Hell Has Frozen Over!!!!!!

by Lablover on Aug 2, 2006 11:13 PM CDT

In this ESPN article Kerry Wood anounces that he is not having the surgery on his shoulder. However upon reading you see that he wants to come back to the cubs...AS A RELIEVER!!! Has something or someone gotten through to him that he may not be able to pitch more than 4 innings. He also says he would like to stay in chicago and plns on speaking with Hendry about it. Personally I would welcome him back to a 1 year encentive laden deal with an option for another year.

This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of SB Nation or Al Yellon, managing editor (unless it's a FanPost posted by Al). FanPost opinions are valued expressions of opinion by passionate and knowledgeable baseball fans.

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Give him a $4 million base.

with incentives for 2007. Bet he wants to do what Smoltz did.

Hopefully, Hendry can find some take to take Dempster, and make Wood the closer. Probably getting ahead of myself here tho.

by CubFaninCA on Aug 2, 2006 11:45 PM CDT reply actions

just

let the two of them fight for the closer role

by flyball on Aug 3, 2006 7:59 AM CDT up reply actions

yea

i wouldnt just hand kerry the closer spot he is going to have to earn it. demp hasnt done too bad, he is still worthy of being the cubs closer and if not him then howry or eyre. but kerry did look alittle sad saying that he could be a starter n e more.

by tbizzle83 on Aug 3, 2006 12:32 AM CDT reply actions

I'd give him the contract...

... but I think he's making a mistake by not having the surgery, despite his claims that he did "exhaustive" research into this.

At least he realizes that his days as a starter are likely over. Took him long enough.

by Al Yellon on Aug 3, 2006 3:13 AM CDT reply actions

I'd sign him too

But with a lower base and much more incentives.

I remeber Pedro going through that and thinking he was nuts. But he did fine. and he also has tearing in his labrum for which he didn't have surgery.

Of course, Pedro's mechanics are flawless. But Kerry is going to have to smooth out his mechanics whether he has surgery or not.

by yahoodi on Aug 3, 2006 6:52 AM CDT up reply actions

He's hoping to pull a Smoltz

and return to starting in a few years.

"You hit your way on, you don't walk your way on" - Jim Hendry

by VS on Aug 3, 2006 1:00 PM CDT up reply actions

I don't even think it's an issue of...

if you sign him, he knows that he basically was paid $2M per win the past three seasons. He knows that he owes this team. From what Steve Stone says (I am not going to pretend like I know Kerry on a personal level,) Kerry has a great relationship with Jim Hendry (this is also common knowledge, has been for awhile....but again, I don't want to act like I know him as an individual,) and feels that he owes him and the fans.....

It's an issue of reliabilty.....he has to maintain his health for an extended period of time before we just hand him the closers role.....As we all have seen, this can be a VERY crucial position on a ball club and we can't afford to have our CLOSER go down.

by TheBeerBaron on Aug 3, 2006 8:43 AM CDT reply actions

It's a no brainer...

We're paying him no matter what. Of course you bring him back as a reliever.

With Demp, Howry, and Eyre, it wouldn't be as though we were relying on him in any capacity.

If it doesn't work out, it doesn't work out. If it does though, we'd have pretty close to the best bullpen in baseball.

Bring him back. Give him Novoa's spot. Pitch maybe 45 innings next year. Even if Wood were kicking the ball to home plate, he'd be an upgrade over that.

by theprognosticator on Aug 3, 2006 9:29 AM CDT up reply actions

Wood

Wuertz, Ohman, Dempster, Howry and Eyre make a pretty good bullpen. Wood has the ability to be a shutdown closer, with Dempster sliding in to a setup roll. Addition by subtraction as well with Rusch and Novoa no longer on the team. I say sign Kerry for $2 million/incentives and tell Dempster that he has competition for the closers job.

by pageian on Aug 3, 2006 9:51 AM CDT reply actions

Language police

"Setup roll"... is that anything like a jelly roll?

;)

by Al Yellon on Aug 3, 2006 9:56 AM CDT up reply actions

could be a sushi thing

California roll. Setup roll. Hand roll.

I meant sign him as opposed to buying him out and letting him be a reliever for Texas.

