Cubs could get Floyd!

[billyhallfan]

From mlbtraderumors.com:

 

Cubs Close On Cliff Floyd

I swear I used that headline last week, but here are. Paul Sullivan reports that the Cubs are "on the verge" of acquiring Cliff Floyd.

 

He'd platoon with Matt Murton, which begs the question: why does Murton need a platoon partner? As I said five days ago:

 

"It seems like a great way to stunt Matt Murton's growth and waste a year of cheap service time. Floyd hit .266/.342/.423 against righties in '06. Murton managed a .295/.356/.426 line against them in his first full sesaon. The Big Murt also hit .319/.390/.522 after the break. And he has red hair."

 

There better be a brilliant Jacque Jones trade in the offing. Still, while nonsensical, this move won't rival the Jose Vidro trade for the offseason's worst.

 

 

 

Honestly, why would they want Floyd.

 

HAHA.

[endaround]

See the player who should be platooned is Jones.

[JohnBriggs12]

With the exception of Jones, the Cubs are almost an entirely righthanded lineup.

 

That's the thinking behind going after Floyd.

 

Murton is a good hitter, terrible fielder. His only position is LF but he really doesn't hit for the kind of power associated with that position. That's been the knock on him going back to his days in Boston's organization.

 

Hence Floyd for some lineup balance and more power out of that spot. I wouldn't expect a pure platoon though, but more of a 50-50 split.

 

As for Jones, the Cubs had dangled him too, but couldn't get value in return (much like Jenkins) though Jones had a better year than Jenkins, 27 HR, 81 RBI.

[Invader3K]

Stupid Cubs...spending money and signing players. What are they thinking?

[sheetswannabe]

Who else thinks Cubs will blow it this year?

[Riebes24]

If by blow you mean finish ahead of the Brewers, then yes, they will blow.

[bsglorydays]

The Cubs have definitely cornered the market on trash. Has a team ever spent so much money on absolutely nothing?

 

Other than Soriano, the best players the Cubs have signed have been their own players (Ramirez, Wood, Miller). Signing your own players doesn't make you better, last I checked. Lilly is a nice #4 pitcher who will be the Cubs #2.

 

So, the Cubs are spending $130 million to become a .500 team, IMO. (If Lee and Prior and Co. stay healthy)

[JohnBriggs12]

bsglorydays,

 

You slough off Soriano pretty quickly. I guess 40/40 guys don't impress you much.

 

DeRosa, Ward, Floyd, Cotts, Lilly, Marquis. True not that impressive a group until you see who they and Soriano replaced:

 

Neifi Perez, John Mabry, Freddie Bynum, Juan Pierre, Glendon Rusch, Sean Marshall, and Carlos Marmol.

 

Oh did I mention their best hitter played in 50 games last year?

[Invader3K]

Are we as Brewers fans getting a bit insecure because we see other teams making a lot of acquisitions? I'm seeing similar feelings in the thread about the Royals acquiring Zach Day and another player.

 

Not trying to stir the pot, just wondering if there's a jealousy factor creeping in.

[mothershipconnection]

Stupid Cubs...spending money and signing players. What are they thinking?

It's not signing players that's a problem, it's signing players who are inferior to your current option(s). I'd love to see a new stud corner OF brought in, but not someone inferior to Jenkins because the point of free agency is to get better, not to spend more money.

[billyhallfan]

Quote:

---

Are we as Brewers fans getting a bit insecure because we see other teams making a lot of acquisitions?

---

 

Somewhat,

 

But I don't want Day, or Floyd, or Ward, or anyone like that, I want someone good, I just can't think of a name.

[bsglorydays]

You slough off Soriano pretty quickly. I guess 40/40 guys don't impress you much.

 

Not sure where I did that. Maybe briggs can show me. I said "other than Soriano...."

 

Soriano is a phenomenal offensive player. He would make any team better. But, he can't do it himself. My point was, the other players the Cubs have signed were either there own players (no improvement there) or players at the same level or below what they already had in-house, but at a much higher cost.

 

You can't tell me that signing DeRosa, Marquis, Ward, Floyd, etc makes the Cubs better. At least not if they are being looked upon as major contributors (Ward will be a pinch hitter, as long as Lee stays healthy). Who is Floyd an improvement over? Certainly not Murton or Jones. Is Marquis at $7 million any better than the $400,000 options the Cubs have in Guzman, Marmol, and Marshall? DeRosa is a part-time or platoon player that is going to be cast into a full-time role, at least at the beginning. Good luck with that.

 

Lilly was a decent signing. I can't fault the Cubs too much on him, other than to say that he is a fly ball pitcher in a homer-friendly park.

 

I stand by my belief that the Cubs will have a $125 million dollar payroll and be a .500 (at best) team.

[billyhallfan]

but Lee will be healthy.