As a huge Cubs fan, I'm excited about Theo Epstein taking over the Cubs. Cub upper management has recently been an abject fiasco at all levels. They alienated and let go a team legend (Sandberg), allegedly because they wanted more experience in the manager's role - and then promptly signed their third-base coach and interim manager for 6 weeks as the full-time manager. Jim Hendry made some excellent moves early in his tenure as Cubs GM - he pilfered the Pittsburgh Pirates, getting Aramis Ramirez for virtually nothing. Ramirez is the best third basemen the Cubs have had since Ron Santo; and, finally healthy, he put up another quietly and under appreciated good year for the Cubs. However, the end of his tenure cannot really be defended. He signed an aging Alfonso Soriano to a monster contract, and agreed to virtually untradable terms with the volatile Carlos Zambrano. He signed Jacques Jones and Milton Bradley voluntarily, and played Carlos Silva regularly. He failed to step in when players were feuding with the manager, sportscasters, trainers, and every other Cub employee. Basically, he allowed a culture of contention to root itself throughout the club at all levels. That being said, Theo Epstein is not entering a situation with the cupboard totally bare. Starlin Castro shows the potential to be an electrifying shortstop; Matt Garza has ace potential, and pitched well this year; and Marmol has the nastiest stuff in the NL. The bullpen, when healthy, can also be nasty - featuring Cashner, Samardzija, Russell, Marshall - there really are some arms along the LF line that opposing lineups do not want to see. However, Epstein does have his work cut out for him - the following are my ideas for improving the Cubs for 2012.
1). Revamp the pitching staff. The Cubs starting pitching needs a near complete overhaul. The Cubs have two known commodities now, ace Ryan Dempster and younger stud Matt Garza. Dempster is getting on in years, and probably doesn't have more than 2 years or so left as an effective ML starter. But what the Cubs need now is an unquestioned ace, a shut-down, strikeout pitcher. Rangers SP CJ Wilson, a free agent to-be, would be an interesting acquisition, but I still don't feel as he's up to dueling the Halladays and Hudsons of the National League. Still, he would work very well in making the Cubs staff deep again. Should the Rays go into firesale mode, any team in the Majors would jump at Price or Shields, both of whom would fit perfectly with Garza and the Cubs. I'm not sure what's in the minor league pipeline, but the Cubs desperately need at least two more quality starters to compete in the Central.
2). Middle of the order bat. Chicago desperately needs a killer hitter. Wishful thinking would have Pujols in Cubbie pinstripes next year, but I doubt he leaves St. Louis unless there is more bad blood there than appears. Prince Fielder would be an interesting choice too - although, to make a cheap shot, his body type isn't conducive to long-term productivity. The man's done nothing but hit since he came up, and he plays hard and puts up monster numbers. I don't really think you can critique his body type until it begins to affect his play. Carlos Pena did an adequate job this year, but the position where the Cubs really need to get an elite player is at first.
3). Make a decision on youth. Quade had a tough job from day one this season. He had a big-budget team that would struggle to reach .500, knowing full well that he was on the hook for performances this season. What should have happened is that the Cubs should have turned loose the kids. Darwin Barney and Castro proved that the Cubs have a good farm system in place, and especially when faced with a losing year, the best move the Cubs could have made was to throw the kids in the fire. For example, we still don't know if Tyler Colvin can play. We still don't know if Wellington Castillo can play. We have a bevy of young starting pitchers to try out. Throw them in with no pressure, and see who sinks and who swims. The Cubs weren't going to compete with the Cardinals and the all-in Brewers this year, anyway. Why do you not fire up the Iowa circuit and see who can hack it in the Show?
4). Make a decision on Quade. I have nothing against Quade personally; I think he did a decent job with a poorly-constructed team. He got renaissance years out of Ramirez and, to a degree, Soriano. Marlon Byrd was doing well until a facial injury derailed his year. However, he completely lost Zambrano, he mismanaged the youth, and doesn't seem to work a bullpen very well. Marmol had a horrible season by his standards; yet he and his fragile psyche were left to rot in the seldom-used closer's role. Marshall was the best pitcher out of the bullpen, yet was not given the closer's shot despite Marmol's struggles. The Cubs alienated Ryne Sandberg, who they had groomed for years to be manager and who had succeeded at every level the Cubs assigned him. Yet when the time came to make a change, they took the unknown commodity of Quade rather than a team legend. Epstein here has some very tough choices to make: do you retain Quade as a lame-duck for what will likely be a losing season in 2012, waiting for contracts to come off the books and to revamp the farm system and the organization? Do you bring in a younger manager, such as Sandberg, to implement your system right off the bat? Or do you choose a proven winner, such as Terry Francona? (Assuming, of course, that Francona and Epstein are on good terms and that Epstein had little to do with the disgraceful way Francona was treated as he was leaving Boston) Will another manager who fits Epstein's system - Joe Maddon, perhaps - want a shot at a big-market club rather than the frustrating purgatory of Tampa Bay? Or someone more familiar with the system, such as popular Cubs announcer Bob Brenly? (I have no idea why a WS-winning manager such as Brenly can't get a managerial sniff from another team. Baffling to me.)
The Cubs don't really have a good shot at much in 2012, in my opinion, especially with the resurgent Cardinals and the loaded Brewers (even though the Brewers have no system left and are financially strapped). But signing Pujols or Fielder does two things which benefit the Cubs: one, it gains Chicago a much-needed power bat; and two, it severely weakens the Cubs' primary opposition. Signing Pujols would be a major coup and a huge blow to the Cardinals, because he has been there franchise for the past decade. Fielder would not be as big of a blow, partially because the Brewers also have Ryan Braun locked down but also because he doesn't represent the city and the team quite as much as Pujols does to St. Louis. So with that being said, here are my thoughts on what the Cubs 2012 Opening Day lineup should be:
1). Starlin Castro, SS. Kid showed his rookie year wasn't a fluke, and proved himself as a leadoff hitter. Needs to work much more on base-stealing and base running.
2). Darwin Barney, 2B. Quality 2-hole hitter; moves the ball around well and a good baserunner.
3). Fielder/Pujols, 1B. No explanation needed.
4). Aramis Ramirez, 3B. Resurgent year from him - with few quality 3B on the market, I think you re-sign Aramis to a 2-3 year deal.
5). Marlon Byrd, CF. Marlon is the heart and soul of the Cubs - when he went out by injury, the club really struggled. Uses all fields well and plays an excellent CF.
6 - 7). Alfonso Soriano/Geovany Soto. Both players are becoming question marks, although Soriano had roughly the year I think we can expect from him from here on out. Both need to work on contact and using the opposite field. A team can't win with constant Ks with 1 out and runner in SP. Unacceptable at this level.
8). Tyler Colvin, RF. When given the chance, he showed he can play. Give him a shot.
9). Matt Garza, SP. While Dempster is the unquestioned leader of the staff, Garza has the stuff and is the future of the staff. May as well put him in the driver's seat now.
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