How about Milton Bradley for Cubs?
At a winter meetings a few years back, a good guy and a trusted source came up to me and said, "Hey, was Dusty's visit to Milton Bradley one to recruit Bradley to the Cubs or Dusty to the Dodgers?" As much as many Cubs fans back then would have liked Dusty Baker to go and manage the Dodgers, Ol' Dusty was trying to sell the Cubs to Bradley.
Bradley, the mercurial outfielder who set a Texas Rangers record this year with an on-base percentage of .436, is a free agent this winter. He also hits left-handed, which is No. 1 on the Cubs' to-do list (ahead of Jake Peavy) as the team gets set to travel to Las Vegas over the weekend for the winter meetings.
Even though you've got to take all of what goes with Milton Bradley, he'd look pretty good in a Cubs uniform. Not only did he have an OBP of .436, but he had a slugging percentage of .536, giving him an OPS of .999. Guess what? That led the American League.
The Rangers offered Bradley salary arbitration, if for no other reason than they'll get a draft pick if he signs elsewhere. Bradley made a base salary this year of $5.25 million. He's in line for a nice raise, but he's sure to come in cheaper than other left-handed hitters, such as Bobby Abreu and Raul Ibanez. The free-agent market this year is as slow as I've seen it since perhaps the collusion days, and even players such as Abreu and Ibanez might find it difficult to get the multiyear deals they want. So the Cubs can afford a little patience here.
Now, Bradley is no stranger to confrontation, but Lou Piniella gets paid the big bucks to manage the clubhouse, and he does a pretty good job of it. With guys like Derrek Lee, Mark DeRosa, Geovany Soto, Ted Lilly and Ryan Dempster already there, Bradley should have no problems, and nor should the Cubs.
Let's keep an eye on this one.
Elsewhere, the Cubs still are interested in Peavy, but they're willing to wait. The Cubs will have to move some money, and yesterday's trade by the White Sox of Javy Vazquez should give Cubs GM Jim Hendry reasonable hope that Jason Marquis can draw some interest, even if the Cubs do have to pick up some of the $9.8 or so million Marquis has left on the last year of his deal. Marquis can be a decent fifth starter on most teams and a good fourth starter on some others. There are stats more important than wins when it comes to judging a pitcher, but Marquis has won 65 games over the last five years, and no doubt some GM somewhere will value that.
Bob Howry signed with the Giants today. And the Cubs brought back old friend Chad Fox on a minor-league deal. Fox doesn't have a file folder for his medical history. He's got the whole cabinet. That's OK. He's still one of the nicest and most decent guys I've ever met in all my years of covering baseball. He'll make for another nice human-interest story come spring training.
Say Hanniabal Lector on the Cubs, Stephon Marbury, Plax Burress and maybe Albert Bell could comeout of retirement. For one Bradley is a turd, cant play defense and cant stay healthy. Check his stats when he was healthy and not playing 80 games. Wasnt this the same guy who threw a chair at a fan ? Might as well exlpore Barry Bonds as well. 2 recliners in the outfield, yeah that works. Dunn couldnt play defense on an American Legion team. There has to be a better answer than idiots who can hit, but play zero defense. I say no way to Bradley or Dunn. The Cubs never won a thing with Kingman , want another dead rat in your mail box? Then go get Bradley, want another Sosa ? go get Dunn. There has to be a better solution...
I would love to see Bradley in a Cubs uniform. I would give it until mid May until he ripped Soriano, or went after him in the clubhouse for not hustling, which somebody at some point has to do.
This is going to be a very interesting Winter Meetings. The Cubs should be getting in prime position for Peavy, with Atlanta getting Vasquez, and possibly Burnett. That should knock them out of the sweep stakes. Or Hendry should be exploring ALL trade possibilities. This team is built for the now, and with so many backloaded and long term deals, where can these prospects possibly fit in?
A team like the Mets seems like a perfect fit for Marquis.
A shutter to think about the Cubs OF defense next year. God help us fans. I may need a padded room to watch games. I would love to see the Cubs go after a defensive outfielder who may be cheap. Who that is? I have no clue, but the Cubs will desperately need one because if they have Soriano and Bradley on the corners their will be a LOT of doubles, and a lot of heat on the Cubs pitchers to get ground ball outs. If they don't trade Pie, use him for that.
