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| Recent Blog Post: Winter Meetings Notes, Day 2 |
A quick wrap-up of manager sessions from Tuesday.
Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said that Kemp is on track to be ready for Opening Day following shoulder surgery. The plan for Kemp calls for him to begin hitting again in late December or early January, and he's expected to be ready for the start of spring training in some capacity. Once he begins hitting again, it should become easier to monitor his progress as the procedure was on his left (non-throwing) shoulder.
Mattingly confirmed that Brandon League will open the season as the Dodgers' closer, citing his dominance in the second half and acknowledging that Kenley Jansen was dominant for most of the year as well.
"We know Kenley is a beast back there, but we still kinda think he's better set up for that seventh and eighth innings, knowing that he's going to grow into that other part of it, and there's going to be a day where he's the guy."
If there was any confusion about League's role amidst recent reports that he could be a $7.5 million setup guy, this should effectively end that. Given the circumstances of the Dodgers being a team that is clearly all-in to win a championship in 2013, it's not difficult to envision a scenario where Jansen manages to overtake League if he struggles.
On the left side of the infield, the plan remains to use Luis Cruz at third base and Hanley Ramirez at short. Just your regular reminder that plenty can change between December 4th and Opening Day.
Chad Billingsley is progressing well in his rehab and according to Mattingly, the team appears to have "dodged a bullet." After the season ended, there were fears that he would require Tommy John surgery due to a partially torn UCL, but that no longer appears to be the case.
Brewers manager Ron Roenicke attributed returning from injury to Rickie Weeks' disappointing season in 2012, and suggested that Weeks could potentially slide back into the leadoff spot with Norichika Aoki then moving to the two-hole.
For the Brewers, the questions are mostly centered around the pitching staff. The bullpen is still an ongoing rebuilding project, and it appears to be a four-man battle for the final three spots in rotation with Mike Fiers, Wily Peralta, Chris Narveson and Mark Rogers all in the picture.
Of that group, Fiers seems like the safest bet to open the year in the rotation. Peralta seems to have an inside track over Rogers, and can secure his place during spring training if he pitches well.
If Narveson is not healthy when the season begins, it's a moot point at least initially. Roenicke said that Narveson recently threw a pair of simulated innings in Arizona, and that command is going to be his biggest obstacle coming back from rotator cuff surgery.
Roenicke did not mention Tyler Thornburg when discussing the six pitchers in the mix for the rotation, and there was no indication of him being ticketed for the bullpen.
In order to create more opportunities for at-bats, Mat Gamel will spend some time working at other positions - including the outfield during spring training. With Carlos Gomez's leap forward last season, it appears that Corey Hart is staying at first base and Norichika Aoki is the everyday right fielder.
From our Twins beat writer Peter Schoenke:
Twins manager Ron Gardenhire mostly deflected talk about which pitchers the Twins were trying to acquire this offseason and said that he was content with Minnesota's decision not to talk about a contract extension until after the season.
Gardenhire said he was comfortable with the decisions of both Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau to play in the World Baseball Classic. "These guys are both healthy enough to do these things."
With the trade of Denard Span, Ben Revere will move to center field and Gardenhire appeared excited that Chris Parmelee could become the right fielder saying "we need to find him at bats."
Gardenhire also said Brian Dozier will be given a shot to win the second base job this spring.
And for his bullpen, he also added that Perkins will be his closer and jokingly added "and hope to get 50 to 60 saves."
Follow me on Twitter @DerekVanRiper.
