine and Jonathan Hood talked baseball on ESPN 1000 on this snowy Saturday morning:

• Levine says that the deck was stacked against Milton Bradley from the beginning.
• Hood didn't like Gordon Wittenmyer's article about black players struggling at Wrigley Field right before Milton's first game at Wrigley Field.
• Hate mail is "part of the gig", and most pro athletes get it.
• The bottom like for Bradley was play on the field.
• Hendry has said that the Cubs are going to move on the from this. He stepped up and took the blame for himself. It was his choice to sign Milton.
• Getting $9 million back was the key to the deal, and that money will help him improve the 2010 Chicago Cubs.
• Carlos Silva was a work horse for the Twins, but then things fell apart when he went 4-15 for the M's.
• Even if the Cubs get nothing out of Silva, Levine still likes the deal because the Cubs get some money in the deal to help them go after a player that they do want.
• Levine mentioned to Seattle radio hosts that the Cubs have an aggressive media in Chicago.
• Having lots of media here was too much for Bradley.
• Todd Hunley was the first Cub to be booed out of town.
• The White Sox crowd "is no different" now then the Cubs crowd.
• We have a tougher media who ask tougher questions. The beat reporters are more involved in not just reporting the news, but also giving their opinion.
• Bruce sees a guy who couldn't handle Chicago and failed.
• Jonathan thinks that Seattle could be Milton's last chance, but Bruce doesn't think so because when someone thinks you still have talent a team will still give you a chance.
• Bradley failed in Chicago, and that will always be remembered. He still has a chance to do good in Seattle.
• Jim Hendry talked with the Yankees about a possible trade for Melky Carbera to fill the outfield vacancy.
• Bruce thinks Melky would be a good addition in center field for the Chicago Cubs.

Matt Capps joined the guys to talk baseball:

• Capps loves Chicago. Every time he's been there he's always enjoyed it.
• The people and the atmosphere at Wrigley help make it a great city and a great sports town.
• He has had a lot of success as a set-up man and as a closer.
• At this point Matt wants to win, and he wants to go to a team with an opportunity to win. Whether it's pitching in the 7th, 8th, or 9th; he'd rather be with a winning team.
• If the opportunity and the fit is right, he'd say that the chances of coming to the Cubs are pretty good. There's still a lot of work to be done with Capps' agent and the Cubs; but Matt seems to like Chicago.
• There's just as good a chance as him being a Cub as him going anywhere else.
• He has had some talks with the Cubs.
• The injury he suffered at Wrigley Field did set him back a little bit, and by the end of the year he was over it.
• Pittsburgh is a phenomenal sports towns. When the Steelers and Penguins are playing, there's a great atmosphere. They've had night like that at PNC Park, but the Pirates hasn't had a whole lot of excitement the last few years.
• When the tides to turn and the Pirates get back to winning, that will be a great town to play in.
• Capps admitted that his wife loved the city of Chicago. Matt's wife is very good friends with the wife's of Tom Gorzelanny and John Grabow.

The the guys talked more Cubs:

• Bruce said that it might be between the Cubs and Washington right now for the services of Capps.
• $5.5 million will come to the Cubs this year, and $3.5 will come next year.
• Levine called the Cubs' bench "not very good" right now. Jeff Baker is a great backup, but right now Mike Fontenot is the starting second baseman.
• Hendry has a lot of work to do still, but it's December 19 and there's plenty of time next until the season starts.
• The people in Seattle are calling their GM a miracle worker. The M's fans are ecstatic that Silva is gone, and they are also happy with adding Bradley.
• Cub fans will tell them that there were 7 or 8 guys on the Cubs who had more RBIs than Milton Bradley, who was batting in the middle of the order all year long. Milton finished with just 40 RBIs.
• Seattle loves the idea that Bradley could be a productive player for them.
• Tyler Colvin is not projected as a staring center fielder for the 2010 Chicago Cubs.
• Signing a free agent center fielder is easier for the Cubs because they want to hold on to their good young players at this point.
• Jim Hendry is trying to win next year, and keep his good young players in the organization.
• One of the keys to this winter for the Cubs is how much the rest of the division does.
• Levine says that if the Cubs make a few good moves and have good health they could be right there with the Cardinals in 2010.
• The guys talked about how when someone is working hard in the offseason, it's really doesn't tell fans anything.

That's it for now, much more to come this weekend!