Durham Headed to Brewers; Wood Headed to DL?

Submitted by Cubnut on Sun, 07/20/2008 - 8:26pm

from the Giants on Sunday in exchange for Class A outfielder and Triple-A pitcher . The two teams waited to officially announce the deal until after they had played one another Sunday afternoon at AT&T Park, per the request of Durham, who didn't want to make his Milwaukee debut versus his former mates.

"Personally it was out of respect for the guys in this locker room,"
Durham said, saying his goodbyes in the Giants' clubhouse. "It really
was a stipulation I asked for."

The 36-year-old Durham, hitting .293 AVG / .385 OBP / .414 SLG / 799 OPS could complement and/or replace 25-year-old Rickie Weeks, who is hitting just .218 in 79 games for the Brewers this season with an OPS+ of 82.

Closer to home, Paul Sullivan makes it sound like t for the 12th time in his career, owing to ongoing problems with that blister on his right index finger. Sullivan quotes Lou Piniella as saying:

"We're coming to the point where we're going to have to come to a conclusion about what to do."

If the Cubs were to backdate the DL decision to July 12th, Wood would be eligible to get back on the field next Sunday, when the Cubs wrap up their four-game series against the Marlins at Wrigley Field. According to Sullivan, Carlos Marmol will get to wear the closer's hat so long as Wood is unable to pitch. Marmol pitched a perfect ninth to close out the Cubs' 9-0 shutout of Houston on Sunday.

 

Tags: 
Kerry Wood
NL Central

Comments

Submitted by navigator  on Sun, 07/20/2008 - 9:07pm  
That blister dates back to at least July 9th when he was already said to be "nursing" one.

Submitted by navigator  on Sun, 07/20/2008 - 11:53pm  
If Kerry Wood hasn't tried it already he needs to give STAN'S RODEO CREAM a shot at that blister. It was created by former Dodgers' head trainer Stan Johnston who was a rodeo performer when he wasn't working for the Dodgers. It works. Even Peter Gammons has written about it.

Submitted by 10man  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 12:22am  
I think Beckett uses that.

Submitted by carlosrubi  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 12:28am  
I think Beckett uses a different kind of cream...

Submitted by Doug Dascenzo  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 10:18am  
He should look into this new product I heard about, "Moises Alou's Blister Juice".

Submitted by Little Nate Lewis  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 7:41am  
IIRC, Wood used to use super-glue to help his blisters on a short-term basis.

Submitted by Chifan  on Sun, 07/20/2008 - 9:28pm  
he has two good outings after 6 weeks of being bad and now Lou is going to give him the most imporant role in the bullpen? What happens if he blows a few saves and goes right back into his 6-week funk? The wiser thing would be to let Howry close for the week since I doubt Wood needs more than that heal a blister he has already had for a week before the DL trip.

Submitted by 10man  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 12:33am  
But Howry has been worse and even more inconsistent.

Submitted by Chifan  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 10:10am  
Personally I'd let Gaudin do it, but Lou seems to think his big 3 are Wood, Marmol, and Howry. I'd rather have Howry fail then Marmol because I dont want Marmol losing his confidence again.

Submitted by Mitterwald  on Sun, 07/20/2008 - 11:26pm  
I'm all for a trip to the DL, assuming that this is only a bad blister and assuming that he'll be back as soon as he is eligible. The side benefit, which is resting his arm, outweighs the more tangible benefit, which the blister going away.

Submitted by Mitterwald  on Sun, 07/20/2008 - 11:33pm  
That article by Sullivan that you linked was horrendous. Ostensibly about Wood going on the DL, he turned it into a story about how Marmol and Zambrano deal with booing. And not only that, the story empowered fans to boo because booing makes good players "mentally tough." Personally, I don't boo.

Submitted by Mister Whipple  on Sun, 07/20/2008 - 11:34pm  
I've never understood the ongoing blister problems that some pitchers develop. Don't these blisters turn into callouses? Why on earth aren't pitchers that have been throwing a ball for two decades not immune to develop blisters?

Submitted by crunch  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 12:07am  
pitching blisters can be some of the ugliest things you've ever seen. some guys, especially ones pushing it at the end of a season cuz they know they're about to have 4+ months off, will pitch on blisters til their hands are constant open sores being constantly sealed up and treated with various anti-bacterial stuff. josh beckett has had some pretty legendary blisters he carried around early in his career, for instance.

