The Best and Worst of Jim Hendry

You probably already know that Jim Hendry was fired by the Chicago Cubs on Friday.  Actually, that's not true - he was really fired almost a month ago, but in a baffling move he was allowed to stay on as GM through the July 31 trade deadline (when the Cubs twiddled their thumbs and did nothing).  Which means that, technically, the Cubs allowed an ex-employee to make crucial decisions (or non-decisions) affecting the team's future.  It figures that even when the Cubs do something right, they still do it wrong.

Looking back on Hendry's nearly ten-year tenure running the Cubs, one could make the argument that he's the most successful GM the team has ever had (granted, there's not much competition).  After all, the Cubs won three division titles under his watch, and made back-to-back postseason appearances (in 2007 and 2008) for the first time since Tinker, Evers, and Chance (and Steinfeldt) patrolled the infield at West Side Grounds in the early 20th Century.  But there was always a feeling that, given the Cubs decided financial advantage as the only major-market team in the NL Central, they could have done even better.  For one thing, their three division titles included an 88-win season (2003) and an 85-win season (2007); both times, the Cubs didn't field dominant teams, but instead they barely were able to prevail over weak competitors to finish first.  And Hendry's three division winners were counterbalanced by the last-place, 96-loss clunker of 2006 and the last two lackluster seasons, which left the Cubs' overall record during his time as GM at 749-748 - which is about as mediocre as you can get.

Two Down - Jim Hendry Fired as Cubs GM

Wow, what a great year this is turning out to be!  First, Ron Guenther retired.  Now comes the news that the Cubs have fired GM Jim Hendry.  Since I wasn't expecting this to happen until after the season ended (if ever), it will take a little time for me to put together a longer retrospective on Hendry's tenure as GM.  But for now, it's good to know that three of my four favorite teams are giving me hope for something different (accountability and sustained success) going forward.  And since these things usually happen in threes, if I were Jerry Angelo (and if Angelo were aware of my blog), I'd be getting really nervous.

End of "Z" Line: A Look at Carlos Zambrano's Chicago Cubs Career

Getting into a dugout (and locker room) fight with his catcher (Michael Barrett) didn't do it.  Engaging in a dugout shouting match with the mild-mannered Derrek Lee didn't do it either.  But cleaning out his locker and walking out of Turner Field in the middle of Friday's game - that may be the act that finally marks the end of Carlos Zambrano's tenure in the Chicago Cubs organization.  The Cubs have placed Zambrano on the disqualified list, essentially banning him (without pay) from the team for 30 days.  Judging by the reactions of his teammates, they won't miss him, even if it means more starts for the likes of Casey Coleman or Ramon Ortiz in Zambrano's absence.

If this is indeed the end for Big Z's time in Chicago, it's a sad reminder of another once-popular Cubs player who walked out of the clubhouse in the middle of a game - Sammy Sosa, who also never played with the Cubs again after committing his transgression.  And as with another hot-headed Cub of recent vintage - Milton Bradley - Jim Hendry (or his successor) will undoubtedly be forced to purge Zambrano from the roster one way or another.  It's not like finding a taker for a slightly-above-average pitcher with an $18 million contract for 2012 would be an easy job under any circumstances, but Zambrano's selfish actions have made getting any kind of value in return a near-impossible task.

Carlos Zambrano won 125 games as a Cub - a total topped by only three other Cubs pitchers since World War II (Fergie Jenkins, Greg Maddux, and Rick Reuschel, who has an awesome nickname).  Only Jenkins recorded more strikeouts as a Cub than Zambrano.  Only eight pitchers in major league history have hit more home runs than Zambrano, who had 23.  And in 2008, he pitched the Cubs' first no-hitter since 1972.  But unfortunately, that's not what fans will remember.  They'll likely remember him the way baseball fans remember players like Dick Allen and Bradley - both of whom had emotional issues that prevented them from reaching their full potential as players and teammates.   Despite the anger management issues, Zambrano is still young enough and healthy enough that someone will probably find a spot for him on a 2012 major league roster.  But it won't be the Chicago Cubs' roster.

So farewell, Big Z.  Thanks for the memories, and best of luck to you getting not only your professional life together, but also getting your personal life together.

