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Category :: News and Transactions
During the Cubs impressive win against the Diamondbacks on Friday, the announcement was made that Geovany Soto was named the National League Rookie of the Month for April. Soto earned the first monthly honor handed out to the league's top rookie performer....the new award is sponsored by Gillette....
Game Thirty-Five: Cubs (19-15) vs. Diamondbacks (23-12) Game Time - 1:20pm C.T. Coverage - TV: WGN - Radio: 720 WGN, XM Radio Channel 183 Location - Wrigley Field, Chicago Ted Lilly (2-4, 5.97/1.41) vs. Dan Haren (4-1, 3.12/0.99) Updated - 11:41am C.T. - Scott Eyre Activated - Sean Marshall Optioned to Triple-A The Cubs start their longest homestand of the year today with the first of three against the best team in the National League....
Two of Lou Piniella's regulars had a solid month to start the season and are among four players nominated for the National League Rookie of the Month Award for April. Geovany Soto and Kosuke Fukudome turned a lot of heads and helped the Cubs to the best month in franchise history. Gillette announced a partnership with Major League Baseball to award the top performing rookies from both the American and National League. The CCO received...
Lou Piniella is not happy and according to a report in the Tribune....neither was the rest of the clubhouse after being shutout by the Reds on Wednesday afternoon. The Cubs' skipper mentioned, on several occasions, earlier in the week that changes are on the way, but what can and should be done with a team, that despite it's recent struggles, is still 4 games over .500. Here is the latest news from the North Side,...
According to a report in the Chicago Tribune on Sunday night, Ronny Cedeno could be seeing some playing time in centerfield. Ivan DeJesus has been working with Cedeno as Lou Piniella tries to find a way to get his bat into the lineup. The report speculated that if Cedeno can be used in center then Felix Pie might be sent down to Iowa to work out a few things. Cedeno played a couple of game...
Game Thirty: Cubs (17-12) vs. Cardinals (19-11) Game Time - 2:45pm C.T. Coverage - TV: FOX Saturday Game of the Week - Radio: 720 WGN, XM Radio Channel 187 Location - Busch Stadium, St. Louis Ted Lilly (1-4, 6.46/1.50) vs. Kyle Lohse (3-0, 2.36/1.17) Updated - 2:32pm C.T. - Hill Optioned and Gallagher Recalled According to a report on Cubs.com, Rich Hill was optioned to Triple-A Iowa and Sean Gallagher was recalled to fill his...
Updated - 7:07pm C.T. - Kevin Hart will join the I-Cubs Starting Rotation According to a report on Cubs.com, the Cubs have selected Chad Fox from Double-A Tennessee and added him to the 40-man roster. To make room on the active roster, Kevin Hart was optioned to Triple-A Iowa. Fox will be available out of the pen Friday night for Lou Piniella in St. Louis....
Game Twenty-Eight: Cubs (17-10) vs. Brewers (15-12) Game Time - 1:20pm C.T. Coverage - TV: WGN - Radio: 720 WGN, XM Radio Channel 189 Location - Wrigley Field, Chicago Carlos Zambrano (4-1, 2.21/1.13) vs. Yovani Gallardo (0-0, 0.64/1.07) Updated - 12:10pm C.T. - Alfonso Soriano Activated - Matt Murton Optioned to Triple-A As expected, the Cubs activated Alfonso Soriano from the 15-day DL on Thursday morning and optioned Matt Murton back to Triple-A Iowa according...
A picture is worth a thousand words.......
Game Twenty-Four: Cubs (15-8) vs. Nationals (8-16) Game Time - 6:10pm C.T. Coverage - TV: Comcast SportsNet - Radio: 720 WGN, XM Radio Channel 185 Location - Nationals Park, Washington D.C. Carlos Zambrano (3-1, 2.67/1.10) vs. Matt Chico (0-4, 6.04/1.55) For most of the sports world today's focus is on the NFL draft, but Lou Piniella's team is in the District of Columbia and will try to avoid their first 3-game losing streak of the...
According to a report on ESPN 1000 on Saturday morning, the Cubs have recalled Matt Murton from Triple-A Iowa and have optioned Eric Patterson back to Iowa. Murton will be available for Saturday's game against the Pirates....
