Cubs manager Lou Piniella hinted on ESPN Radio today that Milton Bradley will not play another game for the Cubs (via ESPN Chicago). The talented outfielder has two years and $21MM remaining on his contract, but Piniella suggested Bradley will spend those two seasons elsewhere.
"Now we try to find somebody else," Piniella said. "I know Jim [Hendry, the team GM] will work very hard at it."
Piniella is hardly the first one to suggest that Bradley will likely continue his career with another team. The Padres could have interest in Bradley, but the Royals won't bite. Ken Rosenthal suggested this weekend that the Giants, Rangers, Rays and Mets could all have interest in the 31-year-old.
The Cubs manager also criticized Bradley for his total of 40 RBIs. Bradley often hit second, so he didn't have as many opportunities to produce runs as some, but he failed to capitalize when given the chance; only eight of the 266 players with at least 300 plate appearances drove home a smaller percentage of runners than Bradley, who brought home just a tenth of those who reached base ahead of him.
