Nick's '07 Cubs

Mercifully there is a little more then a week to go in this Cubs season. This has been one of the worst summers in my memory of being a Cub fan, which is saying something as I have seen some bad Cub teams. I didn’t have high hopes to begin with and they did not disappoint. What a complete and utter disaster 2006 has been. Last year I posted a blog about how it was going to be a long winter being a Cub fan and posted what I would do if I were GM. If you look back to that post I wanted the Cubs to keep Nomar, (currently hitting .300) sign Johnny Damon (currently hitting .293 with 22 homers) and sign Matt Morris (10 -14 with a 4.79 ERA)

So, maybe the Morris signing would have been bad but my other moves would sure look good now. So, since I had a better winter then Jim Hendry, I will again try to play GM and look at how to improve the Cubs for 2007.

Let’s look at the positives. I like Lee, Barrett, Murton and Theriot. I would bring all of them back next year. Ramirez can opt out of his contract if he wants. I don’t want him to go but all indications are that he will at least explore free agency. See if you can work with him and keep him here. My gut tells me, we will so that means we are set at first, second, third, left field, and catcher.

The Cubs can not start ’07 with Izturis or Cedeno at short. Cedeno is greener then Kermit the Frog and I don’t see him ever learning the strike zone. Plus his glove has been erratic. Send him down to Iowa. Izturis is a great glove but can’t hit a lick. There are limited free agents this winter at short so, we may have to look at a trade. The one decent free agent out there is Julio Lugo. Lugo is currently with LA and is a nice hitter. He doesn’t draw a ton of walks but he doesn’t strike out a lot either. Plus he has some pop and is a good glove.

Center Field is a huge question mark. Juan Pierre has quietly put together a real nice second half. I can live with bringing him back for the right price. However, I have a better idea. Why not sign Gary Matthews Jr.? Now, I know he is having a career year and I don’t expect him to duplicate what he is doing. Still, he is an OBP machine and is the best defensive center fielder in baseball. You can probably have him for a two or three year deal and it wouldn’t break the bank.

Right Field can not be manned by Jacque Jones again. Now, Jones has had a decent season. However, his overall lack of fundamentals and defensive shortcomings are reason enough for me to see about trading him. The Cubs will have to eat some of that salary but hey they can afford it and that is the price you pay for a bad signing. I don’t care who we get back just unload this guy. For who we sign I have an idea. It will only be a year or two fix but it is intriguing. I say we go out and sign Gary Sheffield. Everyone is up for bringing in Carlos Lee, but it will cost a ton and he will want a five to six year deal. I don’t want to commit myself to him for that long. Sheffield has a couple of good years left and is looking for like a two year deal. Let’s give him two year deal with a mutual option for like 10 million. I bet he signs it.

As for the rotation well, it is in shambles. Zambrano is an ace and he will no doubt be back next year. Rich Hill has won me over. This guy looks like the real deal. I want to believe Mark Prior comes back next spring healthy. I can’t count on it but sadly we have no choice. So that leaves two spots open in the rotation. Sean Marshall, and Juan Mateo have shown flashes but both could use another year at Iowa. For one opening why not bring back Maddux? He loves Chicago and if you use him right he can still be effective. It won’t cost a ton either. For the other spot I go out and sign Barry Zito. Now, this will take some money but Zito in the National league will be a killer. Since we are not really over paying anywhere else let’s spend some of the Trib profits on this guy.

The bullpen has some nice arms but some holes. I for one don’t feel you can go into 2007 with Dempster as your closer. Still he will be back and I can live with him as a long reliever or setup guy to go with Eyre and Howry. I also think Marmol and Wuertz, and Ohman are fine. With that said we need a ninth inning guy. We may have to think outside the box on this one. Kerry Wood is one possibility. Sign him to an incentive laden contract and see what he can do. Another idea is Keith Foulke. He has been hurt the last two years but if he is healthy next spring he could be back to where he was. Francisco Cordero is also out there and he has been pretty good since being dealt to Milwaukee. Still he might want a lot of money so, I am leaning towards bringing back Wood or taking a risk with Foulke. Due some due diligence and see which one is healthier. Novoa is a bum and I can live the rest of my life without ever seeing him again. Glendon Rusch is also under contract but there is no way you bring him back. Just eat his salary and move on.

So with my moves the 2007 Cubs would look like this. The lineup would be:

1. Matthews CF
2. Murton LF
3. Lee 1B
4. Sheffield RF
5. Ramirez 3B
6. Barrett C
7. Theriot 2B
8. Lugo SS

With a rotation of:

1. Zambrano
2. Zito
3. Maddux
4. Hill
5. Prior

On your bench you bring back Blanco to backup Barrett. Izturis is under contract so turn him into a utility infielder which is what he basically is. Angel Pagan is a nice outfielder to have on the bench as well. So that leaves in my mind two bench spots. Eduardo Perez is a free agent who can play the OF and first base and is a nice right handed power bat off the bench. For the last spot I like this Scott Moore kid they brought up. He can play both corner infield positions and is left handed.

As for the pitching staff, besides the five starters I mentioned, my bullpen would consist of, Howry, Eyre, Dempster, Wuertz, Ohman, Marmol, and either Wood or Foulke. Not a great staff but one that would give you a chance. Let’s see what Hendry and company does. I sure hope he has a better off season then he did in ‘06.