The ATR picks up right where he left off, discussing Jim Rice, the Chicago Cubs and the St. Louis Cardinals. Having looked at the trades more than anyone in this entire league, I’ve noticed there is a pattern to trading. Teams trade in binges, like the Cubs did last time. Some teams have a never ending binge, but a good number of teams will come in with a flurry of activity, then disappear from under my watchful eye for a while. Anyway, let’s get to business where the Cubs flurry ends.
Chicago (N) receives P Manny Sarmiento.
St. Louis receives CF Jim Rice.
Both of these players were stars for the Giants in their second Golden Age. Rice, the power hitting outfielder, Sarmiento, the hard throwing reliever. The Giants had moved both of these guys as they prepare to start a third Golden age in the mid 1990s. But the Giants are not the topic of interest here, the Cubs and Cardinals are.
The Cardinals have made out like bandits dealing with the Cubs so far. However, there is a danger in going back to the well so often. The danger is that you will get thrown down the well for all you have taken in the past. Folks, that’s exactly what happened here.
Jim Rice is still a good hitter. He’s old and expensive, but St. Louis has a lot of cap room left, since they have been the team to best utilize the theory of building a strong base of prospects, blend them in, then stomp over everyone with your young base and expensive additions that you normally can’t afford once you pay for your big stars. Unfortunately, at 37 and as Darryl Strawberry’s platoon partner, Jim Rice only offers a marginal benefit to the Cardinals.
To get Rice, the Cardinals had to part with Manny Sarmiento. Sarmiento is a reliever who has had one bad year in the last 10. You normally don’t see that in a relief pitcher, since the smaller sample sizes tend to affect the results that you see. More importantly, the Cardinals have a bullpen that I would be generous in calling suspect. And there is nothing more painful than watching your bullpen warm the other team on a cold October night. When the Cardinals fail to repeat in 1990 (but win it all from being wiser in 1991) you can point to this deal as one of the main reasons why.
Winner: Chicago (N)
Montreal receives P Tony Castillo.
San Diego receives 1B Chris Smith.
In all the volumes of the ATR, there has never been a discussion of such a pointless deal. Seriously, look at these players and ask why anyone would want either one of them. Castillo is a 27 year old reliever with some upside. You know, 27 year old pitcher with upside is code for the guy you bring up when either your bullpen has been hit with an infectious malady or it’s all over but the shouting for your year. To acquire such a prize for the organization, the Expos parted with 1B Chris Smith, who is 32, might crack a few doubles and if he your first baseman for anyone other than your AAA farm club, allegations of tanking should be bandied about.
Winner: Montreal (At least Castillo is only partially useless, whereas Smith is waiver wire fodder)
San Francisco receives 3B Bobby Bonilla.
Seattle receives 2B Jeff Treadway, 3B German Rivera, Boston’s third round Amateur draft choice in 1990 and San Francisco’s third round Amateur draft choice in 1990.
This is a very interesting deal. Bobby Bonilla looks like a solid, but unspectacular 3B, yet commanded a price of four players from the Giants, two of which are useful players in their own right.
Bonilla is something of a disappointment. He is already 27 years of age, but has never been able to convert that raw strength into power at the plate. I’m sure a couple of months by the bay will get Bonilla into rare slugging form. Also, Bonilla is an amazing fielder at the hot corner, which almost certainly influenced the Giants into acquiring him.
To get Bonilla, the Giants parted ways with German Rivera. Rivera isn’t quite as talented as Bonilla and is a little longer in the tooth, but Rivera is still a fine 3B in his own right. He gets on base at a decent clip, 1989 notwithstanding and has a solid glove. The draft picks that the Mariners received give them some organizational depth and a couple more chances to play the developmental lottery, since neither was particularly early.
The final piece of the puzzle is Jeff Treadway, whose long journey ended here. I’ve put off talking about him long enough. Treadway’s offensive value comes from his ability to hit for a high batting average. So far in his career, he has yet to hit for the batting average many suspected that he would. That doesn’t mean he isn’t a good risk, rather it just means that he has yet to fulfill his potential. Sadly for Treadway, after all of those trades, he ended up on the bench behind hot shot rookie Delino Deshields, which can only prompt speculation from this reporter that Treadway could be on his way to a fifth organization by the end of the season.
