NYT: Piniella Says He Forgives McGwire

1 down...6,484 to go (flips over subbing “Kip” Fadiman’s cootie-filled score-keeping device).

Piniella said that McGwire worked very hard on honing his own batting style. That experience will help him relate to hitters.

“He worked on his swing endlessly,” Piniella said. “He swung and missed a lot early in his career. He learned how to make contact more and more. With his strength, the ball flew out of the ballpark.”

Of course, McGwire had more than his natural strength going for him. Last month, he admitted he used steroids on and off for nearly a decade, including when he broke the home run record in 1998.

Will McGwire have trouble gaining the respect of Cardinals players after acknowledging that he cheated?

“I don’t think so,” Piniella said. “I really don’t.

“He confessed. In this country, they forgive and forget. Who is out there that can’t confess to something? We in this baseball fraternity forgive him.”

ESPN Chicago: Kevin Millar: Chemistry not overrated

Red Sox to redox...barbecurari’s on!

“Everybody is looking at stats ... I get it,” Millar, who signed a minor-league contract with the Cubs, said Friday on “The Waddle & Silvy Show” on ESPN 1000. “But my point is when you’re making a team and trying to bring in a bunch of different personalities I think everybody’s got a certain amount of intangibles that they bring.

“Obviously, I’ll bring some leadership qualities. I’ve won a World Series. Having a chance to play with guys like Ryan Dempster and Derrek Lee, we came up together in Florida. It’s trying to make a family atmosphere and trying to get everybody to pull on the same rope and trying to get everybody to believe that we can do this.”

..."[Cubs general manager] Jim [Hendry] knows what I can bring to a clubhouse, what I can bring to a team other than being a right-handed guy off the bench or whatever he needs me to be,” said Millar, 38, who spent last season with the Toronto Blue Jays, batting .223 with seven home runs and 29 runs batted in. “I think that’s the biggest problem that the Cubs have had to be honest with you. People ask me all the time, ‘Is team chemistry overrated?’ Well, you tell me. You’re with 25 guys more than your family from basically end of February to October. That’s not overrated.

“When you go out to eat you want to have 12, 15 guys there. When you barbecue you want everyone included. ....You try to bring a team and a group together. When you get everyone pulling on the same rope, it’s exciting. When you win it’s a lot of fun.”

..."We’re so in tune with stats and numbers and we forget that teams win championships, not players,” Millar said. “My job is to go out there and only do what I can control and that’s have a good spring training and hopefully have a good shot at making this club.”

Walkoff Walk: Freddy Garcia Does His Best Cubs Fan Impression (Video)

Its a thing to do, kids will laugh at you
So do the Freddy

Either Chicago White Sox pitcher Freddy Garcia showed up to SoxFest 2010 with a little flask full of social lubricant or he just does a spot-on impersonation of a typical Cubs fan when he’s busy bashing ‘em. See, because they like to drink. A lot. Heck, I haven’t seen a baseball player this tipsy since the time Miguel Cabrera dove headfirst into a barrel full of Cachaça at MarlinsFest 2006.

Keith Law: Top 100 prospects

NO.  PLAYER
1 Jason Heyward, OF, ATL
2 Stephen Strasburg, RHP, WAS
3 Carlos Santana, C, CLE
4 Buster Posey, C, SFO
5 Mike Stanton, OF, FLA
6 Desmond Jennings, OF, TAM
7 Martin Perez, LHP, TEX
8 Dustin Ackley, CF, SEA
9 Justin Smoak, 1B, TEX
10 Jesus Montero, C, NYY
11 Brian Matusz, LHP, BAL
12 Starlin Castro, SS, CHC
13 Neftali Feliz, RHP, TEX
14 Domonic Brown, RF, PHI
15 Wade Davis, RHP, TAM
16 Aroldis Chapman, LHP, CIN
17 Jeremy Hellickson, RHP, TAM
18 Casey Kelly, RHP, BOS
19 Aaron Hicks, RHP, MIN
20 Brett Wallace, 1B, TOR
21 Logan Morrison, 1B, FLA
22 Tyler Matzek, LHP, COL
23 Jenrry Mejia, RHP, NYM
24 Michael Taylor, OF, OAK
25 Zach Britton, LHP, BAL

Scouting reports for the top 25 should be free, I think.

ESPN Chicago: Cubs sign Chad Tracy to minor league deal

Removing my glasses, pinching the bridge of my nose between my thumb and forefinger, eyes closed, nodding…

As first reported by ESPNChicago.com on Tuesday, Chad Tracy signed a one-year, minor league deal with the Cubs. He will have an opportunity to earn more if he makes the major league roster out of spring training.