I'll never forgive Riggleman for pitchiing him in that playoff game when he was injured.

by yahoodi on Aug 3, 2006 10:24 AM CDT up reply actions

But...

Rusch already has the jelly roll...

by Ghost of Fred Merkle on Aug 3, 2006 10:35 AM CDT up reply actions

I think he has had more than 1

n/t

by Lablover on Aug 3, 2006 10:40 AM CDT up reply actions

Absolutely.

I think that would be among the best bullpens in the league. If you've got Ohman and Wuertz as your 5th and 6th relievers, you're doing pretty well.

by mportsch on Aug 3, 2006 10:23 AM CDT up reply actions

Except Kerry Wood

can't pitch out of the bullpen. Unless of course the Cub manager plans on using him once a week and has the luxury of giving Wood 24 hour notice that he plans on using him in a game. John Smoltz has always been a pitcher with impecable mechanics and a guy who gets warmed up and "game ready" in a hurry.

I'll stick with my belief that Kerry Wood will be pitching for the Arizona Diamondbacks or Texas Rangers in 2007. Or spending lengthy amounts of time on the DL list for one of those two organizations.

by Mike63 on Aug 4, 2006 10:33 PM CDT up reply actions

Re

Then who was the guy in 2005 wearing Wood's uniform who appeared in 11 games with 12IP, 3ER, 4H, 5BB, and 17Ks for an ERA of 2.25?

Facts. They're such an inconvenient thing when you already know everything.

Visit The Digital Gazette

by Jed Taylor on Aug 6, 2006 6:31 PM CDT up reply actions

Wood in Bullpen - Yes,

Prior in rotation - No. Am I the only one looking at Prior and thinking that he couldn't care less about pitching for the Cubs anymore? As the old saying goes, no matter how hot she is, there's some guy who got sick of her BS. I hope the Cubs have gotten sick of Prior's BS.

If memory serves, didn't the Devil Rays want ML ready starting pitching for Crawford? Would Prior and one of the young guys do the trick? The Cubs won't be able to hold on to Marshall, Marmol, Hill, and Guzman. You can't have that much youth on a rotation and expect to win.

I like Wood in the bullpen with an eye towards the closer role, but I think there should be some back up or redundancy built in to it. If either Dempster or Wood fail, one wold be able to succeed.

What would that leave us with, too many quality set up guys? Is that possible?

by NO100 on Aug 3, 2006 12:50 PM CDT reply actions

No such thing...

...as too many quality setup guys.

by Perkins on Aug 3, 2006 12:54 PM CDT up reply actions

CubFaninCA and I were talking about

that about a month ago....I would love to see Prior dominate the rest of the season and try and move him Hill, and some others for Crawford and Cantu.......but it would be quite difficult.

by TheBeerBaron on Aug 3, 2006 3:51 PM CDT up reply actions

For Cantu I agree...

Just for Crawford alone and I think it can be done very easily.

So long as Prior gets back to some measure of his 2005 form.

Give the Rays Prior and choice of AA or AAA prospect, we take Crawford, and we can concentrate primarily on adding SP through free agency.

Crawford also means we don't have to chuck 75 million at Carlos Lee.

by theprognosticator on Aug 3, 2006 7:28 PM CDT up reply actions

a trade

is a much smarter idea in the long term than signing Lee to a contract that will handcuff the team sooner rather than later. he is one of the least worth it free agency "prizes" in awhile. he's going to get the kind of money that beltran got, and he'll never perform throughout the contract.

i would love too get crawford. i don't think prior has the value to get him though, even if he pitches well again. too many injuries and he's getting a rep for being soft.

by tomas21 on Aug 3, 2006 7:42 PM CDT up reply actions

Prior as a starting point perhaps...

Would at least get the D-Ray's attention.

Remember, they are DESPERATE for pitching. They have position prospects out the wazoo but very little pitching wise.

They have no money to go out and make a big pitch to sign free agents.

And very few teams right now are willing to deal young starting pitching. If that is what the D-Rays want in return for Carl Crawford, they will find the market is small.

Prior + another pitching prospect, a Rich Hill, a Carlos Marmol, and I think a deal could get done.

by theprognosticator on Aug 3, 2006 7:56 PM CDT up reply actions