You've Waited 100 Years Without a Pennant, How about Eternity?

A short mention about an AP story I just read. Bohemian National Cemetery in the Chicago area has built a 32 foot red brick wall  made to eventually resemble centerfield at Wrigley once the ivy starts growing. With a stained-glass scoreboard to serve as "skyboxes" for some 288 potential eternal season ticket holders. There are some original seats and some of the old Wrigley outfield in front taken from the ballpark when they rebuilt the drainage system a year ago.

Here's the LINK if you want to sign up. The grand slam package goes for $4700, cremation is extra.

One more thing...The urns and plaques are already licensed by Major League Baseball, so they are still working it to be getting their "piece of flesh" from those who cheer for the Cubs in the life hereafter.

Tags: 
Cubs Heaven
Submitted by Dr. Joseph Hecht on Sat, 04/25/2009 - 2:24pm
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Comments

Submitted by navigator
on Sat, 04/25/2009 - 3:30pm

MLB caskets* and urns have been around for awhile now

http://www.eternalimage.net/mlb.php

*I'm thinking this season may be ready to measure for one.

Submitted by Ryno
on Sat, 04/25/2009 - 10:10pm

lol, lordy... Who's the douchebag who gets buried in a Twins casket? Kirby maybe?

Submitted by kmokeefe
on Sat, 04/25/2009 - 3:43pm

no chat today?

Submitted by Mike Vail
on Sat, 04/25/2009 - 4:07pm

Bea Arthur could use one. If the Cubs lose today, I will be blaming it on their distraction; they are mourning Maude....or perhaps missing (righty bat!) DeRosa.

Submitted by WISCGRAD
on Sat, 04/25/2009 - 5:28pm

David Patton meet Albert Pujols. Sure glad we got rid of all those relievers... This is becoming difficult to watch.

Submitted by mannytrillo
on Sat, 04/25/2009 - 5:41pm

Yeah, I am glad we got rid of Vizcaino and his 0.00 ERA and kept Patton and his 11+ ERA or Cotts and his 3.00 WHIP. Good call Hendry...

Submitted by The Real Neal
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 6:11am

Yeah, Hendry should have used his time machine, steppe ahead to Saturday when Patton's ERA ballooned to over 11, then gone back in time to Thursday and tried to send him to the minors. Good call Manny...

Submitted by mannytrillo
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 9:43am

Or Hendry should have used his "Scouting skills" and known a player like Patton is not good enough to be in the majors yet and kept a veteran guy with a 0.00 ERA instead. But that would be assuming Hendry knows what the fuck he is doing...Good call Neal...aa

Submitted by The Real Neal
on Mon, 04/27/2009 - 6:55am

Let's go ahead and assume that the most successful GM in the last 100 years does know what he's doing. God, you're thick.

Submitted by mannytrillo
on Mon, 04/27/2009 - 9:36am

Great, Hendry is the tallest midget or the fattest obese guy, congrats to him.

Submitted by mannytrillo
on Sat, 04/25/2009 - 5:36pm

This is not good, not good at all and I am not just talking about this game.

Submitted by billybucks
on Sat, 04/25/2009 - 5:44pm

Rough April for Hendry --

Other than Heilman, all the new guys have been unmitigated disasters so far (or are gone or irrelevant) -- Gregg, Bradley, Miles, Vizcaino, Gathright, etc. Bradley has an injury that will likely nag. ARam's annual leg problem makes the DeRosa trade look even more idiotic. Ditto Fonty's reality check.

The risk of changing key pieces of a 97-win team.

Lee's also off to a brutal start...and he's getting older. Could be a coincidence. Maybe not.

Not the best solution for fan base with fresh scars from October.

Submitted by crunch
on Sat, 04/25/2009 - 6:03pm

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Submitted by Rob G.
on Sat, 04/25/2009 - 6:32pm

http://twitter.com/cst_cubs/statuses/1614688990

Submitted by Jim Hickmans Bat
on Sat, 04/25/2009 - 6:36pm

IS IT OKAY TO PANIC YET?? THIS TEAM IS AWFUL, I MEAN, SUB-500 KIND OF BAD. ELEVENTY!!!!111!!

Submitted by Ryno
on Sat, 04/25/2009 - 10:11pm

No, it's not okay to panic yet.

