DIFFERENT MOVES

There is a clear difference between how Chicago baseball teams view their spring training. One is proactive, the other is staid.

As camp opened, the Cubs third base corps was a mess. Ian Stewart and Josh Vitters both strained their lat muscles. Stewart, coming off wrist surgery and a busted 2012 season, had an MRI and may miss some time. Vitters injury appears to be less severe. However, when one looks at the entire organizational chart, only Luis Valbuena remains as a third base option for 2013.

In contrast, the White Sox opened camp with newly signed free agent utility man Jeff Keppinger slated to be at third. Injury prone Bret Morel was targeted to be the back up third baseman if he was healthy.  But the White Sox front office saw their roster being right hand hitting dominant. And to further bolster roster depth, the Sox decided to go out and find a left handed bat that added depth at third base.

So the White Sox traded minor league pitcher Jeff Soptic to the Giants for minor league third baseman Conor Gillaspie.

Gillaspie, 25, is a left handed hitting infielder, who was a former fast-rising prospect and 37th overall selection in 2008. He played in the major leagues less than 100 days after he was selected. He has spent most of his time in the minor leagues since then, though, batting .287 with 37 home runs and 259 RBIs over five seasons. To make room for Gillaspie, the White Sox waived first baseman Lars Anderson, whom they recently picked up off waivers.

Over 29 major league games spanning three seasons with the Giants he hit .205 with one home run and four RBIs. As ESPN Chicago reported:

"He conceivably fits in nicely on the roster, which we’ll obviously decide more about toward the end of next month," general manager Rick Hahn said. "But we see him having a solid hit tool, above-average awareness of the strike zone, solid defensively. He gives us a little versatility in his ability to play third base as well as first. He gives (manager) Robin (Ventura) some options potentially."

Gillaspie is out of minor league options, which means that if he doesn't make the White Sox out of spring training he would have to go through the waivers process.

 In certain respects, Gillaspie fits a real need for the Cubs, someone who will be able to back up third and first base this season. Currently, the Cubs have no one on the roster for that role. Non-roster invitee Brett Lillibridge is getting some play because he can also play the outfield.  But the Cubs appear not to want to trade any prospects (especially their own) to fill current season needs. This is a clear signal that the Cubs do not want to tinker with their rebuilding plan by trading away young talent that they are signing or developing for a player that meets a current roster need.

WHITE SOX PICK UP

 The White Sox claimed first baseman Lars Anderson off waivers from Arizona. Arizona had designed Anderson for assignment last week as a result of the Upton trade.

The White Sox's 40 man roster is now full. Previously, the White Sox outrighted waiver pick up pitcher Zach Stewart to AAA Charlotte.

Anderson, 25, has been on this blog's radar since Theo Epstein came from Boston. Before the Rizzo deal, we thought Anderson could be a potential first base candidate in Chicago. Now, he is a candidate but on the south side of town.

Anderson hit .250, 9 HR, 59 RBI for Boston and Cleveland AAA clubs in 2012, with .353 OBP. He also played 32 games in  LF in the minors.The knock on Anderson is that he may be a AAAA player; however, he has been blocked at the major league level with every organization so far in his career.

Anderson adds a left handed bat to spell Paul Konerko at first base.

FIRST BASE BLOCK

A sly general manager in a position of need should look to other clubs to find a player to help improve his own roster. A good way to find a major league ready prospect to see who is being blocked from being promoted from AAA. A highly paid free agent signee or an All-Star at the current major league roster spot will block a AAA player at the same position from being promoted.

The Cubs have a void to fill at first base. Derek Lee held down that spot for years (effectively blocking the promotion of Cub prospects) and Carlos Pena held the position last season. But Pena is a free agent looking for a three year deal the Cubs cannot pay, so the team needs to fill that important spot in the order.

Early in the post season, the discussion of Theo Epstein's compensation with Boston (and the possibility of a trade to make amends) led us to find that the Red Sox have a AAA first base prospect who had fallen out of favor: Lars Anderson.

Anderson, 24, AAA stats:  14 HR,  78 RBI,  5 SB .265 BA .791 OPS .992 Fielding %

He fits the Epstein criteria of being a young player. Anderson will be blocked at first base and DH spot in Boston in 2012.

The next name were heard of was Kendry Morales. After the Angels signed Albert Pujols, the Angels have a surplus of first basemen. However, Morales has been injured for the past two years and would be a risky investment.

Recently, the Padres made a big trade of their Number One starter to the Reds for prospects, including a first baseman. This led to the speculation that the Padres AAA first baseman, Antony Rizzo, was going to be blocked from a promotion in 2012.

Rizzo, 22, AAA stats: 26 HR 101 RBI 7 SB .331 BA 1.056 OPS .985 Fielding %

Again, Rizzo fits the Epstein model of being a young talent with upside potential.

But to pry an Anderson or Rizzo from their current teams would take a major deal. Such a deal would involve Matt Garza. Besides the Padres or Red Sox, the Yankees are also in the market for starters. The Yanks have Texiera at first for the long term, so their AAA first baseman is Jorge Vazquez.

Vazquez, 29 AAA stats: 32 HR, 93 RBI, 0 SB, .262 BA, .830 OPS , .992 Fielding %

Vazquez has the power numbers to be a first baseman, but the negative is that he is 29 years old. After a certain point, players that have not been promoted by this age get labeled "AAAA players."

However, when you look at these three blocked prospects, the Cubs have their own home solution who had better stats than any of them: Bryan LaHair.

LaHair, 29, AAA stats: 38 HR 109 RBI, 2 SB, .331 BA OPS  1.070, .992 Fielding %

Considering that the Cubs have no power hitting back up first baseman on the roster, any of these prospects could be viable alternatives or bench players in 2012.