A friend of mine was in a group in a Las Vegas bar on Sunday night that included Jake Peavy (in the picture above with his wife Katie), and the word is Peavy is fired up to join the Cubs.
He's so excited, I hear, that at one point he said "Go Cubs Go" at the bar after a "Brooks and Dunn" concert he attended with Roy Oswalt.
Peavy is psyched about the possibility of joining Carlos Zambrano and Ryan Dempster in a strong rotation. He said, according to my friend, if he doesn't end up with the Cubs, he expects to land with the New York Yankees.
From what I hear, Peavy said he talked to Jim Hendry this weekend and the word is what has been reported, that the Cubs are looking to trade Jason Marquis, but that the Cubs may have to eat as much as $6 million of Marquis' contract.
Also, according to my source, Peavy said the Cubs may be trying to trade Mark DeRosa with an eye on Rich Aurilia to play second base.
It apparently is all up to Hendry. After that disaster in the playoffs, my guess is Hendry will do all he could to recharge the fan base.
Hendry said the Trib's bankruptcy filing won't affect the Cubs, so my guess is Peavy and the Cubs will be singing "Go Cubs Go" next year -- at least during the regular season.
Stu Courtney is in his seventh year as sports editor of the 
Hendry is an idiot. Derrick Lee, Soriano and Zambrano should all be let go. They are not winners. The cubs need players that aren't affected by the 100 year pressure. They need players with the charisma and assuredness to carry the team during the playoffs. Manny and Sabathia would do the trick, and by parting ways with these bums the money should work out. Another manager that senses the urgency and seizes the moment wouldn't hurt either. Lou is a regular season manager!
Haha, funny stuff shabazz
Well Derrek Lee, Soriano, .... whyd' we resign Dempster. I want Peavy but Hendrys a dumba$$. I just dont get how he got a 4 year extension. The reason were in this mess is bc Soriano (crap) is getting 18 million, Marquis 10.. he just gave money to crap... Dempter 13... holy crap come on ..... And whose paying for all of this. The fans. Prices keep going up and they keep using money by making poor baseball moves.
Shabazz:
Do you know anything about baseball economics? When you release a player, you still have to pay them. If these players weren't winners, we wouldn't have won the division two years in a row. Also C.C. sucks in the playoffs and where are you goign to put Manny?
rich aurilla??? are u kidding me ?!! rich aurilla is like 75 years old and there thinking of getting rid of D ro for way past his prime rich about to retire aurilla? wow that would be a joke but wouldnt surprise me considering this is the cubs were talking about here..
Trade D Ro, with an eye on Rich Aurilia??!! Really??!
I'm glad to hear the Trib's bankruptcy won't affect the Cubs. I was starting to worry that Ryan Dempster wouldn't be getting his 14 million a year. And also Soriano, Lee, Ramirez and the other multimillionaire apple eaters. Re: Peavy, excuse me for not getting too excited. We need a leadoff guy and like Shabazz says and I've been saying, guys like Manny who don't worry about anything except getting more money than the other guy, whatever it takes. Manny probably doesn't even know the Cubs haven't won since the Crusades. And they're still singing 'Go Cubs Go'? Unbelievable!
I like the core players we have, We didnt win 97 games last season for no reason. I think not re signing Kerry Wood could turn out to be a mistake. He turned out to be a really good closer. A left handed bat is a must preferably someone with a little pop in their bat. Jake Peavy would deffianatley solidfy there pitching roatation. Lets get it done and win a world seris.
Lee, Soriano, Zambrano have no trade clauses. Won't happen.
Dumping D Ro for Aurilla is a bad idea. Aurilla can't play 7 positions like D Ro can.
If the Cubs free up second base, I would hope it would be for Mike Fontenot. Not only is he the next logical candidate, but he hits left-handed. And he's there, no need for a special signing or trade. Rich Aurelia makes absolutely no sense at all.
If you trade d ro who is going to do a better job rich aurillia my god have you seen him play he plays like the hunchback of notre dame.and Shabazz you are just a dumbass.
