MVN - a Chicago Cubs blog
The Cub Reporter
ESPN: Cubs Trade Barrett to San Diego
Buster Olney of ESPN is reporting that the Cubs have traded catcher Michael Barrett to the Padres in exchange for catcher Rob Bowen, a minor league pitcher and cash.
Steve Stone, appearing on the Mike North Show (WSCR Radio in Chicago), at 9:00 a.m. local time, confirmed that Barrett was being traded, saying he (Stone) had spoken to a friend who had gotten off the phone with Barrett just minutes before.
Stone also said that a source told him the Cubs had become “frustrated” with Barrett’s inability to improve his defense over the past couple weeks, which led Stone to infer that the team was pursuing a deal. Stone pointed out that Jim Hendry avidly pursued Barrett during the catcher’s years with the Expos and that Cubs player personnel exec Gary Hughes was also a huge Barrett supporter, having drafted him when Hughes was employed in Montreal.
Mike North further reported that according to rumors that WSCR was hearing, the Cubs would be receiving Bowen and set-up man Scott Linebrink in return (different than what Olney’s sources told him). Obviously, acquiring Linebrink in the swap would make the deal much more attractive from the Cubs’ point of view.
UPDATE (Rob G.): Olney got it right and the prospect is 19 yr old outfielder Kyler Burke, who you can read about over at “Road to Wrigley”. As for our new catcher, Rob Bowen, a few scouting reports, the first from Sportsnet:
Assets: A switch-hitting catcher who excels from the left side, showing decent power. He’s an above-average defensive catcher, able to block and throw very well.
Flaws: He’s a weak hitter from the right side and generally lacks discipline at the plate.
Career potential: Good backup catcher who can be a No. 1 if needed.
And a 2004 scouting report from Baseball America I pulled off a message board:
He is solid defensively and is very agile behind the plate. He has a plus arm and has a quick release. He is also very adept at blocking balls in the dirt.
Offensively, he has natural loft in his swing, which should lead to power potential. He is a switch hitter, but scouts like him better from the left side.
Essentially the Cubs are taking another shot at a raw player on the right side of 30. His caught stealing rates are pretty bad over the last few years but those can depend a lot on your pitching staff. Offensively, at least he can take a walk. At worst, we’ve got a much better #2 catcher as Henry Blanco’s career looks in jeopardy. At best, Bowen finds his groove and we’ve got a relatively cheap new #1 catcher for the next three years.
This entry was posted
on Wednesday, June 20th, 2007 at 8:22 am and is filed under Rob Bowen, Michael Barrett, Cubs Rumors, Trade Talk, Cubs Minors.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
334 Responses to “ESPN: Cubs Trade Barrett to San Diego”
June 20th, 2007 at 8:25 am
Barrett is going to a 1st place team…
http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/6941994
The Cubs, frustrated by Michael Barrett’s erratic, inattentive play, have traded the catcher to the Padres, FOXSports.com has confirmed.
The Cubs received catcher Rob Bowen, minor-league outfielder Kyler Burke and cash.The Padres, eighth in the National League in runs, have been searching for more offense. They are second in the league in on-base/slugging percentage at catcher, but Barrett would be an offensive upgrade over Josh Bard and Bowen.
Defense is another question.
Barrett, a converted infielder, had improved behind the plate in recent years but struggled with his defense and base-running this season. From that standpoint, his addition could be a risk to the Padres, who lead the NL with a 2.97 ERA.
When Cubs pitcher Carlos Zambrano pointed to his head in the moments leading to his brawl with Barrett, apparently questioning what the catcher was thinking, it captured the team’s frustration with Barrett’s play.
ESPN.com broke the initial trade story early Wednesday morning.
Barrett, 30, is batting .256 with nine homers and 29 RBIs.
June 20th, 2007 at 8:26 am
Let’s hope Mike North is right for a change.
June 20th, 2007 at 8:28 am
SD Union Tribune reporting the PTBN is lo-A outfielder Kyler Burke.
http://www.signonsandiego.com/.....rrett.html
19 year old. 35th overall pick last year out of high school. BP says he’s the 9th best prospy in the Pads system.
Scout on him includes an excellent throwing arm from right-field and tremendous power. Struggling to hit pro pitching so far, though.
June 20th, 2007 at 8:29 am
SD is hosting Balt., so Michael and Korey can get together and bitch tonight.
June 20th, 2007 at 8:32 am
Rosenthal confirms Burke.
http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/6941994
June 20th, 2007 at 8:33 am
Not a terrible return, but still not in Linebrink territory. So long, Michael, and may you tan in the SoCal sun — you certainly need it.
June 20th, 2007 at 8:33 am
I think its a pipe dream that we get Scott Linebrink. i know nothing about Bowen - from his stats the guy has seen limited action. I just hope he is a very good catcher otherwise this trade is a giveaway.
June 20th, 2007 at 8:40 am
Hopefully Fontenot continues to hit well into the year, and Floyd’s legs don’t fall off because that’s the drop off from Aram and Lee now.
Cant wait to see JJ, Bowen and Neifizzy in a lineup soon.
~barf~
June 20th, 2007 at 8:40 am
Jim: You take all my high-priced headaches off my hands, we’ll give you a bunch of money and you don’t have to give much back in return.
Kevin: I’ll take your catcherand the money, but forget the rest of these bums.
Jim: In that case, can I get Linebrink?
Kevin: No.
Jim: ….. OK.
June 20th, 2007 at 8:41 am
ZHL: “Michael and Korey can get together and bitch tonight.”
That was uncalled for. Corey didn’t bitch. Leave him alone.
June 20th, 2007 at 8:42 am
Meh… I want me some Khalil.
June 20th, 2007 at 8:43 am
Another important fact:
Bowen’s ‘07 salary: $382,000
Barrett’s ‘07 salary: $4,500,000
I doubt the cash considerations were 4 million dollars.
June 20th, 2007 at 8:44 am
Carlos is greene with disgust.
June 20th, 2007 at 8:45 am
As dave reported in the other thread (quoting Road to Wrigley), Colvin moving to AA. Two thoughts:
1) Tennessee is a phone call from Wrigley, as Sean Gallagher can attest.
