Starting In Right Field For Your 2010 Cubs: Milton Bradley

The Winter Meetings have come and gone, yet, Milton Bradley is still a Cub.

Are you surprised?  You shouldn't be.

The Cubs butchered this whole ordeal from Day 1.  And not Day 1 of the offseason, either.  It all began when they signed Bradley in the first place. Three-years and $30 million for a player who has been on seven different teams in his big league career and had accumulated 500 plate appearances only twice in his entire career. 

Signing a guy coming off posting a .999 OPS to lead the American League is a good idea.  Signing the guy for three years when he hadn't spent more than two full seasons on a team since the first three years of this decade is a bad one.

Then, there would be the handling of Crazy Uncle Milton, who was treated as if he had "fragile" stamped on his forehead.  It all fell apart in September when Hendry & Co. botched the season-end suspension.  Rather than keep in in house, the Cubs pissed all over any trade value Bradley would have had by throwing him under the bus.

Hendry could have spent the offseason saying, "We sat Milty the last two weeks of the season because we wanted to have him healthy going into an offseason where we knew we'd try to trade him.  He wasn't a fit with our team, but he could fit yours."  Now, there's no hiding behind that anonymity because everyone knows Bradley's a dickhead.

The sad this is that Bradley has handled his demotion well.  He hasn't been seen or heard from, which is good.  It might make things easier come Spring Training when the Cubs have to mend fences after publicly trying to trade their starting right fielder who is set to earn $21 million over the next two seasons.

Oh, and just to make things even more difficult, the guy who has nothing to do with baseball operation has to open his stinkin' mouth.  Go away, Crane Kenney.  Do so as quick as possible.

If you thought he was a dick before, imagine how much more of a dick he could be if he wanted to be after this failed fiasco.

And for the second straight year, the Chicago Cubs have been handcuffed by a contract Jim Hendry outbid no one but himself to sign.  Last year, Hendry was so dedicated to unloading Jason Marquis' $9.875 million contract, it bogged down any progress in getting his guy -- Jake Peavy.  This season, Hendry found himself strapped with Crazy Uncle Milton's contract, so much so it proved to be one of the deciding factors in Hendry's inability to get his guy -- again.  This time it was Curtis Granderson.

The New York Daily News has it covered.  And by "it" I mean, manager Lou Piniella being pissed about not getting what he wants for the second straight off-season.

"Our primary need is an outfielder who can hit fifth, and Granderson was our No. 1 choice," Piniella said Wednesday. "There was just no way we could get him, and once again the Yankees swooped in and got their man. I know he struck out a lot, but that's the product of being in that lineup over in Detroit where they all come out swinging. He probably tried to do too much last year and he was trying to pull the ball too much. When he gets over to the Yankees, he'll automatically become more selective just by association."

It's December, and Sweet Uncle Lou is already pissed off about the prospects of the 2010 season.

There is no secret that Piniella is entering lame-duck status next season, but I'm not sure why.  If anything, he should be given an extension for what he did last year.  Piniella has been the most successful manager the Cubs have had in my 23-year lifetime.

Of the 16 managers the Cubs have had since 1986, only three have been at .500 or better.  Piniella is one of them, and before he took over, you've got to go back to Jim Lefebvre, who was 162-162 in two years with the team.

At times, it looked like Piniella was lost and being out-managed.  And while Piniella might have lost a step in those too-tight-for-comfort baseball pants, he has yet to lose his eye for talent.

Meanwhile, Jim Hendry seems to be the Stevie Wonder of spotting talent.

Let's compare what Piniella has done in regard to talent recognition compared to what Hendry has done.  For the sake of space, I'll choose six.

Hendry:

• Identified Alfonso Soriano as a lead-off hitter and center fielder (people forget that one)
  
• Outbid himself to sign Milton Bradley, Jason Marquis to three year deals for no reason
• Failed to identify Josh Hamilton as a possible outfield option
• Traded three valuable pieces for one year of Juan Pierre
• Traded the once untouchable (and under team control for several years) Jose Ceda for one (very bad) year of Kevin Gregg
  
• Traded Greg Maddux for Cesar Izturis.
  

Piniella:

• Sent Carlos Marmol & Angel Guzman from the rotation to the 'pen
• Moved Ryan Dempster from the 'pen to the rotation
• Replaced Cesar Izturis with Ryan Theriot
• Had the foresight to play Geovany Soto in a playoff race in 2007, and let him flourish in 2008
• Sent Michael Barrett to the bench before Hendry eventually sent him packing in 2007

The Cubs should find a way to remove Hendry from making player personnel decisions, while somehow giving that task to Piniella upon his retirement.  Believe it or not, Piniella changed the mindset of fans and the way this franchise looks at some of its young talent.
Piniella's biggest miscues as a manager (Soriano in the lead-off spot, Gregg as closer) came about because of Hendry's miscalculations.


Here's hoping Henry's latest gaffe is his last.  Until then, start training your eyes to see No. 21 in right field ... again.

Ryne Sandberg One Step Away From The Big Show

Ryne Sandberg has received yet another promotion to Triple A Iowa. And luckily for Ryan Theriot, it is not to eventually take his second base job.

Sandberg, who could teach Theriot a thing or two about how to correctly throw a ball to a Gold Glove caliber first baseman, will manage the Triple A Iowa Cubs.  And that has fans of Chicago's Cubs giggly over the idea of their Hall of Fame second baseman managing the team in 2011.  Seems like a grand idea, right?

