As you already know, Uncle Bud Selig is ready to step in and make the decision on what compensation the Cubs will owe the Red Sox for hiring away the GM that they wanted to fire. So now it's time to put your prediction on the table: Who is going to Boston? Who will Uncle Bud screw more, the Red Sox or the Cubs?

Let your opinion be heard! No prize, because I don't have any Cubs paraphernalia that you don't already have or would really want.

As for my prediction, I am going to throw out a two-for: Rebel Riding and Junior Lake will go to the Red Sox.

It's nearly that time - when the lack of baseball at Wrigley Field causes Cubs' fans to begin to consider wild and fantastic trades. For them to scour the stats from the preceding season and determine with sage-like wisdom that "this guy.... this one guy" will make all the difference next season. They can be free agents, or they can be guys gotten in trade. You know the names from years gone by... Brian Roberts, Adam Lind, Jake Peavy.

Now, there are a couple of easy ones - the guys that everyone wants, Pujols and Prince. But I'm talking more the less obvious guys - the guys who will join the aforementioned trio in the pantheon of subjects of Cubs-fan obsession. Place your bets.

To start things off - Logan Morrison! The Cubs have to get him. He has a great bat and would be the answer in LR/RF for years to come. He's got Lind's bat, Roberts' smarts and Peavy's calves. Cubs need to trade for him! Zambrano for LoMo! Geterdone WhoevertheGMis.

A friend of mine sent this to me - it comes from a site where reporters post their stories and seek comment from experts. I have removed the contact information so nobody spams the writer.

Originator name     xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Organization name     Chicago Tribune
Originator type     Journalists
Subject     Steve Bartman and the Art of Privacy   
Sent date     Sep 23 2011, 12:08 PM

I'm looking for a media analyst who can speak to anonymity and the disappearance of privacy in our times. Steve Bartman, a once-anonymous Cubs fan, has engineered this trick after becoming infamous for trying to catch a foul ball that prevented the Cubs from earning an important out in the 2003 playoffs. Nobody has heard from him since. How difficult is this? Is it the right approach?

I find it interesting that the Trib is going to do an article on privacy, and in doing so, will once again be violating his privacy by spreading his name all over the pages and linking him to the 2003 debacle.  Does anybody actually want to read this story? I wish they would just drop it and leave the guy alone.

This is the place - the place to post your best rants about the fact that Tom Ricketts and Jim Hendry seem to be completely unable or unwilling to accept that the 2011 Cubs are a terrible team and that it would be in the best long term interest of the Cubs and their fans that significant trades be made to build for the future.

As the hours click down to the deadline, as you click refresh on the MLB Trade Rumors site, stare at Phil Rogers' story with your head in your hands, sobbing, and go off to get that fourth midday beer, just remember to post your rants here. We may be screwed as fans, but there's no reason we can't share each other's pain.

And for those few remaining optimists, ranging from "glass half full" to "Pollyanna", please understand that this probably isn't the right place for you. This is for bitter, angry ranting. This is for frustration. We aren't looking to change anyone's minds here. If you want to be optimistic somewhere, you can create a room for that. Thanks for understanding and have a day.

Since everything seems to have gone wrong this year, I decided to write a story about an alternate reality where everything went right. Any spelling, grammatical or continuity errors are the fault of the copy desk.

Continue reading this post »

Hey Al -

Any chance we can get rid of this Head and Shoulders hats off chicago twitter feed? It's slowing down the site and it's the same boring blah, blah, blah garbage. It ads nothing, and since I have ad-blocked the rest of the ad, I hadn't the slightest idea of who was trying to sell me what until I opened up the page in another browser. (now I see that it is head and shoulders - what a lame promotion).

Is anybody else having a problem with this, or have you noticed the site slowing down since this ad came up?

The other day, Pat and Keith were talking in fawning terms about Darwin Barney. Then later, I heard Len and Bob saying similar things. I have seen people singing his praises on BCB. And it got me thinking back to 2006 when the Cubs called up Ryan Theriot.

