Tuesday Quick Hits & Radio Recaps

• Today Aramis Ramirez returned the lineup as the DH in a game against the Royals. Ryan Dempster's outing was solid, but Carlos Marmol came in an allowed a 2 run homer. The Cubs bullpen couldn't hold on to several leads, and the game ended in a 5-5 tie.
• Ted Lilly will start in a minor league game on Saturday. If there are no setbacks, Lilly could be into the Cubs' rotation by mid-April. He is expected to start the year rehabbing with a farm club.
• Xavier Nady will not start the season on the DL. He should be playing some outfield in the next 10 days.
• The Chicago Tribune reports that Jeff Samardzija will likely start the season in the bullpen. It appears that Carlos Silva and Tom Gorzelanny will get spots in the rotation. Lou will announce his final rotation decision on Friday after he gets one more look at Marshall and Gorzelanny.
• Lou Piniella met with his staff on Sunday night to discuss the roster. He likes the way things are shaping up.
• Right now the Cubs have 40 guys in camp, but that number will be cut down to the 30 by the end of the week.
• Greg Maddux has been contributing to the team in a variety of ways this spring.

This past weekend Len Kasper joined the Danny Mac show to talk Cubs:

• The Cubs offense needs to pick it up in 2010. They have hit the ball very well this spring.
• The hitters seem to be responding to adjustments made by Rudy Jaramillo.
• The area of concern has switched to the pitching staff with the injuries to Guzman and Lilly.
• Len likes to wait to get enthusiastic about a young kid until he is in a big league uniform, but Starlin Castro stands out and looks like a major league ready player.
• Kasper thinks that Marshall and Samardzija can help the club best as relievers, and you'd like to be able to get as much value out of Carlos Silva as you can.
• The most likely scenario is Silva and Gorzelanny in the rotation.
• He is not sure how much of an effect a hitting coach can have on veteran players, but some hitters mesh with certain hitting coaches and clash with others.
• Len would like to think that Jaramillo will have positive effect on this team. Rudy spending 15 years on one coaching staff shows you how good he is. Larry Rothschild is in his 9th year on the Cubs' staff.
• Lou Piniella thinks the game 24 hours a day. Nothing gets past him even though he sometimes acts as if he doesn't see things.

Mike Fontenot joined Waddle and Silvy this morning:

• Fontenot had fun watching the Saints win the Super Bowl this offseason.
• The guys are having a good time, but they are looking forward to the start of the season. Other than some rain, it's been a good spring.
• Last year did not turn out the way Mike wanted it for him at the plate, but he is going to try to learn from it and not put any extra pressure on himself.
• In 2009 he didn't adjust very well to pitchers and things like that. "It just kind of snowballed," he said.
• Rudy is always very aware of what is going on. He's made a few adjustments to Mike's swing.
• The Cubs have some great guys in the clubhouse this year. Everyone is having a lot of fun in camp.
• Derrek Lee, Alfonso Soriano, and Tyler Colvin are guys who have looked especially good to Fontenot this spring.
• Starlin Castro is going to be a good player.

Bruce Levine was also on Waddle & Silvy on ESPN 1000 today:

• If Alfonso Soriano plays 135 games, you should pencil him in for 30 home runs and 90 RBIs.
• Soriano is going to have less pressure on him and more people on base to drive in hitting sixth.
• Levine thinks that they'll be men on base on front of Sori and that will work to his advantage.
• We'll find out the rotation situation on Friday. There is still a question as to whether Samardzija will go to bullpen or AAA-Iowa if he does not make the starting five.
• The battle between Micah Hoffpauir, Chad Tracy, and Kevin Millar will likely go all the way to the end of camp.
• Jim Hendry said that the Cubs will not let Tyler Colvin rot on the bench. Colvin will likely start the year getting every day playing time at the minor league level.
• The Cubs are counting Mike Fontenot and Kosuke Fukudome to hit well from the left side.

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

Getting to Know the Cubs: Justin Berg

The next time you see this guy, a "C" will replace the "I" on his cap. Lou Piniella has said that he will be a member of the Cubs' bullpen. Many of you may not even know who this is, so let's learn a little bit about him!

Full Name: Justin Christopher Berg

Born: July 7, 1984

Position: Pitcher

B/T: Right

College: Indian Hills Community College-Centerville

Drafted: By the Yankees in the 43rd round of the 2003 June Draft

Age: 25

MLB Debut: Auguest 13, 2009

2009 Cub Stats: 0.75 ERA in 11 games

Traded: To the Cubs on August 27, 2005 in the deal that sent Matt Lawton to New York.

Cubs Career: Peoria ('05), Daytona ('06), Tennessee ('07-'08), Iowa ('08-'09), and Chicago ('09)

Winter Ball: Pitched for the Mesa Solar Sox in the 2007 Arizona Fall League

We'll continue to get to know the 2010 Cubs throughout the season!

Sunday Evening Quick Hits: Castro Cut, The Roster, and More

• Yesterday the Cubs made two more cuts from big league Spring Training. Top Prospect Starlin Castro and outfielder Brad Snyder were sent to minor league camp. I'm a little surprised that Castro didn't stay with the team a little longer, but in the end it's probably the right decision to send him down for a little more seasoning.
• The Cubs now have 40 guys left in camp, which means there's 15 more cuts to make. The first few will be to move some guys to the DL and to send down guys like Chris Robinson and Robinson Chirinos, but then there will be about eight or nine hard decisions on guys.
• Mike Fontenot got the start at short stop today in the spring game against the Reds. Kevin Millar was given a chance to play left field. Both these guys will be much more valuable if they can play multiple positions.
• Andres Blanco played short in minor league camp today.
• Most of the Cubs' regulars stayed back at HoHoKam Park to work with Rudy Jaramillo instead of going to today's away spring game. Fontenot was the only regular in the lineup.
• There is still no timetable set on Aramis Ramirez.
• Carlos Silva left after two innings today with a tight quad, but he appears to be OK.

Now let's take a look at where the Cubs' 25-man roster stands!

Pitchers:

1. Carlos Zambrano

2. Ryan Dempster

3. Randy Wells

4. Tom Gorzelanny

5. Jeff Samardzija

6. Carlos Silva

7. Sean Marshall

8. Carlos Marmol

9. John Grabow

10. Justin Berg

11. Esmalin Caridad

12. Open (Mike Parisi, Marcos Mateo, John Gaub, and James Russell in the mix)

Position Players (Numbering cont.)

13. Derrek Lee

14. Mike Fontenot

15. Ryan Theriot

16. Aramis Ramirez

17. Geovany Soto

18. Marlon Byrd

19. Alfonso Soriano

20. Kosuke Fukudome

21. Xavier Nady

22. Koyie Hill (Robinson Chirinos and Chris Robinson are still in camp, but Hill has the backup catcher's job won)

23. Jeff Baker

24. Open (Tyler Colvin, Jim Adduci, and Sam Fuld still in camp for last outfield spot)

25. Open (Bobby Scales, Darwin Barney, Andres Blanco, Micah Hoffpauir, Kevin Millar, and Chad Tracy still in camp for last infielders spot)

Thoughts?

30 Clubs in 30 Days Recap: St. Louis Cardinals

Today we continue our NL Central season preview by recapping the St. Louis Cardinals edition of MLB Network's "30 Clubs in 30 Days". Earlier in the week we started this series of recaps with the Pirates.

John Hart and Mitch Williams joined host Greg Amsinger on the program.

Opening Notes:

• The Cardinals had a disappointing finish in 2009.
• John Hart likes what they did this offseason. He cites the front end of the rotation and the middle of the order as two reasons that this is a loaded ballclub.
• Williams pointed out that there is probably not an analyst with the Network that is not picking St. Louis to win the Central. "They are just that good," he said.
• 2009 record: 91-71, first in NL Central

Additions:

• Rich Hill, SP
• Brad Penny, SP
• Felipe Lopez, IF

Subtractions:

• Joel Pineiro, SP
• John Smoltz, SP
• Todd Wellemyer, SP
• Troy Glaus, IF
• Khalil Greene, IF
• Rick Ankiel, OF
• Mark DeRosa, UT

John thinks that bringing Tony LaRussa and Dave Duncan back was the biggest offseason move. Duncan has done a great job with special projects, and LaRussa is an old school guy who is very prepared and has great passion for the game. Mitch think resigning Matt Holliday was the biggest move of the winter.

