Trade rumours have Brian Roberts going to Chicago, but will it be the North or South side of town?

It has been 100 years since the Chicago Cubs won a World Series, but things in Chicago have never been as much fun to watch and read about as they are now.  Manager Lou Pinella has had an incredibly entertaining series of events occur under his command recently, with griping pitchers, the closer competition, twisted cajones, heart troubles, and the latest, a conspiracy against GM Jim Hendry.  Conspiracy?  Are you kidding?  I’ll lay it out for you, and you tell me if you buy this.  According to Chicago Tribune columnist, Steve Rosenbloom, Lou Pinella’s lineup is deliberately set up to cause Felix Pie to fail so that Hendry is forced to pull the trigger on a deal for Brian Roberts.  Huh?  Here’s the logic, twisted as it may be; Pie still can’t hit major league pitching (fantasy managers take note), and Pinella has him batting eighth, in front of the pitcher.  Rosenbloom believes, rightfully so, that Pie will never get anything to hit batting there, and doesn’t have the plate patience to handle that spot in the order.  Pie is one of Hendry’s farm system darlings, and Hendry is under pressure, according to Rosenbloom, to produce a regular player from among his prospects.  That’s where is falls apart for me.  Isn’t the pressure to win?  Anyway, if Roberts is acquired, he can lead off and Ryan Theriot can be moved down to the eighth spot in the lineup, where he can protect Pie, batting seventh.  Pie is more successful, the pressure is off Hendry, and Pinella gets his leadoff hitter not named Soriano. 

If that whole scenario has any ring of truth to it, then why have the Cubs been connected to rumors about a trade for Coco Crisp?  That actually makes more sense to me, as Pinella clearly showed last season that he has precious little patience for Pie.  If he can’t hit, Lou is going to bench him.  Crisp would be a nice fit in Chicago, and the Red Sox would love to get their hands on another pitcher, of which the Cubs seem to have plenty to spare.  I’m not certain the Red Sox would want Jason Marquis and his fat contract, but they might take Sean Marshall.

Sticking with Chicago, and conspiracy theories…The White Sox placed infielder Juan Uribe on waivers this past week, right after media reports that he was the favorite for the starting second base job over the incumbent, Danny Richar.  Evidently, they are trying to gauge the market for $3.5 million dollar free-swingers.  However, there has been some speculation that Uribe could be on his way to Baltimore, and that it’s the White Sox who will end up with Brian Roberts playing second base.  It’s an intriguing idea; the only problem may be the lack of prospects in the Pale Hose system to entice the O’s into a deal.  If GM Ken Williams can swing a deal to send Joe Crede somewhere for a few prospects, he could then flip them to Baltimore for Roberts.  In the meantime, Richar is going to start the season on the DL with back problems, so the Sox will have to play either Alexei Ramirez or Pablo Ozuna at the keystone for now.

Is it just me, or does anyone else wonder why the agreements between the Major League Baseball Players Association and Major League Baseball for the trip to Japan would not include support staff?  It took a threatened boycott of the Japan trip, and a spring game held hostage by the Red Sox players to get the situation straightened out.  Credit the Red Sox front office for putting up the money to pay the support staff their due.  It’s embarrassing that the millionaire players would get $40,000 to go to Japan, but the minimally paid support staff gets nothing.  Reportedly, Commissioner Bud Selig is angry with the Red Sox players for delaying a nationally televised game (on ESPN) with their boycott.  I say too bad, Bud.  If you had done the right thing in the first place, instead of trying to screw the coaches et al, you deserve whatever you get.  What did Selig make last season anyway?  Wasn’t it something like $15 million?  Considering how little Selig actually does for his money, perhaps the cost of the Japan trip should come out of his salary.

It’s funny that Don Fehr has no time to look over such agreements, but he has plenty of time to look into potential collusion.  In case you haven’t heard; Fehr announced that the MLBPA is evaluating the possibility that team owners are colluding against Barry Bonds and other free agents.  Bonds remains unemployed with just a few days until the season starts, and reportedly has had no inquiries made regarding his availability.  Gee, you mean nobody wants to hire someone who is under indictment for lying?  There are no jobs for a guy who has a reputation as a clubhouse cancer?  Really?

The Dodgers are in a bit of a pickle at third base with both Adam LaRoche and Nomar Garciaparra injured.  Nomar has a microfracture in his hand that may land him on the DL for the start of the season.  The Dodgers may now be forced to look at alternatives for the hot corner, as their utility infielder, Tony Abreu, is also struggling with an abdominal strain.  Brandon Inge and Phillies corner infielder, Wes Helms, are both rumored to be on the Dodgers radar screen.

The Nationals released pitcher John Patterson, the same guy who was their Opening Day pitcher last season.  His injury issues have limited him to just 15 starts in the last two seasons combined.  He would be a great reclamation project for the Cardinals, who are desperate for pitching to bridge the gap until Chris Carpenter is ready to return.  Maybe Dave Duncan can help the 30-year-old right-hander be effective again.

There was some good news for the Phillies Thursday when Brad Lidge took the mound for his first action since arthroscopic knee surgery.  He retired four of the five batters he faced, striking out three and walking one.  Word is he looked sharp enough that there is hope he will be ready when the season opens.

If you’re drafting Toronto Blue Jays closer, B.J. Ryan, for your fantasy team, you had better make sure you take Jeremy Accardo as a handcuff pick.  Ryan has been complaining of soreness in his repaired elbow and arm, and the Blue Jays are taking a cautious approach with him.  He’s not going to work on back-to-back days, and could end up on the DL at any time if his arm troubles continue.  They have already shut him down for at least a couple of days.

Looks like uber prospect outfielder Jay Bruce won’t be making his big debut after all.  The Cincinnati Reds optioned him to Triple A Thursday.  They’re going with a combination of Cory Patterson and Norris Hopper in centerfield to start the season.  Ryan Freel could be in the mix as well, although he is rumored to be on the trading block.  The Reds would still like to pick up a backup catcher since David Ross appears to be headed for the DL with back problems.

The Rockies are likely to start the season with Jayson Nix as their second baseman.  He’s done a nice job defensively this spring, and he’s been hitting fairly well too.  Nix is batting .273 with three home runs and a stolen base this spring.  He’s a sleeper pick at second base this season, with the potential to post some decent power number in the rarefied air of Coors Field.  His combination of speed and power could lead to a 15/15 season this year, and even better down the line.

All indications are that the Rockies are going to give one-dimensional speedster Scott Podsednik the job backing up Willy Taveras in centerfield.  Cory Sullivan, last season’s fourth outfielder is rumored to be available in a trade as a result.  Podsednik says he is 100% healthy this spring for the first time in several years, and he’s proven it by stealing six bases in seven attempts thus far.  He won’t get a lot of playing time as the fourth outfielder, but Taveras has proven to be fairly brittle, ending up on the DL for something or other every year.  Podsednik could get an opportunity, and makes a nice reserve pick, especially in NL only leagues.

Lots of leagues drafting this week.  Best of luck to all. Happy Birthday, Pete.  See ya next week.

Shake it easy.