Marlon Jerrard Byrd is 32-years old (DOB: 8/30/77).  He was born in Boynton Beach, FL, but he was raised primarily in Marietta, GA.  He attended Georgia Tech in Atlanta where he played baseball.  While at Georgia Tech, Byrd injured his right leg causing muscle damage and resulting nerve damage.  He had to undergo three operations to his leg before the damage was corrected. 

Because of the injury and surgeries, Byrd missed a lot of class time at Georgia Tech and ended up leaving school.  Once he was healed, he enrolled at Georgia Perimeter Junior College (now called simply Georgia Perimeter College) and focused his efforts on building a career in baseball.

In 1999, Byrd was the 10th round pick of the Philadelphia Phillies.  Byrd did well in the minors, moving quickly through the Phillies minor league system.  The highlights of his minor league career include a tremendous year in 2001 in the Double-A Eastern League where he was named Rookie of the Year, the League’s Player of the Year, and he was a post-season All-Star while playing for the Reading Phillies.  In 2002, Byrd was named a post-season All-Star for the Triple-A Scranton Phillies of the International League. 

Byrd was considered a top prospect in the Phillies organization (getting as high as third in the organization) and he made his big league debut at the end of the 2002 season.  He only played in 10 games that year, getting 25 ABs and compiling a slash line of .229/.250/.371 with a homerun and an RBI.

In 2003 he became a starter for the Phillies and had a very good year.  In 135 games (495 ABs), Byrd put together a .303/.364/.418 hitting line with 7 homeruns and 45 RBI.  He came in 4th in Rookie of the Year voting (Dontrelle Willis of the Marlins won the ROY award).

The Phillies had big plans for Byrd after his rookie campaign, but like so many players, he suffered through a sophomore slump.  In 2004, he hit just .228/.287/.321 with five homeruns and 33 RBI in 346 ABs.  After playing just five games with Philadelphia in 2005, he was traded to the Washington Nationals for Endy Chavez.  The change of scenery didn’t help Byrd much.  He ended the year hitting a combined .266/.323/..376 with two homeruns and 26 RBI in 229 ABs.

Byrd’s career continued to slide downhill in 2006 with Washington.  He began the year in the majors, but by July 15 of that year, the Nationals had seen enough and they sent him back to Triple-A.  While with the Nationals in 2006, Byrd hit just .223/.317/.350 with five homeruns and 18 RBI in 197 ABs.

In 2007, the Texas Rangers took a shot on the struggling Byrd and signed him to a minor league contract.  He started the year in class-AAA, but was called up to the Rangers in May after both Brad Winkerson and Jerry Hairston, Jr. went down with injuries.  Byrd played well, getting 414 ABs and hitting .307/.355/.459 with 10 homeruns and 70 RBI.  In fact, the Rangers were so pleased with Byrd’s play that they traded starting CF Kenny Lofton to Cleveland and replaced him in the line-up with Byrd.

Byrd’s work with Rangers’ (now Cubs’) hitting coach Rudy Jaramillo continued to pay off in 2008.  Byrd hit .298/.380/.462 with 10 homeruns and 53 RBI in 122 ABs.  Through much of the season, Byrd suffered with a bad knee, forcing him to spend a little over a month on the DL.  He had off season microfracture surgery in October which included repair of a torn meniscus.

In many ways, 2009 was Byrd’s career year, although some will argue that he actually had a better year in 2008.  Regardless, 2009 was a very productive year for Byrd.  He hit .283/.329/.479 with 20 homeruns and 89 RBI (both career highs) in 547 ABs (also a career high).  Following the season, the Rangers offered Byrd salary arbitration, but he declined, preferring instead to test out the free agent market and seek a multi-year deal.

Byrd’s center field defense has always been considered good, but his UZR/150 rating indicates that he is the epitome of average in CF, scoring a 0.0 career rating.  He actually has above-average ratings in both right and left field.

Byrd isn’t much of a stolen base threat.  His career high is just 11, which he achieved in 2003 with the Phillies.  During his three years with the Rangers, Byrd stole a total of 20 bases.

From a money standpoint, I was surprised to learn that Byrd actually took a pay cut to play for the Cubs in 2010.  He earned $3.06 million in 2009 with the Rangers (plus $87,500 in bonuses for hitting AB targets) and would have almost certainly received a raise had he accepted arbitration.  He agreed to play for $3 million for the Cubs in 2010, but of course he’ll receive raises in both 2011 and 2012.     

On a more personal note, Byrd is married and has two children.  In high school, he was a two sport star (baseball and football) and he enjoys golf, tennis and weightlifting away from the ball park.

I think it’s fair to say that Byrd is not the player the Cubs coveted.  They started the off season looking for a run producing middle-of-the-order bat and/or a speedy lead-off hitter with a good OBP.  Byrd is neither of those guys, although he’s closer to the former than the latter at this stage of his career.  Even so, the pickings were pretty slim and the club signed Byrd to a reasonable contract, so all is not lost. 

Bill James has projected that Byrd will hit .279/.340/.438 with 14 homeruns and 64 RBI in 480 ABs in 2010.  I’m not sure how James does his projections, but I would think they would change with Byrd moving from Texas to the Cubs.  His projection must be impacted by who he plays with, who he hits behind and in front of, and where in the lineup he hits.  My guess is that Byrd will hit 5th or 6th in the lineup for the Cubs.  If he can just repeat the success he had in Texas, I think we’ll all be happy.

