The Yankees trail the Rangers 3-2 in the ALCS, and the Phillies trail the Giants 3-1 in the NLCS. And there was much rejoicing.
That means the World Series is just around the corner, and after that, free agency and trades. Otherwise known as the most wonderful time of the year. Increasingly, we’ll see an uptick in rumors, including those from ESPNChicago’s Bruce Levine, who had another chat on Tuesday, in which he offered a few interesting pieces of information.
The Cubs might consider Lance Berkman as a stopgap first baseman if they can’t sign a guy like Adam Dunn.
The Cubs still don’t know whether they want Andrew Cashner to be a starter or a reliever. Sigh. Let me answer it for you, Cubs: good starters are far more valuable than good relievers. If Cashner can be a good starter (as his minor league success suggests), make him a starter. If not, keep him in the bullpen. There, done.
Levine expects the Cubs to listen to offers for Carlos Zambrano and Aramis Ramirez this winter, but seeing as both have full no-trade clauses, moving either would be a feat. There’s also that pesky truth that the Cubs aren’t really in a position to replace either of them.
Cliff Lee is looking to get $15 to 20 million a year, so he’s likely far out of the Cubs’ price range.
Levine says it was Tyler Colvin – and not Mike Quade – who insisted on not playing at first base in September games because Colvin didn’t want to cost the Cubs wins. If true, it’s still hard not to blame Quade, who could have insisted. But seeing as how his record as interim manager is cited in every article lauding his hiring, I suspect Quade made the right decision for Quade.
Levine thinks Greg Maddux wants to be a manager in the future, but not yet.
Xavier Nady is unlikely to return, but Kerry Wood might – if he doesn’t want too much money, and his medical records check out.
Blake DeWitt is likely to be the Cubs’ second baseman next year, but if they look to free agency, they may consider Orlando Hudson. My thoughts? If the Cubs move Aramis Ramirez, they’ll put DeWitt at third (where his bat sucks, but his defense is top notch), and go after Hudson.
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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