Also, in a huge shocker, the Cubs have avoided going to arbitration with Sean Marshall, who will make $950K next season.

ESPNChicago: Dawson may wear Cubs hat for speech

Andre Dawson said he was disappointed the Hall of Fame decided his plaque in Cooperstown, N.Y., will feature a Montreal Expos hat, but Dawson plans to acknowledge Chicago Cubs fans during his induction speech in July.

Dawson, who spent the first 10 full seasons of his career in Montreal, wanted his plaque to feature a Cubs hat. He played six seasons with the Cubs, beginning with his MVP year in 1987.

“I know the difference in the 10 to 6 years probably was something of a consideration on their part,” Dawson said on “The Waddle & Silvy Show” on ESPN 1000. “But I tried to explain, perhaps, the impact of what really catapulted me to Hall of Fame status, and pretty much what my preference was.

“But I think their decision had been made. It was a little gut-wrenching for me to hear that, but it’s their decision, and I respect that, and from there I move on.”

Dawson was hoping his preference would carry a little more weight, but the fact the Expos no longer exist might have made an impact on the Hall. The organization left Montreal after the 2004 season and moved to Washington, D.C., becoming the Nationals.

ESPN: Report: Dawson into Hall as Expo

He won his only MVP trophy as a Chicago Cub, but it looks like Andre Dawson will collect his Hall of Fame hardware as a member of the Montreal Expos.

Dawson sent a text message to the Chicago Tribune on Tuesday night saying: “Hall will issue a press release [Wednesday] announcing that I will go in as an Expo.”

Dawson spent the first 11 seasons of his career in Montreal, winning Rookie of the Year in 1977. He hit 225 of his 438 career homers with the Expos. He also showcased more of a speed game in Montreal, registering 253 of his 314 career steals.

EV Tribune: Mesa City Council’s OK clears hurdle for Cubs to stay

Not-Legends Field is coming to the East Valley, with an invitation for a team with “more selective” appeal to take over Hohokam Park.

The City Council approved its end of a deal Monday evening to build a new spring training complex, dubbed “Wrigleyville West.”

The team has told Mesa that it would respond to Mesa’s offer very quickly after Monday’s action. That’s been widely interpreted as a sign the team will stay in Mesa and not take an offer from developers for a complex near Naples, Fla. ....

Part of Mesa’s deal with the Cubs requires that the team will help attract another team here.

The team has narrowed its new home to one of two sites along the Loop 202 freeway in east Mesa. The 100-acre-plus complex would cost about $84 million and include a stadium of 13,000-15,000 seats, practice fields and commercial development.

Cubs sign Nady, Sheets to A’s

*throws chair, tears rotator cuff*

The Chicago Cubs have signed Xavier Nady to a one-year contract, SI.com has learned, while the Oakland A’s have signed Ben Sheets…

Sheets’ contract is for about $8 million, which is what he had been seeking.

Mitchell: Ernie Banks calls on Sammy Sosa to come clean

The Impotence of Being, Ernest.

In light of Mark McGwire’s recent admission that he took steroids during his record-breaking home run season of 1998, Banks says he would like to assist Sammy Sosa in coming forward to address allegations that he used steroids.

“I would say just what Mark McGwire did,” Banks said. “Come clean with it. Explain it to them. ... Just say: ‘This is what happened.’ It is hard to do, to admit this. Just admit it and live with it and understand it. I am sure a lot of people will forgive him.”

...Banks traveled to the Dominican Republic last year on behalf of the Cubs and tried to contact Sosa, but the former slugger was in Brazil working as a representative for his country. Now Banks wants to meet with Sosa to have a heart-to-heart talk.

“I will just explain it to him and how the people are,” Banks said. “I don’t think he really understood that. People are for you; they want to see you do well. They are forgiving people. We haven’t won in over 100 years, so this audience here is pretty special.”

B-Pro: Cubs Top 11 prospects

Five-Star Prospects
1. Josh Vitters, 3B
2. Starlin Castro, SS
Four-Star Prospects
3. Hak-Ju Lee, SS
4. Brett Jackson, CF
Three-Star Prospects
5. Andrew Cashner, RHP
6. Jay Jackson, RHP
7. Chris Carpenter, RHP
8. Chris Archer, RHP
9. Kyler Burke, OF
10. Ryan Flaherty, INF
11. John Gaub, LHP

Four More:
12. Chris Huseby, RHP: All but written-off, Huseby is a seven-figure signing from the 2006 draft. He shined out of the Low-A Peoria bullpen, showing a big-league quality sinker.
13. Logan Watkins, INF: Watkins is a little second baseman with speed, a line-drive bat, and on-base skills, but zero power.
14. Dae-Eun Rhee, LHP: This Korean import missed nearly all of 2009 recovering from Tommy John surgery, but his upside remains high.
15. Darwin Barney, SS: He’s one of the minors’ best defenders with enough bat to be a nice utility player.

