Ailing Guzman puts Cubs in tough spot
Reports out of Arizona say that right-handed reliever Angel Guzman will undergo an MRI today on his ailing right shoulder. Guzman reportedly continues to feel discomfort in the shoulder. In January, Guzman had his knee scoped, and while throwing off flat ground as he rehabbed the knee, he felt something in the shoulder. Reports also say righty Jeff Gray continues to be slowed by a groin strain.
http://muskat.mlblogs.com/archives/2010/03/35_guzman_gray_borderline_for...
If the results are bad, Guzman, could miss significant time. The Cubs already are dangerously thin from the right side of their bullpen. Carlos Marmol is the closer, with John Grabow setting up from the left side. Jeff Samardzija and Carlos Silva are two righties battling for rotation spots. Samardzija, whose mechanics appear much improved, conceivably could move to the pen, where he had some success in 2008.
Lou already has said Esmailin Caridad will have to pitch his way off the roster this spring. Caridad, 25, has a live arm and plenty of guts, but he has 14 games of big-league experience. The other leading candidates in camp are Jeff Stevens and Justin Berg. Lou probably wasn’t kidding when he mused about former No. 1 pick Andrew Cashner breaking with the big club in a bullpen role if he pitches well.
In any event, GM Jim Hendry will step up his efforts to land a veteran righty for the pen. That reliever, if Hendry can get him, most likely will come through a trade and not free agency. The Cubs, from what I was told, didn’t like the medicals on Kiko Colero, who signed with the Mets.
Guzman had to be shut down at the end of last year because of triceps soreness. Everybody knows his long history of injury problems. This latest development can't come as a shocker to the Cubs (and I know not everybody down in Mesa felt he'd be ready), and it puts great pressure on Hendry to shore up the pen.
Certainly lefty starter reliever swingmen who are solid/decent have alot of value. I would think that potentially if Gaub does well in spring training, it might free up the Cubs to trade Marshall for a RH setup man.
Well, two possible candidates out there are Chris Perez from the Indians and good ol' Juan Cruz in Kansas City. Perhaps some trade combo of Fontenot/Hoffpauir/Snyder for Perez. I agree about taking Baker over Fontenot; give Baker 400-450 at-bats and he could put up some DeRosa-like numbers. Man I miss my ol' chum Babe Herman.
I'd like to see this as the roster---IF (DLee, Theriot, Castro, Ramirez, Baker, Tracy); C (Soto, Hill); OF (Soriano, Byrd, Fukudome, Nady, Colvin); SP (Zambrano, Dempster, Wells, Gorzelany, Marshall); RP (Marmol, Grabow, Caridad, Samardzija, Silva, Berg, Chris Perez).
Millar could stay if they go with 11 pitchers; if no trade can be made, replace Perez with Cashner and trade Fontenot for something. Start Castro at SS, Theriott 2B, and Baker can be supersub. When Lilly comes back, he pushes Marshall/Gorzelany to the pen.
I do like a bench of Baker, Tracy, Colvin, Nady and Hill. Good flexibility and R/L hitting balance.
I prefer to see him stay in the bullpen...........all season. He's shown, so far, that he's nothing more than an average starter, but his stats out of the pen are what you would have to consider above average. Considering the state of the Cubs' relief corps, I think the wise move is to paly to as many pitchers' strengths as possibe. That means Gorzelanny starts, Marshall goes to the pen and we scratch for a fifth starter until Lilly can return.
Now that the Wood talk is heating up, how long before somebody mentions Smoltz?............oops.
I'd like to see Kerry come back, but could he accept a set-up role? Let's face it Marmol has to be given a full shot at closing.
MRI indicates Guzman's season and maybe his career are over. I never expected him to hold up and really never cared for him.
This forces the Cubs to face reality. Which is good news rather than the pipe dream of a healthy reliable Guzman.
I do believe that Stevens, Berg or Cashner will be ready to step in and do a nice job. I think one of these guys will take the next step to become an an effective major league pitcher. When the season is over you will see one these 3 put up numbers equal to or better than Guzman.
Didn't we learn our lesson about relying on guys with injury histories like this? Guzman was great when he was healthy for half a season, but historically he's NEVER healthy. Why on earth did the Cubs rely on him to fill such an important role? It seemed fairly obvious to me that they needed to get another late inning reliever in the offseason. They should've slotted Guzman for a middle relief role and figured anything else they got was gravy.
As I've stated a few times, the bullpen is a big concern. There is no backup closer, should Marmol flop under pressure and become unable to find the strike zone. And there are no reliable setup men. Just because Hendry elected to overpay Grabow doesn't make him a quality lefty that can be relied upon to come into tough situations and put out the fires.
...frankly, I don't even trust Marmol at the end of our pen. Will he all of a sudden decide that he can't hit the broad side of a barn with his fastball?
Bruce,
To find an experienced reliever, do you see the Cubs signing a remaining unsigned free agent or will they make a trade or peruse the cuts made by other teams as camps close?
As I said above in the blog, it will most likely come from a trade.
I'll go ahead and ask it...what about Kerry Wood? Too much salary?
Didn't take long for a Kerry Wood question to come up, but I think he's too rich for the Cubs' blood.
is they'll grab someone off the scrap heap like they did with Jim Edmonds and Reed Johnson.
IMO they shouldn't be afraid to throw the inexperienced guys like Cashner and Gaub in there.
Not likely, but with the volatility of bullpens, it could turn into a strength overnight if Cashner and Gaub pitch to their ceilings.
One of Jim Hendry's favorite words, right? Well, he's got a plethora of middle infielders - it's time to move either Jeff Baker or Mike Fontenot plus a pitching prospect for that quality right-handed middle reliever. From all indications, the Starlin Castro era is going to begin as soon as we get to the calendar date where this season doesn't count as a full year of service time for him. That's around May 15, correct? So, the Cubs should just bite the bullet and let either Baker or Fontenot be the everyday 2B for 45 days to keep the spot warm for Ryan Theriot, and trade the other guy.
After seeing a .390 OBP guy sign with the Cardinals to play 2B for less than $2M, a Castro-Theriot middle infield better be the Cubs plan for the bulk of the season.
I'll take Baker.
When isn't Guzman ailing? Put a fork in him already.
...but I think you're right! Our favorite intrepid blog hoster here I think told me that Guzman has been in the Cubs system since 1999.. Yeah, time to move on.
So what? He signed a minor league deal. No risk. What's the harm in doing what the Mets did and cutting bait if his arm is messed up? Is there any risk at all?