Hazel Mae joined the broadcast from Jupiter, Florida to conduct some interviews. Her first guest was Matt Holliday:

• When he came over to St. Louis, Matt made some adjustments to his hitting.
• He enjoyed playing in front of big crowds in a pennant race for St. Louis.
• Getting a chance to be a part of the races gave him a boost.
• Holliday thinks Mark McGwire will do a great job as the Card's hitting coach.
• Albert Pujols is fun to watch from the on deck circle.
• No team really came close to signing him apart from St. Louis. He called the Cards contract offer "to good to pass up."

Cardinals 2009 team pitching stats:

• Starter ERA: 3.66 (4th in NL)
• Bullpen ERA: 3.67 (4th)
• Blown Saves: 14 (2nd fewest)
• HR Allowed: 123 (2nd)
• BB Allowed: 460 (1st)

Adam Wainwright joined the guys:

• Dave Duncan is a master game planner. He breaks hitters down and backs it up with stats.
• Wainwright has always been a starter apart from the one season as the closer. Moving back to the rotation was an easy transition.
• Adam thinks that the rotation is very good on paper. He mentioned they have to stay healthy, but said that "1-5 we'll be hard to beat."

Williams thinks that Adam could be a 20 game winner. Kyle Lohse will be a key and a very solid number 3 if he's healthy. Hart likes the Brad Penney signing. There are 3 guys vying for the 5 spot including former Cub Rich Hill. Mitch thinks that Hill could be another Dave Duncan project.

Chris Carpenter talked with Hazel:

• It's been great for Chris to finally have rehab-free Spring Training.
• Last year Carpenter was able to be consistent and take the ball every fifth day.
• The Cardinals staff enjoys competing against one another and following each other's starts.
• Dave Duncan is super prepared and makes it easy to just go out and pitch.

Projected Bullpen:

• Jason Motte, RHP
• Kyle McClellan, RHP
• Blake Hawksworth, RHP
• Mitchell Boggs, RHP
• Trever Miller, LHP
• Dennys Reyes, LHP
• Ryan Franklin, RHP- closer (4-3, 1.92 ERA, 38 saves in 2009).

There's no question that Franklin will start the season as the closer, but Mitch is worried because he is not a strike out closer. Jason Motte is the most likely backup plan as the closer. John says that Ryan Franklin has good makeup and has a starter's mix. Tony LaRussa and Dave Duncan will look at all the guys in camp for potential middle inning roles.

2009 Offensive Team Stats:

• Runs: 730 (7th)
• Average: .263 (4th)
• Home Runs: 160 (6th)
• Slugging %: .415 (6th)
• Stolen Bases: 75 (11th)

Hazel briefly talked with Tony LaRussa:

• Albert Pujols has an oustanding work ethic and is never satisfied. This helps him to improve every year.
• The team's offense looks very deep.

Projected Starting Lineup:

• S. Schumaker, 2B
• C. Rasmus, CF
• A. Pujols, 1B
• M. Holliday, LF
• R. Ludwick, RF
• Y. Molina, C
• D. Freese/J.Mather, 3B
• B. Ryan, SS

Mitch Williams thinks that Skip Schumaker and Colby Rasmus have to find a way to get on base. If the top of the order guys aren't getting on, then Pujols and Holliday will not get pitches to hit. Hart thinks the 1-4 in the order is pretty solid. Ryan Ludwick is a bit of a streaky player, but he has big time power. Molina has really come on, but his weakness is speed. John thinks David Freese will win the third base job. He's a solid defender with a plus arm, but the question is the bat. Felipe Lopez is a good move as a backup option.

