Looked around a little bit and didn't see any posts specifically on Dempster, so figured I could ask two questions. What should we do with Dempster, and what are we comfortable doing with him?

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As I sat in the office on this fine Friday , I came to the realization that doing work was secondary to something much more vital. Obviously, that’s looking at the Cubs current projected 25-man roster. In all seriousness, I know this is extremely early, and I’m not doing it for the same of attempting to guess our roster correctly or anything like that. In my opinion, looking at our current situation sheds more light on what TheoCo may be attempting to do as far as trades/signings are concerned.

Starters:
Catcher- Soto
First Base- LaHair
Second Base- Barney
Third Base- Stewart/Baker (I think it’ll end up more of a platoon)
Shortstop- Castro
Left Field- Soriano
Center Field- Byrd
Right Field- DeJesus

Order: (optional order)
1.DeJesus (1. DeJesus)
2.Castro (2. Barney)
3.Byrd (3. Castro)
4.Stewart (4. LaHair)
5.LaHair (5. Stewart)
6.Soriano (6. Soriano)
7.Soto (7. Byrd)
8. Barney (8. Soto)

Bench:
-Baker
-DeWitt
-Johnson
-Sappelt/Campana
-Castillo/Clevenger

Rotation:
SP1- Garza
SP2- Dempster
SP3- Zambrano
SP4- T. Wood
SP5- Wells

Bullpen:
CL- Marmol
SU-K. Wood (my only assumption here)
SU-Russell (maybe Samardzija or Cashner)
MR-Samardzija
MR-Maine/Beliveau
MR-Sonnanstine/Corpas
MR-Cashner

As you can see there is still a lot in the air, as well there should be at this point in the offseason. As far as pitching goes, Cashner’s future will be one of the more interesting ones to follow, as JedStein decide where he will be most valuable this year. Spellcheck may have an opportunity to create some of that depth at SP that Theo wants as well. Wells may become expendable soon if other options present themselves.

What I find most intriguing is the current depth in the outfield. As of now, we have to assume they are all here, and that pushes Jackson back to AAA. Johnson was signed to be a reserve outfielder, leaving a battle between Sappelt and Campana for the final outfield spot. If Byrd is moved, that tells me Theo is comfortable enough with Jackson in center, as there is no one else viable to handle that position on an everyday basis. I think this leaves Soriano as the most influential piece of the outfield. If he is either moved or waived (I know, it’s beyond unlikely, this is all hypothetical anyways), suddenly left field is open for Byrd, center is open for Jackson, and we still have the fortunate position of depth behind them in Campana, Sappelt and Johnson.

Looking at the order is awfully sad. Please realize I am not a fan of either lineup very much. The worst is the idea that Byrd could be batting 3rd again. As I look at the starters, I simply don’t see that many options though. In a perfect world Castro would be there, but who knows if he is ready for that yet, much less if we have anyone that can fill the spot behind him well enough to give him pitches to hit.

All in all, there is some flexibility being put into place on the mound, both in the rotation and the bullpen, as well as in the outfield (more than can be said for years past). There is a giant hole in the order at the 3 spot, and an unknown quantity starting at First base in this scenario, thus I think Fielder is still a big option for us. I’m tired of writing, and I’m sure you are tired of reading, but does looking at the big picture bring any thoughts to you that haven’t been talked about ad nauseum here?

Time for another post already! Fairly crazy week for fantasy football, lots of hyped players not producing (I'm looking at you Denarius Moore...) and guys coming out of nowhere (stand up Kevin Smith). My Cam Newton trade worked out, but still need someone to give me SOMETHING at WR for Rivers.

As always, tell us whether your league is a standard league, and whether or not it's PPR. Opponents listed with players helps to get the best advice, so try and throw that in too. This is professional help you are getting after all, I promise.....

Time for a new post, same guidelines as always. Let's try and mention league scoring (standard or mention the unique scoring) and the opponent of players in question.

I actually have a question about one of my teams that has Philip Rivers at the helm. Is it worth attempting to take Cam Newton off the hands of a guy that has Eli as well, or stick with Rivers and hope for a much better second half. He says he is looking for help at WR, where I have Julio Jones, AJ Green, Dez Bryant and Nate Washington. He also looks weak at TE, where I have both Gates and Fred Davis. Just to fill out my roster, I have Felix Jones, Demarco Murray, Adrian Peterson, Mark Ingram, Jackie Battle and filler. would you guys attempt to make a package for a trade for Newton or just ride it out?

In my opinion, I think it is debatable as to whether the Falcons truly need a change of pace back, or a real speedster out there catching passes and stretching the defense. I would prefer to have the option, but hey, the smashmouth offense has been effective, quick scores can take away from our ball control advantage. Reading an ESPN article, I liked how Matt Williamson described our offense. Follow for the quote. 

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First FanPost, and it isn’t anything too specific, so not sure if I should even post it, but I’m bored at work, and would like to hear if I’m merely an optimistic kind of guy.

Now, obviously it is somewhat debatable as to what 2011 will look like for the Cubs, what the overall direction of the franchise is, whether the Ricketts family is as invested emotionally as we are as fans, etc. Today I was simply thinking about the team we currently have, and began wondering what a best case scenario for 2011 would be.

From a team standpoint, best case is always winning the World Series. But I wanted to reflect on a more individual basis as to what a realistic best case scenario would be for each Cub, and how that would translate into the team’s overall performance. I am not one for projections, so I won’t even try to throw numbers out there, but the idea of each Cub performing above their career average would leave us where? One of the elite teams in the league? I’m inclined to believe so.

Obviously this isn’t meant to cause blind optimism of any sort, as a team never performs like that as a whole over the course of an entire season. But that doesn’t mean the optimist in me can’t say, “It could happen.” Welcome to my outlook for 2011 fellow Cubs fans. It worked for my 2010 Atlanta Falcons!