Winner: Seattle
Los Angeles receives SS Brian Little.
Montreal receives SS Felix Fermin, RF Rob Deer and 3B Chris Brown.
You know, I never thought I would see the day that it would take three players to get a no-glove, middling bat, all walks middle infielder. That’s the Cliff Notes version of Brian Little for you.
To get Little, the Dodgers parted with three players, who when their powers are combined form a singular good player. However, since we are talking about baseball players, not futuristic robots like Voltron, we have to look at the players singularly to gauge their value. Rob Deer has great power and draws a lot of walks, but makes such poor contact that he is a good bet to hit under .200 in any season. Felix Fermin (now a Blue Jay) is a slick fielding shortstop with almost no offensive skills. Chris Brown is an interesting spare part as he hits enough to be useful in case of short term injury at either Shortstop or Third Base and isn’t a bad pinch hitter either.
An interesting exchange of players if nothing else.
Winner: Montreal
Los Angeles receives RF Gene Roof.
Detroit receives 1B Rickey Jordan.
You know, this deal looks just as bad as it sounds. Gene Roof is older, but a far superior player to Rickey Jordan. Roof is an on-base machine who can pound some doubles and is a good defensive right fielder. He’s 32, but his skill set suggests he has another five years of good baseball ahead of him. The Dodgers parted with Rickey Jordan. Jordan has the skills to be a good hitter…for a middle infielder. Unfortunately, Jordan is a 1B who only has the ability to hit for batting average. This looks like a clear case of old age having its day over youth.
Winner: Los Angeles
A trading explosion has hit the CDL with an amazing fury. So far, it appears the only casualty is the Chicago Cubs, though it looks like the Atlanta Braves are going to be headed into the heart of the explosion. Today will be a double shot of the ATR, the first issue getting us through the deconstruction of the Cubs and the second getting me closer to the top of the trades page. (There are something like 25 unreported trades.) To the trades!!!
Chicago (N) receives 3B Greg Gagne.
St. Louis receives OF Sil Campunaso.
Sometimes it is the small deals that illustrate the fact that a team is making grave errors in their trades better than the big deals. When this happens, a seemingly small deal ends up being a big winner for one team and a big loser for the other.
The Chicago Cubs are a team headed in the wrong direction. You need to build your base of talent and see some success before you start squandering talented prospects for backup players.
Greg Gagne is just that, a utility player who shouldn’t start more than 30 games a season. He has a good glove at all three infield position, but his bat is rather subpar. Spotted against lefthanders, he could be a useful part of a good team.
On the other hand, would you give up a talented young outfielder to get a reserve infielder unless you were certain you were championship bound. So, Sil Campunaso, much to my surprise is a quality outfielder. He won’t ever be a star, but he could be a good third/fourth outfielder for a lot of teams. He plays all three OF positions, should develop good strike zone judgment and be a force against left handed bats. I’m pretty certain that potential is more valuable than a utility infielder, especially when you are banking on Henry Cotto being a quality starter, something he’s never done.
Winner: St. Louis
New York (A) receives P Bob Kipper.
St. Louis receives C Ron Karkovice.
A real barn burner of a deal. Seriously, sometimes you end up needing a small part to get your roster together, so you have to make a deal like this.
Neither Karkovice nor Kipper is going to make or break their new team’s seasons. Karkovice isn’t much of an offensive player, but is a good backup catcher if you are looking for a lot of defense, as he can throw and catch with the best of them. Kipper is a lefthanded reliever who has a problem with the long ball and right handed hitters. He might be a useful player if used effectively, but we all know that OOTP isn’t capable of making decisions like that. I think I’ve said enough about this deal already.
Winner: St. Louis
Chicago (N) receives 1B John Kruk
Philadelphia receives 1B Bob Horner and Houston’s second round Amateur draft choice in 1990.