Cleveland Rocks! Fukudome Leaves Cubs, Joins Indians

The Cubs and Indians have been talking about a Kosuke Fukudome trade for a few days now, but apparently it took having a no-hitter thrown against them to spur the Indians into action.  Jim Hendry has sent Fukudome to the Indians for two low-level prospects:  21-year-old OF Abner Abreu (who has a .294 OPB and 102/22 K/BB ratio in A-Ball this year, meaning that he should fit right in with the Cubs' organizational philosophy); and 25-year-old RHP Carlton Smith (who in two years at AAA Columbus has posted a 5.46 ERA and a 1.61 WHIP).  Oh, and the Cubs will be picking up most of Fukudome's remaining salary for the year (all but $775K).  So as far as return, not much in the way of prospects, and not much in the way of salary relief this year, although maybe enough to help get contracts done with some of the Cubs remaining unsigned 2011 draftees.  But how much can you expect to get for a 34-year-old corner OF with a $13.5 million contract and a .369 slugging percentage?  Of course, to the Indians, who have lost Shin-Soo Choo to injury and have been using a platoon of Travis Buck (.617 OPS) and Austin Kearns (.632 OPS) in RF, Kosuke must look like Mel Ott.

Fukudome never became the player the Cubs thought they were getting when they signed him.  The Cubs expected him to become a middle-of-the-order run producer from the left side, but that role didn't work out for him, as his high OBP made him more suited for the top of the order (unfortunately it wouldn't be the last time the Cubs made that mistake while assessing a player's skill set.  Of course, had Fukudome hit the way the Cubs thought he would in 2008, that 2009 mistake would never have been made in the first place.  But I digress).  Eventually, the Cubs found themselves in a similar situation with Kosuke as they were in with Matt Murton - another player with a solid on-base skills, but not enough power to be a corner OF and not good enough on defense to play CF.  Fukudome's habit of fast starts (.979 April OPS) and slow, painful declines during the season (.772 career OPS) was maddening, as were the ever-popular "helicopter" swinging strikeouts.  Bottom line - Fukudome's skills and the Cubs' needs weren't a good match.  Since he would have found himself playing elsewhere in 2012, at least now he finds himself in a pennant race.

With Fukudome gone, the Cubs will let Tyler Colvin, who is pretty much the complete opposite of Fukudome (decent power, low OBP), take most of the playing time in RF, and the Cubs will be down to two regulars (Soto and Peña) who consistently work counts.  And I guess this is as good a time as any to recall Kosuke's greatest moment as a Cub, which came in his very first game in blue pinstripes and gave us hope that the 2008 season was going to be a special one:

Thanks, Kosuke, for your often underappreciated skills, and best of luck to you in Cleveland, where I hope you'll help keep the Indians ahead of the 3rd place AL Central team.

Happy Birthday to Me!

One year ago today, I came up with a bold, innovative idea that promised to revolutionize the way we viewed Internet sports coverage.  But instead of pursuing that idea, I started this blog. When I first put fingers to keyboard, I had no idea my favorite teams would provide so much material.  So on the occasion of the first birthday of "The Frustrated Fan", let's take a look at some of the highlights from my first year of blogging:

• The Cubs made a nearly seamless transition from a hopeless, crappy 2010 season to a hopeless, crappy 2011 season.
• The Bears surprisingly won the NFC Central and hosted the NFC Championship Game (that's good)...which they lost to the Packers, who went on to win the Super Bowl (that's bad).
• With an exciting freshman QB at the helm, the Illini football team overcame the frequently idiotic coaching of Ron Zook and won their first bowl game of the new millennium.
• Bruce Weber finally won an NCAA tournament game at Illinois without players recruited by Bill Self, then lost in the next round of the tournament to a team full of players recruited by Bill Self.
• And (perhaps) best of all, Ron Guenther's reign as Illinois Athletic Director came to a peaceful end.

So many memories - and so many questions still to be answered in the upcoming year:

• Which veterans will the Cubs dump at the trade deadline?  With over $40 million in payroll coming off the books in 2012, whom will the Cubs bring in to upgrade next year's roster?  And will Jim Hendry be the GM doing that off-season upgrading?
• Will the NFL lockout end in time for the season to begin as scheduled?  And wouldn't a cancelled NFL season actually be better than the alternative - a season in which the Packers stand a good chance to repeat as Super Bowl champions?
• Can Zook build on last season's success after losing his best offensive player and two best defensive players to the NFL draft?  If not, how much longer will the new AD (whoever (s)he is) keep him around?
• Shouldn't a basketball team which possesses three consecutive highly-ranked recruiting classes and plays a relatively soft non-conference schedule and in a weak Big Ten be able to comfortably make the NCAA tournament?  And if Weber's Illini spend another Selection Sunday on the bubble (or worse), how much longer will the new AD (whoever (s)he is) keep him around?