Not so fast, my friend.

Are the Cubs really ready to make that next step?  I think not.  I've been informed many times about hot prospects rapidly going through the minor league system only to see Brooks Kieschnick, Kevin Orie, Corey Patterson and others fail miserably once they step foot within Wrigley Field's ivy covered walls.

The last thing Cubs fans (or the organization itself) needs is a manager to do just that.

On the other hand, I like that Sandberg is climbing up the ranks of the organization.  With Tom Ricketts looking to save money anywhere he can, having Sandberg could allow the Cubs to save some money on a few fronts.

They would probably not have to pay Sandberg upward of $3 million to manage the club, as they currently do for Piniella.  Also, I'll assume the Cubs would like to save a few bucks by promoting talent from within, and no one should know the minor league talent in the organization like the guy who has managed at each level of the organization.

So, where does that leave Lou?
The odd man out?

Hopefully not.

It is apparent that Cubs fans have taken Piniella for granted.  Since coming to Chicago, the Cubs have posted a 265-219 record.  Did last year's 83-78 record suck?  Fuck and yes.  But it was much better than the third season's of Dusty Baker, Don Baylor and Jim Riggleman.

Those three represent the last three full-time managers that came before Piniella.  In their third season with the Cubs, the trio combined to win 181 games and lose 226 games.  That's a whopping .447 winning percentage.

Makes Piniella look like Frank Chance, doesn't it?

If anything, Piniella should be given a key to the city for leading a team that featured three middle infielders not tall enough to ride a roller coaster at Great America to 83 (bleeping) wins.

Should the Cubs have won more than 83 games in 2009?  Again.  Fuck and yes.  Especially with a $140 million payroll.  But it was not as if Piniella handed out a bunch of back-loaded contracts, hamstringing a franchise in years where game-changing free agents hit the market.

My suggestion?  Hire Piniella to run the player personnel department.  If the Ricketts family likes Jim Hendry so much, they can go the John McDonough route and give him a cushy office job with a lengthy title and little responsibility.

While Piniella looked like he was out of touch with the new era of baseball, the man can still judge talent

He had the foresight to call-up Geovany Soto at the end of the 2007 year and let him win the starting catcher's job in 2008.  He sent Michael Barrett and Cesar Izturis to the end of the bench, and hid Jason Marquis in big-game situations.  Piniella was the mastermind behind moving Ryan Dempster from the bullpen to the rotation, while moving Carlos Marmol and Angel Guzman from the rotation to the bullpen.

Was he slow in moving Alfonso Soriano down in the order?  Of course.  But it was Hendry who signed him to be the lead-off man.  If he wanted a middle-of-the-order hitter, maybe Hendry should have signed Carlos Lee instead.  Did Piniella drop the ball on finding playing time for Jake Fox?  Yeah.  But Fox oftentimes dropped balls when he was playing in the outfield.  That's why he'll be a fine designated hitter in Oakland.

Am I surprised Cubs fans want to send Sweet Uncle Lou and his .548 winning percentage (highest winning percentage of all the team's he has managed, mind you) packing to a Florida retirement home?  No.  This is the same fan base that pined for Hee Seop Choi's return after Derrek Lee's slow start in April 2004, and advocated starting Micah Hoffpauir at first after a sluggish beginning by Lee in 2009.

But, hey.  At least we're not Cardinals fans.

Grading The Chicago Cubs, Part III

Manager Lou Piniella did not receive the highest grade among the Cubs' coaches.  Who did?

Yeah, Lou, this year stunk!

Lou Piniella, manager, C- -- The Cubs finished with a winning record for the third straight time for the first time in my lifetime.  It is the saving grace to what was otherwise disappointing season with Piniella at the helm.  He allowed Mike Fontenot and Kosuke Fukudome to face left-handed pitching.  Big mistake.  He allowed Kevin Gregg to close games for more than four months.  Unacceptable.  All of his best moves (moving Alfonso Soriano down in the order, playing Jake Fox everyday at third base when Aramis Ramirez went down, removing Gregg from the closer's role, moving Fukudome to the top of the order) came too little too late.  The Lou Piniella of 2007 or 2008 would have made those moves earlier in the season.

If that guy comes back in 2010, the Cubs will be a much better team.

Larry Rothschild, pitching coach, B+ -- Oh, snap.  Dave Duncan Rothschild oversaw a pitching staff that ranked in the top five in the following categories: strikeouts, strikeouts-per-nine innings (2nd), hits-per-nine innings and batting average against (3rd), earned run average, WHIP and ERA+ (5th).

The most astonishing stat might be the team's 94 quality starts, which ranked second in all of baseball.  And to think, the Cubs posted these numbers with only one player that pitched 200 innings, a rookie and without a starter to win at least 15 games.  All while Kevin Gregg and Aaron Heilman were "anchors" of the bullpen and Carlos Marmol and Carlos Zambrano each had off years.

Gerald Perry, Von Joshua; Incomplete -- Neither of these guys stepped to the plate and swung the bat.  But neither of them could solve whatever ailed Chicago's North Side hitters.  It's not their fault Jim Hendry relied on a pair of midgets to play second base and a mentally handicapped right fielder on an everyday basis.

Lou Piniella vs. Jim Hendry: Who Should Get The Boot?

The Chicago Cubs are 3-0 since sending Milton Bradley to his bedroom without desert.  Too bad the streak comes too little, too late as the season enters its final stretch of games.