John Kruk has been the lone bright spot on a Cubs’ offense that has been truly horrible. That isn’t really much of a surprise since John Kruk has always been one of the more underappriciated players in the CDL. He doesn’t have the power you want from a first baseman, but he excels at getting on base by either basehit or walk. What makes this deal a real surprise is that the Phillies could have shuffled around their lineup to stick Kruk in an outfield corner and sit the Vince Coleman/Willie McGee platoon.
For this loss of offensive firepower, the Phillies received a decent enough draft pick. It’s the middle of the second round, which generally gets you a decent player, but not nearly a good enough player to replace John Kruk.
The Phillies also received 3B Bob Horner, one of the great failures in CDL history. The third overall pick in 1978, Horner has played a good deal over the last 12 seasons, though he has never put together a good season. Some injuries and an overestimation of his talent has left teams who have traded for him wondering what happened to the potentially great player of Bob Horner. He still has decent power, but he doesn’t get on base enough to be a regular starter. For the Phillies, he will be nothing more than a back up infielder for McGwire and Brett. Hopefully for the Phillies, McGwire will take the time to learn from Horner how not to end up being an equal disappointment.
Winner: Chicago (N)
Chicago (N) receives 2Bs Jeff Treadway, Mike Marshall and Bobby Rose.
Montreal receives P Salome Barojas, 2B Barry Evans and Los Angeles’s first round Amateur draft choice in 1990.
It’s not often you see a team trade for three of anything in a deal, let alone second baseman. But there is more than meets the eye in the second baseman traded here.
For example, Mike Marshall is a power hitting first baseman that masquerades as a second baseman. As a 1B, Marshall has light-tower power and nothing else. He’s more of a stop gap than a star, despite having led the league in Home Runs in the past. At first base, he won’t cause the harm that has led some Expos teams in years past to be worse than they had any right to be.
Jeff Treadway is officially know as Nomad as he has been traded more times than a porn mag between 12 year olds. (Pre-internet days) Being as I have to talk about him again and again, I will refrain from talking about him here.
Bobby Rose is an interesting prospect. He’s well versed with the glove at both second and third base. OK, more like he’s adequate with the glove at both second and third base. His bat leaves something to be desired as well, but sometimes you need a reserve infielder and they never hit well.
You know, I’d rather have had the 15th pick overall in the 1990 draft than all of these guys. And Montreal got just that and more. The pick ended up netting them a major steal in Tim Naehring. More importantly, there was even more to be had here. Barry Evans is the complete version of Bobby Rose, though he can also play a little 1B as well. Not a great player in his own right, but a fine complementary player. And Salome Barojas is the rare breed of talented reliever who never has a good season. A decent flyer in a deal where you turn overrated assets into something very useful like a first round pick.
Winner: Montreal
Chicago (N) receives CF Jim Rice and P Ed Olwine.
San Francisco receives 2B Jeff Treadway and Chicago (N)’s second round Amateur draft choice in 1991.
Both Treadway and Rice have been dealt since this deal was made, which says a lot about them. Even odder, this isn’t the first time Jim Rice has been traded twice in an offseason. In 1979, the Detroit Tigers traded him to the Houston Astros who traded him to the San Francisco Giants. Odd, isn’t it.
Anyway, Giants are looking golden here. They managed to get what is looking like a very high second rounder out of the Cubs and a decent 2B in Treadway, who is in Seattle, for the remains of Jim Rice and a mediocre reliever in Ed Olwine.
To get back to the Cubs where we started, I think what we have here is a classic case of an owner thinking they had the core of a team ready to compete, so they went out and traded away bits of the future to get them over the hump and into the Wild Card. The theory there is that once you are in the playoffs, anything can happen.
I think what was missed here was that if you had a good core of talent to build around this season, you probably would have finished ahead of the someone other than the Blue Jays. I really didn’t think the Blue Jays were going to be very competitive this season, but I felt the Cubs could make it to a strong third place. However, making deals like prevents a strong third place from turning into a hard charging second place next season.
