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Cubs invite 3 to spring training

Well I don’t know if I like any of these spring training invites or not. The Cubs have announced they have invited Marquis Grissom, Augie Ojeda, and Mike Restovich, and signed to minor league contracts. I do not like any of the three. If any of of them make the opening day roster I will not be happy at all. We already have one Baker lover player in Perez, why do we need Grissom? Would he be any more productive then Corey Patterson? I doubt it. I’m still high on Patterson turning it around if given the opportunity. Grissom is not the player he was 5-7 yeras ago and really in my mind never been invited to Spring Training.

Now onto Augie Ojeda, haven’t we already tried this one back in 2000-2003? Now he is 31 years old and no more productive then when he hit .219 in 178 games with the Cubs. Augie is a career minor league player and nothing more. Please dont’ give him a roster spot!

I don’t know a whole lot about Restovich othen then he has seen Major League action over the past five seasons, batting .254 in 127 games. The right-handed hitting outfielder saw his most extensive big league time in 2005, appearing in 52 games for Pittsburgh and 14 games for Colorado. Not being resigned by the Pirates or Rockies? C’mon what can you expect here? I don’t think he will make the big league team and will just get released. I don’t want him taking up spots of our young minor league players either.

What are your opinions on these 3 minor league signings? I don’t like any of them at all and all we can hope for is they will be cut and not signed to a minor league team.

Source: Chicago Cubs Blog

Cubs hoping for a good 2006 season

In 2004, the Boston Red Sox won their first World Series title since 1918. It was excruciating to be a Cubs fan in Chicago as the crosstown White Sox won it all in 2005, their first championship since 1917. The Cubs haven’t won the World Series since 1908. Could 2006 be the Cubs’ year?
It depends.

The offense, which had trouble scoring runs in 2005, will have a new look, starting at the top with Juan Pierre. Acquired from the Florida Marlins for three young pitchers, Pierre is a bonafide leadoff man and fast, exactly what Cubs manager Dusty Baker has coveted. Pierre stole 57 bases in 2005 with the Marlins, and said the size of the ballpark doesn’t affect him, just the infield dirt. The grounds crew had better get started smoothing the area near first base.

The happiest Cub this Christmas has to be Derrek Lee, and not just because he’s still celebrating his first National League batting title. Lee and Pierre were together in 2003, when the Marlins won the World Series. Maybe there’s some good karma left.

On Dec. 20, the Cubs signed free agent Jacque Jones to a three-year, $16 million deal to complete the outfield. The Cubs outfield will now be more athletic, better defensively and have a whole new look from Opening Day 2005.

“If you’re a good hitter, I’m not worried about everybody being able to hit 40 home runs,” Cubs general manager Jim Hendry said. “I think Jacque Jones is capable of hitting 25-plus home runs. Aramis Ramirez, with a healthy year under his belt, can hit more than 30. [Michael] Barrett has a little pop as a catcher. I think we’re more versatile, more athletic, I think we’ll run a lot better and we’ll play better defense.”

This offseason, Hendry addressed another need by adding veteran setup relievers Scott Eyre and Bob Howry. They should make it easier to get to Ryan Dempster, who led the NL in save percentage in his first season as a closer. They should also help Michael Wuertz and Will Ohman, who both proved they are ready for the big leagues. There will be some healthy competition to fill the other bullpen spots.

As for the rotation, Baker has right-handers Carlos Zambrano, Mark Prior, Greg Maddux and Jerome Williams and lefty Glendon Rusch lined up. Kerry Wood is coming back from arthroscopic shoulder surgery, and isn’t expected to be ready by Opening Day. When Wood is right, the Cubs hope they’ll have too many starters instead of having to deal with injuries, which may be the biggest reason the team has not advanced to the postseason. A healthy Zambrano, Prior and Wood would definitely give the Cubs the edge in the NL Central.

The 2005 season was the first sans Sammy Sosa since 1991. Jeromy Burnitz did OK, hitting .258 with 24 homers and 87 RBIs. Jones can hit 25 home runs, but the Cubs will be happy with a higher average. Jones has played his entire career with the Minnesota Twins, who emphasized good fundamentals and doing the little things. The Cubs could use more of that.

