If the Cubs.....

[hawkfarmer]

are out of contention by July 1. I'm talking 10 GB of NL central and at least 6 back of wild card. It's looking like that might happen, 6 back of cardinals already, and 5 back of SF in wild card. Who would you like to see traded?

I think it is time for the cubs to be the Pirates and Reds of the trade deadline if they aren't in it this year. They are getting worse every year with the huge contracts for older players and aren't letting young potential stars get in the mix.

I would like to see Soriano, Ramirez and Lee go. Possibly even Zambrano.

I like our pitching staff though and would like to see it kept in tact mostly.

With these big contracts the Cubs haven't been able to help the bullpen much and they have let many young good players go like Fox and Patterson, who are contributing elsewhere. We gave a lot to get Harden, and that was ok, but the cubs need to rebuild the farm system and get younger and competitive again.

P.S. big time Castro and Colvin fan

 

[MikeyJoe]

Three words: No trade clauses.

Hendry has been giving them out like parade candy. Those players you list are very likely not going anywhere.

 

[hawkfarmer]

I know all about the no-trade clauses:
Lee
Ramirez
Fukudome
Soriano
Big Z
Samardzjia--why why why
Dempster

But I think if they were traded to the correct team then they would go. They'll still get their money and can play for a contender. I think that very few would say no. other than Fukudome and Lee.

I think others would consider. especially Big Z since the cubs put him in the pen. Lee and Ramirez might as well with all of their struggles.

I would just like to see Colvin get some every day PT.

Don't dismiss these trades due to clauses. Still very possible. Even Peavy said no once to the white sox, and look where he is now.

 

[ShadasRevenge]

are out of contention by July 1. I'm talking 10 GB of NL central and at least 6 back of wild card. It's looking like that might happen, 6 back of cardinals already, and 5 back of SF in wild card. Who would you like to see traded?

I think it is time for the cubs to be the Pirates and Reds of the trade deadline if they aren't in it this year. They are getting worse every year with the huge contracts for older players and aren't letting young potential stars get in the mix.

I would like to see Soriano, Ramirez and Lee go. Possibly even Zambrano.

I like our pitching staff though and would like to see it kept in tact mostly.

With these big contracts the Cubs haven't been able to help the bullpen much and they have let many young good players go like Fox and Patterson, who are contributing elsewhere. We gave a lot to get Harden, and that was ok, but the cubs need to rebuild the farm system and get younger and competitive again.

P.S. big time Castro and Colvin fan

That won't happen. As bad as that last road trip was, they only ended losing 1 1/2 games in the standings. The Cardinals are a decent team, but they have just as many flaws as the Cubs do, and really only have four talented players. At some point, the Cardinals will go through a rut.

None of those players will be traded. Lee is in his contract year and has a full no trade, Ramirez has a player option at the end of this season, Soriano is player better than both of them right now and nobody would take on his contract, and Z is too much of a headcase for any other team to A.) take on, and B.) pay that salary.

 

[ShadasRevenge]

I know all about the no-trade clauses:
Lee
Ramirez
Fukudome
Soriano
Big Z
Samardzjia--why why why
Dempster

But I think if they were traded to the correct team then they would go. They'll still get their money and can play for a contender. I think that very few would say no. other than Fukudome and Lee.

I think others would consider. especially Big Z since the cubs put him in the pen. Lee and Ramirez might as well with all of their struggles.

I would just like to see Colvin get some every day PT.

Don't dismiss these trades due to clauses. Still very possible. Even Peavy said no once to the white sox, and look where he is now.

Getting pounded every time out? He's finding out that there is a big difference in pitching in the NL West, where every ballpark is massive, and pitching in AL Central, where every yard - especially his home park - is a band box.

As far as the Cubs go, it's not that I think they're going to do anything special this year, as it's pretty obvious that they're a .500 team at best.

 

[hawkfarmer]

That won't happen. As bad as that last road trip was, they only ended losing 1 1/2 games in the standings. The Cardinals are a decent team, but they have just as many flaws as the Cubs do, and really only have four talented players. At some point, the Cardinals will go through a rut.

None of those players will be traded. Lee is in his contract year and has a full no trade, Ramirez has a player option at the end of this season, Soriano is player better than both of them right now and nobody would take on his contract, and Z is too much of a headcase for any other team to A.) take on, and B.) pay that salary.

