The New Year Cubs Post

Here are the rumor rundowns since the last post. There are some old but some new so lets get started-

- The Cubs were talking to the Blue Jays, Yankees, and Red Sox about Matt Garza earlier in the week but that has changed because the Marlins and Tigers have joined the pursuit.

- Scott Boras is trying sell Prince Fielder hard because rumors came out this week that Boras does not like the offers for Prince so far and Fielder my have to take a 3 year deal. This made Boras pretty angry and said it takes more than 3 to get Prince.

- The Cubs remain interested in Fielder but are also looking at younger, cheaper options for 1st base.

- Like it or not the Cubs may just go with in house option Brian LaHair at 1st next season as a stop gap. LaHair has 15 homers and is batting .271 in Winter league.

- If the Cubs do go with LaHair they would likely sign another 1st baseman to complement (not platoon) LaHair. Some names that have been talked about are Derrek Lee, Jorge Cantu, and Connor Jackson.

- Bleacher Nation says the Cubs have talked to numerous teams about a Matt Garza trade and he puts the chances on him getting dealt at 90%. I think that is a bit high because there is still a thought he could sign an extension.

- The Cubs offered Sean Marshall a contract extension before he was dealtto the Reds but said there was no guarantee he would not be moved in July.

- The three teams most active on the Garza front right now are the Tigers, Marlins, and Blue Jays in that order. MLBTR says the Tigers are willing to trade Turner in a package which would be an amazing get for the Cubs.

- The Blue Jays and Tigers have the best chance to land Garza because they have the prospects the Cubs seek for him. The Red Sox and Marlins are lacking on both.

- Trade talks between the Rangers and Cubs are increasing involving Carlos Marmol. The Rangers were in on Andrew Bailey before the Red Sox traded for him. Right now the sticking point is the Cubs want Matt Harrison and the Rangers are reluctant to give him up in a deal for Marmol.

- Some names of prospects on the Jays the Cubs like are Noah Syndergaard, Justin Nicolino, Daniel Norris, and Deck McGuire.

- A report last week indicated that Cubs want Jacob Turner, Andy Oliver, and 2 position prospects for Garza. If the Cubs could pull that trade off it would be amazing.

- The Blue Jays, Yankees, Red Sox, Marlins, Dbacks, and Mariners all have interest in trading for Ryan Dempster according to sources.

- The Blue Jays and Dbacks are amping up their pursuit more now on Dempster. The Jays like the idea of Dempster because he will cost less in prospects.

- MLB Rumor Central on twitter is reporting that Marlon Byrd is gaining interest from Washington and Boston.

- A source told me that Garza, Byrd, Z, and Dempster are the most likely to be traded by Opening Day. He also tells me that Soriano is more likely to get released than traded because of how bleak the market is for him.

- Jim Bowden says the best possible fits for Garza are Toronto, Boston, Detroit, Texas, and New York in that order. I respectively disagree I think it goes Detroit, Toronto, Miami, Boston, New York, and Texas.

- Cubs signed Cuban prospects Yasiel Balaguert and Carlos Martinez. You can find more on that here. Both are great pick ups for the Cubs.

- The Cubs still remain interested in 1st baseman Anthony Rizzo, Kendry Morales, Mark Trumbo, Gaby Sanchez, and Mitch Moreland via trade.

- Buster Olney said the Cubs have been talking to numerous teams about Garza but nothing is imminent. Rosenthal says the Marlins have serious interest in Matt Garza and the Cubs really like Christian Yelich but the Marlins are dangling Matt Domiguez, Gaby Sanchez, Chris Coghlan, and Jose Ceda. No thanks Miami I will stick with talent like Jacob Turner for Detroit.

- The Cubs have some mild interest in Kyle Blanks according to sources. He is the next trade candidate in San Diego. A DeWitt for Blanks trade makes sense for both teams.

Until Next Time..