Roster Update: Angel Guzman to the DL with a right triceps strain, Kevin Hart called up from Iowa.
Happy Father's Day everyone.
I've mostly been shoulder shrugging since the story came out that Sammy Sosa was on the positive test list for PED's that the MLB Players Association didn't destroy. To me it was old news. After the "Steroid Era" cloud passes and everyone in it washs off the stink, I wonder what will be the impact on what baseball should consider one of it's most important assets, the kids who fall in love with the game because of their father's (or mom's, but today is father's day) love of the game.
On this father's day, one of the things I treasure most is that my son is a Cubs fan and a Baseball fan. So when I read this brief Fred Mitchell article in the Tribune, it made more impact on me than when the Sammy news was leaked in the NY Times.
"The worst part for me is that I don't know what to tell my son [Darren]," the Reds manager said after Saturday's Civil Rights Game luncheon at the Duke Energy Center. "He asks me, 'Dad, are there any good hitters not on something?' I just tell him that everyone is under suspicion. I will just be glad when it's all over."
cubs up by 4 (all scored with 2 outs), top 1st...wainwrong.
ransom and r.sweeney homers.
another announce crew complaining about how long it takes for castro to walk back to the dugout after earning an out at 1st...it was the angels announce crew a couple weeks ago.
lovely, put up a post on potential trade candidates for Feldman and Garza and it ate the bulk of the text much like it does with some of the comments...sigh.
Jeff Baker, the pro's pro
http://www.thebiglead.com/index.php/2013/06/18/jef...
Don't look now but Toronto is red hot and only 5 games out of the Wild Card. Unless they collapse again I don't think they're going to sell after going full tilt this year and with Reyes coming back soon.
The lesson is never try
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nhjGoaKf52s
Thanks to both Rob and AZ!
archer only lasts 4.2ip today...109 pitches.
CHARLIE: If a club exceeds it's Signing Bonus Pool by 5%, it loses a draft pick. So the Cubs can spend about $578K above its assigned SBP ($10,556M) and not lose a draft pick.
The #2 overall SBP valus is worth about $6.7M, so the Cubs could offer Bryant well over $7M and still not lose a draft pick if they were inclined to do so (presuming they did not go over their SBP in other rounds).
If the Cubs don't feel they are getting fair value offered back, they can always just hang onto Garza and Feldman and make them Qualifying Offers post-2013.
I don't know the numbers as they spent a quite a bit to land the 12th round pick Clifton (allegedly 3rd round money which is 500 to 750K) and anything over $100K counts against the cap.
But Boras represents Bryant and Appel and I doubt he'd let Bryant sign for more than Appel who got $6.35M and Bryant's slot # is $6.7M. So chances are Cubs are getting him under (rumors is around $5.6M). Gray signed for $4.8M which was $800K less than slot as well.
rosscup may not have impeccable control, and injuries have slowed him, but he's recently turned 25 and needs to get out of AA.
his numbers are nice, but it's hard to get excited about them when he's feasting on 21-24 year olds.
i'm a rosscup fan, and i'm ready for him to be challenged.
And Chris Rusin is probably the #1 LHSP in the PCL right now. He is #1 among all SP (LHP & RHP) in WHIP, and he is 5th among SP in ERA (behind LHPs Brad Mills and Will Smith and RHPs Johnny Hellweg and Sonny Gray). He has been a real workhorse, too, leading the PCL in IP. and he has allowed only 5 HR in 97 IP (pretty good for a SP in the PCL). And he's hitting 222 and hasn't struck out in 18 PA (he was a DH at the U. of Kentucky on days he wasn't pitching), so he would fit right into the Cubs starting rotation.
one problem is going to be a glut in available SP.
josh johnson and r.nolasco are strong candidates most likely to be available...along with a slew of others not so strong...then there's garza/feldman in the mix on the strong side.
teams like CIN, DET, and ATL are most likely not even going to be looking SP.
So, how much do we think they can spend on the 1st-rounder before they give up a draft pick then?
Rosscup and Burke--gotta figure at least one of them makes the 40. Lefties that through like that don't grow on trees. It'd be nice to see Burke developing a bit faster as a pitcher, though, and Rosscup being pushed a bit more.