I would never put anything past the Yankees and Red Sox, when it comes to big splashes at the deadline. Though I agree that not a lot of these guys will get traded, but I'm hoping that they might. And at worst not resigned. Unles sthe contract is small.

Lee sure isn't helping himself this year. The Yanks wanted Big Z at the beginning of the year, don't count them out.

 

[hawkfarmer]

Getting pounded every time out? He's finding out that there is a big difference in pitching in the NL West, where every ballpark is massive, and pitching in AL Central, where every yard - especially his home park - is a band box.

As far as the Cubs go, it's not that I think they're going to do anything special this year, as it's pretty obvious that they're a .500 team at best.

Was just saying that he was a no trade guy, that went somewhere he intially said no too. didn't say he was doing well with it.

 

[ShadasRevenge]

I would never put anything past the Yankees and Red Sox, when it comes to big splashes at the deadline. Though I agree that not a lot of these guys will get traded, but I'm hoping that they might. And at worst not resigned. Unles sthe contract is small.

Lee sure isn't helping himself this year. The Yanks wanted Big Z at the beginning of the year, don't count them out.

Zambrano can't handle the pressure in Chicago, and has made it very clear throughout his career that he likes pitching in the NL because he can hit. Assuming he'd waive his no-trade to go to New York, I think his chances of success there would be slim.

 

[ShadasRevenge]

Was just saying that he was a no trade guy, that went somewhere he intially said no too. didn't say he was doing well with it.

I get ya, the response was just more of a "be careful what you wish for" type statement. Look at how the Padres are doing compared to the WSox; they seem to be doing just fine without him.

 

[1977Hawkeye]

I don't believe in curses. A lousy front office is one of the reasons why you don't win a world series in over 100 years.. Ditching Mark DeRosa and signing Milton Bradley, for example. Not keeping Joe Carter and Rafael Palmeiro are a couple more.

Right now, the Cubs are stuck with huge contracts for players who aren't producing much. They're stuck with these for now (Z, Soriano, etc.), I'm afraid, but it's obvious that the core group of players they have aren't getting it done. Major changes need to be made to that lineup when it's possible.

Yeah, Soriano is hot lately, but he swings at anything you can reach with two bats. He's a classic mistake-pitch hitter. Problem is, in the playoffs, opposing pitching is good and they don't make many mistakes. Hence Soriano's lifetime struggles in the postseason.

 

[hawkfarmer]

Zambrano can't handle the pressure in Chicago, and has made it very clear throughout his career that he likes pitching in the NL because he can hit. Assuming he'd waive his no-trade to go to New York, I think his chances of success there would be slim.

I agree, don't think Z could handle it, though this bullpen thing has made me think he's matured a little. And the Yankees are dumb. They brought back Javier Vazquez again, and he's falling to the pressure again. Never put anything past those guys. Plus I think a NY/Soriano reunion could happen if they need some power in their lineup. Just wishful thinking perhaps.

 

[ShadasRevenge]

I don't believe in curses. A lousy front office is one of the reasons why you don't win a world series in over 100 years.. Ditching Mark DeRosa and signing Milton Bradley, for example. Not keeping Joe Carter and Rafael Palmeiro are a couple more.

Right now, the Cubs are stuck with huge contracts for players who aren't producing much. They're stuck with these for now (Z, Soriano, etc.), I'm afraid, but it's obvious that the core group of players they have aren't getting it done. Major changes need to be made to that lineup when it's possible.

Yeah, Soriano is hot lately, but he swings at anything you can reach with two bats. He's a classic mistake-pitch hitter. Problem is, in the playoffs, opposing pitching is good and they don't make many mistakes. Hence Soriano's lifetime struggles in the postseason.

This is correct, although I wouldn't say that ditching DeRosa was a mistake. Signing Bradley was a huge mistake, and Hendry has said as much publicly.

 

[ShadasRevenge]

I agree, don't think Z could handle it, though this bullpen thing has made me think he's matured a little. And the Yankees are dumb. They brought back Javier Vazquez again, and he's falling to the pressure again. Never put anything past those guys. Plus I think a NY/Soriano reunion could happen if they need some power in their lineup. Just wishful thinking perhaps.