EV Tribune: Mesa unveils plan to keep Cubs; vote Monday

Mesa’s plan was developed after months of talks with the team to prevent the Cactus League’s most popular team from accepting a bid from investors near Naples, Fla.

The $84 million plan was drafted on requests that the Cubs had to develop a Wrigleyville-themed complex, Mesa City Manager Chris Brady said. The city would own the stadium and training facilities. Mesa maintains the current training facilities, but Brady said the team wanted to take that expense and gain advertising rights at the new complex.

Rehabbing Sheets works out for scouts

Is Ben in the best shape of his life?

Sheets, who had surgery on the flexor tendon in his right elbow last February, went 86-83 with a 3.72 ERA in his first eight seasons in the Major Leagues, notching double-digit wins seven times and finishing with an ERA under 4.00 in each of his past five seasons. In ‘08, he went 13-9 with a 3.09 ERA in 31 starts for the Brewers.

According to a report on AOL Fanhouse, Sheets first threw 20 fastballs in the workout, topping out at 91 mph. He then threw another 20 pitches, half of them curveballs. In his third session, Sheets’ fastball topped out at 88 mph and the pitcher looked “gassed,” the report said. Sheets is believed to be seeking a two-year deal.

Thunder Matt’s Saloon: Have You Seen Me?

I see Wuornos in there, but then again...I see Wuornos everywhere.

One of my friends has a coworker who recently went to the Cubs convention. Before she went he gave her a ball to collect a few signatures. It came back with a few obvious ones (Lou, Marshall, etc...). It also came with this signature. I have no idea who this could be. The first name starts with an S or a G and the last name looks like it begins with “Mc”. Could it be that some random person just convinced this poor girl that they played for the Cubs?

Here are our guesses thus far:

Sark McGuire
Sammy McDonalds
Gammy McSosa
Sodd McHollandsworth
Sadaam McDreamy

Almost famous: Cubs’ Colvin latest athlete to have identity stolen

Colvin, a 24-year-old minor leaguer most Cubs fans would have a hard time identifying in a lineup, got a call last week — from his grandfather — informing him that Matthew Van Meter allegedly pretended to be Colvin so he could drive out of a Utah Dodge dealership in a Ram pickup truck he didn’t pay for.

Colvin, who is from South Carolina, finds the whole thing a little unnerving.

But also kind of funny.

“I mean, the guy didn’t have my Social Security number, he didn’t have anything,” Colvin told Big League Stew during the Cubs Convention in Chicago this past weekend. “He just walked in and said he was ‘Tyler Colvin from the Chicago Cubs’ and they let him get in the car ... He’s in jail now and nothing’s wrong with me or my credit.”

A Serious Man

Last year, catcher Geovany Soto overslept and missed his flight from Puerto Rico to the convention. At the time, it annoyed the Cubs but wasn’t seen as a huge deal. After all, he was the National League Rookie of the Year. Little did anyone know it would be the harbinger for a wasted, miserable year for both Soto and the Cubs.

Now he looks like a whole new man and maybe that bodes well for the Cubs. Reporters and Cubs officials barely recognized the now-svelte catcher, though the carefully sculpted eyebrows kind of give him away.

Soto said he lost almost 40 pounds, and probably weighs around 205 to 210 pounds.

“I feel really good,” he said. “I feel energized, like I’m 12 years old.”

Best shape of his life?

Chicago Cubs plan massive restructuring of Wrigley Field - chicagotribune.com

They are not talking about the team.

Baseball Picture of the Day: Chicago 1908

31 days....

Today’s image (which I HIGHLY suggest you look at in it’s original size):

West Side Park, August, 1908. Cubs vs. Giants.

It is noted on the FLICKR site that “The various right angles painted in foul territory were part of the rules at that time, defining the boundaries of where the game’s non-participants were to stand. The one remnant of those lines that still exist in the rules today are the coaches’ boxes.”

Below the image, the caption notes that “Chicago enjoys the distinction of being the greatest baseball city in the country,...”

This image is in the Public Domain, still, here is some attribution:

Tomorrow: The Crapper

Sullivan: Ten things learned at the 25th Cubs Convention

The 25th annual Cubs Convention winds down Sunday at the Chicago Hilton & Towers after a wild weekend of ranting, raving and Ricketts-watching.