A lot can change by Opening Day, but as 2005 becomes 2006, this is who is projected to take the field for the Cubs:
CF Juan Pierre
2B Todd Walker
1B Derrek Lee
3B Aramis Ramirez
RF Jacque Jones
LF Matt Murton
SS Ronny Cedeno
C Michael Barrett
SP Carlos Zambrano
SP Mark Prior
SP Greg Maddux
SP Glendon Rusch
sp Jerome Williams
CL Ryan Dempster

Baker finally has two quality youngers to play in Matt Murton and Ronny Cedeno. Murton, a last-minute throw-in in the Nomar Garciaparra trade, will start in left in his sophomore season, while Cedeno is projected as the starter at shortstop.

Wrigley Field will have an additional 1,800 seats in the bleachers after an offseason renovation project. The ballpark will have a slightly different look, and so will the team. After finishing 79-83 and in fourth place, change was needed.

“We want to win. I always want to win,” Baker said during the Winter Meetings. “It’s a big year for all of us, a big year for the organization, a big year for the city, a big year for the staff, me, different guys on the team. There’s no more pressure than usual.”

Offseason report card: The Cubs may have lost in the bidding for free agent Rafael Furcal, but they filled a bigger need by acquiring Pierre. Signing Eyre and Howry also should pay off. John Mabry brings a veteran to the bench. Jones isn’t a significant upgrade in right, but better fundamentally and fast. Grade: 6, Improved and Still Shopping

Arrivals: LHP Eyre (free agent), RHP Howry (free agent), CF Pierre (trade), OF Mabry (free agent), OF Jones (free agent)

Departures: SS Garciaparra, RF Burnitz, OF Jose Macias, RHP Chad Fox

The Road Ahead: Kerry Wood will begin his throwing program after Jan. 1 in his recovery from arthroscopic surgery in his right shoulder. He isn’t expected to be ready by Opening Day.

Chicago Cubs

Order Baseball Tickets Online

Jim Tsaveras is a fourth-generation Yankees fan whose great grandfather, Jimmy Bero, was Babe Ruth’s bowling partner.
“Babe was as good a bowler as he was a baseball player,” said Tsaveras. “His bowling ball is in the Baseball Hall of Fame.”

It is obvious how important baseball tradition is to Tsaveras. He has told a lot of Yankee stories and spent many fulfilling days and nights at the House That Ruth Built. But new traditions are created along the way when you carry that kind of torch for the generations before you, and fans all around Major League Baseball will identify with one important tradition he created.

Tsaveras, 40, a vice president for an engineering firm in Lynbrook, N.Y., is part of today’s Online Ticketing Generation. He is a self-proclaimed “Bleacher Creature” who went to Yankees.com to renew his season ticket for Section 39 at Yankee Stadium next season. The majority of tickets for Major League Baseball games are now sold through Major League Baseball Advanced Media and its properties at MLB.com and the 30 individual club sites, affording Tsaveras and fans like him the ability to order/renew tickets and even print them at their leisure, and without waiting in lines.

“I renew my tickets through the Yankees’ Web site every year,” said Tsaveras in an e-mail to MLB.com. “I also buy additional tickets to Opening Day and some of the better games inside the stadium on the presale for season ticket holders, so my son can get closer to the dugout and the infield.

“Ordering online is great. When you order the tickets online, you can print them and have them in minutes. Not only do you get your tickets in hand, you save all those additional handling and shipping fees. And if you lose your tickets, you can just reprint them.

“I have sat all around Yankee Stadium,” he added. “The fans who are the most fun and the most aware of what’s going on in a game as a group are the ones in the bleachers. Sitting in the bleachers for Yankees-Mets games and Yankees-Red Sox games makes you feel like you’re part of the game.”

For many, this is the time of year when the excitement of what’s ahead is building, and when each club features its season-ticket packages on its Web site. Around the start of the year, most clubs also sell single-game tickets on their sites, at which point it becomes a tradition to start planning those important summer trips and plotting those one-of-a-kind experiences from the comforts of home or from the office computer.

This has become one of the important changes in the life of a typical baseball fan, and the change affects an increasing number of people each year. For millions, it is much different from the days when they might have walked up to the ticket window with their father and asked, “What do you have available today?”

