I was going to bust out a bunch of tired Goldilocks’ references. Fortunately for all involved I had an attack of common sense. I also had a cup of coffee, heard a funny joke and smoked the last cig in my pack. Then I sat down and tried to figure what the heck happened yesterday. According to numerous sources, the Bears had $25 million dollars to spend on Free Agents this year. They blew past that amount like a Lamborghini past a Prius on the Autobahn. That snapping sound you heard was necks being cracked from turning too fast trying to keep up with what happened at Halas Hall yesterday. In one fell swoop the Bears went from laughingstocks to prime stock.
At least that’s what they are saying.
And, for the first time in a long time, fans believe them.
DAVID HAUGH at the Tribune came to his senses in time to meet his deadline so we can all follow along with what happened.
Ted Phillips, you’re a terrible liar.
But Bears fans will stand in line to forgive you after a day they never will forget.
They don’t want you to stop telling tall tales now either. Fib your way back into the playoffs if you can. Tell Bears Nation another whopper about being out of money after committing $121 million, including $55 million guaranteed, to three players Friday so you can’t afford a safety.
Then go out and pursue a safety your team still badly needs. A veteran offensive lineman might be available on the cheap too. And by all means keep shopping for wide receivers. You’re not done.
Admittedly that sounds like nitpicking after one of the most eye-popping offseason days in Bears history that saw defensive end Julius Peppers, running back Chester Taylor and tight end Brandon Manumaleuna sign long-term contracts at Halas Hall, football’s Fort Knox for a day.
That’s where the league’s most aggressive buyer surprisingly struck on the first day of free-agency. Just two weeks ago, Phillips answered a question about the impact of labor unrest by saying, “We’re not going to be one of those handful of teams sometimes that just goes hog wild in free agency.’’
I suppose Phillips defines hog wild as expenditures exceeding $121 million.
In or out of context, nobody who understands NFL supply and demand believed a word the Bears team president said anyway. Everybody knew the Bears had no choice Friday but to respond to the urgency of their situation the way a team in the league’s second-largest market should — regardless of Phillips’ empty rhetoric.
Surely Phillips never has enjoyed being caught in a white lie more than Friday.
The Bears continued to debunk the outdated myth that the franchise is cheap, adding to a payroll that ESPN ranked fifth in the NFL last year. They reached deep into the McCaskeys’ pockets and then kept digging.
By the way, when exactly did the Bears become the Redskins?
Virginia McCaskey must be on vacation, and if you are, Mrs. McCaskey, you may consider switching to a budget hotel. Your family business is spending like an heiress with daddy’s credit card.
But what wise investments they appear to be.
These signings are an admission that the status quo, long heralded as the only quo you needed to know, was no longer in vogue. This was an apology to fans. A, cash draped, confession that the team has wasted daft picks and trades for far too long to develop anything resembling a winner. At least in our lifetimes.
Did they overpay? Probably. But when you are desperate you don’t really have any leverage at the table.
The more important question is ‘are they better?’ So far, that answer would appear to be yes. Much to my surprise. Yours as well, I’d wager.
When I was a little Big Bad, I wanted to be a marine biologist. I raised fish, learned about fish, could swim well (if not fast) and was comfortable in SCUBA gear. By the time I was 17 I knew that my family, what was left of it, could not afford college so I took the aptitude test for the Marines and passed. But, and this is one of those little things that change lives, the day before I was supposed to enlist I got an offer to be a bass player in a touring band. Since all I really wanted was to see the world and be near bikini clad women, the chance to do so without people shooting at me seemed perfect. I never became a Marine or a marine biologist. I did get to tour Moscow before the wall came down and do a lot of other stuff. All in all I can’t really bitch about my life, even if it isn’t even close to what I originally wanted.
I bring all this up not to make you wonder what homemade vodka tastes like in Russia (very good), but to point out that life is what you get and not always what you want or expect. It is up to you to make the best of it. It is also a great way for me to segue into 2 players from the Cubs and Sox who are a little surprised to be where they are and doing what they do. As CARRIE MUSKAT of MLB.com reports, Carlos Marmol figured he was on his way to the minors and long relief. She also reports that he was wrong.