Trade Candidates

Melky Cabrera — After trading for Curtis Granderson, the Yankees suddenly have a surplus of good, young outfielders.  They may be interested in trading either Cabrera or Brett Gardner.  If the Cubs could snag Cabrera, they would be getting a guy that hit .274/.336/.416 for the Yankees in 2009 with 13 homeruns and 68 RBI.   The switch hitting Cabrera is just 25-years old and earned $1.4 million in 2009.  As a fielder, UZR/150 says he’s just slightly above average, posting a rating of 2.3.  UPDATE: Cabrera has been traded to the Braves, so he’s now off the board.

Shin-Soo Choo — Choo is a 27-year old outfielder from Korea.  Last year with the Indians, Choo hit .300/.394/.489 with 20 homeruns and 86 RBI.  He also had 21 stolen bases and was caught just twice.  It was the best year of his major league career.  He is currently listed as the Indians starting right fielder, but Matt LaPorte is breathing down his neck and Cleveland may be interested in trading him.  Choo has only played a handful of games in center field, but he’s been an above-average left fielder in his career and an average right fielder, so I’m assuming he can handle center field.  Choo earned $420,300 in 2009 and is likely due for a raise.

Rajai Davis — The Oakland A’s are stock full of outfielders, potentially making Rajai Davis available.  Davis hit .305/.360/.423 with  3 homeruns and 48 RBI in 390 ABs.  he also had 41 stolen bases and was caught stealing 12 times.  UZR/150 likes Davis, giving him a 17.8 rating in center field in 2009.  The 29-year old davis (he’s not a kid) earned $410,000 in 2009 and will likely be in line for an increase in 2010.  Jim Hendry and Billy Beane have worked well together on deals in the past.  Might the get together this off season on Davis? 

Jacoby Ellsbury — Ellsbury could be the odd man out in Boston now that the Red Sox have signed center fielder Mike Cameron.  It’s unclear where Ellsbury will end up playing or even if he’ll be starting.  In 2009, Ellsbury hit .301/.355/.415 with 8 homeruns and 60 RBI.  He also stole an impressive 70 bases while getting caught just 12 times.  He’d look good at the top of the Cubs batting order.  Ellsbury gets gigged for his 2009 UZR/150 rating of  -18.3, but I’m not buying it.  Chris Moore at BaseballAnalysts.com took a look at Ellsbury’s defense and concluded that UZR/150 probably missed the boat.  Ellsbury is just 26-years old and could fill center field for the Cubs for years to come.  And at just $449,500 per year (his 2009 salary), he’s a bargain.

Dexter Fowler — Fowler is a good looking young ballplayer (I sound like Harry Caray) who hit .266/.363/.406 with 4 homeruns and 34 RBI in 2009 for Colorado.  He’s just 23-years old and is coming off his rookie season with a lot of promise.  UZR/150 didn’t like his fielding much, giving him just a -20.3 rating.  Fowler is currently blocked in center field in Colorado by Carlos Gonzalez, another promising youngster.  There’s no guarantee that Fowler is going to follow up his rookie campaign by continuing to develop, but I think it would be a fairly safe risk for the Cubs, especially considering that he is so inexpensive (he earned just $401,000 2009).

Brett Gardner — Who would you take from the Yankees, Melky Cabrera or Brett Gardner?  In 2009, Gardner hit .270/.345/.379 with 3 homeruns, 23 RBI and 26 stolen bases in 248 ABs.  He’s a terrific center fielder with a career UZR/150 rating of 27.6.  In a crowded Yankees line-up, it’s tough to say who will be the odd-man out, but it appears to be either Cabrera or Gardner.  Could Gardner be the Cubs center fielder of 2010 and beyond?

Gary Matthews, Jr — The Angels badly want to trade Matthews.  Here’s what the Cubs should consider:  He’s not much of a hitter anymore, he’s not a very good fielder anymore, and he’s very expensive.  Need I say more?

Nyjer Morgan — Washington acquired Morgan last year from Pittsburgh.  He put together a good year between the two teams, posting a hitting line of .307/.369/.388 with 3 homeruns and 39 RBI.  He also stole 42 bases in 2009.  Unfortunately for Morgan, he was stealing third base on August 28 against the Cubs when he broke his hand and missed the remainder of the season.  In 2009, Morgan posted an impressive 40.5 UZR/150 rating.  Not only could he handle center field at Wrigley, but he could also be the lead-off hitter that the Cubs sorely need.  But why would Washington trade him?  Good question.  Unfortunately, at this moment, I don’t have a good answer.  At 29-years old, Morgan is a bit of a late bloomer.  He made just $411,500 in 2009 and is going to be affordable for some time to come.

Cody Ross — Ross is not a kid like a lot of the people on this list.  He’s 29-years old (that’s not that old) and is a bit more of a known quantity than some of the other trade candidates.  What we know is that he hit .270/.321/.484 with 24 homeruns and 90 RBI in 2009 for Florida.  We also know that 2009 was the best year of Ross’ career.  But to be fair, Ross has been coming on strong since 2007.  He primarily plays center field, although he also spent time in right field and is currently listed as the Marlins starting right fielder.  In center field, Ross had a UZR/150 rating of -9.5 in 2009.  Ross earned $2.225 million in 2009 and accepted arbitration for 2010.

Aaron Rowand — San Francisco would like to move Rowand’s contract.  In 2009, the 32-year old center fielder hit .261/.319/.419 with 15 homeruns and 64 RBI.  He had a 1.5 UZR/150 rating and he earned $8 million on a contract that runs through 2012.  He is still owed $36 million.  The Cubs don’t need to bring in an aging outfielder who is on the down-side of his career and making a lot of money.  Although I like Aaron Rowand, I don’t think he is the answer in center field.

