Monday Night Rumor Roundup

GM Meetings Getting Started
The Major League Baseball GM meetings at the O'Hare Hilton in Chicago. The meetings last until noon Wednesday. The Organizational Meetings went great according to Hendry:
"We had a chance to meet the Ricketts family, and we feel they are going to be tremendous owners for the city of Chicago."

Hendry's Priorities
After Milton Bradley is gone, Paul Sullivan lists the areas the Cubs would like to upgrade this winter as: leadoff batter, center field, and middle infielder. Chone Figgins may not be in the Cubs price range, and they'll probably stick with Kosuke Fukudome. Speaking of Kosuke, they could move him back to right field and add a center fielder such as Aaron Roward. Bruce Levine adds a relief pitcher to the Cubs wish list.

The Bradley Latest
Gordon Wittenyer reports that the Cubs have at least 3 teams interested in Milton Bradley that have contacted them in the last week or so. Hendry and Randy Bush hope to meet with 5 or 6 teams and figure to look more toward trades than free agents this winter. No deals are expected to be made this week by the Cubs. Bruce Levine says that the Cubs could kill two birds with one stone by dumping Bradley. They would improve both chemistry and talent.

Cubs Award Candidates
Carlos Zambrano could win another Silver Slugger award when they are announced on Thursday. Big Z won the award in 2006 and 2008. AL Gold Gloves will be announced tomorrow, and Wednesday is the National League. Derrek Lee has a good chance of adding another Gold Glove to his trophy case.

Cubs Free Agents
John Grabow and Kevin Gregg have been named type A free agents, and Rich Harden is a type "B". The Cubs will receive a first round draft pick from the team that signs Gregg or Grabow, or a second round pick if Harden signs elsewhere. The Cubs will get nothing if they lose Reed Johnson because he isn't a type A or B FA. According to Bruce Levine "Rich Harden and Kevin Gregg will not be back next season". The Cubs would like to sign Reed Johnson, but Reed is seeking a multi-year deal and the Cubs do not want to give him that.

300 Home Cubs
The Cubs could have 3 players reach the 300 homer mark in 2010. Lee has 293, Ramirez is at 264, and Soriano is just 10 homers shy of 300 career.

Roy Halladay for Bradley?
Bruce Miles from the Daily Herald writes that one scenario has the Cubs getting ace pitcher Roy Halladay for Milton Bradley and a package of prospects. To get Roy, the Cubs must move money. Roy would provide "an instant jolt in the Cubs' rotation."

10 Names
Here's the list of 10 guys that the Cubs are looking at according to different sources:

• Roy Halladay
• Jason Bay
• Miguel Tejada
• Marco Scutaro
• Chone Figgins
• Johnny Damon
• Mike Cameron
• Aaron Roward
• Mark DeRosa
• Pat Burrell

That's it for now, I'll keep you posted as the Hot Stove starts to sizzle.

MLB Network and a Few Cubs Notes

The MLB offseason is officially getting under way. Starting today is the GM Meetings, so it should be an interesting busy week for baseball. Let's start this Monday with taking a look at the MLB Network's schedule for the next few weeks. Those of you that have the Network should be sure to tune it to those shows, and for those that don't have it or if you miss some of the shows, I will post anything Cub related.

• Today at 3 CT: AFL Rising Stars game repeat
• Tonight from 6-8 CT: Prime 9 Repeats
• Tonight at 9: All Roads Lead to Baseball-MLB Players and Personnel Share Their Road Trip Stories
• Tues. 6:00, 7:00: Studio 42 Bob Costas sits down with Cal Ripkin Jr. then Bud Selig.
• Wed. 5:00: The season debut of Hot Stove!
• Thurs. 5:00: 2009 Silver Slugger Special
• Thurs. 6:00: Hot Stove
• Thurs. 8:00: 2009 Clutch Performer
• Monday Nov. 16 5:00: Hot Stove Rookies of the Year Special
• Nov. 17 5:00: Hot Stove- NL Cy Young
• Nov. 17 7:00, 8:00: Studio 42 w/ Bob Costas- Closers, Bruce Froemming
• And much more throughout the winter

Now let's get to a few Cub rumors as we get set to start a new work week, and the GM Meetings start in Chicago:

• The Cubs "might have interest" in Chone Figgins according to MLB Trade Rumors.
  Paul Sullivan says the Cubs are ready to let Rich Harden and Reed Johnson go.
• Phil Rodgers thinks the Cubs will attempt to add bullpen depth via trades.
  Rodgers also thinks that they could be looking for starting pitching with Lilly's healthy a question mark and Harden likely leaving. He notes that Samardzija has pitched well in Mexico.
• Thanks to Chicago Cubs Online for this one- according to Baseball Prospects there are some rumors floating around about the Cubs looking to move Geovany Soto. Interesting tidbit.
• Baseball Prospectus also notes that The Cubs might listen on ace Carlos Zambrano, but would need to be overwhelmed to deal him.
• Kerry Wood, Bobby Jenks, and Matt Capps are available, as are Renyel Pinto, Dan Wheeler, and Mike Wuerz. Will one of these relievers end up in a Cub uniform?

That's it for now, it should be another interesting week.

Future MLB Stars Battle in AZ

Yesterday the Arizona Fall League "Rising Stars" game was played at Surprise Stadium, the Spring Training home of the Texas Rangers and KC Royals. The AFL East team, which included players from the Cubs organization, lost to the West 8-7. The East scored 7 runs in the top of the first inning, but they did not score again the rest of the way as the West roared back to "surprise" the East squad. McBride hit the go-ahead homer for the West in the bottom of the 8th inning.

Josh Vitters, Starlin Castro, Blake Parker, and Andrew Cashner were all named to the Rising Stars contest, but only Castro and Parker were able to play in the game.

Starlin Castro
Castro was the starting SS and number 2 hole hitter for the West club. The star Cubs prospect had a first inning broken bat single that fell in center. He came around to score on a 3-run Brandon Allen homer that started the scoring in the game. The team batted around in the inning, so Castro ended up flying out to end the 7-run frame. He blooped another Texas Leaguer for his second hit in the 4th inning. Starlin made a nice read on a ball in the dirt to advance from first to third. Castro was taken out for a defensive sub in the bottom of the 5th, to end his 2-3 day. He was one of three 19 year olds in the game.

Blake Parker
The 2009 Tennessee Smokies closer came on to pitch in the bottom of the 7th inning. He allowed a lead off single to Jordan Danks, who's from the White Sox organization. Carlos Rivero flied to left for the first out. Jordan, brother of John Danks, advanced to second on a Parker wild pitch. Parker walked Chris Heisey to put 2 men on, but then he struck out Yonder Alonzo for out number 2. Ike Davis was retired by Blake on a ground ball to get Parker out of trouble in a key spot. The scoreless inning of work kept the East in front for the time being by a score of 7-6.

It was great to see all of top prospects from all 30 teams playing on one field. Game like this are what I really like about the MLB Network, and why I think a Cubs Network is needed.

The AFL Championship game will be televised on the Network on November 21.

The Calm Before the Storm?

For now, all is silent on the North Side, but are moves on the way? Next week is the GM Meetings! Cubs Rumors are flying, but today let's take a look at some of Bill James 2010 projections:

• Carlos Zambrano: 12-3 with a 3.60 ERA
• Ryan Dempster: 12-10 with a 3.83 ERA
• Ted Lilly: 11-8 with a 3.76 ERA
• Randy Wells: 10-10 with a 4.16 ERA
• Carlos Marmol: 3.45 ERA with 34 saves
• Derrek Lee: .291 AVG, 30 HR, 98 RBI
• Aramis Ramirez: .292 AVG, 26 HR, 97 RBI
• Alfonso Soriano: .263 AVG, 30 HR, 77 RBI
• Kosuke: .265 AVG, 61 RBI
• Geovany Soto: .273 AVG, 20 HR, 79 RBI
• Milton Bradley: .276, 18 HR, 64 RBI

That's it for today, I'll have a full report on the AFL Rising Stars Game and a Numbers Breakdown posted tomorrow.

