Chicago's Inside Pitch
Reports: Deshaies to join Cubs' TV booth
Posted by Bruce on Mon, 12/03/2012 - 16:36
Word coming out of Nashville and the baseball winter meetings today is that former big-league pitcher Jim Deshaies has been hired as Bob Brenly's replacement as analyst on Cubs TV broadcasts. WGN-TV issued a terse "no comment" on the reports, but both CBSSports.com and the Houston Astros' web site have reported that the deal is done.
The Astros' site said the deal is four years for Deshaies, who previously worked on that team's broadcasts. Deshaies, 52, pitched in the major leagues from 1984-95 with the Yankees, Astros, Padres, Twins, Giants and Phillies. He pitched for the Astros from 1985-91.
Reports: Cubs sign Japanese closer
Posted by Bruce on Sat, 12/01/2012 - 17:41
The Cubs haven't confirmed anything as of late Saturday afternoon, but national reports say they have agreed to terms with Japanese closer Kyuji Fujikawa. The 32-year-old Fujikawa has pitched six seasons for Hanshin. He has a lifetime WHIP of 0.855 to go along with a record of 26-18, a 1.36 ERA and 202 saves.
Reports say Fujikawa will get $9.5 million guaranteed. He reportedly gets a $1 million signing bonus and salaries of $4 million in each of the 2013 and 2014 seasons. There is a vesting option worth $5.5 million for 2015, and it could be worth $6 million. If Fujikawa doesn't reach the games-finished vesting option, there is a $5.5 million club option or a $500,000 buyout.
Last season, Fujikawa was 2-2 with a 1.32 ERA and a WHIP of 1.028 to go with 24 saves.
Marvin Miller's legacy one of delicious ironies
Posted by Bruce on Wed, 11/28/2012 - 16:23
There’s nothing better than good irony, and Marvin Miller’s legacy as head of the Major League Baseball Players Association is fraught with delicious ironies. Perhaps the best is that while Miller was called a socialist, a communist, a union rabble-rouser and a “mustachioed four-flusher” (by Paul Richards), his greatest legacy was unleashing good, old American capitalism and free enterprise on the “businessmen” who ran baseball.
Oh, there are more ironies within that. Miller didn’t quite unleash 100 percent unbridled capitalism on the owners, but those owners would have been wise to have allowed it, and maybe the player salaries they’ve decried for so long wouldn’t have risen so much so fast.
We get to all of that here.
Rob Deer, Theo and 'Soccernomics' (trust us)
Posted by Bruce on Mon, 11/26/2012 - 16:30
We are officially in the run-up to the winter meetings, which get under way next Monday in Nashville. The Cubs have gotten some business done ahead of time, such as signing free-agent pitcher Scott Baker, retaining setup man Shawn Camp and signing backup catcher Dioner Navarro.
The team said today it has hired former major-league slugger Rob Deer as an assistant hitting coach. Deer will assist James Rowson, who had the interim tag removed from his title shortly after the season ended. Deer and Cubs manager Dale Sveum were teammates with the Milwaukee Brewers from 1986-90.
Buehrle: Marlins lied
Posted by scotgreg on Wed, 11/21/2012 - 14:40
Let's not feel too sorry for former White Sox starting pitcher Mark Buehrle.
He still is owed $43.5 million over the next three seasons, even though the Toronto Blue Jays will be signing the paychecks instead of the Miami Marlins.
And as it turns out, the Jays are looking like a sure-fire contender after getting Buehrle, Jose Reyes, Josh Johnson, John Buck and Emilio Bonifacio from Miami in a trade for seven relatively unknown players.
Toronto also signed Melky Cabrera to a two-year deal.
Still, Buehrle reportedly was given a verbal no-trade agreement by the Marlins when he signed with them last off-season.
And even though the Miami franchise is in ruins at the moment, Buehrle is not happy.
The BBWAA awards, one vote and transparency
Posted by Bruce on Thu, 11/15/2012 - 09:08
Congrats to R.A. Dickey of the New York Mets, who became the first pitcher whose primary pitch is the knuckleball to win the Cy Young Award. The National League vote wasn’t close, as Dickey piled up 209 points and 27 of 32 first-place votes from members of the Baseball Writers Association of America. That’s in stark contrast to the American League, where Tampa Bay’s David Price won with 153 points and 14 first-place votes, edging out Detroit’s Justin Verlander, who had 149 points and 13 first-place votes.
Baseball mourns passing of Lee MacPhail
Posted by Bruce on Fri, 11/09/2012 - 15:53
Baseball has lost one of its greats. Lee MacPhail died Thursday evening at age 95. Mr. MacPhail, former general manager of the Yankees and Orioles and president of the American League, was the father of former Cubs president Andy MacPhail. He was the oldest living Hall of Famer at the time of his death.
I had the good fortune of meeting the elder MacPhail a couple of times, courtesy of Andy. Although I can't say I "knew" Lee MacPhail, I always felt that if you knew Andy MacPhail, you were well on your way to knowing Lee MacPhail. The two seemed the same temperamentally: thoughtful, measured and deliberative. And both always had the respect of those with whom they dealt, whether they be baseball executives, umpires, managers or players.
Report: Haren denies injury concerns
Posted by Bruce on Thu, 11/08/2012 - 17:04
Cubs bosses Theo Epstein, Jed Hoyer and Jason McLeod are out near Palm Springs, Calif., for the general managers meetings. As we’ve reported a couple of times over the past week, Cubs GM Hoyer said he hopes to advance talks with other teams and with the agents for free agents while out in California.
While meeting with Hoyer last week, the writers heard him say he had been having talks with several clubs already about possible trades. Then came word late last Friday that Hoyer had dealt closer Carlos Marmol to the Angels for starting pitcher Dan Haren. Or not. It seems Marmol jumped the gun on announcing the deal when he told a media member in the Dominican Republic that he had been traded.
News on U.S. Cellular Field, Nieves
Posted by scotgreg on Wed, 11/07/2012 - 16:14
Many White Sox fans still refer to their home stadium as Comiskey Park, even though it changed to U.S. Cellular Field in 2003.
According to a report in Chicago Crain’s Business, U.S. Cellular is selling off markets, including Chicago, to Sprint Nextel for $480 million.
In addition, U.S. Cellular is reportedly cutting 640 jobs in the Chicago area.
That leads to the obvious question – is U.S. Cellular Field going to become Sprint Nextel Field?
Apparently not.
“Our naming rights to the ballpark are not a part of this deal with Sprint. The White Sox are a great partner and we look forward to continuing our relationship with them," U.S. Cellular said in a statement.
Jed Hoyer unfiltered: Cubs GM covers it all
Posted by Bruce on Mon, 11/05/2012 - 17:19
Cubs general manager Jed Hoyer will fly out to Palm Springs Tuesday for the GM meetings. The meetings get under way in earnest Wednesday, and they’ll wrap up early Friday. Last week’s Carlos Marmol for Dan Haren trade that didn’t happen notwithstanding, the GM meetings usually set the groundwork for trades. It’s not often a trade gets done or announced at the GM meetings. Player agents also are on hand at the GM meetings, so teams are able to move some free-agent talks along.
The Cubs writers had a chance to meet with GM Jed Hoyer last week, and we had a story in Friday’s paper. As we did with Theo Epstein a couple times already this fall, we’ll run some of Jed “unfiltered,” as it were, on this blog.
Here are some of Jed’s general thoughts about the meetings:
