…Or maybe not.
I was trying to post video directly to the page, thereby avoiding linking you to an outside source–BUT, as it turns out, I have no clue how to do that.
So here you go.
CUBS WIN!…SOME MORE…
The team rolled into spring training the way they rolled out of last season–winning( There was no October in 2008. Weird, I know.)
And the team that they beat?
Yep. (more…)
The Cubs are back!
Once again haunting Ho Ho Kam park in preparation for the 2009 season. Full squad workouts began at their Mesa, Arizona facility on the 20th with only one notable name missing, that being their pirouetting, non-righty hitting, early season mania-inducing only to be disappointed/confused at WHAT EXACTLY IS HE SWINGING AT?! right center fielder Kosuke Fukudome.
But more on him later. (more…)
The Chicago Cubs send Eric Patterson and Sam Fuld down to Triple-A Iowa on Tuesday. Both players were hoping to make the big league roster but the Cubs decided to go with Mike Fontenot and the newly aquired Reed Johnson instead.
The Cubs also reassigned Les Walrond, Micah Hoffpauir, and Casey McGehee to minor league camp.
Chicago Cubs relief pitcher Scott Eyre will be taking it easy for a few days as he rests his pitching arm/elbow. Hopefully that is all Eyre will need after his elbow started to hurt over the weekend. If Eyre does have to start the season the disabled list, look for the Cubs to use Carmen Pignatiello out of the bullpen.
The Chicago Cubs have expressed interest in Reed Johnson who was released by the Toronto Blue Jays over the weekend. Johnson could be the right handed outfielder the Cubs have been looking for all off season. Johnson could help out in centerfield as well as the corner outfield positions as well. Something could happen in the next 48 hours involving Johnson and the Cubs.
The Chicago Cubs made a couple more roster cuts on Friday as they sent relief pitcher Neal Cotts to Triple-A Iowa where he will probably stay the entire season unless he gets traded. Cotts just doesn’t have what it takes to make the Cubs big league roster and be productive for the big league team.
Koyie Hill was also re-assigned to the Cubs minor league camp. He is third or fourth on the Cubs depth chart at the catchers position so I wouldn’t expect him to be called up unless there are severe injuries at the catchers position.
Sean Gallagher and Jose Ascanio have been optioned to Triple-A Iowa by the Chicago Cubs.
Gallagher has been rumored to be included in the Brian Roberts trade that has never happened, and had hoped to make the team as a long reliver or starter but he is so far down on the depth chart right now that isn’t going to happen. I can see Gallagher getting a callup once something is done with Ryan Dempster or Jason Marquis.
Josh Kroeger was also sent to the minor league camp.
Chicago Cubs manager Lou Piniella is going to bat Alfonso Soriano in the #2 spot here towards the end of Spring Training and see how he does. Piniella’s reason is because Soriano is only 80-85% healthy and he doesn’t want Soriano thinking he has to run as much as he would if he were in the lead off spot.
Ryan Theriot would bat leadoff and Kosuke Fukudome would be moved down to the #5 spot in the batting order if this idea happens in the regular season.
To be honest, I don’t like it one bit. We all know Soriano is a better player when he is a routine, and he has been batting leadoff since last season, so keep him there in my opinion. I also dont’ agree with batting Theriot #1 and Fukudome in the #5 spots. I think both of those players are better in other spots in the batting order.
What do you think Cubs fans? Was Lou drunk when he thought this up? lol!
The Chicago Cubs have once again trimmed down their Spring Training roster as they sent down six more players.
The most notable players to be sent down are Jake Fox and Jeff Samardzija. Fox will be headed to Triple-A Iowa and Samardzija will be headed to Double-A West Tennessee.
Others being sent down include:
Juan Mateo – Triple A
Ed Campusano, Luis Figueroa, and J.D. Closser to minor league camp
I think we will see Fox and Mateo called up and some point in the season due to injuries etc. They will be some of the first minor leagues called up unless they completely suck it up in Iowa.
On Friday the Chicago Cubs trimmed their spring roster to 50 players after sending down 7 players. Billy Petrick was sent to Triple A Iowa, while Tyler Colvin was the most notable player that was send to minor league camp.
Colvin isn’t the only player being sent to minor league camp as Esmailin Caridad, Jose Ceda, Geoff Jones, Andres Torres, Bobby Scales, Wellington Castillo, and Josh Donaldson we also sent to minor league camp.
There was some rumblings between Jason Marquis and Lou Piniella over the weekend to go along with a broken finger for Alfonso Soriano out of Cubs spring training in Mesa, Arizona.
Marquis said that he is a starter in the big leagues and that he should be in the starting rotation with the Cubs or even another team. Piniella then came back and said that maybe he should be pitching for another team then. After both of them cooled down, Piniella said that everything was ok between the two of them. I wonder if Marquis could possibly be included in the trade for Brian Roberts if that ever happens?
The Cubs will have to do without Alfonso Soriano for five to seven days as well as he suffered a broken middle finger while taking flyballs in practice. Reports are saying that it isn’t too serious, and he just can’t use the finger for a little while. Soriano can keep up with his running / conditioning so he will just have to put in some extra time in the batting cages to catch up.
