On Monday afternoon, Chicago Cubs GM Jim Hendry announced that starting/relief/not-really pitcher Carlos Zambrano would enter some form of treatment program and would be placed on baseball's "restricted list" until after the All-Star break.
Restricted? Does he have to trade his boxers for briefs for the next three weeks?
My suggestion is that the Cubs treat Zambrano the way he treated his teammates on Saturday, and the way he's been treating his fans' hopes for the last four years: open the door, kick, close door, deadbolt.
Zambrano is a wasted roster spot and, even worse, an epic disaster of a contract. ...
Last night for the Chicago Cubs Triple-A affiliate in Iowa, one of the less heralded potential superstar prospects in baseball had another good night.
Andrew Cashner, the Cubs first round draft pick in 2008, dominated for seven innings as the Iowa Cubs won 1-0. Cashner was an elite closer in college, but the Cubs are trying to make him into a starter.
Trying?
Since being promoted to Triple-A, Cashner is putting up numbers that could easily be confused for those of super-prospect Stephen Strasburg of the Washington Nationals.
In three starts, Cashner is 3-0 with a 0.95 ERA and a 0.79 WHIP. He has ...
Let’s start by being honest: the 2010 Chicago Cubs are awful.
The bullpen is thin, the bench is soft, and the bats are taking turns being stone cold. It’s bad enough that your Opening Day starter is being paid almost $18 million to throw two or three innings a week in the bullpen in early May, and Carlos Zambrano isn’t even doing that very well.
The national media is now picking fights for the Cubs to deal with internally. Fox’s Ken Rosenthal decided that Cubs GM Jim Hendry should fire Lou Piniella, and the Cubs have spent a long ...
The "stuff" has hit the fan for the Chicago Cubs.
In breaking news late Friday morning, the Cubs have recalled their top prospect, 20-year-old Starlin Castro. Castro will reportedly bat eighth in the Cubs lineup and start at shortstop, moving Ryan Theriot to second base, as the Cubs face the Reds in Cincinnati at 7:10 pm EST.
If you haven't heard of Starlin Castro, here's your introduction.
Castro, who turned 20 on March 24, had a fantastic run in the Arizona Fall League that brought him national attention. Now his presence in Spring Training has some people in the Chicago media asking Ryan Theriot how soon he'll be ...
"Because of his stuff," Chicago Cubs manager says Opening Day starter Carlos Zambrano is moving to the bullpen beginning Friday.
So now the Cubs have Alfonso Soriano making $18 million to play seven innings in left, and Zambrano making $17.875 million to pitch 3-5 innings per week.
Jim Hendry: EPIC FAIL.
Manager Lou Piniella went on to say that this isn't a "panic move," but has indicated to Chicago media that it might be permanent.
There are a couple routes that this move could take the Cubs. By sending Zambrano to the pen, they might be looking to move him and begin an implosion in ...
In a minor move that is nonetheless surprising, the Chicago Cubs dealt backup middle infielder Andres Blanco to the Texas Rangers on Saturday for a player to be named or cash.
Blanco, who will turn 26 on April 11, was the best defensive middle infielder on the Cubs major league roster, but was a lightweight at the plate. In 2009, Blanco batted just .259 with one home run and 12 runs batted in from 123 at bats in 53 games in Chicago.
The Cubs are now one week from beginning their season with a relatively thin infield again. It appears Mike Fontenot ...
It appears the Chicago Cubs will carry a rookie, Tyler Colvin, as their fifth outfielder when the come north for the regular season. And to me, it might be a shame.
The Cubs have a lot of money tied up in their outfield. Between the albatross contracts of Alfonso Soriano and Kosuke Fukudome, the corner outfield spots are pretty well locked up because of financial obligation.
Meanwhile, the Cubs brought in Marlon Byrd and Xavier Nady as free agents this winter to replace "Baseball's Kanye West," Milton Bradley. More money spent on veterans.
Nady is still recovering from Tommy John surgery, his second, ...
According to the Chicago Tribune , the Chicago Cubs have filed paperwork with the City of Chicago in an effort to erect a huge, "lighted billboard" in left centerfield before Opening Day.
Sources tell the Tribune that the Cubs have asked for permission to build a 360 square foot sign that would rest 72 feet off the ground, likely blocking what has historically been the "Budweiser" roof across the street from the stadium.
In the last couple years, however, that red roof has been leased to other businesses, including the Horseshoe Casino. The Ricketts Family, now owners of the Cubs, have been clear ...
It's March, so it's once again time to get out the glove oil and rubber bands, clean off or buy new spikes, remember where the lucky batting gloves went, and wonder if you're too fat to play softball.
It's also time to wonder if your favorite player will stay on your favorite team throughout the entire season.
Because of the finances of professional sports, keeping superstar players in smaller markets is harder than ever. This reality drives some small-market teams to unload stars entering their prime in exchange for older players simply because of the boatload of prospects returning in the transaction.
Today, ...
Not since Shawon Dunston have the Cubs had one of the top middle-infield prospects in baseball, but that has changed. There's a kid skyrocketing through the Cubs' organization that might show up at Wrigley Field at some point in 2010.
If you haven't heard of Starlin Castro, here's your introduction.
Castro, who will only be 20 on March 24, had a fantastic run in the Arizona Fall League that brought him national attention. Now his presence in Spring Training has some people in the Chicago media asking Ryan Theriot how soon he'll be playing second base.
As the Tribune 's Paul Sullivan wrote, "Over the last eight months, ...
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