2) Josh Kroeger plays right for Tennessee. Is he moving up, and if so, one level or two?
I love player movement! We also heard this morning that the Cubs are trying to move Izturis, which makes sense but hadn’t yet been reported.
June 20th, 2007 at 8:45 am
Olney is saying Burke also.
June 20th, 2007 at 8:49 am
ptbnl please be Matt Bush, please be Matt Bush, please be Matt Bush…
awwww…
June 20th, 2007 at 8:55 am
Okay…..big stretch on this one….but as much as TCR et al analyze the Cubs, Minnesoooooootans do the same to the Twins.
You know I just moved to Mankato, and I’m AMAZED to hear constant scrutiny of Joe Mauer…..basically copmparing him to Prior in terms of his lack of toughness. I think the term labia boy was used last night in the bar.
SOMEONE on TCR mentioned the Twins are looking to trade for Jock “Duke” Jones.
The Cubs could package JJ, a young arm (Marshall) and a pile of money for Mauer.
Let’s throw THAT in Madonna’s bed and see if she sleeps with it.
Joey, from Mankato
June 20th, 2007 at 8:57 am
That 89 OPS will look super nice along side Izturis, Jones and the pitcher. Hits will abound!
June 20th, 2007 at 8:57 am
I just scratched up some info on Burke and posted it over at Road to Wrigley
June 20th, 2007 at 8:59 am
Girardi being introduced as O’s manager in about 5 minutes.
June 20th, 2007 at 8:59 am
The Cubs could package JJ, a young arm (Marshall) and a pile of money for Mauer.
You have to be kidding me… why aren’t the Cubs asking for Santana also?
Maybe the Cubs can also trade for Jose Reyes to play SS, Beltran for CF, Utley for 2b, and Vlad Guerrero in RF?
And if we must, maybe the Cubs could make a run at Justin Verlander, Jake Peavy, and Dan Haren while they are at it.
June 20th, 2007 at 9:03 am
Muskat gets her report up, speculates that Hill will become the starter.
June 20th, 2007 at 9:06 am
Dave,
Not kidding you at all…….I have no clue WHAT the Cubs would have to give up, and don’t really care. I’m just telling you what I heard anectdotally in the geographic area around here, and throwing something in Madonna’s bed to chew on…insert pun there.
The Twins are APPARENTLY wondering if Mauer fits in long term.
Joey
June 20th, 2007 at 9:07 am
I would be completely shocked if Mauer gets traded any time in the next few years.
And if he did… it most definitely would take more than JJ, Marshall, and cash.
June 20th, 2007 at 9:09 am
^ Prior
June 20th, 2007 at 9:09 am
Dave,
I wouldn’t be shocked if he got traded, but it’s only a gut feeling.
I agree……though…that it will take something substantial to get him.
June 20th, 2007 at 9:11 am
girardi orioles manager=death of career
June 20th, 2007 at 9:12 am
This is apropos of nothing, but the headline picture on cubs.com shows Fonenot looking like a Lilliputian high-fiving Lee. pretty funny.
http://chicago.cubs.mlb.com
June 20th, 2007 at 9:12 am
ZHL:
Muskat gets her report up, speculates that Hill will become the starter.
I just threw up a little in my mouth.
June 20th, 2007 at 9:14 am
hope Muskat is wrong, at least Bowen gets on base….
don’t know much about his defense though.
June 20th, 2007 at 9:15 am
Rob… his defense has been very unimpressive in the bigs - only throwing out 3 of 31 base stealers.
And his pb rate is pretty similar to Barrett’s this year.
But allegedly scouting reports say his defense is good.
June 20th, 2007 at 9:21 am
nice they got a catcher who’s under 30 and about 3 yrs of service time left and at least could be a #1 catcher. His power numbers should be helped by getting out of Petco as well.
interesting move to make at this point but TCR should be far friendlier. :)
get rid of JJ and Izturis and they’ll be nothing to bitch about.
June 20th, 2007 at 9:25 am
joey from mankato, that is the most ridiculous stuff I’ve read in quite some time. you had a few too many at the bar if you believe that.
maybe the barstool pundits in mankato think that way, but the twins sure as shit don’t, nor do most twins fans. (if you need “local” credentials, I live in minneapolis). with hunter gone after this year, mauer will be the face of the franchise for the next few years as they move into the new stadium. he’s a local kid, and one of two or three young building-block players most GMs would jump on if they had to start a franchise. don’t equate some silly comments by torii hunter and musings by some idiot fans for how twins management feels.
June 20th, 2007 at 9:25 am
I disagree Rob, We as TCRers will find SOMETHING to bitch about
June 20th, 2007 at 9:27 am
Now we are going to bitch about how well barrett is playing in SD and how the hell did Hendry give him away for essentially nothing.
Of course… from the looks of it, we will also have Bowen to bitch about.
June 20th, 2007 at 9:27 am
if we’re wondering why Bowen was released twice before he reached the Padres, the Twins tried to get him through waivers and the Tigers claimed him and then the Tigers tried to do the exact same thing but the Padres claimed him.
June 20th, 2007 at 9:29 am
But Rob - those teams could have pulled him back off of waivers if they wanted, right?
So he was obviously not someone those teams were too excited about.
But good to hear the Cubs could have gotten Bowen for nothing instead of for a Silver Slugger catcher.
June 20th, 2007 at 9:32 am
Last night during the game they ran a promo for the upcoming “Michael Barrett Jersey Night.” As I watched it I thought, “OK, now Barrett’s definitely getting traded.” How weird.
Will it now be “Koyie Hill Jersey Night” for 100 random winners?
June 20th, 2007 at 9:33 am
I’m not a scout, but while we’re on the topic of catchers, is there a reason why Soto hasn’t been, or won’t, be given a chance to show what he can do? I know he’s not a great prospect. But he’s always hit relatively decently, is hitting the ball real well this year, and I seem to recall hearing that his defense was good. He may not project to be much more than a backup catcher, but it seems like the cubs have those in spades, and getting another one in bowen seems odd.
June 20th, 2007 at 9:33 am
I’ll give you the passed balls, alright. Fine. Catch the baesball.
