I think the Cubs are offering him arb just to cover their buts when he signs somewhere else to get the draft picks. I think they will offer a low number so he’ll decline, as sad as I think it is I’m pretty certain his days in Cubbie blue are over.

Could you be more specific? Any links or other citations?

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20081126&content_id=3694386&vkey=news_chc&fext=.jsp&c_id=chc

I predict December 8th he accepts and Ron Santo is voted into the Hall of Fame. A truly joyous day all around.

With how Ron feels about Kerry I think Kerry coming back will mean close to as much as making the Hall of Fame.
’

I’m thinking Kerry will accept a fair deal and limite years to come back. The Cubs are after all one of the better bets to make the playoffs and Kerry I’m sure would like to be a part of that.

Kerry Wood, unlike many MLB players seems to be one of those rare guys who have an established personal loyalty with his team and its community that is so strong that he genuinely doesn’t want to go anywhere else and will do so only after really working his front office big time before he cuts the ties.

It could be. It’s a cagy thing. You can live or die by the sword on that.

It’s clear Kerry’s got a personal investment here in the community and with his career that won’t be established anywhere else easily .. but at the same time, both he and Hendry know what each other wants. It’s not rocket science.

Kerry’s established as one of the chief, if not THE face of the franchise and knows his value after the years of uncertainty he’s had – posting great numbers last year. Hendry is certainly aware of that. Kerry wants another fat contract and the Cubs want to get him as cheap as they can. So they are letting the classic baseball winter drama go down. Again, it’s business. I think if there had been really hard feelings, arbitration wouldn’t even have been on the table.

And Kerry’s no dope. He loves the city and the team and what he’s got going here, and he is not going to rush into anything. He’s letting due process work in his favor and will be definitely entertaining offers and keeping them close to vest. He’s still young and who knows? Could he pull a Dempster over the winter on the basis of how he feels and decide he wants to try to work his way back into a rotation slot?

Do you think the Cubs will pass on a rotation with Kerry Wood returning to it?

DO IT, JIMBO.

We know the Giants are in on Howry, so the worst thing that could happen is that he accepts and we trade Howry to the Giants for nothing. Best case – the Giants (or someone with an unprotected first round pick) signs him and we get two draft picks. Medium case – he accepts arbitration and has enough value on a one year deal that we can trade him as part of a package to get something we need (Marquis and Howry for Randy Winn?).

I don’t see the downside of offering Howry arb.

I wonder if this was Hendry’s plan all along with Wood going along with it.

Sign a multi-yr deal with some other team.

I don’t think Kerry owes anything to the Cubs.

Baseball is a profession. It’s a business. Teams never feel when a player gets hurt, they simply just let him go. Now that Kerry is healthy, I have no problem with him going out and getting paid. He and his family deserve it, even if we don’t like it.

With that being said, I think the two can find a middle ground where Kerry gets his money and the Cubs get their pitcher back. I’ve been saying it all along.

… but I wanted to post this gem from Phil Rogers. He wrote in today’s Trib about Don Baylor and had this to say

Though Baylor failed to make the playoffs with the team he inherited from Jim Riggleman, he helped raise the organization’s standards. His hiring ended a period when the Cubs often hired inexperienced managers and has been followed by the Dusty Baker and Lou Piniella eras, which have produced three playoff teams in six years.

His hiring end a period when the Cubs often hired inexperienced managers? Lets see here…

- Baylor replaced Jim Riggleman. Riggleman was not inexperienced. While he only had completed two plus years with the San Diego Padres as their manager he was well thought of and the Cubs hired him away from the Padres.

- Riggleman replaced Tom Trebelhorn. Treb was hardly inexperienced, managing more than five seasons in Milwaukee.

- Trebelhorn replaced Jim Lefebvre. Lefebvre managed three complete seasons in Seattle and actually was fired after his best season in Seattle.

- Lefebvre technically replaced the inexperienced Jim Essian, who managed only 3/4 of the 1991 season for the Cubs. Essian was the replacement for Don Zimmer who before the Cubs, managed ten seasons for three different seasons.

The last “inexperienced” manager that the Cubs hired and who worked for at least one complete season was Lee Elia in 1982. I am not one who bangs the drum when it comes to Phil Rogers reporting abilities but what the hell is he talking about here?

… do NOT assume it would be $9-$10m just because that’s the sum an arbitrator might award him. Keep in mind that all of Wood’s statements have pretty much said he’s not in this for the money.

Further, the Cubs pride themselves on NOT going to arb hearings. You can bet that if he accepts arb (and I am assuming he will), they’ll come to a quick agreement on salary and terms. It may very well include incentive clauses, if they are concerned about injury.

Sorry, but I lol when I hear people conclude “…well, he has enough money already…he’ll sign for less.” Such a statement leads me to assume the writer/speaker doesn’t really know how the business of sports works. I’m also sure this opinion would lead one to be puzzled when millionaire athletes go out on ‘work stoppages,’ either.

Do you not think that agents control the players? Even if some would like to sign for less, some agents will not allow their clients to do so. They – the agents — are also competing. They like to win, in their own special little arena.

Some agents actually watch out for the client’s best interest. (Scott Boras — that’s not you.) But, most will do their best — to maximize their clien’t earning potential. The only possibility is that Wood’s enough of a vet (and most assuredly NOT because he’s made a lot of money already) to make sure an agent fulfills his wishes.

if they think he’d accept.