Stick around to get the answers to these (and many more) questions.  It's sure to be a better "Year Two" than the Ricketts family is having!

Cubs Lean on Russell for Emergency Start - Again, and Again, and Again....

Tough break for the Cubs, losing starting pitchers Randy Wells and Andrew Cashner to injuries so early in the season, so they'll have to rely on LOOGY James Russell to make an emergency start tonight against...wait a minute, didn't I write about this before? [Checks old blog posts] Yes, I did - two weeks ago; Russell is actually going to be making his third "emergency" start tonight, after allowing 8 earned runs over 5 2/3 innings in his other two "emergency" starts. You mean to tell me, Jim Hendry and Mike Quade, that you've had all this time to fix this hole in the rotation, and in the entire Cubs organization (to say nothing of the entire world of organized baseball) you can't come up with even one pitcher who can give your team a decent chance at a win?

If Hendry or Quade got a flat tire on their car, they would put on the spare tire and then continue driving hundreds of miles on it as if nothing had happened.

Can the Mets Teach the Cubs a Lesson?

Yes, this is a baseball blog, too. I've been a little Illini-heavy lately, but since they're out of the NCAA tournament, you'll be hearing a lot more about the Cubs. But first, a few words about the Mets. Hmmm...that sounds confusing, but I promise that it'll all shake out by the end of this post.

Yesterday, the Mets released lefthander Oliver Perez, eating the remainder of his $12 million contract. This came just days after they released second baseman Luis Castillo, eating the remainder of his $6 million contract. Two thoughts:

1. Remember last year at the trading deadline, when there was a rumor that the Cubs and Mets were discussing a deal that would have sent Carlos Zambrano to New York for Perez and Castillo? I'm not sure how much truth there was to that story, but considering how well Zambrano finished last season and that Perez and Castillo appear to be finished, we Cubs fans can thank our lucky stars that the trade never actually went through. Kudos to you, Jim Hendry!

2. Now let's see if Hendry can follow the Mets' lead and earn some extra kudos from me by eating some of the Cubs' bloated contracts (I'm mostly thinking of this one).

Cubs Trade Gorzelanny to Nationals

With newly-acquired Matt Garza in the fold, it was clear that the Cubs were going to trade one of their established starters. So after Jim Hendry removed the blindfold and looked at the dartboard careful consideration, the Cubs decided to send Tom Gorzelanny packing Monday, shipping the lefty to the Nationals for three prospects, "none of whom is considered a top 10 prospect" (thanks for that buzzkill, MLB.com press release). I can think of several possible reasons for this trade:

1. Gorzelanny was arbitration eligible and was due for a big raise (from $800,000 last year to the $2 million range), and the Ricketts family couldn't find enough coins under the sofa cushions to afford him anymore;
2. He grew up as a White Sox fan in Evergreen Park and the Cubs found out he was bringing them down from the inside; or
3. The Cubs are only allowed to have one pitcher at a time with a "G" and a "Z" in his last name.

Gorzelanny's departure leaves the Cubs without an established left-handed starter, although with a career xFIP of 4.85, the only thing Gorzelanny has really established so far is that he's only a viable starter because of his left-handedness. It would have been nice if the Cubs could have at least picked up a high end minor leaguer in return, but apparently every time the Cubs trade a lefty starter, they are bound by law to receive only low-ceiling minor league players.

So in summary, this move does nothing to help the Cubs get in front of the Brewers, Reds, or Cardinals, but it shouldn't keep them from finishing in front of the Astros.

Fourth Place, here we come!

Familiar Faces Return to the Cubs

In 2010, Koyie Hill received 231 plate appearances, during which he posted a .214/.254/.298 line (good for an OPS+ of 44). You can't find that level of offensive production just anywhere - well, actually you probably could, even if you just picked some random guy stocking shelves at Target. You'd think a major league player who couldn't hit at all would at least be a good defensive player, right? Think again - Hill only threw out 18% of the baserunners who tried to steal against him, although to be fair he held onto the ball while allowing an opposing team's baserunner to score from third base only once all season.

