Seperating head from soul: The Greg leaves Chicago
It’s easy to find a proper excuse for why the Cubs had to trade Greg Maddux. He’s not great anymore, and his $9 million deal is a bit too much to stomach on even the healthiest of payroll appetites.
The reality is, though, that the Cubs had to trade anyone. Jim Hendry had to do something. His name hasn’t risen above culpability for this season’s malaise quite far enough; this team, while thoughtfully constructed, just isn’t built the way it had to be to insure success. Where’s the relief pitching? Where are the extra starters? Where are the non-Cedeno, non-Murton prospects to fill holes inevitably created when the injury duo (Prior, Wood) go down again? This team had no backup plan, no insurance policy, and Hendry had to trade Maddux today, lest he look unconcerned.
All that’s well and good, but the problem is: I really, really like Greg Maddux. He’s still functionally good (his WHIP was 1.28 as of the trade; not fantastic, but not horrid), and owns - dare I say the naughty word - intangibles. (Gasp!) He brings a bit of experience and leadership to a clubhouse that hasn’t been stable the entire year.
But that’s not the only reason I like him. Maddux was the Cub gone Brave success story. He left the tortured franchise early in his career to go off and do miraculous things. And then he came back, full of the promise of redemption, ready to bolster a dynamic, fireballing rotation with a little veteran moxy.
It didn’t happen. That’s obvious. It’s also obvious that this is probably an OK trade for the Cubs, that Maddux wasn’t doing much good in Chicago for much longer. It doesn’t help, of course, that acquiring Cesar Izturis is about as exciting as acquiring a Cesar Izturis Donruss rookie edition. Not a whole lot of value here.
So the emotional attachment is still there. And for all of the rigors of intelligent observation, the glaring thought that Mad Dog could have ended his career in Wrigley, spilling from the dugout onto the field after a routine World Series-ending ground ball, is a sharp pang. Like seeing Michael vulnerable to mortality, it doesn’t at all feel acceptable.
14 Responses to “ Seperating head from soul: The Greg leaves Chicago”
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Sure all of us Cub fans love Maddux, but the thought of him actualy ending his career with a World Series victory in Chicago, well, is laughable (unless of course, and I hate to say it, he was with that other team that plays in
Chicago). The reality is that the Cubs are stll a long way away from a World Series ring. Instead, Maddux gets sent to a team that at least has a chance at making the playoffs (5 games out of the division race with 57 games to play). It’s sad to see him go, but maybe he can help the Dodgers turn it around and get into the playoffs with them. Hell, we owed him that much.
On another note, not that I’m the biggest fan of Jim Hendry, but how can you possibly have an insurance plan for Wood, Prior AND Lee? His three biggest names were done by May. And for Pierre and Jones, they are hitting right around .280 with Pierre 2nd in the NL in the stolen base category. As for the bullpen, they have done one hell of a job in my opinion. The Cubs are lucky to get someone to finish 6 or 7 innings everday. So considering how they’ve been overworked the whole year, they aren’t as bad as some might make them out to be.
Bottom line is that they need a new face leading their clubhouse next year. They need their key players to stay healthy. Cedeno and Murton started off hot but have cooled as of late. Sean Marshall and Carlos Marmel have surprisingly pretty good. And what you need to remember about those four is that they are rookies. Next year they will be more experienced and will be able to get their hot starts going the entire year. (Then again, it is the Cubs, and most certainly something will fall apart next year and ruin the 2007 season.)
Cant you just picture Hendry making this move?
He’s on the phone to LA and gets the offer but he’s so distraught that he just agrees right away without negotiating. Then hangs up and plunges his head into a mountain of blow (a la Tony Montana). He doesnt come up until he hears Maddux knock on the door and say “Dusty said you wanted to see me Mr. Hendry.” Just then he pops up, with his eyes all blood-shot, looking like he just orally pleasured a powdered doughnut. Then he proceeds to stumble through an explanation of what Greg has meant to the team and how, sadly, this is a business, blah blah blah. Then as Maddux thanks him and leaves the room he hears a thud on the desk and what sounds like a mixture of muffled tears and inhaling.
Does anyone doubt thats exactly how it happened?
Wow I just read that back and realized I have way too much time on my hands. Stay in school kids.
