Aramis Ramirez Tells the Cubs Not to Trade Him and Other Rumor-y Bullets

The battle for the 2012 Number One Pick begins today. I can almost feel the Uruk Hai pounding their spears into the earth as the rain begins to fall.

  • Aramis Ramirez reportedly met with Cubs management yesterday, and reiterated his desire to remain in Chicago. I’m not sure whether this means anything more, or whether it’s simply more posturing. All I do know: if the Cubs were able to trade Ramirez, they could get a serious haul.
  • Teams are inquiring about Marlon Byrd, but, with Alfonso Soriano and Kosuke Fukudome also on the block, the Cubs are reluctant to trade Byrd. I can actually get behind that – who better to mentor the young players coming up than Marlon Byrd? That said, if Byrd has serious value (and I believe he does in this particular market), and it looks like the Cubs won’t be able to move *both* Soriano and Fukudome, I will be greatly disheartened if they don’t make a serious push toward dealing Byrd.
  • Carlos Pena might fit best with the Pirates (ironically, in an article about the surge in guesses and rumors this time of year).
  • Phil Rogers suggests the Cubs trade Aramis Ramirez to the White Sox, which would alleviate his stated concerns about leaving Chicago. It’s not a completely implausible suggestion… until he gets to the part where the Cubs are taking on Jake Peavy. Nah. Nah.
  • It’s a mailbaggy kind of day, with Paul Sullivan and Carrie Muskat each responding to reader mail. Each sticks to his/her general MO – Sullivan gets good questions, and answers them with quips; Muskat gets ridiculous questions, and answers them deadpanned seriously (obviously I exaggerate in each case, but you get my drift). A favorite from each: Sullivan offers the “remote control” as an answer to various, visible problems with the Cubs; Muskat describes the difference between a splitter and a forkball.
  • And, hey, if you ever want to shoot me an email with questions, hit me up at brett[AT]www.bleachernation.com. I’ll try to be neither quippy nor deadpanny.
  • written by

    Brett Taylor is the Lead Cubs Writer at Bleacher Nation, and you can find him on Twitter at @BleacherNation and on LinkedIn here. Brett is also the founder of Bleacher Nation, which opened up shop in 2008 as an independent blog about the Chicago Cubs. Later growing to incorporate coverage of other Chicago sports, Bleacher Nation is now one of the largest regional sports blogs on the web.

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