Series Preview: Cubs VS Nationals

The Chicago Cubs will look to rebound after an embarrassing 16-5 defeat in Sunday's rubber match against the Braves. The Boys in Blue are now 51-74, 21.5 game behind the first place Reds. A new era of Cubs baseball begins with this series in Washington D.C.

Lou Piniella announced before yesterday's game that it would be his last as a big league manager. Sweet Lou had to step down earlier than expected in order to tend to his sick mother in Tampa, FL. He said it would be unfair to continue to leave the team and come back, so since it was his last year anyways he went ahead and stepped down.

Lou had a fantastic managerial career but he did not go out the way he had hoped. Third base coach Mike Quade will have a tall task ahead as he takes over as skipper for at least the rest of 2010. All eyes will be on the dugout tonight the new interim becomes the 51st manager in the history of the Chicago Cubs.

Quade and Ryne Sandberg are the two candidates that Jim Hendry has announced for the 2011 opening. Bench coach Alan Trammell will not receive consideration and will most likely leave the team after this season. Ivan DeJesus, who was the Cubs first base coach, will take over Quade's job at third for the rest of the year. Bruce Levine reported last night that minor league roving instructor Bobby Dernier will join the team as the first base coach, but that has not yet been confirmed. Matt Sinatro is also a candidate to take over at first for now.

The Washington Nationals are not in much better shape than the Cubs. They are 53-71 going into this set. The Nats had a decent first half, but they've gone down hill since and now reside in the basement of the NL East. They are 20 games behind the first place Braves.

Washington was blanked in the final game against the Phillies on Sunday 6-0. Ex-Cubs manager Jim Riggleman has not been able to get the job done this season. Third base coach Pat Listach will also receive a lot of attention from the media during this series. He is a former Cubs minor league manager at Triple-A Iowa and has expressed interesting in coming in as Lou's successor next season.

After the Cubs leave town at head for Cincinnati, the St. Louis Cardinals will come to Nationals Park looking to regain the top spot in the Central. This is the Cubs first trip to our nation's capital of the year, but they did host the Nats back in April. The Boys in Blue won the first game, but Washington battled back to win the next two.

Young phenom Stephen Strasburgh will not pitch in this series, but the Cubs will see a familiar face in Jason Marquis on Wednesday. Washington first baseman and free agent to be Adam Dunn could receive a look from the scouts in this set, as the Cubs could be looking for a new first baseman this winter.

Unless of coarse, Jim Hendry is happy with Tyler Colvin's play at first. Colvin sat out most of the weekend at Wrigley in order to take grounders at first base and is expected to debut there during this series. However, Colvin is in tonight's early lineup in right field.

Perhaps Quade and his staff were not happy with Tyler's play at first, because Micah Hoffpauir has been called up for tonight's game, according to a tweet from Gordon Wittenmyer. Geovany Soto is also expected to be activated from the disabled list and in the starting nine tonight. The club will have to make two corresponding moves, so most likely Sam Fuld and Welington Castillo are both headed back to Triple-A without getting much of a chance during there time with the team.

Perhaps the Cubs will pull off an Oriole-like win streak under a new skipper.

Let's just go get a win!

Marquis deal is finalized

The Jason Marquis trade to the Rockies has been finalized. The Cubs receive reliever Luis Vizcaino in return. Cubs GM Jim Hendry will continue to look for another starter for the team until pitchers and catchers report on Valentines Day, but he also feels good about some of the candidates in the organization. Sean Marshall, Angel Guzman, Kevin Hart, Chad Gaudin, and Jeff Samardzija are in the mix, but cubs.com called Samardzija a "long shot". I would like to see Samardzija get a chance because he grew up right by my home town, however I think Marshall deserves the job.

Hendry Quotes:

• "Anybody would love Marshall in that role and he did great at it, At the same time, in fairness to the young man, if he keeps improving -- he's made big steps each of the last years -- if he makes another step up and comes into camp and competes and wins a job, then he certainly has a right to stake a claim to that."
• "He proved to us last year, whatever role we put him in, and as tough as we made it on him, he did a quality job, sooner or later, you like to reward that, too."
• "We don't call anything a salary dump, we're no different than anybody else except maybe my buddy Brian Cashman. We have a payroll and a fair payroll. You still have to, in this job, especially the situation we have now, until there's a new owner, you follow the guidelines of the payroll and that's what we're doing."
• "We were very fortunate in that we spent a lot of money the last couple years and it turned into two outstanding regular seasons. At he same time, some of those contracts escalate. I have no complaints. No matter who my boss has been, I've always been given a payroll that I've felt you could compete and contend with and for the most part, I've been allowed to spend it how I want to."

