WOOD HE PLEASE STOP?

Will Maddon please stop with the manta of playing players out of position?

There was absolutely no reason to play Travis Wood in LF during yesterday's Rockies blowout of the Cubs. None.

The bullpen has been hit with a surge of injuries and tired arms. You do not need one of your healthy lefties to go out and try to cover the vast space of left field, in thin air, just to save Jason Heyward who had not played in three consecutive games.

Calling it a Maddon "fun" interjection in a bad game is no excuse. Yes, Wood got a single in his only at-bat while the rest of the team mustered three. But what if he got hurt playing left in a meaningless game?

The more times Maddon does this stunt, the odds increase that someone will get hurt.

The Cubs cannot believe they are coasting to the playoffs.  The bullpen continues to be a concern, and the starting rotation needs skip-start rest. With Montgomery and Cahill being the spot-start tandem, that thins out the regular bullpen availability of relievers like Wood.

In September, the Cubs will bring up additional outfielders and infielders and as many live arms that they can find. But until then, Maddon needs to just play players in their natural positions.

TENDERS AND WOOD

As expected, the Cubs tendered offers to Jake Arrieta, Travis Wood, Pedro Strop, Hector Rondon, Justin Grimm, and Chris Coghlan on Wednesday, and also agreed to terms with left-handed relievers Rex Brothers ($1.42 million) and Clayton Richard ($2.1 million) on 2016 contracts.


The Cubs did not tender contracts to right-hander Ryan Cook and lefty Jack Leathersich (who was injured and on rehab). All but Leathersich were arbitration-eligible.


Cook and Leathersich never suited up for the Cubs. 


The front office continues to cull through waiver wire claims and now, non-tender lists, in order to add more bodies to the 40 man roster (which sits at 36 players) or to the AAA club.


The focus has been adding AAA replacement level pitchers for bullpen depth. Richard gives the Cubs the long reliever-spot starter that it needs to stabilize the rotation. This could also mean that the Cubs may actually give Wood the opportunity to try to regain his starter status. Wood was much more effective in relief because Bosio made him throw more fastballs instead of trying to paint the corners with off-speed pitches.  Wood seems the only in-house option to be the Cubs #5 starter.

EDWIN PROBLEM

The fallout from not getting Anibal Sanchez continues to haunt the Cubs since the front office knee jerked a long term free agent deal with Edwin Jackson.  Jackson has been a major disappointment, and the butt of fan remarks, most recently in his ability to find the Cubs old spring training facility on the day he was supposed to start against the A's.

The rotation appears to be set. Lester, Arrieta, Hammel, T. Woods and Hendricks. Jackson is clearly the odd starter out. Whether he will take the old Carlos Villaneuva role of being a long reliever-spot starter is unclear since he has said in the past that he is only a starting pitcher.

The Cubs still owe Jackson $26 million for the next two years. That is a huge dead money contract if the team cuts him. The Cubs cannot mysteriously DL him since he a veteran and the union does not teams messing with veterans under contract. The pressure is on the Cubs to keep him on the 25 man roster. The problem is that the bullpen is already filled with better arms.  Justin Grimm is out of options so he has to stay in middle relief. Hector Rondon, Pedro Strop and Jason Motte are the back end of the pen, along with Neil Ramirez and probably lefties Phil Coke and Felix Doubront, who is also out of options.

With the Cubs apparently keeping Welington Castillo, who is also out of options, as the third catcher, there is no space to keep Jackson on the 25 man roster.  Even in an era of more pitchers having arm issues, there has been no buzz lately in the trade rumor department on Jackson.

The Cubs have claimed the Kris Bryant situation is not about the money, but in reality it is. Adding one year of control means one year more without having to pay a large free agency deal at Bryant's peak earning years. However, if Bryant is a superstar player, play him now and pay him in due course since baseball history is littered with teams missing the playoffs by a single game.

