I brought this up in another thread, but was hoping for more input. It has been said that when things are going badly that we should focus not on the things we can't change, but on those things we can change. Since it doesn't look like Dusty will be leaving, or changing, any time soon. What are some positive suggestions for Dusty that would make a positive diffence in games? What decisions has he made during a game(s) that have had a POSITIVE result? I'll name one...Breaking in Murton slowly by playing him against pitchers he had a chance of succeeding against.

During yet another long, tedious, painfully boring losing game, my wife and I started trying to choose what celebrity some of the players looked like. Maybe the Cub fans here might enjoy the distraction. We thought that Jack Wilson from Pittsburgh looks like Seinfeld, Khalil Greene looks like Sean Penn in Fast Times At Ridgemont High, and Jeromy Burnitz looks like Popeye. And it's a stretch, I know, but when I look at Hendry I think Strother Martin from Cool Hand Luke - "What we have here is a failure to communicate." Any others?

Scott Olsen hails from my town - Crystal Lake. He graduated from Crystal Lake south. So, I'll have to quietly root for him to do well. Just not well enough to win. I'm chaperoning our accelerated reader winners on a field trip to this game today. Look for our group. We'll have a sign that says, "Hey! Hey! READ all about it. River Trails knows the Cubs are on their way!" A sunny day, a Cubs game, two major league debuts for the starting pitchers. Teaching has its moments.

According to the Muskrat... Baker has four candidates for the No. 2 spot in the order: Jerry Hairston Jr., Todd Walker, Neifi Perez and Cedeno. "We want a guy who is a contact guy, a guy who is a double leadoff man in case Juan [Pierre] doesn't get on," Baker said. "You want some speed, a guy who makes contact and can hit and run." ...

Since when is Perez a double leadoff man? More like a doubleplay man. I liked Neifi's defense last year, but I'm really getting nervous seeing him discussed as a possible Cub's number two hitter. Prior, Lee, and now this. What a day. Right now I'd pick Hairston.

A buddy of mine has asked me if I would share the following information with any Cubs fans I know. I think you all fit that description. So...

"As you know, I have been working on a Cubs Blog for a few months.  When I went to the Cubs convention I was interviewed by an HBO film documentary on Cubs Fans.  Well, HBO has gotten back in touch with me and would like to hear from other fans.  Please check out my blog if this interests you.  If not, forward it to any Cubs fan you know.  
Thanks
p"

Here is the site.

http://crawlyscubs.mlblogs.com/

Muskrat sez, "The Cubs still have a gaping hole in right field. If the season opened today, Jerry Hairston Jr. would be starting there. General manager Jim Hendry will keep his cell phone charged in pursuit of a big bat, most likely a left-handed one." I hope Hendry has the Phillies' number programed. But I could live with Hairston, I guess.

I keep reading and hearing about this and I'm wondering what the point of it is. It's billed as a world baseball classic but all the players seem to be from the major leagues. It also appears to coincide with spring training, which doesn't sound like a good thing. Will it be televised? Will it have a negative impact on conditioning? What happens if Lee or Zambrano get injured? What do you guys and gals think about 6 of our Cubbies playing in this tournament?

Source: Cubs' offer pleasing to Furcal

By David O'Brien
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published November 30, 2005

ATLANTA -- Braves free-agent shortstop Rafael Furcal is leaning toward signing with the Cubs.

A source familiar with negotiations said Furcal has received a five-year offer from the Cubs that is significantly better than the one the Braves have offered in dollars and contract length.

The race for Furcal apparently is down to two or three teams--the Braves, Cubs and possibly the Dodgers--with a decision expected within a few days.

Furcal's agent, Paul Kinzer, was waiting to hear what the Dodgers offered in a Tuesday night meeting in Los Angeles between Dodgers general manager Ned Colletti and an associate of Kinzer's.

Kinzer met with the Braves on Monday after meeting with Cubs officials on Sunday.

The Dodgers entered the Furcal sweepstakes last week after Colletti was hired as GM.

But the Braves and Cubs are front-runners in the chase for Furcal, who got phone calls from Cubs manager Dusty Baker and several Cubs players, including Greg Maddux, a former Braves pitcher.

"He's very comfortable with both [Atlanta and Chicago]," Kinzer said. "He has a lot of friends on the Cubs, and you know his comfort level here with the Braves, especially with Bobby [Cox] and Andruw [Jones].

"And the Dodgers--we'd have to see what's going on there. They got into it late, but we're going to listen to what Ned has to offer."

Kinzer said Furcal's respect and loyalty to Cox has made the entire process difficult.

"It's making the decision a lot tougher," Kinzer said. "He does appreciate everything that happened here. I'm telling you, we've had a lot of calls, and if we pursued a lot of the teams that called, there'd be a lot more money on the table."

A source also said the Braves and Devil Rays had resumed talks Tuesday about shortstop Julio Lugo, 30, who batted .295 with six homers, 57 RBIs and 39 stolen bases in a career-best season while batting leadoff and second.

Copyright © 2005, Chicago Tribune

Now, if we can get Abreu, and get rid of Patterson, I'll be a happy Cub fan! But I'll miss Garciaparra greatly!

Wood, Prior, Ramirez, Walker all seem to be injury plagued, yet they're all signed for next year. Why not Garciaparra, too? At least he's fun to watch and seems genuinely interested in being a Cub. What would happen with a lineup like this in 2006?

Abreu RF
Murton LF
Garciaparra SS
Lee 1B
Ramirez 3B
Hairston/Pie CF
Cedeno 2B
Barrett/Blanco C
Zambrano/Prior/Maddux/Wood/Burnett