I'll keep you posted.

Chicago Tribune Live talks Cubs, Full Recap of Sport Central

David Kaplan and company talked about the Milton Bradley trade on Chicago Tribune Live on Comcast Sports Net.

• David Haugh wonders what the Cubs are doing this off season saying that the moves make no sense.
• Haugh wonders if he will stay healthy.
• Kap says he wishes they wouldn't have traded DeRosa.
• They talked about how Bradley is a good hitter IF he stays healthy, noting that the if is a big IF.
• Hough also mentions the Cubs chemistry. Kaplan replied by saying that all of Bradley's former teammates call him a good teammate.
• Kap is the latest to report that Fukudome and Johnson will platoon in CF.
• He says that we are looking at a pay roll of about 140.
• Kaplan also says that if the new ownership approves the Cubs will go after Peavy again.
• The Cubs have trimmed off enough money in the DeRosa and Marquis trades to pay for DeRosa.
• Dave Haugh says he doesn't think that the Cubs have made progress this off season.
• Kap says Joey Gathright fits in only as a 5th outfielder.

By the way, the Marquis deal may be finalized tomorrow according to Cubs.com.

We move from Kaplan's TV show to his radio show.

• The first caller on Sports Central said that Milton Bradley is not a team player. Dave argued that the caller has no idea and says that Bradley's former teammates love him. David Kaplan said that he would call him a "hothead" but not call him "not a team player.
• Kap says the big question with him is will he stay healthy.
• The next caller asked Kap to give him a grade on Jim Hendry for his tenor as GM. The caller would give him a C.
• Dave says he could have had 4 playoffs in 6 years if the Cubs would have made it in 2004.
• The caller doesn't like the contract Jim gave Alfonso Soriano. The caller says he would love to have Manny Ramirez's bat.
• Kap says he would give Hendry a B+ saying he lowered the grade because of the playoff failure and the 2005 and 2006 seasons.
• The 3rd caller likes the Bradley signing to add flare in the clubhouse.
• The 4th caller lives in Dallas and says he never heard any complaints from any players in Texas and says he's exited about the move.
• Kap pleads for everyone to just give Milton a chance.
• They replayed the Mark DeRosa interview from Friday night. It is an awesome interview. You can read my recap of it here, or listen to the full interview here.

Next, Aaron Miles was live on the show with Kaplan. Here's what he had to say:

• Kap asked what was going through Miles's mind when he found out he was going to the Cardinals' arch rivals. Miles says he's looking forward to playing at Wrigley Field for a team that has a chance to do great things.
• Miles was told he would be considered for the second base job and says he can play lots of positions and switch hit. Aaron says at different times during year, he could be in different roles.
• Miles says that Tony LaRusa was a great manager and knew that when Aaron got non-tendered again there was a good chance he would be leaving.
• Kap asked what position he would play and where he would bat in the order if Lou left it up to him. Miles says he would play second base and like to hit in the top of the order but says he can bat anywhere and will be happy in any role.
• Dave brought up that Miles has pitched a little bit. Aaron says it's a bittersweet feeling to pitch as a position player.
• In spring of 2000 Miles came home from dinner and 2 masked gun men came in to his room and wanted his money. His teammates called the police and they arrived just in time. Miles said he was held hostage for about 30 minutes. Then he got into a struggle for the gun and got punched and bit by this masked man. The cops came in and shot him 6 times. True story, click here for the full story.
• Kap asked who in the Cardinal locker room hates the Cubs the most. Aaron said the it's probably Tony LaRusa.
• He says all the players on both sides love the rivalry but says it lives and dies with the managers.
• Miles will be at the Cubs Convention.

