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<!--quoteo(post=24806:date=Mar 24 2009, 09:53 PM:name=ColoradoCub)-->QUOTE (ColoradoCub @ Mar 24 2009, 09:53 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec-->I'm imagining it'll be something like this...
Closer:
Marmol
Setup:
Gregg
Heilman
Middle Relief:
Gaudin
Guzman
Patton
Cotts (mop up duty)
We'll find someone desperate enough to trade Viscaino to, I hope.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I'd love it if it turned out that way. Send that ogre someplace else.
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Wittenmyer:
<!--quoteo-->QUOTE <!--quotec-->Either Carlos Marmol or Kevin Gregg will be the closer, and Lou said today he'll have a decision on that by the weekend -- once Marmol pitches back-to-back days, Thursday and Friday. Piniella already hasn't said which way he's leaning but has admitted he has ideas about which way he'll go.
My guess is it's Marmol, but a good case could be made for leaving Marmol in the hot-spot setup role.
Aaron Heilman is one of the sixth-seventh-inning guys.
And Neal Cotts will probably be the only lefty in the pen -- Lou said again today he's OK with only one, and an hour or two later he cut lefty Jason Waddell from camp, leaving only Mike Stanton among lefties not named Cotts fighting for a bullpen spot.
Piniella said he's got one more middle-relief spot filled, in his mind, but hasn't said who it is, although he's hinted it's Chad Gaudin (who's out of options).
That leaves two spots -- one for a short reliever and one for a long man -- with eight pitchers still looking for jobs (assuming Gaudin is in).
The eight:
-- Randy Wells is a candidate for the long role, but is more likely to open in the Iowa rotation.
-- Stanton is a long shot. He needed a perfect spring to force Piniella to look at a second pen lefty and he hasn't had it -- giving up three runs Tuesday in an inning of work, including a two-run homer by switch-hitter Daniel Ortmeier.
--Chad Fox is another long shot, but he has pitched well in camp, has experience and he caught Piniella's eye at one point last year.
--Jeff Samardzija looked like a strong candidate to make the team when camp opened -- either as a fifth starter or setup guy. In the running for a short-relief role, he has struggled -- including Tuesday when pitching coach Larry Rothschild went to the mound to fix his mechanics mid-inning. Without a dominating final week (and maybe some help), he looks Iowa bound at this point. And working against him is the fact the Cubs can start him at AAA to buy time for any of several other pitchers they'll lose if they cut.
-- Speaking of which: Luis Vizcaino has looked better lately after showing up to camp out of shape and starting poorly. He was the guy with the bad contract the Cubs agreed to take to rid themselves of the worse contract of Jason Marquis, so they're not married to the idea of keeping him at all costs. They eat his $4 million and they still accomplished the payroll objective with the Marquis trade. That said, he's allowed only one run in his last five outings, on a solo home run. Still, if he can't get lefties out (and he couldn't last year), then it's hard to justify having a ``situational righty'' on your staff.
--David Patton, the Rule 5 pick, is one of the most intriguing pitchers in camp, considering he never has pitched higher than Class A but has had one of the best springs of any pitcher in camp (0.93). He's deserving of serious considering, but Piniella may have tipped his hand today when he alluded to the ``numbers'' in camp here and said, ``in a normal year, the way he's pitched, you would really, really like his chances here.''
--Angel Guzman. Like Gaudin, he's out of options. And after spending much of '07 and early '08 recovering from Tommy John surgery, he's 100 percent again -- throwing 97 mph in winter ball a few months ago. But he's struggled most of the spring, nearly pitching himself out of the mix -- until impressive, scoreless outing his last two times out, prompting Piniella to say he's ``thrust himself back in the mix.''
--And, finally, Kevin Hart. Remember him? The kid who made the jump from AA to the playoff roster in '07 wasn't quite as strong in '08 but survived a comebacker off his head and concussion to put together a good season last year and was expected to make a strong push this spring. After a few bumps early, he seems to be finding his stride and could be in the middle of things by the time Piniella makes his final calls before breaking camp April 2.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
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And Miles with pretty much the same article, but he thinks Gregg is the frontrunner:
<!--quoteo-->QUOTE <!--quotec-->Let's break it down:
Kevin Gregg: Monday, he made his eighth official appearance of the spring (ninth if you include a WBC exhibition), and he still hasn't given up a run.
