I am curious, I thought I remember reading or hearing about a rule that disallowed the trades of players taken from the MLB Rule IV (Amateur) Draft for up to a year.   There was a way around it meaning you had to name the PTBNL which gives a team 6 mo to name the player that is being traded from one team to another.  Is this incorrect, or does such a rule exist?

Alright, I'm proclaiming McGee the winner.  Here is round 13.

Once again the requirements are 130 AB/ 50 IP/ 45 Days on a roster not including September call ups.

Prospect Rankings
   1. Jay Bruce
   2. Evan Longoria
   3. Clay Buchholz
   4. Clayton Kershaw
   5. Joba Chamberlin
   6. Colby Rasmus
   7. Cameron Maybin
   8. David Price
   9. Travis Snider
  10. Homer Baliey
  11. Andy LaRoche
  12. Jacob McGee
Please post more suggestions for the list!

Also don't forget to send in your slurve top 50/100!

I dropped Tabata and Clement due to lack of interest.. Added Headley/ Porcello and Brignac for a tester.

Poll

Who's the 13th best prospect?

11%

Jacoby Ellsbury

29 votes

9%

Andrew McCutchen

23 votes

6%

Chris Marrero

15 votes

9%

Wade Davis

22 votes

7%

Rick Porcello

18 votes

1%

Chase Headley

4 votes

3%

Reid Brignac

9 votes

4%

Other

11 votes

27%

Joey Votto

66 votes

18%

Brandon Wood

45 votes

242 votes | Poll has closed

Back after the draft, John had this to say about the Cubs drafting Tyler Colvin...

Comment: Rowell and Degerman weren't available in real life when the Cubs picked. We've discussed Colvin already; most people think that was a major overdraft. He's a solid player but there were more impact guys available, and his choice seems likely to have been influenced by the desire to save money to make available to the football-bound Samardzija.

Now what do you say a year into his young career.

He's hitting .301/.348/.500 for an .848 OPS.. which is a pretty decent OPS in the A+ (FSL) league.  His name is being thrown around by Baseball America with the likes of Jay Bruce...

. Tyler Colvin, of, high Class A Daytona (Cubs)

A 2006 first-rounder, Colvin is holding his own among the top outfield prospects in the FSL--including Jay Bruce and Cameron Maybin, hitting .311/.342/.500 in 228 at-bats. Last week, he overshadowed both, hitting .441 with a pair of bombs.

How do you grade out a Colvin now?

So I was bored and being it's christmas and I am listening to my brand new IPod(TM) nano. I figured I'd lead off with the question what did everyone get for their holiday of choice.  With most of the holidays out of the way, I figure everyone's got most or all of their gifts opened.

So what did you get?

I got an Ipod. 2 GB

and a 6 pack of designer beer from my parents, from an upper class alchy store, Friar Tuck here in Springfield.   Sarah probably knows all about that place right. wink.

Alexis Rios of the Blue Jays is reputedly on the block since Reed Johnson and Vernon Wells currently man the two spots that Rios would typically play.

It is said that the Blue Jays are looking for a quality pitcher.. such as LA's Brad Penny, or the A's Joe Blanton.

Rios would fit well in the Cubs OF, playing CF and batting anywhere in the lineup.

He's an above-average hitter, and one of the elite defenders in the game today.

The question is, Would you give up a guy like Rich Hill for Alexis Rios?  

That would seemingly be what needed to happen to acquire Rios.  I doubt that Riccardi would be willing to take a package of players such as Marmol and top prospect Pie for him especially since Pie plays the same position as Rios.  

If the Cubs were to make such an agreement the rotation would be weakened.. but our lineup strengthened.

SP- Z
SP-Lilly
SP- ??
SP- Marquis
SP-ClusterFuck.

The Cubs would then need to fill the 3rd spot again, which could be solved by either looking at Zito, which doesn't seem to be a good fit in Chicago, or by expanding the Rios trade to acquire a SP.  which again does not make sense.

Would you make this move?. I think i would.

Tigers Acquire Gary Sheffield
Jon Heyman reports that the Tigers have acquired Gary Sheffield for Humberto Sanchez and two Class A pitchers.