Brent, you like our players cuz they won 97 games last year? Well, sir you're exactly the kind of fan the Cubs want - someone who is content with being competitive but doesn't insist on the team taking the next step toward winning the world series! If we continue with the same team, we'll lose again in the playoffs. Look, we've lost 9 straight there, it's time to change the mix since obviously this group can't win the postseason. What the hell good is 97 wins if we keep getting our hearts broken at the end???
shabazz, you're an idiot. you go out and find a guy that isn't intimidated by such a task. maybe you should get your ass out there and rake in the playoffs. the obvious question is this: if derosa is ultimately getting moved and we're netting peavy, is the four-headed dragon of peavy/z/harden/demp so huge that it can make up for THE ONLY GUY IN THE PLAYOFFS THAT DROVE IN RUNS???? Save your damn money, wait til the deadline, and pick up a BAT.
sure...get peavy. i dont agree with trading derosa, but if it gets peavy then do it. being fron chicago, hes definitely a fan favorite and it will suck to see him gone, but that would be one solid rotation. also, ive always like this guy...orlando hudson. switch hitter, solid d, quick. if he can stay healthy they should look at him for 2nd. i havent heard much about him at all...whats going on with o hudson?
Does anyone who actually understands sports see that perhaps the Cubs didn't TOTALLY collapse; but the Dodgers played over their heads for a series, and then came back to earth when playing the Phillies?
Roman responds: Well, I may not understand sports, but I was there for Game 2 and saw every infielder make an error. That's not the Dodgers playing over their heads. That's a TOTAL collapse.
by Brad Hatfield I've been a cubs fan all my life it is time the cubs too do something look it's been over a hundred years how much longer do we have to what i mine come on we need to get to the big game so we can shut all these people up.look we need a lift handed in there the cubs need to look at Adam dune he is a really good batter and he will bring a lot of runs acrossthe plat.
That's a good point, but still one game of three.
I don't think they fell apart the other two games, I think the Dodgers were patient and coaxed a lot of walks game one, and I think game 3 they had momentum and closed the door.
All in all it's not like (except the game you saw) they were completely inept; I honestly don't think ANYONE could have beat the Dodgers the way they played. Manny really made a difference and if it wasn't for the Phillies having the overly dominant offense that they have (plus Cole Hamels) I think the Dodgers would have looked better and thus made the Cubs more excusable to most people.
I just refuse to believe THIS TIME was as bad as fans are making it, it IS disappointing...it IS not how a winning team plays, but I think people need to be more realistic...ANY TEAM CAN GET HOT IN THE POST SEASON.
Lou said it himself, how many years in a row did the Braves win the division and only win the series ONCE???!!!
Just saying, I'm not happy either but perhaps this kind of scrutiny is why our team tried too hard to make things happen in '07.
You people sure don't sound like CUBS fans, you all sound like someone you are not. Cubs fans love the cubs, whoever wears the uniform is a cub for that period of time. DeRosa is a cub and hopefully he will remain one. It amazes me that you all have the misguided perception of yourselves that you know what is best for the cubs when simply being a fan and what that means seems to be enough to handle. Yes, I was disappointed at how they finished in the playoffs but to think they need to make all these changes is absurd to a CUBS fan. We should be loyal as CUBS fans or go become a fan of another team.
according to what lou pinnella is saying-- fontenot is the man next year. and should be! so get rid derosa if thats what it takes to get peavey. but with the cubs luck peavey will be hurt with in the first two weeks of spring training and so will zambrano. the last time the cubs rotoation looked this promising -- wood, zambrano, prior, clement, and maddux- they were predicted to win the world series and we know what happened!!!
Okay, all I read was the first comment by "Shabazz on December 9, 2008 11:15 AM".
Did you watch any of the playoffs?!?? Or are you just a Cards fan wanting to get rid of the competition in the NL Central???
Big Z pitched terrific in game 2, but its kinda hard to win when all the infielders make an error.
Derrek Lee (not Derrick Lee) was the only one that hit the ball in the playoffs. Yeah he didn't have the best regular season of his career, BUT in case you MIGHT have forgot...getting to the playoffs was NOT our problem (hence 97 wins, yes thats right 97 wins!)
Okay, I understand the Soriano part of your comment, but I think that if Soriano would quit acting like a little girl and bat lower in the line-up he would be much more effective, maybe put Soto in the 6th spot behind Soriano in the 5th spot would give Sori more protection. If Soriano won't move down then try to get rid of him. But I think that if Sweet Lou benches Soriano until he feels like playing right (Like Jacque Jone in '07) he'll start to act right.
P.S. I am so sick of everyone wanting to get rid of D Lee, I guess that's why you are sitting at home behind your computer and not sitting where Jim Hendry is, huh????