According to a report in the Chicago Tribune, Alfonso Soriano's hop is not the reason for the strained right calf he suffered on Tuesday night. Soriano said he "felt the calf problem a little in Pittsburgh last week." Soriano said his leg was feeling better after Monday's off day and "didn't seek any treatment." Soriano repeatedly denied the injury was caused by, what he calls his "jump"....
Game Fourteen: Cubs (8-5) vs. Reds (6-8) Game Time - 7:05pm C.T. Coverage - TV: Comcast SportsNet - Radio: 720 WGN, XM Radio Channel 186 Location - Wrigley Field, Chicago Carlos Zambrano (1-1, 3.20/1.07) vs. Josh Fogg (1-1, 7.00/1.33) Update - Early Wednesday afternoon the Cubs placed Alfonso Soriano on the 15-day DL with a right calf strain and recalled Eric Patterson from Triple-A Iowa. Lou Piniella's crew will try to make it two in...
According to a report on XM Radio, the Cubs have placed Alfonso Soriano on the 15-day DL and have recalled Eric Patterson from Triple-A Iowa. The Chicago Tribune speculated that Mark DeRosa will receive more playing time in left field while Mike Fontenot will replace DeRosa at 2nd base. Updated - 4:07pm C.T. - It is Official.... Alfonso Soriano was placed on the 15-day DL on Wednesday with a right calf strain according to a...
Alfonso Soriano left Tuesday's game in the 1st inning after catching a routine fly ball off the bat of Ken Griffey, Jr. Soriano made his signature hop as he caught the ball but landed wrong and left the game. Reports during the game indicated Soriano strained his right calf. Lou Piniella stated during his post-game press conference that Soriano was having an MRI (late Tuesday night) and the Cubs expect the results on Wednesday morning....
Game Eleven: Cubs (6-4) vs. Phillies (5-6) Game Time - 6:05pm C.T. Coverage - TV: WGN TV - Radio: 720 WGN, XM Radio Channel 174, 183 Location - Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia Ted Lilly (0-1, 9.72/1.68) vs. Cole Hamels (1-1, 1.20/1.00) A sixteenth of the 2008 season is complete. The Cubs are 6-4 and have shown glimpses of how good the team is capable of playing....but they have also shown the opposite. Lou Piniella's crew...
Game Eight: Cubs (4-3) vs. Pirates (3-4) Game Time - 6:05pm C.T. Coverage - TV: Comcast SportsNet Plus - Radio: 720 WGN, XM Radio Channel 184 Location - PNC Park, Pittsburgh Ryan Dempster (1-0, 1.50/0.83) vs. Zach Duke (0-0, 3.18/1.94) Updated - 4:14pm C.T. - Carmen Pignatiello Optioned - Sean Marshall Recalled According to a report in the Chicago Tribune, the Cubs have optioned Carmen Pignatiello to Triple-A Iowa and recalled Sean Marshall to take...
As the Cubs soared into the top ten of salaries in the majors, the expectations have risen to an all-time high. Fortunately for the Cubs, they do not have any albatross-type salaries from players that are not producing, ala the New York Yankees. 2009 will see a few contracts come off the books, and this is assuming the Cubs do not end up resigning any of their own free agents. Ryan Dempster, Bobby Howry, Jon...
Installment 6 - The Start of a Historic Season? The CCO Radio returns from vacation for a Friday edition with the first series of the season in the books. Brian and Shaun discuss a variety of Cubs topics from Ryan Dempster's start on Thursday to Kosuke Fukudome's debut to the 'Wild Woody' and Cubs bullpen to the batting order to Soriano's struggles....and just for the record, Shaun is still excited. Also, read on for the...
Lou Piniella's impatience could be felt, and for good reason, after Wednesday's sloppy loss to the Brewers. His crew played a bad game and one could almost see the wheels turning as he talked to the media. Lou Piniella despises losing and one thing is for certain, he will continue to make changes....this time he is not waiting for two months. Alfonso Soriano will hit in the leadoff spot in Thursday's game and this could...
The remaining spot on the Cubs' Opening Day lineup was announced early Sunday afternoon. According to a report in the Chicago Tribune, Carmen Pignatiello will be the lone southpaw in the Cubs bullpen when the season starts on Monday. Scott Eyre is expected to return by the second week in April, but for now Pignatiello will get his shot. The Cubs optioned Sean Marshall to Triple-A, along with Matt Murton. The report in the Tribune...