Posted by Derek VanRiper at 12/5/2012 10:36:00 AM |
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Recent Chicago Cubs Player News
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| RotoWire Update |
Recommendation |
| Carlos Villanueva (P) CHI-N |
5/23/2013 |
| Villanueva threw a scoreless inning of relief against the Pirates on Wednesday. |
Villanueva started his first eight appearances of the season, but the return of Matt Garza pushed him to the bullpen. He started 16 games for the Blue Jays last year and had a 4.50 ERA, while his 22 relief appearances resulted in a 3.24 ERA. |
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| Albert Almora (OF) CHI-N |
5/23/2013 |
| Almora went 3-for-4 with a double and an RBI in his season debut at Low-A Kane County on Wednesday. |
At 19, there's a good chance Almora will spend the entire season in the Midwest League, especially given this delayed start. The sixth overall pick in the 2012 draft, Almora could accelerate his timetable if he shows plus power right out of the gates in his full-season professional debut. |
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| Jeff Samardzija (P) CHI-N |
5/22/2013 |
| Samardzija (2-6) turned in a solid performance Wednesday, going seven strong and striking out eight, but ultimately ended up being the tough luck loser in the 1-0 loss to Pittsburgh. |
The Cubs continue to struggle to score runs for their ace. Samardzija has just two wins to his name despite carrying a 3.25 ERA on the year. Despite the lack of wins, he has proven to be a valuable fantasy pitcher this season. His 10.18 K/9 rate is among the best in the league and his ERA is right on par with his FIP (3.18), indicating that he should continue his success going forward. His next start comes on the road against the White Sox next Monday. |
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| Gioskar Amaya (2B) CHI-N |
5/22/2013 |
| Amaya went 2-for-4 with two doubles and a walk for Low-A Kane County on Monday. |
Amaya, 20, still has a long way to go but has shown some promising tools. The middle infielder is hitting .260/.304/.364 for the season but has progressed of late, hitting .333/.415/.472 in his last 10 games. |
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| Rafael Dolis (P) CHI-N |
5/22/2013 |
| Dolis has been recalled by the Cubs, Carrie Muskat of MLB.com reports. |
Look for Dolis to handle low-leverage situations in the Cubs' bullpen, as he's taking over the roster spot of Shawn Camp (15-day DL, sprained toe) for the time being. |
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| Shawn Camp (P) CHI-N |
5/22/2013 |
| Camp has been placed on the disabled list with a sprained right big toe, Jesse Rogers of ESPN Chicago reports. |
The injury popped up over the weekend and Camp didn't respond well to treatment. Rafael Dolis has been recalled from Iowa to replace Camp in the Cubs' bullpen. |
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| Scott Hairston (OF) CHI-N |
5/22/2013 |
| Hairston went 0-for-3 with two strikeouts Tuesday, dropping his average to .115. |
He probably won't get a lot of votes for "Free Agent Bust of the Year," but Hairston has been a non-entity in his first year with the Cubs. He has just six hits this year, though at least five of them have gone for extra bases. |
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| Cody Ransom (SS) CHI-N |
5/22/2013 |
| Ransom went 0-for-3 Tuesday, dropping his batting average to .241. |
Ransom had a nice start to the season, hitting three home runs in April, but we should have known it wasn't going to last. The lifetime .221 hitter has just six hits and one RBI in 29 May at-bats. Even more alarming, he has struck out 13 times in May and 22 times in 54 at-bats this season. |
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| Shawn Camp (P) CHI-N |
5/22/2013 |
| Camp came into Tuesday's game with the bases loaded in the sixth inning and promptly gave up a grand slam to Travis Snider. |
Camp's awful season continues. His ERA is 7.56 and WHIP is pushing 2.0. As bad as he was in April, he's been even worse in May, giving up ten hits, six runs, and three walks in just 5.1 innings. Don't be surprised if the Cubs decide to part ways with him soon. |
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| James Russell (P) CHI-N |
5/22/2013 |
| Russell, who walked the only batter he faced Tuesday, fell to 1-1 when Shawn Camp relieved him and gave up a grand slam to Travis Snider. |
Though Hector Rondon and Camp did most of the damage in the disastrous sixth inning Tuesday, the actual go-ahead run belonged to Russell. Though his May hasn't been as good as his April, Russell still holds a 1.04 ERA, 0.87 WHIP, and 19:4 K:BB ratio in 17.1 innings this year. |
