Chicago Cubs

The drama of the off-season was the Cubs’ “trade” with the Red Sox for GM Theo Epstein.  After the failed 2011 Red Sox season, and having proved all he had to prove in Boston, Theo slipped out the side door and ended up running the show in Chicago.  The Cubs and Red Sox have been parallel teams until 2004, when the Red Sox won it all and ascended to the level of the Yankees, in terms of being the AL team to beat since then.  The Cubs, meanwhile, now have the longest trophy-less span in baseball.  If Theo can do to the Cubs what he did for the Red Sox, then he becomes a legend.  So rather than retool the Red Sox, he took a big chance and left for Chicago.  They gave him the reins, and he brought wild optimism with him.  But this will take time.  He could have bought Pujols or Fielder, and Chicagoans would have already been parading him on their shoulders.  But he’s too smart to look for a big money quick-fix, and so he’s gone the opposite route.  He’s pushed out the players who felt to him like dead weight (see Carlos Zambrano, Aramis Ramirez—he’s still working on getting rid of Alfonso Soriano, but so far no takers), and he’s been cautious about who he’s brought in.  They’ll build from the ground up in hopes of creating in Chicago a Red Sox-like new dynasty, built on a steady flow of minor league talent.  In came 1B of the future Anthony Rizzo, long admired by Theo through his minor league career in the Sox system, although Bryan LaHair, already at 1B is huge power potential.  New manager Dale Sveum has good potential, although he’s as yet unproven.  Dempster, Garza, and newcomer Travis Wood make for a very good 1-3 in the rotation, so that’s grounds for optimism.  It’s a fresh look for the Cubs, but they’ll have to give Theo, who really is a management genius, 3 or 4 years before they’ll see the fruit of his vision.

In: David DeJesus (free agent), Anthony Rizzo (trade), Dale Sveum (manager), Theo Epstein (trade), Travis Wood (trade), Paul Maholm (free agent)

Out: Carlos Zambrano (trade), Aramis Ramirez (free agent)

Strength: optimism in the new blood management, but not a lot on the field, as yet.  Anthony Rizzo can become a true star at 1B, and Cubs fans can rest assured that their team is in good hands upstairs

Weakness: it’s far too early to know what Theo can do with this team, and he’s stuck with the last regime’s acquisitions, many of which he would not have approved.  The outfield looks under-whelming (they might be better off sending LaHair out there and giving 1B to Rizzo), and Stewart or someone needs to step up and provide a bat a 3B.

Manager: Dale Sveum

Projected Rotation: Ryan Dempster, Matt Garza, Travis Wood, Paul Maholm, Randy Wells

Projected Closer: Carlos Marmol

Projected Starting Lineup:

            Marlon Byrd CF

            Starlin Castro SS

            Anthony Rizzo 1B

            Alfonso Soriano LF

            David DeJesus RF

            Geovany Soto C

            Ian Stewart 3B

            Darwin Barney 2B