Cubs Rumors

Heyman On Adrian Gonzalez, Peavy, Sabathia

By Tim Dierkes | May 27, 2009 at 12:13pm CDT

Heyman believes the Padres could bring in a haul for Adrian Gonzalez beyond what the Rangers received for Mark Teixeira. However, when asked if he's considering trading his slugging first baseman, Padres GM Kevin Towers responded, "Not at this point in time."
The Cubs don't seem anxious to make a deal for Jake Peavy, and the Dodgers have the same-division hurdle. The Brewers might not have the pitching (or inclination) to get it done. Towers will continue to try to find a team Peavy likes while also matching the package offered by the White Sox: Aaron Poreda, Clayton Richard, and two minor league pitchers.
Heyman says the Angels bid about $140MM for C.C. Sabathia last winter, making the Yankees' $161MM winning bid appear more appropriate.

Padres Willing To Trade Kouzmanoff?

By Tim Dierkes | May 25, 2009 at 8:43am CDT

According to Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times, the Padres "have shown a willingness to move" third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff. Wittenmyer adds that "the Cubs acknowledge a potential fit, although they say they think [Mike] Fontenot, in particular, can adequately fill the interim need at third [while Aramis Ramirez is injured]." The article has the flavor of a trade rumor, but Wittenmyer does not say the Cubs actually inquired on Kouzmanoff.

Kouzmanoff, 28 in July, is hitting an ugly .236/.285/.366 in 172 plate appearances on the season, even worse than his subpar 2008. To his credit, he did hit .292/.329/.473 on the road last year. The Fielding Bible II noted that Kouzmanoff "showed some improvement" on defense last year. He will be arbitration-eligible for the first time after this season, and you have to wonder if the Padres will move him before that jump in salary. Would the Cardinals make sense?

What We Know About Peavy And The Padres

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | May 23, 2009 at 10:48am CDT

The trade that nearly sent Jake Peavy to the White Sox has provided lots of rumors to sift through and lots of opinions to mull over. Now that the frenzy's over let's lay out what we actually know:

Peavy will make $15MM next year, $16MM in 2011 and $17MM in 2012. There's a club option for $22MM in 2013, with a $4MM buyout.
The Padres want to move him because he's expensive, but he has a full no-trade clause this year.
Peavy says he's "not closing the door on anything" with the White Sox, according to Bernie Wilson of the AP.
Dave van Dyck of the Chicago Tribune says the White Sox are leaving the deal on the table in case Peavy changes his mind.
Peavy sounds open to the possibility of being traded, hinting that he'd consider moving to another city.
Cities in "Middle America" are more appealing to Peavy, as SI.com's Jon Heyman reported yesterday. Also, he prefers the National League.
As ESPN.com's Buster Olney reports, the Cubs still have interest in Peavy.
Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune suggests that the Cubs could pursue Peavy if their ownership transition progresses before the end of July.
For what it's worth, Peavy praised Cubs fans and the organization.

Heyman On Peavy, Pedro, Blalock

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | May 22, 2009 at 12:42pm CDT

Jon Heyman of SI.com has a number of rumors in his latest column:

He believes the Cubs and Brewers have the best shot at acquiring Jake Peavy, because of the pitcher's preference for the National League and his desire to play in "middle America." Heyman believes Peavy would accept a deal to either team, but there are never guarantees with a no-trade clause.
The Yankees and Indians both say they cannot add payroll.
One AL executive believes Pedro Martinez would sign for $3MM plus incentives at this point.
The Rangers would listen to offers for Hank Blalock and ask for relief help in return.

Jake Peavy Not A Fit In Boston

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | May 22, 2009 at 11:04am CDT

According to Sean McAdam of the Boston Herald the Red Sox are reluctant to go after Jake Peavy because he's owed lots of money and they question his durability and how well he'd transition into the AL East. The Red Sox have a deep rotation anyways, especially with Daisuke Matsuzaka set to return and John Smoltz rehabbing, so I doubt they were that interested to begin with.

In the aftermath of the failed White Sox-Padres swap that would have sent Peavy to Chicago, there are other reactions from around the majors:

MLB.com's Todd Zolecki wonders if it would be smart for the Phillies to acquire Peavy. Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. declined to comment on the chances of making such a deal happen.
Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times reports that Cubs GM Jim Hendry didn't comment when asked about re-starting talks to acquire the righty. Ryan Theriot sounds excited about pursuing Peavy.
Yahoo's Jeff Passan writes that Peavy made the right call, since the White Sox are no sure thing.

Odds & Ends: Bray, Fox, Manny, Crow

By Tim Dierkes | May 20, 2009 at 1:46pm CDT

Links for Wednesday…

Today's chat will be at 3pm CST.
According to Andy Martino, the Phillies claimed righty Steven Register off waivers from the Rockies today and sent him to Triple A.
Reds reliever Bill Bray will miss the rest of the season due to Tommy John surgery, according to MLB.com's Mark Sheldon yesterday.
Dave Cameron at FanGraphs says Jake Fox belongs in the Majors, given his ridiculous Triple A numbers (.431/.513/.954 in 130 ABs with 17 HR and 50 RBI). The Cubs, though, are already trying to find ways to get Micah Hoffpauir into the lineup.
ESPN's Buster Olney pictures what would've unfolded if Manny Ramirez hadn't used PEDs.
Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle on the Noah Lowry situation.
Tony Massarotti of the Boston Globe speculates on possible moves for the Red Sox.
Baseball America's Jim Callis says Nationals GM Mike Rizzo has been talking to Randy Hendricks about getting Aaron Crow's consent in the event the Nationals want to draft him again.

