In a separate Tweet, Stark says that there are “2 or 3″ other teams interested in Bradley.  Earlier in the day, one of those teams was identified as the Kansas City Royals and the rumor was that they were interested in trading Gil Meche to the Cubs for Bradley.  There was also a rumor that Meche would go to the Mets, Luis Castillo to the Cubs and Bradley to Kansas City.  However, Royals GM Dayton Moore shot down the rumors calling them “unbelievable” and saying that there were no talks going on with either the Cubs or the Mets about a potential deal.

Bruce Miles of the Daily Herald wrote that the Mets might be interested in trading directly with the Cubs to acquire Milton Bradley.  If Bradley couldn’t handle the bright lights of Chicago, I’m not sure how he’s going to handle New York, but if a trade can be made, that would not be the Cubs problem.

Away from the Milton Bradley front, Miles opined that Ted Lilly may not be back from injury and ready to pitch until May 1.  I’m liking the Cubs starting rotation less and less.  To start the season, it looks like Carlos Zambrano, Ryan Dempster and Randy wells will be the Cubs top three starters.  Tom Gorzellany and Sean Marshall will likely be the other two starters to start the season with Jeff Samardjzia waiting in the wings. 

What happens if Zambrano or Dempster gets hurt?  What if Randy Wells suffers a sophomore slump?  I sure would feel better about the Cubs rotation if they had another legit pitcher as their number three or four starter.  Even if Ted Lilly comes back when expected, the cubs could still use an “insurance” arm.

Could that arm be Braden Looper?  Jon Paul Morosi of FoxSports.com wrote that Looper would love to pitch in Chicago.  His three kids go to school there and he’d like to pitch “at home.”  The Brewers declined his $6.5 million option and instead chose the $1 million buyout.  The 35-year old right hander was 14-7 last year with a 5.22 ERA.  His career ERA is 4.15 and he has been durable, especially over the past three years.  If the Cubs could sign him to one-year at a discount (he earned $4.75 million last year), it might not be a bad signing. 

Morosi also reports that the Cubs are showing interest in right handed reliever J.J. Putz.  Putz is coming back from surgery and held a throwing session in Arizona last week to showcase his arm.  Putz could be a nice, inexpensive picjup for the bullpen.  However, since quite a few other teams are also interested in Putz, he might not be too cheap afterall.

Another rumor that made the rounds today involved San Diego sending Heath Bell to the Cubs.  It was unclear who the Cubs would send to the Padres, but two names throw out there were Geovany Soto and Ryan Theriot.  Bruce Miles had commented earlier in the day that San Diego might be interested in moving Bell because they have Mike Adams ready to take over as their closer. 

Phil Rogers of the ChicagoBreakingSports.com ran with that thought and suggested that the Cubs and Padres had discussed such a trade.  In a later post, Miles debunked the rumor started reported by Rogers by saying, “Cubs GM Jim Hendry laughed off a Chicago-based rumor that had the Cubs interested in Padres closer Heath Bell, with possible trade bait being catcher Geovany Soto or shortstop Ryan Theriot. As I blogged this morning, the Cubs like Bell, but he’s not on their radar at all because he’ll have a big raise coming this fall, as he’s arbitration-eligible.”

In non-trade news, the Cubs announced that Ryne Sandberg will manager the AAA Iowa Cubs next year.  This will be Sandberg’s fourth year as a manager in the Cubs minor league system.  He spent two years in Peoria (2007-08), a year in Tennessee (2009), and now a stint in Iowa.

It would appear that the Cubs are grooming Sandberg to take over after Pinella retires after the 2010 season.  He told the Des Moines Register,  “I’ve been very pleased with the progression,” Sandberg said in a telephone interview today with the Des Moines Register. “Getting closer to the major leagues is very gratifying. I’m looking at this as another stepping stone.”

But wait, is Piniella really going to retire after 2010?  He’s not saying he will and not saying he won’t.  He told Bruce Miles, “I’m going to do the best job I possibly can, and at the end of this year, we’ll see what happens,” he said. “I can work on a handshake.”

All of this is a moot point, at least for now.  Decisions will be made sometime next year, and the decisions will likely revolve around how well the Cubs do in 2010, as well as how well Sandberg does managing in Iowa.

What’s in store for Today?  I’m sure there will be plenty of more rumors and maybe even some action.  Stay tuned.

This series in Colorado is imprortant for a couple of reasons.  First, the Cubs need to beat everyone they face, so by that standard, every series is important.  Second, the Cardinals  are in Pittsburgh to take on the last place Pirates, so chances are they will be having a successful weekend (let’s hope not).  If so, the Cubs need to at least keep pace.

Carlos Zambrano will take the mound tonight against the recently cooled off Rockies.  The Rox have lost their last two games and are 5-5 in their last ten.  Prior to that, they had hit a hot streak that had catapulted them into contention in the NL Wild Card race.  At the moment, they are in second place in the Wild Card standings, one game back of San Francisco and one game ahead of the Cubs.  Hey, there’s another reason this series is important.