Grady Sizemore — To be honest, I don’t think the Indians have any interest in trading Sizemore, but I saw him on another list, so I thought I’d include him.  In 2009, Sizemore hit .248/.338/.445 with 18 homeruns and 64 RBI in what by Sizemore standards was a down year.  Sizemore is signed through 2011 and is owed $13.1 million.  His contract also includes an $8.5 million option in 2012 with a $500,000 buyout.  Sizemore had a -4.0 UZR/150 rating in 2009, but he has a career UZR/150 of 5.4.  I don’t think it matters.  He’s not going anywhere.

Denard Span — Would Minnesota be willing to trade Denard Span?  If so, the Cubs need to get to the front of the line.  In 2009,  the 25-year old Span hit .311/.392/.432 with 8 homeruns and 68 RBI.  And he did it for a cheap $435,000.  UZR/150 gave him a fielding rating of -7.4, but from everything I’ve read, he does a fine job in center field.  He has emerged as one of the top lead-off hitters in baseball and would be a good long-term investment for the Cubs.

Willy Taveras — I’m pretty sure that the Cubs could convince the Reds to trade Taveras for a couple of prospects.  Cincinnati badly needs to cut payroll and the weak hitting Taveras is owed $4 million in 2010.  Trading for Taveras would not be a good move.

Vernon Wells — Okay, I don’t think the Cubs should trade for him and his monster contract either, but I thought he should be listed anyway because he’s available.  I don’t know if you’ve heard, but Wells makes a lot of money.

Chris Young — Young is a 26-year old center fielder for Arizona.  He hit .212/.311/.400 in 2009 with 15 homeruns and 42 RBI.  His UZR/150 rating for 2009 was -9.8.  I’m not as high on Young as some people are.  I do think he has potential, but I’m not convinced he’s ever going to realize that potential.  He’s signed through 2013 and is owed $26.25 million over the next four years.  The contract also includes a club option for 2014 for $11 million with a $1.5 million buyout.  Although I included him in this list, my hope is that the Cubs don’t pursue him.

Eric Young, Jr. – The 24-year old Young is an interesting player for the Cubs.  He plays both second base and center field (just like his dad).  As it turns out, the Cubs need to fill both positions.  At the moment, Young is a reserve for Colorado, but he appears to be ready for prime time.  He only played in 30 games in 2009, and is eligible for Rookie of the Year in 2010.   Trading for Young would be a bit of a risk.  Does he have what it takes to be an all-star caliber big leaguer?

I was reminded of the need for a salary cap again today when I was reading a rather innocuous post on MLBTradeRumors.com.  In essense, the post said that the Pirates are looking to add one or two low-cost free agents, but again this off season, they won’t be a player for any big name free agents.  The same is likely true for the Marlins, Twins, Rays, Royals and Padres, and maybe a few other teams as well.

Imagine if you were a fan of the Pirates (or any of the other teams listed).  Every off season, you get to watch other more well-healed teams compete for big name free agents — the type of player that can make a huge difference for a team — while your team quietly sits on the sideline waiting to possibly scoop up the leftovers.  It must be a hopeless feeling.

Once the off season is over and the season is about to begin, the hopeless feeling you had in the off season is doubled because you know that your favorite team has virtually no chance of competing.  For the Pirates, their only hope for the 2010 season is that they might be able to finish ahead of the Reds in the standings, especially since the Reds are under pressure to cut payroll and will likely field a worse team in 2010 than they did in 2009.

Honestly, why would any sport want to run a league in a way that allows a team in it’s largest market to outspend a small market team like the Pirates by a factor of five-to-one?  Money may not buy championships, but it sure makes it a lot easier.

The Yankees payroll allows them to put an all-star at almost every position.  And when one player underperforms, they go out in the off season and sign a free agent to replace them or trade with a lesser-payroll team to get the best player at that position.  They are constantly reloading.  I’m not a Yankees fan nor am I privy to the philosophy of their front office, but I have to believe that the Yankees (and to a lesser extent the Red Sox) view the rest of Major League Baseball as an extension of their minor league sytstem.  When they need a player, if he’s not in their farm system, they can just go to Cleveland, or Florida, or Pittsburgh and trade for the player they need.

I don’t want this post to sound like a slam against the Yankees.  I don’t blame the Yankees in the least for the competitive imbalance that exists in baseball today.  The Yankees are simply playing by the rules and doing it well.  The Yankees are not the problem, the system is the problem.

Joe Posnanski of Sports Illustrated wrote a terrific article recently highlighting the inequities in baseball.  Posnanski writes that everyone knows the Yankees outspend every other team, but they may not fully comprehend how bad the problem really is.

“This is much starker than people think, by the way. I quickly went back and looked at the numbers before writing my column for SI.com, and I’m going to reprint them here because even as someone who has also grown sick of hearing about the Yankees payroll, I found them to be stunning:

In 2002, the Yankees spent $17 million more in payroll than any other team.

In 2003, the Yankees spent $35 million more in payroll than any other team.

In 2004, the Yankees spent $57 million more in payroll than any other team. I mean, it’s ridiculous from the start but this is pure absurdity. Basically, this is like the Yankees saying: “OK, let’s spend exactly as much as the second-highest payroll in baseball. OK, we’re spending exactly as much. And now … let’s add the Oakland A’s. No, I mean let’s add their whole team, the whole payroll, add it on top and let’s play some ball!”