Spring Training Game Twenty-Nine: Cubs (13-14-1) vs. Angels (18-7) Game Time - 3:05pm C.T. TV: MLB.TV - Radio: Gameday Audio on MLB.com Location - Tempe Diablo Stadium, Tempe Carlos Zambrano (1-0, 0.60/0.73) vs. Jered Weaver (5-0, 1.33/0.74) Updated - 2:35pm C.T. - With Roster Moves - According to Paul Sullivan in the Chicago Tribune, Ronny Cedeno and Mike Fontenot will make the Cubs' Opening Day roster and Matt Murton will either be sent down or...
Updated - 2:14pm C.T. with Additional Information and Roster Cuts According to a report in the Chicago Sun-Times and from Paul Sullivan in Mesa, the Cubs have agreed to a 1-year deal with Reed Johnson worth $1.3 million dollars. Johnson will serve as the Cubs long awaited right-handed outfielder that can play all three spots. In other news, the Cubs made another roster reduction on Tuesday morning. Eric Patterson and Sam Fuld were optioned to...
According to a report in the Chicago Sun-Times, Ryan Dempster and Jason Marquis will join Carlos Zambrano, Rich Hill and Ted Lilly in the Cubs' starting rotation. Jon Lieber will work as Piniella's long man out of the bullpen. Dempster will be inserted into the 3rd spot in the rotation behind Ted Lilly and make his first start of the year against the Brewers on April 3rd. As expected, Kerry Wood was announced as the...
In January the Cubs unveiled their new ad campaign that featured Kosuke Fukudome and Aramis Ramirez in familiar Cubs red, white and blue with flags from their country in the background. The campaign is "designed to showcase the international breadth and depth of the Cubs." Additional ads have been designed that feature Kerry Wood, Alfonso Soriano and Carlos Zambrano....here are the images....
Spring Training Game Eighteen: Cubs (6-11) vs. White Sox (8-10) Game Time - 3:05pm C.T. TV: WGN (White Sox) - Radio: 720 WGN, Gameday Audio on MLB.com, XM Radio Channel 177 Location - Tucson Electric Park, Tucson Rich Hill (0-1, 7.04) vs. Nick Masset (0-1, 3.00) The Crosstown Classic from the Desert.... The Cubs and White Sox face-off for the first time today in 2008, Spring Training or not, it is the Cubs vs. the...
The Cubs announced another round of roster cuts before Tuesday's game against the A's. Shingo Takatsu was given his unconditional release and 5 others were optioned and reassigned to minor league camp. Adam Harben was optioned to Double-A Tennessee on Monday night and was joined on Tuesday by Jeff Samardzija. Jake Fox and Juan Mateo were optioned to Triple-A Iowa while non-roster invitees Ed Campusano, Luis Figueroa and J.D. Closser were assigned to Minor League...
According to a report on Cubs.com, Lou Piniella and Jim Hendry announced the first round of cuts on Friday morning. The Cubs reduced their roster by sending Esmailin Caridad, Jose Ceda, Geoff Jones, Tyler Colvin, Andres Torres, Bobby Scales, Welington Castillo and Josh Donaldson to minor league camp. They also optioned Billy Petrick to Triple-A Iowa. The Cubs Spring Training roster now stands at 50 with more cuts expected next week....
Spring Training Game Four: Cubs (1-2) vs. Giants (1-3) Game Time - 2:05pm C.T. - TV: Comcast SportsNet, MLBTV - Radio: 720 WGN, XM Channel 179 Location - HoHoKam Park, Mesa Ted Lilly (0-0, -.--) vs. Matt Cain (0-0, -.--) A relatively non-eventful Spring Training, with the obvious exception of Mark DeRosa, changed on Saturday with statements by Jason Marquis following the Cubs loss in Tempe to the Angels. Marquis apparently would rather be traded...
According to several reports out of Mesa, Mark DeRosa left Fitch Park on Saturday in an ambulance with an irregular heartbeat. A report in the Chicago Tribune indicated it was for precautionary reasons only and Lou Piniella said DeRosa is "fine". Paramedics hooked up DeRosa to an EKG machine; he was placed on a stretcher and left in an ambulance. The Tribune reported DeRosa "has experience irregular heartbeats in the past, was alert and sitting...