If it is about "not" eating the money, Jackson will be shoehorned on the roster at the expense of another pitcher. That will not sit well with Cub fans.

GIFT WRAPPED

It is apparent that the Cubs need to trade C Welington Castillo and LHP Travis Wood.

The question is whether the Cubs previous moves have been to stock pile these
trade chips to go after Cole Hamels.

The Cubs did put in an odd waiver claim in September for Hamels, so the interest
was there (but this was prior to Lester signing).

In the NL, Castillo's offense production is probably top ten, and he is a better defender
than most people give him credit for. So he is an upgrade for half the teams, so he is
valuable. Wood was very good two years ago, and not so good last season. But he is
an experienced, cheap left handed starter. He also has value.

Plus, the Cubs have a stock pile of infield talent to trade.
Teams like Alcantara because he has power for a little second baseman.
Bryant is untouchable, but could the Cubs trade a Baez and replace him with Russell?

The Cubs have been touting CF Almora this week, which means that they are pumping
the media to make other teams like this prospect?

Philadelphia would want a ton for Hamels.
But what about the Nationals if they want to move Strasburg or Zimmerman?

But for a package of Castillo, Wood, Almora and another pitching prospect, the Cubs would
need to get an ace in return, with several years of affordable control, not a rental.

WOODEN ARM

Travis Wood has probably pitched himself off the Cubs 2015 roster.

Wood came over from the Reds in the Shaun Marshall deal.  It started off well for the Cubs.

In 2012, Wood went 6-13, 4.27 ERA, 1.199 WHIP and 0.7 WAR.  This is acceptable for a back of the rotation starter on a bad team.

In 2013, Wood was an All-Star. He went 9-12, 3.11 ERA, 1.145 WHIP and 4.4 WAR. He was probably the most consistent starter on the staff that season.

In 2014, Wood regressed badly. He has gone 8-12, 5.15 ERA, 1.543 WHIP and negative 0.8 WAR. Some observers think that Wood may be pitching hurt. Others think the league may have caught up to his style of pitching since he can't overpower hitters.

He is under team control through arbitration through 2017. As a lefty starter, that is an in-demand commodity for any team.

The Cubs are stock piling a bunch of starting pitchers with histories that are similar to Wood's. Whether Jacob Turner returns to his prospect scouting sheet hype is unknown. Yoshi Wada has been a nice addition, but he is another lefty soft-tosser new to the league this year. And Kyle Hendricks looks Maddux-like in some of his starts, but does he have long term control to be an effective #2 starter? Jake Arrieta took over for Jeff Samardzija and looked better than advertised, but even Arrieta has slowly slid back to being around a .500 pitcher.

It is rare to find a starting pitcher with a consistent long term career. Those guys get the hundred million dollar deals.

The Cubs need to evaluate Wood closely this off-season. Was he injured or have a tired arm? Is there a mechanical flaw? Or as with many major league players, he has run his course and is destined to be a journeyman like former Pirate,  Zach Duke.

HERALDED PROSPECTS

When rookie shortstop Gordon Beckham arrived on the South Side, he had a quick start which propelled him into the "can't miss" category. In 2009, he hit .270, 14 HR and 63 RBI with a 2.1 WAR. Sadly, that was his best major league season. He went to play second full time, and was a Gold Glove caliber defender.

But after 5.5 years with the Sox, Beckham batted only .244, 61 HR, 276 RBI and 5.9 WAR. The "can't miss" prospect with the confidence to be an All-Star turned into a "can't hit" major leaguer.

Beckham's case is not unusual. Less than six percent of all minor leaguers make it to the majors, and very few have All-Star caliber careers. Beckham is the latest example of how an accomplished minor league prospect can make an initial splash in the Show, but fail to have a good career.

So the White Sox traded Beckham to the Angels for a player to be named or cash.

