No Faith in Theriot?? Cubs scouting shortstops??

According to League Officials the Cubs are currently scouting several shortstops in the ML. The Cubs are possibly looking for more production and better defensive range at the shortstop position. According to Officials the Cubs are currently at the Washington/Cardinal game watching SS Christian Guzman. Guzman is batting leadoff for the Nationals and is posting a .400 avg. in 20 AB's.

Other middle infielders that the Cubs are currently scouting are Jhonny Peralta, Bobby Crosby, Rafael Furcal, and Orlando Cabrera. It seems Crosby and Peralta seem the least likely of the two because of talent the other team would want. But I find Furcal and Cabrera interesting choices because both are at the end of there contracts and by trading for them it would be a win now mentality.

Furcal is owed 13 million this season and the Dodgers would definitely have to pay a portion of that. I am not sure what the Dodgers would want except a third baseman but we do not have one to give up. So it is unknown if they would be a match.

Orlando Cabrera would be my pick. The White Sox made an interesting move this offseason inking Juan Uribe, trading for Cabrera, and signing Alexei Ramirez, who is by nature a shortstop. The Sox definitely have depth at SS position but would rather give up Uribe, but cannot find any any takers. The Sox have the worst farm system in baseball and could use some prospects. I think the Cubs match up very well with the Sox for this trade. By trading O.C. they can insert Alexei at SS, Swisher in CF, and Quentin in LF. I would offer Marshall, Epatt, and Mike Fontenot for Cabrera and go from there.

Although a move this early in the season is very unlikely, it is not impossible. It is nice to know that the Cubs are looking at other options early instead of waiting until it is too late.

Man, Cabrera would look great in Cubbie Blue!!!

Cubs notes.

Here is some tidbits from today-

- Soriano will be moved to leadoff spot and Theriot to the 2 hole. Lou seems pretty pissed off after today and he should be. Losing a hard played, one run game is one thing, losing a game with sloppy play and at bats is unacceptable. I do not think Soriano or Theriot are the answers to leading off but there the only players we have that can fill the roles. That guy in Baltimore would have been great!!

- Cubs still have a mild interest in Crisp but the asking price is too high and they currently do not have a place for him on the team. Unless they are already giving up on Pie.

Marquis heading East???

The Mets have lost there #2 starter, Pedro, for an undetermined amount of time. They are set to give him a MRI today so they can have a better time table on when he is due back. The Mets are now in need for a pitcher. They have no one in the farm that can fill the spot and they are looking to add a pitcher without giving up too much. The Mets are looking at free agents Vargas, Weaver, Wells, and Williams. They also have interest in Marquis, Lee, Morris, and Reyes. This is the Cubs perfect opportunity to dump Marquis and his salary while inserting Lieber into the rotation. I would take a midlevel prospect for Marquis if they paid his contract. I still have a sour taste in my mouth about the way the whole rotation thing was handled. This is a good way to correct that!

Murton to Red Sox soon???

The Red Sox have been upset with JD Drew's "injury woes" and are looking at other possibilities for RF. They currently have CoCo Crisp that can fill the position of right field but they need a young inexpensive righty with power that could platoon with Drew or fill in if he gets hurt. The Sox are not to keen on the idea of having Crisp no power bat in the lineup so they have expressed interest in Matt Murton, Jason Bay, Xavier Nady, Kendry Morales, and Juan Rivera.

The Cubs are actively shopping Murton but want a top 3 prospect in return for the slugging red head. The Cubs may require a guy like Jed Lowrie, Oscar Tejeda, Justin Masterson, or Kris Johnson for Murton.

The Pirates are currently looking at Murton as a possible replacement for Bay or Nady if they are traded. The Cubs might ask for Daniel Moskos. The Padres have had their eye on him and the Cubs are rumored to want Will Inman in a deal for Murton.

It just seems that Murton will find a home sooner rather than later.

Opening Day, the good, the bad, and the ugly.

Opening Day started with rain delays and a pitchers duel and ending with big blasts and big blow ups. Lets take a look at the good, bad, and the ugly.

The Good-

- Fukudome shut up all his critics by going 3 for 3 with a single, double, 3-run homer, 3 RBI, and a walk. He is worth getting excited about Cub fans. He is the favorite in the NL to win the ROY award.