Manager Lou Piniella and GM Jim Hendry are on the firing line because of the roles they've played in the downfall of a team that won 97 games last season.  But it's unlikely both will be filing unemployment papers anytime soon.  However, it might be time for one of these two to hit the road.

Which one should it be?

THE CASE AGAINST PINIELLA

Pinning the blame on Jim Hendry will be the easy part of this blog.  It will be lengthy too.  So we'll save that for later.  Now, let's focus on Piniella.

First, Cubs fans should thank their lucky stars for Sweet Uncle Lou, who for a while was the anti-Dusty Baker.  For the first time in the history of that clubhouse, there was a sense that something was going right.  There was a sense of responsibility, accountability and urgency for a franchise that lacked those two things for the better part of a decade.

All of that has seemed to disappear in 2009.  Milton Bradley went crazy.  Alfonso Soriano failed to run out ground balls.  And Kevin Gregg lasted much longer than he would have had the real Lou Piniella been managing this ball club.

The fiery manager that kicked hats and threw bases we once knew sounds resigned to a fate.  Rather than saying "F*** no I'm not leaving 'til we win a f****** ring," when asked whether or not he was going to manage next year, Piniella responded with a "Golly gee, guys, I'll just fulfill my contract."  Sounds like a guy who wants out to me.

Reporters and fans have called him out for the lack of fire. I'll call him out for the following.

• Keeping Kevin Gregg in the closer's role.  Things looked fine in the month of July, but his career splits suggested the second half was a disaster.  It's too bad Lou didn't take the suggestion until after Gregg and his ERA which hovers around 6.75 helped blow the Cubs' chance at a playoff spot.
• The Alfonso Soriano leadoff experiment.  It took him too long to make and stick with the decision.  That is all.
• Batting Mike Fontenot against lefty pitchers.  In 2008, Lil' Babe Ruth hit .305 and posted a .909 OPS where he posted an average above .300 against lefties.  That was out of line with his career splits where he hits .236 against lefties.  Fonty could have been serviceable in 2009 had he not had to face LHPs ... or RHPs for that matter.
• Not playing Jake Fox.  Beyond the whole Jake Fox doesn't get enough ABs argument should be a sub-head.  Fox posted a .953 OPS in the three months he was receiving significant playing time before dipping to .246 in August and .240 in September.  Piniella, known for riding the hot hand, has no excuse for not sticking Fox at third as soon as Aramis Ramirez hit the DL and riding out that hot hand instead of fooling around with Andres Blanco, Bobby Scales, Fontenot and Aaron Miles.

THE CASE AGAINST JIM HENDRY

Sit back, relax and strap it on.  Allow me to take you on a journey through time.  It would be easy to stand on top of a building and scream "Fire Jim Hendry!" at the top of your lungs after this debacle.  The Chicago Sun-Times has proven how easy that is by doing so with a photo gallery.

No photo gallery from me though.  Just prose.

The Milton Bradley debacle is just the tip of the iceberg.  If you thought trading Crazy Uncle Milton was going to be hard, it might be damn near impossible after this fiasco.  And it's not just the fiasco itself, it's Hendry's handling of it.  Going public with the suspension pandered to us, the fans, but did the organization much harm.  The announcement of the suspension caused Bradley's stock to plummet so far, Enron thinks it's a good one to bounce back.  It would have been easy for the Cubs to keep it in-house and tell the world, "Hey, we're trying to give Tyler Colvin a shot" while telling each other "F*** Milton, he's not playing."

The sad thing is that this is not the first time this has happened.  The Cubs tore down Sammy Sosa once his act wore thin, so much so all they got in return was Mike Fontenot.  Hendry certainly could have gotten a lot more for a guy who hit 35 home runs and drove in 80 RBIs had he not Plax'd himself during the process.

Trades of players such as Kyle Farnsworth, Corey Patterson and Felix Pie all came too late.  Hendry sold low on all three when he could have sold high on each and every one of them.  Same can be said about non-prospects such as Jock-strap Jones, Will Ohman and Michael Barrett.

The only trades Hendry has working in his favor are the trades for Derrek Lee, Aramis Ramirez, and to an extent, Rich Harden.  In those trades, Hendry victimized small-market teams who could not afford to pay the price of admission to see those players, let alone their salaries.  And I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the dumping Todd Hundley as a Hendry success story, but it ends there.

Hendry was the mastermind behind letting Josh Hamilton get away for chump change.  He acquired Juan Pierre for a young, affordable right handed  starter named Ricky Nolasco and the lefty reliever we desperately need in Reynel Pinto.  Finally, there was that whole Greg Maddux for Cesar Izturis deal that came after Maddux said he wanted tos tick around.

Signing Alfonso Soriano was a good idea.  Signing him for an 8-year deal was a bad idea.  It was the fifth richest deal in baseball at the time, putting him among the likes of Alex Rodriguez (10 years, $252 million), Derek Jeter (10 years, $189 million) and Manny Ramirez (8 years, $160 million).  After hitting 62 homers in his first two-injury riddled years in Chicago, Soriano spit the bit as the injury bug molested him to the point where he needed surgery on his knee -- cutting short what projected to be a 27 home run season.  Clearly, Soriano is no A-Rod or Manny.

With a new ownership group coming in, the time to clean house is now.  If Hendry and Piniella have to take the fall, so be it.  But I'll let you be the judge.

Two guys.  One bullet.  Who gets it?

Who gets the axe: Jim Hendry or Lou Piniella?

