Miles, Fox Trot To Oakland

The real world took us away from the computer almost as soon as we heard Jake Fox and Aaron Miles were being shipped to Oakland for the prospects behind door No. 3.
And that gave us a lot of time to do some thinking.

After being unsure of how I felt about the deal, I've come to the conclusion this is a win for the Cubs.  I know it's irresponsbile to make such a ruling hours after a trade is made, but a careful overview of the deal shows the Cubs with the early advantage.

Sure, for the second straight season Hendry traded a fan favorite.  Boo frickin' hoo.  How much attachment can you have toward a player who posted a .259/.311/.779 slash line in 2009 with 11 home runs and 44 runs batted in?  It's not as if Fox was going to start at either corner outfield or corner infield position next season, so Cubs fans need to quit acting like they just traded the second coming of Ron Santo.

Besides, it is not as if the Cubs traded away Megan Fox.  That would be something to jump off a high ledge because of.

It's time to give kudos to general manager Jim Hendry for dealing a player while his value was at its highest.  And if Fox becomes a valuable designated hitter in Oakland, so be it.  I'm not too worried about it, especially when taking into consideration Oakland's Coliseum is where home runs go to die.  Playing in Oakland turned everyone's free agent savior Matt Holliday into a mere mortal.

Again.  Why am I supposed to be upset over this trade?

Oh, because they traded Aaron Miles, too.

Wait.  That's a good thing.

Miles was given $2.2 million this season to hit .185/.224/..244/.466.  The diminutive dipshit collected 29 base hits, eight walks and five RBIs cementing his legacy as the worst free agent signing of the Jim Hendry era.

The only way Hendry can possibly screw this up is by not having a player in mind to replace Fox's production off the bench.  Replacing Miles with a cardboard cutout of Cindy Crawford would likely yield an upgrade in production.

In return, the Cubs received a wee-bit more than a bag of dirty towels, Jason Giambi syringes and copies of the original Moneyball script.  They got Jeff Gray ...  and prospects.

Though, I'll admit, had Beane sent a copy of Aaron Sorkin's script, I would have been overjoyed to accept that for Fox, Miles and $1 million.  To get warm bodies in exchange for that package is like making a dollar out of a penny slot.

Billy Beane Mini-Profile

Seriously. I wonder what Alyssa Milano's BABIP is?

While the statheads chuckle, the rest of you can move on to the rest of the post.

I'd like to take a look at why when and how Billy Beane has lost more talent than the former Montreal Expos and still can be competitive in the AL West.

He's had Cy Young winners (Barry Zito and Mark Mulder) and staff aces (Tim Hudson and Rich Harden) to go along with MVPs (Miguel Tejada and Jason Giambi) all come up through his system and all leave Oakland for greener pastures.

How does he do it?

Zito: I think Beane got a little lucky with Zito moving across the Bay, especially when you take into consideration Zito tweaked his mechanics after signing that record deal with the Giants. It was a disaster from the beginning.

Mulder: Beane retroactively pissed on Cardinals GM Walt Jocketty and simultaneously screamed "No homo!" in the process. Mulder's been injury riddled in his time with the Redbirds and in exchange he got (among others) Dan Haren, which he turned into Arizona Diamondbacks prospects Greg Smith and Dana Eveland.

Hudson: If anyone was gonna get the better of Beane it would be John Schuerholz. Hudson has won 52 games in four-plus seasons. Juan Cruz, Charles Thomas and Dan Meyer haven't really panned out.

Harden: Beane and the A's are treating Chicago like its own personal farm system. Months after getting Gio Gonzalez, Ryan Sweeney and Fautino De Los Santos from the White Sox for Nick Swisher. The Athletics acquire Matt Murton, Sean Gallagher, Eric Patterson and Josh Donaldson.

Donaldson, Gallagher and Patterson were ranked Nos. 5, 6 and 8 according to Baseball Prospectus' Top 11 prospects.

Tejada and Giambi: Both left after MVP seasons with the A's and both were linked to BALCO. In the end, the A's got compensatory draft picks.

And in the end, that's what it's all about with Billy Beane. When you can't compete with the big boys like the Los Angeles boys and the New Yorkers you have to find other ways to beat the system.

Sometimes you have to out scout the competition. Sometimes you have to do some number crunching. Sometimes you have to realize service years on the cheap from top prospects might be worth more to your team than overpaying in the open market.

My cap's off to you Billy Beane, master of the maneuver.

BREAKING: Rich Harden To The Cubs!

I see your CC (remember, no periods) Sabathia and I raise you Rich Harden.

The NL Central arms race kicked up a notch with the news that the Cubs acquired Rich Harden and Chad Gaudin from the Oakland A's in exchange for pitcher Sean Gallagher, outfielders Matt Murton, Eric Patterson and minor league catcher Josh Donaldson.

Dare I say this is a fair trade for both sides?

The Cubs get the No. 1A starter they've been searching for (Harden) and a reliever who can also spot start (Gaudin). And here's the kicker, he's cheap, young (26) and under contract ($4.5 million this year with a $7 million option for '09).

Billy Beane gets an outfielder who is an on-base machine (Murton), a speedy IF/OF in Eric Patterson, Sean Gallagher (who is going to be great whether it be in the rotation or at the back of the bullpen) and Josh Donaldson who wasn't going to be in the Cubs' plans because the blockage provided by All-Star catcher Geovany Soto.

In the short run, it looks like the trade benefits the Cubs more. However, take note that the A's now own eight of Chicago's former top-20 prospects (Gallagher, Murton, Patterson, Donaldson, Gio Gonzalez, Fautino De Los Santos and Ryan Sweeney) and will likely benefit in the long run.

It's not like this move was just to answer what Milwaukee did. It was expected that Jim Hendry would make a move, but no one expected it to be this soon. Well done, Jim.

BREAKING NEWS: Cubs acquire Rich Harden (Cubs.com)