Petey to the Cubs?

Not that this is practical for either Pedro Martinez or the Chicago Cubs, but the possibility is out there that everyone's favorite Dominican hurler might end up in Cubbie blue.

I assume this is in the same vein as the DePaul men's basketball team possibly making the NCAA tournament by winning the conference tourney (they didn't) or the Cubs possibly winning the World Series this year (they probably won't) or the beer vendors at the Cell possibly exercising discretion in serving patrons in the upper deck (another probably won't).

Still, it's something fun to talk about until you realize that Martinez will likely sign anything placed in front of him to play in Los Angeles with his old pal, Manny Ramirez. This includes an In n Out Burger napkin with the words, "Pedro + Dodgers = 10-15 games or so in 2009?"

Keep in mind the stories that came out of New York after Martinez left the Red Sox and was supposeedly sending Ramirez notes on a consiteint basis, trying to sweet talk Manny into heading to the Big Apple. I'll be surprised if he ends up anywhere but there, assuming his arm keeps looking as solid as it has in WBC play.

Crede cuts ties to White Sox, moves to rival

The Chicago Auto Show is taking place downtown this week and heading down for a day has become a minor tradition for my brother-in-law and me. This makes for interesting timing, as we spent part of last year's visit discussing the future of Joe Crede and what the White Sox would do at third base for the 2008 season.

As of this morning, we'll have to think of something else to talk about.

Crede was in the Twin Cities to take his physical and presumably get back on a plane to Fort Myers, where he stands to be the starter at third for the Twins unless he gets hurt again. White Sox fans are more than aware that Crede's back has been a little iffy lately. This could very well be Chicago's version of a Trojan Horse in free agency form.

From the Twins site:

The Minneapolis Star Tribune is reporting that the deal features a base salary of $2.5 million, with the chance to earn $7 million in appearance bonuses. The bonuses begin once Crede reaches 250 plate appearances and tops out at $7 million following his 525th plate appearance...

The structure of the contract should help protect the Twins if Crede doesn't prove to be healthy. Crede, 30, has been limited to just 144 games the past two seasons due to back injuries. He's undergone two back surgeries over that time span, including one this past fall to remove a nerve impingement. His agent, Scott Boras, has told reporters that Crede is ready to go for Spring Training.

Back in Chicago, the team put a feature up on their site to pump up Fields a bit, drawing odd comparisons between Crede/Fields and Brett Favre/Aaron Rodgers. I know, weird, huh?

More interesting were the Green Bay parallels that ran right down to managing fan expectations of the new guy getting set to take over.

From the White Sox site:

Truth be told, Fields might not wind up quite as spectacular as a healthy Crede was with the glove at the hot corner. He might never win any accolades for his fielding.

Then again, a scant few third basemen match up with Crede when he's on his game. The present concern for Fields is not these personal highlights, as much as simply fitting into the White Sox big picture. To reach this goal, Fields knew his defensive play had to improve from an inconsistent 2008...

In 2007, Fields hit 23 home runs and drove in 67 over 100 games. In 2008, Fields hit .156 without a home run over 14 games. When Crede went down because of his balky back, the White Sox opted to start Juan Uribe at third because of his stronger defense.

(Image from: MLBlogs.com)

Signs of life

Sorry for the issues lately, most of those should come to an end in the new year - and chances are that if you're reading this, they are fixed for good.

Anyways, as Wrigley's playing surface is prepped to host a hockey game tomorrow, the front office personnel must have decided to come in for a half day on New Year's Eve, pulling the trigger on a deal that sends Mark DeRosa to the Indians in return for pitching prospects.

Smart money says this is groundwork for a Jake Peavy deal in early 2009.

From the Trib:

After spending much of the last two winters wondering about his job security in Chicago, Mark DeRosa was sent to Cleveland today following the signing of second baseman Aaron Miles. The Cubs acquired three pitching prospects from the Indians for DeRosa -- left-hander John Stevens, who was added to the 40-man roster, lefty John Gaub and right-hander Chris Archer.

Oooh, tell me more about this beard

While most hot stove rumors should be taken with a grain of salt, it's no less entertaining with nothing else happening in the baseball world this time of year.

If I were properly motivated or compensated, I'd love to go through each newspaper and start a power ranking system for who was spot on with their predictions and rumor-mongering and who was apparently making stuff up as they raided the hotel minibar and prepared to hit send on their laptops.

I'd really love to see if the writers who are seen as the gold standard when it comes to insider information really do hold up to any scutiny.