Submitted by Wes  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 12:24am  
Agreed. Happens most often to power pitchers mainly because they grip the ball so damn hard. They're almost always on the fingertips, and the outside of the index finger is usually the trouble spot. When you throwing a breaking ball of any kind (sliders in particular), the way you impart spin on the ball can cause some irritation on that outside part of the index finger. Some guys can grip certain breaking balls in a way that the seam can rub against the outside of that finger as you release the pitch. That only compounds the problem. Now I'm no scientist about why callouses don't form there, but they just don't, I guess. I always figured it was because the skin in that area is sensitive and not as thick as in your palm, for instance. Not sure you'd want a callous to form on your fingertips, anyway. Sure, you wouldn't have blister problems, but you'd also lose any feel you had for the baseball. And of course, as crunch eluded to, guys will usually pitch with them until they just can't stand it anymore. They get really, really nasty.

Submitted by JoePepitone  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 1:47am  
"Not sure you'd want a callous to form on your fingertips...you'd also lose any feel you had for the baseball." Speaking as a guitarist, you have to form callous on your fingertips to keep the damn strings from killing you -- but after they form, you still have a lot of feel for the strings. In fact, I'd argue that by the time you form a good callous, you have much better feel for the strings, with much more subtle fine control, touch and feel -- but without the pain. On the other hand, the problems with being unable to form callous on the sides of the finger makes sense to me. The fingertips and palm are specifically used for grip and tactile contact. Not so the skin on the side of the fingers. I would also mention that my son had quite a bit of trouble for about a year with sub-cutaneous pain in the middle finger of his throwing hand. It wasn't a matter of blistering on the surface of the skin -- it was pain in the deeper tissues underneath the skin. He had to wear a little rubber tip on his finger for a while (the kind sold in office supply stores for counting paper money, etc. -- for practice, not during games) until the sensitivity went away.

Submitted by Chad  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 12:48pm  
"because the skin in that area is sensitive and not as thick as in your palm," Good thing your palm doesn't blister! (had to be said)

Submitted by Mitterwald  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 12:14am  
Also curious to see if Wood's toughness gets questioned. Obviously, there is a lot of ignorance out there about blisters.

Submitted by navigator  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 12:42am  
Dopirak flourishing in Florida heat-All-Star homers in third straight game, goes yard twice on five-RBI day http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/news/artic...

Submitted by carlosrubi  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 12:46am  
Too bad he can't field or hit above A+ ball; hell of a guy, though. Class act.

Submitted by crunch  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 2:08am  
25 year old "kid" in A ball...tearing up A ball for quite a while...and can't find his way to the AA roster. hell, he should be in AAA by now. maybe if he'd quit swinging at EVERYTHING thrown at him. he makes good contact when he does actually make contact, though. patience is just something that never caught on. -edit- my bad, he's 24...25 in december...and from the looks of it he's still swinging at everything this year, too (88Ks in 342ab).

Submitted by Jumbo  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 5:56am  
I remember when he was new to minor leagues. He hit rockets into the seats and called them "dope-slaps." Was a happy go lucky guy but then he had to hit breaking stuff. Too bad he couldn't do it. Would be primo trade bait

Submitted by Jumbo  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 5:55am  
http://www.minorleagueball.com/2008/7/19/5749... John Sickels has a mid-season review of the Cubs Top 20 prospects. Reviewing the list makes the farm system seem pretty lousy. Highs: Samardzija, Harden for three of top 20, Ceda, Vitters Lows: Colvin & the rest of the comments aren't real encouraging

Submitted by falcon  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 7:23am  
Did Arizona Phil go on vacation? He hasn't posted anything for quite a while

Submitted by 10man  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 9:09am  
Umm he's saving it for the Arizona series?

Submitted by CA-Phil  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 11:05am  
TCR put him on the 15-day DL with blisters on his typing hand. RobG, CubNut and Transmission will report from AZ by committee. "We need to save him for the postseason" -RobG

Submitted by Dmac  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 9:19am  
I don't believe anyone will question Woody's "toughness." The guy could've easily just bagged it last year, after his umpteenth rehab - not to mention coming back to the Cubs at a discount. He really loves this team and this city, as old - fashioned as that sounds these days.

Submitted by rokfish  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 9:39am  
maybe he needs to talk to moises alou (he has some free time now) maybe moises can give kerry some ideas on how to toughen up the hands and fingers.

Submitted by John Beasley  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 10:08am  
"It doesn't take a whiz to see that you're looking out for number one."

Submitted by Chifan  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 10:44am  
According to Levine, Wood will not be put on the DL for a couple days as the pen has not been taxed recently they feel they can wait a few days to see if it clears.

Submitted by navigator  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 12:26pm  
says he learned about work ethic from his brother Corey (more) http://www.sacbee.com/100/story/1096809.html

Submitted by Rob G.  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 12:29pm  
http://blogs.dailyherald.com/node/270 AZL this morning and then a AAA game tomorrow, may be activated Wednesday instead of Thursday. Says he's feeling a lot better since Friday.

