Tom Ricketts Media Blitz
Tom Ricketts (ok, well, it’s actually the whole Ricketts family, but Tom is the face, and will henceforth be the proxy owner of the Cubs for all purposes hereafter in perpetuity) was introduced as the official owner of the Chicago Cubs yesterday. And despite an 11 a.m. press conference, which was supposed to be the unveiling, Tom was all over the place giving interviews. Obviously he decided a coordinated media blitz was the way to go. I don’t know if he’s right, but I do like that he’s thinking about things like this.
I won’t cover what’s already been covered everywhere else – like here, or here, or hell, even here on CNBC.
But I will pull out a quote from the MLB.com interview he did. I think it says everything we need to know for now (and everything we need to get our hopes up):
MLB.com: Did you ever consider purchasing another team?
Ricketts: No. Just the Cubs.
That’s right. There’s a true fan in charge.
Geovany Soto Will Be in Better Shape Next Year if He Can Lay Off the Pidgeon Peas
As documented in these here pages, Geovany Soto attributed his Rookie of the Year 2008 campaign to a strict offseason workout and diet regimen, as developed by former Cubs pitcher Kerry Wood. Before 2009, Kerry Wood left, Soto appeared to gain weight, and then boom, his 2009 pretty much sucked.
So here’s hoping he’s got designs on hitting the weights and the Weight Watchers this offseason. A recent interview gives a little insight.
MLB.com: This offseason, when do you start your workouts?
Soto: I won’t shut it down completely. I’ll probably start working right away. Maybe I’ll take a week off, but after that, I’ll hit the gym and by November, I’ll be training full-time. I’ll pick up a bat Dec. 1. I started in January [last year] to get ready for the World Baseball Classic, but this year, I’ll start earlier to work on my hands and stuff.
…MLB.com: Is there a comfort food you crave?
Soto: It’s a Christmas food called “Arroz con Gandules” [rice with pigeon peas] — it’s a national dish for Christmas. My mother makes it. cubs.com.
Pidgeon peas actually look to be relatively healthy, so maybe that and rice wouldn’t be so bad. Good to hear he’s planning to work out earlier this year than last, and may not do the WBC thing.
If he gets back into good shape, lays off the pipe, and stays fit all season, there’s a good chance he’ll have a rebound year in 2010.
Koyie Hill is an Awesome Guy
Chicago Cubs catcher Koyie Hill stepped up for the team this year when Geovany Soto struggled and got hurt. No, Hill didn’t replace Soto’s 2008 production, but he gave the Cubs another option behind the plate, played good defense, and caught a good game.
He did all that after sawing off a bunch of his fingers last year. So when I say Koyie Hill is an awesome guy, you’ll agree. And now he’s an awesome guy for another reason.
The Cubs catcher will host a charity event on Dec. 5 at the Hartman Arena in Wichita, Kan., to benefit the Make-a-Wish Foundation of Kansas.
“Playing in the big leagues was always a dream of mine,” Hill said. “Now I have the chance to help others see their dreams come true.”
General admission tickets are available for $65, and anyone interested should contact the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Kansas. There also are a limited number of VIP tables available; prices start at $1,000. The table has seating for eight on the arena floor and includes a VIP cocktail hour and autograph session.
Country music star Tracy Byrd will perform. There will be a silent auction that will include autographed baseballs from players, including Hall of Famers Ryne Sandberg and Ozzie Smith, and former Cubs players Kerry Wood and Mark DeRosa. There will also be items signed by Albert Pujols, Don Mattingly, and a ball autographed by both Greg Maddux and Fergie Jenkins.
There will be signed jerseys, bats and other items such as a game-used hat from Cubs pitcher Ted Lilly, cleats from first baseman Derrek Lee, batting gloves from Milwaukee’s Prince Fielder, and a Cubs team-signed “W” flag with a certificate of the date when it was flown over Wrigley Field. cubs.com.
I rarely wish I lived in Kansas, but this is one of those times. Sounds like a heck of an event for a heck of a cause.
Chicago Cubs Working the Phones in Tampa and Toronto
The big move on the horizon for the Chicago Cubs is obviously dumping Milton Bradley. But that isn’t necessarily the sole focus of the Cubs’ offseason, and General Manager Jim Hendry is already reaching out to several teams about possible moves.