Winner: San Francisco
And for fun, here are my final standing predictions from the beginning of the season (which explains why Cleveland is not listed first in the AL East)
AL East
Boston
Cleveland
Toronto
New York (A)
Baltimore
AL Central
Minnesota
Kansas City (Wild Card)
Milwaukee
Chicago (A)
Detroit
AL West
Texas
Oakland
Seattle
California (A lock on the first pick overall)
NL East
Montreal
Atlanta (Wild Card)
Philadelphia
New York (N)
NL Central
St. Louis
Pittsburgh
Chicago (N)
Cincinnati
NL West
San Francisco
San Diego
Los Angeles
Houston
I've been making too many moves again... this is becoming a recurring segment. Anyway, I always love acquiring new players, and because there are currently six players on my active roster that saw time with the big club last year (Greg Harris, Ken Hill, Bob Knepper, Kirt Manwaring, Ricky Seilheimer, and Glenn Braggs), I figured I'd fill everybody in on the nineteen new Blue Jays who have been rocking the threads in the SkyDome this year.
First, a little out/in exercise -- for pitchers I've used Wins-Losses, ERA and for hitters I've used BA, HR, OPS. 1989 stats for all players except rookies.
Out:
SP Joe Johnson (11-20, 4.99)
SP Scott Terry (4-13, 3.99)
MR Mike Dyer (3-4, 7.61)
MR Tony Fossas (4-4, 8.23)
MR Donn Pall (3-5, 5.53)
MR Balvino Galvez (3-3, 5.20)
MR Mike Couchee (0-4, 9.08)
1B Rex Hudler (.235, 10, .645)
2B Brian Giles (.156, 2, .460)
3B Jamie Allen (.205, 5, .573)
3B Randy Asadoor (.219, 10, .593)
RF Steve Hammond (.000, 0, .000)
LF Joe LeFebvre (.283, 16, .824)
LF Rusty Tillman (.229, 1, .793)
LF Max Venable (.198, 1, .601)
RF Mickey Hatcher (.266, 15, .717)
CF Ty Gainey (.230, 11, .643)
LF Ron Kittle (.249, 16, .718)
RF George Hinshaw (.287, 5, .788)
In:
SP Fernando Valenzuela (20-11, 1.95)
SP Lary Sorensen (17-10, 3.35)
MR Stan Belinda (4 sv, 0.00)*
MR Chuck Cary (3-3, 2.81)
MR Mark Davis (4-4, 3.09)
MR Mark Dewey (0-1, 4.63)*
MR Dan Quisenberry (3-1, 1.94)
MR Efrain Valdez (0-0, 9.00)
MR John Verhoeven (4-2, 3.67)
1B Frank Thomas (.311, 5, .950)*
3B Paul Runge (.000, 0, .000)
SS Felix Fermin (.224, 0, .535)
SS Jose Vizcaino (.212, 0, .505)*
DH Clint Hurdle (.261, 4, .700)
LF Chris James (.265, 2, .673)
CF Ken Griffey Jr. (.219, 4, .709)*
CF Dave Henderson (.296, 35, .975)
At first glance, the pitching has gotten much much better and the hitting only marginally so, but Vizcaino recently had a talent bump (which unfortunately makes the trade for Felix Fermin and Gary DiSarcina a completely moot one in a year or two but then again DiSar would be useless by then anyway), Griffey should soon step it up, Hurdle is showing flashes of 1988, Thomas has locked up the RoY already, Hendu is being himself, and Chris James is pinch hitting .500.
New Jays vol. 1 focused on the first few months that ownership took over, but then vol. 2 the format was changed to focus on new players in the Toronto uniforms. However, only one of the players (Bob Knepper) remains in uniform from the first veteran core assembled by management.
Why don't we take a position-by-position look at the Jays as we saw with San Diego a couple days ago.
Starting Pitching: The rotation has, right now, one ace in the groom of the staff, former Cy Young Award winner Fernando Valenzuela, who has three consecutive 20-win seasons and is only 29 in his eleventh big league season. The rest of the group is led by something old, Bob Knepper, who has been on the pitching staff of every team I've owned for a full season in this league since 1976, and who is looking for his fourth career winning season, off to a good start. Something new here would be Greg Harris, off to a terrific April looking to establish himself as an ace, and something borrowed is Lary Sorensen -- a salary dump for a rich team but a viable bottom starter for the poor Jays who has had a great career but a not so great 1990. Blue as a Jay, Ken Hill has had his trials and tribulations in Toronto, but we hope he'll work through it.