• Jim Hendry
• Lou Piniella

Created on Sep 23, 2009

View Results

poll by twiigs.com

Why Ryne Sandberg Is The Answer

For once, Phil Rogers has written something that does not make me want to throw up.

I approached this subject with Dave Duncan and am ready to do so with Ryne Sandberg.

I've never been a fan of former star players becoming coaches and managers -- mostly because it rarely works out.  But Ryno seems to be different.  He holds several intangibles that make me think he might be the perfect successor once Lou Piniella hangs up his managerial thinking cap.

And here's why.

He knows the youngsters

Stops at A-ball and AA have given Sandberg a glimpse of what is coming down the pipeline for the North Side Nine.  When the contracts of Aramis Ramirez, Derrek Lee, Carlos Zambrano and Ryan Dempster expire, there might not be anyone in the organization equipped with more knowledge than the guy who once managed the players who are scheduled to get the call to the big club in the near future.

He's paying his dues

A lot can be said for someone who is willing to live like a scrub because he loves the game.  It would be easy for Sandberg to travel via a separate car or charter flights, but Sandberg has yet to give in to his mega-star status.  Could you imagine Michael Jordan in a vehicle that amounts to being a small upgrade to a school bus traveling with guys who combined still wouldn't hold one-tenth of the talent Jordan had in his weakest moments.

Well, that's what the Hall of Fame second baseman is going through right now.

A breath of fresh air

When the Cubs wore thin on Dusty Baker's act, Lou Piniella was brought in to shuffle some things around and ruffle some feathers.  The Cubs were introduced to the concept of taking pitches, on-base percentage and not allowing players such as Cesar Izturis play everyday.

Now, it's Piniella's act that seems to be wearing out its welcome in Chicago.  And unlike Sweet Uncle Lou, Sandberg will never confuse the North and South sides of Chicago.  Nor will he ever refer to the "ivory" in right field.  But hopefully, he will oversee a team that will have fans singing "Go Cubs, Win" deep into October for many years to come.

Someone Should Tell Jim Hendry That Lou Piniella Has Plans For Him

I agree Lou, this team stinks

You know there is a fork in your favorite team's playoff chances when stories like this story come out.

Manager Lou Piniella wants to add a top-of-the-order speed guy and ideally take another shot at adding that middle-of-the-order run-producer role that Kosuke Fukudome and Milton Bradley couldn't fill.

Well, that makes sense.  Fukudome and Bradley have combined to hit 23 home runs this season.  Adam Dunn has hit 37.

Now, let's move down to the fifth bullet point of the section appropriately titled "This is what they know they're working with at this point."

''We haven't even had discussions about next year as an organization, or even myself and the staff and Jim and his staff upstairs,'' Piniella said. ''Right now we're still trying to win as many games and finish as strong as we can.''

I don't blame Piniella for not wanting to talk about next year as the Cubs ascend the NL Wild Card standings and are only 5 1/2 games out as of this post.  So, what is on Lou Piniella's off-season shopping list?  Oh, nothing that I haven't already suggested.


If the Cubs are looking to add power this off-season in the free-agent market, the top two targets are Matt Holliday and Jason Bay.  Holliday can be founds about 300 miles south on the map and about 500 miles north in the standings. Contrary to popular belief, it has been Holliday's .363/.415/.659/1.075 line ... not Mark DeRosa ... that has sparked St. Louis' resurgence.  Between his monstrous second half, and the fact his agent is Scott Boras, Holliday will get a hefty raise in 2010 and beyond.

Bay has absolutely flourished since leaving the Pittsburgh Pirates.  Go figure.  Seeing someone leave the Pirates and shine on a team that isn't the Cubs is odd, knowing that  Jim Hendry is usually on top of those deals.  Failure, meet Jim.  Jimbo, this is failure.  The Cubs could sign Bay, but I doubt the Red Sox would let Bay, his 32 homers and .919 OPS just up-and-leave Boston.

The problem with each (other than that both will require a pretty penny to lure to the North Side) is that neither has played much right field, which could be a problem in one of baseball's toughest sun fields.  Bay has one game of experience, while Holliday has none.  Is there anyone out there that thinks Alfonso Soriano can play an adequate right field in one of baseball's toughest sun fields?  Moving Soriano back to second base, or out of town, would be better options.

Finding someone fleet of foot my be an easier task for the Cubs brain trust.  The first name that needs to be thrown out there is obviously Chone Figgins.  He's versatile, but would fit perfectly at second base, which is arguably the Cubs' weakest position.  I'm scared off a little bit by some of the career-highs he has posted already in categories such as runs scored and walks ... but he's averaged 38 steals over the last three years and that is hard to ignore.

Other than those options, the 2010 Cubs offense should look a lot like the 2009 Cubs offense.  Just a year older.

Piniella, Hendry To Be Indicted If Cubs Fall Flat

In baseball purgatory, they'll be the ones getting popped instead of the bubbly.

The verdict is in.

We, the people (a.k.a. Me) find manager Lou Piniella and GM Jim Hendry to be responsible for all shortcomings for the two-time defending National League Central Division champion Chicago Cubs.

If this was Law & Order, the show would end with Hendry and Piniella holding their heads in their hands and Jerry Orbach (R.I.P.) saying that the Cubs are in a better place right now.

And fade to black.

The Case Against Hendry

With a payroll hovering around the $130 million mark, Hendry has fielded a team with little depth, a shaky bullpen and without an everyday second baseman. And yet, the man is still employed by the Chicago Cubs.