Getting Jake Peavy would create the best rotation in the majors, hands down. Sacrificing DeRosa (although a phenomenal asset to the team) would be necessary to do that. Remember, Hendry has to think about the future too. Big Z and Dempster are going to be around for a while, Lilly has a few years left. Harden is only under contract for next year, and Peavy has several years left on his contract. Peavy fills the gap that my be left by Harden leaving next season via free agency if the Cubs don't re-sign him (which would be tough to do on the Cubs budget and his current salary). I love this move because Fontenot can play second and is another left handed bat in the lineup. He plays hard every day and is above average. Sure, DeRosa's versatility and extremely consistent defense and bat will be missed, but you have to give to get in the pro's. If this deal goes through and DeRosa goes to another team, I hope he has success because he is a heck of a player on any team. But when Peavy wins 15+ games and has 200+ k's, DeRosa will quickly become an afterthought, especially if we pick up a nice lefty bat for right field (i.e. Milton Bradley, Raul Ibanez, etc.)
Man some of you guys have *hit for brains. Jake Peavy is a Cy Young canidate every season I don't give a damn what prospects you have to give up get it done. I don't see any untouchable prospects in the farm system. Jake peavy is proven a major league talent who is one of the top five pitchers in baseball. You have to have this guy .
Congratulations on getting mentioned on MLB Trade Rumors, Roman.
I know, I'm terribly missed commenting here. But I just read the first comment on this post and remembered why I left.....
IF HENDRY TRADES D-RO THAT MEANS HE HAS TO GO AFTER B ROBERTS BECAUSE WHO EVER SHOWS UP FOR A GAME TO WATCH 115 YEAR RICH ARULLIA IS STUPID GO BEARSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
Hendry an idiot??? I don't think so. When was the last time the Cubs won back to back division titles. And he is now after Peavy who is an absolute stud. Pitching wins championships. Peavy and a lefty bat, keep guys a little fresher for October and we win the series
Roman responds: He hasn't been a stud in the postseason, got roughed up in both postseason starts.
The only way we should get rid of D-RO is if Hendry can pull off some sort of 4 team trade with the phillies the padres and Baltimore that brought us Peavy and Brian Roberts.
ok get rid of d ro for peavy. fontenot is a very good second baseman. one more left handed hitter and we'll be good. and the cubs may as well trade fuku too. he played like crap the second half
ok get rid of d ro for peavy. fontenot is a very good second baseman. one more left handed hitter and we'll be good. and the cubs may as well trade fuku too. he played like crap the second half
D Ro is a chicago favorite, as well as mine. But we do have Fontenot to start and Ronny Cedeno to back up Fonenot and "the riot". I love D Ro but getting Peavy would be huge. Is Mark Teahan still available to shore up the outfield with a left handed stick?
Kevin from Milwaukee has the most realistic post. I like D Ro too, but you can't pass on Peavy. Put Fontenot at second, and get Ibanez for right. I would pass on "head case" Bradley. Also please no Adam Done, I mean Dunn! A trade for Brian Roberts is not going to happen! We don't have enough to offer Baltimore. Anyone who thinks it's that simple is dreaming. Maybe this trade would go through on your PSP or X-Box, but not in the real world. Let it go!
This is complete bull. Does Hendry realize that the reason the Cubs lost last year was because of hitting? So, lets go out and get some pitching and lose who was, without a doubt in my mind, our MVP last year in Mark DeRosa. I have been a fan of almost everything that Jim Hendry has done over the years. What many have already pointed out is that the people that should go are the Fukudome's and Soriano's. I think that a better pick up would be Seattle's Raul Ibanez. Yes, I know how good Peavy is, he would be our ace. But i mean come on, pitching will only do so much for a team. Thats all i have to say. IF JIM HENDRY EVER READS THIS, KEEP MARK DEROSA!!!
A baseball team can never have enough pitching. Piniella should know; his Reds won the WS because of The Nasty Boys, not Chris Sabo or Ron Gant. The Cubs have a chance to get one of the elite pitchers in the game, while he's in his prime. Peavy is a bonafied ace. Zambrano is simply paid like one, and Harden simply has the potential to be one. I don't care about Peavy's home/away splits; he's better than anyone on the pitching staff, period. True, the Cubs do need a good lefthanded bat, but how often does a team (especially the Cubs) have an opportunity to acquire a stud like Peavy? I'm a huge DRo fan, but I believe Fontenot is a capable replacement. He won't hit 21 HR, or drive in 85, 90 runs; but he'll get the job done. And don't get me started on Jason "Never Marquee" Marquis. Trade him IMMEDIATELY!!! The Cubs also seem to have the money to slide Peavy's salary into their budget, while still having enough to get that lefthanded bat. Jimmy, pull the trigger and get Peavy. Then, I'll pencil Peavy in for 16-20 wins, an ERA below 3.25, and a WS for the Cubs in '09... EAMUS CACTULI!!!