Submitted by The E-Man
on Sat, 04/25/2009 - 7:15pm

2006 I could not GIVE tickets away.

Is this going to happen again this year?

Submitted by Rob G.
on Sat, 04/25/2009 - 8:02pm

God forbid it cuts into your ticket resale business...

Submitted by The E-Man
on Sat, 04/25/2009 - 9:11pm

Ain't much resale anymore, ROB G.

My goal is breaking even. I sell tickets for about what I pay for them.

Submitted by big_lowitzki
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 3:43am

You can give any tickets away to me. I'll send you my address if you would like.

Submitted by Bigz
on Sat, 04/25/2009 - 8:11pm

the division will suck and we have time.
I will admit - I used to not care about bradley cause we only need him in october, but now I do worry about even getting to october.

Submitted by billybucks
on Sat, 04/25/2009 - 9:14pm

Given the injury history of Bradley and A-Ram, trading DeRosa for nothing was one of the most inexplicable and stupid moves Hendry has made. I didn't like the Wood move, but, given his injury history, I understood it.

And if anyone brings up "payroll" -- saving a few million on Mark DeRosa's salary is not going to save the Tribune company. Zell buried the company with a mountain of debt, then the economy cratered which basically made the newspaper assets worthless.

Dumb, dumb, dumb.

Submitted by VirginiaPhil
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 9:45am

A-Ram started 147 games last year.

Anyway, Fontenot fits the profile of a third baseman (some quickness, hits with pop, doesn't steal bases) and is a reasonable backup for Ramirez, even long-term. The organization is starting to generate good prospects at short and second and soon will have no problem replacing Theriot and Fontenot if they want to. Check out Tony Thomas this season at Tennessee.

DeRosa's .203 BA with Cleveland (6-12) would not actually be that helpful.

Meanwhile, Jeff Stevens hasn't given up a run in 7.1 innings at Iowa. His WHIP is 0.82. John Gaub's WHIP is 0.92 at Tennessee in 4.1 innings, with 8 K's. Chris Archer, a starter at Peoria, has walked 9 in 12 innings but still has a WHIP of 1.25, since he has only yielded 6 hits.

If a lefty reliever is called up this season, Gaub will be in the mix, along with Waddell and Lambert.

Submitted by The E-Man
on Sat, 04/25/2009 - 9:57pm

preaching to the choir, dude.

so, so, so, fucking stupid.

Submitted by Ryno
on Sat, 04/25/2009 - 10:04pm

So... Dr. Joseph Hecht... you're a doctor, huh? How about Lexapro prescriptions for us TCR folks? Or do things need to get much worse for the Cubs before it warrants prescription antidepressants?

Submitted by O.Julius
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 6:05am

I see a TCR fundraising opportunity.

Submitted by The Joe
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 11:29am

I've used Lexapro. I suggest Citalopran.

Submitted by Ryno
on Sat, 04/25/2009 - 10:07pm

Rob G: Z or Koyie at 3b?

I would truly LOVE to see Z play 3B or any position. I think he would love it, too. He brings 110% every time and takes the wins and losses personally.

That said, it would be extremely irresponsible and is a terrible idea.

Submitted by The Real Neal
on Mon, 04/27/2009 - 6:56am

Zambrano plays first on his winter league team, doesn't he?

Submitted by Arizona Phil
on Sat, 04/25/2009 - 10:42pm

Submitted by billybucks on Sat, 04/25/2009 - 8:14pm.
Given the injury history of Bradley and A-Ram, trading DeRosa for nothing was one of the most inexplicable and stupid moves Hendry has made. I didn't like the Wood move, but, given his injury history, I understood it.

-------------------------------------------------

BILLY B: I was in Chicago the past couple of weeks and had a chance to watch the Cubs first-hand at Wrigley Field in a regular season gajme for a change. We hadn't been back there for several years, and it was great to see Wrigleyville again (as a tourist). But watching the Cubs is kind of maddening right now, even when they win.