Where would they put him, their outfield is pretty set.

 

[busabus114]

the no trade clauses arent the problem....the contracts are the problem

Soriano and Z have two of the worst contracts in all of baseball. No one is taking on Soriano's 5 year/90 mil deal. For better or worse the Cubs are stuck with both of them

 

[1977Hawkeye]

This is correct, although I wouldn't say that ditching DeRosa was a mistake. Signing Bradley was a huge mistake, and Hendry has said as much publicly.

DeRosa wasn't a superstar, but he was a decent hitter who could play many different positions. I think he's getting up there in years now, but he had a good year in '08, so I'm not sure why they didn't bring him back for another year anyway. I definitely was scratching my head when they signed Bradley though. Paying something like $12M a year to a headcase who struggles to get more than 300-400 AB's every year. Oops.

 

[ShadasRevenge]

DeRosa wasn't a superstar, but he was a decent hitter who could play many different positions. I think he's getting up there in years now, but he had a good year in '08, so I'm not sure why they didn't bring him back for another year anyway. I definitely was scratching my head when they signed Bradley though. Paying something like $12M a year to a headcase who struggles to get more than 300-400 AB's every year. Oops.

I get all that, but what I meant was that letting him go wasn't the mistake - not finding a capable replacement at second was the mistake. Fontenot excelled coming off the bench in 2008, and took a lot of teams by surprise with his bat. Last year proved that he wasn't the type of player who can play everyday and be productive, and as a result the second base position was a black hole in the lineup. Bringing in Baker helped, but what really needed to be done was finally done last week when Theriot got moved to second.

Now you have a true shortstop, Fontenot is back where he should be - first guy off the bench - and you have two capable second basemen in Theriot and and Baker.

 

[HawkeyeMike23]

DeRosa wasn't a superstar, but he was a decent hitter who could play many different positions. I think he's getting up there in years now, but he had a good year in '08, so I'm not sure why they didn't bring him back for another year anyway. I definitely was scratching my head when they signed Bradley though. Paying something like $12M a year to a headcase who struggles to get more than 300-400 AB's every year. Oops.

DeRosa was also fairly cheap, not to mention one of the most popular guys on a team that had great chemistry and won 95 games the year before. And to make things worse he signed Aaron Miles for about the same amount DeRosa was making, and Miles was absolutely horrible last year.

 

[1977Hawkeye]

I get all that, but what I meant was that letting him go wasn't the mistake - not finding a capable replacement at second was the mistake. Fontenot excelled coming off the bench in 2008, and took a lot of teams by surprise with his bat. Last year proved that he wasn't the type of player who can play everyday and be productive, and as a result the second base position was a black hole in the lineup. Bringing in Baker helped, but what really needed to be done was finally done last week when Theriot got moved to second.

Now you have a true shortstop, Fontenot is back where he should be - first guy off the bench - and you have two capable second basemen in Theriot and and Baker.

Agree totally. Now it looks like our 1B and 3B positions are black holes.. Lee had a bounce back year last year, so I expected more out of him this year. Ramirez.. Not sure what his deal is this year. He seems to get nicked up easy, but his stats are usually pretty good. Is he playing hurt? Ramriez usually starts slow, but not THIS slow..

 

[1977Hawkeye]

DeRosa was also fairly cheap, not to mention one of the most popular guys on a team that had great chemistry and won 95 games the year before. And to make things worse he signed Aaron Miles for about the same amount DeRosa was making, and Miles was absolutely horrible last year.

Forgot about Miles, but he was easy to forget. It seems like the Cubs have a way of signing solid players, and they have a HORRIBLE year their first season as a Cub. Like Moises Alou.. He hit .350 or something like that with the Astros the previous year, then was hitting .230 most of the year as a Cub. I guess the Cubs management didn't get the memo that it's better to buy low and sell high, not the other way around..

 

[ShadasRevenge]

Agree totally. Now it looks like our 1B and 3B positions are black holes.. Lee had a bounce back year last year, so I expected more out of him this year. Ramirez.. Not sure what his deal is this year. He seems to get nicked up easy, but his stats are usually pretty good. Is he playing hurt? Ramriez usually starts slow, but not THIS slow..

He'll be fine. He was hitting the **** out of the ball over the weekend, but was hitting them right at people.