Carlos Marmol was struggling in early July 2008. In three consecutive appearances from June 28-July 3, the Cubs’ prime setup man gave up five runs over two innings, and suffered a loss and a blown save.
He wasn’t feeling too good about himself when Cubs pitching coach Larry Rothschild pulled Marmol aside at Wrigley Field. Manager Lou Piniella wanted to see him.
“Larry told me, ‘Come into Lou’s office,’” Marmol said. “In my mind, I thought, ‘Oh, they’re going to send me down.’”
Just before Marmol and Rothschild walked into Piniella’s office, the pitcher stopped to ask if he was headed to Triple-A Iowa.
“Larry said, ‘No, are you crazy?’” Marmol said, smiling.
Instead, Piniella and Rothschild told Marmol he was headed to the All-Star Game, his first, as a late addition to the National League team.
“I’ll never forget that day,” Marmol said. “Then I had a good second half.”
He hasn’t looked back. The right-hander heads into the 2010 season as the Cubs’ closer. The last two springs, he’s had to compete for the job, losing in ‘08 to Kerry Wood and in ‘09 to Kevin Gregg. Now, it’s his. And the All-Star nomination was one step in his development.
“It helped me be more relaxed,” said Marmol, who is scheduled to pitch in his first spring game of the season Saturday. “Being in the All-Star Game, every player there is the best. It helped me a lot. I got more comfortable and more confidence.”
He’s been one of the top setup pitchers in the game, and his 161 relief appearances since 2008 are second-most in the Major Leagues. He is tied with Kyle Farnsworth for the all-time franchise mark with 73 holds.
“He had a lot going on last year, trying to decide on the [World Baseball Classic] and all that,” Rothschild said Wednesday of the pitcher who did pitch for the Dominican Republic. “He’s worked and he’s getting himself ready to go.”
Having the job he’s coveted has definitely helped Marmol’s mindset.
“It might [be the reason],” Rothschild said. “But he’s always competed well. He’s a guy who we’ve brought in for the better part of three years to face the best hitters in the eighth inning. He’s always competed. Maybe coming in here knowing it’s his job, getting himself ready and working on the things he needs to work on to make sure he has a good year, yeah, he might be [more comfortable].”
Rothschild remembers the day Marmol found out he was an All-Star. He was one of eight Cubs to be named that year.
“As well as he had pitched, he’s still a young pitcher and even young players aren’t sure of themselves and what’s going to happen and what could happen,” Rothschild said. “He went from Des Moines to the All-Star Game.”
And he did so in a couple of minutes.
So Marmol, despite his misgivings, is living his dream. While that may be true, it clearly was not realized via the path he envisioned. That’s okay too. Just because there are detours on the way doesn’t make your goal any less attainable.
Good grief, I am sounding like Dr. Phil on a bender.
Okay, let’s go to a guy who has no chance of playing where he wants and suddenly finds that that’s cool too. As SCOTT MERKIN, also of MLB.com, reports, Dayan Viciedo really wants to be a third baseman. I guess it is best for all concerned that he learned now that this just ain’t gonna happen.
At 5-foot-11, 240 pounds, Dayan Viciedo has the build of an NFL fullback but the soft hands of a middle infielder.
Anyone who has watched him make contact with a baseball knows Viciedo possesses the power of a classic home run hitter.
Now, the main questions to be answered concerning Viciedo are where will he play defensively and when will he arrive in Chicago? Viciedo has his ideas on the first topic, but they might differ from the White Sox.
“My position is third base,” Viciedo said through a translator. “But I’ll play wherever they tell me to play.”
Judging by his first two Spring Training starts, it looks as if Viciedo is jumping to first base. And if that move is not yet completely official, Viciedo certainly appears to be gradually making his move across the diamond.