As an Article XX MLB free-agent, Milton Bradley has an automatic "no trade" through June 15th. But after that, the Cubs can trade him, and I would not be surprised if the Cubs do end up trading Bradley to an A. L. team where he can DH (which is the only way he is going to stay healthy enough to play even 125 games), and take back whatever they have to take back to get the deal done. Bradley is just not a good fit with the Cubs. He is (as we expected) unhappy, and it's only going to get worse. If the Cubs could get a deal done like when they traded misfitted free-agent OF Candy Maldonado to Cleveland for Glenallen Hill a few years back, that would be good. That deal worked out pretty well for the Cubs.

You know, as it turned out, the Cubs really should have done absolutely nothing this past off-season except re-sign Kerry Wood for whatever he got from Cleveland, but they were so convinced that Fukudome was a bust that they panicked and dumped payroll just to get the cash to sign Milton Bradley. The one thing overlooked about last year's Cubs team is that they led the league in BA, SLG, OBP, and runs scored, and the pitching was in the Top 3 or 4 in most every category. There really was no need to do much of anything except bring the team back and (if necesssry) maybe make a move at the trading deadline to fix any shortcoming or injury issue that might have become apparent by that time.

Having Mark DeRosa around to play 3B-2B-1B-RF-LF would sure be nice. That was the worst move of all. Retaining DeRo would have kept Mike Fontenot's role as more of a LH PH and back-up 2B for whenever DeRosa was playing another position or if Lou wanted to get another lefty bat into the lineup against a tougt RHSP.

Also, I believe Carlos Marmol's best role at this point in his career is as a 7th & 8th inning set-up guy, which would have allowed the Cubs to keep Woody around for another couple or three more years as the closer while Marmol pitches out of jams, strands inherited baserunners, and gets big outs in the 7th and 8th innings.

The bench is out of whack right now because the belief that the lineup was "too right-handed" motivated Hendry & Piniella to panic and put together a roster where too many position players aren't playing enough or else are playing too much and/or at the wrong positions. Micah Hoffpauir is a Gold Glove caliber 1st baseman who doesn't have the aptitude to play OF. Aaron Miles probably needs to play every day at 2B to be the best he can be, but what he would provide doing that is a singles hitter who can hit 2nd or 8th in the order, except the Cubs already have a guy like that (Theriot). Fontenot is probably best-suited to be a platoon player at 2B or back-up 2B-LHPH, but then once again Miles became the only other option on the roster at 2B once DeRosa got traded. And the hottest hitter so far at AAA (Jake Fox) is a defensive liability no matter where he plays.

The best bet will be to trade Bradley to an American League team as soon as he can be traded (mid-June), and then move Fukudome back to RF (where he is most-comfortable and actually REALLY good) and play Reed Johnson in CF, with Joey Gathright getting some occasional starts against RHPs until this year's Jim Edmonds can (if possible) be acquired. And then replace Bradley's slot in the lineup with a more-versatile legitimate MLB-quality bench player who can play 3B-SS for extended periods if necessary.

As for the bullpen, it's getting obvious that David Patton isn't ready for prime-time on a contending team and will need to be replaced, probably either by veteran RHP Chad Fox (who is healthy and pitching well at Iowa), or by Gregory Reinhard (who is racking up K's and throwing lights out at AAA), or by Jose Ascanio (who is being used as a rotation starter at Iowa so that he can work on his secondary stuff, but whose future is an MLB reliever). The Cubs should just stay away from the Rule 5 Draft unless they are selecting a guy with AA or AAA experience who is MLB-ready (like RHRP Rodney Myers a few years ago). .

AA Tennessee LHP John Gaub doesn't have a lot of experience, but he's finally healthy, and he has the stuff to be an MLB LOOGY. All a LOOGY really has to do is get tough left-handed hitters out, and I think Gaub's stuff is filthy enough to do that. Iowa LHRP Jason Waddell pitched very well in Spring Training as an NRI and impressed Piniella, but Waddell's stuff actually works better against RH hitters, which is OK if you only want to use him as a no-pressure middle-reliever, but not if you need to strike out Prince Fielder or get Ryan Howard to pop up with the bases loaded in the 7th or 8th. Too much is being expected from Neal Cotts to do that job. Might as well give a young guy with nasty stuff a chance. If Gaub doesn't work out, it's no big deal because the Cubs have six spots open on their 40-man roster and can afford to try out as many guys as necessary (and option the other ones back to the minors) until they find one who can do the job. Besides Gaub, Tennessee has other lefties with the stuff necessary to be a potential MLB LOOGY, guys like Jayson Ruhlman, Casey Lambert, and Jeremy Papelbon. Give 'em all a shot if you have to, although I suspect Gaub is probably the best bet. He was very impressive in minor league camp.