Beckham lasted longer than the Cubs Brett Jackson, who was also traded this summer for nominal return. Jackson was a highly anticipated five tool centerfielder who could be a cornerstone player for the Cubs for a decade. His major league career lasted only 44 games.

Even today, highly regarded prospect Javy Baez is wowing the crowds with massive home runs. But Baez also is a strike out mess (being punched out more than 43 percent). In his first 17 games, Baez has hit 5 home runs, but struck out 30 times. He is only hitting .214. It is feast of famine. It is almost an exact repeat of Jackson's struggles.

Even players who have a good track record can begin to falter for no apparent reason. Travis Wood's last outing against the rain soaked Giants was termed "an Edwin start," a Cub term of art for a bad performance. Wood's performance has become to noticeably slide from his excellent 2013 season (4.4 WAR) to this year (negative 0.4 WAR).

Even the best prospects may only give a team a slight, one year jolt in performance. The lesson is clear: there is still a major leap from AAA to the majors. More than 90 percent of those prospects don't make a long term career out of their opportunity.

THINKING AHEAD

One of the few duties of a major league manager is not to run out of players during a game.

It is said that great managers can "see" how the game will unfold three innings in advance, like a chess grandmaster who can anticipate 20 moves ahead in a match.

Cub manager Rick Renteria ran out of batters in the 13th inning. So he had to call on his best hitting pitcher, Travis Wood, to pinch hit. He bailed out his skipper with a game winning RBI double. But again, a manager should not run out of players in a close game. He should always be thinking ahead and not just reacting to the situation.

Speaking of which, the Sun Times reports today that the Theo Epstein is contacting Jeff Samardzija's agent for a final talk on a contract extension. The Shark becomes a free agent in two seasons. He has already indicated that he was going to play through to get to free agency. (He also said he was going to pitch great to get moved out of town.)

Last week, there were rumors that the Cubs had began actively discussing a Samardzija trade well before the deadline. That would make sense since Samardzija has thrown his best start of his career (without run support). The Cubs can get more in return by trading him earlier in the year. (Hammel appears to be flipped at the deadline.)

Though some believe the final extension talk is not public relations on the part of Cubs management which is about to trade away another popular player, it may really signal that the Cubs are not getting their perceived "value" for their ace pitcher. Samardzija may be the Cubs "ace" but on another staff he may be a #3 or #4. If the Cubs are not going to get two major league ready AAA pitchers in return, then it makes sense to try to keep Samardzija, a known commodity. But it also signals that if you believed The Shark is a quality, durable starter - - - very valuable in this TJ season - - - then one would think you'd keep him on board when the rebuild of the roster happens in the next two years.

But that is a tell . . .  the Cubs are also signaling that the team will not be competitive in two years so why keep a high price starting pitcher who will leave in three? At best, Javy Baez is promoted to the club late this year or earns a spot in 2015. Kris Bryant is promoted to the Cubs in late 2015 or 2016. So by the end of the Shark era, the Cubs rebuild will yield only two quality position players, not enough to turn around a team that continues to struggle around .400.

If you want to think ahead, think 2020 as the cross roads season for current management and their plans to fix the Cubs.

ARB PROCESS

Baseball arbitration is both an art form and cutthroat business negotiation.

The player submits a figure of his worth through his agent, and the team submits its figure for a one year contract. The arbitrator can only decide on one or the other figure. It is winner take all after arguments from both sides.

Part of the process is that if it goes to a hearing, players hear for the first time highly negative comments about their skills from their team. Teams attempt to downgrade the player's accomplishments or stat lines in order to convince the arbitrator that a lower salary is correct.

Normally, the player and team come to an agreement (an inbetween sum) and avoid the hassles of an actual hearing. But not always. Ryan Theriot took the Cubs through the hearing process, and was later traded within that year.

Sabermetrics has filled volumes of information on how one can value a player.