In 2005, the Yankees spent $85 million more than any other team. Not a misprint. Eight five.

In 2006, the Yankees spent $74 million more than any other team.

In 2007, the Yankees spent $40 million more than any other team — cutbacks, you know.

In 2008, the Yankees spent $72 million more than any other team.

In 2009, the Yankees spent $52 million more than any other team…

So how can the commissioner of baseball promote such nonsense as Hope on Opening Day when the game is set up for one team to spend tens of millions more than anyone else?”

Of course, all of the big news continues to surround Milton Bradley.  He issued an apology yesterday that sounded like it had been crafted by some first year PR hack.  The apology was reported all over the place.  I stole mine from Gordon Wittenmyer’s article in the Sun-Times:

“I chose Chicago as a free agent because I wanted to be part of finally bringing a championship to Chicago’s fans,” Bradley’s statement read. “I expected to have a great season, and I am deeply disappointed by my performance and the team’s struggles.

“I played every game with everything that I had and wanted desperately to win. My frustration and disappointment boiled over, and I said and did certain things that I regret. In hindsight, I wish that I handled certain things differently, and I apologize for those things that did not work out for the better.

“The air has been cleared, and we all want to move on and look forward to better days.”

It’s obvious that Milton Bradley did not write or issue that apology.  There wasn’t even any effort made to make it sound like Bradley was making the apology.  I don’t know how others feel, but the pseudo-apology means nothing to me.  It’s a crock.

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I’m not sure who Bradley was apologizing to, but it apparently was not his teammates.  Carrie Muskat reported via Twitter that Bradley’s teammates didn’t even know about the apology until they heard about it from the media.  Milton must not have been too sorry for the way he threw his teammates under the bus and generally disrupted life in the clubhouse.

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The Cubs announced yesterday that Milton Bradley will continue to be paid during his suspension and that the MLBPA will not file a grievance.  Although Ken Rosenthal’s story didn’t say it in so many words, it sounded like the Cubs and Bradley’s agents negotiated the terms of the suspension.  In exchange for an apology and a guarantee that the MLBPA would not get involved, the Cubs agreed to pay Bradley for the time he is suspended.  That’s my interpretation of how things went, although I did not read that anywhere.

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Chris La Duca of the Chicago Sun-Times spoke to Charlena Rector, Milton Bradley’s mother, about the suspension.  After initially saying that she would not speak to any more reporters, she went on to detail how Bradley’s 3-year old child was repeatedly called the n-word by teachers, parents, and children at the day care he attends.  Because of the repeated racial slurs directed at the child, Rector claimed, Bradley was never able to fully concentrate when he was at the ballpark.

I take racism very seriously, but I just find this claim to be incredible.  What day care (or any other business) could remain in business (and not prompt an investigation) by treating children this way?  And Rector claimed that the child was subject to a “slew of racial slurs” from teachers, parents, and children.  If this actually happened, why wouldn’t Bradley remove the child after the first racial slur?  Why allow the child to remain in that environment?

It sounds to me like Bradley is hiding behind his child and claiming incredible acts of racism to explain away his own bad behavior.  True racism is a heinous act and I find it completely despicable that Bradley would make up a racial incident to help explain his own anti-social behavior.  It makes it all the worse that he brought his three-year old child into this mess.

Rector also claimed that she was duped by Chicago radio talk-show host Jonathan Bradmeier to appear on his radio show.  She claimed that she did not realize that her conversation with Brandmeier was for broadcast (Oh really, does Jonathan Bradmeier call you to just chat very often?).  It seems that making excuses for ones behavior or actions runs in the family.

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Milton Bradley has had a long history of bad behavior during his career.  As best I can tell, he has always blamed his behavior on others and has never taken responsibility for his own actions.  Let’s take a trip down memory lane and relive some of Bradley’s greatest hits:

• In 2004 as a member of the Cleveland Indians, Bradley gets pulled over for speeding, but then drives away from the officer who tries to pull him over.  Bradley receives a three day jail sentence for the incident.
• Just one month later, Bradley and Indians manager Eric Wedge get into a fracas over the fact that Bradley is not hustling.  Bradley is pulled out of the Spring Training game and quickly traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
• While with the Dodgers, Bradley has words with the homeplate umpire and is thrown out of the game.  Manager Jim Tracy has to physically restrain Bradley.  Bradley finally exits the field, only to return a moment later and throw a bag of baseballs onto the field, including throwing several into the outfield.
• Still in 2004, Bradley picks up a plastic bottle that has been thrown on the field and slams it angrily at the feet of a fan in the right field stands.  Bradley receives a five game suspension.
• In 2005 while still with the Dodgers, Bradley claims that Jeff Kent is a racist and he is then traded to Oakland for Andre Ethier (I bet Billy Beane would like a “do over” on that one). 
• In 2007 as a member of the San Diego Padres, Bradley disputes a call at first base and goes after the first base umpire.  In an effort to restrain Bradley, manager Bud Black grabs him and their legs get tangled.  Bradley crumples to the ground and is out for the remainder of the season with a torn ACL.  Bradley claims he was “baited” into the confrontation.
• As a member of the Texas Rangers in 2008, Bradley has the best offensive season of his career.  Unfortunately, he continues to have some behavioral issues.  After a Kansas City Royals broadcaster says something on-air that Bradley takes exception to, Bradley rushes to the press box to have a conversation with said broadcaster.  On the way to the press box, Bradley is chased down by GM Jon Daniels and manager Ron Washington who convince him that attacking the broadcaster is a bad idea.
• Following the best year of his career, Bradley admits to reporter Gil LeBreton that there were times that he sat out of games with the Rangers in order to save his stats in anticipation of a big pay day.  The revelation doesn’t go over very well with his Ranger teammates or the front office, especially considering that SS Michael Young was dragging himself out onto the field everyday with broken fingers on both hands.
• In 2009, Bradley signs a three-year, $30 million contract with the Cubs.  Their faith in him is rewarded during his first at-bat at Wrigley Field when Bradley argues with and bumps the home plate umpire.  He is suspended for two games, although the suspension is eventually reduced to one game.
• Bradley slumps badly during his first several weeks with the Cubs.  The disappointment becomes too much for him.  After a  poor at-bat in June in a game against the White Sox, Bradley returns to the dugout, throws his helmet, and proceeds to beat the hell out of a Gatorade cooler.  He then has angry words with manager Lou Piniella, who calls him “a piece of shit” and sends him home early from the game.
• In a game against Milwaukee, Bradley hits a single and then pulls himself out of the game.  When he is questioned about this by the press after the game, he initially refuses to answer any questions, but eventually says, “I got knee inflammation. I got two knee surgeries, and that happens when you got knee surgery, in case you don’t know. What else you got?” He then proceeds to answer every question asked with “What else you got?” 
• The next day in St. Louis, Bradley is asked to pinch hit, but he refuses.  After the game he is interviewed by Bruce Miles of the Daily Herald.  He tells Miles, among other things, that he plays harder than anyone on the team, but he never gets any credit for it (Odd thing to say on a day when you refused to play).  He also says that the whole environment with the Cubs is “negative” and he says it’s no wonder they haven’t won a World Series in more than 100 years.  The next day he is suspended for the remainder of the season for behavior detrimental to the organization.

People would like to blame Bradley’s behavior on Jim Hendry (“If he wouldn’t have signed Bradley, we wouldn’t have this mess.”) or Lou Piniella (“Lou gets paid $4 million a year to deal with these prima donnas.  It’s his fault that Bradley was allowed to act up and cause problems in the clubhouse.”).  My take is a little different.  I blame Bradley for Bradley’s behavior.  Should he have been signed in the first place?  Could Piniella have done a better job of controlling/pacifying him?  Was the suspension warranted or even a good idea?  Those are all fair questions, but they don’t address the choices Bradley made or the actions he took.  All of Bradley’s choices and actions are the responsibility of Bradley and no one else.

Grabow is more than just a LOOGY.  In the past, he has worked as both a set-up man and as a closer (not in the same game).  He will likely serve as a middle relief guy for the Cubs.  The 30-year old Grabow will become a free agent at the end of the year.  He signed for $2.3 million in 2009.  He projects to be a Type-A free agent.

Initially, there was some thought that the Cubs were looking for a left-handed reliever who could be used to shut down left handed hitters.  If that’s what they were looking for, that’s not what they got.  This year, right handed batters are hitting .234 against Grabow while lefties are hitting .275.

Twenty-seven-year old Gorzelanny was a terrific pitcher in 2007 for the Pirates, but kind of fell apart in 2008.  Some people have blamed overuse in 2007 for Gorzellany’s poor performance in 2008.  Whatever happened, he has seen very little action for the Pirates this year and was pitching for Triple-A Indianapolis when the Cubs acquired him.  For Indy, Gorzellany was 4-3 this year with a 2.48 ERA.  He’ll report to Iowa for the Cubs and will try to work his way up to Chicago.

The Cubs gave up Kevin Hart, who not only was having a good year, but was having a good game at the time the deal was made.  Hart got the win today against the Astros going 6.0 inning, giving up six hits, three earned runs, striking out four and walking two.  He found out after the game he had been traded to Pittsburgh.  That was a better fate than what happened to the pitcher he faced.  Houston pitcher Russ Ortiz gave up nine earned runs in 2.1 innings and was released immediately after the game.

Hendry sold high on Hart, who was 3-1 with the Cubs and was sporting a 2.60 ERA.  He has had a good year so far in 2009.  In fact, he’s done better than just about anyone expected.  That’s why it was smart to trade him now.  He’s worth more now than he has ever been and it’s likely he won’t  be worth as much as he is now any time in the future. 

Jose Ascanio, in my opinion, is a run of the mill right handed reliever.  He’s not terrible, but he’s easily replacable.   

Josh Harrison is a man without a position at the moment.  The Single-A infielder doesn’t have the power to be a third baseman, and he doesn’t have the footwork to be a good middle infielder.  Unless things change drastically, Harrison will likely never be more than a utility infielder, a position the Cubs have in spades. 

Overall, I really like this trade.  Hendry did a good job of getting one piece that the Cubs need now (Grabow) and another piece that, if he returns to form, could help in the future.  In exchange, he didn’t give up much that will hurt the team either this year or into the future. 

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If you want to see a great defensive play, take a look at the video at this link.  Delwyn Young is the player that makes the great barehanded catch.  The ump made the wrong call on the play, but the Pirates got their man any way.

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In other trades of note yesterday and today, the Phillies acquired Cliff Lee and OF Ben Franciso from Cleveland, the Dodgers acquired LHP George Sherrill from Baltimore, and the Giates acquired 2nd basemenFreddy Sanchez from Pittsburgh.

