Staying calm amid Peavy-mania
Wow, this Brian Roberts, er, Jake Peavy thing is nuts, eh? No, the Cubs' pursuit of Padres pitcher Jake Peavy isn't going to turn out like the Brian Roberts saga has. In other words, Peavy will be traded soon. To whom, I don't know yet, but the Cubs are in hot pursuit. I've been told the ball is completely in the Padres' court. Cubs GM Jim Hendry is pretty good at getting the guy he wants once he sets his sights on him, and I give him at least a 50-50 shot at landing Peavy. Of course, Padres GM Kevin Towers must decide among offers from the Cubs, Braves and Dodgers.
One name that is definitely NOT on the table is Cubs right-hander Jeff Samardzija. Samardzija's name appeared in this column today:
http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=jp-peavydeal110608&prov=yhoo&type=...
There is one error in the column, and that's the one stating Samardzija has a "partial" no-trade clause in his contract. Fact is, Samardzija has a FULL no-trade in his deal. As one baseball guy put it to me, "Why would you give a guy with no big-league experience a partial no-trade? It doesn't make sense."
The speculation about Mike Fontenot is premature as well. The Cubs have not thrown his name out there. Remember, the Cubs need left-handed hitting, and Fontenot hits the ball from the left side of the plate. Of course, if the Padres want Fontenot badly enough, the Cubs will put him into the deal.
One of the arguments I've heard a lot over the years is that the Cubs don't have much of a farm system. Let's debate that on another day. But Hendry has used that farm system during his tenure to obtain the likes of Aramis Ramirez, Derrek Lee and Rich Harden. From what I've been told, Towers likes the young players the Cubs are offering.
Young major-league pitcher Sean Marshall is likely in the offer as is Felix Pie, who has bounced up and down. Believe it or not, the Cubs do have several other minor-leaguers they can offer. Among them:
--Catcher Welington Castillo, who played in the Futures Game this year. He hit .298 at Class AA Tennessee before getting a promotion to Class AAA Iowa. He was at big-league camp this past February, and if he's not traded, he'll be there again in '09.
--Third baseman Josh Vitters, the Cubs' No. 1 pick in 2007. He played at Boise (A) and Peoria (A) this year, hitting .328 with a .365 OBP at Boise.
--Pitcher Mitch Atkins, who was the organization's minor-league pitcher of the year. He'll be put on the 40-man roster this fall, meaning he'll be in Mesa with the big club if he's not traded.
--Outfielder Tyler Colvin, the Cubs' No. 1 pick in 2006. He hit .256 with only a .312 OBP at Tennessee this year and still needs to get his walks total up.
--Pitcher Donnie Veal, who still gets plenty of attention despite a 5-10 record and 4.52 ERA at Tennessee.
--Pitcher Jose Ceda, whom the Cubs stole from those Padres for Todd Walker a couple years back. Think Towers wouldn't mind getting him back?
I expect something to get done one way or another by the middle of next week. As the headline in today's Daily Herald said, stay tuned.
...is interesting to say the least. Obviously, Hendry must have some doubts as to whether Dempster is going to be signable and this is why he is going this route. If I had to pick between Peavy and Dempster, Peavy is a logical choice because of his longer track record of success. My question is, what will this do to the Cubs plans to fill two offensive holes that are pretty glaring - left handed power bat, and a leadoff hitter who can get on base and steal you a base?
My sense is, Hendry will only be able to fill one of the two offensive holes with a top flight player and they will settle for a less quality to fill the other hole. IMO, the club is screaming for a leadoff hitter who can get on base and be a disruptive force on the bases, and I am hoping this is a priority. They can acquire another left handed bat (that is less costly) and also hope Fukudome makes some adjustments.
After a week of traveling for work, I'm cautiously optimistic. Last year I thought Roberts was a done deal only to be led on time after time again.
The most interesting part that is starting to unravel is the Padres picking up Brian Giles option. A 9 million dollar salary for a team that is trying to UNLOAD payroll is quite a stretch. Could the Padres be throwing in Brian Giles and giving the Cubs a one stop fix? NOt saying the Padres would want him, and with the money owed to him for the next 3 years, but maybe they get Giles, and Peavy, and include Fukudome and prospects to the deal with the Padres hoping that the west coast benefits Fukudome like it has many other asian players. I personally, think that Giles is NOT the answer. The man is the poster boy for steroids based on his shrinking arms and upper body, and his power numbers being non existent.
Giving up marshall is a must, but the Cubs would have to keep Marquis even if they somehow landed Dempster and Peavy as everyone here knows that Harden will not make all 32 starts, and with Zambrano flaring up last season, the Cubs will need protection.
