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mrschroeder08 partyvancaptain pee_callus25 Tags 2010 Preview 5 Million Dollar Black Hole AAAA Aaron Heilman Aaron Miles Alfonso Soriano Andres Blanco Angel Guzman Aramis Ramirez Arizona Diamondbacks Atlanta Braves B.J. Ryan Baltimore Orioles Bob Brenly Bobby Scales Bonehead Booing Boston Red Sox Brett Jackson Bullpen Canadian Concoction Captain Kneejerk Cardinals Carlos Marmol Carlos Silva Carlos Zambrano Chad Fox Chad Tracy Chicago Cubs Chicago White Sox Cincinnati Reds Cleveland Indians Cold War Colorado Rockies Contracts Cubs-Cardinals Rivalry Cubs sale Cubs Curtis Granderson Daniel Herrera David Patton Derrek Lee Designated Hitter Detroit Tigers Disabled list Dominance ERA+ ERROR Esmailin Caridad ESPN Sucks Eternal frustration Eternal Optimism Farewell Farney Florida Marlins Free Agency Future Gatorade Geovanny Soto Geovany Soto Gerald Perry Grades Houston Astros I-Cubs Injuries Jake Fox Jason Marquis Jason Waddell Jeff Gray Jeff Samardzija Jim Hendry Jim Wolf Joey Gathright John Grabow Jose Ascanio Kansas City Royals Kerry Wood Kevin Gregg Kevin Hart Kevin Millar Koyie Hill LaTroy Hawkins Legendary Lineup Los Angeles Angels Los Angeles Dodgers Lou Piniella Luis Vizcaino Man Crush Mark DeRosa Marlon Byrd Micah Hoffpauir Middle Infield Midwestern Bias Milton Bradley Milwaukee Brewers Minnesota Twins Minor Leagues MLB 2K9 Neal Cotts New York Mets New York Yankees Oakland Athletics October Offseason Opening Day OPS+ Payroll Philadelphia Phillies Pittsburgh Pirates Playoffs Randy Wells Rant Rich Harden Ryan Dempster Ryan Freel Ryan Theriot Sam Fuld Sam Zell Sammy Sosa San Diego Padres San Francisco Giants Sandy Alderson Sean Marshall Seattle Mariners St. Louis Cardinals Steroids Strikeouts Suckiness Tampa Bay Rays TBS Texas Rangers Tom Gorzelanny Tom Ricketts Toronto Blue Jays Trade Tribune Company Tyler Colvin Von Joshua Waivers Walks Washington Nationals WTF Xavier Nady RSS Feed I have been on hiatus this week, and apparently picked a good week to do so. That road trip was one of the worst I have seen in a long time. To only score 5 runs in 6 games is ridiculous, when you consider the amount of money that is being put into the lineup that produced that meager output. Last night's game really revealed nothing we didn't know. Neal Cotts should be no where near a major league roster. Ryan Dempster is an average pitcher who we are paying as if he was a top of the rotation guy. Milton Bradley and Geovanny Soto CAN hit. And Aaron Miles was a very pointless signing. Add it all up and you see again why Jim Hendry is an overrated GM. But the issues plaguing the Cubs organization run deeper than bad contracts and unlucky injuries. It starts with the place where all good teams build: the farm system. To say the Cubs have had some bad luck with the minor leagues is like saying Barry Bonds had some help from P.E.D.s, it understates the problem. Some of it is bad drafting, like Ryan Harvey in '03. Some of it is bad luck, like Mark Prior in '01. Some of it is bad trades, like Renyel Pinto (who is MUCH better than Neal Cotts) and Ricky Nolasco for one bad year of Juan Pierre. Bottom line, teams like Boston (ugh), St. Louis, L.A. (both teams), Philadelphia and the Mets all stay competitive because they get big contributions from their farm systems. For one thing, they are cheap. Tim Lincecum makes something like $600K this year. Compare that to $10 million for Ryan Dempster. For another thing, a good farm system gives you depth. The Cubs are now caught with their pants down now that Aramis is injured. Compare that to the '05 Phillies, who lost their first baseman Jim Thome. They had a guy by the name of Ryan Howard waiting in the wings. The rest is history. Not only did they get one of the best sluggers in the game, but they were able to trade Thome and fill another hole. Now you can tell me that we got Ryan Theriot, Geovanny Soto, Carlos Zambrano, Carlos Marmol and Sean Marshall from our farm system. That is true, but none of those guys, outside maybe Zambrano and Marmol, is much more than a role player. Good organizations have better track records than that. Just to prove my point, I have decided to look at the Cubs first round draft picks since '96. (For reference Kerry Wood was the pick in '95, and had a good Cubs career when healthy.) Now granted, a farm system is more than first round draft picks. But since '96, you should at least be able to get a quality player in the first round once, right? Right?!?!
As I right this, it looks like the first Cubs win in 10 days may be on the horizon. .500 never felt so good. Posted in: Minor Leagues Dan asked me tonight how Jake Fox was doing at AAA. So I decided to have a look. In 19 games, accumulating 74 at bats, Jake Fox is hitting a mere .446 with TWELVE home runs and 31 RBI. Right now his OPS (On base Plus Slugging) is a robust 1.579. Basically the dude is having an "Triple Play Baseball '96 on Rookie setting" type April. Oh, and if you are concerned about how he is handling right-handers, since Jim Hendry is on that kick, 11 of his 12 home runs are off righties. I think Mr. Fox may be gracing Wrigley Field with his presence soon. Preferably at the expense of Joey Gathright. The question that remains is if this is for real, or if this is another in a long line of AAAA ballplayers from Iowa. (All statistics from www.minorleaguebaseball.com) Posted in: Jake Fox, Dominance, Minor Leagues, I-Cubs | ||