Kuzul

The MLB “Non-Waiver” Trade Deadline has come and gone but another has yet to arrive, the August 31st Waiver Trade Deadline. This simply means teams can still trade players but with the requirement of placing their players on the waiver wire, which is pretty secret in MLB and often if a contract is too hefty a player goes free.

Last year the Chicago White Sox shocked the baseball world by claiming outfielder Alex Rios from the Toronto Blue Jays and his expensive contract, in the neighborhood of $50 million left on it and getting him with no trade whatsoever. This scenario is unlikely to happen this time around but I can tell you that there are a handful of players out there likely to clear waivers for postseason hungry teams needing a final piece in order to win and here they are…..

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Sometime prior to tonight’s game against the Colorado Rockies, the formerly angry Carlos Zambrano, recently reinstated and recently healed, is expected to address his Cubs teammates to apologize for his June 25 outburst.

Of course, Big Z has already publicly apologized on ESPN. You can expect the next one to be as meaningless as this one.

Most fans and the entire organization, in fact, would rather see Zambrano just go away and not bother leaving a forwarding address.

But since they won’t eat his contract, and the MLB Player’s Union demands it, Carlos will return to pitch in the bullpen.

Look, the Cubs have nobody but themselves to blame for all this. They allowed Zambrano to destroy Gatorade coolers, act like a baby on the mound, and punch out teammates and did nothing about it. 

Now that he is no longer pitching well, they suddenly get tough on him and send him out for anger management therapy.

Zambrano’s friend and current Sox manager Ozzie Guillen knows what’s up.

“Carlos has been like that since he started playing baseball,” Guillen told reporters a day after the incident. “Now all of a sudden he sucks and everyone points fingers at him. He was like that when he was winning. But you don’t produce and don’t do what you’re supposed to do and make a lot of money, you’re a target.”

Now, don’t get me wrong, Carlos is responsible for his actions. But Ozzie’s right in the sense that how come the Cubs let him get away with this behavior in the past?

Well, it’s because he’s no longer good at pitching a baseball for a living.

When the Cubs wanted to get rid of last year’s problem, Milton Bradley, they were fortunate enough to have suspended him toward the end of the season, so they didn’t have to bring him back.

So now they’re stuck in an awkward situation with the return of the immature right hander.

The players don’t like him, the Cubs don’t want him, and the fans are sick and tired of his act. Yet he’ll be pretending to be sincere when he issues his bogus apology.

But to show Zambrano that we are not vindictive fans, let’s help the big goof with the wording of his act of contrition.

“I know I have bitterly disappointed all of you,” Zambrano should begin. “For all that I have done, I am so sorry…

“What I did was not acceptable, and I am the only person to blame. I owe it to my family to become a better person, I owe it to those close to me to become a better man. I have a lot of work to do, and I intend to dedicate myself to doing it,” he should say.

Then, he could dazzle them with this finish: “I ask you to find room in your heart to one day believe in me again.”

Ah, forget it — a professional athlete would never say something so lame!

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Carlos Zambrano has grown up and apologized—a month later—and not face-to-face with anyone he wronged—unless he had done something to Pedro Gomez of ESPN.

On Monday, Zambrano apologized for his dugout tirade a month ago after the first inning versus the Chicago White Sox in which Zambrano felt runs were given up because of shaky defense. Gold Glover Derrek Lee took some of the heat, even though no one had a chance to catch Carlos Quentin’s home run in the left field stands.

Zambrano has been on the restricted list following a three-game suspension after the outburst. Zambrano additionally professed his love for Chicago and for the Chicago Cubs for helping him receive therapy in the interview.

The Cubs have heard it all before.

Zambrano claimed he was trying to “fire the team up.” I’m not exactly sure how a man with a five-year, $91 million contract calling his team “horsesh%t” is really going to fire a team up, but, that’s just me. 

Zambrano sat down with ESPN, aka LeBron James Sportsnet, for what I’m assuming was titled “The Tantrum.” He claimed, which Lee confirmed, that he texted Lee two days later apologizing for the incident.

I’m sure Lee took Zambrano’s “Whaadup, D-LEE? Sorry bout dat yelling thang, LOL,” very seriously.

Apparently phones are no longer used for speaking via voice to people or arranging a face-to-face of some kind.

Zambrano will have a chance to apologize to the rest of his Cub teammates as he will return to the team Friday in Colorado. 

What Zambrano should really apologize for is completely destroying any trade value he had. In a year, when the Cubs’ window has closed on the Aramis Ramirez, Alfonso Soriano, Lee, and Zambrano era, and rebuilding must begin, any teams even somewhat interested in Zambrano will have the upper hand.

Now teams know the Cubs want Zambrano out, and even though he is just 29 years old and has a career ERA of 3.58—never having had an ERA above 4.00 in a season, including last year when he had a 3.77 ERA with a 1.38 WHIP, striking out 152 batters in 169.1 innings pitched—teams will do nothing but low-ball the Cubs for him.

Teams can now argue that he is a headcase. He has a huge contract, he was moved to the bullpen this year, and the Cubs want him out.

When a team knows another team wants a player out, why would they give them a fair trade?

It’s too late to apologize, Carlos.

The trade deadline is quickly approaching, and the Cubs tried to show other teams Zambrano could be a starter again. But yet another tantrum in the life of Carlos Zambrano has cost the Cubs.

With Roy Oswalt currently the best option as a starting pitcher for playoff teams, imagine if Zambrano had turned things around.

You think the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, White Sox, Detroit Tigers, Minnesota Twins, or Philadelphia Phillies couldn’t have used him?

He’s only 29 years old, if he only acted older than five, perhaps the Cubs could have gotten something for him.

Trading Zambrano has become just another “wait til next year” for the Chicago Cubs.