It's a great deal for New York at first glance, as Sanchez has great stuff and profiles as at least a middle-rotation starter for years to come.  Baseball Prospectus's Kevin Goldstein ranked Sanchez as the 11th best right-handed starting prospect in the game, holding him back only because of elbow concerns.  The Yankees should have young guys comprising 60% of their rotation by the end of '07.

Courtesy of MLBTradeRumors.com

So much for Sheff in Pinstripes..

As time goes by I am convinced that Aramis is going to chase the money and go find a home in Anaheim.  While I will miss Ramirez dearly, I don't believe any of the available MLB 3b are worth their weight in salt.

There is; however, an alternative to Ramirez..

Sign Akinori Iwamura Please.  

Iwamura has drawn comparisons to Tadahito Iguchi.. Over his Japan career he has hit over .300 Hit 188 Hr's and has over 570 RBi's.  The best part about Iwamura is that he is 2 years younger than Ramirez.. and that he can play ANYWHERE on the IF.. meaning if some scrub cannot hit that plays 2b or SS Iwamura at best would slide over.   Perhaps you could even re-sign Ramirez and make a winning bid on Iwamura.  Anyway.. this is the best alternative Hendry, so if you aren't able to lure Ramirez back.. you had better win the posting for this guy.   He's young.. He can hit for average and he's got enough power to make pitchers pay.     And he probably can be signed for what will be a bargain given what A-Ram wants to sign.  Pair this signing with others such as a Soriano.. and you're looking at a pretty good off-season.  

Signed,
A Wishful Cub fan in Springfield( who's been putting up with way too much Cardinals crap)

I got to thinking.. If the Cubs really are interested in Alfonso Soriano the Washington Nationals will receive the 2nd pick in the draft for him.  Is giving up the 2nd pick (They drafted Prior with the 2nd pick in 2001) really worth Soriano?

I know Soriano is a great player but we all believe that drafting is going to be a key to being a successfull ballclub and if the Cubs do sign Soriano they will forfeit their 2007 Amateur Draft pick.

Thoughts?

Btw the last two 2nd picks have been
1- Greg Reynolds a RHP (COL)
2005 - Alex Gordon (best prospect in baseball) (KC)

To me I would rather have Gordon than Soriano..

What does everyone else think?

Defend this statement..

ESPN's Stark Market tells us that the Mets may have soured a bit on Lastings Milledge and could consider shipping him to Philadelphia for Bobby Abreu.  Meanwhile, Baseball Prospectus's Jay Jaffe reminds us that Milledge's most comparable player is Ruben Mateo, and recommends the deal for New York.

The Toronto Star reports that Vernon Wells, who has one more year left on his contract, could be moved by Toronto Blue Jays general manager J.P. Ricciardi. Ricciardi has locked up Roy Halladay, A.J. Burnett and B.J. Ryan, and also has Troy Glaus signed through 2009, perhaps leaving Wells out of the team's budgetary plans. More

Yahoo! Sports' take: Wells, the AL's starting center fielder in the All-Star game, would be a huge coup for a contending team looking to shore up center field. It seems unlikely the Blue Jays would deal their young star while in the midst of a pennant race, but perhaps they could be swayed with an offer that includes starting pitching. Just a guess here, but doesn't Wells seem like the kind of guy who would look good in a White Sox uniform? Chicago GM Kenny Williams will not hesitate to make a blockbuster deal if he thinks it could result in another World Series crown

Okay so the Cubs do not have the Starting Pitching to give..

But what about Barrett and Walker the Blue Jays were rumored to be interested in both of those two..

Also the Cubs could give the Blue Jays, Juan Pierre in order to stop the bleeding they might have in CF.. or the Cubs could give up a Sean Marshall bottom line is.. Wells is a top tier talent and really could make the Cubs a better team by solidifying the CF area for the next 5 years.. he has one more year left on his contract and could be a very valuable addition to the Cubs lineup.. Discuss.

Maddux to the Brewers?