Ken Rosenthal from Fox Sports was the next guest on the show to talk baseball:

• Ken says he loves Milton Bradley but just wonders if he can stay healthy playing right field. He says fans are going to like his fire and his OPS.
• Rosenthal says it may be a challenge for Sweet Lou to leave Bradley alone and let him do his job.
• Bradley's primary goal is to win. He says you can say the same things about Lou that you can say about Milton Bradley, that's why some people consider it a dangerous situation.
• Kap asked how Rosenthal would handicap where the Cubs are today compared to the end of the season. Ken says he likes where they are but he understands the criticism.
• He says the main reason that the Cubs traded DeRosa is to get more left handed and be more of a balanced offense.
• Kap asked about Peavy. Rosenthal says the odds of a Peavy deal to the Cubs are about 10%.
• He thinks that the Cubs may test the market for another starting pitcher but doesn't think they will pay big money for a starter like Derrek Lowe, but if the ownership change happens, a lot of things could change.
• Rosenthal says that the AL Central is a difficult division to pick and says that the Indians with Kerry Wood and Mark DeRosa will have a chance.
• Kap notes that the other teams in the NL Central haven't been to active.
• Ken says that we should keep an eye on the Brewers. He expects them to be active in the coming weeks.
• He also thinks that the Cardinals could add a few more pitchers.

Kap took a few more calls:

• The first caller doesn't see how the Cubs are going with Miles and Fontenot as the every day second basemen. He thinks that the Cubs might have something else up their sleeve. Kap says that Fontenot will get a chance to win a job.
• The next caller asked if the door is totally closed on Jake Peavy. Kap says that the door is closing but not totally closed. The Cubs are not going to do a 6 for 1 deal.

Well, that is it for today! I'll have more updates tomorrow!

Just Keep on rooting for the Cubs!

CUBS MAKING BIG MOVES.....DEROSA TRADED!

The Cubs are making moves left and right! Here's the latest:

• The Cubs have signed switch hitting infielder Aaron Miles to a 2 year deal. Miles is 32 years old, batted .317 with 15 doubles, 4 HR, and 31 RBIs in 2008 for the Cardinals. Miles can play tons of positions. He appeared in 7 different ones last year: 85 games at second, 27 at shortstop, 11 games at 3rd, 4 in left, 1 in center and 1 in right. Miles played for the White Sox and Rockies before becoming a Cardinal in 2006.
• Bad News if you like Mark DeRosa; the Cubs have traded him to the Clevland Indians for Jeff Stevens, John Gaub, and Chris Archer. All 3 are minor league pitchers.
• Here's the stats for Stevens, Gaub, and Archer.
• The Marquis trade to the Rockies for Vizcaino is a done deal and will be announced sometime over the next few days according to sources including Bruce Levine of ESPN Radio and David Kaplan of Comcast Sports Net.
• Levine thinks that with the money the Cubs will save in the Marquis deal they will end up using on Milton Bradley and goes as far as calling it a "done deal".
• I'm also hearing the the Cubs will rework the Peavy talks using the players they got in the DeRosa deal and adding other prospects.

I don't know what to think about the DeRosa deal. I really like DeRo, but if it is what the Cubs have to deal to end up with Bradley and Peavy then that's fine. We'll just have to wait and see what happens. I expect either Fontenot or Miles will be the starting second baseman in 2009.

I'll keep you posted.

UPDATE 2:25 CT- David Kaplan says that he thinks bringing in prospects for the DeRosa is the start of the getting the Jake Peavy deal set up. He also reports that the Marquis deal is not done yet because Jason is out of the country.

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that since the Cubs have traded for 3 pitching prospects and traded away our 5th starter, the Peavy deal could be back on.

Kap had Paul Sullivan on the show to talk about the Cubs news.

• Sullivan says that he thinks it's amazing how everything is happening at once.
• Sully says it seems that Miles could move into the leadoff spot.
• He hates to see DeRosa go.
• Kap asked about Milton Bradley. Paul said that he talked to Frank Thomas and Frank said he was intense and smart and just needs to be left alone. If Bradley can stay healthy and out of trouble this could work out good. Paul is willing to give Bradley the benefit of the doubt.
• Paul says he sees no need for Rich Aurillia. He thinks Pie and Cedeno will be traded and would like to see another lefty in the bullpen.

The Cubs have a conference call coming up, so I'll keep you posted.