Viciedo started Tuesday’s “B” game against the Dodgers at first base, and with Paul Konerko getting the day off for Thursday’s Cactus League opener at Tempe Diablo Stadium, there was Viciedo adeptly picking low throws at first base against the Angels. The change in position seems to make sense for Viciedo, with Mark Teahen locked up for the next three years as the White Sox third baseman, and Konerko playing in the final year of a five-year, $60 million deal.
As Viciedo indicated, the position isn’t as important to him as simply having the chance to play regularly. He came to the White Sox carrying a great deal of hype after defecting from Cuba. There was even talk during the negotiating process how Viciedo could contribute at the Major League level in his first big league season.
Instead, the 2009 season was spent by Viciedo entirely with Double-A Birmingham. His effort received high marks, as he hit .280 with 12 home runs, 20 doubles and 78 RBIs for one of the best overall Minor League teams. His 504 at-bats were 181 more than the previous high point of his Cuban career, and he had 327 more at-bats than the last time he suited up for Villa Clara of Cuba in 2007.
Needless to say, it was a yearlong learning experience for Viciedo, who feels wiser and soon to be older when he turns 21 on Wednesday.
“It’s the first time I played in a league with so many games, and I also adjusted to the system of baseball here,” Viciedo said. “This year, I feel better. I feel prepared. I feel a lot more confident.
“They taught me a lot last year. My footwork at third base ... Really, I learned about everything. I learned about every aspect of the game.”
The White Sox signing of Viciedo cost them $10 million over four years. It’s not exactly the sort of deal you expect for a Minor Leaguer, which was Viciedo’s 2009 job description, even a first-round Draft pick.
Add those contractual expectations to Viciedo’s year, not to mention the Spanish-English language barrier, and it’s easy to see how the pressure could have quickly built up for the relatively untested rookie.
“Yes, without a doubt. Yes. You feel a lot of pressure,” Viciedo said with a smile. “I’m a 20-year-old, signing that contract, making a lot of money. Thank God I had my family here to support me.”
“I’ve always said it is easier being a seventh-rounder than a first-rounder,” said Jordan Danks, a Viciedo teammate at Birmingham, referring to the extra pressure immediately heaped upon Viciedo’s broad shoulders. “They care about you as a seventh-rounder, but you’re not their main focus. They’ve invested all this money into a first-rounder, and expect you to perform.”
So Dayan may be our next PK. While I am a major fan of Paulie, and not just because he had the good fortune to buy me a beer once, I am smart enough to see that this transplanted 3rd baseman could be the Sox sweet hitting first baseman for the next 15 years. As Jordan Danks so elegantly surmised, they didn’t pay this kid all that money to sit on the bench. He will be somewhere sooner rather than later and it may as well be here.
Screw Baseball Prospectus. Screw Sabermatics. Screw ESPN’s pre-season rankings. Screw that crazy guy in the bar who says my team will suck this year. Spring Training is all about hope, not dire mutterings. This is the time of year for Royals’ fans to talk openly about winning the division. This is when the Padres look at all the young talent they brought in and say, “mmmm, maaaay-beeee.” This is the time of year where fans can be lulled into thinking that Billy Beane knows what he is doing. This is the time for Nationals’ fans to think that they have turned the corner. In fact, Nationals’ fans are already bragging about how Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez chose them (for slightly less money) over the Cubs. Change has finally, and truly, come to Washington D.C.
It is no different for Cubs and Sox fans. While none of the players are being asked to breathe through their eyeballs, it does seem that fans are breathing a little easier as reports filter out of both camps. On the North Side, a certain Alfonso Soriano looks determined to make everyone (including himself) forget last year. On the South Side, highly touted Alex Rios seems to have found his stroke and his head. Two items he clearly misplaced at the end of last season.
DAVID HAUGH at the Tribune spent some quality time at Ho Ho Kam to help catch us up to date on the Soriano saga.
One after another Wednesday at HoHoKam Park, the line drives exploded off the bat of Alfonso Soriano during Cubs batting practice.
Behind the cage hitting coach Rudy Jaramillo didn’t see a single one land, his eyes focused intently on Soriano’s hips and his words aimed specifically for his ears.