Submitted by Rob G.  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 12:46pm  
The Cubs and Wrigley Field are for sale. Seven groups sent in opening bids last week, and a real-estate firm made a separate bid for the ballpark. Are we to believe that all these smart businessmen are secretly hoping the Cubs keep up their losing ways? Are we to believe they're hoping 100 years stretches to 110 so they can sell the team and make a huge profit? http://chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sport...

Submitted by Rob G.  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 3:23pm  
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=206010... Mark Cuban and John Canning plus Thomas Ricketts, founder of Incapital LLC and whose father is chairman of TD Ameritrade Holding Corp.; Rocco Landesman, a Broadway theater owner; Don Levin, owner of a minor-league hockey team in Chicago; Jim Anixter, president of A-Z Industries Inc.; and Sports Properties Acquisition Corp., a special-purpose acquisition firm that has raised $215 million, are the other groups that submitted bids, the newspaper reported, citing sources it didn't identify. http://uk.reuters.com/article/marketsNewsUS/i... Real estate executive Hersch Klaff is one of the bidders for the Chicago Cubs baseball team in an auction that could top $1 billion, two sources familiar with the process said on Monday. Klaff, president of Chicago-based Klaff Realty LP, heads one of at least 10 groups bidding for the team, according to the sources, who asked not to be identified because the sales process is ongoing. according to the article above, it was 7 groups plus one who just submitted a bid for Wrigley. I would assume Klaff or Sports Properties Acquisition is the one who just bid on Wrigley.

Submitted by Chifan  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 12:48pm  
http://www.thestar.com/Sports/Baseball/articl... The article cites a source that says Krivac only goes to games to scout. I dont know why with additions of Harden and Gaudin, Rich Hill finding the strike zone, Brady Quinn's favroite target throwing well in AAA, and 2 other good spot start options in Marshall and Hart already in the MLB pen why they want another SP. I think its more likely he was scouting one of their catchers (Barajas and Zaun), Eckstein, Scutaro, or their bullpen. Of course, he could have been sent as a plant to get Mollaziak to overpay for Burnett if Jimbo thinks he could punk the Cards rookie GM.

Submitted by Rob G.  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 1:03pm  

I would bet on the bullpen, Blue Jays have 4-5 pretty decent lefties and are ready to sell. Maybe Eckstein, who just got put on the bench in favor of Scutaro,  if they are getting tired of Cedeno.

Submitted by Chifan  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 2:49pm  
I concur as Levine mentioned last week that they want an OF bat and while Scutaro can play OF I think Hendry prefers a RH who mashes lefties and can play good RF defense so Lou can give Kosuke a rest. If we get a bat I think its likely to be Austin Kearns, Ryan Spilborghs, Scott Hairston, Nelson Cruz, Jay Payton. BTW, Jerome Holtzman has just passed per ESPN 1k.

Submitted by JoePepitone  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 5:42pm  
Brings back memories -- Jerome was the Sun-Times beat reporter for the Cubs when I first began following them with enthusiasm. I first learned baseball dogma from his pen and from the television reportage of the late, great Jack Brickhouse ("...and in the opinion of this reporter" etc.) Brickhouse considered himself a broadcast journalist and it was fun to hear him trot out his reporter persona. Something you do not hear nowadays from today's play-by-play men. Holtzman gave us the "save" statistic and discovered Hack Wilson's 191st RBI in the 1930 season, among his accomplishments.

Submitted by Rob G.  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 5:44pm  
damn, just realized I 3/44'd Chifan again with the Jerome Holtzman story in the above post...it's nothing personal, I swear.

Submitted by Rob G.  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 12:49pm  
can't remember if I read this or heard it on XM radio this morning, but Lou said something that the bullpen is pretty rested and they're going to hold off on putting Wood on the DL to see if the blister clears up.

Submitted by Rob G.  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 1:28pm  

I see it was already mentioned here by Chifan, very possible that I 3/44'd based on that post and thought I heard or read it somewhere else...

looks like I picked the wrong day to stop sniffing glue 

Submitted by Rob Richardson  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 12:51pm  
BP has a little bit on Alfonso and Wood, nothing really new. http://www.baseballprospectus.com/article.php...

Submitted by Rob G.  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 1:05pm  

I watched Carlos Zambrano at the All-Star Game, as well as in his first start back, and his arm slot really worries me, because it's down where it was just before he hit the DL.

Lovely...

Submitted by Chifan  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 2:26pm  
I dont buy it. In his 4 outings since coming off the DL he has been dominate. Even in his last start he didnt get hit hard it was just Texas Leaguers and falling in love with cutter early in the game, I am not a pitching expert but I thought the cutter is one of the most stressful pitches to throw. I would like to what Wes's take on post-DL Z is.

