Bored. First day of position player practice. Might as well guess.
Safe Bets
01 DL Wood – and he won’t be ready on April 15. May 1st, maybe. I think there will be sales on Wood jerseys and I think they’ll be plenty available.
02 CA Barrett – I also want better info on a catcher’s effect on the game. Get to it!
03 CA Blanco – I’m not worried about the Great Catching Crisis of 2006; the starters are the same, these guys were here next year, and they’ll have time to work with the two-three different relievers. It’s not perfect, but it won’t cost a game. I’m just surprised they didn’t sign an AAAA-type catcher to eat some innings in Spring Training and split time with Soto in Iowa (if they could get him as a non-40 man minor leaguer.)
04 1B Lee – if you believe in this year’s team, you do the long term deal before the season starts.
05 2B Walker – thecubsfan.com will assume no trade will ever happen until such time as they actually make a trade, because thecubsfan.com is sick of hearing about speculation.
06 2B Hairston – hand injury or not, he wasn’t impressive last year and he’s a backup to backups – weird. There’s no way he’d be back if they knew Walker was still around. Both of these guys probably shouldn’t be safe if they’re really going to do a move, but I don’t believe a move will be done.
07 SS Cedeno – Somewhere along the line, I was thinking he was fair to middling, and everyone upped the forecast to good. I don’t know what I missed! If he’s good, I think he’ll get the majority of the PA. If he’s not, he won’t and it won’t matter.
08 SS Neifi – way too many at bats at any rate, but what can you do.
09 3B A-Ram – if he’s fine, we’re in good shape
10 LF Murton – HE’ll get the at bats, unless he bats himself out of them.
11 LF Mabry – I was excited when he got signed, and the more time’s past, I’m thinking he might done.
12 CF Pierre – This is a great spot for Juan. If the Cubs win and he’s a part of it, he’s the Messiah (they’ve already got the 2005 sPod comparison articles half written, and it didn’t actually have to be actually true for them to write it then). If they don’t win, the angry mob has already set it’s sights on Wood and Prior and Baker and Hendry; it’s going to have to be a long miserable season for people to get around to turning around him.
13 RF Jones – not a good sign when you’ve signed a guy for three years and the paper are already printing “he really needs to prove he’s not bad this season” articles. This will end in tears.
I can’t put Grissom on the Safe list without going insane, so there’s 1 OF position up for grabs. They may start with 12 pitchers anyway, because that’s the traditional dumb thing to do.
14 SP Z!!!! – plz don’t kill yourself in the WBC, okay?
15 SP Maddux – hopefully all the talk about him wanting to go out on a better note wasn’t just talk
16 SP Prior – he’s starting the season until they say different, and I refuse to care about twinges till April.
17 SP Rusch – though he may end up elsewhere. I think we’ve hit the wall on the Rusch experience in the third year, but someone’s gotta take the spot away from him.
18 SP Williams – If he can resume what he was doing at the end of the season, we’ve got something there. If not, he’s going to be quickly a man without a role. He’d be a lot better of in a team who can afford more patience for young pitchers.
19 CL Dempster – this won’t work as well as last year, but it’ll be fine.
20 RP Ohman – weird split of opinion on him depending on who you’re talking to and if they know what VORP is.
21 RP Eyre – same guy as above, but costs more
22 RP Howry – eh. eh.
23 RP Wuertz – not so sure about this one, even though I think he deserves it
The last start spot, if it’s even a spot (theoretically Wood’s going to be back in time to pitch in it the first time it comes up, but uh no c’mon on) is probably up for grabs. Since they have two left handers, I think Rusch isn’t going to get moved.
In the mix
RP Williamson – safest bet since he’s getting $$$$
SP Hill – been talking about adding a couple more pitchers to go as a starter, but I think he needs more AAA time
RP Novoa – I started calling him Super Nova at the end of the season, because (I was bored with saying “Novoa” and) had an annoying tendency to explode for a lot of runs.
RP Wellemeyer – should be traded already for someone they’d actually get value.
OF Grissmon – gosh no. This will end in sadness.
Not Quite
SP Guzman – maybe later in the year, but not coming off a season like he had.
SP Miller – when/if he recovers from his injury, he’ll get a shot.
RP Koronka – if Ohman goes bad, I guess he’s got a shot. But he’s not making it.
UT Ojeda – only if there’s trade(s) and injuries.
IF Theriot – perhaps won’t make it past here
OF Pagan – I had to look up @ baseballcube to remember who this was, and then I no longer wanted to know. Why he has a spot on the 40 man and Greenberg does not, I do not understand.
OF Greenberg – doesn’t make sense to leave him on the bench, if they even manage to keep him.
OF Pie – see above, times a million. ’cause of Corey, they’ll go slow with this one.