- Big Z was in form. He took a no decision today but gave up only 3 hits before exiting in the 6th inning with cramps in his arm but he is OK. Its too bad the Cubs could not put up runs early to get the win but when you have Sheets on the mound it is hard to do.

- Pie played some great CF today making some nice catches. Do not worry fans the bat will come around.

- Carlos Marmol is unhittable! I do not know what that pitch he throws that looks like a slider but breaks differently every time he throws it.

The Bad-

- Kerry Wood had a rough debut pitching in the 9th. He hit a batter, gave up 2 hits and 3 runs. I do not think this will be a trend for Woody and I also think the Brewers got pretty lucky on those hits.

- Theriot and Soriano were awful at the plate today. The went 0 for 10 with 4 SO combined. I know it is too early to say this but I feel Theriot is not a leadoff guy and neither is Soriano. Lets hope they can bounce back from today and have a good day at the plate Wednesday.

The Ugly-

- Good news for Cubs fans, Eric Gagne will be closing for the Brewers all year. Gagne was terrible in Boston and starts off awful this year. Good news for Cubs, bad news for Brewers.

- Bob Howry had nothing today! He ball has no movement and he is so predictable when he comes out to pitch. He gave up 2 hits and 1 run giving him the lost today. Howry did not pitch well all Spring and is off to a slow start again this season. He needs to pick it up a bit because we need a solid pen to be successful in the division.

Murton sent to AAA and Carmen Pignatiello to stay with Club.

Today the Cubs set their 25 man roster. They sent Sean Marshall and Matt Murton to AAA Iowa while keeping Carmen Pignatiello as the lone lefty in the pen. They put Scott Eyre on the 15 day DL retroactive to March 23rd. So here is the roster, not to many surprises-

Pitchers

Marquis
Hart
Lilly
Wood
Guzman- 60 day DL
Zambrano
Wuertz
Dempster
Eyre- 15 day DL
Marmol
HIll
Howry
Pignatiello
Lieber

Catchers

Soto
Blanco

Infielders

Theriot
Cedeno
DeRosa
Aram
Font
Lee
Ward

Outfielders

Fukudome
Johnson
Soriano
Pie



In other notes- It seems the Cubs will hold onto Murton until they get a top pitching prospect for him. I tend to agree with the Cubs, no sense in trading Murton just to trade him. He is worth a top 3 pitching prospect in just about any organization considering in full time duty he will put up a .280 avg, 20 hrs, and 80 RBI while playing average defense. There are currently 5 teams that want Murton but some think the asking price is too high.

Lahey claimed by Phillies. Deal for Murton done by Sunday??

The Phils have claimed Tim Lahey off of waivers. It is really to bad the Cubs could not have kept him but we just did not have room on the 25 man roster. Just ask Matt Murton.

Speaking of Murton, it seems the Cubs will deal the young outfielder before Opening Day. According to League Officials the Cubs have "many teams" that want Murton. I can see teams like the Cards, Rays, Rangers, Padres, Royals, Mets, Phillys, and White Sox all having interest in the redhead. Matt Murton does not belong in AAA, he belongs on a big league roster!

Did Someone Say Trades??

Here is another edition of "Did Someone Say Trades." This week we will look at Jason Marquis. Jason Marquis has won the 5th spot in the rotation but how long that last only time will tell. Jason has a tendency to talk a lot, which gets him in trouble and should have landed him in the pen rather than Lieber. Everyone knows Marquis starts off strong so he would get traded sooner than later in my opinion.

Lou has a short fuse for pitchers and I think would have no problem switching out Marquis for Lieber, considering Marquis remarks earlier this Spring and how well Lieber has done. But Lou will give him a shot, maybe more or less to raise his trade value.

Now who could he help???

The Angels- The Angels have lost Lackey for until May and lost Escobar for the season. They currently have pitchers that can fill in but they may want some veteran presence in the rotation. I think the Cubs could get a good prospect or two for Marquis.

The Cardinals- The Cards need pitching badly but a deal within the Central is unlikely.

The Rangers- They could be looking for a guy to strengthen there rotation. If Marquis went there he would be a solid #4 starter. The Rangers could offer up some young pitching in return. I would also take Micheal Young! LOL

The Blue Jays- Considering there rotation can't stay healthy, they may want a guy who can pitch 200 innings and win double digit games for them. Marquis could do that. Not sure what the Jays would give up. I would like Davis Romero, a young lefty reliever.

