The August Dream Team

by parrotinct on Aug 22, 2009 10:56 PM CDT

Woke up in a cold sweat and then slapped my self dreaming about what could of been !

AB
1 Theroit SS
2 Dome CF
3 Lee 1B
4 Rami 3B
5 Ibanez RF
6 Sori LF
7 Soto C
8 Derosa2B
9 Lily P

Sitting in Dugout
P Wells, Harden, Zambrano, Dempster
IF Baker, Fox , Hofpauir,
OF Fuld, Johnson
C Hill

Down the left field line, having a nice chat with the fans all dressed in blue
Wood, Gorzelanny, Guzman, Marmol, Marshall, Grabow

Oh how differernt August would feel right now

Thanks Jim & Lou, Hope you enjoy the bass fishing next summer !!!

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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Comments

I agree with the sentiment

But would Gorzelanny still have been acquired?

Okay, just so I understand it... in your wildest fantasy, you are in hell. And you are co-running a bed and breakfast with the devil.

by bren on Aug 22, 2009 11:12 PM CDT reply actions

Hindsight = 20/20

by shoemile on Aug 22, 2009 11:21 PM CDT reply actions

Wasn't this a comment in another thread...

word for word?

Yeah, it’s nice to look back and drool over Raul Ibanez, but please look up discussions about Ibanez from this offseason. I don’t think anyone here wanted him, and justifiably so, as he was a declining 37 year old. Hindsight is 20/15…

Wood has really struggled this year. He wasn’t worth the money. Maybe he doesn’t put up quite as bad numbers here in Chicago, but he still wouldn’t be worth the money.

The only changes you’ve made are Wood, Ibanez, and Derosa. IMO, that doesn’t make this team that much better.

This post pretty much sucks. Glad I got to read it twice.

by Kansas25 on Aug 22, 2009 11:35 PM CDT reply actions

Stick around - maybe a fanshot will be next... ;-)

Lou Brown: "My kinda team, Charlie, my kinda team..."

by ballhawk on Aug 22, 2009 11:41 PM CDT up reply actions

Yup, pretty much

There was also a sizable contingent who wanted to dump Lee and/or Fukudome. Try dreaming about this year’s team without either of those two if you want a real nightmare.

by shoemile on Aug 22, 2009 11:46 PM CDT up reply actions

anyone who says they knew ibanez would be mvp caliber this year is lying their ass off

Theriot is not clutch, he's double clutch!

by jesus christos on Aug 22, 2009 11:54 PM CDT up reply actions

I am sorry I made you waste a moment of your life

Some of us loyal fans dont have the time to ready every word in every thread, but as members of this community we all are entitled to our voice.

"If The Phone Doesn't Ring, It's Me"

by parrotinct on Aug 23, 2009 10:55 AM CDT up reply actions

However...

… you did post this elsewhere, and it didn’t really break any new ground. We’ve been over the “what ifs” for this season hundreds of times.

Not really FanPost material.

"You can observe a lot just by watching." ~ Yogi Berra

by Al Yellon on Aug 23, 2009 11:07 AM CDT up reply actions

okay

is this really a dream that would lead to a much better squad? We’re really talking about a difference of Ibanez for Bradley and Wood for Gregg. Furthermore, Ibanez was a decent fielding, aging OF that was a poor LF. In case people haven’t noticed, Ibanez has really collapsed in August. A 3 year deal for him in the offseason, and Hendry would’ve been bashed incessantly.

Also, if we had DeRosa, I think it’s quite unlikely that we have Baker. Baker was brought in to essentially fill DeRosa’s role, and he’s done just fine in it. Who’s the backup shortstop, or are we skipping that one? Theriot still isn’t a great top of the order guy.

Woody’s been pretty bad this year. Would he be better with us? Not something anyone of us could answer. This team you built doesn’t help Marmol have better control. It doesn’t make sure that Fukudome won’t go through a downswing during the season (thus messing up the top of the order). Doesn’t prevent Soriano’s slump or Soto’s struggles. Doesn’t change Harden’s inconsistent first half.

Is this a better team? Perhaps, maybe a game or two. Why am I bringing all this up? At the end of the day, this was still a club that, on paper, was the clear favorites for the NL Central entering the year. Certainly, one can blame some of the moves Hendry made (I certainly wasn’t a fan of this offseason), and question Lou’s management, but at the end of the day, the failures of some key players this year can’t be overlooked when looking at the 2009 season.

by toonsterwu on Aug 23, 2009 4:33 AM CDT reply actions

Well said...

Several of the moves made were mutually exclusive. You wouldn’t have Baker if you have DeRosa, and it would probably mean that Fox wouldn’t be here. We wouldn’t have two corner-IF and no SS on the bench.

I think the biggest problems are that Soriano and Soto have been so far off expectations (and Bradley was so bad early), the team failed to address the backup 3B situation for so long, and the bullpen has given up too many walks.

by SouthernCub on Aug 23, 2009 8:23 AM CDT up reply actions

You mean the Raul Ibanez

whose slugging has gone down every month since his hot April? In August, he has hit .220 / .258 / .339.

On second thought, maybe he belongs on the Cubs. His August numbers would fit right in with the non-existent hitting.

by rlpete on Aug 23, 2009 7:27 AM CDT reply actions

Woulda Shoulda Coulda

Oh Well

by ak123 on Aug 23, 2009 9:44 AM CDT reply actions

I had a dream

That the Cubs got a two out run scoring hit. Gosh, that was nice.