Friday at 4:00 PM ET is the deadline to make trades.  Other rumor out there are the Rangers and Dodgers still working on a Roy Halladay trade (Is anyone else besides me surprised that the Rangers are in this conversation?), the Red Sox are trying to find a way to land Adrian Gonzalez,  the Yankees are looking at the Royals Brian Bannister, and the Giants are kicking the tires on Mark Teahan.

Carlos Zambrano got the start for the Cubs and pitched well, going 7.0 innings and giving up just three hits and an earned run.  He struckout four and walked four.  Wandy Rodriguez was every bit as good for the Astros, going 7.0 innings, giving up six hits and one earned run.  He struckout seven and walked two. 

Both bullpens battled it out for the next six innings.  But in the bottom of the 13th inning, Houston’s Chris Sampson faced Alfonso Soriano with the bases loaded and Soriano delivered a blast to deep center field to end the game.

Aramis Ramirez was the hitting star, going 3-for-6, including a sharply hit single that led to the Cubs eventual victory.  Ramirez is hitting .338 and has looked great since his return from the DL.  I guess his shoulder is doing okay (*knocks on wood*).

Derrek Lee was 2-for-3 with a homerun and three walks.  Milton Bradley went one-for four with two walks.  Bradley hasn’t completely turned the corner on his hitting  (he’s still hitting just .248), but he is looking better up at the plate and he is finding a way to get on base.  It’s still not enough, but it’s a start.

The series with the Astros continues tonight with Roy Oswalt (6-4) going for Houston against the fresh-off-the-DL Ryan Dempster (5-5).

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The Cardinals beat the Dodgers to keep pace with the Cubs, while the Astros lost to the Cubs and the Brewers lost to Washington.  Houston is in third place in the division, three games behind the Cubs.  The Brewers are now one game under .500 and 4.0 games back in fourth place in the division. 

With Milwaukee falling under .500 so close to the trade deadline, does that mean they may tun from being buyers into sellers?  Baseball is a game of faith, but you also need to know when to cut your losses and set your sights on next year.  If the Cubs were in the same position, I would say they should keep fighting.  But the Brewers don’t have nearly the pitching that the Cubs have and adding Jerrod Washburn (as has been rumored) won’t improve them enough.

I don’t want to write off the Brewers.  They have a tremendous offensive team, but their pitching staff needs work.  If I were either GM Doug Melvin or owner Mark Attanasio, not only would I be driving a nicer car, but I would play out the string this year and focus on making my pitching staff better in the off-season.  Or maybe a better way to say it is that I wouldn’t make any moves this year unless those moves help to make the team better in the future.  A one year rental won’t make things better in the future.

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Ted Lilly had his knee scoped yesterday and everything went well, at least that’s what Paul Sullivan with the Chicago Tribune say.  According to noted physician Lou Piniella, Lilly’s shoulder should be healed by the middle of August and his knee should be ready to go by then as well.

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Add Washington’s Joe Beimel and Pittsburgh’s John Grabow to the list of relievers the Cubs are looking at.  This, according to Bruce Miles at the Daily Herald.  George Sherrill of Baltimore seemed to be the Cubs first choice for lefty reliever, but Orioles GM Andy McPhail has placed a rather high price on his left-hander. 

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JP Ricciardi will not budge off of his price for Roy Halladay, so teams are beginning to turn their attention to Cleveland’s Cliff Lee.  I’m sure Cleveland is not going to just give Lee away, but they are in a dealing mood.  According to MLB Trade Rumors, yesterday the Indians sent outfielder Ryan Garko to San Francisco for LHP prospect Scott Barmes.  The Indians reportedly still have interest in moving Lee as well as catcher Victor Martinez.

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According to MLB Trade Rumors, East Windup Chronicle is reporting that the Cubs have signed Taiwanese pitcher Wang Tsu-an.  Tsu-an (or is it just Wang) reportedly received a $300,000 signing bonus.

Rich Harden earned the victory on Sunday by pitching 6.0 innings of one hit baseball.  The only hit he gave up was a first inning solo homerun to Joey Votto.  In his 6.0 inning stint, Harden struck out eight and didn’t allow any walks.

Ryan Theriot, Aramis Ramirez, Milton Bradley, Alfonso Soriano and Koyie Hill all had two hits on the afternoon.  In fact, Milton Bradley was 2-for-2 with two singles and two walks.  I know it was just two hits and two walks, but the fact that he was on-base each of his plate appearances makes Sunday’s performasnce perhaps his best as a Cub. (Game video and interviews here)

The Astros visit Wrigley starting today for a four game set.  Carlos Zambrano (7-4) takes on Cubs killer Wandy Rodriguez (10-6) in the first match-up of the series.

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There are only five days left (including today) before we run up against the trade deadline.  It’s looking more and more like Roy Halladay will remain with Toronto.  Philadelphia made a push over the weekend, but they were rebuffed by the Blue Jays.  Toronto wants Kyle Drabek and JA Happ – Philadelphia’s two top pitching prospects – but Philly doesn’t want to part with them, at least not both.  It looks like Philly may be turning their attention to the less expensive Cliff Lee.

Both the Rangers and Angels remain interested in Halladay.  However, the Angels likely don’t have the prospects Toronto wants.  The Rangers have the prospects and the willingness to trade them, but it looks like they don’t have the payroll flexibility to take on Halladay’s contract.