Taken from MLBtraderumors who borrowed it from the Milwaukee Sentinnel

Link found right here

This is an intriguing possibility.  Corey Hart would definitely bring a very good bat to the Cubs OF. Hart has ripped up AAA ball but has no spot because of the Brewers OF especially if Lee sticks.  Getting Hart would give the Cubs a solid option especially if the Cubs are seriously considering dealing Jacque Jones.  

Problems with this deal are :
A) Sentimental Rationale: We already screwed Maddux once.

B). Maddux may not want to be sent to a contender.

C).  The Brewers really might not need a Starter..

Discuss.

1-KC Liniecum Unsigned.

2-COL Reynolds Location:?

3-TB- Longoria Location: Hudson Valley (SS A) Statistics : .424/.474 4 HR's 11 RBI.

4- Pitt- Lincoln Location:??

5- Sea Morrow- Location: AZL Mariners. Statistics:None yet

My question is right after the draft the Pirates were talking of fast-tracking Lincoln.  I do not know the tracks of the other players.  Where are your team's draft picks and how are they doing.  

My team is the Cubs and Colvin just signed a couple of days ago and will probably end up at SS Boise.   Samajdzia is also at SS Boise.  He signed a 200,000 bonus which basically means the Cubs ar eletting him go to play football.

But I am going to ask it anyway.

Basically I am being offered

Granderson and Chris Capuano (2010 and (2009) respectively

for

Delmon Young and Adam Kennedy (150 AB's +6 years and a (2006 FA respectively)

Now the question I am asking is ..how will the production I get from Granderson for the next 6 years compare to the production I would get from Young for the next 6..

If Granderson is 2/3 of the player that Young is.. then I think I make out like a bandit but if Granderson is a stiff or fails then I am getting ripped off..

So Crystal Ball me Curtis Granderson here.. and compare that to either John's or your own Delmon Ball

This is a 30 team league real GM with full MiL's

I have Delmon Young and I have been offered

Delmon (6 years after 150 AB's) and
A. Kennedy 3,000,000 (2006)

For
Curtis Granderson(2011)
and
Chris Capuano (2008)

Do you think I can get more for Young or is the package of Cap and Granderson going to be worth more than Delmon?

20,428...

Wade

Wade 10+ FG's

If we are still doing this I didn't see it posted by Colombo but I figured wth might as well submit mine.. good luck to the heat.. who I am pulling for because of the Wade-Chicago Connection.  Btw I also dislike Riley I dislike what he did to poor Van Gundy the team didn't need Riley to be successful

We need.. future guys who know what they are doing BB wise

The Braves need a guy in the pen..

So here goes nothing..

Cubs send:
Scott Williamson

Braves send:
Max Ramirez- C (.306/.417 OBA) in A Rome
James Parr - RHP (2-4 5.17 ERA but 57:7 K-BB ratio) and 57-42.1 K-IP ratio)  @ A+ Myrtle Beach

Best part is Parr is 20 .
Ramirez is 21..

If the Cubs weren't sold on Parr they could pick out another of the Braves prospects whom are B- or C quality..

It would make sense for both teams.. given that the Cubs might have already given up on this season?  Once you make a deal like this though its basically like tossing in the white flag.. You stand no chance of having a real strong Bullpen with Williamson gone.. and the Braves might not want to part with Ramirez...

Only in my pretend realGM league I sent over John Thomson (ATL) and Matt Capps (PIT) to the D Rays owner and got

OF Elijah Dukes

and

SP Wade Davis.

I was wondering if someone could give me a scouting report on one or both of these guys that can include a ETA and prospective prime numbers.

I know this is sort of not what diaries are for.. but I would appreciate the help.

I need a list of about 50-75 of the top prospects in the MLB Draft.. Reason being is my RealGM league is thinking about doing the 1st round of the draft for our own teams but we cannot find all of the eligible players.

I do not need scouting reports with this I just need 50-75 of the top draft talent.  Any help will be appreciated. Thank you.

I understand that there has been a great deal of angst and frustration within this blog about the demise thus far of the Cubs season.

I understand people have different perspectives of how to fix the impending doom, and also when people of different perspectives come together views will not be shared.

