Thursday, November 13, 2008

No More Wood in Chicago

Cub-dom is in mourning, as the Cubs have announced that they won't re-sign Kerry Wood.

It's odd that by and large, Cubs fans have such an affinity to the oft-injured Wood while most Brewers fans are telling the oft-injured Ben Sheets to not let the door hit him on the way out of town.

Perhaps it is because Wood seemed to work his ass off to get back from his injuries, while the perception (right or wrong) was that Sheets got these weird injuries because he was lazy in his conditioning. The fact that Wood signed for a perceived hometown discount last year helped too, I'd guess.

Anyway, add one more name to the closer pool, and take one away, as the Cubs traded for Kevin Gregg today.

19 comments:

Charlie Marlow said...

Anyone else see this clown is looking for 4/50? Its laughable to think that any MLB team would sign a pitcher to a contract like that after he's had 12 DL stints in 10 years.

Good luck with that, Carrie!


Whoops, I mean Kerry.

Anonymous said...

yeah the Gregg signing wasn't the best for the crew. it will be interesting to see were Wood ends up and for how much.

wv23 said...

so, charlie (we won't bother mistakenly calling you a girl's name), if you were looking to negotiate a new deal for a client, would you:

a. start by saying your client would like a lot of years and a lot of money?

b. start by saying "pay me whatever you think is ok"?

c. start by saying "he gets hurt a lot. don't sign him."

out of loyalty to the cubs and in an effort to rebuild his value, "this clown" chose option b before the 2008 season. for that and for the reasons matt mentioned in his post, cubs fans love him.

(note to self: never hire charlie marlow to negotiate my next contract.)

Anonymous said...

Glad to see the Cubs overpay for Gregg. Of course they won't admit it, but then again 99% of Cubs fans are clueless.

wv23 said...

by "overpaying" i'm guessing you mean "save $5-$7m that can be spent on rotation or RF help immediately" - not to mention the draft picks they got for wood and will get from gregg in his FA year?

they drafted cashner in the first round this year, plus the bullpen is pretty solid already. i, for one, am comfortable with a samardzija, gregg, marmol 7th, 8th and 9th for the coming year.

thank you for the concern, though.

Matt said...

I think he's referring to the prospect the Cubs gave up to get Gregg.

Matt said...

Although I guess I shouldn't assume that I know what anonymous is thinking, or even that anonymous is a he.

My apologies.

wv23 said...

that's working under the assumption you know what ceda will become, the ease of replacing what is lost, and the needs the team has for 2009.

there are all sorts of variables inherent in any trade, and hendry's record over the years has for more hits than misses.

Charlie Marlow said...

Did you get sand in your swimsuit, wv? You guys have some queer loyalties, I'm simply pointing them out. I'm not anyone's agent, and to be real honest, no one needs to be reminded of Carrie's...whoops! again!...Kerry's injury history: the man is a walking DL stint waiting to happen. So...I'm a little confused as to why you bring up anything having to do with contract negotiations. So he gave you a homertown discount last year. So what? Now he's asking you for 4/50. Off the top of my head, the only closer who makes more than that is Mariano Rivera.

So...Kerry Wood deserves to make less only than Mariano Rivera as a closer? Wow, there'd have to be a lot of rock going around the GM circles for them to buy that, I think.

wv23 said...

i'm pretty sure he didn't ask me for anything, charlie.

the point, and read very slowly, is that in negotiations you demand high, they offer low, and hopefully you meet somewhere in between.

what, exactly, is complicated or confusing to you about that?

as for "queer loyalties," yes, we could be like wisconsin fans and say, "don't let the door hit you on the way out, ben" or "brett favre is dead to me!"

pardon me if i don't take lectures on loyalty from a fan base with that mindset.

Charlie Marlow said...

Oh, is that how negotiations work? Who knew?!

The point, and apparently it is lost on you, is that for him to even think that's a good starting point is utterly moronic.
Don't take a lecture, though, give one!

Oh, the irony!

You do hold yourself in high regard, don't you?