I know he has a TON left on his contract, but I would love to see the Cubs shop Fukudome. He is the definition of a bust, and will haunt this team for years. Hopefully there is a team out there who thinks a change of scenery would be good for him. Unless he completely reconfigures his swing, I will change the channel each time he's up so I don't have to see his backside facing me when spins around like a top on a slider.
Finally, cheers to Bob Howry. Can't wait to see how many balls land in that cove on your tubed 85 mph heater. He may give up the first homer that lands in that glove in LF. Throw in 8-9 games in Coors field, and Bruce Bochey will be dead by August. No man needs the Eric Gregg strike zone to survive more then Bob Howry.
The gas can is gone!!! To celebrate I'm going to go pound a few beers.
Thank you Mr. Miles for being the first writer I've read who suggested Bradley for the Cubs.
I've wanted the Cubs to pursue Bradley since I heard they were looking for lefty power. Earlier when it seemed that the market for Abreu/Ibanez/Dunn was expensive, I thought Milton would be a little more affordable for the reasons Bruce mentioned above. Now that it seems the economy is effecting that market (I read Abreu may only get 2/16), I still think Bradley offers somethings the others don't. He has that chip on his shoulder that others mentioned that I think can be good in high pressure situations. He's also actually a good defensive outfielder if I'm not mistaken, it's just that he misses a significant number of games each year.
Milton Bradley on paper would be an excellent signing. My concern would be health issues. Since 2005, he has only averaged about 90 games per season. So if the Cubs want a great player for just over half a year, then great. Last season he played 126 games, which is the second most games he has ever played in a single season. He has only topped more than 100 games three times. If he can stay healthy, he would be a great addition.
The problem I have with all of the free agent lefty outfielders is they are all awful in the field. Dunn, Ibanez, and Bradley are very good hitters but where would they play on the Cubs? LF is the only place you can play Soriano and Fukudome would more than likely just be an average CF. Maybe a trade is the best case scenario for Hendry to acquire the left-handed bat he seeks because there doesn't appear to be a position for the free agents available.
Dunn would be a nice fit for Wrigley Field, but he makes Soriano look like a Gold Glover in left field. Of the guys mentioned this off-season, Teahen might be the best fielder. But the Cubs are NOT going to trade Marshall and Fontenot for him. Hendry likes Teahen, but not all that much. Whoever plays center field is going to have to run a lot.
Bobby is not as bad as Ibanez, Dunn or Bradley, but no one will mistake him for Willie Mays. As for your trade idea, if Brian Giles is willing to waive his NTC, I think there is the fit everyone is looking for both offensively and defensively.
Bruce,
Count me in the pro-Milton camp. I just worry about his durability in the field. He's a switch-hitter, correct?
What's your latest theory on who will bat lead-off in 2009? I still feel they need to look at SS or 2B for the lead-off guy, and no, I'm not advocating Theriot or DeRosa for the spot. I am still under the impression (my wife says it's more like wishful thinking) that Brian Roberts or Rafael Furcal will be in a Cubs uniform in 2009.
Hoops
At this point, it may still be (gulp) Soriano. But wait, there's still time. I don't believe that either Furcal or Roberts will be with the Cubs in 2009. They're up against it budget-wise, and I can't see either guy fitting, especially if they still want to make a run at Peavy.
I like the idea. Bradley reminds of a guy the Astros and Red Sox had who was high maintenance, left handed, but was a gamer and could hit the cover off the ball: Carl Everett. Cubs could use a guy with an edge who won't wilt under playoff (hopefully) pressure. See Dempster, game one, 2008.
As for Chad Fox, that's good to hear. His house sits on a local golf course down here in Houston that I play, or "hack" more properly, at occasionally.
I like the "edge" factor, too. The Cubs have a great clubhouse, maybe a little too great. A guy like Bradley could light some fires, figuratively, of course.
I'm a huge Milton Bradley fan and he would instantly become the team's best all-around outfielder and perhaps even their best offensive player, period. However, you can't deny the injury bug. Granted, he probably was not 100% throughout the '08 season, but every setback seemed to be a week on the bench with another part-time week before he returned to playing daily. Without the DH position to help him rack up at bats AND with the Cub's apparent desire to use him in CF, I worry about how much we'll actually see him on the field. Here's a depressing hypothetical - they sign Milton, he gets less than 400 ABs and Fukudome only makes modest progress from his embarrasing second half - the Cubs will have some huge offensive holes.