“Espidad, espidad!’’ Jaramillo repeated.
Asked later for a translation, Jaramillo explained the command reminds the free-swinging Soriano to slow down his breathing, which slows down his mind and thus his approach to the ball.
Jaramillo doesn’t necessarily have to speak the same language to connect with a hitter he mentored for two seasons with the Rangers. But, in Soriano’s case, it improves his hearing as well as his hitting.
“Sure it helps,” Jaramillo said. “I love teaching in Spanish.’’
Coming off a 2009 season marked by injury and insult, Soriano reported to spring training more eager than ever to learn.
This was no ordinary offseason for Soriano, the Cubs’ most polarizing player now that Kevin Gregg has cleared customs.
Never having rehabilitated from arthroscopic surgery, the fear of the unknown drove Soriano to work out longer and harder at the Cubs facilities in the Dominican Republic to recover from the Sept. 5 procedure on his left knee. Of course, coming off a career-worst .241 batting average with 20 home runs and 55 RBIs in 117 games, including 118 strikeouts in 447 at-bats, served as a pretty good prod too.
Whatever caused Soriano’s recommitment to conditioning, he arrived two weeks ago looking more like an NFL cornerback than an aging outfielder.
“I am 34 years old but more importantly my body and my mind feels young,’’ Soriano said.
Indeed, Soriano’s willingness to accept Jaramillo’s ways reflects a younger player with something to prove more than a seven-time All-Star. Already Jaramillo has narrowed Soriano’s stance to improve his balance and adjusted how high Soriano raises his left leg as the ball nears home plate. The average observer may not notice a thing different about Soriano’s swing but then Jaramillo has made a career of seeing the trees where everyone else sees a forest.
“The bat speed is still there,’’ Jaramillo said. “It’s all timing. He just has to gather himself and learn how to coach himself and realize right from wrong in his swing. He’s trying to get back what he had in the past.’’
Actually, since we can rule out stolen bases or Gold Glove fielding, it is fair for fans to hope that his batting is better than it has ever been before. If his average ticks up by 5 or 10 points above his career, he will be a nightmare for pitchers in the bottom half of the order. And I can assure you that that is one nightmare Lou will gladly have.
I just had a vision of Lou singing a duet with Alice Cooper for a Cubbie promotion. Hopefully that will fade after I down my breakfast beer.
On the South Side, Sox fans and team mates were trying to figure out what the heck went wrong with Alex Rios. It was almost as if he forgot how to play baseball. ‘Deer in the headlights’ described his good days. Yet, this January, he showed up at Greg Walker’s house, went to a park and started swinging. 5 swings later everyone agreed that, whatever had happened in the past, it was all better now. JOE COWLEY at the Sun Times digs a little deeper for the reasons behind the slump and the re-emergence.
On Wednesday morning, Alex Rios was grouped around five Latino teammates, holding court with the Spanish-speaking coalition.
Tuesday, it was time spent with ‘’the animal slayers,’’ as A.J. Pierzynski, Scott Linebrink and Mark Buehrle talked big-game hunting in Africa.
The day before that, Rios was hanging out on ‘’Rodeo Drive’’—a row of lockers so labeled by Matt Thornton because of their big-contract residents.
More often than not, a major-league clubhouse resembles a prison yard, segregated by color, language or culture.
The one person who has played warden, walking the yard and interacting with almost every group this spring, has been the seemingly laid-back Rios, who mostly was a loner last season.
‘’It feels more natural now than it did last year because when I came over it was just in the middle of the season or later in the season,’’ Rios said. ‘’I didn’t really know anybody, and that’s a weird feeling. It almost was lonely. Now, I feel like I’m just in a regular spring training. It feels like home.’’
That’s fine, but the Sox and their fans would rather it feel like home after Rios hits .280 with 20 home runs and 25 stolen bases and the team holds a champagne celebration in October. Then he can kick up his legs on the table and call it home.
For now, this will have to do.
‘’Changing teams in midseason, I would have to imagine, is not the easiest thing in the world,’’ Paul Konerko said. ‘’It just throws off on-the-field stuff, it throws off your personal life, just a lot of things that go on. It can’t be easy at all.