Updated; Big News: Cubs close to trading Marquis, XM Radio says deal is done, Levine Updates

According to ESPN and the Denver Post the Cubs and Rockies are close to a deal that would send Jason Marquis to the Cubs for reliever Luis Vizcaino. The post reports that the deal is done "in principle" but an announcement is not expected before next week. The Cubs will net a pay roll savings of about $5 million with the deal.
Luis has pitched for the A's, Brewers, White Sox, D'backs, Yankees, and Rockies. Last year he had a 5.28 ERA in 43 games.

Update 8:35 CT: XM Radio says the deal is now done. They are the only source to report that it's a done deal. I'll keep you posted. XM Radio also says that the Cubs will let Rich Hill and Sean Marshall compete for the fifth starter spot. We'll see...

If this deal gets done, Gordan Wittenmyer of the Sun Times says that should create enough payroll for the Cubs to sign Milton Bradley.

More Cubs updates from Bruce Levine:

• The Cubs ownership situation should be resolved sometime in January.
• The Cubs are planning to announce the Marquis trade in the next 3-4 days and the Cubs will save about 5 and a half million.
• The Cubs are planning on using the money to sign Bradley.
• Levine also says that the Cubs could trade DeRosa in about 3-5 days.
• The prospects that the Cubs get in a DeRosa trade would be used in a deal for Peavy.
• Hendry is moving money around so these moves can happen.
• Vizcaino could be traded before he puts on a Cubs uniform.

I don't think all this is going to happen but we'll see. Things are finally heating up again on the hot stove! It seems that about a week after I started this blog things cooled down.

There's lots of questions to be answered. Is the deal really done? Will they add Bradley after they trade Jason? Who will be the 5th starter for the Cubs in 2009? Are the Cubs going to revisit Peavy? Will the Cubs trade DeRosa? Or is Bruce Levine just going crazy?

I'll keep you posted...

The Latest Cubs Rumors

• The Rockies remain interested in Jason Marquis. Tracy Ringolsby says that the Cubs are anxious to move him to ease their rotation overload.
• XM Radio says that the Cubs could receive pitcher Jason Hirsh for Marquis.
• Paul Sullivan says that the Cubs are considering inviting 2 Japanese left handed pitchers to compete for jobs in spring training; Ken Kadokura and Shigeki Noguchi.
• Bleacher seats for the Cub-Yanks exhibition games will cost only 25 cents and it will be 1.10 to sit in the grandstand. Yes you read that right. Click here for the full story from the Daily Herald.
• Bleed Cubbie blue likes the idea of Adam Dunn going, I agree with what they say.
• Tom Krasovic says that Jake Peavy will likely remain a Padre despite the many trade rumors this off season. He added that Kevin Towers will still listen to offers and said that a potential deal with the Cubs has fall through.
• The Len and Bob Bash is set, but Len and Bob won't be singing this year! Len talks about the Bash in his recent entry to his blog on the WGN website.

This week schedule for my blog:

Sunday- will be busy, might not get a chance for an update

Monday- Will return, update any new links, news, and rumors; will have a CD recommendation for Cubs Fans; and Will have Trivia answer from the question earlier today.

Tuesday/Wednesday- Get Set for the Launch of the MLB Network and the Hawks game at Wrigley.

Thursday/Friday- My thought on Winter Classic and MLB Network

So, thanks for reading, please comment and vote on our new poll!

Randy Johnson Signs with Giants

Well, Randy Johnson who has been on the Cubs radar all off season is now a member of the Giants. San Fransisco now has a great rotation on paper with Zito, Cain, Johnson, and Lowry. But, I don't think they can hit good enough to finish above 4th in the West.

So without Randy available it seem to me that the Cubs will likely just keep Jason Marquis and have a very solid rotation. Jason really isn't a bad 5th starter.

Cubs Trivia: How many Cubs are still on the team from the last time the Cubs were in the NLCS?
Answer later this weekend.

I'll update you as much as possible this weekend, but I have a very busy one celebrating X-mas with some family today and heading out to Purdue to see the game tomorrow against VU.