Middle Relief: Three trades, a free agent signing, two draft picks, and the farm system have spawned a completely new 'pen of seven of the oddest characters around. Lefties Mark Davis and Chuck Cary are strikeout machines, as is closer Stan Belinda, who has yet to taste failure on a major league level spinning eight and two thirds scoreless frames so far in his rookie season. Mark Dewey is a very talented second round pick who will be a good CDL reliever, and John Verhoeven and Dan Quisenberry have 25 seasons, 551 saves, two all star games, and 73 years under their collective belt. They should provide leadership for zany fifth round pick Efrain Valdez who has held hitters to a .235 batting average but allowed a .391 OBP.
Infield: The achilles heel of the Blue Jays, four new players stock all four infield positions, but the two headed monster returns at catcher. Rickirt Seilwaring is hitting over .275 with stellar defense and 11 RBI so far this year. In addition, Frank Thomas is setting up his great career already. I forgot to mention Vance Law and Skeeter Barnes up top, but they've come on as well to add stability to the infield. Paul Runge and Felix Fermin have been added for their defensive prowess, and Jose Vizcaino recently bumped up his talent and should soon take over full time, although he's not ready just yet. Chris Hoiles is stewing in the farm system and IS NOT AVAILABLE FOR TRADE. STOP ASKING.
Outfield: The five players in here are some of the favorites of management. Starting from the bottom, Craig James is turning into something every manager wants and needs... a good bat off the bench who can hit lefties and righties and field his position. Clint Hurdle is an on-base machine who was hired for a few years after the Joe LeFebvre debacle the first two weeks of the season. He can't field but can hit righties with authority and will do so indefinitely. Glenn Braggs is the model of consistency and will hopefully contribute his .290/.350/.440 numbers once again with his good D. Ken Griffey Jr. is a project but has hit righties with power (9 XBH out of 17 hits) and played the best defense out of any CDL centerfielder (look it up!) Dave Henderson has been himself and we're loving it.
Au revoir!
Its been a few weeks since Beyond the Numbers has graced the pages of the CDL
News, but I wound never forget the Darkhorse Report (yes, this will be an annual
thing =P). This issue of BTN will be dedicated to the Toronto Blue Jays, who
seem to be moving themselfs into a position to try and take the NL East away
from the dominant Boston Red Sox. The Blue Jays have shattered almost every
record that you dont want to break, but will definatly make a more respectful
showing this year
5 - Toronto Blue Jays - Coming off an absolutely horrible
season, the Blue Jays made some big signings and some big trades. Probably the
biggest move they made in the offseason was trading for SP Rick Aguilera. Rick
had 26 winis last year with an ERA of 2.45, hes off to a slow start so far,
but should prove to be a major contributer, and should win at least 10 games,
without much help from the Lineup. Ricks gonna have some help though, 3 big
names have been added to the Toronto lineup, Frank Thomas, Ken Griffey Jr.,
and Dave Henderson. Surely you have heard of these guys, Thomas and Griffey
were '89 and '90's 1st overall picks. Henderson is that guy up for '89 AL MVP,
and of course the highest paid hitter ever in the CDL. At a glance the Jays
look to have added at least 11 new faces to the roster, possibly more, but there
are still too many reminants of the '88 and '89 Toronto Blue Jays for my taste
though. 1990 could be a Cinderella Story for this team, but I think another
team has a better shot at taking the AL East from the Red Sox this year.
4 - Cleveland Indians - Its only been 2 weeks since
the start of 1990, but I think the Indians are for real. They have a few fairly
decent pitchers such as Bill Swift and Greg Mathews, but thats not what I really
like from the Indians. Its their power, and the depth of their power. The Inidans
added alot of quality veterans to their lineup, the player who will impact the
team the most will be 1B Jason Thompson. Thompson got my vote for AL MVP, and
i think he could win them back to back placed in the middle of this lineup.
