Quick Hits with Spring Training Underway

A few news and notes from Cubs camp!

• The Cubs do not plan to make any roster cuts until March 16.
• The first full squad workout for minor leaugers will be March 10 and their first spring games will be March 19.
• Quade does not plan to hit his pitcher any spot other than ninth.
• Angel Guzman tossed 30 pitches in a side session on Sunday.
• The 13th annual toast to Harry Caray will take place tomorrow at 5:55 with a special tribute to Ron Santo. Coverage will be on ESPN 1000 for 3-6.
• Tyler Colvin is expected to play first base on either Thursday or Friday.
• Former Cub Bob Howry has retired after 13 seasons in the bigs.
• Bruce Miles wrote about Baseball Prospectus yesterday.
• The Cubs have dropped the first two Cactus League games. They play the Giants tomorrow on MLB.com.

That's it for now, but I'll keep you posted!

Series Preview: Cubs VS Rockies

Update 4:40 CT- Bobby Howry has been released by the Cubs. He was let go to make room for Carlos Zambrano on the roster, who if officially reinstated according a tweet from Carrie Muskat.

The Cubs are set to begin a three game series in Colorado tonight. The big story though is the fact that that the Major League Baseball trade deadline is less than 24 hours away. Will Hendry make a move our will the Cubs roster still be intact by the second game of this set tomorrow night?

The Cubbies still cannot figure out how to beat the terrible teams in the NL Central. They dropped two of three to the Astros earlier in the week, losing a series to the 'Stros for the second week in a row. They must win this series in order to salvage a decent road trip.

Lou's crew comes in with a 46-56 record, ten games under .500. They have dropped back to fourth place in the Central, 10.5 behind the first place Reds. They are looking to get back in the win column tonight after back-to-back losses Tuesday and Wednesday before Thursday's off day. The Cubs are 20-29 away from Wrigley.

The Rockies are not exactly riding high either. They have lost eight of their last nine to fall out of the NL West picture. As it stands going into action tonight, Colorado has a 52-50 overall mark, which puts them in fourth in the West. They are 9 games in back of the Padres.

Colorado topped Pittsburgh yesterday 9-3 to end and eight game losing streak. They are a cold team, but they're getting healthy as players are starting to return from injuries. The Rockies coaching staff includes several guys with Cubs connections like first base coach Glenallen Hill (Cubs outfielder '93-'94, '98-'99), hitting coach Don Baylor (Cubs manager 2000-'02), and
manager Jim Tracy (made his MLB debut as a player with the Cubs in 1980).

Other than the trade deadline, the big story this weekend is the return of Carlos Zambrano. Big Z has been on the restricted list with his anger issues since a dugout explosion in a mid-June game against the White Sox. The media will be all over Zambrano, who is expected to meet with his team and talk about the incident.

Here is Carlos' minor league rehab recap:
1 IP, 0 H, 0 R in only outing with Mesa Cubs
1 IP, 2 H, 0 R in July 22 outing with Iowa Cubs
2 IP, 1 H, 0 R in July 24 outing with Iowa Cubs
1 IP, 3 H, 1 BB, 3 ER in July 27 outing with Iowa Cubs

The Cubs will have to make a move in order to make room for Zambrano on the roster. There is a chance that Bobby Howry will be let go of, but most likely Brian Schlitter or Justin Berg will head back to Iowa.

The Cubs have had success against Colorado this season. They swept a brief two game set at Wrigley May 17-18. This is the only trip to Coors Field that the Cubs make all year, it is the final set between the two teams, and a win tonight could assure the Cubs a season series victory.

Game 1: Friday at 8:10 CT
Cubs Starting Pitcher: Ryan Dempster, RHP (8-7, 3.71 ERA)
Rockies Starting Pitcher: Jeff Francis, LHP (3-3, 4.56 ERA)
TV/Radio: WGN-TV/WGN Radio

Game 2: Saturday at 7:10 CT
Cubs Starting Pitcher: Tom Gorzelanny, LHP (6-5, 3.22 ERA)
Rockies Starting Pitcher: Jason Hammel, RHP (7-6, 4.34 ERA)
TV/Radio: WGN-TV/WGN Radio

Game 3: Sunday at 2:10 CT
Cubs Starting Pitcher: Carlos Silva, RHP (10-4, 3.76 ERA)
Rockies Starting Pitcher: Jorge De La Rosa, LHP (3-3, 5.15 ERA)
TV/Radio: CSN/WGN Radio

Ron Santo is not on this road trip, but his health if fine and he is resting at home. Keith Moreland did a great job of pinch hitting on the WGN Radio broadcast in Houston. Most likely either Davd Otto or Judd Sirott will join Pat Hughes for this series.

I will update this post if any news breaks.

Let's finish out the month strong!

Mid Week Roundup: Ramirez to the DL, Howry Pitching Well, The Hawks, and More

We've spent the past few days focused on the draft, but it's time to get caught up on what's going on with the big league club!

Update 4:10 CT: Now it's official. Ramirez to the DL, Tracy called up. Chad is expected to be with the team tonight.

Ramirez to the DL?
According to the Chicago Tribune and several other sources, Aramis Ramirez will finally be placed on the DL with a left thumb injury. The roster move should happen sometime today. The Cubs are expected to callup Chad Tracy, who's tearing the cover off the ball at AAA-Iowa. Aramis has been in and out of the lineup lately and is hitting just .168 this season.

