Breaking News: Cubs Acquire Matt Garza from Tampa Bay

Update 6:00 CT: The Cubs will also get a PTBNL in the deal.

According to Bruce Levine of ESPN Chicago, the Cubs and Rays have gotten together for an eight player trade! The Cubs received starting pitcher Matt Garza, who is expected to lead the rotation. They will send Chris Archer, Hak-Ju Lee, Brandon Guyer, Robinson Chirinos and Sam Fuld to Tampa Bay. The Cubs will also add two minor leaguers.

Bruce Miles reports that switching hitting outfielder Fernando Perez is in the deal. If this is true, Perez will be added to the 40-man roster.

This deal is not official yet and it is still pending physicals.

I will update this post with more information this afternoon!

Breaking News: Pat Listach Named Cubs Bench Coach

According to several big league sources Pat Listach will serve as the Cubs bench coach in 2011. An official announcement is expected after the World Series. Listach managed in the Cubs system for four years including 2008 when he was named the PCL Manager of the Year.

Pat left the organization for a job on the Washington Nationals staff as their third base coach in 2009. After two years in DC he will come back to the Cubs to coach under Mike Quade on the big league staff.

Listach will replace Alan Trammell, who left to join Kirk Gibson in Arizona. The 2011 Cubs coaching staff is now just about complete. It is possible that Quade will add one more guy to serve as his special assistant, a role Ivan DeJesus ('07-'09) and Matt Sinatro ('10) filled under Lo Piniella.

In other news, the Cubs announced a few tweaks to the 40-man roster last week. They have added catcher Robinson Chirinos to the roster and outrighted outfielder Jim Adduci.

Carrie Muskat answered her inbox questions today on Cubs.com. Here's the recap:

• Carlos Marmol's strikeout average of 15.9 per 9 innings set a record for relievers.
• Micah Hoffpauir's status will be discussed this week at the organizational meetings in Mesa.
• If Aramis Ramirez wants a contract in 2012, he'll have to bounce back this coming season.
• Carrie likes the idea of Starlin Castro as the lead-off hitter. Castro enjoys being at the top of the order and is one of the fastest guys on the club.

It's going to be a big week for the Chicago Cubs with the organizational meetings underway in Mesa. Tomorrow a vote will take place to determine the future of Cubs Spring Training. I'll keep you posted with all the news out of the Valley of the Sun all week long!

Breaking News: The Pitching Staff is Set, Roster Cuts

Today, the Chicago Cubs announced the 12 man pitching staff and 5 man starting rotation that they will use to start the season.

Gordon Wittenmyer tweets that lefty James Russell will take the final spot in the bullpen unless the Cubs make a trade next week.

Gordon also tells us that Carlos Silva and Tom Gorzelanny have won the final two spots in the starting rotation. They will round out a starting five that already includes Carlos Zambrano, Ryan Dempster, and Randy Wells. Despite pitching great this spring, Sean Marshall will head to the bullpen where he will add depth. Jeff Samardzija, who lost out on the rotation because of some poor outings during Spring Training, will be used in middle to late relief to start the year. Russell, Marshall, and Samardzija are joined in the bullpen by Carlos Marmol, Esmalin Caridad, Justin Berg, and John Grabow.

The Cubs also made 7 roster cuts today. Pitchers Jeff Gray, Marcos Mateo, and John Gaub were optioned to AAA-Iowa, as was outfielder Jim Adduci. Jim made it tough on the Cubs with a three hit game yesterday to cap off a great spring, but it turns out there is no room for him on the roster. Gray was aquired from Oakland this offseason and was expected to be a big part of the bullpen. However, Jeff suffered a groin injury in an early February workout at Fitch Park which caused him to miss most of Spring Training. He could be a part of the pen at some point this year.

Darwin Barney, Bobby Scales, and Robinson Chirinos were also assigned to minor league camp. There are no major surprises among this group. Barney could help the Cubs as a utility infielder at some point this season.

Russell will have to be added to the 40-man roster since he came to camp as a Non-Roster Invite. Rule 5 Pick Mike Parisi is the "odd man out" and it appears that he will be offered back to the Cardinals.

