Didn't see this posted anywhere else... please delete if duplicate.
The Matt Szczur signing isn't new, but I thought the quote from Sully's article from Matt about the Cubs' 2014 OF was worth pulling out and looking at.
Szczur said Cubs general manager Jim Hendry told him he wanted to see him as the starting center fielder in 2014, with Brett Jackson in left and Tyler Colvin in right.
"For him to say that, I totally believed him," he said. "He wasn't beating around the bush. That helps out a lot."
At least three things stuck out to me about this quote.
First, I'm a little curious what Soriano thinks about this, since 2014 is the last year of his contract.
Second... why would Jackson go to left and Colvin to right when Brett is widely seen as the superior defender (and Colvin's defense has been questioned, in general)?
Third... Hendry seems to definitely believe Colvin has staying power. I think we all assumed this, but to (apparently) be that specific to Szczur reinforces this.
Lastly, the 2014 comment suggests they will start reasonably slowly with Szczur's development. Perhaps A/A+ ('11), A+/AA ('12), AA/AAA ('13) is the projected arc.
And, yes, for all of these points I fully realize that Hendry isn't absolutely banking on Szczur and a lot can happen between now and 2014. It also may be a bunch of lip service to get Szczur to sign. I dunno... but it is January, so I found it interesting and worth discussing.
(Apologies... I tried to put the quote from the article in a block quote and thought I was doing it right, but clearly am not. Same with the page break.)