Top Prospects:

• Bryan Anderson, C
• Allen Craig, 1B
• Daniel Descalso, 2B
• David Freese, 3B
• Jaime Garcia, LHP
• Daryl Jones, OF
• Pete Kozma, SS
• Lance Lynn, RHP
• Shelby Miller, RHP
• Robert Stock, C

Jaime Garcia stands out to John Hart because he is close and has a chance to impact the big league club this year. Shelby Miller is "as good an arm as they have drafted in along time." He has been throwing the ball well in camp.

Colby Rasmus joined Hazel Mae:

• Rasmus learned the ropes last year. He also found out how to handle himself.
• Late in 2009, he struggled a little bit, which could have been because he was wearing down.
• Rasmus feels much more comfortable knowing that he has earned a job going into the season. He feels like he has proved that he can make it through a full season.
• Holliday has been there to answer any questions from Colby.

Mark McGwire chatted with Hazel:

• The Cardinals are hungry and want to get better.
• The experience this spring has exceeded his expectation.
• All of the guys have impressed him. The big question is, "How good can you be."
• Albert Pujols and Matt Holiday could still get into slumps, so he will try to help them work through those.
• Mark thinks that Tony is easy to work for.

Mitch thinks McGwire will excel at teaching because he cannot get enough baseball. John points out that Mark knows that the big guys don't need too much instruction.

Baseball Prospectus projected record: 92-70, first in NL Central

Mitch and John both also have the Cardinals winning the division.

Weekend Roundup: Berg on the team, Decisions on the Way, & More

Sorting Out the Bullpen
Carrie Muskat reports that Justin Berg has earned a spot in the Cubs' bullpen. He had an 0.75 ERA in an 11 game September callup last season. Prior to that, he went 6-2 with a 2.47 ERA for the Iowa Cubs. Berg will join Esmalin Caridad, John Grabow, Carlos Marmol, and the two guys that lose out of the fifth starter's competition (Silva, Gorzelanny, Marshall, or Samardzija) on the relief core. This leaves one spot left on the Opening Day pitching staff, assumming the Cubs use 12 hurlers to start the year. Rule 5 pick Mike Parisi, NRI James Russell, lefty John Gaub, and Marcos Mateo are the four guys in the mix for this last spot on the staff.

Rotation Decision Nearing
Within the next week we should find out how the starting rotation will pan out. Sean Marshall, Carlos Silva, Jeff Samardzija, and Tom Gorzelanny are all vying for starting jobs. Lou Piniella has an idea of which way he's leaning, but at this point has revealed nothing. The coaching staff will meet to discuss the roster after Monday's game. It should be interesting to see how it turns out!

Sorting Out the Bench
The Cubs have confirmed that they would like to keep an outfielder who can play all three spots because of the fact that backup outfielder Xavier Nady will be limited defensively for the first half of the season. Tyler Colvin and Sam Fuld are the leading candidates for this bench position, with Brad Snyder and James Adduci also in the mix. Jeff Baker (or Mike Fontenot), Koyie Hill, and Nady are all already members of what figures to be an experienced bench. Another veteran bat will be added primarily for pinch hitting purposes. Kevin Millar and Chad Tracy are still battling for this spot. It would appear that Micah Hoffpauir has AAA in his near future.

Injury Updates
Aramis Ramirez will get some at bats in as a DH in today's minor league game at Fitch Park. Ted Lilly will toss a side session today and then his second live BP on Monday. Andres Blanco still can't run at full speed, but he has been able to do some hitting and fielding.

Cubs Idol Winners
Justin Berg got more good news today when he found out that he was the co-winner of the "Cubs Idol" competition. He and infielder Darwin Barney were chosen out of the 8 finalists as co-winners. NFL QB Steve Young was a guest judge today along with the usual panel of Derrek Lee, Aramis Ramiez, Ryan Dempster, and Kevin Millar. Other finalists included Jim Aducci, Starlin Castro, Tyler Colvin, James Russell, and Brad Snyder. Berg and Barney each got $10,000 to a charity of their choice.