‘’And when he got traded here, it’s not like he was coming to a team that was running away with the division and you’re just added on to that. We were chasing, and so the feeling can be, ‘OK, we brought someone in, and he’s the answer for us to figure this thing out.’ That probably was put on him unfairly.’’
I can relate to that. Long ago I changed bands mid tour. The old bass player got healthy and I suddenly needed a new gig. I must have spent two weeks wandering around trying to learn songs on the fly, figure out who was who and not trip over my damn amp. Every day seemed like some weird alien adventure, and not in the fun way where you get the cool chick with the green skin who does things no man can pronounce. More like I was the appetizer in an episode of “V”. But, eventually, I got past it and ended up pulling the whole tour and seeing fun new parts of the world. It appears that Alex has made a similar accomplishment. So, good luck to him.
A kind overflow of kindness: there are no faces
truer than those that are so washed. How much
better is it to weep at joy than to joy at weeping!
Leonato - Much Ado About Nothing
Yesterday, at Ho Ho Kam, Cubs’ new center fielder Marlon Byrd walked up to Carlos Marmol and Jeff Diamond and informed them that they were tipping their pitches. Not to be outdone, Diamond noted that several batters were giving away the pitch they were looking for with their stance. That may be the most useful information to come out of any spring training camp this season. Caught now, it can be worked on and corrected. Caught in June, which has been the norm in MLB, it is too little too late.
But, overall, it is the stuff that is not happening that is the most interesting. On the Northside, as GORDON WITTENMYER of the Sun Times reports, there are no curses. Or, maybe more importantly, they have a guy who broke one of the biggest ones there was.
He’s no Greek Orthodox priest. But a 38-year-old non-roster bench candidate who hit .223 last year might hold the key to breaking that whole curse thing on the North Side.
That is, if he makes the team.
What’s certain is that Kevin Millar has done what nobody in the Cubs’ clubhouse has done—end a curse—and he’s willing to share the formula his self-proclaimed ‘’bunch of idiots’’ in Boston used six years ago to bring down the Curse of the Bambino.
‘’Being in a place like Boston, I went through a lot of the same things,’’ he said. ‘’There was a huge curse there, 86 years. It was almost like every year was ‘The Year.’’’
Of course, he’s dealing with 15 more years of inertia with this one. And a drought that doesn’t include so much as a World Series heartbreak in the last 64 years—even the Red Sox had four World Series appearances over the same span before breaking their curse.
‘’You get a group of guys believing, and you get a group of guys that don’t worry about a lot of stuff but winning games,’’ Millar said. ‘’We’ll see what happens.’’
That’s as big a part of the formula as anything. But it also includes about six parts swagger, two parts big-stage experience, three parts slowing down the heart rate and one part ignoring the press clippings—along with just a dash of timing and an occasional shot of whiskey.
‘’Jack Daniels brings your heart rate down,’’ Millar said.
When it all comes together, it makes and breaks history.
While our own bleeder of the Cubbie Blue, Tyrone Briggs, may be a teetotaler, I would bet he would camp by the clubhouse with a case of Jack if that is what it takes to win a World Series for the Cubs. Hell, he might even pop for chips and dip too.
On the South Side, everyone is pleased by the trade that is not happening. Quick synopsis for those who missed it; Jake Peavy got asked a question by Kenny Williams and he answered it honestly. Somehow that lead to rumors of Beckham being traded to the Padres with a zillion other guys. As DAVID HAUGH at the Tribune notes, it ain’t gonna happen.
Without question the most fascinating sight Tuesday at Camelback Ranch came on a practice field far away from the White Sox-Dodgers “B” game intended to break up the monotony.
On that field Jake Peavy stood chatting with his catcher like so many other meetings on the mound. But this catcher, in full gear complete with shin guards and a chest protector, was Mark Buehrle.
One young boy with binoculars thought he had a scoop. “Dad, I think Buehrle’s catching Peavy over there!’’ he said excitedly.