He looks to be the front-runner for the closer's job.
Carlos Marmol: As bad as he has looked at times, with 4 hit batters, he has given up only 4 hits in 7 innings, with 9 strikeouts. It wouldn't be the worst thing for the Cubs to make him their top setup man and for Piniella to sell him on how important that role has become.
Aaron Heilman: He has pitched well all spring (1.84 ERA) but lost out to Sean Marshall for the fifth-starter spot. He's the seventh-inning guy, and if he gets into trouble, Marmol can bail him out and work 1-plus innings on some days.
Neal Cotts: The quiet man from downstate Illinois had a nice quiet spring going until getting only one out in Monday's ninth inning and giving up 3 runs in the Cubs' 20-5 victory over the Athletics. He's the lone lefty in the bullpen.
Chad Gaudin/Luis Vizcaino: Gaudin will start Tuesday's game against the Rockies, but he's slated for bullpen duty. Neither Gaudin nor Vizcaino has had a great spring, and ideally, the Cubs would trade one to make room for a younger pitcher making less money.
Gaudin has $2 million coming, and the Cubs are on the hook for a total of $4 million (including a buyout) for Vizcaino.
Jeff Samardzija: Maybe the most intriguing pitcher on the staff, Samardzija is in the bullpen mix, but he's not guaranteed a job after losing out in the fifth-starter derby.
He could grab the last spot and help out in the sixth and seventh inning with his plus fastball and splitter, or the Cubs could send him to Class AAA Iowa to start and develop his slider and changeup.
Angel Guzman: This longtime can't-miss prospect is out of minor-league options. He has pitched better in recent outings, thanks to some tweaking by pitching coach Larry Rothschild.
"He worked with Larry about 10 days ago," Piniella said. "And Larry got him to stop flying open and work on a downward plane, and he's been better. He's thrust himself back into this thing."
Other teams have interest in Guzman. This will go down to the end of spring training.
David Patton: The Rule 5 pick has done nothing to make the Cubs do anything but want to keep him. He walked his first batter of the spring Monday. He has 10 strikeouts in 82/3 innings. This could be a last-day decision.
Kevin Hart: Piniella says he's still looking for a long man. Hart has done that. he also may get squeezed in a numbers game.
The rest: Jose Ascanio started out great but has given up 8 runs in his last 2 outings. Veterans Mike Stanton and Chad Fox don't look to be in the picture.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
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Gregg Named Closer
<!--quoteo-->QUOTE <!--quotec--><b>Cubs manager Lou Piniella named Kevin Gregg</b> the team's closer on Sunday over Carlos Marmol.
...
Piniella's difficult decision was made even harder because he knows what Marmol can do while he’s only just learning about Gregg.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
"Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that." - George Carlin
"That was some of the saddest stuff I've ever read. Fuck cancer and AIDS, ignorance is the scourge of the land." - tom v
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I'm ok with it. I thought Lou would have gone with Marmol because of familiarity, but in the end, I think Marmol is just too valuable as a setup man. I think middle relief is still a bigger concern anyways.
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It's the right move (not even considering money [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/wink.gif[/img] ). I'd much rather have Marmol be in the flexible spot.
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Hart was optioned to Iowa
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<!--quoteo(post=25632:date=Mar 29 2009, 04:26 PM:name=ColoradoCub)-->QUOTE (ColoradoCub @ Mar 29 2009, 04:26 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec-->Hart was optioned to Iowa<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Pretty much anyone whom the Cubs can send down without losing, they will. That's going to be the deciding factor in the pen this year, it seems.
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Very surprised, but fine with it. I wish this would've been decided a couple weeks ago though before I took Marmol in a couple drafts.
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Hopefully the Cubs can sell Hart's 97 mph fastball and decent slider to the Padres.
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<!--quoteo(post=25637:date=Mar 29 2009, 03:43 PM:name=Clapp)-->QUOTE (Clapp @ Mar 29 2009, 03:43 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec-->Hopefully the Cubs can sell Hart's 97 mph fastball and decent slider to the Padres.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Call me crazy, but I'm pretty sure Hart has neither of those.
