Report: Cubs and Dempster Talking Deal….For Real (UPDATE: Wittenmyer Says Pump the Brakes)

I’m sure like me, all of you have been waiting on pins and needles to see what the next Cubs move or rumor would be coming from this week’s Winter Meetings.  Well thanks to Bruce Levine we have it, the Cubs and Ryan Dempster’s agent have discussed a possible return to the Cubs.  If you are done laughing I will continue, yes Ryan Dempster, the same Ryan Dempster that was “blindsided” by a trade that would have brought Randall Delgado to the Cubs at last seasons trade deadline, I hope he knows his agent is talking to the Cubs.  Given everything that happened last year would you as a fan want Dempster back?  If the initial deal last year at the trade deadline went through I’m sure that answer would be a resounding yes, but as it was clear Dempster was going to drag any possible deal right up to the deadline Cubs fans grew tired of his act, and him.

So is this really possible?  Yes, it is, in fact the Cubs need pitching depth even with their recent signings of the two Scott’s, Baker and Feldman.  The surprise is that it is Dempster, and per Levine the Cubs and Dempster’s agent have discussed money and length of contract but no offer has been made.  Up until this evening the Brewers and Royals have shown the most interest in Dempster, with Dempster already turning down a 2 year $26MM offer from the Royals because he wants a third year.  The door seems like it’s open for the Cubs to make a play here but Levine cautions that there is a sticking point….wait for it… Levine sees a no-trade as a potential obstacle to Dempster returning to the Cubs.  You can’t make this up!  Ah Dempster, the lovable jokester, my favorite joke was last year at the deadline, but it seems as though he’s shooting for a new high, or low with this one.  More as it comes.

 

(Update) 

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Gordon Wittenmyer‏@GDubCub

Report of Cubs-Dempster talks grossly misrepresents their nature. Negotiations not happening. Reunion implausible. #courtesy

Wittenmyer says not so fast to Levine’s report, I would tend to side with Gordon on this one.

Thanks for reading,
– George

Deadline Day: THREE Teams After Dempster Now

David Kaplan breaks the news that the Texas Rangers and the New York Yankees have stepped up their pursuit of Dempster.  This part is important..

Baseball sources have confirmed to me that three teams are in play for Ryan Dempster and he will approve a deal to any of the three teams if the Cubs can agree on a suitable return in exchange for the veteran right-hander who is enjoying one of the best seasons of his career

Per Kaplan Dempster will approve a deal to anyone of those three teams, stop me if you heard that before. 

“Texas is serious about adding a starter and Dempster isn’t as expensive to trade for as Garza would be, but after finishing as runners-up in the last two World Series and seeing the Angels add Zach Greinke, Texas management has decided to make a run at adding pitching, a baseball source told me. “However, with three teams seriously involved, it won’t be cheap to acquire him even though it is potentially a three-month rental.”

From the sound of it teams are starting to realize that adding the second best ERA in baseball to their staff at the deadline might benefit their team and they might be willing to pay for it, stay tuned.

Thanks for reading,
– George

Countdown to the Deadline: Talks Picking Up, Sort Of

Just two weeks ago it seemed that the Cubs would have made a few deals by July 30th, well here we sit, on July 30th and nothing has been done.  I attribute this to the whole Dempster saga, if he accepts the Braves deal then I think the Cubs would have made a few more moves by now.  But because he declined, at least for now, the Cubs sit in a holding pattern.  Here are some of the latest trade rumors involving the Cubs.

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Andy Martino is reporting  that the Mets have had discussions with the Cubs about Geovany Soto.  Odds are a deal doesn’t get done here, but it is nice to see somebody asking about Soto. If the Cubs could move him for anything more than a Manny Alexander life-size cardboard cutout we should all be grateful.

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Ken Rosenthal weighed in with some thoughts about the increase in demand for starting pitching, and how it relates to Garza.  Even with the news of Garza not starting again until after the deadline team keep calling on him.  What teams are looking for her obviously is a discounted rate for Garza, the Cubs aren’t budging.  For that reason Rosenthal and a number of sources believe that a Garza deal during the 2012 season before the deadline is “doubtful” but not out of the question.  Because the Cubs and Garza have not talked contract extension since the Spring it is believed that the Cubs will move him in the Winter.

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Danny Knobler is reporting that the Dodgers and Cubs are at an impasse on Dempster.  If I had to guess I thing each team is waiting for the other to cave and accept a deal to just make a deal.  Because of the this the Braves have been keeping an eye on the situation and might be ready to start-up talks again with the Cubs for Dempster.  Per Knobler, people in the game expect Atlanta to get involved with Dempster again.

Yesterday afternoon Peter Gammons was on MLB Network and was very candid about what the Dodgers need to do, and the #1 thing he said the Dodgers needed to do was trade for Dempster.  He said that they should do whatever it takes to land Dempster because he could be the difference for them.  Let’s hope he’s right.

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An interesting rumor popped up over the weekend, Ken Rosenthal suggests that Alfonso Soriano’s name has come up in the Dempster to the Dodgers talks.  The Cubs were rumored to add Soriano to a potential deal to the Dodgers to get a better prospect in return, but nothing has come out of those talks, yet.  Rosenthal adds that if the Cubs can’t find a deal before the deadline they would look to deal Soriano in the off-season where they might get a better return.

Things are going to get pretty crazy here as the deadline is only 31 hours away, keep checking back for the latest updates, and maybe a couple trades to announce as well.