Now that would be a big story. But the Sox aces merely were being good company men and following a script for an upcoming Sox commercial.
It was a good reminder that things aren’t always what they seem in Sox camp.
Take the artificial buzz created over the rumors the Sox will dangle Gordon Beckham in a trade package for Padres first baseman Adrian Gonzalez, so far the only thing besides manager Ozzie Guillen’s tweets to make anybody atwitter at spring training.
The speculation mentioned more Sox names going to the Padres besides Beckham, but that’s when I stopped listening. Beckham is the most untouchable Sox player since Frank Thomas in his prime.
The Sox drafted Beckham, developed him and now he has a chance to spend a decade on the South Side doing what Ryne Sandberg did on the North. Even to consider trading Beckham at 23 would risk protests in the streets of Bridgeport. General manager Ken Williams is bold and understandably covets a left-handed slugger such as Gonzalez. But he’s not stupid.
“That’s all a TV thing,” Guillen said. “I don’t see why people are still talking about it.”
That’s easier to understand. Outside of Daniel Hudson’s dominant showing against a bunch of Dodger minor-leaguers and Williams’ son, Kyle, running a 4.36 40-yard dash at the NFL scouting combine, there hasn’t been much Sox-related stuff yet worth talking about here.
Rather innocently, Peavy started it all by telling CBSSports.com that when Williams asked for a reference on Gonzalez over the winter, he gave a glowing recommendation. That gave the story sprinter’s legs.
So Peavy spoke highly of a friend. Big deal. He didn’t go to Williams suggesting the Sox make a trade for Gonzalez to replace first baseman Paul Konerko. Nobody’s feelings should be hurt or slighted because Peavy answered Williams’ question.
In other words, the Sox (of all teams) fell victim to not being controversial enough. Nature abhors a vacuum and media needs a rumor. Those are two constants you can take where ever you go.
Oh well, no harm no foul. The Sox continue to do exciting things such as run bunting drills and duck when Daniel Cabrera pitches. Yesterday, in a 27 pitch outing, he gave up 4 runs and only threw 11 strikes. There is something about knowing that a pitch is coming at around 100 mph and not knowing where it is going to end up that makes hitters a little nervous. Suffice it to say that the Dodgers who faced Cabrera yesterday wouldn’t have minded a few shots of Jack themselves after that.
The Bulls are, once again, unable to run 5 on 5 drills because they do not have enough healthy players. This is not good news as they are headed into the snot knocker portion of their schedule. The Hawks are worried that their kids might be fatigued after an Olympic tournament that saw the U.S. team go far deeper into the medal rounds than predicted and the Canadian team suffer through more drama than predicted. For the record, the U.S. were predicted to be knocked out in the first round and the Canadians were supposed to run away with this thing. The Fire are worried about all those new players coming in under a new coach. They need those guys to gel and gel quickly if they are going to get where they want to go. Keep in mind that they missed the championship round by one goal and fired their coach. This team is not about losing. The Sky are worried about rebounding after a dreadful season that saw them poised to go deep into the playoffs and instead they imploded at the end of the year and missed the whole party. The Red Stars are worried about competing at the pro level. In this, their second, season they feel that they have a lot to prove and that they have the players to prove it. The Bears aren’t worried at all, everything is sunshine and roses at Halas Hall, which is why Bears’ fans are slamming Prozac. And washing it down with bourbon.
And the Cubs and Sox? What are they worried about? A lot or a little, depending on your point of view. If you are a devotee of Baseball Prospectus, then both teams’ seasons are over before they begin with neither team even being given a 30% chance of making the playoffs. Of course, last year, BP had the Cubs winning almost 100 games and the Sox 10 games under .500. So much for the experts then.
From the teams’ points of view, they are limiting their worries to one position at a time. For the Cubs, it seems that they may not have to worry about the one position that has vexed them for years. Center field. GORDON WITTENMYER at the Sun Times takes some time out of his break-dancing lessons to fill us in.