But there has been a fairly standard rule of thumb in regard to arbitration figures. Normally, a first time arb player would get around 1/3 of a comparable veteran's salary. A second year player, 50 percent. A third and final year arb player would get 2/3. Each time the young player would be receiving a hefty raise. However, there are exceptions when, say, a pitcher wins the Cy Young and demands current market value.

Travis Wood signed a new deal with the Cubs to avoid his first year arbitration. The sum was $3.9 million. Wood had a break-out season in 2013, with a 4.4 WAR, leading the Cubs pitching staff.

A veteran with a 4.4 WAR could probably command around $24.2 million (based upon $5.5 million/WAR). Under that valuation, Wood would have been worth $7.99 million. However, the team would look at it more towards career performance, at 6.3 WAR over 4 seasons. The average WAR times value would equate to a current player contract value of $2.8 million.

And this is the type of argument that both sides would engage in at a hearing. So it always better to try to keep the peace and settle arbitration cases prior to the hearing. In Wood's case, it seems that the sides agreed to a contract which rewarded Wood for his fine 2014 season.

ROTATION

When Clayton Kershaw broke the bank with his new contract, which pays him an average annual salary of $30 million, that is the "ace" of ace money.

In six major league seasons, Kershaw has amassed an amazing record. He is 77-46, 2.60 ERA and 32.3 WAR. In 2013, his WAR was 7.8.

If one uses the range of player value of being $5.5 million per win above replacement, Kershaw's 2013 value would have been $42.9 million.

In contrast, the Cubs "ace" last season was Jeff Samardzija. However, he only had a 1.0 WAR in 2013. That would mean his value would be around $5.5 million. He has asked in arbitration for $6.2 million. This may be a little high, but starting pitching is a premium position. However, the Cubs definitely low balled him with their arbitration figure of $4.4 million. If the Cubs win the arbitration, it would be much easier to trade a 200 IP player at that lower salary figure.

But what is truly the realistic value of a starting rotation? Unless you have an unlimited budget, you can't stack five All-Star quality (5.0 WAR plus) pitchers.

Realistically, a starting rotation would be like this:

1. Pitcher A with a 5.0 WAR, an All-Star caliber player
2. Pitcher B with a 4.0 WAR, a very good pitcher.
3. Pitcher C with a 3.0 WAR, a solid starter.
4. Pitcher D with a 2.0 WAR, a starter who has consistency issues to be around a .500 pitcher.
5. Pitcher E with a 1.0 WAR, just above AAA replacement level.

If you look at it this way, Samardzija would fit the "value" of a 5th starter and not a staff "ace."

Many people believe Travis Wood had a better year than Samardzija, and the stats would back that up. Wood had a 2013 WAR of 4.4, which would make him a rock solid #2 starter.When Edwin Jackson was a National his last season, he had a 2.0 WAR which put him as a #4 starter on a good Nat team which was about right. The Cubs paid him a premium to be the #3 starter, but last season Jackson's WAR was a negative 1.3, which would have been below a #5 starter.

If Samardzija is the Cubs ace at 1.0 WAR, then the Cubs would be fielding four other starters at replacement level, which actually could happen in 2014 if the Cubs trade Wood. But of the two, Wood is more valuable than Samardzija.

THE NEW WOOD

He may be the best of both worlds. He may be the staff ace the Cubs have been searching for since Kerry Wood's 20K performance. He may also be the hitting pitcher without the attitude of Carlos Zambrano.

Clearly, this was the best trade the Cubs have made in a long time. Reliever Sean Marshall for Travis Wood.

T. Wood in 2013 has pitched 21 games. His record is 7-7. 2/79 ERA, 1.079 WHIP. The lack of run support has been a key to the Cubs pitching staff not having better records.  In 2012, his record was 6-13 in 26 GP, 4.27 ERA and 1.191 WHIP.  In 47 games for the Cubs, Wood is 13-20.