Like Barney, Theriot had been a hard-working college player who had impressed at AAA. There were people talking about how they loved his hustle, his scrappiness. But over time, as his batting average declined and his deficiencies were revealed, his popularity plummeted. We all know what happened then. (And for what it is worth, it seems it is roughly the same career path of David Eckstein with the Angels.)

So, my question for the group is this:

At what point does Darwin Barney stop being the happy, overachieving success story and become "that overrated guy whose scrappyness and determination doesn't offset the fact that he is hitting .265 with a .303 OBP?" is there any chance he avoids this fate, or is it just a matter of time?

I sit here in Southern California in the 80-degree sunshine, 24 hours (and 60 degrees) removed from my visit to Chicago and the Cubs Convention. I wanted to post some reflections and comments.

I purchased the hotel "package" and stayed on the 14th floor of the Hilton. The hotel is nice, museum-like, but dated. The room was comfy. Didn't spend a dime on food at the Hilton, though - Caribou Coffee, Jewel-Osco and the chicken place behind the hotel got my business.

The conference facilities, compared to other events I have been to and  with the crowds as they were, was adequate for the most part. That said, I can see it being a miserable experience if the place had been sold out. The Hilton is a beautiful hotel, but I wasn't there to look at pretty wood paneling or fountains.

The staff of the Hilton was impressive as well. The pros who work there day to day did a great job, especially in the crush of Cubs and Bears fans. The Cubs people.... well, some of them were lacking (see below).

As for the BCB folks, I got a chance to talk to Al a couple of times (the first time I waved to him, I got the expected "who the hell is that guy courtesy wave back. Of course, we had only met once before in person, this past spring training). Jessica walked past me twice, the first time at bingo, the second time with an aggravated expression after Hendry didn't and Quade kind of answered her question. The lack of wireless in the hotel made connecting with others very difficult, which was a bit disappointing. (To be fair, there was wireless - it was just $25 a day, or $7.95 per hour.)

So here we go.

The Good and Great

Locker Room sale - Loved it! I bought stuff that I really didn't need (a pair of Micah Hoffpauir's pants,) stuff that I wanted (a hoodie that just happened to belong to John Grabow.) and a couple of BP jerseys just because of the numbers (BP catcher Corey Miller's 99 and current Yankee Brian Schlitter's 51). I managed to stop myself from buying one of the locker room chairs, due to the logistics of getting it home and thought really hard about the buying the "bullpen bag" grab bag. But the best part was getting to chat, briefly, with the clubhouse guys, particularly Tom "Otis" Hellman. It was fun to watch these guys interact with each other. Heard a few stories, too.

Carlos Pena - What can I say about this guy - he impressed me every time he opened his mouth. Articulate, well-spoken, bi-lingual - he seems to be able to take everything in stride. During the Dominican Way session, somebody asked him a loaded question, telling him how impressed he had been with his performance at the convention and then, basically, asking him what he was going to do to not have crappy stats in 2011. The crowd made an ominous sound after the question, but Pena just smiled and said "I am so glad you asked that question," then talked about what he was looking to do to improve next year. I still don't expect huge numbers from Pena, but I like what he could add to the team, particularly behind the scenes and working with the younger guys.

Tyler Colvin - Not that he needed to do anything to further burnish his reputation, but the young man won points in my book for sticking around and signing autographs for an extra half an hour or more at the end of the convention. He was the final signing and the line was, predictably, long. The ushers did a good job of cutting off the line, and Colvin volunteered to sign to the end. I made sure to thank him for it (since I was in the final third of the line).

The Cause - All proceeds went to Cubs Care. That made it a lot easier to spend money in certain areas.

Bingo - Even though Wayne Messmer refused to call the number I needed in the penultimate game (C9 WAYNE! C9), it was still a fun event. Since the cards are customized, perhaps a drawing of some sort could have been fun as well.