Look for Dave Winfield and Travis Fryman to also make big impovements to this
lineup. If the pitching of the Indians can keep the games close, i think the
power the Indians have may just be enough to topple the Mighty Redsox
3 - Chicago White Sox - Chicago finished dead last in
the toughest division in the CDL last year. A Division so tough that the Minnisota
Twins finished with a .623 record, and were still snubbed of a playoff spot
finishing 3rd in the division The White Sox havnt made many changes to their
'89 squad, but the team wasnt bad to begin with. Rookie Sensation Jose Dejesus
will be a player that shold definatley impove this squad. His Control is a bit
shakey, but he throws a knuckleball that just baffles hitters. After only 3
games in the majors, he has already thrown a No-Hitter. The AL Central is a
tough one, but I think the White Sox have what it takes to make a very respectful
showing this year, and possibly take the NL Central Crown.
2 - San Deigo Padres - Well, I said it last year and
ill say it again, I like the Padres. Although the Friars didnt make it out of
last place in the NL West (tied for last with the Astros), they didnt make significant
improvements from previous years, and I dont think that adding 30 million in
new Veterans is gonna hurt them. Returning this year for San Deigo is Barry
Larkin, Ellis Burks, and SP Bob Tewksbery. Burks shows incredible talent, and
I think he will improve over his decent rookie year, and become one of the most
feared hitters in the leauge. 1B Kevin Maas is my pick for the NL RoY this year.
He has some amazing power, and as long as the Padres keep him away from leftys,
he should put up some great numbers for this lineup. The battle for the NL West
should be between the Giants and the Dodgers, but the Padres are going to make
it interesting this year.
1 - Montreal Expos - The Friars wernt the only ones
spending in the offseason. Montreal added about 24 million worth of new players
to the payroll, and still have alot of young talented guys on the lineup, just
waiting to break out. The triple threat of Dykstra, Sierra, and Moseby returns
for the Expos, and should put up some solid numbers this year. They will be
without last years NL HR champ Mike Marshall, but have added Julio Cruz to replace
him. Julio brings a more disiplined bat, a better glove, and more speed than
Marshall at 2B. Some solid hitters and every spot in the lineup, and an extremely
talented pitching staff should move the Expos from the bottom of the NL East
to the top.
In our modern world, there are few things one can rely on. Few things that a man can "set his clock by". We know the sun will rise and set. We know that what comes up, must in fact, come down. We know the Padres will finish with a .400-something winning PCT and struggle not to come in last in the always tough NL West.
This year could possibly, maybe, potentially, be somewhat different. The Astros are visibly weakened, the Dodgers are GMd by a tree dwelling biped from the forest moon of Endor, and the Giants... well... how long can a Groening last anyways? With these things in mind, the Padres bulked up in the FA period, reaching their highest payroll since '85. The objective: To no-longer be a member of a somewhat exclusive club. The Friars are tired being the only NL club never to have seen postseason play. This year... may very well turn out to skew slightly from the past... conceivably.
The Padres at a glance:
Starting Pitching: The rotation will once again be led by unlikely-hero Bob "Why the hell did you draft him 2nd round?!?!?!" Tewksburry. Bob has pitched FAR beyond expectations, as his status as a 2-time All-Star can attest. Ed Lynch and ross Baumgarten return for the Padres, both were workhorses for the club, each with a .500+ winning pct. Joining them this season will be Dennis Eckersly, who brings a .214OAVG against Righties. Danny Darwin will have to put up the numbers he showed himself capable of in Houston for San Diego to have a fighting chance.
Middle Relief: The pen was a big disapointment in San Diego last season, the 3 different hurlers spending time in the Closer spot. There were some bright spots, as Mark Williamson and Calvin Schiraldi both had good years. Schiraldi was so impresive that word around Training Camp is that he will be the Closer for San Diego in 1990. Jose Alvarez will therefore be "demoted" to Set-up. New addition Mark Clear may not be on the San Diego opening day 25, that will be all dictated by his performance in the upcomming Spring Training games. Hopefully the relief corps will return to the form that made them one of the best in the league 2 seasons ago.