Submitted by Charlie
on Sat, 04/25/2009 - 11:32pm

Can somebody deliver this to Hendry's desk tomorrow morning?

Submitted by The Real Neal
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 6:14am

Great to hear you got back to Wrigley and enjoyed yourself, except for the losing part.

Point of fact on Bradley. He hurt himself running the bases.

Submitted by Pell Mell
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 9:50am

The best bet will be to trade Bradley to an American League team as soon as he can be traded (mid-June)

I grant you that Bradley couldn't have gotten off to a more disappointing start, but this is an overreaction.

I'm willing to bet that Bradley will be putting up numbers that the Cubs will find useful by mid-June, lessening or eliminating the need to trade him then. I'm willing to bet that Hendry is willing to bet that too.

And if Bradley is still subpar by then, how do you propose to trade him, to whom, and for what? It's hard to see how there will be great demand in either league for a well-paid, low-hitting, angsted-out Bradley.

Submitted by VirginiaPhil
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 11:29am

Hey, cousin.

First of all, no DeRosa trade, no Gaub.

I tend to disagree with your assessments of DeRosa and Fontenot. They seem to me to be virtually the same player, and in that case, you trade the older, more expensive one. If you look at DeRosa's offensive numbers in his best year, and Fontenot's ML numbers so far, they're similar. Both can play second but neither gives you baserunning speed (i.e., stolen bases) that you'd like to get from your middle infielders. Both have power that is marginally acceptable at third base.

This, by the way, is the key to DeRosa's "versatility." He should be a third baseman, and Cleveland traded for him as a third baseman; but before last season he had never hit 14 HRs. When he hit 21, he became a third baseman and stopped moving around. He has played 17 games this year, all at third.

The Cubs had a third baseman, so DeRosa was traded. Fontenot will be traded, too, especially if Tony Thomas keeps hitting like he has been. This is just normal, competent general managing, but it seems to be too much for nostalgic Cub fans, who can't get over losing a guy who had a good year once and whose shirt number they have memorized.

Submitted by The E-Man
on Sat, 04/25/2009 - 11:52pm

AZ PHIL: Thanks for your insight. What you describe, is akin to GM, or AIG ...it really would seem like the Cubs do not know what the hell theyre doing.

It is tragic in that, with the state of the economy, our dim-witted management had to pull the trigger so quickly and dump the best utility guy in the game, whom also carries a stick and was traded for prospects.

I hope that the new owners do some housecleaning, but it is unlikely.

It is a long season, and there is the potential for a long season for Cub fans in 2009.

Submitted by big_lowitzki
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 3:46am

Wow... the TCR reader freak out is sure fun to watch...

The Cubs are going to through a bad streak right now. I mean... who would have thought that the Cubs would struggle without Bradley, ARam, and Marmol, and with Fontenot, Soto, and Lee all hitting below .200?

Bradley, ARam, and Marmol won't be hurt all year. And none of Fontenot, Soto, or Lee will hit below .200 all year.

So step away from the ledge.

Submitted by Ryno
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 8:47am

Yeah, totally. It's painful to watch, sure, but it is what it is, a good team slumping.

Submitted by mannytrillo
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 9:40am

I am sure some Tigers fans were thinking the same thing at the end of last April after some pundits thought they had "the greatest offense ever" and were going to put up 1,000 runs. They finished up 74-88 and in last place.

I am not saying the Cubs will finish in last place or with only 74 wins, but there are some major things not to like on this team even when you take out the fact that a few players are slumping.

If you don't want to see that, that's cool, but there are some big holes/question marks that have opened up in this first month that have me worried.

Submitted by big_lowitzki
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 10:04am

I am sure some Tigers fans were thinking the same thing at the end of last Apri

Ummm... the Tigers 11-14 at this point. The Cubs are are 8-8.

Yup... they are kinda' alike.

Does this team have problems? Sure... just like any other team. But this is a good team in a slump.