Each of the 30 clubs might operate its online ticketing areas differently, but they all typically feature cutting-edge capabilities and functionality to make the experience even better. You can “see” your seat. You print a ticket, and just take it to the turnstile. In many cases, you can even find secondary tickets through your favorite club site — a season ticket holder who can’t attend a particular game can make that unused ticket available to the public. There are also kiosks at ballparks that accept credit cards and spit out tickets.

Technology is bringing about new traditions for baseball fans, and the Online Ticketing Generation is one of the most obvious examples. It certainly has worked to the advantage of Bobby Yacuzzo, a Marlins fan who recently moved to Binghamton, N.Y. He e-mailed this story — one that is typical of many fans of MLB.com — about his experience ordering baseball tickets online.

“I usually did purchase my Marlin tickets online, including Game 3 of the NLCS against the Cubs back in 2003. I found it so much easier to purchase the tickets online instead of going to the local TicketMaster or driving the 40 minutes to the stadium and spending the time and the gas. Some people are still a little skeptical about this, but I print out my tickets as well instead of getting the actual tickets mailed to me. To this day, I still have the file and the printed ticket. I actually have the ticket in a jewel case with the game on CD that I downloaded from MLB.com — even though we lost in extra innings.

“Now that I live in New York, the Phillies are about three hours away from me. So we decided to catch the Braves back in September, and I used the Phillies Ticket Marketplace, where season ticket holders sell their tickets when they can’t make it. There is a service charge with that, but the Hall of Fame Club at Citizens Bank Park is worth it. That has got to be one of the better ballparks in the league. The tickets were mailed to me quickly — within a week. The service was so good, I’ll definitely use it again this season. I’m spoiled, and with the good seats with the bar right behind me.”

Pauly and Holly Cadman are Angels fans who live in Malibu, and they watched the 2005 American League Championship Series against the eventual-champion White Sox after ordering their tickets through the Angels’ Web site. They also are a testimony to the increasing power of ticket-exchange availability.

“Our tickets for that game were on the field level, right at the right-field foul pole, about 50 feet from Vladdy [Guerrero] in right,” said Pauly. “We had never sat down there before, and although the game was a little hard to follow in terms of pitching, it was a cool perspective. Plus, seeing Vladdy close up was great. And like the emotional 12-year-old that I am, I took my glove. Holly was embarrassed until we got there and she saw that just about every other guy had his, too.

“We order tickets from the Halos’ site all the time, but we usually use the Angels Ticket Exchange, a feature that lets fans buy seats from other ticket holders — usually season ticket holders. The service allows me to get truly great seats right up to just hours before the game. Plus, I can print the ticket in my printer, avoiding all manner of lines, and the Web site has great seating charts and view angles, so we always know exactly where we will be.

“Cheap seats and field-level, behind-the-plate seats are almost always available, even for playoff games. We were able to get great seats for the ALCS just three hours before the game. This is the perfect solution to the old problem of getting tickets from scalpers or ticket agents. It takes all the guesswork and risk out of the deal — and try paying a scalper with a credit card.”

Though printing tickets from home is a tremendous convenience, there are some who will always love the actual feel and artwork of a traditional stadium ticket. Take David Cuevas, another Angels fan.

“Most everything I do regarding tickets is online,” said Cuevas. “I might have a little different perspective as a collector of tickets. I seriously hope that they do not completely go away, because I love the season tickets for the artwork and player photos that are on most of them. I do use the ticket exchange through the Angels.”

These stories are becoming a new baseball tradition, a new part of the game that is firmly rooted in the overall experience. Joe Boesch, a freelance writer and Federal Express employee in Melville, N.Y., attends five to 10 Yankees games a year and hits the club’s Web site ahead of time to order the tickets.

“The evolution of e-commerce has changed how we buy items, including baseball tickets,” said Boesch. “How great is it to log onto your favorite team site, search for tickets, check the seating chart and place the order? The one-hour drive to Yankee Stadium or even Shea is not worth it. In a matter of five to 10 minutes, I can have my tickets and have them shipped, or pick them up at the ‘will call’ window. So e-commerce has changed the face of ordering and baseball. I know several years ago, when I went to Ron Guidry Day at Yankee Stadium, I searched for the seats, found them on the left-field side and got to see Hideki Matsui patrol the outfield, being three rows from the field.

“What an experience, thanks to technology.”

