Cubs Give Fans the Byrd
UPDATE #2: Rob Neyer linked up to us and didn't cut my article to shreds. Neat.
UPDATE: Wittenmyer tweets that it's $3M for 2010, then $5.5 in 2011 and $6.5M in 2012...not terribly unreasonable and similar to DeRosa's deal from the Cubs (2.75, 4.75, 5.5M). Now only if Byrd could play as well as DeRosa did his two years with the Cubs.
The Cubs signed outfielder Marlon Byrd to a three year, $15M deal today. As one would expect with a Jim Hendry contract, it's backloaded to give the Cubs more flexibility this season. Specific terms have yet to be released.
Byrd will be penciled in to play center field and if or when he proves he can't handle that on a regular basis, he'll be a perfectly adequate 4th outfielder and the Cubs will continue their center field quest. $5M a year is actually a decent price for Byrd, but depending on the structure of the deal, the final year will probably be impossible to unload when the Cubs realize they're paying a back-up outfielder $6-$8M or whatever it ends up to be.
I gave my thoughts on Byrd earlier, but the cliff notes version is: decent offensive production for center fielder, terrifying home/road splits over the last 3 years including a major drop in power, walks way too little and at best an average center fielder.
Feel the excitement.
Assuming no more than some bullpen and bench roles to be added, I expect the Opening Day lineup will be:
Theriot, Fukudome, Lee, Ramirez, Byrd, Soriano, Soto, Baker or Fontenot
I also expect Lou to start bitching about needing a left handed bat in the lineup by March 1st. He may flip the 7 and 8 spots and if Soto has a good spring and Byrd doesn't, they could flip as well. Here's hoping Soriano and Soto get their groove back.
Happy New Years Cubs fans!!!
(Give credit to QuietMan for the brilliant headline)
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#1 Re: Cubs Catch a Marlon
Well..I suppose that Byrd is the lesser of 3 evils?
Byrd
Ankiel
Podsednik
Meh...I'm going to have to wait to make judgement on this.
#17 Re:
Coco Crisp would have been cheaper. And it's not like Marlon Byrd is going to blow Coco Crisp away in the offensive production department. Meh, whatever.
#2 Re: Cubs Catch a Marlon
Cubs Give Fans the Byrd
Backloaded deal as usual.
What are the odds on a no trade clause?
#4 Re: Cubs Catch a Marlon
ha, I'm changing the headline
#5 Re: Cubs Give Fans the Byrd
naww. i don't see byrd wrangling a NTC on this one.
#7 Re: Cubs Give Fans the Byrd
I didn't expect a NTC. I was just saying...
Wittenmeyer has the terms:
"Byrd's contract backloaded, putting just 3M on '10 payroll (plus 5.5, 6.5)"
#15 Re: Cubs Give Fans the Byrd
I understand the logic of backloading contracts, but it would be so awesome to frontload a few of these. I really think Hendry just always assumes the current year will be his last so he won't have to deal with the end of the contracts.
#8 Re: Cubs Give Fans the Byrd
Submitted by 10man on Thu, 12/31/2009 - 1:12pm.
naww. i don't see byrd wrangling a NTC on this one.
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10man: As a Article XX MLB FA who signed after the conclusion of the MLB Free-Agency Filing Period, Byrd will (at the very least) get an automatic "no trade" through 6-15-2010. (Same goes for Grabow, BTW).
#61 Re: Cubs Give Fans the Byrd
good catch, AZPhil
#3 Re: Cubs Catch a Marlon
Meh. This is not a 2010 contending team as it stands today. If they went after Granderson, I would be impressed. I do realized we painted ourselves into a corner with bad contracts and little to offer compared to other teams (Damn you Arti!). Color me jaded.
yes, I have the goos about Dero. I'll get over it...eventually
#6 Re: Cubs Give Fans the Byrd
Wittenmeyer tweets:
cst_cubs: Byrd's contract backloaded, putting just 3M on '10 payroll (plus 5.5, 6.5)
#9 Re: Cubs Give Fans the Byrd
Well we have Fukudome's platoon partner. Now... who plays center?
#10 Re: Cubs Give Fans the Byrd
Now... who plays center?
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Slamin' Sammy Fuld
#11 You've got Neyer
http://espn.go.com/blog/sweetspot/post/_/id/1...
#12 Re: Cubs Give Fans the Byrd
Well done Rob and Co.
#24 Re: Cubs Give Fans the Byrd
I credit QuietMan's headline...
#41 Re: Cubs Give Fans the Byrd
I think the outstanding content you provide had this place on Neyer's radar long ago.
#50 Re: Cubs Give Fans the Byrd
Wow Rob congrats on officially making the "big time".
Please don't forget all the little people.