But you cannot place blame for the baserunning numbers on him. No catcher in baseball could be successful with the pitching staff the Padres have.
I don’t even remember who the Twins had in the rotation when he caught all of 18 games (HUGE sample, by the way). Let’s see. I bet there was a Lohse. I bet there was a Radke in there. Neither of those scream “IT WAS THE CATCHER’S FAULT!” I think there was even a Mulholland in there for a while. Throwing out baserunners is impossible when you have pitchers who don’t do a good job of holding runners on. I don’t even know who he caught, but that grouping of pitchers tells me that if it wasn’t Santana, it was tough on him.
The scout on whether or not a guy has a good throwing arm from behind the plate is very rarely incorrect. It doesn’t change suddenly. If he was good at AA and AAA, he’ll be good in the bigs.
At least give him a fighting chance with a rotation of 3 lefties and two power pitchers before you write his arm off for good.
June 20th, 2007 at 9:34 am
hmm, I believe he was a 40-man roster casualty at the time, that they wanted to keep in the organization but didn’t want to continue to keep on the 40-man. I don’t think it’s irrevocable, that’s an AZ Phil question though.
At best, we get our #1 catcher for the next few years, at worse we got a far better #2 catcher than Blanco who’s career may be done anyway.
But Koyie Hill really sucks, please don’t give him the job.
June 20th, 2007 at 9:35 am
Wes — June 20, 2007 @ 8:28 am
SD Union Tribune reporting the PTBN is lo-A outfielder Kyler Burke.
19 year old. 35th overall pick last year out of high school. BP says he’s the 9th best prospy in the Pads system.
Scout on him includes an excellent throwing arm from right-field and tremendous power. Struggling to hit pro pitching so far, though.
================================
WES: The Cubs are loaded with left-handed hitting OFs up-and-down their system (Colvin, Fuld, Andersen, Rundle, Camp, Leclerc, Wyatt, Sommer, and N. Perez, plus Clark Hardman if the Cubs can sign him) ,all of whom are as good or better than Kyler Burke (and I have seen Burke play, in AZL ‘06 and ST ‘07).
So I think it is VERY likely that the Cubs will assign Burke to AZL Mesa where he will be converted to LHP (he was an OF/P coming out of HS, and some teams projected him as an outfielder, while others projected him as a pitcher). The one thing that impressed me about Burke was his OF arm. Otherwise, he is a mess.
And while the Cubs do not need any more left-handed OFs, they DO need LHPs. (Of the 19 pitchers assigned to AZL Mesa, one, repeat–ONE, is a LHP).
It’s not unusual for the Cubs to convert a position player to pitcher (most notably Carlos Marmol, but also Randy Wells, Federico Baez, Adalberto Mendez, Brandon Taylor, Leonel Perez, Alfredo Francisco, and Carlos Bernard, and–in EXST ‘07–Blake Parker), so it would not be odd for the Cubs to do the same with Burke. They may do it with Ryan Harvey (who has the best OF arm in the organization and threw in the mid-90’s off the mound in HS) one of these days, too.
June 20th, 2007 at 9:37 am
Does anyone else think that Hendry might have something else up his sleeve in the short term? Maybe unloading Barrett’s $4 mil (or most of it presumably) gives him a bit of leeway to make a move that might add to the payroll. I’d hope for a SS or RF.
Otherwise, this does seem like a desperation move to get rid of an unpopular guy for little in return. And maybe that’s really all it is.
June 20th, 2007 at 9:39 am
Burke was a 1st round pick last year. It seems far fetched to think they are going to put him on the mound now? If Ryan Harvey can suck it up for 4 years in the system. I would think that Burke has at least 2 years to prove he sucks before the conversion. At least in my opinion.
June 20th, 2007 at 9:40 am
In a somewhat related note. What are the TCR rules regarding the blaming of players no longer on the roster? Is it poor form to Blame Barrett while his is in San Diego?
June 20th, 2007 at 9:43 am
Burke was a 1st round pick last year. It seems far fetched to think they are going to put him on the mound now?
Why is it far fetched? AZ Phil already pointed out the several other players who have been moved to the mound, but you also need to remember that Burke was also a highly touted pitcher coming out of high school. SD made the decision to have him focus on playing the OF - the Cubs could decide to have him pitch instead.
June 20th, 2007 at 9:44 am
Obviously Barrett can hurt our team even while in San Diego. Just remember that every time Bowen doesn’t throw out a baserunner it’s Barrett’s fault.
June 20th, 2007 at 9:47 am
People are still blaming Neifi! and Dusty for losses around here….
June 20th, 2007 at 9:47 am
You don’t have to poke too deep to uncover a possible Barrett/Padres conspiracy from mere days ago. If anything, the sinister shadows around Barrett are lengthening.
June 20th, 2007 at 9:48 am
Good point Dave.
I guess the main reason for questioning switching Burke is that he is only 20…it’s not like he’s stalled at Lo-A for 3 seasons.
Either way….meh.
June 20th, 2007 at 9:49 am
AZ Phil: don’t forget Jim Bullinger.
June 20th, 2007 at 9:51 am
Yeah, but if you are going to change someone’s position, wouldn’t you do it as young as possible?
June 20th, 2007 at 9:51 am
Doug D-
I was thinking the same thing about Barrett.
I nominate Dempster as TCR’s undeserving whipping boy
June 20th, 2007 at 9:52 am
That explains the pitcher/Burke discrepancies. That also explains why I will keep coming to this site for my Cubs news… Phil da man.
Of course we can still blame Barrett. Don’t be silly.
June 20th, 2007 at 9:52 am
Rob G. — June 20, 2007 @ 9:27 am
if we’re wondering why Bowen was released twice before he reached the Padres, the Twins tried to get him through waivers and the Tigers claimed him and then the Tigers tried to do the exact same thing but the Padres claimed him.
=============================
ROB G: Rob Bowen was out of minor league options as of ST 2006, and he was claimed off waivers by DET when the Twins tried to outright him to the minors at the end of ST that year (’06).
Then the Tigers tried to outright him to the minors immediately after they claimed him, but the Padres claimed him and kept him on their 25-man roster for the entire 2006 season and so far in 2007.
