Alfonso Soriano Rumors

Cubs Unlikely To Land Halladay

Although the Cubs would "love" to pull off a deal for Blue Jays ace Roy Halladay, they are unlikely to do so as they lack the necessary room in payroll, according to Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. The Cubbies have a combined $42.375MM committed to pitchers Carlos Zambrano, Ted Lilly, and Ryan Dempster. They would have a hard time finding a taker for Alfonso Soriano as he is owed $18MM per year for the next five years. Same goes for Kosuke Fukudome, who is due to make $26.5MM over the next two seasons. Aramis Ramirez is...   Continue Reading

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Heyman On Pujols, Holliday, Acta, Cubs

The Cardinals want to lock up Albert Pujols, but Jon Heyman of SI.com wonders if they can keep him and Matt Holliday. One GM says there's "no chance" the team can keep the two stars, despite owner Bill DeWitt's goal to "lock up both of them." Here are more details on the Cardinals' superstars, along with the rest of Heyman's rumors: Heyman says it's illogical to expect Pujols to demand anything less than $30MM per season. Holliday is "thought to be interested" in a deal comparable to Mark Teixeira's $180MM pact. No doubt Holliday would have interest in that kind...   Continue Reading

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Did Soriano Contract Help Phillies Win World Series?

Following the '06 season, the Cubs signed Alfonso Soriano to an eight-year, $136MM contract. Among the teams interested in Soriano at the time were the Phillies. Paul Hagan of the Philadelphia Inquirer looks back at that off-season and suggests that the non-signing allowed the Phillies to build the team that ultimately won the World Series. The rumor was that the Phillies might be willing to consider a deal in the $100 million range...While there's no way of knowing exactly how the script might have played out had Soriano chosen red pinstripes, one thing can be said with absolute certainty: The...   Continue Reading

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Cubs May Not Need Hitter After All

Rumblings after Wednesday's game coming from the often-rumbling Lou Piniella centered around changes in the lineup. But as Carrie Muskat reported, the Cubs kept the status quo in place, particularly Alfonso Soriano at the top of the lineup, despite a sub-.300 on-base percentage. Of course, the storyline from Thursday's 6-5 win is that Soriano had the game-winning hit as Chicago's bats came alive. But while much of the focus will be on the rejuvenated offense, the questions surrounding ownership transfer may be the real barrier to the Cubs bringing in a bat. Tip of the hat to Carrie Muskat again....   Continue Reading

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Cubs Rumors: Ibanez, Abreu, Teahen

Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times has a couple of new Cubs articles up, here and here. Manager Lou Piniella would prefer the Cubs acquire a middle of the order hitter over a leadoff man, if only one can be acquired. Piniella had kind words for possible free agent target Raul Ibanez. Piniella continued to dismiss the idea of the Cubs pursuing Jake Peavy (despite recent comments from Padres GM Kevin Towers). He'd like to give Mike Fontenot more playing time in 2009, which would help balance the lineup. In the spring the Cubs will see if Fontenot can chip...   Continue Reading

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Manny Ramirez Rumors: Sunday

As we await an offer from the Dodgers to Manny Ramirez, the notion is often floated that a six year contract for Manny is better suited for an American League team. There he can spend the latter half of his deal, presumably the final years of his career, transitioning to DH. Phil Rogers of the Chicago Tribune reports that Toronto GM J.P. Ricciardi confirmed that he has interest in Manny Ramirez. Rogers quotes Ricciardi: "I've always liked him," Ricciardi told the Toronto Sun. "But obviously getting him and liking him are two different things." We've heard this before here. Rogers...   Continue Reading

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Cubs Considering Manny?

From the speculative rumor mill, Phil Rogers of the Chicago Tribune suggests Manny Ramirez could be what the Cubs are missing, and the opportunity to bring him to Chicago could be there this offseason. Says Rogers, "With the aggressive nature of general manager Jim Hendry and the anything-to-win approach in the Lou Piniella era, don't rule this out—not if the Dodgers would take on a big contract or two from the Cubs... There's no way the Cubs can play two left fielders, so [Alfonso] Soriano would have to go for Ramirez to come. Soriano seems to be essentially an immovable...   Continue Reading

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Odds and Ends: Springer, Sheffield, Bonds

How about some weekend odds and ends? Free agent reliever Russ Springer intends to pitch next year, and he prefers the Cardinals. The Cards haven't discussed a contract with him, though, and they might prefer their younger (and cheaper) righthanded relievers. Dave Cameron thinks Nate Robertson might be a sleeper, based on his peripheral stats. Boof Bonser is another pitcher whose ERA didn't match up with his other numbers this year. Peter Woodfork apparently bowed out of the Mariners GM job competition after his interview. The Ms could decide between Tony LaCava, Jerry DiPoto, Kim Ng, and Jack Zduriencik by...   Continue Reading

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Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Brian Roberts

It seems as though all the players we thought we would be traded this off-season, have been traded, minus one...Brian Roberts. The oft-rumored deal to send Roberts to the Cubs continues to linger. Ken Rosenthal first suggested that Roberts would be a good fit for the Cubs back in early December and Jeff Zrebiec confirmed the Cubs interest. Then the deal may have been dead, with the O's asking price too high and by the end of January Gordon Wittenmyer suggested Cubs had turned their focus to Marlon Byrd. Then according to Jon Heyman a deal appeared imminent. Rosenthal thought..   Continue Reading

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Thoughts On The Soriano Deal

Hi everyone, Tim here. I thought I would check in briefly on this little contract that the Cubs have extended to Mr. Soriano. I just can't resist. The wedding yesterday was perfect; we're jetting off to Cancun on Tuesday. I am a lucky man. The lovely Mrs. Dierkes is all tuckered out after the big weekend, so here are some random thoughts. From a Cubs fan point of view: I love the Alfonso Soriano signing. As fans often say to justify insane contracts: "It's not my money; I just want to win." I agree with that philosophy. The Yankees might..   Continue Reading

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