We know that you hate Hendry, and we also know that you take EVERY opportunity to bash Hendry. This is obviously one of this times, and many of us look forward to when the Cubs start playing well, and you are quiet.

Submitted by Rob G.
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 11:07am

The 2008 season was enjoyable for many reasons.

Submitted by mannytrillo
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 4:59pm

I know you are taking a personal shot at me, big shocker, but did you find the 2008 season the ?way it ended enjoyable? I thought is sucked and unfortunately that has a lasting impression of the season.

Submitted by Charlie
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 9:25pm

Yes, we all were hurt by the sweep. Those 3 games effectively ruined all of the 2008 Cubs domination of the NL. And, quite possibly, those three games will ruin all of 2009. In fact, I'm going to do everything I can to make sure they ruin 2009 for me. I think I'll bring them up whenever a player slumps, gets hurt, or the Cubs lose a game or series. I may also bring them up when a player does better than I expect or the Cubs win a series. I might bring them up on off days, too. Actually, I think instead of watching any games in 2009 I'll watch the tapes I made of those three losses.

Submitted by Rob G.
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 9:25pm

I sense sarcasm.

Submitted by mannytrillo
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 9:32pm

I hops so or he is a little deranged...:)

Submitted by Rob G.
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 9:45pm

pretty sure he was making fun of you

Submitted by mannytrillo
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 10:33pm

Sadly it was not surprising, and unfortunately it wasn't funny. If you are going to take shots at people at least make it good...:)

Submitted by Rob G.
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 11:30pm

it was a little funny...

Submitted by The Real Neal
on Mon, 04/27/2009 - 6:59am

"I might bring them up on off days too." was funny. Well done.

Submitted by WISCGRAD
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 12:29pm

The Tigers started out with 7 straight losses, including a sweep at the hands of the Royals. The also went 4 and 14 to end the year.

Also, so far a lot of Hendry's moves look bad, but a few I think have been good.

Hill certainly did well filling in for Soto, and I think he made the right move to go with him over Blanco or Bako.

Hoffpauer is clearly a great bat of the bench and can fill in on defense better than Ward could.

The rotation has been simply outstanding from 1-5. I like Marshall as the second lefty. This, I think, was a good move rather than overspending for Peavy (2-2 with a 5.13 ERA so far btw)

Heilman has been great in the pen, and Cedeno and Pie have proven to be of no loss so far.

I think Gregg will turn out fine in the end and Gathright is what we thought he was.

The big questions are Bradley (not a surprise) and the deal I never understood - Aaron Miles. He is not a great pinch hitter, and can really only sub at one position well - second. As we've seen, we are forced to move our starting 2B to third when A-Ram goes down because our back-up is one dimensional.

Submitted by Pell Mell
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 7:14am

The Cubs' thinking on DeRosa had to be that he was 34 years old and less than likely to put up another line like 285/376/481/857. Maybe there were other considerations too (two large playoff gaffes?), but that was probably a large part of the judgment.

I thought, and still think, that it was refreshing to see a Cubs management team think this way, given that the usual approach would have been to say "aww, we love our guys!" and give him a three-year contract, at which point he begins to kick around aimlessly and put up numbers like 203/272/351/623.

That is DeRosa's line so far this year. Granted, small sample size, but no Cub seems to be getting the benefit of that doubt, so it seems relevant to point it out about The One That Got Away. If he were putting up those numbers here, he'd just be another of the underperforming bums that people are ranting about.

Submitted by The Real Neal
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 8:25am

Please don't cloud the issue with facts, Pell.

Submitted by Cubster
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 8:02am

Injury Update--

Factoid: Cubs are the only team in mlb without anyone on the DL in 2009.

(they are also the only team playing without a full deck, and I don't just mean a roster of 22)

http://www.suntimes.com/sports/baseball/cubs/15445...

Wittenmyer article says Marmol has a grade 1 knee sprain...doesn't say of what ligament in the knee, so I'll assume it's the medial collateral (MCL) and not the anterior cruciate (ACL). Bullpen session monday, ready to pitch tues in AZ

Ramirez not worse on saturday, should be ready by tuesday?