You’re totally missing the boat on Cesar Izturis. Considering what the Cubs were trading, a pitcher with an ERA over 5.00 since April, that’s pretty good value. I don’t understand what everyone thinks Hendry was going to get here. Regardless of what the back of his baseball card says or how quickly he’ll get into the Hall of Fame, this isn’t Atlanta-era Greg Maddux sporting a sub-2.00 ERA. He’s not Roger Clemens either. At 40, Maddux is the definition of finesse without the same control he once had, which in case you haven’t noticed by all the runs he’s been giving up, is bad. Izturis won a Gold Glove in 2004, is a switch hitter and unlike Neifi Perez can actually hit. He’s 26 years old. I can show you a couple guys right around that age who have accomplished considerably less, make way more money and contribute next to nothing (see winless Mark Prior and injured Kerry Wood). Plus, they now own the rights to him through 2008. This makes the middle of the infield a hell of a lot more competent on defense with Ronny Cedeno moving over to second. Did you see Todd Walker trying to turn double plays? It was atrocious. It also gives Dusty, or whoever is managing next year, a legitimate two-hole hitter. Anyway, like I was saying, this is really good value for Greg Maddux. Better than what most other teams would be willing to cough up for an 11 loss pitcher.
Jake, that was an incredibly well thought out, well written post. However, it doesnt change the fact that anyone in a high-level position with the Cubs absolutely HAS to be completely whacked out on blow at this point because of how horrible things are with that franchise. It’s time to just blow up the roster and bring up all the young prospects they have. Its a terrible team with a stocked farm system, translation? Get rid of Kerry Wood (he’ll never win 15 games again in his career, stop holding out hope) and all the other dead weight and just go through the growing pains now. its not like they are a year away, they are a long ass way from winning consistently, they might as well do it with young, cheap players. At the very least they would add some energy to a franchise that’s been harder to watch than a 7th Heaven marathon.
Jason and Jake:
Good stuff. My point wasn’t so much that Hendry could have gotten more, or that he shouldn’t have traded Maddux at all. I was just saying I had a bit of a romantic notion of him - the guy that left to Chicago to go do Hall of Fame stuff - would come back and lead his former team to a World Series. A bit like Curt Schilling, without so much Jesus talk. (And no, Schilling wasn’t on the Red Sox early in his career, but you get the point.)
My point was basically that the emotional attachment formed to some guys lasts and hurts, especially when you have to watch those players worsen over time, and in Maddux’s case, get traded in a nondescript fashion to a team I really couldn’t care about. Emotion aside, it’s actually a pretty good trade.
And yes, Phillips, that’s pretty much exactly how it happened.
“Greg…I can’t even WIN wich you…your ARM…is so POLLUTED!”
well played E, well played
Oh yeah Phillips, I totally agree with you. It’s time to let the young guys play, especially the pitchers. Rich Hill looked good for the first time ever tonight. If they can sign Pierre to an extension this winter, which I still think is a good idea, the middle of the diamond is really solid and young with Barrett, Izturis, Cedeno and Pierre. The corner infield spots are pretty good as well. Murton leaves something to be desired in left field - Felix Pie anyone? All in all I think the position players have just underachieved or been hurt for most of the year. Dusty might not be the right guy to give the North Side a winning mentality. Oh, to have Jim Leyland. It’s all about the pitching. I think Kerry Wood restructures his contract and comes back for an inexpensive/incentive-laden contract. In the mean time they just have to hope that the rookies keep getting better. They can’t continue to count on Prior. But you’re right, they went from five outs away from the World Series to a franchise in real rough shape. It’s probably time for leadership to change, or at least get a new philosophy. I think Izturis might be the start of that.
Oh and E, if only Maddux had had surgery and could’ve bled from part of his body while pitching, I think we would’ve won it all by now.
Joining the party late…
I agree with E about not needing to make this move (espcially for who they got in return). They made this move as a part of the “rebuilding” and to cater to the cub fan/huge moron who says “we owe it to maddux to send him to a playoff team” (Maddux makes 9 million dollars a season. The cubs owe him nothing). The cubs were also presumably not picking up the option on Maddux after this season. Here’s a thought, they should have picked it up.