"John the Pin Guy" - Met him at Kitty O'Shea's on Saturday and he bought me a couple of rounds as we watched the jersey chasers, old and new, flock around Tim Stoddard, Bob Dernier and Randy Hundley. Also had a nice chat with Robin, a woman who is going to the Hundley camp this weekend for the 13th time. Sadly, she obeyed "the code" and wouldn't give up any really good stories. I did suggest she join BCB and write about her experiences, though.

Koyie Hill, Blake DeWitt, Jose Cardinal - Each of these guys took 20 seconds to say hello, shake a hand, or sign an autograph. They didn't have to, but they did.

Most of the Fans - I made a point to talk to as many folks as I could, to find out who they were, where they were from, what they liked about the Cubs, and I met some great people. It was a lot of fun chatting with them.

Things That Could Have Been Better

Signage - Perhaps my biggest frustration was getting oriented in the building. Really wish there had been more signage with directions, arrows, etc. It was for this reason that I had to watch the opening ceremonies from the overflow room. I simply couldn't get to the Grand Ballroom, and once I did find it, it was closed. It didn't help that many access points were closed off, forcing folks to walk halfway around the building to get to a room that was just next door.

The Schedule - Al mentioned this in the one of his earlier posts, so I won't dwell on it other to say but the timing of the sessions left a lot to be desired. I, too, left the Ricketts' one early so I could get good seats for the management session. Not good planning. There were a couple of other examples of this. Hopefully, someone took notes and this will be avoided in the future.

Underused space - There were seven autograph stages, but there could have been more. Better yet, there could be two or three guys signing at each table during the peak of the sessions (they did this with Jay Jackson and DJ LeMahieu and it worked fine. More sessions would have been nice, as well. It might spread out the crowds a little bit, perhaps lead to shorter lines.

Underused Sunday - The whole thing ended at noon. After getting Colvin's autograph, I hoped to swoop through the vendors one last time, maybe pick up one or two more things I didn't need - but it was too late. The place was shut down and packed up. Sunday's session ought to go to 3, to make it worth the while of people to go down there.

Overly Officious Ushers - I met a large number of Cubs game day staff who did a great job and did it with a smile. But there were some that let it go to their heads. Yes, it is cool that you are an usher. Yes, it can be a challenging job. No, that doesn't give you carte blanche to be a prick.

The batting/fielding/throwing room - This was really disappointing, and it seemed like an afterthought. I imagine that most of the kids didn't care.... but it could have been better. Though I did get to briefly talk to Jose Cardinal about hitting there, so that was a plus. Their radar gun was also way off - either that or I can really throw 96 with no warmup.

Autograph and Memorabilia dealers - I know nothing can be done about these guys, but there were a few instances where I saw some the dealers in the lines, buying stuff up, then turning it for a profit at their booths. Capitalism is wonderful, but this still bugged me a bit.

Suggestions - Neither Complaints or Accolades

Simulcasting - It might be cool to broadcast the seminars up to the folks in lines in the autograph rooms.

Roundtables - This is a tough one, because of all the autograph hounds, etc. But having some more opportunities to interact with players during the day would be nice.  Maybe roundtables, where you can just chat with the guy for an hour or so. There would be some logistic challenges. Perhaps this could be a lottery-type drawing for people as well (with 20 or 30 people getting in the room for the session, and everybody getting something signed at the end.)

More Access to the Older Guys - I had hoped to get an autograph from Ernie Banks, but didn't win the lottery. The closest I got to him was watching him walk off after his session. Never saw Gary Matthews, aside from seeing him on the screen in the overflow room during the opening ceremonies. The players are shuffled around the hotel from their guarded floor to the stage areas via the service elevators and back stairs, so the only way you may see someone is if they decide to go out the front of the building - and of course, most do not. I did see a few folks in the bar, but didn't want to pester them - they were on their own time visiting with family and friends. I really didn't know what to expect, but I would have liked to have 30 seconds of being around these guys, even just seeing them or saying hi.

Al for Moderator/Panel - Seriously. If they do a panel on new media in baseball, or something similar, I nominate Al Yellon as a panel member or moderator.