What I cannot understand is why people feel the need to call each other names.. and attack other members of the blog just because they do not agree.

Yes, our team is playing worse baseball than the 2005 Kansas City Royals.. and sure the Royals have two impact top 20 prospects in their farm system who could save them from impending doom.

But we must keep in mind that baseball is just a game.  And its a game most of us love.  So I am going to ask once.. Stop the name calling and ad-hominem attacks and just remember why you are here to begin with:

The Love of Baseball

I know most of you do not care, so I will try to make this short and sweet.

This years draft is among the worst since the 2000 draft when the Cubs used the 3rd overall selection to draft SS Luis Montanez.   Oops.. turns out that like the Cubs most of the 30 teams missed in the first round.  The only truly successful team in 2000 was the Philadelphia Phillies who struck it rich with 2b Chase Utley.. (Boy Utley would look nice in blue pinstripes)

Anyhow a small "Mock" draft has been done.. The Cubs Draft 13th.. and currently are looking at many options.. One of which includes..

13. Chicago Cubs: Travis Snider, OF, Jackson HS, Mill Creek, Wash.

This might seem like a bit of a stretch, but if teams are willing to take a shot in this first round, why don't I? The Cubs do like Snider's power potential and despite his "bad body" -- 6-foot, 230 pounds -- think he could be a prototypical right fielder, but it's just a question whether they like him at No. 13. Keep in mind the Cubs don't pick again for several rounds, so they want to make this count. Assuming they want to go high school, names like third baseman Chris Marrero, catcher Hank Conger or 1B/OF Chris Parmalee could sneak into the conversation. One sleeper: Kyler Burke from Tennessee.

I don't know that the Cubs are best drafting HS players as a moneyball philosophy says that college players have better success rates due to their increased visibility through the maturation process.. however.. the Cubs have one pick and it happens to be a first rounder they do not pick again till the 4th round because of the Jacque Jones Scott Eyre and Bobby Howry signings.

More information on some of the top baseball prospects can be found at the: MLB Draft Forecast

Judging by the name I believe you see who I am rooting for.. however that is really neither here nor there.. I am looking forward to this series for a few reasons..

1- I would like to see the Sox on an up close and  personal basis. This is in your house. Using your rules.  Jim Thome has looked damn solid this year and PK has also looked good. The Cubs have no sluggers to speak of anymore. So the Sox will have to hit the ball out of the yard to win.. Thome the last week has been struggling.. (.182 prior to last nights game)

2- If the Sox starting rotation woes will continue.  You get Jose Conteras back on Sunday who has to this point been the most effective Sox starter.

Also the Pitching Matchup of Buehrle/ Maddux should be very entertaining.. Both are very solid control type pitchers who aren't going to blow anyone away but will work very fast.

3- I want to see if the chemistry is still there for the Sox.

Trading away Aaron Roward in my opinion could end up being the move to regret in 2006.. Not only did you give away a very solid LH pitching prospect (Gio Gonzalez) You also gave away the heart of the Sox OF.  The deal of Rowand is like the deal of Loduca by the Dodgers in 04.  It destroyed the chemistry.

Anyhow, I wish the Sox the best of luck in the series. And to be quite honest I see you taking two out of the three games.  The Cubs are slumping coming in. Friday and Saturday will go to the Sox.. Sunday should go back to the Cubs.  Game- Time is in 2 hours.. Best of Luck

Is going to be on May 18th versus the Washington Nationals..

Questions about his start

1- How will Wood perform against the Nationals?

My prediction: 5 IP 2 ER 4 hits 3 bb 6 K's L

2- How will Wood do the rest of the season?

3- How will the Cubs use Wood.. Bullpen? Rotation? Tweener?

4- What impact will the return of Wood have on the Cubs team?

5- How much Wood could a Woodchuck chuck if a Woodchuck could chuck Wood?

I do not have the list here in front of me but I was driving home listening to some Sports radio because every single music station was on a commercial ( I'm too cheap for XM) Anyhow they were talking about the Tigers ( I go to school around Toledo) and how they were first in defensive efficiency ( % of outs created /balls in play.. Then they go on to mention that the Cubs are 2nd.. .02 % behind the Tigers... Now I dislike the whole idea of defensive metrics but this poses an interesting point.. Are the Cubs an above average defensive team or a below average defensive team?