Organizational Meetings Day 3-4 Tidbits

• The first two Cubs filed for free agency yesterday in Reed Johnson and Rich Harden.
• Harden, a type B free agent, could return to the Cubs if he will take a one year deal, but the Cubs are hesitant to give him a multi-year contract according to Carrie Muskat of Cubs.com.
• Reed Johnson's 2009 season was limited because of injuries. With Sam Fuld and Tyler Colvin on the way up, if the Cubs add 1 more outfielder to replace Bradley (assuming they trade Milton), Reed may not be a fit for the Cubs. The Cubs do love his heart and hard work.
• For the next 2 weeks, the Cubs have exclusive negotiating rights with Johnson, Harden, and the other 3 Cubs free agents who have yet to file.
• Expansion of the women's bathrooms on the first-base side of the ballpark and upgrading the lighting fixtures in the men's room will take place in 2010.
• They also plan to move the umpires locker room from the third-base side to the first-base side of the park next season according to Bruce Levine.
• "Upgrading the work environment for the players is also a major goal of the new owners."
• The Cubs hope to step up their fan-relationship department by hiring a chief hospitality officer, whose only job would be to check with fans on daily basis to make sure their experience at Wrigley Field is going well.
• The Cubs will also have a "well-known" marketing director named to that position by the end of the week.
• The Chicago Tribune speculates that Josh Vitters could be next in line for the Cubs third base job after Ramirez becomes a FA after the 2011 season. Vitters said, "Sounds good to me."
• Derrick Goold, a Cardinals beat writer, expects the Cubs to make an offer to Mark DeRosa.

The Cubs are going to need to add a power hitting outfielder that can play either center or right if they trade Bradley. Here is the full list of free agents outfielders (RF & CF):

• Rick Ankiel
• Rocco Baldellli
• Marlon Byrd
• Mike Cameron
• Endy Chavez
• Coco Crisp
• Darin Erstad
• Jeff Fiorentino
• Ryan Freel
• Jerry Hariston Jr.
• Reed Johnson
• Andruw Jones
• Corey Patterson
• Scott Podsednik
• DeWayne Wise
• Jermaine Dye
• Brian Giles
• Vladimir Guerrero
• Eric Hinske
• Geoff Jenkins
• Austin Kearns
• Jason Michaels
• Xavier Nady
• Randy Winn

See any names you like? (Corey Patterson or Jerry Hairston Jr.?)

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

The Cubs In Winter Ball

Brenly Joins AFL
Michael Brenly, son of Cubs broadcaster Bob Brenly, has joined the Mesa Solar Sox to do some catching in the Arizona Fall League. Brenly launched a 2-run homer yesterday to lead Mesa to an 8-5 win, and he has 2 hits so far in today's game against Peoria. Brenly is replacing catcher Welington Castillo on the team. He spent most of 2009 with the Peoria Chiefs.

Samardzija Done in Mexico
Cubs pitcher Jeff Samardzija has finished his assignment with the Mexicali team in the Mexican Pacific League. Jeff started 5 games, going 2-0 with a 2.25 ERA. "The Shark" is hoping to start for the Cubs next year, and the injury to Ted Lilly could give him a chance to start the year in the rotation.

Diamond to hit the Winter League Diamond
In early September the Cubs claimed right handed pitcher Thomas Diamond off of waivers from the Texas Rangers. Thomas was the Rangers' first pick in the 2004 First Year Player Draft. Tomorrow, Diamond will head to Mexico, where he will take Samardzija's spot on Mexicali's roster. He is just getting healthy from a Tommy John surgery he had in March of 2007. Diamond pitched in the Arizona Instructional League at Fitch Park earlier this fall. He is hoping to earn an invitation to Cubs Spring Training.

AFL Rising Stars
Saturday is the Arizona Fall League "Rising Stars" game. Starlin Castro and Josh Vitters are the two Cub farm hand position players who are on the AFL East roster. Andrew Cashner was named to the team, but will not be able to play in the game, so he will be replaced by fellow Cub minor leaguer Blake Parker. Parker, a left handed pitcher, played for Tennessee and Iowa in 2009. The game will be televised on the MLB Network Saturday night.

Castro Scares Cubs
Top prospect Starlin Castro jammed his finger diving into a base early in the week, but he was not badly injured and returned to the Solar Sox lineup today. STAR-lin is leading the league in hitting at .425.