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<!--quoteo(post=25638:date=Mar 29 2009, 02:48 PM:name=sleepyhead)-->QUOTE (sleepyhead @ Mar 29 2009, 02:48 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec--><!--quoteo(post=25637:date=Mar 29 2009, 03:43 PM:name=Clapp)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Clapp @ Mar 29 2009, 03:43 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec-->Hopefully the Cubs can sell Hart's 97 mph fastball and decent slider to the Padres.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Call me crazy, but I'm pretty sure Hart has neither of those.
<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Yes he does. He was routinely hitting 97 when he came back with us after closing in Iowa, and has done it this spring. He's got a decent slider and cutter. He just doesn't understand how to pitch. I'm not even talking him up, I'm just saying hopefully somebody will take him off our hands.
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<!--quoteo(post=25639:date=Mar 29 2009, 03:50 PM:name=Clapp)-->QUOTE (Clapp @ Mar 29 2009, 03:50 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec--><!--quoteo(post=25638:date=Mar 29 2009, 02:48 PM:name=sleepyhead)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (sleepyhead @ Mar 29 2009, 02:48 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec--><!--quoteo(post=25637:date=Mar 29 2009, 03:43 PM:name=Clapp)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Clapp @ Mar 29 2009, 03:43 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec-->Hopefully the Cubs can sell Hart's 97 mph fastball and decent slider to the Padres.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Call me crazy, but I'm pretty sure Hart has neither of those.
<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Yes he does. He was routinely hitting 97 when he came back with us after closing in Iowa, and has done it this spring. He's got a decent slider and cutter. He just doesn't understand how to pitch. I'm not even talking him up, I'm just saying hopefully somebody will take him off our hands.
<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I never remember Hart legitimately hitting 97 on a routine basis, anyone else?
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<!--quoteo(post=25641:date=Mar 29 2009, 02:57 PM:name=sleepyhead)-->QUOTE (sleepyhead @ Mar 29 2009, 02:57 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec--><!--quoteo(post=25639:date=Mar 29 2009, 03:50 PM:name=Clapp)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Clapp @ Mar 29 2009, 03:50 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec--><!--quoteo(post=25638:date=Mar 29 2009, 02:48 PM:name=sleepyhead)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (sleepyhead @ Mar 29 2009, 02:48 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec--><!--quoteo(post=25637:date=Mar 29 2009, 03:43 PM:name=Clapp)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Clapp @ Mar 29 2009, 03:43 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec-->Hopefully the Cubs can sell Hart's 97 mph fastball and decent slider to the Padres.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Call me crazy, but I'm pretty sure Hart has neither of those.
<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Yes he does. He was routinely hitting 97 when he came back with us after closing in Iowa, and has done it this spring. He's got a decent slider and cutter. He just doesn't understand how to pitch. I'm not even talking him up, I'm just saying hopefully somebody will take him off our hands.
<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I never remember Hart legitimately hitting 97 on a routine basis, anyone else?
<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
So you really think I'd lie about the radar gun readings? [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/laugh.gif[/img] I don't even like Hart.
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Miles weighs in on his blog today:
http://blogs.dailyherald.com/node/1724
<!--quoteo-->QUOTE <!--quotec-->MESA, Ariz. _ We'll get to the lineups in a sec. Lou had some interesting news about the bullpen today.
The battle for the final spots will go to this weekend in New York. The Cubs will not put Rule 5 guy David Patton or longtime prospect Angel Guzman on waivers tomorrow _ they'd get claimed in a heartbeat. Instead, they'll go to New York this weekend with a shot to make the team. Ditto for Jeff Samardzija, who has minor-league options. Veteran Chad Fox will go to New York, but he will not make the team. Instead, he'll report to Class AAA Iowa.
It seems the Cubs would like to trade veteran Chad Gaudin, who has not had a good spring.
So we have four pitchers chasing two spots: Gaudin, Samardzija, Guzman and Patton. Samardzija is an easy procedural move; you can option him. Something then will have to give with one of the other three. The good thing, as the Cubs see it, is they'll get a chance to look at Patton in Yankee Stadium. He's not pitched above Class A ball, and they want to see how he does pitching in a stadium with a "second deck."<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
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