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The Cardinals obtained Matt Holliday from the A’s in exchange for top prospect Brett Wallace and two other minor league prospects.  They previously obtained Mark DeRosa from Cleveland for pitching prospect Chris Perez and a PTBNL.  The PTBNL was named yesterday and it was Jess Todd.  According to MLB Trade Rumors, Todd was highly thought of in the Cardinals organization and Baseball America had him listed as the Cardinals #4 prospect.

The Cardinals are obviously going all in to win the NL Central this year.  They’re mortgaging their future and draining their farm system for a shot at the brass ring right now.  However, I’m not sure that they have the horses to get it done this year, and trading away so many of their top prospects is going to make it more difficult to win in years to come.

Milwaukee has been involved in the Roy Halladay sweepstakes, but they are on the outside looking in.  Instead, they have turned their attention to Jerrod Washburn of the Seattle Mariners.  According to Tom Hardicourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Seattle is looking for a shortstop and the Brewers have two good ones in JJ Hardy and Alcides Escobar.  Trading away either one for a few months of Washburn would be a high price to pay, but the Brewers may think they have a leg up on re-signing him when he becomes a free agent at the end of the year since Washburn is a Wisconsin native.

Washburn could probably help the Brewers, but he’s no CC Sabathia.  If they are looking to catch that lightning in a bottle again, they’re probably in for disappointment.  Sabathia put the Brewers on his back last year after he was acquired from Cleveland, and he led them into the playoffs.  It’s doubtful that Washburn can do the same.

Houston, who is just 2.0 games behind the Cubs in third place, is unlikely to make any moves at the trade deadline.  In an interview with Brian McTaggart of MLB.com (and reported by MLB Trade Rumors), Houston GM Ed Wade said:

“We’re having conversations with clubs, but I don’t expect us to be doing much of anything,” Wade said. “The key components aren’t going to change, and that’s the economics and the talent in the system. Those things aren’t going to change overnight. If something makes sense we’ll pursue it, but there’s nothing going on now.”

That leaves the Cubs.  What are they going to do at the deadline?  Considering the ownership situation, don’t expect any blockbuster trades.  However, acquiring something less that Roy Halladay may be a possibility.

Jim Hendry is looking for a left-handed bullpen arm and George Sherrill of Baltimore is the most likely target.  He is a closer for the Orioles right now, but would probably be used as a LOOGY by the Cubs.  That would allow the Cubs to move Sean Marshall back into the rotation to sub for Ted Lilly while he’s on the DL.

Hendry may also be looking for a starting pitcher, especially since Lilly jumped on the DL.  Possibilities include Zach Duke and Tom Gorzelanny of the Pirates.

Speaking of the Pirates, might Freddie Sanchez be Chicago bound?  It’s a longshot, but the Mike Fontenot experiement at second base hasn’t gone so well and I’m sure Lou Piniella would feel more comfortable trotting Sanchez out to second every day instead of Fontenot (or Aaron Miles or Andres Blanco).

Is there any possibility of moving Bradley at the deadline?  I suppose anything is possible, but it’s unlikely.  I wouldn’t mind swapping bad contracts with the Angels for Gary Matthews, Jr. or Toronto for Vernon Wells.  I spoke about this previously here.

I understand that both Matthews and Wells are overpaid.  I also understand that they would cost the Cubs more than the Cubs are currently paying Bradley.  However, I see Bradley as a clubhouse cancer that is going to eat away at the team for the remainder of his contract.  Paying  to get rid of the cancer is a good idea and it just might bring back something useful.  For instance, either Matthews or Wells are better CF options than the Cubs currently have.  Putting either one in CF would allow Piniella to move Kosuke Fukudome back to his natural position in RF.

Having said all of this, it’s probably not going to happen.  Even if the Angels or Blue Jays were interested, the Cubs probably can’t take on the additional payroll at the moment.  But that doesn’t mean we can’t dream.

Ryan Theriot went 3-5 and scored two runs, while Aramis Ramizez was 2-4 with a double, two runs scored and two driven in.

After an off day Thursday, the Cubs come home to take on the Cincinnati Reds in a weekend series at Wrigley.  Aaron Harang (5-10) takes on Randy Wells (5-4) on Friday.  Cubs.com says Ted Lilly will go on Saturday.  It will be interesting to see if his knee is ready for another start.

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According to Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times, the Cubs are not in on Roy Halladay, but they may be in the market for a reliever.  Wittenmyer mentions George Sherrill of the Orioles and Chad Qualls of the D-Backs as two possible targets.

The Cubs may also be in the market for a catcher, depending on how Geovany Soto’s rehab is going.  They should know more by the end of this week.  Soto is swinging a bat now and the Cubs hope to have Soto back in the big leagues during the first week of August.  If he has a set back this week, the Cubs may take a look at Toronto’s Rod Barajas.  He’ll be a free agent at the end of the year, so he’s really nothing more than a short term rental, but that’s exactly what the Cubs need.

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The Cardinals traded Chris Duncan and a player to be named later (or cash) in exchange for SS Julio Lugo.  Bernie Miklasz of the St. Louis Post Dispatch says Lugo is expected to play multiple infield positions, but will likely not start.  Boston will be picking up the remainder of Lugo’s $13.5 million contract.

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Tom Hardicourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports that Milwaukee is looking for starting pitching and last night they watched Cliff Lee pitch a seven hit complete game against Toronto.  Doug Melvin insists the Brewers are not in on Roy Halladay, but Cliff Lee may fit their needs.  His contract is just $5.75 million in 2009 with an $8 million option for 2010.  Plus, they wouldn’t have to give up as much to the Indians to get Lee as it would to get Halladay from Toronto.