So after a performance like that, you'd expect the Cubs to say goodbye to Hill, but not only did Jim Hendry offer him arbitration, he signed Hill to a contract that actually increases his salary from $700,000 to $850,000 (that's a raise of over 20%). It's not a lot of money, but it's hard to take the Ricketts family's cries of poverty seriously when they let their GM re-sign a sub-mediocre veteran instead of giving the backup catcher's job to a minimum salaried player (see Castillo, Welington, or Ramirez, Max, both of whom are already in the Cubs organization). A possible light at the end of the tunnel - before the 2009 season, Hendry signed the eminently replacement-level Paul Bako to a free agent contract, but released him during Spring Training. Perhaps history repeats itself here.

In better news, 2008 cult hero Reed Johnson signed a minor league contract with the Cubs and will be invited to Spring Training. The Cubs have a crowded outfield, with four players (Soriano, Byrd, Colvin, and Fukudome) already penciled in for 2011 (barring a trade), so Johnson will likely be competing with Fernando Perez (who came over in the Garza trade) for the 5th outfielder spot. Johnson brings with him a decent .748 career OPS (94 OPS+), a solid glove, and a penchant for making spectacular defensive plays (like this, and this - I hope Ryan Dempster bought him a couple of nice dinners for those catches). It's a good, low-cost, low-risk move, the kind of thing Hendry should be doing more often.

So in summary, it looks like Hendry went .500 on his signings today, which will be a better record than the Cubs end up with in 2011.

Cubs Set to Acquire Garza. I'm Set to Throw in the Towel for 2011, 2012, and Beyond.

Remember the glorious 2005-06 offseason? The Cubs were coming off a disappointing 79 win season and were looking for a CF upgrade - Corey Patterson, their primary CF in '05, had posted a "this is not a typo" .602 OPS (and a Koyie Hill-esque 54 OPS+). Jim Hendry's solution? Trade away three pitching prospects, including Ricky Nolasco, for Juan Pierre, who was in the last year of his contract. The acquisition of Pierre spurred the Cubs to a memorable season, as they came achingly close...to finishing ahead of the Pirates and out of last place. After 2006, Pierre left via free agency, while Nolasco has developed into a solid (and relatively inexpensive) starting pitcher, giving the Marlins 10.8 WAR (thanks, FanGraphs) over the last 4 seasons (for comparison's sake, Pierre has compiled 9 WAR since the beginning of the 2006 season).

Why am I rehashing this painful history? Well, it looks as if Jim Hendry hasn't learned from his past mistakes. Again, we have a Cubs team coming off a disappointing season with little hope of contending for a division title in the upcoming year. The solution this time? Trade three of our top 10 prospects, including the organization's minor league pitcher of the year Chris Archer and infielder Hak-Ju Lee, for Rays' starter Matt Garza. On the surface, Garza looks like a pretty good pitcher - in 2010 he won 15 games in the rugged AL East, with a respectable 3.91 ERA. But look a little deeper, and you'll see that he's nothing special:

2010 Randy Wells - 194 1/3 IP, 6.67 K/9, 2.92 BB/9, 4.09 xFIP, 3.3 WAR
2010 Matt Garza - 204 2/3 IP, 6.60 K/9, 2.77 BB/9, 4.51 xFIP, 1.8 WAR

Remember that WAR is context, park, and league neutral, so any gains that Garza might see from not having to face the powerful Yankees and Red Sox lineups as often will likely be offset by the Cubs mediocre defense and by Garza having to work in a less-pitcher-friendly environment (he's moving from the best pitcher's park in baseball in 2010 to one of the worst). In essence, Hendry is mortgaging the Cubs future for a starter who will provide a slight upgrade to the Cubs pitching staff. If the Cubs were anywhere close to being a contender in 2011 (or if this were a trade for a Zack Greinke/Cliff Lee type of pitcher), this might make sense, but Garza is basically another #3 starter, and the Cubs will probably be spending 2011 battling the Astros for 4th place. And by the time the Cubs are in position to be serious contenders again (2012, maybe?), Archer might be a better pitcher (and will be a much cheaper pitcher) than Garza. Holding on to Archer now would also mean that the Cubs could use him as a trading chip later if they are in contention and a bigger prize comes on the market (think 1984 Rick Sutcliffe or 2008 CC Sabathia).