Kerry Wood's first two years are slightly different. In 1998, he went 13-6, 3.40 ERA and 1.212 WHIP in 26 games. He did not pitch the next season due to injury. In 2000, he went 8-7, 4.80 ERA, 1.453 WHIP in 23 GP. In his first 49 games for the Cubs, K. Wood was 21-13, but on a better ball club.

T. Wood's batting far exceeds the majority of the regulars in the line up. In 2013, he is hitting .293 BA, 3 HR, 8 RBI, 1 SB.

In contrast, Zambrano in 12 seasons hit 24 HR, 71 RBI and had a .238 BA. His best Cub homer year was in 2006 when he hit 6, with 11 RBI but a low .151 BA. In 2008 he had his best overall year at the plate, 4 HR, 14 RBI. 337 BA.

People tend to gravitate towards Jeff Samardzija or Matt Garza as an "ace" pitcher because they throw harder.  But the speed of a fastball is only one element to a quality pitcher. How to pitch is different than just throwing a baseball at 97 mph. Many teams have inquired about T. Wood in trade talks. Since it is hard to develop starting pitchers, the Cubs should keep T. Wood and build the staff around him.

MOST VALUABLE ASSETS

While the Cubs are pushing hard Matt Garza in trade talks, is he really the most valuable asset the Cubs have to trade?  No, he is not. He will be a free agent at the end of the year. He is a rental player to a trade partner. He wants a significant raise next season from his current $10.5 million contract.  As in previous posts, Garza will not generate the number or quality of prospects in a trade.

Who are more valuable trade chips?

1. Travis Wood. The Cubs lone All-Star has the added advantages of being a left handed starter, and team control to 2017. He is arbitration eligible after this season. So he is a quality and affordable starting pitcher. He would bring back the most talent in a trade. However, is he more valuable to the Cubs to build a long term starting rotation?

2. Jeff Samardzija. The Cubs consider him "ace" material. He is a free agent in 2016. Like Wood, he is arbitration eligible but affordable to most teams. He would bring back more talent than Garza in a trade, but the front office is signalling that they want to keep Samardzija long term.

3. Dioner Navarro. Most contenders look to add a missing component to their bench (back up fielders or quality pinch hitters). Navarro has excelled at the latter. He signed a one year $1.75 deal with the Cubs so he is a free agent after this season. But being a catcher plus a switch hitter makes him a valuable commodity to the right team.

4. Kevin Gregg. Most contenders also look to bolster their bullpens for the final drive in September. Gregg has experience in set up and closer roles (even though his last five outings have been less than stellar.) He is also a free agent at the end of the season so he is a good choice for a contender who just wants insurance for this season.

5. Luis Valbuena. He may be the most versatile Cub to reach the market this year. He can play three infield positions. He bats left handed. He is a free agent in 2017 and arbitration eligible next year. He could be a valuable bench player on a contending team who has possible injury issues with its starters.

6. Carlos Villanueva. He is also versatile in that he can start and throw long relief. As staffs wear down this summer, a team may seek more live arms to get through the dog days of August. Villaneuva fits that role. He is signed for next season at a reasonable $5 million salary for a 5th starter so that should bring in an extra prospect in a trade.

7. Jeff Russell. He would have been more valuable, but during recent "show case" games he struggled. The amount of work may be catching up to him. However, he is a lefty reliever with experience that some teams need in order to compete in the latter stages of a pennant race.

It would not be surprising that at least half of these 8 players are traded by the Cubs before the deadline.

ALL STAR SNUB

Dale Sveum said something peculiar in regard to the All Star game representative. He said Travis Wood's Sunday start on national television would be "enough of a show case" than skipping his start so he could pitch in the All Star Game.

There are several problems with that statement.

First, does anyone actually watch Sunday night baseball? Most teams are traveling on Sundays after their weekend series.

Second, the Cubs are not even close to contending for a playoff spot. So there is no compelling need for Wood to make a start on Sunday.