That's it. I welcome your comments and thoughts.

Let me say up front that this is based on nothing but my speculation and imagination. No  "Deep Goat"-type inside information was used in the creation of this post. But everybody else likes to write up their wild trade speculations, and it's a slow day.

That said, I think the Cubs and Angels could work out a trade with Alfonso Soriano as the centerpiece of the deal. Here's my proposal:

To the Angels

Soriano and cash (36M)

To the Cubs

Juan Rivera

The logic behind the trade for the Angels:

• The Angels' owner, Arte Moreno, has been successful in acquiring Latin American and DR players and marketing them to the Hispanic community in Southern California.
• They were willing to spend money, but came up short in the Crawford and Werth sweepstakes.
• They have a hole in LF. The Angels' internal options: Reggie Willits, Peter Bourjos, and Rivera are not inspiring as full-time players
• They have just lost Hideki Matsui to the A's, so the DH position is open. Bobby Abreu is a below average fielder and his knees aren't getting any younger, so he will fill that role for a portion of the season.
• While Soriano is not as big a splash as Crawford, Werth or any of the other FA's, he comes in at 9M-10M a year with the Cubs eating about half of his salary.
  
• Torii Hunter, even at 34, can make up for a lot of Soriano's fielding issues.

The logic behind the trade for the Cubs:

• Soriano is a sunk cost - paying half of his salary frees up the outfield for a Colvin/Byrd/Fukudome/Rivera combination.
• Rivera is signed at 5.25M at a FA after 2011 and can play the corner outfield and 1b (although he is very average).
• He would be a suitable platoon partner for Fukudome and could fill in at 1b for Pena on occasion.
• As a impending FA, he might be good deadline trade bait if the Cubs are out of contention (or when the Cubs are out of contention, for you glass half empty folks).

Why Soriano would waive his no-trade.

• It's a total assumption, but I am guessing Soriano would prefer to play in the warm-weather climate of Southern California.
• He would not be a full-time DH, but would have the chance to rest his body as he gets older.
• The Angels are perennial contenders.
• The Angels might be more inclined to let him bat leadoff.

Conclusion

Soriano gets a fresh start, the Angels get a power bat at a discount, the Cubs get a needed part who fits into the roster. Yes, it is expensive to move him, but that is life - cheaper to pay half his salary and bid him adieu than to pay 19M for league-average production. It would be nice to get something else back from the Angels (how about soon-to-be-has-been-prospect Brandon Wood?), but is unlikely.

So there you go. Rip away, point out my errors, explain why I am wrong, or ignore. But above all, have a nice day.

Hello great Cubs hive mind - I come seeking knowledge.

I am thinking about making the trip from Southern California to Chicago for the 2011 Cubs Convention. I am looking for tips on getting tickets when they go on sale in Nov., advice about places to stay during the convention, and any other insights you might have.

For example, assuming I can get a ticket for the weekend, how quickly does the Hilton sell out? Is it worth staying there, or better to stay in a neighboring hotel? Where?

I appreciate your sage wisdom and insight in advance.

From the Trib today:

Is Lee content with staying with a Cubs team that doesn't figure to contend in the second half?

 "Yeah," he said. "I signed a contract here for five years. Until someone tells me otherwise, I'll honor the contract."

 Would he ever ask general manager Hendry to send him to a contender if some team is interested?

"Nope," he replied.

As I read this, what I hear from Lee is that he is comfortable and satisfied. Winning, going to a contender, whatever, isn't all that important. That is what I see from him as he strides to the plate. He comes up - maybe he gets a hit, maybe not. Either way, it doesn't matter.

I think Lee is at a point in his life that he is just going through the motions. He has a ring. He has money. He has a family and all the concerns that go with that. Baseball isn't the most important thing in his life.

Baseball is a game of passion and intensity. I've really never seen Lee exhibit much in the way of either.

I realize this is just my opinion and freely admit that it is probably wrong. But I'm ready to see Lee hit the road. It's time for someone to "tell him otherwise."