Cubs Organization Looks at Future
The entire Cubs organization, in Mesa for their annual meetings, was in attendance today to watch some young Cubs play as the Mesa Solar Sox hosted Peoria at HoHoKam Park. The Solar Sox stomped on Peo Javelinas in the game by a score of 8-1. All 4 Cubs pitchers that are playing in the AFL got into the game. Andrew Cashner got the start, and ended up with the win. He worked 4 scoreless frames. James Russell pitched a 1, 2, 3 fifth inning. He was followed by John Gaub, he allowed 0 runs on a hit, and Blake Parker, who yielded 1 run on 2 hits. On the hitters side of things, Brenly and Castro each went 2-4, while Josh Vitters did not play.

Blanco Continues to Play Well
Cubs infielder Andres Blanco has had a great winter season so far for Magallanes, of the Venezualan Winter League. Andres has a .303 batting average in 18 games. The Cubs people are happy to see him hitting well, because they know he can play good defense. Blanco will go to Spring Training competing for infield jobs with Ryan Theriot, Jeff Baker, Mike Fontenot, Aaron Miles, and anyone else the Cubs add this winter. Robinson Chirinos, Cubs minor league catcher, is hitting .410 in 16 games for Magallanes.

Other Winter Ball Tidbits

• Nelson Perez is hitting .405 in the Domican Winter League for Toros. He has played in 12 games.
• Matt Camp is hitting .351 and Brad Snyder is batting .333 with 4 homers and 19 RBIs. Both are playing for Mexicalli.
• J.R. Mathes is 1-2 with a 5.40 ERA in the VWL.
• Welington Castillo is done in the AFL, he finished with a .357 batting average and 2 RBIs in his 4 games.

I will have a recap of the AFL Rising Stars game up on Sunday, and I will have my next full winter ball report next Thursday!

Yankees are the Champs

Congratulations to the New York Yankees, the champions of the baseball world for 2009. A special tip of the cap to former Cub Joe Girardi, the current Yanks' skipper. I also want to congratulate former Cubs Chad Gaudin and Jerry Hairston Jr. on their accomplishment, even though neither had outstanding Cub-careers.

Now that that's over with, let's get the off season started! What does the World Series being over mean for the Cubs?

The First 15 Days~
The first 15 days after the conclusion of the World Series is the window in which players can file for free agency. The Cubs would like to get John Grabow re-signed before he even hits the free agent waters. Other Cubs who will become free agents are Reed Johnson, Kevin Gregg, Rich Harden, and Chad Fox.

Next 4 Days
The Cubs, and all other MLB clubs, have 4 days left to add their own Rule 55 minor league free-agents to their 40-man roster. One Cub who is a candidate to be added to the 40-man roster is Brad Snyder. If they don't add him, they could try to re-sign him to a minor league deal with an invite to Spring Training, but Snyder will most likely try to sign with a team where he will have a better chance to play in the big leagues next year.

November 20
Deadline for adding minor league players who are eligible for selection in the Rule 5 draft to the 40-man roster. The Cubs could try to add guys like Welington Castillo, John Gaub, Blake Parker, and Matt Camp. Any of the 4 that are not added to the roster by the 20th will likely be lost in the December 10 Rule 5 Draft. Other candidates to the drafted include Rafael Dolis, James Adduci, Steve Clevenger, Chris Robinson, Jeremy Papelbon, and Alessandro Maestri. Last year the Cubs lost Donnie Veal.


December 12
Deadline for clubs to tender 2010 major league contracts to unsigned players on the 40-man. Neal Cotts could be non-tendered.

MLB Awards
The BBWAA Awards will be~
Nov. 16: Rookies of the Year
Nov. 17: AL Cy Young
Nov. 18: Managers of the Year
Nov. 19: NL Cy Young
Nov. 23 AL MVP
Nov. 24 NL MVP

Other important November Dates:
Nov. 9: MLB Network Offseason Shows Start
Nov. 9-11: GM Meetings in Chicago
Nov. 10: End of Waiver Period
Nov. 11: Start of New Waiver Period
Nov. 30-Dec. 4: Major League Baseball Players Association executive board meeting in Scottsdale, Arizona

It should be fun! I'll keep you posted on all the rumors & news all offseason long here at Everything Cubs.

Later in the Day:
-Updates from Organization Meetings
- Cubs in Winter Ball Updates


Stay tuned!