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Ryne Sandberg is getting an itch.  The manager of the AA Tennesee Smokies is closing in on his third full season as a minor league manager and he is looking forward to managing in the bigs.  That, according to an article in the Chicago Sun-Times.

Sandberg downplayed his aspirations, but did say “I think the goal of anyone in the minor leagues — you hope — is to get to the majors.”  If he is getting impatient, who can blame him.  After all, he’s a Baseball Hall of Famer; the only one currently managing in the minor leagues.

So will the Cubs promote him to manager?  Jim Hendry wasn’t making any promises.  When asked about Sandberg’s chances to manage in the future, Hendry said:

“I would leave that totally up to him,” Hendry said. “I would think if that happened outside of our organization, he’d have to take it. I certainly would never discourage him. Sometimes timing in life is everything.”

Whether it was fair or not to make Sandberg prove himself managing in the minors after a Hall of Fame career, it was necessary.  Sandberg by nature is reserved and even a bit introverted.  He had to learn to come out of his shell more and to communicate with guys who might not have the natural talent he was blessed with.  He also had to learn to communicate with guys that maybe didn’t have the same strong work ethic he had.

Sandberg admits that you need to have a much different perspective on the game as a manager than as a player. 

“It all started with just watching the game from a different perspective than what I did since 1978 as a player playing the middle infield,” he said. “It’s completely different. It’s watching the whole field. It’s positioning the outfielders, working with the catcher to shut down the opposing running game. It’s working the lineup. All the things to run the game.”

I watched Sandberg as he managed a AA game in Tennessee earlier this year (I wrote about it here).  I was impressed with Sandberg’s focus and his involvement in the game.  When the Smokies were hitting, Sandberg was coaching third base.  When they were in the field, Sandberg was calling pitches.  I think it would be easy for someone of Sandberg’s stature to ride the waves of his past successes.  Instead, just like when he was a player, Sandberg is working hard, doing things the right way, and trying to prove himself every day.

Lou Piniella is signed through 2010.  Speculation has been that he will retire after next season.  If that happens, I’d like to see Sandberg get a shot at managing the Cubs.  I don’t know if he’ll be successful or not, but he has certainly paid his dues to the organization, both as a player and as a minor league manager.

First, I had hoped to shoot some video of Smokies Park, the clubs stadium.  Unfortunately, camcorders are not allowed in the stadium, so that idea was shot (no pun intended).  Instead, I’ve provided a photo of the cup I drank out of during the game.  Not as exciting as a video, but it’s the best I could do.

Then, just before game time, the area got hit with a thunderstorm that delayed the start of the game.  Not to worry.  We dashed into the Double Play Cafe (the restaurant at the ball park) for drinks and an appetizer.  After about a 30 minute delay, the tarp came off the field and the game was ready to start.

When the game started, it was 95 degrees and humid.  We got tickets fives rows behind the Smokies dugout on the first base side.  As it turned out, that was a mistake.  The late afternoon sun was beating down on us while the folks on the third base side of the field were in shade.  Oh well, live and learn.

The main attraction at the game was obviously Ryne Sandberg.  He is featured on most of the signs/posters promoting the Smokies and prior to the game, there was a constant line of 30-50 waiting for his autograph.  To his credit, he met each waiting fan with a smile and a handshake.

Things went smoothly for the first four-and-a-half innings until another thunderstorm moved in and delayed the game again.  It was starting to get late, so after waiting another 30 minutes, we decided to head home.  It didn’t look like the rain was going to stop for a while and we had a long drive home.  I really thought the game would get called, but after a one hour and twenty minute delay, they finished the game with the Stars beating the Smokies 3-2.

Although the people at Smokies Park couldn’t have been friendlier, I was not very impressed with Smokies Park or the game presentation.  The park itself is a cookie-cutter park that is wedged into a small hillside.  There’s not a thing wrong with the ballpark, but it is nothing special.  The Smokies do have a very nice scoreboard with video capabilities.  They also have a nice clubhouse store that sells Smokies and Cubs merchandise.  The park is clean and access is easy (parking is right outside the gates), but I just expected more.

The presentation was very amateurish.  I spend a lot of time at summer college league baseball games (See SummerCollegeLeagues.com) and the presentation at many of these games exceeds what the Smokies had to offer.  For instance, the between inning “game” had two young girls behind home plate doing cart wheels (which they weren’t very good at).  This went on for 30-45 seconds and then both girls were given prizes.  The guy sitting next to me said “What was the point in that?”  My sentiments exactly.

Another between inning game had interns walking in front of the stands throwing soft baseballs into the stands.  The girl throwing to our side of the field couldn’t have been less enthusiastic.  She walked down the foul line and just chucked a few balls into the stands without smiling or really even looking where she was throwing.  Plus, I think she only threw 4-5 balls into the stands which seemed kind of cheap to me.