And Koyie Hill is in the exact same position right now (like Bowen, Hill is out of minor league options).
The Cubs will face a similar problem with Geovany Soto and Ronny Cedeno next ST (2008), as both will be out of minor league options at that time.
June 20th, 2007 at 9:54 am
With Cesar almost definitely gone, it shouldn’t be too hard to find a spot for Ronny, unless Hendry has plans to re-sign Neifi.
June 20th, 2007 at 9:56 am
So we trade away Barrett for nothing, with basically no real starting cather to take his place.
Looks like they really want to keep Z happy, so bye bye barrett.
F Hendry!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
June 20th, 2007 at 9:59 am
updated the post with some info on Bowen…
June 20th, 2007 at 10:01 am
Cubs should have traded Hendry not Barrett.
this Bowen freak isn’t major league.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:03 am
the cubs.com story says minor league pitcher fwiw…
no mention of Burke….
June 20th, 2007 at 10:03 am
Hendry has to find another trade partner to upgrade the offense at some other position…
Even with Barrett not performing up to his last couple years, this is an offensive downgrade any way you slice it. K.Hill is not a hitting catcher, and this Bowen guy is unproven and has a relatively SMALL sample size.
There needs to be a trade involving JJones and/or Izzy to upgrade offensively at some position (SS, 2B, C, RF? although Floyd in RF is temporarily OK). Unfortunately, this will probably require packaging some young guns along with those two older pieces of trash.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:04 am
So I think my theory of players taking sides after the Z/Barrett fight looks pretty right on. And unfortunately for Barrett, it doesn’t look like he had much support with his teammates, especially after the Hill argument too.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:04 am
former pitcher and Cy Young winner Steve Stone thinks it’s a bad trade for the Cubs…Stone said this morning on a Chicago sports radio station that the Cubs didn’t get enough back in the trade and that it would be very difficult to replace Barrett (and his bat).
June 20th, 2007 at 10:05 am
CWTP:
“Cubs should have traded Hendry not Barrett.
this Bowen freak isn’t major league.”
AMEN!!!
June 20th, 2007 at 10:05 am
wtf are you talking about manny?
June 20th, 2007 at 10:05 am
The tone reminds me of the reaction to trading for Barrett instead of signing PudgeRod. How did that one turn out? Honestly, the Cubs got the less productive player and paid a lot less for him too. Win for Tribune, loss for Cubs.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:05 am
We’re going to have to part with a lot to replace his bat Cubster…
June 20th, 2007 at 10:07 am
Rob, like Phil posted, I think maybe Burke IS the minor league pitcher. I was trying to crack that nut all morning.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:08 am
former pitcher and Cy Young winner Steve Stone
wait… steve stone is a former pitcher and cy young winner? who knew?
and when is the last time steve stone said ANYTHING positive a move that the cubs made?
June 20th, 2007 at 10:08 am
“this Bowen guy is unproven”
I’ll tell you what he’s proven. He’s proven that he strikes out way more often than he hits safely. If you loved KKKorey you’ll love Bowen.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:09 am
More like Oliver Stone when he’s talking about the Northside.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:09 am
Rob G.:
“wtf are you talking about manny?”
I think Barrett might of lost his teammates after the Z fight and Hill argument. Like I said, just a theory, which of course I am sure you will disagree. But this trade was not made to upgrade the team, that is obvious.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:12 am
Bowen 268/371/439 age 26
Barrett 256/307/427 age 30
sure Barrett’s got more going for him for the bat over the last few years and he’s been warming up lately, but at the very least it’s a lefty bat with some patience.
and depending on the money, which is at least over a $1 million, there’s probably some room to make another deal if needed.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:14 am
But this trade was not made to upgrade the team, that is obvious.
Well that depends. While I am a big Barrett fan, he is made a numerous boneheaded plays that simply do not show up anywhere in stats.
The Cubs may feel that they simply cannot deal with his mental lapses and poor defense anymore.
From all appearances, Barrett has been fine with Z and all of the other pitchers on the team. I really do no think that it had anything to do with players “picking sides” or “loosing teammates” or anything like that.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:15 am
Jim Hendry continues to demonstrate he is unfit for command…top tier GMs (like Dave Dombrowski and Walt Jocketty) would never have done this trade with the Padres…I’m quite sure that the new owners of the Cubs will bring in a new GM - that might be one of the first decisions that they make.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:16 am
I think Barrett might of lost his teammates after the Z fight and Hill argument. Like I said, just a theory, which of course I am sure you will disagree. But this trade was not made to upgrade the team, that is obvious.
You think that based off absolutely nothing and your theory is full of s***. How about read the parts where his teammates backed Barrett up?
and if Bowen is a defensive upgrade which he sounds like, how is it not to help the team or at the very least a lateral move that might help take on salary in July?
He’s also hitting better this year than Barrett (sure in limited time) in a very unfriendly hitting environment.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:17 am
Come on Rob… do you really think that is a fair comparison? Barrett has obviously slumped offensively for most of the year, but he as also pretty clearly been coming out of that slump (and you have said so yourself).
Bowen isn’t nearly the offensive player that Barrett is.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:19 am
Given that Jim Hendry and Gary Hughes are big Michael Barrett fans, I would think this move (exchanging Barrett for a different catcher) was something Lou Piniella requested/demanded at the clubhouse meeting with the bosses at Wrigley Field a couple of weeks ago.
Hendry probably told Uncle Lou to keep playing Barrett as often as he could stand it (to keep his trade value as high as possible), while he (Hendry) would work on making a deal.
Probably the same thing is happening with Jacque Jones and Scott Eyre.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:22 am
I’ll have to agree with Stoney on this one, but it was only slightly in the San Diego Madres favor. By now Barrett should be thought of as a rental and he hasn’t really added a lot of value to the Cub’s this year anyways.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:22 am
If Bowen is an upgrade over Barrett, why were the Cubs also able to get a prospect and salary relief?
From an outsider’s point of view this seems to be a straight dump of Barrett, which may not be such a bad thing.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:24 am
Bowen isn’t nearly the offensive player that Barrett is.