Submitted by Rob G.  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 2:41pm  

the last time Z went with the lower arm angle he all sorts of problems with his control. The big concern is that his shoulder is still hurting and he's just compensating for it. Yeah, he might be able to be effective for awhile, but how long?

Just something to keep an eye on... 

Submitted by Rob G.  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 12:56pm  

on back spasms...

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

Submitted by John Beasley  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 1:23pm  
Maybe Richie sneezed?

Submitted by navigator  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 1:31pm  
So what was the problem before that?? He already was screwed up in spring training. The back spasm thing happened while pitching for Iowa.

Submitted by billybucks  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 1:49pm  
0-for-2 with a K through 4 innings.

Submitted by Rob G.  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 1:54pm  
something about an in-game update of a rehab assignment in the Rookie League for a guys who's been out over a month is funny.

Submitted by Jace  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 1:57pm  
Yeah, but what's funnier is his obvious mindset that he doesn't even need ANY rehab assignment... Out over a month? I think a few days in the minors are definitely warranted...

Submitted by billybucks  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 2:04pm  
With AZ Phil MIA, somebody had to pick up the slack...

Submitted by CA-Phil  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 2:11pm  
Yes, but did he strike out swinging? Did he get caught looking? Did he work the count? Did he foul some pitches off? Straight back, or was he behind? Inquiring minds don't want to wor...err, want to know.

Submitted by Raisin101  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 4:04pm  
He struck out swinging. Also in that game, Kitt Kopach got the start in his first appearance since 2006 (shoulder surgery) and 2nd rounder Aaron Shafer made his pro debut with a scoreless inning of work.

Submitted by Jace  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 2:10pm  
Soriano's 3rd AB - BB and a run scored... Well, I guess this means he's ready! Bring him up tonight!(sarcasm)

Submitted by Jace  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 2:35pm  
... and now Fonzie is pinch-hit for in his 4th AB. I thought they were going to try to get him 6 or 7 ABs... I hope this doesn't mean that he reagravated anything, though I have to admit that it did occur to me that the only reason he would have walked in his previous AB was if it hurt to swing... Was that wrong?

Submitted by Rob G.  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 2:54pm  

unless he got hit in the hand again or stepped on or something, doubtful it would be anything serious. Could still be sore though...

 

Submitted by billybucks  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 3:14pm  
Maybe he was traded for Ray Durham.

Submitted by billybucks  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 3:17pm  
...or, maybe the pitcher was wild, and they didn't want him to get hit again.

Submitted by Doug Dascenzo  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 3:25pm  
Since it's his glove hand, it probably gets pretty sore just from playing catch if he happens to catch the ball not perfectly in the webbing. There's not much chance of re-injuring it though. When I broke my third and fourth metacarpals my doctor told me it would actually heal stronger than before as the healing process causes the bone around the break to become thicker. Anyway, when I broke my hand normal movements didn't hurt at all, but any impact to it, like I would imagine a baseball in the glove (or in my case, shaking hands with people) hurt like a bastard. Soriano will be sore for awhile, but unless he takes another fastball off the same spot he's not going to re-injure himself.

Submitted by navigator  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 3:42pm  
That's interesting and you're probably right about it applying to Soriano. It's hard to catch a ball in the pocket without feeling it in the palm where the 4th metacarpal sits. But being an outfielder he should be catching the ball in the webbing. I'm betting that hitting is more of a problem. Right handed power hitters hold onto the bat primarily with their ring and pinkie fingers much like golfers do. That's gotta be straining his healing 4th metacarpal.

Submitted by Rob G.  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 3:55pm  
http://www.northsidebaseball.com/Forum/viewto... Wait....from Will Carroll's chat: Quote: Shae (Chicago): Will, there are rumors that Soriano might leave the rehab. game early and could even play tonight, what's the latest? Will Carroll: That's what I'm hearing. I have someone at Sky Harbor watching ... someone correct me on this, but I don't think a plane trip is necessary from Mesa to Phoenix?

Submitted by Rob G.  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 4:01pm  
my mistake, they were playing in Peoria, AZ...still don't need a plane trip though.

Submitted by navigator  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 4:17pm  
Wow, Will Carroll is a piece of work. Mesa, Peoria, it's all just greater Phoenix.

Submitted by Jace  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 4:05pm  
Oh, for God's sake... Please tell me that he doesn't show up in the game tonight... I know that we need him, but we need him healthy, not after one rookie-league game of rehab...

Submitted by nohit  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 4:18pm  
Help us Obi Wan Soriano. You're our only hope.

Submitted by billybucks  on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 4:21pm  
He is sporting a 1:1 BB/K ratio. If he can keep that up....

Recent comments

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  • Rob Richardson 44 min 55 sec ago (view)

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