The Royals- A place where pressure will not be an issue. He would be a nice 3 or 4 starter and the Cubs could take some of that young talent off there hands. How bout Murton and Marquis for Grienke??

The Nationals- There rotation is in terrible shape. They are trying the young talented route but they can always use veterans in the rotation. The Cubs would of course have to pay a portion of his contract to get a deal done but I think the Nats would do it. Marquis would be a number 1 or 2 in this rotation. I would trade Marquis for Lopez straight up!

The Marlins- Another team that does not have a 5th starter named yet. Marquis would fit in there but again the Cubs would have to pay about half his contract. I would ask the Marlins for Taylor Tankersley but they probably would decline.

Almost every team need pitching but the teams above I think either match up with the Cubs the best or need pitching in the worst way. Either way I would like to see the Cubs deal Marquis so Lieber can go to the rotation. I still think Lieber could pull out double digit wins with an ERA of 3.50 with half a year in the pen and in the rotation.

Cubs Notes and Rumors

Lots of Cubs rumors and notes-

- The deal for Roberts is off the table according to Hendry and Andy. No Roberts for now.

- Lou said he is considering having Fukudome lead off against left-handed pitching and batting 5th against right-handed pitching.

- The Cubs have released Alex Cintron. Cintron has battled some injury woes but had a good Spring batting .325 with a .333 OBP and was really clutch. This means either a deal is close with Felipe Lopez or they are content with Mike Fontenot(batted .283 and OBP of .356) and Ronny Cedeno(.311 avg. and .353 OBP). To keep in mind Cedeno is out of minor league options and has to clear waivers to be sent the minors. There is no way he clears, he would get claimed by someone.

- Sean Marshall and Carmen Pignatiello will battle for the lefty spot in the bullpen with Eyre starting the season on the DL.

- Matt Murton seems to be the odd man out in the outfield. The Cubs have Reed Johnson to fill in all 3 spots and Murton does not add much value to the big league club. Murton is expected to start the season in Iowa unless traded. Hendry is currently taking offers for the red head.

- Cubs second baseman Mark DeRosa was scratched Wednesday because of sinusitis. Poor guy, it has been a rough Spring for Mark.

- Pie hit 2nd today and looked good doing it. He went 3 for 5 with 2 runs, a RBI, and 2 stolen bases. If Pie hits 2nd I would like to see this-

Theriot SS
Pie CF
Lee 1st
Aram 3b
Soriano LF
Fukudome RF
Soto C
Derosa 2b

Pie would see a lot of fastballs with hitting in front of Lee and behind Theriot( assuming he gets on base). Soriano, also a good fastball hitter, would be in an ideal situation batting behind Aram and in front of Fukudome. He would see a lot of fastballs and have a lot of RBI situations. I really like this lineup!

- The Angels are interested in acquiring a veteran pitcher to help there rotation considering Escobar is out for the year. According to League Officials the Angels have inquired about Ryan Dempster and Jason Marquis. The Angels, who have outfield depth, could be offering Reggie Willits or Juan Rivera. The Cubs have asked for young pitching in return, something the Angels have a lot of!

Reed Johnson the newest Cub!

This was a no brainer for Jim Hendry. The Cubs signed Reed Johnson to a one year 1.3 million dollar deal. He will fill in center against leftys and spot start in the outfield when Fukudome and Soriano need days off. Reed is the perfect 4th outfielder for the Cubs. He plays really good defense at all spots, has pop in his bat, great arm, and just enough speed to steal about 10-15 bases. He was injured most of last year but has proven he is healthy. He is lifetime .281 hitter with a .342 OBP. I really like the move!

It also looks like Murton's days in Chicago are number. Look for the Mets, Red Sox, Padres, Rangers, and maybe Giants to ask about him in the coming days.

In other roster moves, the club optioned outfielders Sam Fuld and Eric Patterson to Triple-A Iowa, and assigned pitcher Les Walrond and infielders Micah Hoffpauir and Casey McGehee to minor league camp. They also put Angel Guzman on the 60 DL and expect to put Scott Eyre on the 15 day DL to start the season.