Third, a "show case" is a stage where one displays their talent to a wide audience. In baseball, there is no better place to show case one's talent in front of every front office general manager and team president than the All Star Game. All teams top brass attend that Game.

Fourth, many players believe it is a honor to play in the All Star Game. It represents recognition by the fans and their peers of their excellent skills. It is more exciting for a first time player like Wood. But by pitching on Sunday, he will not be able to pitch in the ASG. He will just be a fan with very good seat in front of the action.

Fifth, if Wood is the future of the Cubs rotation, why would the team take away his opportunity to pitch in the ASG?  Why make Wood upset? Wood may never get another chance to do so.

It is hard for some fans or players to see the ASG rosters and debate whether someone deserving was snubbed by the league or the coaching staff. But in this case, Wood is getting snubbed by his own team!

PLEASE! KNOCK ON WOOD

The Cubs broadcast crew was fawning over Travis Wood. Wood had just thrown his eighth consecutive "quality start" (which is an inflated and nebulous statistic). The announcers were calling Wood the greatest pitcher since Hippo Vaughn.

Really?

Vaughn pitched 13 major league seasons (1908-1921). He compiled a career record of 178-137, in 390 games pitched; he had 214 complete games and threw 2730 IP. His career ERA was 2.49. His career WHIP 1.201. His career WAR was 24.9.

In 1918, Vaughn was the NL pitcher of the year, leading the league in wins (22), ERA (1.74) and strikeouts (148).

Wood is 4-2, with a 2.03 ERA for 2013. But Wood still only has a career WAR of 0.8 in his four big league seasons.

Wood is having a nice season so far, but broadcasters on bad teams get carried away trying to find a positive spin. Wood is the #4 starter on a bad team. He is not the reincarnation of Hippo Vaughn. 

THE OVER-PRAISE OF WOOD

ESPNChicago poll question: is Kerry Wood in the Top 50 Cubs of all time?

It is an insult to the Cub legacy to vote yes.

As predicted, the admiration, dolting excess of pro-Wood media attention is on full bore.

But to even think Wood was the greatest Cub of all time???

Maybe the greatest disappointment of all time, as "Kid K" came to the majors with

the expectations of being the next Nolan Ryan.

But Wood's career was not even close to being considered a Hall of Famer.

He was not a dominate pitcher. As a starter, 86 wins is below average for time in the majors.

As a reliever, he was never a dominate closer with 63 saves. He stayed in the game longer

than most because of his dazzling start as a rookie and his old stats that he had a 95 mph fastball.

Power pitchers are the golden arms for general managers.

It is false praise to even consider Wood as one of the greatest Cubs of all time.

Take off the blinders, people. The objective evidence shows Wood may be a fan icon, but

not a great player.

Just look at the Cubs enshrined in Cooperstown.  It is not easy to get  voted in (ask Santo):

Pete Alexander	1918-1926
Cap Anson *	1876-1897
Richie Ashburn	1960-1961
Ernie Banks *	1953-1971
Roger Bresnahan	1900, 1913-1915
Lou Brock	1961-1964
Mordecai Brown *	1904-1912, 1916
Frank Chance *	1898-1912
John Clarkson	1884-1887
Kiki Cuyler	1928-1935
Dizzy Dean	1938-1941
Hugh Duffy	1888-1889
Dennis Eckersley	1984-1986
Johnny Evers *	1902-1913
Jimmie Foxx	1942, 1944
Clark Griffith	1893-1900
Burleigh Grimes	1932-1933
Gabby Hartnett *	1922-1940
Billy Herman *	1931-1941
Rogers Hornsby	1929-1932
Monte Irvin	1956
Fergie Jenkins *	1966-1973, 1982-1983
George Kelly	1930
King Kelly *	1880-1886
Ralph Kiner	1953-1954
Chuck Klein	1934-1936
Tony Lazzeri	1938
Fred Lindstrom	1935
Rabbit Maranville	1925
Robin Roberts	1966
Ryne Sandberg*	1982-1997
Ron Santo*	1960-74
Al Spalding	1876-1878
Joe Tinker *	1902-1912, 1916
Rube Waddell	1901
Hoyt Wilhelm	1970
Billy Williams *	1959-1974
Hack Wilson *	1926-1931
* Played more games with the Cubs than any other team.