Well, sorry, that's just not going to happen this time around, but I do have a nice list compiled by Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe team that has the following notes of interest:

2. Milton Bradley is in intense discussions with the Cubs.
3. The Tigers are eyeing Kerry Wood on a two-year deal.
8. Talks were again heating up between the Padres and Cubs on Jake Peavy.
13. If the Cubs obtain Jake Peavy, Jason Marquis or Rich Harden become trade bait.
14. Jim Leyland has grown a winter beard.

God, I love Leyland. He's the crustiest old-school manager you could hope for.

(Image from: MLB.com)

Beggars and choosers

Piggybacking off of yesterday's post, I'd like to revisit the release of Kerry Wood for the last time... this week.

One of the big reasons this season was so exciting for me personally - and I suspect for many Cubs fans - was that Wood returned and was able to keep plowing forward and stay healthy for most of the season.

Of course, many of us saw this as a good omen and were proved wrong for the 100th consecutive year. No, we'll never learn.

To be totally honest, I'd rather see Chicago hoist the World Series trophy with Wood on the field, but at this point, it doesn't make any sense to start setting conditions for a victory that has eluded the team for a century.

It reminds me of the buzz that whips up around a team as they are a game away from winning it all, but will be playing on the road. The fans really, really want to see the final game on their home field, but unless they've gotten greedy, most fans don't breathe a word of this until after the last out goes in the book.

Obviously, the Cubs are not even close to this position.

While a championship with Wood on the roster would have been nice, the Cubs obviously see the need to win with whatever combination works. I guess that counts as progress at Clark and Addison, so I'll take it.

While I will miss Wood as much as anybody, I embrace any sort of change that brings a title to the North Side, short of purchasing the New York Yankees and teaching their pitchers how to bunt.

I will, however, take a degree of solace in knowing that Wood - for better or for worse from his standpoint - has been branded as a lifelong Cub, much like Mark Grace before him. So, while I'll quietly watch the rest of his career on MLB Extra Innings and cheer for him after overpaying for his services in fantasy baseball, I can also get behind the moves to push Carlos Marmol to the forefront of the bullpen and welcome any space cleared in the budget to try and move the team forward into an additional round of the playoffs.

And who knows, maybe this isn't goodbye to Wood as stranger things have happened at the trading deadline. It worked with Maddux, right?

(Image from: Some random Wordpress blog, so it's probably not even theirs)

Derrek Lee-ving?

While the link off the Chicago Tribune's home page plays up the rumors that Jake Peavy would waive his no-trade clause to pitch on the North Side, the real surprise comes from the idea that it would take Derrek Lee to swing the deal with San Diego.

From Phil Rogers:

The Cubs are on the list of teams for which Jake Peavy will waive his no-trade clause. This doesn't look like a fit, but don't be surprised if Jim Hendry tries to put together a package that would include a swap of first basemen, Derrek Lee and Adrian Gonzalez, who is supposedly untouchable.

Interesting move, it shakes up the lineup following another October implosion and provides a pound of flesh for fans still angry that Lee has under-performed in the playoffs as a member of the Cubs.

I honestly can't imagine a scenario where it makes sense to kill a cash cow like Lee - not to mention that his postseason drought has only occurred while wearing Cubbie pinstripes - regardless of how badly the team wants Peavy.

(Image taken for Siberian Baseball)

Can they package a side of Papi with that, too?

I'd be a completely worthless blogger if I didn't pile on regarding the wild speculation on the big free agent names every fall.

Sure, technically every team is looking at every free agent - and if they're not, then how do they justify their billable hours? - but the two big names in the front of the pack this hot stove season are Manny Ramirez and Jake Peavy.

Peavy is an easy one, as he's announcing his preference to stay in the National League where he can stick with hitters he already has a book on and won't face a designated hitter several times a game.

The best part of this is Greg Maddux's comment that he's stuck around the NL for his entire career because he's not stupid.

A trickier discussion arises around Ramirez who is the best way to start an argument with Red Sox fans this month. In the plus column is his status as arguably the best pure hitter in the majors right now. In the minus column is his "Mannyness" and his representation by Scott Boras.

The question with Ramirez is what it has been for years now - how much crap are you willing to put up with to reap the benefits of his big bat that doesn't disappear in the brightest spotlights?

If you're the Cubs, that crap threshold may be higher than most. Hence, the Manny to Chicago rumors are already swirling. Intertwined with this is the question of how to move Alfonso Soriano and his massive contract.

If nothing else, it gives Cubs fans something to talk about besides curses and how Old Style matches up against Bud Light.

(Image taken for Siberian Baseball)