Though, to be frank, most are likely tied to Milton Bradley. For now.
General manager Jim Hendry and his baseball department have been working on trades with Tampa, Toronto and three or four other clubs with players with big contracts that they would like to move.
A Milton Bradley-for-Pat Burrell trade has been on the table for three weeks.
Toronto will talk to anyone who will take outfielder Vernon Wells off its hands. Wells has a multi-year contracts that pays close to $15 million per year.
Toronto at some point will be looking at moving ace right-hander Roy Halladay. It’s unknown at this point if the Cubs will be involved. Halladay is one season from free agency. ESPN Chicago.
Thoughts:
1.) Still don’t like the Bradley/Burrell swap, unless it means the Cubs can add another quality bat, which it very well may not, given Burrell’s healthy $8 million salary.
2.) A Bradley for Wells swap – not explicitly mentioned, but reading between the lines – would be a disaster. Vernon Wells has a contract almost identical to Alfonso Soriano’s. And if it’s possible, Wells has been far worse than Soriano.
3.) I wonder who the other three or four teams are, and more importantly, who the other three to four big contracts the Cubs are considering taking on. And are they tied only to moving Milton Bradley? Presumably, yes.
4.) The Cubs will probably sniff Halladay, but ultimately will come up short in MLB-ready prospects, or will not have room for his $15.75 million salary in 2010.
Please God Not Gary Matthews, Jr.
Anaheim Angels outfielder (and former Cub) Gary Matthews, Jr., recipient of one of the most unwise contracts in recent years, has become inexplicably disgruntled. He is frustrated with a lack of regular playing time – playing time he would probably get if, you know, he didn’t suck.
So Matthews has asked to be traded – a tall task given the two years and $23 million remaining on his contract. At least the Cubs don’t have a similar bad contract of an outfielder they’re looking to move, otherwise you can envision them thinking about swapping… oh crap!
The Cubs should pass on Matthews, and it appears from all indications that they’ll do so.
Matthews’ numbers have declined severely since he left Texas and their former batting coach, Rudy Jaramillo, after the 2006 season. You know where Jaramillo is now. In ’06 with the Rangers, Matthews had a hitting line of .313/.371/.495 for an OPS of .866 and an OPS-plus of 121.
Here is how it’s gone since then:
2007: .252/.323/.419 for an OPS of .742. The OPS-plus was 93.
2008: .242/.319/.357 for an OPS of .675. The OPS-plus was 77
2009: .250/.336/.361 for an OPS of .697. The OPS plus was 82, and his weighted on-base average (wOBA) was .313. Matthews hit only 4 homers. On top of it, this speedy player’s groundball percentage fell from 59 percent in ’08 to 42.2 percent this year. His flyball rate jumped from 26.5 percent in ’08 to 38.9 percent this year. (On another topic, most of you also know that Matthews has had to fight off charges _ which he vehemently denied _ of HGH use.) DailyHerald.com Blogs.
To add to Bruce Miles’ excellent sum-up, Matthews will turn 36 next year, so he’s no spring chicken. And if he isn’t using HGH, well, then, he probably won’t be very good.
Payroll May Increase Slightly, But Might Not Include Any New Big Names
The Chicago Cubs sported a very healthy $140 million(ish) payroll in 2009 – good enough to top the Senior Circuit (with the New York Mets having about the same payroll). And it was worth every penny, right?
Fans no doubt expect that payroll will increase next year, and it is expected to do so, incrementally at least. But folks expecting a jump large enough to accommodate a big new signing – without a corresponding move that alleviates a large salary burden somewhere on the roster – are probably going to be disappointed.
When team executives meet in Arizona next month to map the future, Hendry can expect a payroll in the $143 million range — a tick above what he had last season. With so many contracts ballooning in 2010, there won’t be any room for a big deal. And don’t expect Ricketts to cave in at the last minute to get that big name.
After he pops the corks on the champagne bottles, he will have a long list of tasks to tackle. Wrigley Field needs some pampering. There are plans for a major face-lift around Clark and Addison. Wrigley’s restrooms should get overdue upgrades, and long-awaited plans for a Cubs hall of fame in the neighborhood soon will be unveiled.