On balance, I've been OK with the Cubs off-season moves so far (signing Pena and Wood), because Hendry hadn't yet done anything to handcuff the Cubs past 2011, leaving open the possibility of big changes next offseason when several big contracts (Fukudome, Silva, Grabow, Ramirez) expire. But this move demonstrates that even after all his years on the job, Hendry still has no idea how to build a winning team (if he needs a lesson, he should look to the team he just traded with). What's worse is that the Ricketts family is in penny-pinching mode, so we're probably stuck with Hendry until his contract expires (after the 2012 season), and until Hendry is gone the Cubs will continue to be the Pirates with a higher payroll.

We Got Wood - Again!

Jim Hendry made a great move by signing Kerry Wood. Since the Ricketts family purchased that time machine, I'm assuming that the Cubs will be using it to bring back the 2003 version of Wood to be the number one starter they need, and that....I'm sorry, what did you say? The Cubs don't have access to a time machine? So you're telling me that the Cubs will be getting the 2011 version of Kerry Wood - a middle reliever who'll pitch about 70 innings next year, and not a staff ace. Well, that's not really going to help them make up 16 games in the standings next year, is it? In fact, if I were cynical, I'd say this is just a ploy by Jim Hendry - sign a popular former Cub to try to distract the fans from how bad the team is going to be in 2011. Oh, wait, I am a cynic, so that's exactly what I'm saying.

EDIT - it looks like the Cubs made a pretty good deal here: one year, $1.5 million. Especially when you consider that next year they'll be paying $4.8 million to John Grabow and $3.5 million to Jeff Samardzija to be much, much worse that Wood. But it still won't transform the Cubs into a good team, and it probably won't even make them into a mediocre team.

A Smart Move by Jim Hendry?

Yes, I do think the Carlos Pena signing was a good one. Some people will negatively obsess over his .196 batting average in 2010, but he also had 28 HR, 84 RBI, and 87 walks, which would have led the Cubs in all three categories. It's interesting to compare the two Chicago first basemen, the other of whom just signed a three-year contract for more money than Pena received.

Pena (career): .351 OBP, .490 SLG, 123 OPS+, 33 years old.

Konerko (career): .356 OBP, .498 SLG, 119 OPS+, 35 years old.

Pena bats left-handed, is a pretty good fielder, and the one-year contract doesn't handcuff the Cubs beyond the 2011 season. So if the team stinks (which they will) and he bounces back to his 2007-09 levels, he'll be a good trading chip. If he's no good, you can easily say good-bye to him at the end of the year and go after a bigger fish when you'll have more money to spend next offseason.

Kudos to you, Jim Hendry, and keep up the (relatively) good work!

Another MVP in the NL Central

Joey Votto won the NL MVP award today, beating out another NL Central first baseman who's won a few MVP awards. Throw in the king-sized Prince of Milwaukee, who's had a couple of MVP-caliber seasons himself and is only 26 years old, and there's quite a collection of first basemen in the NL Central.

Oh, and then there are the Cubs, who have a payroll of over $100 million committed for next year but don't have anything resembling a first baseman on their roster right now. But don't worry, Cubs fans, because we still have Jim Hendry as our GM, and he'll find a way to...what's that? The new ownership is not adding payroll next year? Great, so now the Cubs won't have anything resembling a major league first baseman on their Opening Day roster either. Fifth place, here we come again!

It's Quade!

Congratulations, Mike Quade. You've worked your way up the ladder, and now you're a non-interim major league manager - of a team with no number one starter, no first baseman, no second baseman, no leadoff hitter, no bullpen besides Carlos Marmol and Sean Marshall, and thanks to the boneheaded decisions made by your boss, no money to fix these problems. Best of luck to you in 2011 - you'll need it.

I'll Take Potpourri for $200, Alex

Here it comes - the corned beef hash of blog posts.

You know that Ron Guenther has to be behind this proposal.

I'm excited about the upcoming Illini basketball season, but I'm worried that we probably have the only coach in the country who uses the word "mollycoddling".

I see that the Arizona Diamondbacks have hired Kevin Towers as their new GM. This is a good move for them - during his 15-year tenure as the GM of the Padres, he showed that he was not afraid of sabermetric analysis, and despite middle-of-the-road payrolls his team won four division titles and appeared in the 1998 World Series. However, the Padres lost a one-game playoff after being one strike away from another postseason appearance in 2007. Two sub-par seasons later, he was out of a job. The point? If Kevin Towers got fired for having that resume, how does Jim Hendry still have his job?

They Gone!