Bradley, hopeful to return before the end of the road trip (? Wed)

Koyie Hill is the backup-backup at 3B
Fukudome is the backup-backup at SS
Soriano is the backup-backup at 2B
Z is the next in line to pinch hit
Might activate Piniella to backup Soriano in LF

Submitted by Cubster
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 8:06am

ou're a doctor, huh? How about Lexapro prescriptions for us TCR folks? Or do things need to get much worse for the Cubs before it warrants prescription antidepressants?
-------

A rx for Cyanide might just do the trick? After my recent trip, I saw a lot of Youth in Asia.

Submitted by The E-Man
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 9:05am

Re: Groin Pull -

Doesn't a groin pull become chronic if not fully healed?

Bulls fans this year were treated to Gooden's malady, and he pretty much missed half his time here.

Why would he not play for another 30 days with this type of injury when exercise and movement exacerbates the injury?

Submitted by Cubster
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 9:35am

with a trip to Arizona coming up next week...no Brandon Webb (Y. Petit replaces him in the DBacks rotation).

http://www.azcentral.com/sports/diamondbacks/artic...

...also we won't see Jon Garland who pitches sunday.

Monday Lilly vs Y. Petit

Tues Zambrano vs Haren

Wed Dempster vs Davis

Submitted by Cubster
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 9:44am

Doesn't a groin pull become chronic if not fully healed?
-----
don't get acute and chronic confused with healed-not healed.

Symptoms can linger even when it's mostly healed, just like watching Soriano not being able to go into a faster gear when rounding third base after his pulled muscle problems. He might not been having pain but the muscle just wasn't tolerating higher demand even when he might try to go all out.

Fully healed (in athletes) means there are no remaining symptoms and performance is normal wrt sports activities.

Acute means the injury is fairly recent, up to 2-3 months can still be acute.
Chronic means it's taking longer than the usual expected timeframe to resolve or it's not resolving even with a very long timeframe.

They've used subjective precent healed lately 80% until the Lilly throw went into RF, then 65%. Purely subjective but somewhat useful to sense how bothersome the symptoms are.

Submitted by Arizona Phil
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 11:19am

Submitted by Pell Mell on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 8:50am.
I grant you that Bradley couldn't have gotten off to a more disappointing start, but this is an overreaction.

I'm willing to bet that Bradley will be putting up numbers that the Cubs will find useful by mid-June, lessening or eliminating the need to trade him then. I'm willing to bet that Hendry is willing to bet that too.

And if Bradley is still subpar by then, how do you propose to trade him, to whom, and for what? It's hard to see how there will be great demand in either league for a well-paid, low-hitting, angsted-out Bradley.

============================================

PELL MELL: My opinion of Milton Bradley as a Cub isn't an overreaction to what has happened the first three weeks of the season. I had the same opinion before the Cubs signed him. It just looked like  Jacque Jones (attitude-wise)/Cliff Floyd (in terms of nagging injuries) redux to me. I believed then (and still do now) that if the Cubs felt they HAD to acquire a left-handed bat to play RF, that it should have been Bobby Abreu. Abreu has played 150+ games for 11 years in a row. He stays in the lineup. Bradley does not. The idea that the Cubs should sign Bradley to help them beat LAD or AZ in the post-season is fine, presuming the Cubs can get there.

I would agree that once Bradley is physically able to return to the lineup (whenever that is), he will start to hit. At least until he gets hurt again. But by using him as a DH, an A. L. club would be taking away one way he can get hurt (playing RF), making it more likely (in actuarial terms) that he can stay in the lineup for more games.

The one thing that is sometimes forgotten about playing for the Cubs is that fans who attend games at Wrigley Field (especially the ones who sit in the bleachers) have zero tolerance for mopey discontented players. Bradley can get away with being Milton in Arlington or Oakland, but not as much on the north side of Chicago. If you talk to fans in the jointz around Wrigleyville, I think you'll find that Bradley is not very popular. Cubs fans like Ernie Banks type players. Happy players. Guys who are grateful for a chance to play in front of Cubs fans and don't hestitate to say so. Bradley does not react well to getting booed or to getting scrutinized in the press for his reaction to getting booed. Bradley + Cubs is a match made in Hell, and that should have been obvious in November. Guys like Hendry and Piniella are smart, but they sometimes just do not understand the psyche of Cubs fans. They don't undertstand, because they are "hired guns." Being a hired gun is OK, but it can lead to some stupid decisions (like signing Milton Bradley.