Source MLB.Com

Get your Tickets From StubHub!

Trading Prior for Tejada

As rumors of a blockbuster deal involving Mark Prior and Miguel Tejada circulated Thursday around the Internet, all was quiet at Wrigley Field.

General manager Jim Hendry declined to comment on continuing trade talks between the Cubs and Baltimore Orioles after a FoxSports.com report indicated Prior was at the center of multiplayer talks that could bring Tejada to the North Side.

While no trade appears imminent, there is little doubt the Cubs are at the front of a short line of potential suitors if the Orioles decide to part ways with their All-Star shortstop.

FoxSports.com, quoting an unnamed source, reported the Cubs’ aggressive pursuit of Tejada stalled over their insistence the Orioles include promising left-hander Erik Bedard. Likewise, the Cubs reportedly refused to give up center-field prospect Felix Pie or a top pitching prospect, believed to be left-hander Rich Hill.

The Baltimore Sun reported in Friday’s editions that both Corey Patterson and Todd Walker were mentioned in potential deals with Prior for Tejada, but the Orioles had no interest in either player.

The FoxSports.com report also mentioned a long-shot option–a three-way deal involving the Cubs, Baltimore and Boston that would send Tejada to Chicago, Manny Ramirez to Baltimore and Prior, Patterson and Ronny Cedeno to Boston.

Hendry has been talking with Baltimore about acquiring Tejada for the last two weeks, since Tejada voiced his frustration over the direction of that organization and asked to be traded. Conventional wisdom was Tejada wasn’t going anywhere, but sources indicate Baltimore management is so upset over his remarks it is determined to move him before spring.

Whether Prior would be the Orioles’ primary target is questionable, however. Orioles owner Peter Angelos may not be sold on Prior because of his history of injuries. He also knows the team’s recent fiascos involving the acquisitions of Albert Belle and Sammy Sosa.

The Orioles may be holding out for Carlos Zambrano, one of the Cubs’ few untouchables. If so, the trade talks are dead.

Only a year ago, the idea of the Cubs trading Prior would have been unthinkable. He was considered one of their building blocks after a stellar performance in 2003, when he went 18-6 and helped lead the team to within five outs of the World Series.

But with three years left before he’s eligible for free agency, Prior now has a questionable future in Chicago. He has suffered through elbow problems for parts of the last two seasons, going a combined 17-11 with a 3.82 earned-run average, and admitted in 2004 he wished the Cubs were more upfront about his elbow soreness when they sidelined him in the spring with Achilles’ tendinitis. He went only 6-4 in 21 starts.

After a strong start last season, Prior was sidelined for a month after a line drive hit him on the elbow May 27. Before the injury Prior was 4-1 with a 2.93 ERA in nine starts, holding opposing batters to a .194 average and yielding only 2.0 walks per nine innings. But after returning from the injury, Prior went 7-6 with a 4.07 ERA in his final 18 starts, giving up 3.4 walks per nine innings and seeing opposing batters hit .244.

Though Prior signed a $10.5 million, five-year deal after the Cubs drafted him in 2001, he’s arbitration-eligible this winter and could leave as a free agent after 2008.

Having been burned by Kerry Wood’s arm problems after signing him to a three-year, $32.5 million deal before the 2004 season, the Cubs may debate whether Prior deserves a long-term contract with his history of elbow problems.

Tejada, who turns 30 in May, has four years and $48 million left on a six-year deal he signed with Baltimore in 2004. He hit .304 with 26 home runs and 98 RBIs last year, following a career-best .311-34-150 the year before.

The Cubs have plenty to spend and basically would be giving Tejada the money targeted for free agent Rafael Furcal, who signed with the Dodgers.

Bedard, who turns 27 in March, went 6-8 with a 4.00 ERA last year and has a career mark of 12-18 with a 4.31 ERA. He would figure to be a No. 4 or 5 pitcher in the Cubs’ rotation, which, obviously, would be depleted if they dealt Prior.

MIGUEL TEJADA
(8 seasons with A’s and Orioles, not including 26 games as 1997 call-up)
GAMES 154*
AVERAGE .282
HOME RUNS 27
RBI 105
STRIKEOUTS 85
WALKS 47
FIELDING% .970
ERRORS 22
*-played in all 162 last five years

Source ChicagoSports