This year? no…
Going forward? Bowen’s 26 with patience, chances are his better years are coming. Remember where Barrett was when we traded for him? I wouldn’t be suprised if Bowen/Barrett hit about the same over the next 3 years.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:24 am
dave:
…plays that simply do not show up anywhere in stats.
I’m so proud of you!!! :)))
June 20th, 2007 at 10:27 am
“Bowen 268/371/439 age 26
Barrett 256/307/427 age 30
sure Barrett’s got more going for him for the bat over the last few years and he’s been warming up lately, but at the very least it’s a lefty bat with some patience.
and depending on the money, which is at least over a $1 million, there’s probably some room to make another deal if needed.”
C’mon Rob, how dare you look at this trade objectively, with number and stuff…
June 20th, 2007 at 10:27 am
I think it is clear that Barrett’s miscues were quite a drag on the team. We get a better defensive catcher, with much better patience at the plate, along with a prospect that has a chance of contributing a few years down the line. While this does, no doubt, hurt the Cubs offensively, I do think that it puts them in position to make other moves without adding to their payroll. I would like to see those moves made soon, though.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:28 am
I keep hearing references to Bowen’s patience at the plate, but the scouting reports say he has poor plate discipline.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:29 am
I’m not thrilled with the trade or anything, but obviously the organization was fed up with Barrett’s boneheaded plays just like most fans and were definitely not planning to resign him.
Might as well get something and it’s not like the rest of the league isn’t aware of Barrett’s deficinies (sp?). They all get Sportscenter.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:30 am
I’m so proud of you!!! :)))
Thanks… glad you approve.
But while I like stats and find them incredibly valuable for evaluating players, I also have never denied that there are other issues - things like dropped foul pop-ups, base running blunders, etc that often cannot be measured by stats.
Not sure why you imply otherwise.
I use stats to evaluate what can be tracked by numbers, or when others make claims that are blatantly opposite to what the actual facts (stats) say.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:31 am
he’s not drawing a ton of walks but his OBP has been consistenly 100 pts better than his BA in the minors and majors.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:32 am
The Trib is reporting that the Cubs will pay most of what’s remaining on Barrett’s contract. As a Hendry supporter, (there aren’t many of us on this board) this deal doesn’t make any sense to me unless they’re setting up another trade.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:32 am
Rynox I noticed that in the other thread. I think the good plate discipline reaction comes from the differentail between his average and OBP in his ML plate appearances. Nice OBP for what a crummy average he’s had.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:33 am
Rob:
Where are you getting the patience thing? The scouting report I read said he had poor plate discipline, and he’s struck out roughly one in four at bats through his minor league career. His OBP in the minors is in the .320 range — not exactly stellar, especially when matched with a sub .400 SLG.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:34 am
I keep hearing references to Bowen’s patience at the plate, but the scouting reports say he has poor plate discipline.
Hmmm… not sure where the scouting reports get that, as he has always shown patience:
Minors (ave/obp): .238/.324
Majors:.206/.298
A 90 point difference in ave/obp shows good patience. Of course, patience isn’t so helpful when you are hitting .206, or even .238.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:36 am
dave:
“…plays that simply do not show up anywhere in stats.”
Anyone know if there’s a stat somewhere that shows the relative importance of defensive miscues? Kind of like an ERA for errors or something?
For example, Barrett’s throw into leftfield before the fight would be weighted more heavily than a throwing error to first with 2 outs and no one on base that led to 0 runs scored.
If something like that exists, I’d love to see it.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:36 am
There’s a genius poll on ESPN.com. Who is most to blame for the Cubs problems? Barrett is one of the choices.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:36 am
Rob G.:
“You think that based off absolutely nothing and your theory is full of s***. “
Well, thanks for your theory…
June 20th, 2007 at 10:36 am
dave:
Not sure why you imply otherwise.
I’m not implying anything… I just like to bust your balls because you like the stats and I only like stats a little bit. I meant it in a fun-spirited way, I hope you weren’t offended.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:38 am
I think the team will be better just with the subtraction of Barrett’s poor defense. It doesn’t matter what the catchers hit, as long as they can field at average or above average levels this is an improvement. That said, Bowen’s career stats for throwing out runners in the majors is horrible, 5 for 50.Hopefully that’s because the SD pitchers never held anyone on, but he did have similar poor stats throwing out only 11% of runners when he was in Minnesota. Bowen has seemed to hit well against us.
My biggest bitch with Barrett, besides his erratic throwing, was his pitch location. Even if the bench was calling some of the pitches, which it’s been clear they have since Barrett arrived, Barrett’s location he offers with his glove is often completely bone-headed, and that’s something the coaches on the bench can’t call. Barrett was good for at least two baserunners a game advancing to second base that shouldn’t have happened. So if we just have average defensive catchers that should be an improvement. I don’t look at Bowen as any long term answer, nor Hill. I don’t think either is a stud defensive catcher. Hill himself said on Santo’s pregame show a couple of weeks ago that he’s always been considered an offensive catcher and he gets here and everyone is calling him a defensive catcher.
I suspect that the Cubs wanted, they could find a top defensive catcher who can’t hit and is stuck in someone’s minor leagues, just like there are normally a handful of great glove, no-hit shortstops stuck in the minors.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:39 am
Rob G, just an FYI you have him listed as Tyler Burke in your post, and it is actually Kyler Burke
June 20th, 2007 at 10:39 am
There’s a genius poll on ESPN.com.
Damn… I thought I could take the poll and find out if I was a genius…
I meant it in a fun-spirited way, I hope you weren’t offended.
Nope… not offended.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:40 am
I saw that poll too, Horatio
- Barrett
- Z
- Lou
- Injuries
Any chance I can just pick Bristol, CT? Mo-rons…
June 20th, 2007 at 10:40 am
My mind is off on a tangent…I have a stat question and wonder if anyone has done the research.
Is reaching base via error a skill? I mean, do some guys (for instance, fast guys or guys who hit lots of grounders) get on via error more often than guys who don’t? Or are errors pretty much randomly distributed.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:41 am
Levine says the Cubs will pick up appx half of what remains on Barrett’s contract this season.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:41 am
RobR:
“From an outsider’s point of view this seems to be a straight dump of Barrett, ”
Exactly!!!