Today's Games
This afternoon it's a split squad Cubs team out in the valley of the sun. Half the team will host the Kansas City Royals for the first matchup of the spring between the two clubs. The other split squad takes on the Oakland A's in Phoenix. Carlos Zambrano will pitch at HoHoKam while Tom Gorzelanny tries to make his case for a spot in the rotation against Oakland.

The game against KC will be on WGN Radio. Here's the starting nine:

Theriot, SS
Barney, 2B
Lee, 1B
Byrd, CF
Baker, 3B
Soriano, LF
Soto, C
Snyder, RF
Zambrano, P

The game against the A's is on MLB.com's gameday audio if you have the package. Here's the lineup behind Gorzelanny:

Adduci, LF
Kosuke, RF
Colvin, CF
Nady, DH
Hoffpauir, 1B
Fontenot, SS
Tracy, 3B
Hill, C
Scales, 2B

A good chance to see a lot of Cubs play today! That's it for now, but I'll keep you posted!

Friday Pregame News & Notes

Roster Cuts
The Cubs have reduced their Spring Training roster to 42. Eight more cuts were made today. Blake Parker, Jeff Stevens, and Welington Castillo were optioned to AAA. Five non-roster invites have been sent back to minor league camp: Andrew Cashner, Casey Coleman, Thomas Diamond, J.R. Mathes, and Bryan LaHair. With these cuts, the Cubs really cleared some pitchers out of camp (6). The biggest surprise among the cuts was Diamond, who I felt had a real chance of making the ballclub. Lefty James Russell is the only non roster pitcher remaining with the team. I also thought Cashner and Mathes would stick around a little longer.

Guzman to have Surgery
Cubs reliever Angel Guzman met with Dr. James Andrews on Thursday and it was decided that Angel will undergo surgery to try to repair the tear in his right shoulder. The operation will take place on Tuesday and there is no timetable for his return.

Ramirez Still Out
Cubs third baseman Aramis Ramirez was expected to get back into Cactus League action in yesterday's game against the Dodgers. However, Rami is still unable to throw because of his sore right tricep. He is expected to get some at bats in over at Fitch Park in a minor league game on Saturday.

Lilly Throws to Hitters
Ted Lilly threw to hitters for the first time this year yesterday. He is rehabbing from an offseason shoulder surgery. Lilly's moving along faster than expected and could be back in the rotation by mid-April. Ted could get into one Cactus League game before the rest of the team breaks camp.

Other Pitching Updates
The Cactus League rotation was thrown off slightly by Wednesday's off day. Jeff Samardzija worked 3 innings in a minor league intersquad game walking 3 in the second on Wednesday. Sean Marshall did his work yesterday with a 5 inning simulated game at HoHoKam Park while the rest of the team was in Glendale. Jeff Gray, acquired from Oakland this winter, is running out of time to try to make the Opening Day roster. He has been out with a groin injury all spring. Gray tossed three innings of batting practice yesterday, and Carrie Muskat reports that the next step will be a simulated game. We've known that Esmalin Caridad is in the mix for late inning work, but now Bruce Levine adds that Justin Berg is a leader for a setup role.

Today's Game
Randy Wells will take the mound against the White Sox today in Glendale. The game starts at 3:05 CT and will be on CSN Chicago and WGN Radio. Dave van Dyck reports that Aramis Ramirez is still missing from the lineup. Jeff Baker will start at the hot corner in place of Ramirez, and Xavier Nady is scheduled to be the DH.

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

30 Clubs in 30 Days Recaps: Pittsburgh Pirates

Today we start our series of previewing all of the teams in the NL Central. We will take a look at all the teams by recapping their episodes of MLB Network's "30 Clubs in 30 Days". Let's hop in to the 2010 Pirates.