As for the on-field product, look for the Cubs to tout their emerging prospects — Tyler Colvin, Josh Vitters and Andrew Cashner. This talk will be met with skepticism from fans who remember being burned by Corey Patterson, Felix Pie and Mike Fontenot.
Quick editorial aside – Um, what? First of all, Mike Fontenot was never considered a serious Cubs prospect. He developed in the Orioles’ system, came over in the Sammy Sosa trade, and almost immediately started contributing on the big league level. Listing him with Patterson and Pie is truly bizarre. Secondly,no one considers Tyler Colvin a touted or emerging prospect at this point. Grabbing the names of the guys taken in the first round in 2006, 2007, and 2008 does not a prospect list make. If you want to make a point about prospect disappointment, fine. But if you don’t follow Cubs prospects, don’t write an article acting as though you do. Ok, back to the otherwise good article:
As for Hendry, his contract guarantees him a Cubs paycheck through 2012, but he will be under his closest scrutiny in Year 1 of the Ricketts era. Another flop that mirrors the minus touch he had in 2009, and Hendry will be residing in an Ed Lynch-style exile.
Manager Lou Piniella has stressed he plans to return for the last season of his contract and promises to walk away from managing — anywhere — after 2010. The Ricketts camp seems open to the entire idea of one year — and one year only — of Piniella.
As for the biggest piece of unwanted baggage that accompanied the deal, outfielder Milton Bradley and the remaining two years and $21 million left on his contract will be Hendry’s problem. The new owner isn’t expected to say he will gladly eat Bradley’s salary. Whatever the Cubs must pay to get rid of Bradley — and he remains a goner — will count against Hendry’s $143 million-or-so payroll. CHICAGO SUN-TIMES.
If the Cubs manage to move Bradley without eating all of his salary, and do not re-sign Rich Harden, they may have some $10 million or so to play with. However, they would also have a hole in the outfield at that point.
Cubs Prospect Kyler Burke Had Himself a Swell Year
The Chicago Cubs acquired a moderately nondescript outfielder from the San Diego Padres in the summer of 2007 when they unburdened themselves of uniballing, Zambrano-fighting catcher, Michael Barrett. That outfielder, youngster Kyler Burke, had struggled in his time in the low minors, but was still very young, so the collective shrug of Cubs nation at the move was at least a hopeful shrug.
Flash forward (how disappointing has THAT show been?) to today, and the Cubs must be tickled pink with the move. Burke, just 21, put together a great 2009 campaign at A-ball Peoria after talk that perhaps he should move to the mound.
This year, he batted .303 with 43 doubles, three triples, 15 homers, 89 RBIs and a .405 on-base percentage, and was named the Cubs’ 2009 Minor League Player of the Year. Burke led the Midwest League in doubles, was second in on-base percentage and extra-base hits (61), third in runs scored and slugging percentage, and tied for fifth in RBIs and sixth in batting average.
There’s no more talk about pitching.
“I had struggled a little the year before,” Burke said of his .206 average at Peoria in 2008, which prompted him to be sent back to low Class A Boise. “I had a pretty good arm. It was one of those things where I said, ‘Hey, you’ve got to start hitting or move to the mound.’ I had to make up my mind.
“I got my mind right,” he said. “It was time to put up or shut up. I said, ‘You know what, if it doesn’t work, I’ve got a chance to pitch,’ and that took some of the pressure off me a little bit. I used it as motivation, and took it and had a good year, and here I am now.”
Having already participated in the Cubs’ instructional league in Mesa, Ariz., which wrapped up Oct. 17, on Tuesday, he will travel to the Dominican Republic, along with seven other Cubs Minor Leaguers, for another month of baseball. cubs.com.
That Burke was selected for the Arizona Fall League indicated he was thought of as one of the Cubs’ better prospects. That Burke was selected for the Dominican camp indicates he is thought of as one of the Cubs’ top prospects. Realistically, he’ll likely start out 2010 in High A Daytona, with an eye to finishing the season in AA Tennessee, and a chance to make the Cubs in 2011.
Obsessive New Ownerwatch: Ricketts Officially Owner, Obsession Over
In case you hadn’t heard, Tom Ricketts officially took over as the owner of the Chicago Cubs today.
Let a new era of peace and prosperity enter Cubdom. Oh, and maybe win a championship or something.