The Cubs downgraded at several positions this offseason, which is part of the reason the team struggled early before fighting its way back into the race. And while most of the venom spewed by Cubs fans is directed toward Milton Bradley in lieu of the Mark DeRosa trade, it should have been steered toward Aaron Miles (.195/.236/.263 ), Mike Fontenot (.231/.300/.390 ) and Hendry -- who engineered the trade.

Again, I have no problem with the trade. I do have a problem with Hendry not properly replacing the production (.825 OPS as a second baseman in 2008) left behind.

Despite DeRosa's 21 home runs and 63 runs batted in, his batting average, on-base percentage and OPS have taken a major hit since leaving the ivy covered walls of Wrigley Field. Joining St. Louis hasn't helped DeRo's cause as he is hitting .229 with a .291 OBP and a .786 OPS. Not exactly setting the world on fire since putting on Cardinal red.

Hendry also allowed the team to open camp without a proven lefty reliever. If not for the emergence of Sean Marshall and the recent acquisition of John Grabow, the Cubs would have a grand total of zero lefty specialists. And other than Randy Wells, the Cubs' inability to develop home grown talent is evident once again.

Things such as throwing money hoping to cure problem areas and calling up players from the team's AAAA Pittsburgh club is what Hendry has excelled at. But this franchise's struggle at the minor league level is beyond puzzling.

The Case Against Lou Piniella

It seems to me that Sweet Uncle Lou is toeing the same line that Dusty Baker walked in his tenure in Chicago. Just like Dusty, he "changed the culture" that had surrounded the ballclub. Under Piniella's watch, the Cubs have done everything from manning up to the shortcomings to drawing walks -- all in the name of winning a pair of division titles.

However, things have changed this year. And while it is easy (and relevant) to point out that Hendry handed Piniella a craptastic bullpen, it didn't mean Piniella had to abuse and misuse it. Not having Grabow ready, then bringing him in when it was too little, too late, was the tip of the iceberg.

Piniella has leaned too much on Carlos Marmol, who despite 64 strikeouts in 58 1/3 innings, has found a way to lead the league in hit batsmen. He has also had to lean a lot on Kevin Gregg, who has allowed 11 home runs, the most by any NL reliever. The combo that was supposed to be the rock at the back end of the bullpen, has gone soft.

It only took the Cubs until July to figure out that putting guys with high OBPs in front of the middle of the line-up thumpers would lead to a more efficient offense. It's like Piniella went to baseball-reference.com, lined up the players from highest OBP down and then wrote a line up card.

And despite all this crap, the Cubs are still only three games out of first place with about a month and a half of baseball remaining, which features 37 (!) games against teams under .500.

Would Lou Piniella Be A Better GM Than Jim Hendry?

When Sweet Uncle Lou is done, could he go to the GM's suite?

Cubs GM Jim Hendry spent the offseason obsessing over a power-hitting left-handed bat like I spent the offseason obsessing over finding a Valentine's Day date. And apparently, both of us came up empty.

In fact, Hendry's "left-handed bat" is batting better as a righty than from the side of the plate he was paid quite handsomely to perform from. Milton Bradley is hitting .333 with a .400 on-base percentage and a .370 baBIP from the right side, but five of his six homers have come from the left side. However, Bradley is only hitting .201 with a .245 baBIP and a .689 OPS from the left side. If it is any consolation to Cubs fans, Bradley is hitting .303 with a .429 OBP, .486 slugging percentage and .915 OPS. Away from the Friendly Confines, the batting average dips to .177 and the OPS to .573.

Maybe his problem isn't as righty-lefty it is home-road. OK, maybe it is. But maybe Bradley wouldn't be a problem if manager Lou Piniella had his way.

When Piniella was first hired as Cubs manager, stories flooded the Web about he and Hendry basically walking hand-in-hand at the Winter Meetings acting like a head coach and his top assistant recruiting the best stars in the land. Piniella is credited for targeting Alfonso Soriano and Ted Lilly that offseason.

During the regular season, he orchestrated the mass exodus of Cub failures such as Cesar Izturis and Michael Barrett while inserting Ryan Theriot into the everyday line-up, Carlos Marmol to the back of the bullpen and basically forcing Hendry's hand into trading Barrett and eventually landing Jason Kendall.

One year after that, Piniella is credited for helping reeling in Kosuke Fukudome to fill the right field hole that was previously filled by the platoon trio of Matt Murton, Cliff Floyd and Jacque Jones.

And all that happened in the last two years were back-to-back division titles, something that had not been seen in forever-and-a-day. Since I only pay my cable bill from April through September, I'm not sure what happened once October rolled around.

In any case, Piniella got his man and the Cubs got their wins. This season Hendry got his man and Piniella still wants his.

"The only thing I talked about last season was a need for a left-hand bat in a predominantly right-handed lineup who could hit the ball for power and drive in some runs. Look at our production last year, and it was mainly from the right side. We didn't bring [Jim] Edmonds back and he hit quite a few home runs.

"We needed a left-hand bat, that's it. That was what I mentioned, that we could use a nice productive left-hand bat in the middle of our right-hand hitting."

Hendry spent a lot of this offseason trying to swing a deal for Jake Peavy, and failed. Meanwhile, Piniella held a firm stance saying his rotation was fine. It was evident the two most important management figures were no longer on the same page. It isn't out of the realm of possibility that Hendry got so sidetracked with his pursuit of Peavy, that Bradley seemed like a great acquisition despite his tempermantal and injury-riddled past.

