Excerpts from the book !!!!

Rewind to the 2006-07 offseason...

Genius Jim gets into a bidding war with himself that nets the Guess Hitting Hack for the princely sum of $136 million spread over 8 years.

Rewind to the 2007-08 offseason...

Nearly the whole attention of the offseason -- with exception of extremely overpaying for Kosuke Fukudome (who produces in line with So Taguchi) -- was 24/7 pursuit of Brian Roberts.      

Rewind to the 2008-09 offseason...

The offseason was devoted to Genius Jim's attempts to clear salary in a procession of domino moves that would enable him to swing a deal for Jake Peavy and have the financial flexibility to add a left-handed hitting outfielder.    Except at the end of the day the game of musical chairs stopped and the Cubs were left with an incomplete set of moves that resulted in the loss of Mark DeRosa and netted Milton Bradley, Aaron Miles, Aaron Heilman and Kevin Gregg.    I don't know about anybody else's grading curve, but all four of those additions get an F minus.   Oh, and he dished out an insane $52 million contract for Ryan Dempster, a 4th starter type who actually had the audacity to suggest the Cubs weren't ready to play the LA Dodgers in the playoffs.    Maybe that explains why Dempster pitched like a turd in Game One.    Say Ryan, how is it that professional baseball players can't manage to have themselves "ready" for the playoffs?!?!   What kind of an indictment is that, yet Hendry still feels it his deep obligation to dish out $52 million on this guy?!?!    

Now in the 2009-10 offseason...

Genius Jim....he the benefactor of baseball's third highest payroll....is left finding dump stations for Heilman and Miles while spending the rest of his time in between donut breaks trying to sell Milton Bradley.    Oh, and his wondrous payroll management resulted in having to let Rich Harden walk.   .