The first full squad workout is scheduled for later today as the last few position players reported to Fitch Park on Monday. The biggest surprise from Day 5 of Camp Lou was the Cubs signing Alex Cintron to a minor league deal. Rumors began to circulate the signing of Cintron was a precursor to a bigger deal involving a certain middle infielder but Jim Hendry shot down all of the speculation. According to a report...
To quote the great Charley Steiner, "There is something liberating about those magical words, pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training." The wait is over. The baseball season begins today. Ryan Dempster, Rich Hill, Angel Guzman, Scott Eyre, Sam Fuld, Jeff Samardzija, Daryle Ward, Geovany Soto and Jason Marquis were among the early arrivals to camp. Samardzija, along with Tyler Colvin and Jake Fox were victims of a thief that broke into the locker rooms...
Finally the long-rumored 6-player deal between the Orioles and Mariners was made official on Friday. Erik Bedard was shipped West for 5 players including one of the best prospects in the game, Adam Jones. Countless reports have indicated this winter that once Andy MacPhail dealt Bedard, Brian Roberts would be next on the trading block. Since the Winter Meetings rumors have suggested the Cubs are very interested in obtaining Brian Roberts. Many trade packages have...
Today the CCO is going to take a little break from discussing rumors concerning two players that are currently employed by Cal Ripken, Jr.'s old team....everyone is probably just as tired of reading about one of the longest-drawn-out-trades-for-no-good-reason in recent memory as this writer. So with that out of the way.... Here is the latest news and notes from around the league and from the North Side....
Welcome to Super Tuesday and Happy Fat Tuesday.... For the last nine days, updates from the mainstream media on the Erik Bedard deal have indicated a trade between the Mariners and Orioles was close to being completed. Depending on which outlet you read or which radio report you listen to, a deal will happen either tomorrow or in the next few days. While the Cubs appear out of the running for the talented southpaw, Jim...
Congratulations to the New York Football Giants and their fans, Super Bowl XLII Champions. While many basketball fans might disagree, all eyes will now turn to Major League Baseball and reporting dates for pitchers and catchers. Here is the latest from around the league, the new Under Armour commercial, a couple of rumors from Sunday and will this finally be the week Peter Angelos allows his past to give way to the future?...
The last weekend in January....only 18 days until pitchers and catchers report. The next couple of weeks could be very interesting around baseball. There are still a lot of big name free agents on the market and trades that could still happen. This off-season has been centered around Johan Santana and some of the experts still feel once he is dealt and sets the market, other teams will be able to fill their holes on...
With a little less than three weeks before pitchers and catchers report on February 13th, Jim Hendry told the Tribune he is not done with his roster. There are additions the Cubs would like to make before Spring Training according to statements made by Hendry over the last week. The same names continue to be mentioned on a daily basis without any movement. Could Hendry be on the verge of adding a couple of players...
Last season the Cubs ad campaign featured a photo of Alfonso Soriano with "Play Like There's No Tomorrow", this year the Cubs will feature several of their stars, including Kosuke Fukudome in new print and outdoor advertisements that were unveiled on Tuesday. The ads will feature Aramis Ramirez, Alfonso Soriano, Kerry Wood, Carlos Zambrano, Derrek Lee and Ryan Theriot, along with Fukudome. Each ad is "designed to showcase the international breadth and depth of the...
Is Jim Hendry still interested in trading for Brian Roberts? Has he stepped up his pursuit and has also targeted Erik Bedard? Is Matt Murton heading to Texas or San Diego? Could Jason Marquis be involved in a deal with the Orioles? What about Marlon Byrd? So many questions and so many rumors. A day after the conclusion of the Convention the rumor mill kicked into high gear, fueled mostly by a report from Phil...
Day one of the 23rd Annual Cubs Convention was filled with familiar faces in the same old place. This year, though, is a little different. The same hope still exists, as it does every year, but instead of a winter spent trying to build a team, the Cubs have spent the off-season trying to mold a winner and build on the momentum that saw them win the Central Division title a year ago. As...