A guy like Milton Bradley could maybe fit-in with the Cubs if he were acquired for the last two months of the season, where the "Pennant Expess" was already steaming for the station, and if he was going to be a free-agent after the season. But signing him for three years was REALLY dumb.

When I say the Cubs should trade Bradley as soon as they can (mid-June), I say that with the POV that the longer the Cubs wait to move him, the more time for Bradley to incur a season-ending injury trying to make a play in RF, or to get involved in some kind of confrontation with a fan or a member of the media.

As I said, when and if Bradley is able to return to the lineup he should start to hit, and so it shouldn't be that difficult to trade him to an A. L. club later in the season, where he can be a DH. What would the Cubs get back for him? I don't think that's the issue. As I said, if the Cubs can work a deal similar to when they traded another discontented FA OF (Candy Maldonado) to CLE for Glenallen Hill a few years ago, that would be good. I'll leave it to Hendry to try and make the best deal he can.

Submitted by big_lowitzki
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 11:26am

It just lokked like another Jacque Jones (attitude)

Sure... except for the fact that Jock didn't have an attitude problem...

Cliff Floyd (nagging injuries)

Cliff Floyd was signed as a bench player, and was pretty productive in that role for the Cubs.

Submitted by Pell Mell
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 1:23pm

fans...have zero tolerance for mopey discontented players

At what moment this season has Bradley been mopey or discontented? What has he done this season to offend anyone at Wrigley? There's no evidence that he hates Chicago, hates playing for the Cubs, hates Cubs fans, or is unhappy with anything but the media and his own famously balky body. And while I disagree with your premise that Hendry and Piniella are somehow unaware that Cubs fans are an intense lot these days, I also don't want them to run the club according to the feelings of the people in the joints of Wrigleyville, unless maybe Nate Silver or somebody is having an ice-cold Budweiser in there.

Cubs fans like Ernie Banks type players. Happy players. Guys who are grateful for a chance to play in front of Cubs fans and don't hesitate to say so.

Two words: Carlos Zambrano. He hardly fits the description, and yet is a very popular player by any measure. Secondly, although your description of what many Cubs fans like in a player may be accurate, it never fails to turn my stomach. My fondest hope is for years of winning Cub teams to banish all that for good.

Submitted by Arizona Phil
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 11:37am

Submitted by big_lowitzki on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 10:26am.
It just lokked like another Jacque Jones (attitude)

Sure... except for the fact that Jock didn't have an attitude problem...

===============================

BIG LO: Jacque Jones was a misfit with the Cubs. It was more of a personality thing. So maybe I should have said "personality" rather than "attitude." Somebody even threw a baseball at him in RF, and his mother got into a confrontation with a fan behind home plate because the fan had the gall to heckle Jones when he struck out. But if you think Jacque Jones was a good fit with the Cubs, then that's fine. I disagree.

As for Cliff Floyd, he was a player who was injury prone before the Cubs signed him, just like Milton Bradley. If you don't see the similarity, then I don't know what else I can say. I guess we just disagree about that.

Submitted by The Real Neal
on Mon, 04/27/2009 - 7:03am

Those problems you mentioned were because Jaque sucked, not because of his personality. Had he hit like Albert Pujols, you could be damned sure no one would have thrown baseballs at him or heckled him infront of his mother.

Submitted by Arizona Phil
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 11:52am

Submitted by VirginiaPhil on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 10:29am.
Hey, cousin.

First of all, no DeRosa trade, no Gaub. I tend to disagree with your assessments of DeRosa and Fontenot. They seem to me to be virtually the same player, and in that case, you trade the older, more expensive one.

If you look at DeRosa's offensive numbers in his best year, and Fontenot's ML numbers so far, they're similar. Both can play second but neither gives you baserunning speed (i.e., stolen bases) that you'd like to get from your middle infielders. Both have power that is marginally acceptable at third base.

