Chicago Cubs

Losses: OF Milton Bradley, OF Reed Johnson, P Rich Harden, P Kevin Gregg, 2B Aaron Miles

Gains: OF Marlon Byrd, OF Xavier Nady, UT Kevin Millar, IF Chad Tracy

Analysis: Not a whole lot of intake for the Chicago Cubs this winter. The most positive moves they made were getting rid of Milton Bradley and hiring Rudy Jaramillo as the hitting coach. (They also brought in Greg Maddux as assistant to the GM and Ryne Sandberg to manage the Iowa Cubs, which are nice moves) On the player front though, I guess you look at Marlon Byrd vs. Milton Bradley and try to decide if the Cubs improved. One positive is that Byrd certainly was at his best in Texas under the tutelage of Jarmillo, so perhaps that will lead to a positive gain in center field. Xavier Nady is an interesting case. He's coming back from Tommmy John Surgery which is not as big a deal for a position player. His outfield arm will surely ease its way back in, but it is very possible that his bat can re-emerge more rapidly. If Nady is able to return to form, look for him to battle for a corner outfield job. Kosuke Fukodome and Alfonso Soriano both had their difficulties at times last season. They should keep their eyes behind them for X. Losing Rich Harden isn't necessarily losing anything. You don't know what kind of production Rich Harden can bring, as he spends half of each season on the Disabled List. Kevin Gregg didn't really pan out for the Cubs last year. The only partial loss (if you're one of the many happy to see Bradley go) is Aaron Miles, whose offensive production will likely be unmatched by Mike Fontenot. So the Cubs spent most of the off-season batting around "ideas" in Nady, Millar and Tracy. We'll see how they work out. From here, it looks like a pretty weak winter for the Cubbies (no wonder they put that adorable polar bear cub to sleep)

More moves: I'm sure Cubs fans are hoping so. The only rumors come from occasionally hearing of teams asking on Big Z. I doubt that divorce is impending. Keep an eye on Felipe Lopez. He's not getting a lot of action on the market, despite being a good major league player. I'm sure the Cubs wouldn't mind moving Fontenot back to super-sub. I'd also keep an ear out for tales of Jermaine Dye or another of the big bats floating around, as the order is asking for a little POP (if Soriano continues to struggle). Although they already made the move for Nady, so maybe they are simply finished. Maybe a shot at one of the lingering old pitchers (Pedro? Smoltz?)

2010 Thoughts: The Cubs are okay. That's really the word to describe a team like this. Looking at their line-up. They have some players who, at their very best, can be a strong National League line-up. However, you have to question Alfonso Soriano, Kosuke Fukodome, Geovanny Soto, and even Aramis Ramirez (injured last year) and Derek Lee, who, despite putting together a solid year in 2009, has shown some signs of aging in the past few years (he's now 34). I personally think that Lee and Ramirez will be fine. I think that Soto will be back to a legitimate ball player, probably somewhere in between the extremes of his past two season (maybe .255/16/72). Marlon Byrd, Ryan Theriot and Mike Fontenot are solid baseball players, but they just don't give this line-up the feel that a line-up like the Phillies has. The pitching staff is okay too. Carlos Zambrano can be a great #1, but he can also blow up (in more ways than one). Ted Lilly and Ryan Dempster are very capable starters. APT has always been a fan of Ted Lilly (loves his curveball), but again, not the kind of names that are going to make you shake in the batters box. Then the Cubs round it out Randy Wells and Tom Gorzelanny. (Your reaction to reading those names are probably enough analysis. The bullpen is one spot I like. I like Carlos Marmol. I think he'll be solid with a full season in the Closer role. They have a solid short lefty in John Grabow (and a guy who could close if need be) and a good long lefty in Sean Marshall. Then they have a solid right-hander in Angel Guzman.

Prediction: To be honest, I really don't think much of the Cubs this season. Maybe that is what they need. But I feel like their window has opened and closed, while they really didn't do much with it. I think they'll end up battling for 3rd place in the NL Central, and squeaking that position out come the end of the year.