#62 Re: Cubs Give Fans the Byrd
well maybe the "mid time". now if Rob G. had been quoted by Carrie Muskat, that would be big time indeed LOL
#13 Re: Cubs Give Fans the Byrd
Hendry needs to be fired before he does any more long term damage. Cubs need a GM who can shop Hendry's big contracts at the trade deadline and next winter.
#14 Re: Cubs Give Fans the Byrd
Sort of a repost from the previous thread, and the only reason I am doing it is because as soon as finished writing I realized Rob would be posting a new Byrd thread.
The only other option in the free agent market for lead-off CF was Pods, and that it is one washed up player, I think.
I've always been a big believer in a plate setting lineup and I can't say this one qualifies. But I don't see any answers out there.
I'd be interested in seeing how many great leadoff men are developed within a team's system. That would be a great stat to see. I looked up two, Jimmy Rollins and Tim Raines, and sure enough they were both in their parent team's minor league system when they came up.
Bob Dernier was traded to the Cubs but he had a .288 (!) OBP the year before he was traded to us. In 412 PAs for the Phillies!
As much as Hendry is pissing me off lately, it's unfair to ask him to pull a rabbit of his hat like that.
It IS fair to ask him where the position players are, but it's also fair to say there are indications that Tim Wilkens and company are starting to show some progress. The draft choices have not panned out but a lot of the rest seems to be doing okay.
Hendry rolled the dice with Soriano and Fukodome and Bradley in the hopes of getting us cranky fans a pennant.
I really don't hate the guy for that. The dice didn't roll his way, or our way. FUCK! Let's hang the bastard.
Manny Trillo has done a nice job of getting everyone on the Hate Hendry bandwagon (Hendry has provided plenty of assistance, I realize), but I'm not really quite there yet. I am close because I think he may be part of the old school scouts vs. Moneyball but I think Hendry is pragmatic enough not to believe completely in his own shit.
You can't, if you're running a big organization like the Cubs.
I really can't hate this signing. Byrd will cover the center fine and will hit well enough.
Now, the season is up to Starlin Castro.
I'm fine with that.
I love dropping sarcasm at any moments in a post and knowing that there are smart people who can parse it all out, btw.
Happy New Years to the smartest baseball posters on earth. I know about 3000% more about the game I love than I did before I hit this site.
#26 Re: Dernier
because the Cubs lucked out 25 years ago, doesn't make this a good move....
I don't particularly hate this move, it's a pretty cheap contract for the Cubs to absorb if they need to and he should at worse, a good albeit expensive 4th OFer if he's not booed out of Wrigley or throws a hissy fit about getting benched that is.
Just hope they don't have too much faith if a better option comes available.
#44 Re: Dernier
My argument (it's NYE so I almost wrote argrument) wasn't that Dernier was an example of how a guy can have a better year than the year before. I think Byrd probably had his career year last year and he'll do the typical Hendry swan song.
I just didn't see anything on the lead-off end of things to think we could get help in the OF and lead off. My point about Dernier is that it is rare that good lead off men, I THINK but have no solid stats to prove it, are mostly home grown. And that Dernier was kind of an exception to that, maybe because he had a really crap ass year the year before. I mean, 288 obp is pitiful.
I actually preferred Ankiel just from a possible upside standpoint but overall I like the overall comments here that sort of all have this consensus of "meh" going on.
I think 2010 is gonna be all about "meh", so I'm pretty indifferent at this point on this and any other move Hendry makes this year unless he's got another Ramirez type trade under his rather ample belt. And I think those days are behind him for whatever reason.
#16 Re: Cubs Give Fans the Byrd
Marlon Byrd.
Okay.
#18 Re: Cubs Give Fans the Byrd
Coco Crisp would have been cheaper.
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Think of all the cool writeups I would have had to do on shoulder surgery if they had signed Covelli Crisp
#19 Re: Cubs Give Fans the Byrd
Byrd in the 5 spot? Let's hope Soto 2008 shows up this season. Also, what are the odds Fukudome leads off? His splts are better than Theriot's in this spot. Obviously not a running threat, but is anyone on this team a threat on the bases?
http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/spl...
#29 Re: Cubs Give Fans the Byrd
You're on crack if you think Sori will not be in 5 spot.
#37 Re: Cubs Give Fans the Byrd
He hit in the 6th spot last season and Pinellia has been quoted multiple times in the off-season saying that Soriano has found his home in the 6 spot. Don't tell me I'm on crack...have you been under a rock for 6 months. Maybe it was his .220 batting average, I'm not sure?
#40 Re: Cubs Give Fans the Byrd
Didn't mean to be harsh.
But Bradley is gone, I can't imagine Soto or Byrd hitting in front of Sori.
#45 Re: Cubs Give Fans the Byrd
What's wrong with being on crack? You kids don't know how to have fun anymore.
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