This, by the way, is the key to DeRosa's "versatility." He should be a third baseman, and Cleveland traded for him as a third baseman; but before last season he had never hit 14 HRs. When he hit 21, he became a third baseman and stopped moving around. He has played 17 games this year, all at third. The Cubs had a third baseman, so DeRosa was traded. Fontenot will be traded, too, especially if Tony Thomas keeps hitting like he has been. This is just normal, competent general managing, but it seems to be too much for nostalgic Cub fans, who can't get over losing a guy who had a good year once and whose shirt number they have memorized.

=========================================

CUZZ: I like John Gaub, but I would trade Stevens, Gaub, and Archer for Mark DeRosa right now.

I don't see the similarity between DeRosa and Fontenot that you do. I think DeRosa is a 150+ games everyday player, while Fontenot probably is not. Fontenot is more of a guy I would start against a RHSP. And I liked it when the Cubs had DeRosa as the primary 2B who could move to other positions when necessary, with Fontenot as his back-up at 2B. DeRosa's best position is 3B, but he can play 2B adequately, as well as 1B, LF, and RF if necessary.

I just think the Cubs would have a stronger team with better depth at all positions if they had kept DeRosa and Wood, even if that meant they could not have signed Bradley and Miles. Both Bradley and Miles are misfits on the Cubs, Bradley because he is Milton, and Miles because he duplicates Theriot's offensive skill-set and apparently can't play 3B. So I would take DeRosa over Fontenot or Miles, but I liked having both DeRo and Fontenot on the roster, as was the case last season. I just don't see how playing Miles at 2B with Fontenot moving to 3B when Ramirez is out of the lineup can be anywhere near as good as moving DeRosa to 3B and playing Fontenot at 2B.

Submitted by Cubster
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 1:36pm

At what moment this season has Bradley been mopey or discontented?
---
it seems that in his 2nd at bat, 4th inning vs Cincy (wed, 4/22), he's received criticism for not running hard down the first base line. This was a game he started in but in the 7th when Lilly had the throwing error lead to a worsening of his groin pull sx (80% down to 65% from being resolved, it's tough to go at full speed from the batters box with a pulled groin muscle). Pretty unfair but the media really wants to beat the crap out of MB and so it goes. Should have had a DL stint instead of waiting and hoping it's a day to day injury which it hasn't shown to be, imho. Hindsight is more accurate though.

Submitted by big_lowitzki
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 1:59pm

Not running out a groundout is not the same as being mopey or discontent.

Submitted by Pell Mell
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 2:43pm

Now is the discontent of our winter.

Submitted by Arizona Phil
on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 3:00pm

Submitted by big_lowitzki on Sun, 04/26/2009 - 12:59pm.

Not running out a groundout is not the same as being mopey or discontent.

========================================

BIG LO: Unfortunately, I would say the vast majority of Cub fans would disagree with you. Talking with Cubs fans at Wrigley Field and around Wrigleyville the past couple of weeks, it's hard to find anybody who likes Milton Bradley. Rightly or wrongly, he is viewed by most Cub fans as a moody, mopey, self-centered, childish discontent. Some think he's a thug. And (as you know) Cub fans--especially the ones who sit in the bleachers--are not bashful about expressing their displeasure with players they don't like. And so I believe it is only a matter of time before somebody pushes Milton Bradley's button and he goes postal.

Submitted by big_lowitzki
on Mon, 04/27/2009 - 8:37am

Well, FWIW, I find the vast majority of Cubs fans, especially those AT Wrigley or around Wrigleviille, to be pretty ignorant about baseball.

Wrigleyville (or even Wrigley, for the most part) isn't about baseball. It is about partying. So I probably won't put too much weight on what those folks say.

Submitted by tbone
on Mon, 04/27/2009 - 3:06am

AZPhil,

If the vast majority of Cub fans agree that failure to run out a hit is reason to dislike a player then Ramirez and Soriano would be booed unmercifully. I don't know who you've been talking to but no Cub fan I know has an opinion on Bradley because he's hardly played.

Submitted by The Real Neal
on Mon, 04/27/2009 - 7:07am

I'd have to disagree with that. If you change it to "no Cub fan I know has an objective opinion" then I think you're right on. Plenty of people on this board, admittedly probably not a pure sample of Cubs fans, 100% knew that Bradley was a malcontent, lazy, selfish player after having watched him play probably 5 games over the last 6 years.

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