• The Pirates are training for the season down in Bradenton, Florida.
• They have had 17 losing seasons in a row.
• Dan Plesac and John Hart agree that Pirates have a plan to try to become a winning ballclub at some point.
• Last year's record: 62-99

Offseason Additions

• D.J. Carrasco, RP
• R. Church, OF
• N. Cotts, RP
• B. Donnelly, RP
• O. Dotel, RP
• J. Lopez, RP
• B. Crosby, IF
• A. Iwamura, IF

Subtractions

• M. Capps, RP
• J. Chavez, RP

Hazel Mae talks with Andrew McCutchen:

• It was a cool feeling to come in to camp knowing that he's on the big league roster.
• The Pirates come together as a team and just have a lot of fun. They don't separate into veterans and young guy groups.
• Last year let Andrew know that he can do this and he can handle this. He's looking to stay with that same flow.

John Hart says that the Bucs knew when they drafted McCutchen that he would be their guy. Garrett Jones was a different story because he was a guy nobody really thought about. Plesac added that if you're a minor leaguer in the Pirates system there's some hope that you can advance to the big leagues quickly.

GM Neal Huntington joined the guys to talk about the club that he has assembled:

• The Pirates had a good early camp even with the bad weather experienced in Florida.
• The energy in Spring Training is very positive. They have a group of guys ready to take that next step forward.
• Neal has tried to compile as many solid prospects as possible.
• He makes it clear that the single focus is putting a winning team on the field.

Starting Rotation:

• Maholm, LHP
• Ohlendorf, RHP
• Duke, LHP
• Morton, RHP
• Kevin Hart or Daneil McCutchen

Dan thinks this rotation is a "pitch to contact" rotation that has control type pitchers. Paul Maholm and Zack Duke are 2 left handers that give the clubs something to work with. Charlie Morton hasn't put it all together be he "might have the best stuff" on the staff.

Hazel Mae chatted with Maholm:

• Paul was dealing with a sore knee last year, but he had no issues in the offseason.
• He ran more this winter than he had in the past.
• Maholm is going to go out there every fifth day and expect to do well.

Projected Pirates Bullpen:

• Brendon Donnelly, RHP
• Joel Hanrahan, RHOP
• Neal Cotts, LHP
• Javier Lopez, LHP
• Evan Meek, RHP
• D.J. Carrasco, RHP
• Closer- Octavio Dotel, RHP

John thinks that the bullpen is very well rounded because they have some veterans and younger guys. Meek was drafted in the Rule 5 Draft from Tampa Bay, and Pittsburgh expects big things from him down the road.

2009 Pirate team stats

• Runs: 636 (16th in NL)
• Average: .252 (14th)
• Home Runs: 125 (14th)
• OBP: .318 (14th)
• Stolen Bases: 90 (8th)

Hazel Mae with Lastings Milledge:

• He is aware of the fact that he is already kind of "on the bubble" because of off the field issues he has had in the past. This is his 3rd big league club.
• It could be his last chance of lasting with a major league team.
• Milledge is thrilled with the amount of 1 on 1 time and instruction that he's gotten from the Pittsburgh staff.

Projected Lineup:

• McCutchen, CF
• Iwamura, 2B
• Jones, RF
• Doumit, C
• Clement, 1B
• Milledge, LF
• LaRoche, 1B
• Cedeno, SS

Clement struggled in Seattle as a catcher, but now the Pirates are working to convert him to a first baseman. If that experiment works, he could become a nice middle of the order power presence. The Pittsburgh defense looks good on paper. Former Cub Ronny Cedeno is a guy that "can do everything" according to Plesac. Ronny seems to go through some mental lapses.

Hall of Famer Bill Mazeroski joined Hazel for a chat:

• The key to becoming a winning club is building from the bottom.
• Mazeroski thinks that the Pirates will be a winning ballclub sometime soon.

Top Prospects:

• Tim Alderson, RHP
• Pedro Alvarez, 3B
• Chase D'Arnaub, SS
• Gorkys Hernandez, OF
• Brad Lincoln, RHP

Alvarez with Mae:

• Being in the spotlight is fun. Pedro thinks it's good to be viewed as a player that can help an organization.
• He is hoping to live up to the expectation.

Baseball Prospectus Projection: 72-90, 6th place, 17 GB

John Projection: They will be an improved ballclub but will not make a run to contend.

Dan's Projection: The Pirates are just a little short of contending.