Cubnut:
“Buster Olney of ESPN is reporting that the Cubs have traded catcher Michael Barrett to the Padres in exchange for catcher Rob Bowen, a minor league pitcher and cash.”
“Rob G.:
“and depending on the money, which is at least over a $1 million, there’s probably some room to make another deal if needed.”
Hey guys, ESPN is reporting that we are sending the Padres money, not them sending us money.
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/.....id=2910079
“The Padres also will receive cash considerations from the Cubs”
On paper this is a very bad trade, a clear dump of Barrett.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:41 am
I was puzzled at the time and even more puzzled now that the Cubs didn’t draft the catcher from Georgia Tech. I don’t know when they decided to get rid of Barrett, but either way, with the lack of good catching prospects in the organization and Barretts pending free agency and now trade, Weiters should have been the pick.
To me this shows once again that Hendry reacts to things that happen rather than being capable of any strategic planning and that is a main reason we are where we are.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:43 am
I still think K. Hill can hit (although R. Hill can’t), but in any case, the number eight slot in the batting order was made for catchers. Ask the Cardinals, who won the Series last year with a catcher who batted .216 during the season. (But it was bittersweet, because what they really wanted was the Silver Slugger trophy.)
When Aramis comes back, DeRosa will have to move to short, since Fontenot isn’t going to budge. The batting order one to seven will be solid.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:44 am
I’ve seen Bowen catch enough to know that he is at least solid fundamentally behind the plate. I have seen high school catchers with better mechanics than Barrett. I could never understood why Barrett could not or would not work to develop basic catching fundamentals.
I am no Hendry fan but I believe it is the best deal he could have made..
June 20th, 2007 at 10:44 am
Barrett was good for at least two baserunners a game advancing to second base that shouldn’t have happened.
Seriously? Don’t make things up…
Barrett has had 32 runners steal on him this year, in 54 (51 starts) games. That is much less than one a game.
So while Barrett has been down right bad throwing out runners this year, it doesn’t help your argument to make up stats that are not true about the guy.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:44 am
It’s not a dump. It appears that Lou (like many around here, note) felt Barrett’s glove hurt more than his belt helped and so he wanted a young, glove-first catcher. That’s exactly what the Cubs got in return, plus a prospect.
Now whether or not that kind of trade is a good idea is a completely different matter, and one I happen to disagree with, but this wasn’t a dump.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:45 am
I have only been bitching for the last couple years how Barrett can’t block pitches in the dirt and low and behold that is one of the reasons he got his ass traded out of town.
It might have been fine to have a shitty Catcher on Dusty’s teams but not on Lou’s. I am happy and I am sure our pitching staff is happy as hell to see him gone. One of the worst defensive catchers i will probably ever see, he makes Piazza actually look like a gold glover behind the plate.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:46 am
Any chance I can just pick Bristol, CT? Mo-rons…
Seriously… how can a poll be about the Cubs struggles without even mentioned in the bullpen.
DeRosa will have to move to short
Not sure why you think DeRosa would move to SS, being that he has not played there once all year.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:47 am
Hendry on conference call:
* Happy with Koyie Hill
* We needed to “shuffle the deck”
* Bowen’s going to be with us for a while
* Starter decided on daily basis by Lou
* Not worried about there being a hole in lineup
* Scoring “will take care of itself”
* Barrett tries too hard, leading to defensive lapses
* Excited about Tyler Burke (enthusiastically reminds us about his status as a former sandwich pick)
* “All of us thought Michael would be able to take one more step forward this year”
* No pitcher said “I don’t want Barrett catching.”
* Been in works 3-4 days.
Good luck with that.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:48 am
I’ve used this before here, but on occasion as a manager of personnel, I’ve ended up in a situation of making a less-than-ideal change. On those occasions, I have described it as “A bad idea, whose time has come.”
I read here several partially-explaining rationales for today’s trade, all of which by themselves don’t entirely hold water, but collectively…maybe so.
Lou would have had a pretty strong argument for pressing Hendry for this change, as in, “Are you kidding me? The guy is in national headlines for dugout arguments, has shown that he’ll track down a teammate in the clubhouse,” etc and definitely would not be wanted in the toolbox of a first-year Lets Turn Things Around manager. I’m not sure at what point positive offensive contribution could have compensated for the negatives.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:50 am
* I am going to go eat my doughnuts now, so leave me alone
* And after that start slowly packing my bags for is we don’t make the playoffs again, a new owner will see I am incompetent.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:53 am
I like Barrett, but I had resigned myself to the idea that due to his recent slump and his continued poor defense, he wouldn’t be back next year. I personally think Hendry probably could have got more for him, especially if he waited a few more weeks, but the negative attention recently surely limited his trade value. I wouldn’t be surprised if this a setup move for a bigger trade, especially since the Cubs now have a surplus of very young quality minor league outfielders. I also wouldn’t be surprised if this is just a pure dump, exchanging the poor defense, high salary, and above average offense of Barrett for the average (or even plus) defense, low salary, and average offense of Bowen.
I would be surprised though if the Trib picks up most of the rest of Barrett’s contract. That would clearly lessen the merit of this move.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:53 am
* Mmmmm….. Sandwich Pick….. drool……
June 20th, 2007 at 10:56 am
If anybody here with access to mlb.com game archives has any doubt about the importance of pitch selection, I urge him to watch the Dempster meltdown in Atlanta on June 10th with Barrett catching, followed by Dempster’s save the next night against Houston with Hill calling the pitches.
Speaking of Slider Mike, what was he thinking last night on the pitch that Kinsler tagged for his second home run? Or, to paraphrase Z, was he out of his effing mind?
Piniella did the right thing: yanked the pitcher and traded the catcher.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:56 am
Dave-”Seriously… how can a poll be about the Cubs struggles without even mentioned in the bullpen.”
That would require research and thought.
This was a dump of Barrett. Lou is wielding some power over there unlike previous management that would go into a coma and blame the media and umpires and hot weather.
I’m hoping Hendry has something else up his sleeve, like I said I wouldnt mind Pierzynski here if they want to win this year.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:56 am
and if the Padres end up representing the National League in the World Series with Barrett behind the plate how will the Cubs feel…? It’s possible that Hendry will have helped send a missing piece of the puzzle to a National League contender (and we’re paying for most of Barrett’s salary too)….hmmmm….does this really make sense…??
