9 replies to this topic

[Rooster]

1) Move Castro to 3rd base as his body mold is probably going to force a move down the road. If he can adjust in the offseason this would allow the Cubs to fill a hole defensively at SS. With 29 errors last year it's not giving the kid any more confidence. TIme to shift and learn 3rd.

2) Sign Jimmy Rollins if you want to shore up defense while you develop Javier Baez in the minors. Hopefully Baez can stick to SS with his frame but it'll be up to Cubs management on this one. I like a stop-gap like Rollins (4 yr deal with a club option on the 4th). Nice to dream a little dream.

3) Move Byrd to right field and bring Brett Jackson up to start at CF from the get go. Out of all the top 5 OF prospects only Harper and Jackson have yet to sniff the majors. We all now that both are going to be there in 2012. Scouting Jackson, Strengths: Well-rounded, athletic. Good bat speed. Solid plate discipline. Speed (4.15). Arm strength. Attitude...I say welcome to the bigs Kid. Having Byrd in RF, Jackson in CF and platooning LF seems the most logical if you want to improve the defense up the middle.

4) Barney at 2B, Rollins at SS, Jackson at CF seems to be a decent triangle of defense if you're serious about contending in a few years. Reyes is going to ask for too much and he wasn't that much better with the glove than Castro. Winning championships starts with defense and pitching. I'm tired of the errors...right the ship on this one.

Open to comments here...get the ball rolling.

[Cubs23]

I like the thought on Rollins. In addition to what he brings defensively, I think he would bring a leadership presence and a championship pedigree this team is sorely lacking. I have some reservations about committing 3/4 years to a 32 year old who is obviously on the down side of his career. Offensively the last three years he's around .255 avg and .320 obp.

Given Castro is just 22, I might be inclined to give him one more year at SS to see if he can improve. I think most would agree that more focus and experience at the position would reduce errors.

[King Jeff]

Darwin Barney was just ok at second base this year and Marlon Byrd is not a corner outfielder. The team can't afford to have weak bats at both of their positions, their defense isn't good enough to justify it. I do like Rollins, but I still think Castro can be a dynamic shortstop.

[Brett]

I assumed this was going to be almost entirely about getting Barney out of there, and that's the one guy you left...

Castro to 3B is probably in the cards eventually, but I think we need to give him another year or two to try and improve at short. His bat at short = perennial All-Star. His bat at third = average or slightly above average regular.

Byrd to RF for the short term is fine, but his bat there is extremely weak.

[Rooster]

Looking at RF and the free agents available....Swisher will be scooped up by the Yankees (club option) and the rest of the RF free agents are weak with the exception of Willingham or Cuddyer....not anyone I'd want to give a ton of $$ to.

Castro would be a downgrade (powerwise) at 3B but he'll eventually have to get moved once he adds a few lbs. He's got the A-rod build. A-ram is gone and with him his useless stats (see Brenley). There are ZERO replacements on the FA market and in house Vitters is starting to come around BUT his glove is horrible. Stick him in RF and call it good. After a half season in Iowa maybe he gets his ticket punched. I was strickly talking about defense here so....

Jackson, Rollins, Barney and Soto. Thinking in terms of defense. Castro would have had about 10 more errors if it weren't for Pena at 1st...oh boy. Just trying to think about how the 2012 Cubs will look.

[Robbo]

Cubs definitely need to get better up the middle, but I don't think moving Castro to 3rd helps right now. His body type may project as a 3B down the road but for now he has all the tools to play SS. A lot of his errors can be cut down by eliminating bad habits like his favorite double-clutch move that forces him to rush throws. Fix that. Other guys have struggled with SS when coming up and then figured it out. Look at Cal Ripken - had 25+ errors in first 3 full seasons at SS then went on to several gold gloves, and eventual move to 3rd as he aged, and then to the hall of fame.

Rollins is good defensively but is going to be 33 in April next year and will command a multi-year deal. Doesn't make much sense to pay long term for a guy who is not setaling bases at same clip as he used to, losing his power, and defensive range is becoming more limited. If we were going to be contenders and this was the missing piece it might be a good move but Cubs have many holes and I'd rather see how Castro can develop at SS.

[Bails17]

If anything Castro would need to move to 2B. His bat would be much more important at that position and he would have half of the tough throws (which is where he is having most of his trouble.)

But...we are NOT going gang busters just yet of free agents anyway. Give the kid at least one more year and see what happens. Unless we sign the best 5 available free agents (dear God let's hope we don't) we are not going to compete in 2012 anyway.

[Cubbie Mike]

They need to do the same thing to Castro as they did to Dorn in the first major League movie. Put him at his position and hit hard ground balls over and over until he gets it. Starlin is a good shortstop, he just needs to come up with the ball more than he does...... (Sometimes I think Casto Makes his move towards 1st base before the ball reaches him)

[Cubbie Mike]

I would like to see them move byrd back to right field and pick up a speedy center fielder. think Reed Johnson is the best option for the everyday center field position, but thats not going to happen so the next best thing is to dig into AAA Iowas roster......

[MichiganGoat]

They need to do the same thing to Castro as they did to Dorn in the first major League movie. Put him at his position and hit hard ground balls over and over until he gets it. Starlin is a good shortstop, he just needs to come up with the ball more than he does...... (Sometimes I think Casto Makes his move towards 1st base before the ball reaches him)

Castro's primary issue isn't his ability to field. He has tremendous range and isn't afraid of getting dirty (or afraid of a cleat in his thigh). His issue is his throwing, he has to settle down and avoid rushing his throw or forcing throws. It's really a matter of concentration and focus- meaning he needs good coaching.