With the seven cuts today, there are still 33 players left in camp, but that list includes two guys (Lilly and Guzman) who will start the season on the DL. That means the Cubs have five position players that will be cut. Kevin Millar, Andres Blanco, Micah Hoffpauir, and Chad Tracy are battling for a spot on the bench while Tyler Colvin and Sam Fuld are hoping to earn the fifth outfield job. The fifth cut will be catcher Chris Robinson, who will stay with the big league club until the end so that Koyie Hill and Geovany Soto are not overworked in the final week and a half behind the plate. It should be an interesting conclusion to Spring Training!

Be sure to check out yesterday's Cubs Roundup for more.

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

Spring Training Preview: Non-Roster Catchers

It's time to continue our look at what we will see in Spring Training. I posted on the non roster preview for pitchers last week. Today is President's Day, and we're just a few days away from the time pitchers and catcher report to Spring Training. Therefore, it's time to check out what minor league catcher will be in Cub camp.

Robinson Chirinos

• Catcher
• Bats/Throws: R/R
• Has been in the Cubs organization since 2001
• Converted from an infielder into a catcher
• Rated best defensive catcher in the system by Jim Callis of Baseball America
• Hit .366 in 48 games in the Venezuelan Winter League this offseason
• Hit .294 during the 2009 regular season, splitting time between Class A Daytona and AA Tennessee
• My Prediction: Will start the year at AA

Steve Clevenger

• Catcher
• Bats/Throws: L/R
• Drafted by the Cubs in the 7th round of the 2006 June draft
• Was in big league camp for the first time last year after a great 2008 Arizona Fall League season
• Hit .290 in 94 games at AAA Iowa and AA Tennessee last season
• My prediction: Will start the year at AA

Chris Robinson

• Catcher
• Bats/Throw: R/R
• Drafted by the Tigers in the 3rd round of the 2005 June draft
• Played for team Canada at the 2008 Olympics
• Came to the Cubs in 2006
• Spent all of 2009 at AAA, hitting .326 in 91 games
• My prediction: Will start the year at AAA

In addition to the three non roster invitees, the Cubs have some other backstops from the minors that are on the 40-man roster that will be in camp. I'll tell you about them in a future post. There is a lot of depth at the catching position in this organization, but unless Hill or Soto suffers an injury, all the minor league guys will stay minor league guys. Depth, however, is always a good thing.

This weekend meant the Olympics, NBA All Star Weekend, Valentine's Day, President's Day, and more to most, but to us Cub fans it meant the final weekend without baseball.

Pitchers and catcher report on Wednesdays folks!

Theriot on SC, Hall of Fame Votes, and More

Ryan Theriot was on Sports Central Monday for his weekly visit with David Kaplan:

• Theriot has been at the batting cage since 3:00.
• His kids have PCS (post-Christmas syndrome).
• Houston likes trains, Pirates, guns, and swards so his Christmas was great.
• Ryan finally got a washer and dryer for his house.
• Theriot got his wife a painting studio for Christmas.
• Neither Kaplan or Theriot are very good at art. David Kaplan got an F in art in 7th grade. That was the only class Kap ever failed.
• Ryan also failed one class, and economics class is college. The teacher he had didn't like athletes at all.
• The Riot got good grades in college (except the economics class).
• Ryan thinks Mark DeRosa is worth more than 2 years $12 million, but Kaplan says "not in this economy. Theriot would still like to have DeRo back.
• He will come up to Chicago a few days before the Cubs Convention.
• Theriot has been working out with his wife.
• He got a new riffle for Christmas. Kap doesn't like hunting. David has never fired a gun in his life, and has never gone hunting.
• Theriot likes to shoot targets and hunt animals. He mainly hunts ducks and deer.
• He thinks the riffle is a cool gun to have even though he will probably never shoot an animal with it.
• Ryan likes being among nature and breathing the fresh air. He calls it a stress reliever.
• Two nights ago was the last craw fish night.
• Last night was the Theriot's 7 year anniversary. He and his wife dropped the kids' and Grandma's and went out for a nice night.
• The guys discussed whether or not a grizzly bear could outrun a horse. I'm not sure how that fits on "Sport Central" or on "Everything Cubs blog".
• Theriot sounded surprised when Kap said Jose Contreras.
• Paul Sullivan hasen't cut his hair since the Cubs last game. The Riot and Kap want Sully to do an extreme makeover at the Cubs Convention. Theriot is a fan of Sullivan's glasses.