I guess this wouldn't be an issue if Bradley lived up to last year's totals. Heck, I'm sure Cubs fans would be pleased if he was meeting his career averages. But it really wouldn't be an issue if Raul Ibanez wasn't taking advantage of the Philly band-box and smacking homers en route to becoming a Cheese Steak swallowers' diety. Or if Bobby Abreu wasn't getting on base at a .402 clip for L.A.'s "other" team. Or if the guy with a career 1.088 OPS at Wrigley Field wasn't wasting 24 homers at Nationals Park.

Maybe one Piniella's term as manager is up, he will put on the GM hat. No one should know how to better put together a team than a two-time Manager of the Year who has done it in each league. Then, the Cubs could "re-assign" Hendry into a consultants role. Or to a beer vendor.

What Should Lou Do? A Second Half Shuffle Suggestion

Like many men his age, Lou Piniella needs assistance from younger, more active folks.

It would just not be fair to let Chicago Cubs manager Lou Piniella off scot-free after the scathing I have given general manager Jim Hendry this season. Unlike his first two years as the skipper, Piniella has failed at putting his players in the best place to be successful. Part of it is because of the garbage Hendry gave him to work with, but part of it is Piniella's unwillingness to move Alfonso Soriano down in the order, ride the hot hand and manage the bullpen, among other things.

Sweet Uncle Lou is no dummy, at least, that is what I am supposed to think. He did win the NL Manager of the Year award last year and all that means to me is that he did something right.

Right?

And since everyone needs help sometimes, here is my suggested rotation going into the second half.

1. Ted Lilly
2. Carlos Zambrano
3. Randy Wells
4. Rich Harden
5. Kevin Hart

Kevin Hart as the fifth starter? That would be funny if it was true. I'd like Sean Marshall here, but Lou and Hendry have a permanent place for him in their dog houses.

Don't you wish the Cubs had signed Pedro Martinez? Oh wait, he's hurt?

Still, once Harden's shoulder flies out of its socket, the Chicago will have only two-and-a-half Major League quality starters, because I'm still not completely sold on Randy Wells. For $1 million, it's a risk Hendry should have taken.

Out of the bullpen, things would get a lot easier if they landed B.J. Ryan, but let's work with what's on the table. Kevin Gregg isn't going anywhere (sad) so he's still the closer. Angel Guzman and Carlos Marmol are your ace set-up men with rookie Jeff Stevens working for either of them if they tire. Aaron Heilman and Sean Marshall are long relievers. David Patton is on the DL, permanantly, I hope.

As for the daily line-up, here's what I'd do.

Against Righties: Fukudome CF Bradley RF Lee 1B Ramirez 3B Soriano LF Fox C Theriot SS Fontenot 2B

On-base guys at the top, sluggers in the middle, speed at the bottom. Sounds like a line-up that could be productive for five runs per game at the least.

Against Lefties: Theriot SS Bradley RF Lee 1B Ramirez 3B Soriano LF Fox C Johnson CF Blanco 2B

Sorry, I saw Reed Johnson's pathetic attempt of leading off a ballgame against the Cardinals first hand. Yes, he was going up against Chris Carpenter, but that didn't stop Rich Harden from collecting two hits against the former Cy Young winner.

This is the time the Cubs need to start taking advantage of these on-base percentage guys. What's the point of batting Bradley lower in the order when you have to depend on Mike Fontenot, Andres Blanco, Koyie Hill and Aaron Miles to drive him in?

I can't be the only one who wants to use his .379 OBP in front of Derrek Lee and Aramis Ramirez. And while it seems every Cubs fan has a hard-on for Sam Fuld, Kosuke Fukudome has a .367 OBP against Major League pitching and Fuld is sitting at .359 against Triple-A hurlers. And last time I checked, big league pitchers were better than minor leaguers.

Unless you're talking about the Washington Nationals, of course.

This all will change when Geovany Soto and Ryan Dempster return to the fold, but by then, it might be too late. Lou Piniella needs to take this advice to the bank and cash in now. Or risk being one of the biggest disappointments in Chicago Cubs history.

Cubs-Cards Round III Game III: At Least I'm Not The Only One That's Pissed Off Edition

The weather isn't the only thing heating up in the Midwest. Someone check Cubs manager Lou Piniella's temperature, because I'm pretty sure Mount Piniella is about to erupt.

Apparently, prior to being "razzled" by some St. Louisans on his lonely walk back to the Hilton at the Ballpark which is a stone's throw from the new Busch Stadium, Piniella had an unpleasant conversation with the team's traveling secratary. (For the record, you can find stones at the landfill that is supposed to be Ballpark Village if you'd like. I digress.)

Sweet Uncle Lou does this from time-to-time to deflect some eyes, ears and thoughts away from the team when they're playing bad. But a rift with the traveling secretary should be the least of the team's concerns.

And I know it's three hours til game time, so here are a list of things that should be concerning Piniella:

1. Milton Bradley's .193 batting average
2. The Mini-Me Midget Committee at third base
3. The fact that Aaron Miles and Kevin Gregg are still on the roster
4. Rich Harden's (lack of) velocity
5. The after-effects of eating a large Imo's pizza

No. 6 on that list would be Adam "Jesus" Wainwright, who is due for a breakout game ... unfortunately for Cubs fans, his next start is against the boys in blue.

Prediction: Wainwright's good for seven shutout innings as the Cards complete the sweep.

