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After a two week holiday, it's nice to be back. Or at least it would be if I wasn't coming back to the realisation that the Cubs are now tied for fourth in the division with the Cincinnati Reds (who've gone 35-25 since they fired their manager), and that Matt Lawton has been traded. Not that Matt Lawton being traded in itself is a bad thing: not at all, for while the Cubs mustered just an unremarkable pitching prospect by the name of Justin Berg, who like most pitching prospects deep in the system enjoys only the slightest chance of ever contributing at the big league level, that's a whole lot more than they'd have got had they held onto him. Had he stayed, Lawton, a free agent at year's end whose current contract rules out offering arbitration with a view to draft pick compensation as a viable option, would have walked away leaving the Cubs with nothing, and he'd have left the Cubs a million dollars lighter in the pocket between now and then too. This trade isn't a case of the Cubs' front office being cheap though, it's a case of them being sensible, if not courageous too, for it takes a big man to be at as ease with his mistakes as Hendry has shown himself to be here. That said, there is only so much praise you can heap upon someone for clearing up their own mess. On deadline day I wrote...

Whichever way Hendry tried to spin it in the press conference, this trade is a rental. Matt Lawton is entering the final months of a four year deal that's paying him $7.5m this year. And when this season is done, Lawton, whose contract includes no options, will file for free agency. With Lawton turning 34 in November, and doubtless looking for a multi-year deal all the same, this being a rental or not, it's probably best left that way. But it is a rental. And that says much for the Cubs' attitude towards this season, it says that they still clearly think they can make the playoffs. But this team right now stands at just 53-52 and is very much flawed, as this lousy homestand against lousy Western opposition [Giants, Diamondbacks] has demonstrated. Nomar, Wood and Williamson, who Hendry is viewing as mid-season pickups, will not change that, promoting Van Buren won't either, and neither will Matt Lawton, whose simply not an impact ballplayer.

The Cubs only gave up Jody Gerut, who managed just 18 plate appearances with the Pirates before succumbing to the problems with his knee that have ruined his season, but right now the Cubs' delusions of competitiveness mean that in the long-term they've exchanged him for Justin Berg, and that's just an unjustifable trade. In the short-term, Lawton gave Dusty Baker a convenient excuse to screw over Matt Murton, and the Cubs threw in a million dollars or so too. And for what? Parity with the Cincinnati Reds in 2005? I need a holiday.

GAME 129 IN-GAME DISCUSSION THREAD [PARACHAT] FLORIDA MARLINS (68-60) @ CHICAGO CUBS (61-67) WRIGLEY FIELD, 12:20 pm CDT, TV: Fox

Greg Maddux, RHP 10-10, 4.56 ERA 104/29 K/BB, 24 HR in 169.2 IP	Dontrelle Willis, LHP 17-8, 2.67 ERA 124/41 K/BB, 7 HR in 178.2 IP
CF *Juan Pierre	LF Jerry Hairston Jr.
LF Jeff Conine	2B Todd Walker
3B Miguel Cabrera	1B Derrek Lee
1B *Carlos Delgado	C Michael Barrett
RF Juan Encarnacion	3B Nomar Garciaparra
2B Damon Easley	RF *Jeromy Burnitz
SS Alex Gonzalez	SS #Neifi Perez
C Matt Treanor	CF *Corey Patterson
P *Dontrelle Willis	P Greg Maddux

Maybe Dusty will figure out how a double-switch works today. Maybe pigs will fly... Go Cubs!!!

GAME 128 IN-GAME DISCUSSION THREAD [PARACHAT] FLORIDA MARLINS (66-59) @ CHICAGO CUBS (61-66) WRIGLEY FIELD, 1:20 pm CDT, TV: WGN, ESPN

Glendon Rusch, LHP 5-6, 4.21 ERA 87/43 K/BB, 10 HR in 107.0 IP	Jason Vargas, LHP 4-1, 2.43 ERA 33/16 K/BB, 0 HR in 37.0 IP
CF *Juan Pierre	CF Jerry Hairston Jr.
LF Jeff Conine	LF *Matt Lawton
3B Miguel Cabrera	1B Derrek Lee
1B *Carlos Delgado	C Michael Barrett
RF Juan Encarnaciony	3B Nomar Garciaparra
2B Damon Easley	RF *Jeromy Burnitz
SS Alex Gonzalez	2B #Neifi Perez
C Matt Treanor	SS Ronny Cedeno
P *Jason Vargas	P *Glendon Rusch

Sorry about the title.... Well at least Ronny will get to play, what an interesting lineup. Nomar at third is interesting as well and I have no doubt that he could thrive there. He's got the arm and won't have to worry about covering all that ground that he can't really cover anymore at short. Of course he has absolutely no use there as a Cub in the foreseeable future. As for the game itself, Jason Vargas and his wild locks look to shutdown the Cubs as well as auditioning for my fantasty team. (See I could use one more pitcher for the stretch run). The Marlins are my pick to take the Wild Card, I love their rotation (Beckett, Burnett, Willis, Vargas, whoever) and the lineup isn't too shabby. Although their missing a few guys today that makes it not look so hot (Castillo, Lowell). Plus the high comedy of more press conferences with Jack McKeon possibly mispronouncing his own players names should be played out for a nationwide audience. The good teams seem to bring out the best in the Cubs, sure we lost to the Braves, but the losses were close games. Let's hope for more of the same this weekend. (The close games and generally well-played basesball, not the losing) Go Cubs!

USA Today has come out with a special section on "Baseball Announcers Yesterday & Today." Overall, it's a really entertaining package. It includes a ranking of all current radio announcing teams, and for the most part I think they get things right. Except. They rank Pat Hughes & Ron Santo a ridiculous 13th in the NL and 26th in the majors! Come on! They score along three axes, two of which are "fan rating" (the excitement and uniqueness the announcers bring to the broadcast, as well as their ability to connect with their audience) and "entertainment rating" (how well the announcers interact, the fun they have in the booth and the stories they tell, among other things) and I don't see any possible way that Pat & Ron (and especially Ron) could be rated lower than a "9" in either of these categories. They offer a feedback link, and I hope the members of the TCR community will take a few seconds to drop them an email in defense of one of the most entertaining radio teams in baseball.