I wonder what their record is in games that they make an error versus error free games too

Is anyone still actually paying attention to this? ... Sparkles is in the top 3.. and some Boston fan is in first place... How is everyone's team doing?  I believe I am still in the top 5.. Have not checked since Saturday night.

I have been surprised by the hot starts of players like Hanley Ramirez and Josh Willingham.  If these guys can keep it up this Marlins team could be good sooner rather than later.  The pitching they stockpiled could grow into a decent 5 man rotation.

Sportsline is reporting that Aramis Ramirez pulled a muscle in his buttocks and will be considered day to day.

This injury if true will leave a lineup card tomorrow that has Lee and nothing else.. No Jones No Ramirez...

http://fantasygames.mlb.com/baseball/season1/basic/game/player.html?player_id=6014

Here it is 4 days before his first start in the majors... and I am starting the Official Sean Marshall Bandwagon.. some of you may believe this is a bit premature but no... Bandwagons are meant to be ridden when a player has reached potential and/or is playing above it.  This train is leaving the station right now...

My prediction for Sean Marshall's first start:

5 1/3 2 runs 6 hits 3 BB's 5 K's ND

ALL ABOARD!

Weird I am sitting here listening to MLB Radio and I clicked on MLB TV just to see how much it costed and i saw so I clicked the back button to click back to go back to the radio feed I was listening to on the media player.. and now... I am watching the Indians/White Sox broadcast... Is this a glitch? I didnt get my credit card charged to my knowledge... and if they do I will be ticked.. but they do not have my correct CC Info... its weird its stiill pre-game so . maybe it will go off during the game...

Anyone help?

The Cubs have reportedly been interested in trading for 2b/ss/3b Tony Graffanino.  It looks like they will not have to; however, as the Red Sox have waived the utility man.

"The Red Sox have placed second baseman Tony Graffanino on waivers.
Graffanino was scheduled to make $2.05 million if the Sox didn't trade or waive him by Wednesday. The Mets, Cardinals, and Cubs could all have interest in the second baseman. Mar. 26 - 9:01 am et
Source: Boston Globe"

Should the Cubs place a bid on Graff and assume his 2.05 Mil salary for 2006?
Source:Rotowire and the Boston Globe

The Baltimore Orioles continue to scout Cubs second baseman Todd Walker, who would be used as a designated hitter and left-handed bat off the bench. Walker also would serve as an insurance policy for second baseman Brian Roberts, who expects to get his first Grapefruit League action this week. Roberts is coming off elbow surgery and doesn't expect to be ready by Opening Day. A roadblock to a possible trade is the Orioles' reluctance to pick up all of Walker's $2.5 million contract.

Well, what can I say other than... Please no.  

Obtaining Matos would do two things...

One.. It would cost Murton a job in LF...

Two... It would weaken our offense in our lineup and hand JHJ the 2b job without someone behind him.  

Now... If you want to deal Walker that's fine but get a SS or SP ..Those are our holes Jimmy.. not OF we have OF'ers and if Dusty has "mature" fetish just tell him that he can start Grissom in LF... wont matter the Cubs will tank anyway.  However with the Cubs being forced to start Rusch and Williams who have been absolutely crushed thus far... it is time for plan B..err..C.. or D....

I don't care what plan you use.. just get something done for a SP ...please

What is your second favorite Cubs blog? its obvious that BCB is everyone's favorite blog..So what is your second favorite? Mine has to be Desipio Media Adventures.. Personally speaking, I find Andy Dolan to be the right blend between cynical, humourous, and optimistic.  Besides Al, Desipio approaches Cubs baseball in a different,informative way that makes baseball fun.  

There are numerous other blogs I read but I look forward to the updates on here and desipio the most. Al's for insider scoops and updates on all things Cubs, and Desipio's for analysis and flat out humour.  Hopefully this is not an awful thing to discuss on this blog I was just wondering if there were any other big time blogs that I don't read that are any good.