2010 Options: Chicago Cubs

By Tim Dierkes | May 19, 2009 at 4:40pm CDT

The Cubs don't have any options to worry about for 2010, aside from manager Lou Piniella. But here are a few situations they'll face within the next few years:

2010 is the final year of Derrek Lee's contract, which pays $13MM annually. His heir apparent might be Micah Hoffpauir, who owns a .326/.385/.546 big league line but has just 156 plate appearances. Maybe Hoffpauir is the next Luke Scott, an older rookie who had a monstrous half-season in '06 and then settled in as a useful bat.
Lefty starter Ted Lilly is also signed through 2010. This was one of the best signings of the 2006-07 offseason, and there were some bad ones. Lilly made 34 starts in each of his first two seasons for the Cubs and is off to a fine start this year. Do the Cubs try to extend him, knowing that he'll turn 35 in January of 2011? It's probably too early to ask.
Rich Harden is a free agent after the 2009 season. The 27 year-old has logged 27 starts in his Cubs career, surpassing expectations. He's earning $7MM this year and is off to a so-so start due to poor control and a high home run rate. Will some team throw a silly contract at him if he makes 30 starts this year?
Kevin Gregg's contract is up after '09. As expected, he's walked a ton of guys and been generally uninspiring. Presumably the Cubs will let him leave and promote Carlos Marmol to closer.

Odds & Ends: Boras, Francoeur, Cubs

By Tim Dierkes | May 19, 2009 at 1:42pm CDT

Links for Tuesday…

This week's chat will be held tomorrow at 2pm CST.
MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo discusses the Scott Boras effect on this year's draft, while Baseball America's John Manuel provides a draft overview.
SI's Tom Verducci explains why the Rangers are for real. At 23-14, they're in first place (4 games ahead of the Angels).
Andrew Beaton of Hot Foot provides a rebuttal to The Jonathan Sanchez Paradox: Oliver Perez.
Padres exec Paul DePodesta talks about recently acquired shortstop Josh Wilson.
MLB.com's Mark Bowman writes about the Jeff Francoeur situation.
According to Ameet Sachdev of the Chicago Tribune, actors Bill Murray, Jim Belushi, and John Cusack have met separately with Tom Ricketts about investing in the Cubs.
RotoAuthority looks at the groundball rate leaderboard…did you know Gil Meche is second?

Odds & Ends: Mets, Cubs, Astros

By Tim Dierkes | May 18, 2009 at 11:16am CDT

Links for Monday…

Nationals GM Mike Rizzo told Baseball America's Jim Callis that the team's #10 overall draft pick will not be influenced by signability. MLB.com's Bill Ladson's source believes negotiations between Rizzo and Scott Boras for Stephen Strasburg will go well, given their past history.
Regarding Friday's call for MLBTR writers, I still have many applications to review. I will keep you updated here on the site.
McCovey Chronicles discusses The Jonathan Sanchez Paradox.
Joel Sherman of the New York Post names Nick Johnson, Aubrey Huff, and Mark DeRosa as the most probable trade targets for the Mets if Carlos Delgado is out for an extended period of time. Check out MLBTR's discussion of this topic from Saturday. SI.com's Jon Heyman also weighed in today.
Daniel Kaplan of SportsBusiness Journal has an update on progress made on the sale of the Cubs.
On Sunday, Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette wrote that Freddy Sanchez's current contract clause will likely cause the Pirates to avoid vesting options in the future.
On June 1st, Alyson Footer will begin a new job working for the Astros. The new MLB.com beat writer will be Brian McTaggart, who covered the team for the Houston Chronicle.

Odds & Ends: Sheets, Blanco, Coghlan

By Tim Dierkes | May 15, 2009 at 3:48pm CDT

Links for Friday…

RotoAuthority talks about the popular fantasy pickups this week.
Rangers GM Jon Daniels says Ben Sheets is "watching from a distance" while recovering from elbow surgery, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan says the Rangers "apparently are in position to sign Guillermo Pimentel, a top outfield prospect from the Dominican Republic" for $1.5-2MM.
Amalie Benjamin of the Boston Globe says Red Sox reliever Javier Lopez cleared waivers and will head to Triple A.
Sam Miller of the OC Register assembled a lineup/slideshow of prospects who deserve a big league shot.
Henry Blanco isn't sure why he wasn't able to re-sign with the Cubs, according to the Chicago Tribune's Paul Sullivan.
Nick Yohanek, the fan who caught Chris Coghlan's first big league home run, explains his side of the story in asking for the following for the ball: a signed Coghlan game bat, a signed Coghlan ball, and a Hanley Ramirez game bat. What's your take on this?

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