Theriot's Coming Around
Ryan Theriot is finally starting to see the ball a little better. Ryan has worked a few walks this week but says he hasn't changed anything in his approach at the plate. He wants to be a little more selective but not overly defensive up there. Lou Piniella says that The Riot is still his best leadoff option.

Howry Pitching Well
The return to Chicago seems to have helped RHP Bobby Howry, who struggled before he was released by Arizona. Howry has not allowed a run in seven outings with the Cubs.

Cubs Draft Ivan De Jesus
The Cubs selected a centerfielder from Cupeyville High School in the sixth round of the draft. The odd thing is, the outfielder has nearly the same name as Cubs' first base coach Ivan DeJesus. However, the two men are not related. DeJesus (the coach) says he was surprised to see his name on the list of players drafted by the organization. Today the Cubs drafted Benito Santiago Jr., who is the son of the former Cubs catcher.

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Tonight the Cubs play the Brewers at 7:15 in a game that will be on ESPN-TV and 560 AM (instead of 720 because of the Stanley Cup Finals). Carlos Zambrano will get his second start since returning to the rotation.

Speaking of the Stanley Cup Finals... Go Hawks Go!!!

Cubs Radio, Howry, Zambrano, and More

• Carlos Zambrano will return to the rotation against the Pirates next week. Tom Gorzelanny could be the odd starter out.
• The Cubs have agreed to move their radio broadcasts to accommodate the Chicago Blackhawks Stanley Cup Finals games. The Hawks games will be on the the WGN-720 flagship station while Pat and Ron will be moved to 560 WIND on conflicting dates. The days the Cubs will be on 560 will be June 2, 4, and possibly 9th (if Game 6 is needed in Stanley Cup).
• Speaking of the Hawks, some of their players were at Wrigley tonight to cheer on the Cubbies.
• Aramis Ramirez got another day off on Tuesday. He sat out with a thumb injury. A-ram is hitless in his last four games and is hitting just .160 this year.
• Phil Rogers reports that Aramis will most likely avoid the DL and could return to the lineup against the Cardinals this weekend.
• Bobby Howry believes he still has something to bring to the table. He will be used in middle relief.
• Jim Hendry wasn't sure how to react when he was told that Milton Bradley is taking his advice at looking in the mirror, according to Bruce Levine.
• Carlos Zambrano's 73 pitch simulated game went well yesterday. Jeff Baker and Tyler Colvin were among the batters.
• After a 3-0 win against the Dodgers tonight, the Cubs are 7-0 when Starlin Castro bats second in the lineup.

That's it for now, but I'll keep you posted.

Breaking News: Howry Signs With Cubs

With the struggles of the Cubs bullpen this season, Jim Hendry has finally added a veteran arm. However, Bobby Howry might not be what most Cubs fans were hoping for.

Howry has signed a one year deal with the Cubs and will earn the league minimum of $410,000. Bob will join the team tonight in Texas for the first interleague game of the year. He was released by Arizona earlier this week.

To make room on the active roster, Justin Berg was sent to AAA-Iowa. David Patton has been DFA'd to make room on the 40-man roster. Patton was the Cubs' Rule 5 Draft Pick in December 2008 and was kept on the 25-man roster (or DL) for all of the 2009 season, but the Cubs' are giving up on him. Patton had a 5.23 ERA in 7 games at Class-A Daytona this season.

This was the second adjustment made to the bullpen this week after Jeff Stevens was called up on Wednesday. Esmalin Caridad has returned to the DL. His new injury is a right elbow strain.

Here are some notes on Howry, who will be used in middle relief:

• B/T: Left/Right
• Drafted: By the Giants in the 5th round in 1994
• Has played with the White Sox, Red Sox, Indians, Giants, and D'backs.
• 10.67 ERA in 14 games before being released by Arizona this season.
• Went 4-5 with a 3.17 ERA in 2006, his first and best year of his first stint with the Cubs.
• Remained a Cub until signing with the Giants after the '08 season.
• 36 years old

That's it for now, but I'll keep you posted.

Quick Hits: Piniella, Zambrano, and More

• Carlos Zambrano will eventually return to the starting rotation. Lou Piniella is going to use Zambrano in long relief instead of setup duty to start getting his arm stretched out for the time being.
• Lou is not sure how long it will take to get Z back into the rotation.
• Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports thinks that the Cubs should fire Piniella and replace him with bench coach Allan Trammell. Rosenthal writes, "It could happen. I'm guessing it will happen."
• Jim Hendry responded to Rosental's article by saying that Lou is safe for the 2010 season. He does not think the manager is at fault for the team's slow start.
• Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe says that the Cubs would trade Derrek Lee if they could.
• Steve Stone said Monday on 670 The Score that the next Cubs' manager should be Joe Girardi.
• Mark Prior recently started throwing in hopes of making one last comeback, but Prior took a line drive off his pitching shoulder and is injured again.
• Another injured former Cub is Jim Edmonds, who was recently placed on the DL by the Brewers.
• Phil Rogers suggests that the Cubs take a chance on bringing Bob Howry back. Howry was released by Arizona.
• Rogers also reports that bullpen help could be on the way in the form of Jay Jackson.
• Ryne Sandberg succeeding Lou is not a sure thing according to Paul Sullivan.
• The chances are slim to none that a team would take Zambrano off the Cubs' hands.

That's it for now, but I'll keep you posted.