The Cubs are in the worst possible situation for any sports franchise to be in. That is, they are stuck in between rebuilding and contending.
Look, they simply have too many long-term, expensive contracts to totally rebuild and they do not have the major league-ready young talent to commit to a rebuilding.
The players who alleged owner Tom Ricketts are touting really come down to one player, and that is Starlin Castro. Everyone else is either years away or over-hyped.
Tyler Colvin is a nice fourth outfielder. Sure, he hit 20 homers but he had an OBP of .316 and he struck out 100 times in 300+ at-bats. Meanwhile, he played mediocre outfield.
Casey Coleman is not a prospect, folks. He struck out about as many as he walked, and his late-season success came about against mainly scrubs. At best he is a candidate for the fifth starter in the rotation.
So, other than Castro, who do the Cubs really have to make their fan base hopeful that the near-future holds any promise?
The short answer is they do not, but Tom Ricketts wouldn’t know as he is getting his information from Hendry, whose job is at stake and is obviously motivated to over-hype his young players.
Meanwhile, they have a fan base sick and tired of losing and a GM who desperately needs to win to put butts in the seats. In short, it’s a no-win situation.
I know that Aramis Ramirez and Carlos Zambrano could come back and have great years and allow the team to tease us next year.
But does any rational, objective Cubs fan really think this team stacks up with the Reds, Cardinals, Phillies, Giants, and other top teams in the NL, not to mention the AL?
Of course not. But a team full of youngsters is not possible either, as the fans might stay away, plus what would you do with unmovable parts like Ramirez, Fukudome, Zambrano and Carlos Silva?
So they have a team that will have a reduced payroll trying to fill holes with young talent that is not ready. Sure, Starlin Castro looks good offensively but he doesn’t have the power to be a game changer and is not good enough defensively yet to be a star.
Tyler Colvin is not an everyday player, though he will be for the Cubs in 2011. He does not play good defense and does not get on base enough to be more than a fine fourth outfielder.
But since Ricketts doesn’t really care about accountability for Hendry, or he would have put in a baseball man between him and his GM, he only cares about putting butts in the seats.
That is too bad since we all thought an owner with an actual name and identity would be the answer. Regrettably, Ricketts puts his blind trust in Hendry.
That tells me he is more interested in the “Wrigley Field experience” than he is in winning a title.
Meanwhile, we thought the Tribune was bad? Cubs fans, you ain’t seen nothing yet.
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