If they get Peavy, OK, it stacks the rotation. Fine. But all this talk about lefthanded hitting is a bit overblown -- Lou blames that as the reason the Cubs were swept out of the playoffs for the second straight year, and we all just buy it? Why? Why not blame Lou for running on autopilot, not getting the most out of his players? Or hardly using Reed Johnson down the stretch? How many chances did Fukudome need? The dude washed out. Period.
We need good, productive and patient hitters -- regardless of which side of the plate they swing. Soriano is a disaster; Ramirez has choked the last two years; Lee's been a non-factor. A couple of years ago we were all pleased at the signing of Juan Pierre: lefty leadoff man. He was a waste. Baseball is too complex to presume just nabbing a lefty and sticking him in the lineup fixes everything. Guys have down years; up years; injuries. Teams have to adjust.
I'm so tired of hearing how we need to pull this trade, or sign that guy from wherever. Why can't we develop some talent in-house? Remember Felix Patterson...er, I mean Corey Pie? Both were our hypothetical centerfielders for the next five years -- and look to be washouts. What is the farm system doing? Anything?
The Cubs need to go after Peavy if its a possiblity to get him for prospects. You have to play the numbers. Yah, injuries, under performance, and playoff chokes are possible, however with Zambrano, Dempster, Peavey, Harden and Lilly the Cubs will most likely win the division again in 2009. We know they have the ability, its then about mental prepardness and experience in October.
I also say lets see what Hauffpower develops into. He looks like he could be every bit as good as Ibanez. Try to get a leadoff hitter if its available. If not drop Theriot in the lead off and move Soriano down. Its not his call where he hits and he'll adjust nicely if they do it early in the season.
No Shabazz--you're the idiot,do you really think it's that simple to get Ramirez and sabathia?
you get rid of the Lee's, Ramirez, and Zambrano's of the world--not to mention Hendry, and you got a team rebuilding (again).I thought the king of retardation (Mariidiot) found another way to spew his ignorance--but I see he came back as Shabazz. And, Hey Josh! Ted Hendry forgot more about baseball than you'll ever know!
The Hardware Prince has it right--they were beat by a better team( at that time). Josh got it right too--you guys sure don't sound like CUB fans. some of you sound like you sit around all day listening to idiots on talk radio so THEY can give you you're opinion.
Jon Ryan, your a typical old school Cub fan. "Keep DeRosa" "Keep DeRosa" win the division again, then get swept out of the playoffs because the teams we are facing actually has an ace to throw at us. Peavy is a bonafide ace! The Yankees have had an all-star line up for the past 8 years, without good pitching. How many titles have they won in that span? That's why they are throw money at CC, Lowe & Burnett. This is not your neighborhood slow pitch softball league, you need pitching to win! Think before you blog!
Actually Mr. Shabazz your an idiot. and have no knowledge what so ever about baseball or business. Wow ! The fact that you'd say Hendry is an idiot is crazy especially since he doesn't play any position. Harden,Edmonds and Reed was enough to realize that this man knows his baseball also the fact that he's been in the Twins organization says a lot but I wouldn't expect you to know that. Ok now since I've given you the benefit of the doubt go read up a little more before you make such a idiotic statement and by the way look who's calling somebody stupid a ignorant person, peace to you brother. You know the story about the donkey pulling the wagon of books. You got the internet use it.
um two words for zambrano....No Hitter?
Anyone complaining about players contracts is a fool...
"And whose[sic] paying for all of this. The fans. Prices keep going up and they keep using money by making poor baseball moves."
Prices don't go up because of player salaries. Prices go up because of basic supply and demand. Would it make sense for the Cubs to sell tickets for $10 each, where they would all be snapped up and sold on the secondary market for $100 each? Obviously, 40,000 people are willing to attend every Cubs game, many of them paying beyond face value for the tickets.
This demand creates additional revenue. Some people understand that and still cry about player salaries, apparently not realizing that if the players don't make the money, then the owners do. I really wish people who cry about player salaries would turn in their fan card and focus on women's bowling or something.
quote"""By Chicago Hardware Prince on December 9, 2008 1:45 PM
Does anyone who actually understands sports see that perhaps the Cubs didn't TOTALLY collapse; but the Dodgers played over their heads for a series, and then came back to earth when playing the Phillies?
Roman responds: Well, I may not understand sports, but I was there for Game 2 and saw every infielder make an error. That's not the Dodgers playing over their heads. That's a TOTAL collapse.