Anyone who wonders how much agility stocky Cubs center fielder Marlon Byrd has should have seen him after practice Monday, when he pulled off a break-dance spin move and leaped to his feet in one motion.
Wait till he adds a fly ball to the act.
‘’The reason people say I can’t play defense is because they haven’t watched me play and they see my size,’’ the 6-foot, 245-pound Byrd said.
But Cubs hitting coach Rudy Jaramillo, who had Byrd for three years with the Texas Rangers, believes Byrd was one of the top three defensive center fielders in the American League last season.
‘’Ask [Los Angeles Angels manager] Mike Scioscia, ask [Seattle Mariners manager Don] Wakamatsu, ask [Oakland Athletics manager Bob] Geren, ask [Rangers manager Ron Washington] if I can play center field,’’ Byrd said. ‘’Ask those guys that watched me play 19 times a year, or 162 times, and they’ll let you know.’’
Regardless of whether Byrd inspires visions of Gold Gloves, two things seem certain:
First, his addition improves the outfield—potentially dramatically—considering that Cubs center fielders ranked among the worst in the majors last season, according to various defensive formulas, and that Kosuke Fukudome will play his more natural position in right.
Second, Byrd’s style of play suggests he might be one of the more exciting Cubs center fielders in recent memory.
And not just because he plans to bring his break-dance moves to Wrigley Field.
More important, he’s moving from the American League West, which is full of large outfields, to the National League Central, which generally has smaller outfields, including Wrigley.
‘’Which means I get to play shallow,’’ he said, ‘’which is my forte.’’
I have never got why people say Byrd is a lousy fielder. He is around a .990 average as a fielder over his career and has had 2 errorless seasons. Cubs’ fans, despite what I read on their message boards, should be thrilled with this guy. He is a good bat, a great guy and a solid team player. Plus he can catch the ball. I am not sure what more you want out of that position.
On the South Side, they seem to be worried about John Danks not being at the same level as CC Sabathia. Well, I guess everyone needs something to worry about. JOE COWLEY, also at the Sun Times, dials up the 411.
It’s the one topic that gets pitching coach Don Cooper to go from chewing his gum to attacking it.
‘’Performance and consistency over years dictate for people in the media, people in fantasy leagues, fans, what number a pitcher is,’’ Cooper said Monday. ‘’Is this guy a No. 1? Is he a No. 3?’ I don’t put numbers on guys. I don’t. Doesn’t interest me; it’s not important to me.’’
The measuring stick for Cooper?
‘’I word it like upper-echelon pitchers,’’ Cooper said. ‘’What do upper-echelon pitchers do? What’s the common denominator? Innings, wins, hits to innings, walks to innings, going to the post every five days, going seven or eight innings deep every time.’’
That leaves left-hander John Danks on the outside looking in.
But, frankly, at 24, that’s a good thing.
‘’There’s plenty of room for me to improve. ... I surely hope there’s room for me to improve,’’ Danks said. ‘’I know I’m going to go out there and do what I can to improve.
‘’Who knows? But deep down, I think there’s plenty of room for improvement, and there will be improvement.’’
That’s what the White Sox are counting on. They like that Danks understands what it takes to be in the same conversation as a CC Sabathia or a Josh Beckett. Heck, for one night on Sept. 30, 2008, he even held upper echelon in his hand, throwing eight scoreless innings in the ‘’Blackout’’ play-in game against the Minnesota Twins.
As Danks enters his fourth season with the Sox, the hope is that taste will keep him hungry.
‘’He’s still trying to achieve that,’’ Cooper said. ‘’But this is only three years for [Danks]. I mean, to label a guy upper echelon ... unless you’re a special guy like a [Tim] Lincecum, I think that’s an earned thing over time. [Danks is] still in the process of earning that status.’’
Well, 2010 might be as good a year as any to make that jump.
Danks is one of those guys who seems to shine in big games and do okay the rest of the time. If he can get it in his head that they are all big games he could be a force to be reckoned with. Even so, I’d rather have him on my team than not.
There is one thing I do not have to worry about. I cancelled my Baseball Prospectus subscription years ago.