The Chicago Cubs haven't enjoyed the most inspiring offseason so far. Their efforts to deal Milton Bradley dragged on for weeks and ultimately resulted in the team taking on a contract even worse than Bradley's. They missed out to the Nationals on a potential bargain in Matt Capps, and signed John Grabow to a contract that Dave Cameron of Fangraphs called "a waste of cash." What exactly are the North Siders planning to do for an encore?
ESPN.com's latest Rumor Central update examines this question, naming the starting rotation, the bullpen, and center field as the three areas that the club will be looking to upgrade before the spring. The article speculates that the Cubs will choose either Marlon Byrd, Rick Ankiel, or Scott Podsednik for their outfield opening, and wonders if Joel Pineiro or Kelvim Escobar could be solutions for the rotation and bullpen, respectively.
One possibility for the Cubs, as Dave van Dyck of the Chicago Tribune points out, is filling out their bullpen with in-house candidates, such as Jeff Samardzija. This would allow the team a little more payroll flexibility, as they attempt to address their other needs.
With the rumor mill slowing down on Christmas Eve, we'll open this topic up for discussion. Will the Cubs salvage their offseason? Which of the team's needs would you like to see them make their top priority? And when the dust settles, which free agents do you expect to see wearing Cubs uniforms?