Consider this; In order for the Cubs to be legit contenders in the NL in 2007, they will now need to sign AT MINIMUM 2, possibly 3 legit starting pitchers. (My reasoning: Zambrano, Prior, and Marshall are locked in to the rotation, and rightfully so. However, if someone came up to you and said they can look into the future and they told you that either A) Mark Prior will miss 4 months with injury next season or B) Marshall hits a soph. slump and has 10 losses at the All-Star break, would you even think about telling him he’s full of shit?)
So what Hendry is basically telling us is that he can sign not 1, not 2, but 3 guys who are better than maddux next year. 3 guys who are a lock to win 10-12 games. Here are the 2007 free agents who meet this criteria: Mark Mulder, Brad Radke (who btw has a club option that will most likely get picked up), Mike Mussina, and Jason Schmidt.
Does any trust the cubs to sign three of these 4 guys? Anyone? This is the same GM who two years ago had an outfield that hit 110 homeruns, in that short time has managed to get rid of them and roll out the murderers row of Pagan, Pierre, and Jones.
If the cubs don’t make this trade to cater to the idiots, they could have been setup extremely well for next season. Here’s what could have been a very probably 2007 starting cub rotation:
Zambrano
Mulder (he’ll be the cheapest because of this sub-par year)
Prior
Maddux
Marshall
That’s easily the best in the NL Central, and maybe one of the best in the entire NL. Instead, you make a stupid trade for Mini-Neifi…..
Izturis is a career .260 hitter with a career .290 OBP. What the hell are the cubs thinking? Maybe I skipped the chapter in Moneyball that talks about winning titles by stockpiling defensive middle infielders who can’t get on base. Dont they already have two of them in Neifi and Cedeno? Good God. And at least Izturis didnt get an entirely new tendon in his throwing arm a few months ago, because if it weren’t for his defense, he’d be a banana farmer right now….
And I know Neifi and Cedeno isnt exactly a great combo, but if the cubs could have waited two more months they could have had a far greater improvement up the middle without giving up Maddux.
Soriano, Mark Loretta, Luis Castillo, Mark Grudzielanek, and Julio Lugo are all free agents in the off season. All of them are better options than Izturis. They could have waited for any of these guys. It’s not like they made this move for a stretch run. And they could have afforded to pay Soriano since they are about 20mil below their historical payroll.
I hate the Cubs. I’m glad to see they not only just wasted a chance to be a decent contender next year, but also locked up about 3 more years of 90+ losses. All in one move that didn’t need to be made. All I’m waitng for is the Dusty contract extension and my life will be pretty much complete.
Who needs God when you have Water on your side?
BTW, that might be the greatest sentence ever written on this site.
This one, I mean:
“Maybe I skipped the chapter in Moneyball that talks about winning titles by stockpiling defensive middle infielders who can’t get on base.”
Genius.
By the way, since we’re doing a good bit of baseball talk, let me announce this here. My Mom has an injured rotator cuff. Seriously.
No word on her recovery yet, but fans are pointing at Dusty Baker for mismanaging her innings and failing to correct her mechanics.
What gives? Is your mom over 40 (and i’m gonna assume thats a safe bet eventhough this is the midwest) and pitching for the Yankees? Cause that would explain it.
So I don’t really have much to offer as far as witty comments concerning Maddux, Hendry, or baseball in general. I just wanted to say to PostmanE, for the second time, the first time being the Michael Jordan getting old post, you hit the nail on the head for me. Maddux is a guy that could have pitched for any team and I still would have liked him. There is something intoxicating for me about a guy who was one of the best pitchers of his era and looks like he should be lucky to have a job period let alone be a professional athlete. I also have always loved the way he won, because no one else really does it like him anymore. He had no physical advantages of any kind, if anything he was severely disadvantaged by comparison, and he could barely hurl it over 90 mph in his prime. I guess I always felt like Greg Maddux won because he beat you, not because he could do things you couldn’t, or even better than you could. He did the same stuff every other pitcher in the league could do but he could make it work. Finally I’ve really come to respect the way the man conducts himself. For a guy who was possibly the best pitcher in the game 10 years ago and is now a fourth starter at best I have never once heard him make an excuse, in fact the thing I heard from him most often in his second stint as a Cub was he needed to pitch better. That to me is so refreshing and honorable to be able to take no excuses when so many are offered and to never put together a front for the fans and the media, to just be honest and take responsibility for himself and his team. Maddux is one of those classy guys I not only enjoy but also respect and I am personally sad to see him go.
I am apparently incappable of leaving a short comment, sorry.