Congratulations to the AL Central champion Minnesota Twins, who became the first team to clinch a playoff spot tonight when the White Sox lost in Oakland. It must be fun to be a Twins fan and root for a well-run organization. The Twins won the AL Central last year, but after being swept out of the ALDS they upgraded their roster in an intelligent way. Instead of throwing lots of money at mediocre free agents (like some GMs would), they made a couple of low-budget free agent pickups, getting a starting second baseman and a power-hitting DH, who combined are making only $800,000 more than the Cubs are paying the combination of Jeff Samardzija and John Grabow. The Twins also picked up their starting shortstop in exchange for a guy who can't crack the starting outfield in Milwaukee. And they were able to cover for the loss of one of the best closers in baseball for the entire season, and the loss of one of the best first basemen in the AL for the second half of the season, and run away with their division.

Unlike recent Twins teams, this one isn't a hard-nosed, talent-challenged, overachieving bunch of piranhas. They have the second best record in the AL, and they earned it, with the second best run differential in the AL (both trailing only the Yankees). The Twins are a model for anybody who wants to put together a winning team within the confines of a budget, and I'd love it if the Cubs would ditch Hendry and find someone who could copy what they have done.

Trading Day

Good movie, featuring an Oscar-winning performance by Denzel Washington. Why is this on a sports blog? Oh, you said trading day, not Training Day - sorry, my ears are a little stuffed up. Allergies.

Getting back to the trading deadline, the Cubs bid farewell to beloved left-handed bulldog T. Roosevelt Lilly, Esq., and (s)crappy infielder Ryan Theriot, who are now property of the L.A. Dodgers. I'll miss Lilly, but I'm sure he won't miss the Cubs putrid offense, which stuck him with the lowest run support of any starter in the NL and left him with a 3-8 won-loss record that in no way reflects how well he pitched. As for Theriot, I'll miss his career OPS+ of 83, his penchant for baserunning blunders, and fans who wear his jersey in a non-ironic way. In return, the Cubs are out from all but $2.5 million of Lilly's contract and any financial obligations for Theriot this year and next, which amounts to a few million bucks. Also, they received a couple of minor-leaguers we'll never hear from again, and Blake DeWitt, he of the career OPS+ of 93 and much lower salary. DeWitt is a better hitter than Theriot, so I'd say the Cubs did OK personnel-wise and in clearing out some salary room for next year, assuming DeWitt is a better baserunner and defender than Theriot (a pretty safe assumption).

In other news, it looks like there's a market for lunatic starting pitching. Mets GM Omar Minaya proposed swapping left-handed headache Oliver Perez and once capable second baseman/leadoff hitter Luis Castillo for Big Z. On the books, the salaries would have essentially cancelled each other out this year and next, but the Cubs would have been rid of the contracts after 2011 (instead of 2013 under Z's deal) - sort of a copy of the Hundley for Karros/Grudz deal Hendry engineered before the 2003 season. I'm not sure what to think about this one. On one hand, it would be nice to cut our losses and get out from under the weight of one of the team's "untradable" contracts, considering 2011 is shaping up to be a lost year anyway. On the other hand, this would be a classic "sell low" move by Hendry (see Hill, Rich, and Pie, Felix), driving down the return on a once-valuable investment to basically nothing. I'm leaning towards actually agreeing with Hendry on this one and trying to rebuild Z's value - the guy was a staff workhorse (and a really good pitcher) for so many years. Unless he's just cooked from all those innings. Crap, I can't decide how I feel about this trade. When does college basketall start?

Jim Hendry - Supergenius?

After all the bashings I've given to Jim Hendry, I have to give him credit today. He managed to find a trading partner for a soon-to-be 35 year-old first baseman with a sub-.400 slugging percentage and close to $5 million left on his contract. But Derrek Lee rejected the trade, saying that he wants to stay with the Cubs for the rest of this year. Lou Piniella was quoted as saying he was "very pleased" with this news, probably because it not only allow him the opportunity to continue playing the guy who ranks last among all NL first baseman in OPS, but also to keep putting him in the 3rd spot in the batting order.

It gets better, though, fellow Cubs fans. Lee also said he'd like to play next year - and he'd like to play with the Cubs again. But I'm guessing Lee will be gone next year anyway, because Hendry has already decided to trade Lee once, and when Hendry makes up his mind to do something (see, e.g. signing Milton Bradley or Marlon Byrd), not even a Krispy Kreme truck crashing outside of his house can stop him.