- The press conference for the Ricketts family to take control will be tomorrow at Wrigley Field. Tom will answer questions from the media for the first time. He is expected to reveal long term and short term plans.
- Mesa, Arizona is making their pitch to keep Cubs' spring training there. Naples, Florida is also trying to get the Cubs there for spring camp.
- According to the Sun-Times, the payroll will be in the $143 million range next year. Anyone expecting a dramatic shift in philosophy will be up for a huge letdown.
- John Lackey, Fernando Rodney, and Chone Figgins are all seeking new homes.
- TCR takes a look at what they would ask Mr. Ricketts.
- Paul Sullivan says that the first order of business will be to get rid of Milton Bradley.
- Bruce Miles thinks the Cubs should pass on Gary Matthews Jr.
- There is a debate going on as to whether a giant hotel should be placed near Wrigley Field. Would this building take away from Wrigley?
- Mark DeRosa had his surgery on Monday to repair a torn tendon sheath in his left wrist. He's a free agent!
- The Cubs have expressed some interest in Aroldis Chapman according to MLB Trade Rumors.
- Cubs Convention tickets go on sale November 4 at 10am.
- TCR thinks Kelvin Escobar makes sense for the Cubs.
- MLB Trade Rumors' list of bad contracts includes Milton Bradley, Alfonso Soriano, and Aaron Miles.
- Orlando Hudson, Miguel Tejada, and J.J. Hardy have been mentioned by ESPN.com as second baseman that could interest the Cubs.
- Mike Ferrin of XM Radio thinks Tom Ricketts will be a hands on owner.
- Sam Zell's statement on the sale of the Cubs: "I think the team should be owned by somebody who is local, somebody who is really passionate about baseball," Zell said. "I happen to be local. I'm not passionate about baseball, so I wish them all the best of luck. And maybe we'll break the 101-year curse."
Bruce Levine has been busy! He hosted his "Talkin' Baseball" show on ESPN 1000 Saturday, has been posted on ESPNChicago.com, and had a chat Tuesday. Here's Bruce's latest:
- Ricketts will tell his baseball people at the Cubs organization meetings next Wednesday that the minor-league system is his number 1 priority.
- If the Cubs get Chone Figgins, second base would be his main spot, but he is versatile.
- Vlad Guerrero is not a fit for the Cubs.
- Trades may be the only vehicle for Jim Hendry to bring new players in.
- Bruce's sources tell him that the Cubs payroll is going to be the same $140M they had last year.
- Levine will look at Starlin Castro in the AFL next week.
- Jeff Baker will be a back-up second baseman, but the Cubs need another middle infielder.
- If anybody can fix Alfonso Soriano, it's Rudy Jaramillo.
- Adding Rudy was a good decision for the Cubs.
- Bruce is high on Figgins.
- Andrew Cashner could end up with the Cubs by the end of next season.
- There's a plan in place to upgrade the entire ballpark (Wrigley).
- He does not see the Cubs going after Chapman. They have zero money to spend on good-looking young pitchers who will get multi-year deals.
- The Cubs want the fan base to feel like there's a directions where the team will go.
- Levine gives it a 90% chance that Bradley will be traded.
- Derrek Lee would love to finish his career a Cub.
- A one year gamble on a high-energy guy like Orlando Hudson might not be a bad idea.
- Lou doesn't think Andres Blanco can hit, so Andres will only be a back-up in 2010.
- Washington is not a fit for Milton Bradley.
- Levine likes the idea of moving Theriot to second base and adding a short stop.
- Brining Florida in to the mix for Cubs Spring Training is a ply to get a better offer from Mesa.
- Fukudome made some nice improvements by using one of his former batting instructors when his mechanics fell apart this season. The problem for Japanese players is the 162-game schedule. There are only a few players like Ichiro and Hideki Matsui who proved they can stay strong throughout an entire major-league season.
- If the Cubs make any big deals this winter, Sean Marshall could be included.
- The Cubs have talked to the Blue Jays about a Wells for Bradley trade.
- Expect a slight raise in ticket prices next season.
- Hendry is working trades with Tampa Bay and 3-4 other teams about players with big contracts they would like to move.
- The Blue Jays will be looking to trade Roy Halladay at some point, but "Mr. Chicago Baseball" doesn't know if the Cubs will be involved.
- A Milton Bradley for Pat Burrell trade has been on the table for 3 weeks.
And now the latest from today's press conference about bringing the Cubs to Naples, Florida:
- Craig Bouchard, the chief executive officer of the club, met the media today at the Naples Bath & Tennis Club. About 30 people were there.
- The Cubs bring in about $52 million a year of revenue for Mesa, and they want that money to go to Collier County.
- Site selection would need to be 120 continuous acres for a 15,000 seat stadium, batting cages, pitching mounds, and a 4,000-space parking lot.
- The stadium would be an 11-month operation.
- Inside Naples city is out of the question.
- There is no anticipation of getting into a bidding process.
- "We're going to put our best foot out there and if we're the best, we'll win, and if we're not, we'll lose," Bouchard said.
- There are no cost estimates and no time lines yet.
- This type of decision will not be rushed.
- The most significant hurdle is the history in Arizona.
- Craig hopes to have a proposal to the Cubs within the next six months.
- Three land parcels have been identified as possible locations, they will not be named yet.
Tomorrow at 11 CT Ricketts will meet the media at Wrigley Field for the first time. The press conference will be broadcast live on WGN and CSN Chicago. I'll have a full recap of the days events posted sometime tomorrow night. Also, since there is so much going on in the Cubs world, we will hold off this week's winter ball updates until the weekend.
That's it (I know a lot!), for now, but I'll keep you posted!
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