Ghosts of DeRosa/Bradley remain

Jim Hendry has apologized so many times now for trading Mark DeRosa and signing Milton Bradley he’s threatening to have his name placed in the Guinness Book of World records for most mea culpas in one lifetime.

“I certainly was the one that did the majority of the work and the background and the offensive numbers before we signed Milton,” he said. “Obviously it was a shoot for the moon (decision)...Obviously it didn’t work out. It was totally my responsibility. It was a mistake in hindsight. I think we’ve rectified the mistake.”

At one point, WGN radio host Bob Sirott implored fans to stop harping on the failed Bradley experiment. “Milton Bradley is gone,” he said. “Let it go.”

As for why the Cubs didn’t re-sign DeRosa as a free agent, Hendry said they felt his days as a second baseman were over, pointing out that his new team, San Francisco, is using him in left field.

Cubs are all ears

The addition of a “Chief Hospitality Officer” by the Ricketts was an indication the organization will listen most intently to fan complaints and advice. Perhaps the most promising quote was delivered by team president Crane Kenney, who told fans: “We take our cues from you all."…

Thanks to Almo.

NYT: Creams Offering Lighter Skin May Bring Risks

Dermatologists nationwide are seeing women of Hispanic and African descent, among others, with severe side effects like Mrs. Ross’s from the misuse of skin-lightening creams, many with prescription-strength ingredients, which are sold in beauty shops and bodegas and online.

Hyprogel, made in Germany, contains the powerful steroid clobetasol propionate and includes a warning to use only as directed by a doctor. Fair & White, from France, normally contains no steroids, but counterfeit versions with undisclosed ingredients have turned up in stores.

In November, some fans of Sammy Sosa, the former Chicago Cubs slugger, were surprised when photographs from the Latin Grammy Awards ceremony showed his face as uniformly lighter. Online critics accused him of wanting to be white. Mr. Sosa, a Dominican-born American citizen, told a reporter from ESPNDeportes.com that he had used a cream nightly to “soften” his skin and that it had bleached it, too. “I’m not a racist,” he said in the interview. “I live my life happily.”

“Clobetasol is the most potent topical steroid we make in dermatology,” said Dr. Gilbert, who works nearby. “There’s almost no indication where you’d use it on the face. And it’s basically provided to people as cosmetic products. It’s illegal.”

It’s a corticosteroid, so don’t expect to see Sammy Sosa on MLB Network confessing to Ken Rosenthal any time soon.

Chicago landlord suing former Cub Milton Bradley

Shades of Rickey Henderson.

Former Cubs outfielder Milton Bradley was sued Friday for ditching his Gold Coast apartment while still owing about $44,000 on the one-year lease.

...The suit, filed in Cook County Circuit Court, said Bradley “abandoned” his 24th-floor condominium at the Park Hyatt Chicago at 800 N. Michigan Avenue on Oct. 12. He agreed to pay up to $15,000-a-month- rent when he signed a one-year lease in March, the suit said.

The suit alleged he owed $44,100 in rent, late fees and interest.

The condo owner, Pantelis Kotsiopoulos, said he dealt with representatives of Bradley but was unable to resolve the dispute short of a lawsuit.

“You deal with it in a business-like matter,” he told a Tribune reporter. “You try to treat people in the way you want to be treated yourself, and when they don’t respond the proper way, you go through the legal avenue.”

Thief posed as Chicago Cub, charges say

A Nevada man is accused of posing as a Major League Baseball player to steal a car.

Matthew T. Van Meter, 24, is charged in Utah state court with felony counts of theft and forgery. Charging papers accuse Van Meter, of Elko., Nev., of using the name and documents identifying him as Chicago Cubs outfielder Tyler Colvin.

Van Meter, the charges say, on Tuesday signed documents with a Ken Garff auto dealership in West Valley City to buy a 2010 Dodge pickup worth $50,000. Van Meter promised to pay for the truck the next day and drove away in it.

Insert “Scapegoat” Joke here

Piniella’s winning formula: Addition by subtraction :: CHICAGO SUN-TIMES

happy days are here again for the Cubbies. Or not.

‘’If we can win 83 baseball games with all the problems we had last year, plus all the injuries we had,’’ Piniella said, ‘’then if we stay relatively healthy, I don’t see why we can’t add eight to 10 wins to this thing to get to the postseason—to get to postseason and win in postseason.’’

All the problems.

Plus the injuries.