Catcher: Don Slaught returns from an injury shortened season last year. Slaught was of course brought to the team in one of the very few trades GM Brian Wohldmann has ever made that can come reasoably close to being called "shrewd". Don has vowed to return to his 1987 form where he hit .308 with 15 HRs and 82 RBIs. FA addition John Stearns will be spelling Slaught on his off days. Though Stearns at 38 is well past his prime, he was a preferable option to last season's backup, John Mizerock.
First Base: Much buzz in sunny San Diego around rookie sensation Kevin Maas, who will likely start at 1B for the Friars. People are flocking the fences in ST, just to see this kid whack a few. His tremendous power will hopefully be enough to offset his shaky ability to make contact. If Kevin can hit above .220 in this first season, he'll be considered a rounding success. Long-time Padre Dave Revering will be likely facing many of the lefty hurlers sent at the club.
Second Base: Speaking of buzz, sophmore Jose Lind was not the standout hitter he was prophesised to be. This being the case, San Diego jumped at the chance to add Bump Willis to the squad. Willis his .302 last season in Texas, and if healthy will easily steal 40+ bases. Lind will stay at the big club for 2 reasons: 1) He hit lefties very well last year, putting up a .321 mark. 2) He will likely profit from the veteran Willis' guidance.
Third Base: In '88 San Diego sent SP Bob Woodward to the Yanks for Hubie Brooks. Though Woodward has been average in the Bronx, Brooks has been a huge boon for the Padres. He hit .293 last season with a .350 OBP and .459 SLG, in addition to a trip to the All-Star game. One-time started John Castino will back-up Hubie this season again.
Short Stop: Barry's back. After a season-ending injury cut his '88 season VERY short, Barry returned last year to win the Gold Glove, and the NL SB crown. IF Barry can raise his OBP above it's current .315, he'll prove the huge assset the front office always thought he was.
Outfield: Here is where the Padres shine offensively. Look for Ellis Burks to have a breakout, MVP-worthy year. Greenwell has been certainly servicable, and very-well may get back to the numbers he put up during his rookie campaign. The big question-mark here is FA pick-up Lyman Bostock. If the 39-year old can stay healthy, he looks to be a HUGE addition this year, with his .368 AVG from last season. If he begins to show his age though, it may prove to be a very long year in sunny San Diego.
After a recent issue of the ATR Trade Review, the Chicago Cubs GM Chris Hansen has plastered a portion of the article all over the Cubs Spring Traning facilities. "The Cubs are still a distant third in the NL Central behind the two powerhouses in St. Louis and Pittsburgh . . . this deal [aquiring Mike Witt] makes the Cubs older and perhaps poorer in the future." can be seen posted everywhere, including being the scrolling screen saver for Hansen.
"What does this guy know?" Asked the referred to pitcher, Mike Witt. "He hides behind a mask in order to fling [beep] all over the league, yet doesn't have the cahonas to come out and say who he is. Hell, it's probly some weak writer out of Toronto. What do they know about baseball?"
Alan Trammell, who the article also mentions, had no comment specificially related to the article, but did say that he knows exactly why moves were made in the off season and says that this team is the best Cubs team since 1982. "We're going to shock alot of people this season," says the two time CDL MVP. "I'm pretty excited to get things underway."
The Cubs lineup features an incredible balance of hitting and power and the pitching staff is probably the best they've had ever, expecially in the pen. "We had to address some things after last two dissapointing seasons," says GM Hansen. "We feel that the moves we made in the off season were the best moves for out team and we've got a lineup with threats batting from #1 to #8. And our pitching may be the best its been since I've been here."
"We play to win," says youngster RF Sammy Sosa. "No matter the day, Cubs fan can come to see Cubs play hard. We will win lots of games."
In unrelated news, a four year old "Cub fan" named Steve Bartman, was thrown off the Sears Tower. The fan who is accused of throwing him off the buidling, identified as "Cub Man", simply said, "You might not know why now, but one day you will thank me for this."