The announcer also showed very little enthusiasm.  His delivery was matter-of-fact and he didn’t do anything special to get the crowd into the game.  And the crowd responded by sitting quietly baking in the heat.  According to the Smokies website, there were 3,930 people at the game.  The crowd seemed smaller than that to me, but however many people were there, they were quiet.

There was a small area near right field that had a couple of games for kids to play.  The offering was small and not very impressive.  In fact, summer college leagues like the Northwoods League and Coastal Plain League do a better job catering to the kids.

The food choices were also rather bland.  There was nothing wrong with the food, there just weren’t many choices.  The usual ballpark fare was offered.  Again, I’ve been to college-league games with a better selection.

I really wanted to like Smokies Park.  I went with high hopes, but was left disappointed.  It just wasn’t anything special.

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Just a quick update on the Cubs.  They lost again.  So they dropped two-out-of-three to the White Sox and they’re 3.5 games out of first in fourth place in the NL Central.  Carlos Zambrano had a rough outing, giving up nine hits and four earned runs over 5.1 innings.  He also hit two batters, which prompted Phil Rogers of the Chicago Tribune to call on the Cubs to waive/trade Zambrano.

“Get Carlos Zambrano out of here, even if the Cubs have to give him away. He’s not the guy you want as the ace of a curse-busting team, and at this point, it’s wishful thinking that he’ll ever mature into that guy.

“Proving that I did not attend Kellogg, Wharton or even the Acme School of Business, I offer this proposition for Jim Hendry: First thing Monday morning, put Zambrano on waivers. If anyone claims him and the $62.75 million left on his contract, which runs through 2012, immediately trade him for whatever is being offered, from a bag of balls to a 32-year-old minor-leaguer.”

He then goes on to try to justify his unjustifiable stance:

“Unfortunately for the North Side drama queens, their ace once again reported for work wearing size 30 shoes and a red rubber ball on his nose. Zambrano pitched badly and lost his cool for about the zillionth time, venting his frustrations on Sox hitters en route to a 6-0 loss.

“Zambrano clearly drilled Dewayne Wise in the butt on the first pitch after he had sniffed out a suicide squeeze attempt but threw wildly past Geovany Soto, allowing rookie Chris Getz to steal home. Home plate umpire Brian Runge should have ejected Zambrano, as it looked to me like the second time he had intentionally drilled a Sox hitter.

“He also ricocheted a pitch off Scott Podsednik’s rear end in the third inning. The motivation here wasn’t nearly as clear, but Sox players believe he was angry about either Podsednik’s four-hit game Saturday or, more likely, his unorthodox dance toward the front of the batter’s box during a pitcher’s delivery.”

So, as I understand it, Rogers believes that the Cubs should waive or trade Zambrano because he (Rogers) feels that Zambrano threw at a couple of White Sox players purposely.  The umpires didn’t think Zambrano threw at the White Sox purposely.  Even the White Sox weren’t complaining about Zambrano purposely throwing at them.  But because Phil Rogers thinks he did, the Cubs should waive or trade Zambrano.  Brilliant….

I’ll be the first to admit that Zambrano can be a bit erratic and immature at times, but teams traditionally don’t waive their ace pitcher because he’s emotional and occasionally immature.  Perhaps the Tribune should waive Rogers for his overly-emotional and ill-conceived column.  I understand that it’s his job to help sell newspapers, but the things he writes should at least be semi-realistic.

Ryne Sandberg went 5-6 on the day including two homeruns and a total of seven RBI.  To make the feat even more impressive, Sandberg hit both homeruns off of future-Hall of Famer Bruce Sutter and both homeruns tied the game for the Cubs after the Cardinals had taken the lead.

For the Cardinals, Willie McGee had a tremendous game.  McGee hit for the cycle, going 4-6 with six RBI and three runs scored.  In the bottom of the 9th, NBC announcer Bob Costas announced that McGee had been named the “player of the game,” only to have Sandberg tie the game with a homerun to lead off the frame.  With the game going into extra innings, McGee would have to wait on his “player of the game” award.

The Cardinals scored two in the top of the 10th inning and Sutter came back out to pitch in the bottom of the 10th.  With two outs, Sutter walked Bobby Dernier to bring Sandberg to the plate.  For the second consecutive inning, Sandberg tied the game with one swing of his bat.  

In the bottom of the 11th innning, with the bases loaded with Cubs, Dave Owen hit a pinch-hit single to right to bring home the winning run.  The Cubs won the game 12-11 and Sandberg was named “player of the game.”

Here are some highlights from the game:

The Cubs went on to make the playoffs in 1984 for the first time since 1945.  Sandberg was awarded the NL MVP award that year and was enshrined in the Hall of Fame in 2005. 

The game had such a profound impact on me that I celebrate the anniversary every year by doing something baseball related.  This year, I’ll be taking the family to Sevierville, TN to watch Ryno lead his Tennessee Smokies against the Huntsville Stars (AA affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers).

I’ll try to get some video of the stadium to post later this week.  It should be a very good time.