THURSDAY: Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times talked to a Cubs insider who says the team has had no talks with Boston about Crisp since spring training. By the way – Crisp recently strained a muscle in his hand, but it’s not considered serious.
WEDNESDAY: It’s been suggested that trade showcasing is a misconception. Nonetheless, Cubs beat writer Paul Sullivan believes they may be doing just that with Matt Murton right now. Murton was hitting .298/.397/.382 in Triple A, showing much less power than he had in the Majors. He did pick it up to a .495 SLG in May though. He has a chance to play left field regularly for the Cubs with Alfonso Soriano out.
Sullivan says the Cubs sent Special Assistant to the GM Ken Kravec to scout the Red Sox recently, perhaps with an eye on Coco Crisp. He says the Cubs might be willing to trade Boston native Rich Hill in a deal. Center field does not seem an immediate concern for the Cubs, as Jim Edmonds is hitting .309/.351/.515 in 68 plate appearances for them.