Sorry we Wisconsin mouth breathers are so repugnant to you. I suppose you wouldn't even need to interact with me...but apparently the promise of a good high-brow thrashing of one of your internet inferiors was simply too much to withstand, huh?

wv23 said...

keith law says he is the best closer on the market. how much do you think the best closer on the market should demand? $4.50? $1.75?

as far as "utterly moronic," how so? so do you think the mets or astros or rangers or however many other teams won't bother to call? is he somehow hurting his negotiating position? if so, how exactly?

please explain how it is "utterly moronic." be specific. and try not to call names; it just detracts from your already tenuous argument.

wv23 said...

and where did you see 4/50, and who is that attributed to? he has said he would sign a one-year deal with the cubs, everything else i've read said he would want $10 million a year.

Charlie Marlow said...

You know I chased the link back where I saw 4/50 and I couldn't find an 'official source'. A thousand apologies. But let's tackle your other issues:

First, Baseball Digest Daily ranks Ben Sheets as the 3rd best closer. That means he should get about 5/75, right? If you can tell me why the answer to that question is "no", then you can tell me why it would be ridiculous for Kerry Wood to even start negotiations at 4/50. 12 DL stints in 10 years. He will miss time for whatever team he signs with. That's going to drive his price down. If he doesn't realize it, he's a moron.

Is that specific enough for you? Sorry if I offended you anywhere, and I don't recall 'calling names' at all...unless you're defending me calling Kerry Wood a moron. In which case, that's noble of you. I certainly hope you re-read your comments. You may even want to delete the one that says I have a 'tenuous argument'. Unless you truly believe that Wood's injury history will not affect his contract negotiations whatsoever. If that's the case, I'm at a loss for words.

Charlie Marlow said...

**3rd best SP

wv23 said...

so ... the whole premise of your argument, that "this clown is looking for 4/50" is based on absolutely nothing. at least we know that about you now.

but my point remains: his agent can start negotiations at any arbitrary point he so chooses. 4/50. 4/40. whatever. it does not matter, because any team will come back with whatever counteroffer they are going to make, surely taking injury history into account, and they will meet somewhere in between.

and if ben sheets wants to ask for 5/75, that's great. i wouldn't call him a "clown" or call it "utterly moronic," as i understand he is looking to get paid.

he would be a "clown" or "utterly moronic" to start negotiations where they are likely to end up - because that, in essence, is negotiating with himself and he would undercut his value.

Charlie Marlow said...

So...really, then...we simply have a difference of opinion. And...you're trying to convince me that your opinion is right, but mine is wrong?

Sorry bud, Kerry Wood is a clown. And if Ben Sheets asks for a 5 year contract, he's a clown too. 12 DLs in 10 years says Wood won't get more than probably 3/24. That's my opinion. I'm sure you'll attempt to ignore the definition of the word and type out a bunch of reasons why its wrong. And, at some point, you'll realize you're typing more in the comments section of someone else's blog, when you could be updating your shrine to Cubdom.

wv23 said...

1. you clearly are dense, if you believe wv23 is a shrine to cubdom.

2. i'm just questioning your concept of negotiations. you believe it is preferable to start in the middle and work your way down. i believe otherwise.

3. the name-calling continues to diminish the already shaky quality of your arguments.

4. we still know that you just made up your original point.

Charlie Marlow said...

I actually didn't make it up. I heard from a Cubs fan friend, and read a post on a sports website. Isn't any of this pure conjecture until a contract is announced? Even from a 'league source' or a rumor site or blog?

And, in fact, I never mentioned negotiations. If Kerry Wood is indeed looking to sign for 4/50, your entire argument is moot. Since they'd have to start the negotiations higher than that, right? And my opinion is that no club would even consider signing such an injury prone pitcher to a contract like that.

Name calling? Is it Kerry Wood's honor you're defending? Since I don't recall calling you names. But, again, you're the master of irony:

1. you clearly are dense, if you believe wv23 is a shrine to cubdom.