Only one day until the Cubs Convention.... Jim Hendry made news on Wednesday with the signing of Jon Lieber and at the same time increased the speculation on what else he may or may not have up his sleeve. Most reported the Cubs signing of Lieber as "you can never have enough pitching" and thought it was "a low-risk signing." Lieber's deal is worth $3.5 million dollars with incentives based on starts and innings pitched...
According to reports from the Chicago Tribune and from Ken Rosenthal, the Cubs have agreed to a 1-year deal with Jon Lieber. The report in the Tribune indicated early on Wednesday morning that the deal was close but Ken Rosenthal cited sources have told him the Cubs have signed Lieber. Updated - 12:23pm C.T. - It's Official.... The Cubs have announced the signing of Lieber to a 1-year, $3.5 million dollar deal....
Only two more days before The Convention.... The Cubs announced their non-roster invitees to Spring Training on Tuesday. All in all the Cubs invited 19 players. Tyler Colvin and Jose Ceda headline the list of players. Along with Ceda, the Cubs invited 6 other pitchers: Chad Fox, Ed Campusano, Geoff Jones, Les Walrond, Mike Smith and Esmailin Caridad. The Cubs signed Caridad in December. He was 1-2 with a 4.02 ERA in 25 games with...
Another week closer.... the Cubs announced on Friday pitchers and catchers will report to Fitch Park on February 13th, with the first workout on February 14th. Position players will report on February 18th with the first full team workout on February 19th. The Cubs made another minor move on Friday when they inked former Cub, Chad Fox to a 1-year minor league deal with an invitation to Spring Training. Fox pitched for the Cubs in...
As the Brian Roberts watch enters day four, could Jim Hendry be switching gears or are the Cubs still interested in acquiring the switch-hitting second baseman? The mainstream media in Chicago still feels the Cubs would like to add Roberts but a report from Ken Rosenthal on Thursday night mentioned two names that could signify a change of direction for 'Trader Jim'. According to Rosenthal, the Cubs could have interest in either Mike Cameron or...
Somewhere between truth and fiction lies the-would-be-deal that would send Brian Roberts to the Chicago Cubs. Several reports began to surface on Wednesday morning that Roberts had in fact been traded to the North Side for a package that included Ronny Cedeno, Sean Marshall and Sean Gallagher. Both parties quickly denied those reports as speculation continued throughout the day, from the mainstream media, on what Jim Hendry would have to surrender to Andy MacPhail for...
According to reports on XM Radio and on Cubs.com, Angel Pagan was traded to the New York Mets today for two minor leaguers, pitcher Ryan Meyers and outfielder Corey Coles. Updated 2:28pm C.T. with information on both players obtained from the Mets in the trade....
The first weekend update of the New Year.... The Hot Stove picked up a little steam toward the end of the week, there was not much movement, just more rumors and speculation. But at least the talk is heating back up again. The Cubs did announce another change to their front office and the official permission to make changes inside of Wrigley Field. The Cubs will add 70 bullpen box seats along the third base...
The Hot Stove Season has slowed down throughout the league, just not on the North Side of Chicago. Teams will continue to make changes to their rosters over the next six weeks but even XM Radio cannot believe how quiet it is right now. Could this be the calm before pitchers and catchers report? Buck Martinez speculated on Wednesday that the trade between the Tigers and Marlins raised the asking price for proven talent and...
MLB front offices, like most of the business world, will return to work today after the long holiday break. Over the next month there should be more wheelin' and dealin', as well as free agent signings, as clubs prepare for Spring Training to begin in mid-February. Probably the biggest story to follow in the coming weeks will be that of Johan Santana. His future in Minnesota will have a domino effect throughout the league as...
According to reports on ESPN and Fox Sports, Mark Prior has agreed to a 1-year deal with the San Diego Padres. The Major League deal does not include an option for 2009 and with incentives could pay Prior more than $3 million in 2008....
The talk on Friday was the sale of the Tribune Company to Sam Zell. The sale was expected but Zell also announced the Cubs would be sold by Opening Day, as well as possibly the naming rights to Wrigley Field. While the deal could mean millions to the Cubs annually, the old ballpark at 1060 West Addison will always be known as Wrigley Field....no matter what it says on the marquee. Ryan Dempster was on...