Now That! Is What I call Pessimism, Vol. 100.

Piniella puts Phillips in his place

"What do you mean you think Steve Phillips is a good f&*^%#$ GM?" -Piniella

You know what I've always hated about ESPN?

Its ability to hire analysts that weren't good at the job/sport they were good at. Take baseball analyst Steve Phillips, for example.

Phillips guest hosts Baseball Tonight and sucks at breaking down in-game updates. So ESPN moves him to in-game coverage, where he sucks at that. The one thing he possibly could have been good at, mock press conferences to address team needs and offseason moves, he sucks at.

Mostly because he sucked at it when he was the New York Mets general manager.

To his credit, he did acquire the following players: Roberto Alomar, Pedro Astacio, Jeromy Burnitz, Ricky Henderson, Pedro Martinez, Kenny Rogers and Mo Vaughn.

And he traded Scott Kazmir for Victor Zambrano. Not Carlos, Victor.

I can't emphasize that move enough. Chuck LaMar deserved Executive of the Year for pulling that off.

Unfortunately, for Phillips, all of those players were monumental past-their-prime failures.

Fortunately, for me, I can mock his failures in the blogosphere.

So that brings us to today's news of Phillips having the audacity to call out Chicago Cubs manager Lou Piniella for his handling of Kosuke Fukudome.

"My view is Lou doesn't have a great deal of patience for assimilation into culture, assimilation into the team," Phillips said. "He is just not the most patient guy around, and he tends to verbalize his frustrations in an angry way. I think that may have affected Fukudome a little bit."

In more news according to the world of Phillips: Piniella doesn't care about black people, kicks puppies and has a 22-year-old strippe hog tied in his basement.

And Sweet Uncle Lou does not think kindly of Phillips' criticism.

"I don't have much respect for Steve Phillips," Piniella said after hearing the comment Monday. "Let him be around a little more and see what transpires before he makes assumptions. I've lost total respect for this guy. If he had something to say, let him say it to me."

The last person who should be calling anyone out on talent evaluations is Phillips. And the fact that Piniella had respect for this guy in the first place is disheartening. I've put together more competitive teams in Triple Play Baseball for PlayStation than Phillips could ever dream about.

And yet he's a million-dollar analyst and I'm living paycheck-to-paycheck at a college newspaper.

I guess now would be a good time to ask you fine folks to click the ads and help us get paid.

Lou Piniella outraged by ESPN analyst's comments [Chicago Tribune]

Are Alfonso's Days as Top Dog Over?

The talk of moving Alfonso Soriano out of the lead-off spot has already begun.

And I didn't expect anything less from the first few days of Spring Training.

Chicago's North Side fans and certain segments of the media have been clamoring to drop the former 40-40-40 man down in the order to take advantage of the power that comes from Soriano's big bat.

And since his stolen base numbers have drastically dropped since his banner year with the Washington Nationals, these folks actually have a valid case.

Yet, I'll stand by my guns and suggest that Soriano stays atop the lineup.

The Cubs have been one of the league's most potent offenses with free-swinging left fielder leading off. He takes advantage of early-inning mistakes and pummels them over the left-center field wall. He has the potential of stealing second and third base if said ball does not reach the seats or Waveland Avenue.

But like most sluggers, Soriano has been prone to the punchout. And since you can't steal first, it makes it very difficult to take advantage of his speed.

With that said, maybe Soriano should drop to the middle of the order.

But then who replaces him in the No. 1 spot?

Ryan Theriot is a scrappy little player, but scrappy is truly "crappy" with an "s" in front of it. And Cubs fans have chosen to ignore the way he has just fallen apart in the stretch run each of the last two seasons.

Aaron Miles? He of the .329 career on-base percentage and .305 career OBP at the leadoff spot.

For all his faults, and a career OBP of .329 of his own, Soriano has posted a .293/.342/.550/.893 line out of the leadoff spot.

Mike Fontenot is the left-handed version of Theriot, despite his status in Ron Santo's eyes as "Lil' Babe Ruth."

So where are your other options? Fuku? D. Lee? Crazy Uncle Milton?

Yeah, on second thought, unless Brian Roberts finds his former steroid-using self in Cubbie Blue pinstripes, Lou Piniella should just pencil in the most polarizing lead-off man in the history of the game atop his everyday line-up.

Piniella, Maddon named Managers of the Year

The Chicago Cubs saved all their wins for the month of November.

Or so it seems.

Two days after catcher Geovany Soto took home the National League's Rookie of the Year award, his skipper, Lou Piniella, was named the senior circuit's Manager of the Year.

Piniella led the Cubs to 97 wins and their first back-to-back playoff appearances since 1906-1908, but was unable to coax a playoff win for the second straight postseason.

Contrary to popular belief, the 97-win campaign wasn't just the result of recent off-season spending that made "making it rain" look like a light donation. Instead, Piniella's mind was in overdrive as he put together a strong lineup, managed a sometimes shaky bullpen and motivated a team that won the ultra-competitive NL Central Division.

Platooning Jim Edmonds and Reed Johnson, rebuilding Carlos Marmol's confidence after his midseason struggles, handling the fragile Kerry Wood and handling the more-fragile psyche of Alfonso Soriano were only some of the tasks Piniella excelled at this season.

As for Maddon, who earned all but one first-place vote, his task was much more difficult.

He turned around a franchise synonymous with losing into the beasts of the American League East, knocking the Boston Red Sox into the Wild Card and New York Yankees out of the playoffs.