Thanks for reading,
– George

July 30 – August 1, 2012; vs. Pirates – Series Preview

The Cubs are getting used to this whole spoiler thing as they are coming off series wins against the second place (Pirates) and third place (Cardinals) teams in the Central.  The Pirates come to town to kick off the week and they are seeking some revenge as the Cubs took two out of three at PNC park last week.  Not many teams can say that as the Pirates boast the best home record in baseball, on the road they are average, hovering right around .500 on the season.  It will be very interesting to see how this series plays out as it starts before the trade deadline and ends after it.  Both teams might look very different come Wednesday.  Let’s take an in-depth look at this series, hope you enjoy the new format.

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Thanks for reading, go Cubs!
– George

White Sox Stay Active; Acquire Liriano

Another arm is off the market, not sure if he was ever “on the market” but Francisco Liriano is headed to the White Sox.  Kenny Williams has been busy this trade season as he sees an opportunity to win now and he’s going for it.  The Sox get Liriano for Eduardo Escobar, and Pedro Hernandez.  That’s two arms that could have went to the Braves in a deal, but didn’t.  Maybe that will make the Braves a little more desperate as we get closer to the deadline and come back at the Cubs for Dempster.  Same goes for the Dodgers, hopefully Garza proves himself healthy in his side session and a deal can be made, although it seems highly unlikely.

Thanks for reading,
– George

July 23 – 25, 2012; @ Pirates – Series Preview

Oh how a weekend changes the feeling around a ball club.  Coming into last weekend the Cubs were the hottest team in baseball, they are now licking their wounds on their way to Pittsburgh.  The Cubs and Pirates open a three game series tonight, and the Pirate have been red-hot as they sit half a game out of first in the Central behind the Reds.  The Pirates are 7-3 in their last 10 games and are an insane 32-14 at PNC Park, the best home record in all of baseball.  The Cubs need to find some offense in this series as they were shut out the last two games in St. Louis against the Cardinals.  The Cubs won’t have it much easier at the plate in this series as the Pirates have the 5th best ERA in the National League.  Offensively the Pirates are 10th in the National League in runs scored, doesn’t seem good, but when the Cubs last faced the Pirates they were dead last, they are raking.  Andrew McCutchen leads the charge for the Pirates as he is hovering around the triple crown right now, if the Cubs want to win this series they will need to find a way to shut down one of the games best.  Full preview/breakdown after the jump.

July 13 – 15, 2012; vs. Diamondbacks – Series Preview

 

Finally Cubs baseball is back on Friday, and with the way the Cubs have been playing that is actually a good thing.  The Cubs are red-hot, winning nine of their last fourteen games which has moved them out of last place in the Central Division.  The Diamondbacks have taken a step back this season after being one of the surprise teams last year.  Sub par years from Justin Upton and Ian Kennedy have contributed to that fall from the top of the West.  Mediocre is a word that should be used in describing the D-Backs season to this point, they are 6th in runs scored, and 10th in ERA in the National League respectively.  The Cubs still sit near the bottom of the league in both runs scored and ERA but this has been a different team since Anthony Rizzo got the call near the end of June.  In order for the Cubs to be successful this weekend they are going to have to get a lead early against the D-Backs starters as they rank near the bottom of the NL, 14th to be exact, in starter ERA with a 4.26.  While the pen for Arizona is 6th best in the National League, full preview/breakdown after the jump.

Countdown to the Deadline: Cubs Interested in Ryan Sweeney?

Today’s hot, well tepid, rumor of the day is a report out of Boston saying that the Cubs are interested in Ryan Sweeney.  Per BostonHerald.com writer Michael Silverman the Red Sox and Cubs have been discussing a deal that would bring Garza or Dempster to Boston in exchange for Ryan Sweeney and other players. 

“The Cubs are believed to be listening to offers for two of their starting pitchers: Matt Garza and Ryan Dempster. Sweeney would have to be part of a much larger package if either of those pitchers, particularly Garza, went to the Red Sox. . . .”

It’s an odd name to pop up in this discussion given the fact that the Cubs goal is to stock the system with prospects, specifically pitchers in any deal involving Dempster or Garza, and Sweeney is not a pitcher and not a prospect per say at 27 years old.  Maybe Theo and Jed see something, or maybe they are targeting a 2013 outfielder.  It could make sense, take it for what it’s worth, it’s just the start of a crazy month of rumors.

Thanks for reading,
– George

Cubs Finish First Half on a High Note

It’s almost a shame that the all-star break is upon us as the Cubs are paying their best baseball of the 2012 season.  With the win the Cubs won the series from the Mets, and finished their last road trip of the first half with a winning record (4-3).  The Cubs put this one away early as they pounded out five hits and four runs in the first inning off of Mets starter Jonathan Niese who had been lights out in his last seven starts.  The four runs must have felt like 10 for Ryan Dempster who was making his return from the disabled list, as Dempster has been the recipient of horrible run support all year.  Dempster was on a pitch/inning limit today so he only pitched five scoreless innings on four hits while walking none and striking out four.  Dempster extended his scoreless innings streak to 27, thus possibly increasing his trade value, the Cubs will most likely cash in on Dempster’s great season before the trade deadline passes.  With the Cubs leading 4-0 in the seventh Starlin Castro finished off his first half with an exclamation point as he absolutely crushed a three-run homer to give the Cubs a 7-0 lead and that’s how it would end.  Castro finished the day 2-for-4 with a home run, three RBI’s and a run scored.  Jeff Baker and Reed Johnson also chipped in with two hits in the victory, the Cubs finished the first half winning nine of their last fourteen.  Full box score and highlights after the jump.

July 8, 2012 – Cubs lineup vs. Mets

Ryan Dempster returns from the DL today and will get the start against the Mets as the Cubs look to win the last game and series before the break.  Here is the Cubs lineup for today.

Johnson – CF
Castro – SS
Rizzo – 1B
Soriano – LF
Baker – RF
Soto – C
Barneu – 2B
Valbuena – 3B
Dempster – P

Go Cubs!!
Mark