Speaking of Sully, he was on Chicago Tribune Live and briefly discussed the Cubs:

• The Cubs didn't want DeRosa back. They didn't even look at him.
• Mark got about what he was worth.
• If Paul was the GM of the Cubs, he would consider signing DeRo once again.
• The Cubs are looking to move Theriot to second base eventually, and if you sign DeRosa to a 2 year deal, it means you're keeping Mark at second and keeping Castro in the minors for the next two years.
• Sullivan said Jeff Baker paid really well as a Cub.
• Guys like DeRosa and Henry Blanco were "glue guys" for the '08 Cubs (they held everything together).
• The Cubs didn't want to bring Mark back, because when you bring guys back it's never the same as the first time. They did it with Fergie and Holtzman, and it just wasn't the same.
• The players the guys got in the DeRosa deal last year were talked about. Mark Carmen (who was also on CTL) wasn't too excited about the 3 minor league pitchers, calling them average. Sullivan says John Gaub looks pretty good, but he's unsure about Jeff Stevens.

Hall of Fame: If You Voted for Dawson, Please Stand Up?

Next Wednesdays is the day we find out whether or not Cub great Andre Dawson is going to be inducted into Cooperstown next July. Dawson need to be in, there's no doubt. Former Cub closer Lee Smith and current Cub bench coach Alan Trammell are also on the ballot. Cubs beat writer (and friend of this blog) Bruce Miles has revealed the 9 guys that he voted for. Miles voted for Roberto Alomar, Bert Blyleven, Dawson, Barry Larkin, Edgar Martinez, Jack Morris, Tim Raines, Smith, and Trammell. As of December 4, Carrie Muskat had already checked Andre Dawson. White Sox beat Writer Mark Gonzales is voting for "The Hawk" as well as Barry Larkin, Bert Blyleven, and Roberto Alomar. Teddy Greenstein has a check mark next to the names of Dawosn, Alomar, Blyleven, Dawosn, Mattingly, and Smith. Philip Hersh is giving Alomar, Blyleven, Dawson, Larkin, Martinez, Mattingly, Morris, Smith, and Trammell his vote. Fred Mitchell is voting for Alomar, Blyleven, Dawson, Larkin, McGriff, Morris, Raines, and Smith. Phil Rogers checked the following names: Alomar, Baines, Blyleven, Dawson, Morris, Raines, and Trammell. Cub beat writer Paul Sullivan will vote for Alomar, Baines, Dawson, Raines, and Smith. Dave Van Dyck is only voting for 3 guys, but "The Hawk" and Smith are both in that elite group, along with Roberto Alomar. So far we have 9 votes for Andre Dawson, and no writes who left the box next to Dawson's name unchecked. Gordon Wittenmyer for the Sun-Times says Dawson is on his ballot, which brings us up to ten votes. Jon Heyman tweeted that he too voted for Dawson. Ken Rosethal voted for Hawk, Lee, and Alan.

We could go on and on a possible even find out if Dawson made it or not by looking at all of the BBWAA voting member blogs and twitters. However, there's over a hundred. Let's just wait 8 more days to find out. I'll have a numbers breakdown up about Dawson over the weekend. The announcement is made a week from tomorrow (Jan. 6) at 1:00 PM CT on MLB.com & MLB Network.

Len & Bob Bash

Tickets for this year's Len & Bob Bash are on Sale! Click here for more.

Minor League Update

Cubs prospect Robinson Chirinos was mentioned in the list of best minor league games of the year for his 2 grand slam game on May 31.

Cub Plays of the Year

Check out the videos of the top Cubs plays of 2009, and then vote on your favorite on Cubs.com!! I like Reed's catch and Piniella's craftiness. It's fun to remember that there were some good moments this past season!

Rumor Updates

The acquisition of Jose Contreras is unlikely according to Chicago Breaking Sports.com, because Carlos Silva will fill the role of spot starter/bullpen man. Contreras should get better offers from teams that are looking for starters. Brining back popular Reed Johnson could be a better option that trading for Ryan Spillborghs. Troy Renck of the Denver Post talked to a major league source who downplayed the Cubs' interest in Spillborghs. Troy's "gut tells him that the Rockies' asking price will be too high to get a deal done."

That's it for now, but I'll keep you posted with just 2 days left of 2009...