Maddon molded the Tampa Bay Rays' young talent into his image of what a real baseball team should look like and each player bought in.

It wasn't just AL Rookie of the Year Evan Longoria, budding superstar center fielder B.J. Upton and aces Scott Kazmir and James Shields. It was more than just them.

It was veteran closer Troy Percival and outfielder Cliff Floyd. It was guys like Jason Bartlett, Wily Aybar and Dioner Navarro. It was a team effort, from top to bottom.

And Maddon led the charge as the Rays marched to the World Series to the beat of one drum.

It looks like the Baseball's Writers Association got it right, this time.

Photo Credit: MLB.com/Getty Images

Kosuke's Fuk'd

Lou Piniella just pissed all over Kosuke Fukudome.

The rookie All-Star right fielder has struggled since the All-Star break and those struggles have continued into K-Fuk's first post season appearance.

And Piniella doesn't want to hear about it any more.

"From now on I don't want to hear about Fukudome anymore as far as whether he's going to play or not. I'm gonna play (Mike) Fontenot or Reed Johnson or somebody else and that's the end of that story. The kid's struggling and there's no sense sending him out there anymore."

Will there be a Little Babe Ruth sighting? Maybe some Reed Johnson action in right?

Decisions, decisions.

I guess that's why Piniella looks pissed in this pic.

Lou Piniella Benches Kosuke Fukudome, So Please Stop Asking About Him [Fanhouse]

BREAKING: Ryan Dempster selected as Game 1 starter

When you go 17-6 with a 2.99 ERA for the Chicago Cubs, you get to date girls like Marisa Miller.

Somebody dial up Big Z, just to make sure he's OK.

Did somebody do that yet? OK, we can move on.

Chicago Cubs manager Lou Piniella named Ryan Dempster to start Game 1 of the NLDS.

No, Dempster didn't get the nod because he has some incriminating pictures of Sweet Uncle Lou, he got the nod because he's 14-3 at Wrigley Field with a 2.86 ERA in 20 starts.

He's only 3-3 with a respectable 3.22 ERA in 12 road starts.

By the way, that brings the former closer's 2008 season to 17-6 with a 2.99 ERA. Not bad for a guy everyone wanted run out of town before the season started.

Piniella obviously understands the importance of home field advantage, especially since the Cubs have a league best 55 home wins. He also understands that Carlos Zambrano has been f*cking up since his no-no against the Houston Astros.

I'll be honest, I wasn't surprised by the move. In fact, I support it. Dempsters dominance at home combined with El Toro's recent struggles makes it a perfect choice.

I expect the move to light a fire under Big Z. Last time someone questioned his health, he didn't allow a hit.

According to the linked Chicago Sun-Times story, Zambrano said he wouldn't mind starting Game 3 on the road.

That means Rich Harden in Game 2, right?

Only time will tell.

Good call, Lou.

Piniella selects Dempster as Game 1 starter. [Chicago Sun-Times]

Lou Piniella is raising hell

This is why the Chicago Cubs fans embraced Lou Piniella as their manager.

"We're playing like we're waiting to get beat," said Piniella, who had declined to do a postgame interview after Sunday's loss in Cincinnati. "You don't have a big enough lead in September to play ball like that. Teams play ball like that invariably get caught. … You have to stay aggressive, play like you've played all year."

Piniella's pissed, and I don't blame them. The Cubs are playing like crap. It's like 1969 all over again - minus that black cat business. The North Side Nine ran wild on the National League for most of the season and spent most of the year with at least the league's best record. It now looks like the Cubs' carriage is about to turn into a pumpkin.

More from Piniella? You know he's got more!

"You can talk about having fun, talk about relaxing," he said. "You have to get your damn shirt [sleeves] rolled up and kick somebody's [butt]. Period. Period."

And by "butt" he means ass! He wants someone to go kick some ass! What self-loathing Cubs fan doesn't want the Cubs to kick some ass?

I hope the team won't take it completely to heart because it'd be a shame for the Cubs to drop out of the NL Central race because they picked a fight against the Cardinals tonight, but the rest of the baseball world might.

Hell, if the Cubs complete the biggest collapse in the history of baseball, every sportswriters job just gets easier.

Here's something from my handy, dandy Sports Writing 102 notebook.

Sports Writing 102: Covering the Cubs

Chapter I: Billy Goats
Chapter Summary: Did you know the Cubs were cursed by a dude because the people at Wrigley Field kicked his goat out? It's why they've never made a World Series since. Exploit this at all times.

Chapter II: Black cats
Chapter Summary: Did you know in 1969, a black cat circled Ron Santo in New York and the Mets won the division and then the World Series? Don't mention that the Mets had a pitching staff that featured Nolan Ryan and Tom Seaver, that disproves your argument.

Chapter III: Bartman
Chapter Summary: Did you know that a Cubs fan Steve Bartman interfered with Moises Alou catching a ball in Game 6 of the 2003 NLCS and that cost the Cubs the pennant? Do not mention Dusty Baker being outmanaged by Jack McKeon who opened the season sitting on a park bench, not a managerial bench. Do not mention Alex Gonzalez's rare error or the fact that the Cubs held a lead in Game 7 only to blow that. Remember, it was all Bartman's fault.

For all you youngsters at home, remember: you're not reporting on the Cubs if none of these is mentioned.

Chapter IV coming soon: Avoiding Lou Piniella's Rath.