June 20th, 2007 at 10:57 am
Another Manny theory - thanks but no thanks!
June 20th, 2007 at 10:58 am
Hendry’s first gift to young Rob Bowen to help him build his confidence… Kameron Loe at Arlington.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:58 am
especially since the Cubs now have a surplus of very young quality minor league outfielders.
Not sure that Burke fits under “quality,” nor am I sure that the Cubs have a surplus of said quality minor league outfielders.
* Excited about Tyler Burke (enthusiastically reminds us about his status as a former sandwich pick)
You mean… the pick that the Cubs could have gotten next year because they didn’t re-sign Barrett?
June 20th, 2007 at 10:59 am
Bogey said: Levine says the Cubs will pick up appx half of what remains on Barrett’s contract this season.
Once again, one of our bargain players turns out not to be such a bargain.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:00 am
Not true, L.A. … we all know Milwaukee will win the Series this year… Boston, White Sox, St. Louis… just follow the pattern of “Whose World Series victory will most infuriate Cub fans?”
June 20th, 2007 at 11:00 am
Well, now here’s the problem. We’ve got our three or four headed catching conundrum, and these possibilities for 2008:
Jorge Posada (36 years old)
Ivan Rodriguez (36 years old, has a club option)
Paul Lo Duca (36 years old)
Jason Kendall (34 years old)
I took Barrett off that list. Didn’t figure he counted.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:01 am
Barrett not behind the plate alone is an upgrade to the Cubs. Anyone else we recieved in the deal is a bonus!
June 20th, 2007 at 11:02 am
If anybody here with access to mlb.com game archives has any doubt about the importance of pitch selection,
I don’t think anyone doubts the importance of pitch selection. But what some of us DO doubt is the importance of the catcher in pitch selection. Pitch selection is a team decision - made by the pitcher, catcher, and the pitching coach, with the final decision on the shoulders of the pitcher.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:04 am
Not sure that Burke fits under “quality,” nor am I sure that the Cubs have a surplus of said quality minor league outfielders.
Considering that Burke is 19 years old, the 35th pick last year, and raked in high school, I think he’s at least marginally “quality.” As for the surplus, see AZ Phil’s list of our OF prospects in the lower minor leagues.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:04 am
Once again, one of our bargain players turns out not to be such a bargain.
No… that is not necessarily what picking up some of the salary means. It simply means the Padres were using the negotiating power (i.e. the cubs really wanted to get rid of Barrett) to extract the most possible.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:06 am
According to BCB, Levine apparently reported that the deal originally was for Khalil Greene and Bowen in exchange for Barrett, Izturis, and Jacque.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:06 am
jacos:
“I’m hoping Hendry has something else up his sleeve,”
He does….. a twinkie!!!
June 20th, 2007 at 11:07 am
If you’re going to look at this trade “rationally” you have stop cherry picking stats. Here’s the real Rob Bowen
Minor League Career 1655 AB’s
.238 .324 .391 strike out rate 25%
Major League Career 213 AB’s
.230 .327 .376 strike out rate 32%
June 20th, 2007 at 11:08 am
Dave Said:
Barrett was good for at least two baserunners a game advancing to second base that shouldn’t have happened.
Seriously? Don’t make things up…
Barrett has had 32 runners steal on him this year, in 54 (51 starts) games. That is much less than one a game.
So while Barrett has been down right bad throwing out runners this year, it doesn’t help your argument to make up stats that are not true about the guy.
———————
Maybe you don’t understand, it’s not only his horrible career 23% rate of throwing out baserunners (18% this season), but also his 8 passed balls this season (30 in 4 seasons as a Cub), and by his poor pitch calling AND location calling, guys get hits that shouldn’t. Look at some of the comments above about the difference in Dempster with Barrett catching and with Hill catching.
BTW, in 3 1/2 seasons with the Cubs Barrett allowed 263 stolen bases.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:08 am
More than half hate the trade, but did anyone actually want to resign Barrett for 3/27 this offseason? Or you all just wanted him for three more months and a sandwich pick?
Plenty of teams will give him 3/27 in December… none of them will admit it in June.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:08 am
VA Phil:
“Once again, one of our bargain players turns out not to be such a bargain.”
Yeah, Todd Walker was supposedly a bargain. Also, JJ is considered a “bargain” , but i am sure when he is dumped we will be paying some of that salary too.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:09 am
Who would we have to bitch about if Barrett, Izzy and Jacque all got traded at once? That would have really been disorienting…
June 20th, 2007 at 11:09 am
Another Burke scouting report, courtesy of Brewerfan.net:
You don’t find players that are more exciting all around than Kyler Burke. Entering the season as a high average hitter with a disciplined eye, he has added power to his game, approaching single-season marks for home runs in the state of Tennessee. He has incredible offensive potential, and is a true five-tool athlete who also has good speed and a strong throwing arm from the outfield. He also has made a name for himself on the mound as a left-handed pitcher, touching 93 on occasion and consistently working in the 88-90 mph range with a promising breaking ball. Burke’s commitment to Vanderbilt may scare some big-league clubs away on draft day, but his talents on the field won’t.
Obviously, this was before he hit .209 last year and .211 thus far this year.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:09 am
Mike Murphy on WSCR right now. Love him or hate him, usually interesting Cub broadcast…
Direct quote from NOW: “If you don’t like this trade, you don’t like Lou Pinella. You like the old regime.”
June 20th, 2007 at 11:10 am
Andrew-
Ohh!! That would have been good!
June 20th, 2007 at 11:10 am
Maybe you don’t understand …
No… I understand. You are making something up (i.e. Barrett allows at least two runners a game to advance to second) in order to bash a player, even though what you are making up has little connection to facts. You are simply making it up.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:11 am
Pudge Rodriguez will retire with the Tigers - he loves the Manager and the owner and has worked well with their young pitching staff. Pudge also makes about $10M/yr.
I can’t believe the Yankees will let Posada go as he has performed very well for them…with the Yankees payroll they can keep any player they want to sign.