There is 38 players right there.

And there are the players on the HOF ballot like Lee Smith and Bruce Sutter.

And there are hundreds of other good players who were All-Stars and had long, productive careers who played with the Cubs like Rick Monday, Bill Buckner, Don Kessinger, Gabby Harnett, Rick Reuschel, all were clearly better than Wood.

How Wood's name gets into the discussion of greatest Cubs of all time shows the lack of baseball intelligence.  Which is probably the explanation why the Cubs continue to draw with really bad teams; with players who also have limited baseball intelligence on the diamond. Maybe that is the Cub fan connection that keeps the franchise in limbo: hoisting praise on mediocre stars.

WOOD TO RETIRE

Numerous reports state that Kerry Wood is going to retire after today's crosstown game against the White Sox.

Many Cub fans are still in a dream state in regard to Wood. They only dream about Wood's 20 strikeout performance against the Astros.  He was turned into "Mr. Cub 2.0" on mere expectations alone.

With Mark Prior, another phenom, the Cubs were going to win several championships. End result: total failure.

Wood was part of the staff which got the Cubs to one NLCS.

Fans will remember what might have been with the power pitcher, and be confused by reality.

In his 14 year career, Wood has 85 wins.  That is a paltry 6 wins per season average. He also had 63 saves, which is a meek 4.5 saves per season average. Those are not Hall of Fame (Cooperstown or even local Chicago) numbers.  The reality is that Wood's career is that of a marginal, below average journeyman.

It may be part generational, but older fans appreciated power pitchers like Nolan Ryan. The increase in walk up ticket sales reflected who was pitching that day (for either club).

Wood had more stints on the DL than years of service in the majors.  He had flawed mechanics in his delivery (his arm would cross his chest instead of moving forward down the line towards home plate) which contributed to his injury history. One of the faults is that no one in the Cubs organization corrected those mechanical flaws. No matter how much coaching there is in professional ball, it is still the player that controls his own fate.

So the Chicago media will eulogize Wood as being a great Cub, a fan favorite, a player that the team will miss.  But it is hard to ego the brash ego on his final day. If you were going to retire, just retire. No, Wood wants all the attention this afternoon. The actual game is irrelevant. Wood will be in the bullpen getting cheers for the fans all day long. They will scream to put Wood in one last time (even if the starter has a perfect game going), just because they want to see Wood pitch one last time.

The reason Wood is retiring is that he should have retired two years ago. He does not have the command, control and power of his pitches anymore. He has imploded on the mound just like Carlos Marmol.

Baseball history is littered with the stories of "can't miss" prospects failing to reach their potential. Wood has to be added to that list.

CHOP WOOD, TIMBER!

Theo Epstein threw away his principles and long term blueprint last night
when he announced the return to the mass of delusional sentimental fans
of KId K. It had to be on Friday the 13th. It had to be at the Cub convention.
It had to give the attendees some warm and fuzzy overtones of their past idols.

What the hell?
Again, what the hell?

A 34 year old relief pitcher coming off another knee surgery gets $3 million
while the New Management has no qualms about trading away the best
left handed reliever in MLB (Sean Marshall)?

Kerry Wood got Marshall's money, simple as that. But Marshall is a better pitcher - - -
well, he does not have a 14 year old 20 strikeout performance against a hapless
overjuiced Astros lineup on the old short and tattered resume that is Kerry Wood.

So the Cubs are back to PR moves instead of baseball moves. This has the
smell of a Ricketts-Kenney-old Tribune marketing intervention in order to put
lipstick on a pig before the prom.