Cubs Rumors; Saturday

• Ken Rosenthal says the Rockies are debating whether to sign Tim Redding or trade for Jason Marquis. The Mets are also still in the mix for Marquis.
• Adam Dunn has told people in Arizona that he wants to play for the Cubs in the worst way.
• Ryan Dempster will probably play in the WBC for Canada. Rich Harden is a possibility.
• The writer of Goat Riders of the Apocalypse, another good Cubs blog, are antsy for the Cubs to make some moves. I think we all are. They say that the hope the Cubs will sign Milton Bradley, but they think it's unlikely. Me, along with many other Cubs fans, will be very upset if the Cubs fail to sign Bradley, Dunn or Abreu.
• Wrigleyville23 is reviewing 2008 on their blog, breaking it down month by month. Click on the link for the January review.

Good thing for the holiday season to cheer everyone up because with out it this would be a depressing time for us Cubs fans with the Cubs not making in moves, a lack of rumors lately, and with the cold weather outside and those sunny days at the ballpark seeming so far away...

But the good news is X-Mas is just a few days away. Stick with the blog for the latest rumors this week. Maybe we'll get a left handed bat for Christmas.

I'll keep you posted.

Gordan Wittnemyer talks with Memelo

Gordan Wittnemyer of the Chicago Sun Times joined Jim Memelo on Sports Central tonight to talk about the latest baseball news. Here's the recap:

• Gordan says that he has no problem with what Hendry said about Peavy not being a priority. The Cubs have depth with Marshall and Samarzija that could come into the rotation if there is an injury.
• Wittnemyer said the unbalanced lineup should be the priority.
• Jim asked if Marquis would be traded. Gordan says that he doesn't expect Marquis to be in camp next year, but he wouldn't be shocked. He says the Cubs could make a run at Randy Johnson.
• He said that Milton Bradley is the Cubs clear number 1 option for right field. Gordan says that with Ibanez off the table he would be surprised if a Bradley deal doesn't happen soon.
• Gordan says Bradley will give him something to write about with his running mouth. He says it'd be nice to see another guy like Z out there who wears his emotions on his sleeve.
• He said he'd be interest to know how DeRosa feels about being involved in the Peavy deal this year, after the Brian Roberts talk that would have took his position last season.
• Gordan and Jim both seem to think that Hendry made the right call on not trading for Peavy because the Cubs would have lost too many important pieces.

Raul Ibanez signs with Phillies

Today Raul Ibanez signed a 3 year deal with the Phillies. Milton Bradley is now clearly at the top of the Cubs list for left field, even with his bad temper. Also, today the Cubs resigned pitchers Neal Cotts and Chad Gaudin to one year contracts avoiding salary arbitration. The team also announced that it would tender the contracts of a group of players including Ronny Cedeno, Reed Johnson, Michael Wuertz and Kevin Greg.

Len Kasper and Bob Brenly will hold the 3rd annual Len and Bob Bash on January 15 at the House of Blues. They will raise money for charity.

Here's the Cubs rumors for today:

• The Cubs join the Rays, Dodgers, and Angels as the 4 teams interested in Abreu.


• Paul Sullivan says that Lou was upset at the thought of losing Mark DeRosa.


• Chris De Luca says that Kevin Towers kept putting Sean Marshall on the table, but the Cubs never agreed to it. He says that the 2010 Cubs payroll was the real sticking point.
  

That's it for Peavy, so the Cubs the Cubs will focus on acquiring a left handed bat. Feel free to vote at the bottom of the blog page on who you would like to see the Cubs aquire for right field. Let's hope they end up with a bat that can balance out the line up a little and has some power. Sources say the Cubs are still trying to trade Jason Marquis. I'd say if they do they'll end up with Randy Johnson. Who would you prefer Johnson or Marquis. I'd say the former. Anyway that's it for now, I'll keep you posted.

Update: Peavy Talk

A quick update on Peavy-
MLB.com's Corey Brock says that Padres GM Kevin Towers told him that we should know one way or the other on the Peavy trade by the end of the meetings. Towers thinks a deal will take a 4th team. DeRosa and Marquis could be hand ups, especially Jason's contract. Kevin Hart, Josh Vitters, and Felix Pie are some of the names Corey Brock mentioned.

Accourding to Cubs.com a possible 3 team deal has been proposed that would send the following players to the following teams.
Phillies Get: DeRosa
Padres Get: Marquis, Jason Donald, and either J.A. Happ or Carlos Carrasco, Pie, and Vitters
Cubs Get: Peavy

Also the Cubs could loose Donald Veal in the Rule 5 Draft Tomorrow. I'll keep you posted.