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| Hector Rondon (P) CHI-N |
5/22/2013 |
| Though Rondon "earned" his first hold of the year by getting one out Tuesday, the other three batters he faced reached base and eventually scored. |
Rondon had a few good weeks to start the season, but since April 30 he's given up 10 runs, 10 hits, and five walks in just 9.1 innings. His days may be numbered in Chicago, but as a Rule 5 pick on a team going nowhere, he has a bit of a longer leash than most mediocre relievers. |
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Recent Chicago Cubs Team News
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| RotoWire Update |
| CHI-N |
9/15/2004 |
| The Single-A Peoria Chiefs announced Wednesday they were switching affiliations from the St. Louis Cardinals to the Cubs, the Associated Press reports. ``The St. Louis Cardinals are a first-class organization, and we thank them for their past support,'' Chiefs chairman David Bielfeldt said. ``However, like most organizations, change is always occurring and when our community was recently presented with this opportunity, we made a business decision to change back to the Cubs.'' The Cubs' current Single-A club in Lansing will become part of the Toronto farm system. |
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2/26/2004 |
| Cubs pitching coach Larry Rothschild is going to be more careful than ever in how much he works his starters in spring training this season, the Chicago Sun-Times reports. "I'm probably not going to push them as hard innings-wise as I would in a lot of situations, but they will be ready," Rothschild said Wednesday. "There may be extra days in between [starts] sometimes after a certain amount of pitches. You build that into the schedule for rain anyway, but it's to keep them strong going into the season." Rothschild said his antennae are up more than ever in the spring, seeking to detect minor physical problems that a pitcher might not reveal. "Things happen early in the spring that show up later in the summer injury-wise," he said. "Something that they may not feel they need to say anything about. But it keeps going and going, and before you know it, it does become a problem." This is good news for the Cubs' whose starters put up a lot of high pitch counts last season and pitched deep into October. |
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Roster
Majors
Baker, Scott P(60D DL)
Barney, Darwin 2B
Borbon, Julio OF
Camp, Shawn P(15D DL)
Castillo, Welington C
Castro, Starlin SS
Clevenger, Steve C(60D DL)
DeJesus, David OF
Dolis, Rafael P
Feldman, Scott P
Fujikawa, Kyuji P
Garza, Matt P
Gregg, Kevin P
Hairston, Scott OF
Jackson, Edwin P
Marmol, Carlos P
Navarro, Dioner C
Ransom, Cody SS
Rizzo, Anthony 1B
Rondon, Hector P
Russell, James P
Samardzija, Jeff P
Schierholtz, Nate OF
Soriano, Alfonso OF
Sweeney, Ryan OF
Valbuena, Luis 3B
Villanueva, Carlos P
Vizcaino, Arodys P(60D DL)
Wood, Travis P
AAA
Bogusevic, Brian OF
Boscan, Jean C
Bowden, Michael P
Caridad, Esmailin P
Carpenter, Drew P
Chapman, Jaye P
Coleman, Casey P
Jackson, Brett OF
Lake, Junior SS(Out)
Lillibridge, Brent OF
Loux, Barret P
Maysonet, Edwin SS
McDonald, Darnell OF
Moscoso, Guillermo P
Murphy, Donnie 3B
Nelson, Brad 1B
Parker, Blake P
Putnam, Zach P
Raley, Brooks P
Rusin, Chris P
Sanchez, Eduardo P
Sappelt, Dave OF
Stewart, Ian 3B
Struck, Nicholas P
Takahashi, Hisanori P
Vitters, Josh 3B
Watkins, Logan 2B
AA
Alcantara, Arismendy SS
Bour, Justin 1B
Cabrera, Alberto P
Chavez, Johermyn OF
Fernandez, Jair C
Gutierrez, Carlos P(Out)
Ha, Jae-Hoon OF
Hendricks, Kyle P
Jokisch, Eric P
Loosen, Matt P
Mateo, Marcos P(Out)
McNutt, Trey P
Morris, A.J. P
Mota, Jonathan 3B
Rhee, Dae-Eun P
Schlitter, Brian P
Silva, Rubi OF
Szczur, Matt OF
Torreyes, Ronald 2B
Villanueva, Christian 3B
A+
Andreoli, John OF
Baez, Javier SS
Burke, Kyler P
Cates, Zach P
Darvill, Wesley 2B
Del Valle, Frank P
DeVoss, Zeke OF
Gibbs, Micah C
Kirk, Austin P
Peralta, Starling P
Reed, Austin P
Searle, Ryan P(7-Day DL)
Soler, Jorge OF
Wells, Ben P
A
Almora, Albert OF
Amaya, Gioskar 2B
Cabezas, Yaniel C
Candelario, Jeimer 3B
Castillo, Lendy P
Johnson, Pierce P
Shoulders, Roderick 1B
Suarez, Larry P
Vogelbach, Dan 1B
Rookie
Ackerman, Hunter P
Acosta, Enrique SS
Balaguer, Yasiel OF
Blackburn, Paul P
Carreno, Marcelo (Josue) P
Concepcion, Gerardo P
de la Rosa, Frandy SS
Dore, Jose OF
Golden, Reggie OF
Jensen, Michael P
Jung, Su-Min P
Kim, Dong-Yub OF
Maples, Dillon P
McNeil, Ryan P
Paniagua, Juan Carlos P
Rivero, Armando P
Underwood, Duane P
Wallach, Brett P
Lim, Chang-Yong P(Out)
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