In other words, erase headaches such as Milton Bradley from the roster and get pitcher Ted Lilly’s shoulder game-ready early in the season, and the disappointment of 2009 is erased. That would make this season about building off 2008 again.

Chicago Cubs have eyes on free-agent pitcher Ben Sheets

The Cubs plan to make a run at free-agent pitcher Ben Sheets, who will work out for teams later this month.

General manager Jim Hendry declined to comment, but he spoke to Sheets’ agent at the winter meetings in Indianapolis and major-league sources say the Cubs are one of Sheet’s preferred destinations.

Sheets reportedly has been asking for a two-year deal averaging around $10 million to $12 million per year, but the Cubs believe they have a good shot at landing him with an incentive-laden deal.

Thanks to Buzz.

ESPN Chicago: Maddux back with Cubs

Not to pitch, though - at least not yet.

The Chicago Cubs signed future Hall of Famer Greg Maddux as the special assistant to general manager Jim Hendry, according to a source familiar with the signing.

The move will be announced Monday afternoon.

Maddux will help with instruction for major-leaguers and minor-leaguers during spring training, and he will scout throughout the season.

“Future Hall of Famer” - assuming he isn’t outed as a steroid user, that is.

Game on: Will Cubs, Red Sox spring training initiatives make progress in 2010?—Naples Daily News

Ahh, thoughts of the spring in Florida make the snow outside just a little less annoying.

2010 will be a series of game-time decisions for two teams and their futures in Southwest Florida.

By a week from now, a hearing examiner could be reviewing whether to rezone property for a new Lee County spring training complex for the Boston Red Sox.

By a month from now, the Chicago Cubs may have decided whether to make a future move to Collier County or to stay long-term in Mesa, Ariz.

By a year from now, construction could be moving ahead on the new Red Sox stadium that is to be ready for spring training 2012.

Cubs land (Marlon) Byrd

His trip north was fictional, but his trip south was very real...

The Cubs landed one of their top two choices for center field today, signing Texas free agent Marlon Byrd to a three-year, $15 million deal.

Byrd, 32, fills the Cubs’ top priority post-Milton Bradley, giving them a legitimate center fielder and allowing Kosuke Fukdome to move back to his natural right field – where he’s one of the best defenders in the National League.

Byrd, a right-handed hitter, is coming off his one significant run-producing year (20 homers, 89 RBIs, both career highs) and figures to bat fifth or sixth in the Cubs’ order.

Rosenthal: Cubs near deal with CF Byrd

Marlon: The Appaloosa’s.

The Cubs have found their center fielder.

The team is close to signing free agent Marlon Byrd to a three-year contract, according to major-league sources.

An announcement could come as soon as Thursday.

The Cubs also had been considering free agents Scott Podsednik and Rick Ankiel, but consider Byrd the best all-around player of the three.

Byrd, 32, is coming off a career-best season with the Rangers in which he batted .283 with 20 homers and 89 RBIs.

Yahoo Sports: Duk: The top 10 playoff disappointments of the 2000s

Next up are the most disappointing playoff teams of the decade, a group that crept close to the promised land before leaving all of their fans to wonder what might have been. We weighed a number of factors before including each member, but please note that this list does not include any World Series teams. It’s our view that an AL or NL title can rarely be viewed as a total downer. (We’re sure, though, that fans of the 2002 Giants, ‘03 Yankees, ‘04 Cardinals and ‘06 Tigers would like to disagree.)

Hawk 4 the Hall: Andre Dawson by the Numbers

Happy Holidaze, everybody!

Baseball is relatively an easy game to understand. Two opposing teams get three outs per inning to try to make something happen in order to manufacture runs. After nine innings the team with the most runs wins.

Baseball statistics and how those statistics were evaluated in order to determine if a player should be in the Hall of Fame used to be that simple.

It’s crazy all of these new sabermetric statistic-formulas that people have came up with that are now being used to evaluate eligible players for the Hall with. I’ve been reading articles where writers, some of whom are HOF voters, that have been using these type of statistics on why they won’t vote for Andre, “Andre’s win shares are too low,” or “his OPS+ isn’t as high as I would like.”

Win shares? OPS+? Whatever happened to just saying, “This player has X home runs, X runs batted in, X hits, X Gold Gloves, etc.”? “Man, those are great numbers, of course player X is a Hall of Famer!”

Numbers, not formulas.

I understand that win shares and OPS+ and other complicated formula statistics like that have their place in modern baseball, but let’s look at statistics and numbers that everyone can understand when determining how to vote for Hall of Fame candidates.

...Leave the formulas to the BCS system in determining the National College Football Championship and vote for one of the best all-around players ever to play the game into the Hall in 2010!