Not sure what the Cubs will do next year…depends on the new ownership, a possible new GM, and the payroll that is set for 2008.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:15 am
OK,
Here’s my bet:
Michael Barrett catches more post season games than Hill and this newest scrub combined. Any takers?
Zambrano, you better keep the 1 hitters going, or guess what, you’re next.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:16 am
dave said: Pitch selection is a team decision - made by the pitcher, catcher, and the pitching coach, with the final decision on the shoulders of the pitcher.
Larry Rothschild said this a couple of days ago:
In other words, if you want the right pitch in the right location, better talk to the catcher.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:18 am
#128 Frisco…………..Stolen bases are not the only mark of a bad catcher. Barrett just has bad mechanics.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:22 am
Oh Frisco, if you only knew that pitchers shake off pitches they don’t want. Especially catchers they don’t have a lot of confidence in. A catcher’s sign is a suggestion for almost every ballclub at every level. It’s not mandatory unless it comes from the dugout.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:23 am
“Barrett just has bad mechanics.”
I don’t care if he stood on his head when he caught, what the hell does ‘bad mechanics’ have to do with anything?
Sure he hit 54 home runs last year, but that’s an ugly swing.
This whole ‘he calls a bad game’ thing is a pile. VA Phil the other day was stating how Hill was a genius for standing up when calling for a high fastball, this is a move if Barrett didn’t invent, he’s pretty much trademarked.
Dempster, Lilly, Zambrano all said they like him. Maybe you think it’s a grand conspiracy theory, or maybe, just maybe, you don’t know what you’re talking about.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:24 am
I get to work and I’m told the news by a Cub fan employee. I come here and there are already 139 posts. WOW.
I don’t know if its been said before here but this is just the first trade of a big move coming. We just lost a bat and our offense needs more bats. So? So expect Migeul Tejada to be in Chicago before 7/31.
Mark it down.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:24 am
I associate myself with E-Man and Murphy in #133. The Cubs are trying to fix what’s broken.
They’re actually getting better, day by day. A few weeks ago they were sinking. Now they’re treading water. Maybe at some point they’ll start swimming or sailing.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:25 am
and where the catcher sets up isn’t that big of a deal, either. If he isn’t setup where I want him, I step off the rubber. He comes out and we talk about it.
Don’t excuse poor pitching on poor pitch calling and where the catchers setup. Pitchers make the decision.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:28 am
Might be right, Chad. I like that thought. A lot.
I’m hedging my bet there or on the Griffey for Jacque & Gallagher/Marshall deal. I think Krivsky would be stupid to trade away the only thing selling tickets (Jr’s chase for 600), but if he wants to dump, he’ll dump anyway.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:29 am
Maddux also said he liked or didn’t mind Barrett catching him, and Maddux is notoriously picky about his catchers. I’d also wager that the Pad’s GM ran this by Maddux before he made the deal.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:32 am
Maddux may have said that….but who ended up catching Maddux most of the time? Actions speak louder than words.
Nice try though.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:35 am
“Maddux also said he liked or didn’t mind Barrett catching him, and Maddux is notoriously picky about his catchers”
Than why did he have Blanco catch for him for the majority of his games?
June 20th, 2007 at 11:36 am
I wonder if one of the “silent” beneficiaries of this trade is Scott Eyre. If Eyre’s problem was “no confidence” rather than a sore arm or bad mechanics, a catcher who knows how to call a game and put his mitt in the proper spot just might make him useful again…naw, probably not…what the hell am I thinkin’
June 20th, 2007 at 11:36 am
There is also this nugget from a Yahoo article…
Barrett also was involved in a heated discussion with starter Rich Hill in the dugout during the fourth inning of a loss to the Seattle Mariners on June 12.
I must of missed that. Michael Barrett making friends left and right on the team! Good riddance to the mental retard.
You know your catcher is stupid when he starts getting hated by the starting rotation. Ummm Michael if you make them all your enemies, they aren’t going to trade the staff, they are gonna trade you. *shakes head* Wow, what an idiot.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:38 am
Uh, check the splits. Other than ‘04 where Bako caught Maddux almost exclusively, Barrett caught the majority of Maddux’ starts.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:39 am
And the Hill/Barrett thing, for the 1000th time, is bullshit. Everyone involved said afterwards that Hill was yelling at himself about making a bad pitch.
But hey, who gives a shit about the truth.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:40 am
Andy MacPhail hired by the Orioles.
Welcome to 10 more years of losing Orioles fans. If you absolutely need a player….Andy will never get him.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:41 am
But hey vorare who gives a shit about Barrett being a lousy catcher. Obviously Lou cares, cuz he aint on the team anymore.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:44 am
Maddux may have said that….but who ended up catching Maddux most of the time?
Than why did he have Blanco catch for him for the majority of his games?
Sorry to trouble you guys with things like facts, but Barrett actually caught the vast majority of Maddux’s starts as a Cub last year.
Blanco only caught 8 of Maddux’s 22 Cub starts in 2006, and 3 of those were during Barrett’s suspension.
Maddux got a personal catcher in 2004, but Barrett did most of his games in 2005 and 2006.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:45 am
and when is the last time steve stone said ANYTHING positive a move that the cubs made?
I believe he really liked the Izturis trade… A year before he was really talking Cesar up…
Take that for what it’s worth…
June 20th, 2007 at 11:47 am
dave — June 20, 2007 @ 9:43 am
Burke was a 1st round pick last year. It seems far fetched to think they are going to put him on the mound now?
Why is it far fetched? AZ Phil already pointed out the several other players who have been moved to the mound, but you also need to remember that Burke was also a highly touted pitcher coming out of high school. SD made the decision to have him focus on playing the OF - the Cubs could decide to have him pitch instead.
………………………………………………………………..
Dave and Phil, I would say that it would be far fetched because the kid was a 1st rounder LAST year. If the cubs were looking to get a pitcher out of the deal they would have gotten one instead of this guy. SD invested 950K and a 1st rounder in this kid less than a year ago. One has to assume that they would part with a further advanced AA type guy before cutting bait with Burke.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:48 am
MikeC:
“You know your catcher is stupid when he starts getting hated by the starting rotation. Ummm Michael if you make them all you