"That pitch wasn’t down and in, that pitch was down and up." Tim McCarver

by wrigleyrocker12 on Aug 23, 2009 9:54 AM CDT reply actions

I dreamed Soriano made a nice catch

and didn’t hop afterwords.

"I am not ashamed to say I love Greg Maddux" - Jim Hendry
Me either Jim

by Doggie Stalker on Aug 23, 2009 10:21 AM CDT up reply actions

He hops BEFORE he catches.

"You can observe a lot just by watching." ~ Yogi Berra

by Al Yellon on Aug 23, 2009 10:48 AM CDT up reply actions

he hops

AS he catches.

"I’m not going to allow Al Yellon to flush this thing down the crapper without a fight." (BLOU)
Forget all that other stuff. I gotta believe.

by drewishdrewid on Aug 23, 2009 11:22 AM CDT up reply actions

he hops, and that is the end of it :=)

baseball is a game of outs......pop out, ground out, line out, pitch out, strike out, fly out, and Fox and Bud's favorite black out

by Cubbie-Tim on Aug 23, 2009 12:40 PM CDT up reply actions

To all the people jumping on the poster

Isn’t this site here for talking about the Cubs and venting? I am new here and while there are MANY great posts and points brought up, there are a few who are really pompus know it alls. If you don’t like the guys post, discuss it, don’t mock it.

by TJ11 on Aug 23, 2009 12:18 PM CDT reply actions

well said

i agree with what everyone is saying,but then again he said it was a dream. in my Cubs dream it would very similar. I know that Gorzo, Grabow, Baker wouldnt have been on this team if not for DeRo’s and the Bullpen issues, as well as all the injuries to the pitching staff. but one can dream can they not. my dream team would be:
OF: good Sori, Fuku, Edmonds, RJ, Fuld
IF: DLee, DeRo, Fonty, Riot, Rami, Baker/Blanco, Fox
C: Soto, Hill
SP: Z, Lilly, (Lights out) Harden, Demp (of last year), Wells
RP: Marmol (Closer), Guzman (Setup), Marshall, Gorzo, Grabow, Caridad/Stevens/Burg

I know that baker wouldnt have been aquired because we wouldnt have gotten freel because we wouldnt have given up DeRo. Blanco wouldnt have bee nbrought up if not for the lack of DeRo. Fox wouldnt have been brought up if not for Rami’s injury. Fuld wouldnt have been brought up if not for sori’s poor performance. Hill wouldn’t be so high in our eyes if not for Geo’s suckiness or his injury.
It would be a whole different August if changes wouldnt have been made. For the better or worse? nobody an know that

"It doesn't matter what country someone's from, or what they look like, or the color of their skin. It doesn't matter what they smell like, or that they spell words slightly differently some would say more correctly. I'm a person. Bret's a person. You're a person. That person over there is a person. And each person deserves to be treated like a person. "

by Rhymenocerous on Aug 23, 2009 9:43 PM CDT up reply actions

I've heard your rhymes are so potent...

…they make all of the area ladies pregnant. Can you confirm?

I've committed to tweeting about the Cubs for the rest of the season. (Does that sound as ridiculous as I think it does?) Anyway, if you're on Twitter, you can follow me here.

by daver on Aug 25, 2009 11:35 AM CDT up reply actions

With DeRosa

LBR and Miles were not on your team?

Baker might not be acquired, we got Baker cuz of Freel, we got Freel cuz of Font, we would not be playing Font enough games to have needed Freel….

baseball is a game of outs......pop out, ground out, line out, pitch out, strike out, fly out, and Fox and Bud's favorite black out

by Cubbie-Tim on Aug 23, 2009 12:44 PM CDT reply actions

This team would be so different right now

If they would have kept DeRosa.

"That pitch wasn’t down and in, that pitch was down and up." Tim McCarver

by wrigleyrocker12 on Aug 23, 2009 8:30 PM CDT up reply actions

Definitely would have looked different...

No Miles, no Baker, and perhaps no Fox (hard to say whether they’d have brought him up with DeRosa available at 3B).

Baker and Fox are currently providing as much or more than what DeRosa would give us. The only unfortunate thing is that they weren’t available (or given the chance in Fox’s case) when Ramirez was hurt.

But the other big problem (probably a bigger problem actually) is that Soriano and Soto have each been more than 100 OPS points below what folks expected of them.

by SouthernCub on Aug 24, 2009 6:09 PM CDT up reply actions

If Fox would've have kept tearing up AAA

He would have been up here no doubt in my opinion.

"That pitch wasn’t down and in, that pitch was down and up." Tim McCarver

by wrigleyrocker12 on Aug 24, 2009 10:10 PM CDT up reply actions

who's LBR?

by Rhymenocerous on Aug 23, 2009 9:43 PM CDT up reply actions

Mike Fontenot.

LBR = Little Babe Ruth. Tagged on him by Ron Santo last year.

"You can observe a lot just by watching." ~ Yogi Berra

by Al Yellon on Aug 24, 2009 7:05 AM CDT up reply actions

Welcome to Fantasy Island!

I've committed to tweeting about the Cubs for the rest of the season. (Does that sound as ridiculous as I think it does?) Anyway, if you're on Twitter, you can follow me here.

by daver on Aug 25, 2009 11:36 AM CDT reply actions