Unquote:
two things: one, the dodgers played over their heads because they had Greg Maddox sitting in their dugout calling pitches and telling them how to frustrate ever cubs hitter. He had the book on them.
second, I saw one player boot an easy ground ball, that was derossa. Then I saw his other three teammates deliberately misplay balls so the blame wouldn't land all on Derossa. It was a infield players taking each others back so one player wouldn't be the goat and be added to the 100 years of cubs failure goats. So, De rossa got a pass, and it worked. Cubs lost but no one infielder got the blame. It was classy in a clueless kind of way.
So, having said that, now is the time to trade Derossa, he is a stiff.
u guys seriously need to become analysts before fans. Hendry is doing a better job than any general manager out there. Soriano isnt a mistake.....look at his numbers. U could possibly argue the fact that he is terrible in the playoffs, but eventually he will get the hang of it. He probably would have hit 40 home runs last year or close to it if he was healthy. Adam Dunn pretty much has the same number except for the fact that he has like a .220 BA. Also, who do u think brought rich harden over here for practically next to nothing. Yes marquis was a mistake but he was the 5th starter. I agree that hes well overpaid but jeez guys not everything u can do turns to gold. Thats the only mistake......and now he could get peavy over here. What else do u want from this man. Yes we need a left handed bat but everyone is talking about how this team choked in the playoffs blah blah blah; dont u think peavy in a solid 4 man rotation for the playoffs isnt worth it. That rotation last year was scary enough, but now peavy? D ro is one of my favorites, but going off an analyst standpoint if it means getting peavy then thats a no brainer. Is everyone forgettin about mike fontenot? Hes this guy who has solid power and has the potential to be a 300 hitter if he wants, not to mention hes a great fielder. The only downside is that D ro gave the starters days off. If the fans of this city want to solidify a solid playoff run, then we need peavy. That is all for now
To Jeff S and Josh.
As a former Astros pitcher once pointed out in a class I attended, a large number of seats are bought by corporations and then given away or used for client/employee entertainment. So even the ticket revenue is not directly fan based. If you want the players/owners to make less you have to find out which corporations they get the most money from and boycott their products/services in an attempt to get them to stop supporting sports. Good luck with that...
This also means it is not accurate to say the fans are the ones that solely create higher ticket prices.
The economics of sports are not the product of a truly free market. Outside businesses buy chunks of seats creating false demand. Yes, people fill these seats, because there is real demand for free seats. Businesses get the money to buy these seats, and luxury boxes, stadium advertisements, naming rights, etc. through the profits they make on the products they sell. Consumers pay small amounts for products they need/want and a portion of that money in turn ends up in the hands of the TV networks, athletes and sports franchises.
If the teams only made money from fans going to games, buying concessions, paying parking fees, and buying memorabilia, the teams wouldn't make that much money and then neither would the athletes. Before you say "what about TV contracts," remember, the money for the TV contracts comes from the money the networks get from commercials and who pays for those commercials? Indirectly, all of us do, not just sports fans.
ok heres whats going to happen....
The cubs will make this peavy deal....And to regain all the fans lost from the dredful 2005 world champions. they will sign Scotty Pods...that will solve the leadoff spot and center field. Who cares if soriano is unhappy.... if he doesnt like it he can go back to mexico or brazil or wherever the heck he came from ... this is business. as for seccond base. fontenot will fufill that role and hit for better avg than anyone on the cubs. as for mr reliable derek lee. trade him for pooholes because he can play for a half a season and still put up MVP numbers(go figure).
ok............left handed hitter and leadoff man? sound's like to me brian roberts is the perfect fit. thaen u trade derosa in the peavy deal. then you sign bobby abreu! It's not rocket science people, hell i'd trade fukudome in that deal to he was missing in action after the all star break anyway.
I think you're all smoking sumthin!! The whole infield booted balls intentionally to cover for DeRosa? Geoff-you win the prize. Eric-who the heck do you have now that Baltimore might want for Roberts that you didn't have last year when Hendry couldn't pull off the trade? And no one is taking Fukodome or Soriano with their huge contracts and inverted statistics. Amazing.
you guys are all idiots and dont know what your talking about. I agree with you about getting Peavy but getting rid of Soriano, dumb. Dont get Rich Aurilia dont get Adam Dunn He strikesout too much. I agree with Kevin from Milawaukee. Cubs fans are Cubs fans.Dont get Raul Ibanez Hes not the left handed batter were looking for. Get Bobby Abreu hes the left handed bat were looking for. Milton Bradley is a cancer to the team. dont get Manny or cc.IF you got to trade 5-6 players for Peavy do it. WE HAVENT WON A WORLD SERIES IN 100 YEARS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Richie Aurilia's a stud and a class act...shut up