But what misplaced loyalty.  This is another blindsided slap at Ryne Sandberg.
He never got the respect from ownership or new management. Epstein announced
before the managerial search began that Sandberg was not a candidate. Why?
He had only won 4 years straight in the minors, with two championships. He had
paid his dues. He was loyal to the Cubs organization. He is a Hall of Famer!
And he is a fan favorite.  But somehow, all these good works makes Sandberg
unqualified to be a manager.  But somehow, Wood's total career of major disappointments,
blown expectations, injury plagued seasons is more important public relations
hiring a former manager who has shown clear success in winning to manage the Cubs.

This also puts Garza on the next plane out of town, for Maholm's $4.75 million plus
Wood's $3 million equals Garza's 2012 projected salary. In a zero sum game that the
Cubs payroll is going to be, PR wins out over performance, again.

This also puts more pressure on James Russell in the bullpen. As the only projected

left handed reliever, he must suddenly turn into the Next Sean Marshall. In a hurry.

Russell appeared in 64 games, 1-6 record, 4.12 ERA in 67.2 IP. He gave up 37 runs, 

had a WHIP of 1.330, with 43 K and 14 BB.

Marshall appeared in 78 games, 6-6 record with 5 saves, 2.26 ERA in 75.2 IP. Marshall

gave up 21 runs, had a stellar WHIP of 1.097, with 79 K and 17 BB.

Russell needs to pitch 21% more innings at the same time cut down on runs allowed by

43% in order to come close to Marshall's performance.

CHOP WOOD

There is so much media and fan torch and pitchfork yelling about the Cubs not re-signing Kerry Wood for 2012.  Whatever the side deal Wood had with Jim Hendry to return at a discount for 2011 is water under the bridge. New management. New Day. New payroll budget which is shaping up to be dramatically less than 2011. Epstein and Hoyer have already turned over 25% of the Cubs end season 40 man roster. The dead wood is being burned quickly as everyone can see that 2012 is going to be a Lost Season.

It is reported that Wood wanted a multi-year deal at $4 million per season. The Cubs have said they have made him an offer with a "substantial raise." It must not be substantial enough for the current "Mr. Cub" in some fan's eyes. But if one takes off the rose colored glasses, is Wood taking a roster spot at $3-$4 million a long term step to improve the club or just short term fan service? To sign Wood now would mean the Cubs bullpen would have only one lefty reliever (Russell) instead of the projected two (Maine). The idea of blocking a young pitcher's development for the sake of some alleged intangible "clubhouse leadership" Wood brings to the locker room is just bad business. Wood, as a leader in 2011, led the team to a woeful 71 victory campaign. Wood is not an ace starter nor a premier closer. He is a 34 year old injury prone journeyman relief pitcher.

Last season, Wood appeared in 55 games, and threw only 51 innings. He had a 3-5 record, 3.35 ERA, 57 Ks, 21 BB, 1.294 WHIP.
In 2010, in the American League, Wood appeared in 47 games, and threw only 46 innings. He had a 3-4 record, 3.13 ERA, 49 Ks, 29 BB, 1.329 WHIP.

As stated in an older post, in constructing a bullpen, you want your set up man to have an ERA under 3.00 and pitch 60 innings. Wood does not meet that criteria for the past two seasons. In the same article, we stated that your middle reliever needs to throw 75 2/3 innings and have an ERA of under 2.85 to have a competitive team in the NL Central.  Again, Wood does not meet that criteria.

Even if the Cubs had a spare $4 million to spend (which is doubtful they way the transactions have been going so far), it would be far more productive to spend that money upgrading second base, buying insurance at third if Stewart flops, or finding a power hitter off the bench.

Wood is not productive enough to make a difference for the Cubs, especially when the team is in nuclear winter re-build mode. The Cubs should not re-sign Wood for 2012.