The extremely versitile DeRosa is hitting .270/.342/.457 this year with 13 HR and 50 RBI for the Indians.  For what it’s worth, those stats would rank him second on the Cubs for HRs and first for RBI.

Chris Perez is a well respected prospect who at one time was considered the Cards closer of the future.  However, he has struggled a bit this year.  In 29 appearances Perez has a 1-1 record with a 4.18 ERA.  He has 30 strikeouts and 15 walks in 23.2 innings of work.  That’s not horrible, but it’s not what was expected of him this year.  In fact, Jason Motte passed up Perez on the Cardinals’ prospect list.

The PTBNL could turn out to be a big deal.  Cleveland will be scouting the Cardinals prospects and who they get could determine just how good this deal is for both the Cardinasls and the Indians.  Regardless of who the PTBNL is though, this deal shows that the Cardinals are serious about winning now, not just protecting prospects who may or may not turn out to be good someday.

This trade also shows the difference between the philosophies of the Cubs’ and Cardinals’ front offices.  The Cubs are waiting until Aramis Ramirez comes back in a couple of weeks to determine what, if anything, they are going to do prior to the trade deadline.  As I mentioned in a previous post, this doesn’t make sense to me because the Cubs have definite needs even if Ramirez comes back a full strength.

The Cardinals, on the other hand, didn’t want to wait.  According to a quote from Cardinals GM John Mozeliak in an article by Matthew Leach on MLB.com:

“There was motivation on both sides,” Mozeliak said. “When it was all said and done, it was something that we didn’t want to see go away if we waited any longer. A lot has been made about how we’ve dealt with trades over the past year and half or so. This was something we were very reactive to. Rather than try to drag this out and see if our offense got better or see if we could get closer to the July 31 date, we though it would be best to be proactive.”

The Cardinals have been rumored to be interested in Matt Hoiliday in recent days.  My guess is that the price will be too high and the DeRosa deal was their fallback position.  This is just my opinion and I haven’t seen this reported anywhere.  In any case, the Cards got the guy the Cubs should have gotten.

I’ve been a fairly consistent supporter of Jim Hendry in the past.  I did think that trading DeRosa was a mistake, but I was hopeful that Hendry would correct the mistake by re-acquiring him.  Unfortunately, not only did Hendry not re-acquire DeRosa, but his inaction allowed a division rival to get him. 

I don’t know what it would have cost the Cubs to acquire DeRosa.  If the Cards deal is any indication, it probably would have cost them Sean Marshall or Randy Wells plus another prospect.  Would that price have been too high?  Maybe, but at least the Cubs would have been all in for this year.  I understand the desire to protect prospects, but considering the relatively poor track record the organization has in developing prospects, they would probably be better served going with a “win now” mentality.

Rich Harden only gave up two earned runs on four hits in 5.1 innings.  He also walked four and struckout three.

On a more positive note, Derrick Lee ran his hitting streak to 22 games. 

The Cubs wrap up their series in Detroit this afternoon.  Ted Lilly (7-4) will pitch for the Cubs against Armando Gallarraga (3-7).

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If you’ve ever looked for a reason why fans should not vote for the All-Star game, here’s some ammo.  Alfonso Soriano is currently fourth in voting for NL outfielders.  He is hitting .227/.291/.426 so far this year with 70 strikeouts in just 65 games played.  Not exactly all-star caliber play.

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The Cubs signed their first round pick, Brett Jackson, a 20-year old CF out of Cal.  According to Baseball Prospectus, the assumption is that Jackson signed for a bonus of $975,000.  I’ve heard the bonus was more than $1 million, but I don’t have anything to back that up.

According to Carrie Muskat at MLB.com, Jackson will take a physical and will then report to Class A Boise.

The Cubs second round pick, D.J. LeMahieu is expected to sign soon.  LeMahieu just finished up the College World Series, helping the LSU Tigers beat the Texas Longhorns in the final game.  LeMahieu hit a homerun in the seventh, tied the game in the ninth with a two-run double, and scored the winning run in the 13th inning.

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The Chicago Sun-Times is reporting that Aramis Ramirez went through a rigourous workout on Wednesday in Detroit.  After resting today, Ramirez is expecting to start taking batting practice on Friday.

Ramirez says that his shoulder is still very painful and that he may need to rest periodically during the second half of the season.  Lou Pineilla echoed Ramirez by saying that it will be “tough” for Ramirez to come back to play a day game after a night game.

Ramirez needs about a week before he can hit in a live game and then will need another week of minor league rehab before he’ll be ready to play for the Cubs again.  That puts him about two week aways from rejoining the team. 

In an article on FoxSports.com, Randy Bush is quoted as saying that the Cubs will have a better idea of what they need to do at the trade deadline once Ramirez comes back.  The Cubs want to see how well and how often Ramirez can play before making any decisions.

Even if Ramirez comes back at full strength (which is a big “if”), the Cubs still have needs.  I don’t want to sound like a broken record, but bringing Mark DeRosa back could really shore up the infield and could send Mike Fontenot and Aaron Miles back to the bench where they belong.  DeRosa would also be a great asset as an outfielder, especially if Milton Bradley doesn’t remember how to hit.

I’m especially anxious to bring DeRosa back to the Cubs because there are reports out right now that the Cardinals are the leading candidate to trade for DeRosa.  Jim Hendry made a mistake when he traded DeRosa this past winter.  He’ll be compounding that error if he let’s St. Louis trade for DeRosa.