Lastly, I 100% agree with Ed in the Burg. They still need a LEGIT leadoff hitter. THey can have 5 #1 starters, but if they hit like they have the past 2 years in the playoffs they will get rolled again. Plus what does this do to the bullpen? Or the bench?
I want Peavy, but the Cubs still have MAJOR gaps that need to be addressed with or without Jake. All we can hope is that it's settled quickly.
Just who the hell is your firstbase man when you trade Lee ? Texiera ? Pulhous ? If your trading a starting position player you have to have another who can replace him..
As I mentioned, Lee would be replaced by Adrian Gonzalez, this season's Gold Glove winner and an excellent lefthanded hitter just entering his prime.
If you do no think this sounds just like the Brian Roberts crap from last year, your are delusional. Just as trying to getting Peavy is. The Cubs can come up with starting pitching , they DO DO NOT HAVE A LEAD OFF HITTER. You mean to tell me it is a good idea to trade for for Peavy , lose 3 to 4 top notch prospects only to add to your strength ? Fontenoit is a nice complimentary player, but if he plays everyday you will see a journey man AAA guy, his worth is overated.. It is a shame and on Hendry the Cubs do not have a clue what Hoffpauir can do against big league pitching, they had a chance at the end of last year. Idiots never took advantange. I do not want to trade Lee, but if you could get a boatful, doubtful to be sure, fine.. Make a deal, but it had better be a good one.
If Hendry thinks that Fontenoit and Hoffpauir will be the left handed answers, smoke some for me.
And go ahead get rid of Marquis, he is worthless.. He has only given the Cubs on average 27 starts, 200 plus innings and an era that keeps you in most games, think you will get that out of Rich Hill ? And enough of being worrisome of Harden ,if he cant pitch 7 innings trade him, there has to be a reason the Cubs picked up his option.
Of course, I am still hoping that Derrek Lee and Adrian Gonzalez will be part of the trade too!
I would be willing to include any two of our Minor Leaguers in this deal but NOT Vitters -- he is definitely "off limits"! And if we have to give up 4 or more players in the deal, we should get more than just Peavy. Connected to this: what can we get for Marquis? And in this revised rotation, Harden would be a perfect #5 so he can be skipped on an occasional basis.
I'm sure Towers would gladly throw in Khalil Greene (/sarcasm)
You might have to eat some of his salary, but you probably can get something decent. I'm sure the Cubs will try hard to trade him if they get Peavy and also sign Dempster. You probably could get something decent for Marquis. He did start 28 games, and the reason he didn't start 30 or more was that Lou skipped him now and then. He's as good a fifth starter as there is, and he'd make a 3 or a 4 on some teams.
If Dempster stays, would the Cubs consider trading Zambrano?
I could live with a rotation of:
Peavy
Harden
Lilly
Dempster
Marquis
Or however Piniella would slot them. Zambrano could bring back a leadoff man and/or slugging white whale (sorry -- LH bat that Piniella says he needs). But it would certainly be controversial.
I'd be in favor of it, because I'm not convinced that Z is ever going to grow up. Pie (not Felix) in the sky?
Like everybody but the bat boy on the Cubs, Zambrano has a no-trade claus, and the Cubs aren't inclined to trade him. (I'll have to check on the bat boy, though.)
I'm skeptical about Z ever growing up, but the Cubs are "stuck" with him, if that's the right word. There are worse guys to be stuck with.
I like the "pie in the sky" line.
The clause isn't surprising, but wondered if he'd waive it to go to New York.
Maybe he will grow up . . . .
You're right that there are worse ones to be stuck with. He'd bring a lot back, though.
What is it with Hendry and his gifting everybody with these NTC's?
We should start calling it the Santa Clause.
Guys like Ramirez, Zambrano and Lee took less money from the Cubs than they would have gotten on open market to stay with the Cubs. In exchange, Hendry gave them no-trade clauses.
Peavy, Zambrano, Harden, and Lilly...that's a nice looking rotation.
Don't be dissin Marquis! He's one of the best 5th starters out there. It's not his fault Hendry decided to pay him like a 3rd or 4th starter (his family's gotta eat you know).
Wow, hope big Jim call pull this off. If anyone can it's him.
Great point regarding the Cubs' farm system and how that has been used indirectly to benefit the big league club.
I know a deal like this would lift my spirits. I still plan on going into next year VERY cautiously guarded/optimistic, but a move like this helps offset the bitterness from the NLDS (x 2).
If you get Peavy, you can try to re-sign Dempster, but you've got protection if he leaves, and the market for pitchers is going to be crazy.
Always good to be cautious, but this is a 97-win team. You can't have one team for April-September and one for October. Unless you do something like win around 90-100 games, you're not going to get to October in the first place.