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With Lou Piniella retiring at the end of the season, many Cubs fans might be saying good riddance due to Chicago’s disappointment recently. 

The next question is obviously, “Who’s next?”

Well, Ryne Sandberg has already thrown his hat into the ring. Sandberg, a Hall of Fame inductee and Cubs legend, would certainly bring big-name quality to the dugout and his experience might go over well with the players.

Sandberg is currently managing the Cubs’ Triple-A Iowa club and explicitly said he wanted the job, “I am ready…I’m not interested in on-the-job learning or on-the-job training. At this point, I’m interested in winning ballgames at the Major League level.”

That is the kind of fire and mentality you want leading your club, especially one that needs a little fire lit to its collective tails to get going.

But Sandberg might be a little bit of work in progress. With only four years of managerial experience under his belt, there might be some on-the-job training going on if he were to take over the Cubs. There would be some lumps and a little bit of a learning curve, so the question is whether it would pay off in the long run.

From a fan’s perspective, it might be nice to get some new blood into the managerial position. The Cubs have already tried putting the old guard into that role with Dusty Baker and Lou Piniella recently, so at least this would be trying something new and going in a different direction.

Sandberg said afterward that he doesn’t actually expect to land the gig, but the Cubs might be wise to give him a long hard look, something GM Jim Hendry said he intends to do.

If Sandberg is in fact hired, he would be only the second Hall of Famer to be hired as a big league manager after his induction, and the first since Ted Williams. It’s a rare pedigree that will help him relate with the players and help him earn their respect.

He is already dealing with Carlos Zambrano, who is working his way through Triple-A right now. Although nobody can handle the loose cannonball that is Zambrano, if Sandberg could forge a relationship with the talented hurler, that could certainly help his case.

That is only one part of the battle, but Sandberg could prove a little something by winning over Zambrano. 

He has already won over Cubs fans with his play on the field during his career, so that is another piece to the puzzle. Managing is always a different story, but you never know unless you are given that shot.

Sandberg might have an uphill battle to land the job, and there might be a few rough patches in his first season if he were to get it; the Cubs might be wise to do something different to try to get the club back on track.

Why not try Sandberg?

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The season-ending injury to Jake Peavy left the White Sox with a solid-but-not-spectacular starting rotation from top to bottom. Questions linger.

Freddy Garcia has been solid thus far this year, but can he be relied on as the team’s fourth starter? I’m not ready to write off Daniel Hudson this year just yet, but he failed to make it through five innings against the Royals in his only start of the year.

The Sox have been rumored to be interested in acquiring a starting pitcher with the trade deadline approaching. Which to pursue? The man White Sox fans love to hate the most— Carlos Zambrano.

I know what you’re thinking: No way should this ticking time bomb lunatic of a pitcher come to the South Side with his short temper and fat contract. Before shutting the door on this idea, let’s have an open mind.

In addition to a history of tirades and pouting, the volatile Venezuelan pitcher has a track record as a dominant starter who eats innings and racks up strikeouts.  Big Z has never had an ERA over 4.00 for a season as a starter in his career, posting a career ERA of 3.58. He has also surpassed 200 strikeouts in a season twice.

Zambrano has had an embarrassing 2010 season with the Cubs, but the guy wants to win. His competitiveness may get the better of him sometimes, but when you consider all of the frustrating times he’s had with the Cubs, his displays of displeasure with the organization as a whole become more understandable.

Remember, on the night of his infamous dugout tirade against the Sox earlier this year, Zambrano and Ozzie Guillen went out to dinner. It remains to be seen whether any Major League manager could tame the big 6’5″ righty. If I had to choose one, my money is on Ozzie.

Having fellow strong-willed catcher A.J. Pierzynski in the fold would also help keep the top from blowing off Mt. Zambrano yet again.  

Ozzie and Kenny have been running a “BS Free” ship for years now, Zambrano’s antics definitely wouldn’t fly here. That said; the Sox should give the Zambrano experiment a chance.

The Sox would likely only have to swallow roughly $10-15 million of the $45 million left on his contract, and his value will never be lower than right now so the Sox wouldn’t be giving up a whole heck of a lot in return.

As long as he could regain any semblance to his old-self, Zambrano would be nestled into the Sox rotation in the fourth starter slot. He would be a huge boost to the playoff push, and a four-man rotation of Mark Buehrle, Gavin Floyd, John Danks, and Zambrano would be extremely formidable in the post-season.

Say the experiment does work this year; that would leave the Sox with a projected 2011 starting staff of Buehrle, Peavy, Danks, Floyd, and Zambrano

Now we’re getting ahead of ourselves, but the reality is that trading for Zambrano now is a low-risk high-reward option. Think about it.    

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So…two or three weeks of anger management classes and suddenly Cubs pitcher Carlos Zambrano is a new man, huh?

You’ll have to forgive me if I’m not buying what the Cubs are selling.

Apparently “cured” of the anger issues that have prevented Zambrano from reaching the full potential of his obvious talent, Big Z has been cleared to begin his baseball rehabilitation in Mesa.

From one “rehab” to another “rehab” and—Poof!—magically, all is well again.

Zambrano, who was suspended following a June 25 dugout tirade at U.S. Cellular Field, threw 25 pitches Thursday in Mesa, AZ. ESPN’s Bruce Levine reports that “Hendry said the Cubs and Zambrano will get together at some point next week and decide where he’ll continue his rehab in the minor leagues.”

Look, this is a joke. Except the joke’s on us because if the man truly does have a mental illness—and let’s be honest, that’s what we’re talking about here—then you can’t expect years and years of problems to be worked out in a two-week session.

Let’s face it: This is a marriage that is irrevocably broken. Jim Hendry and the Cubs simply have to do what it takes and send Zambrano packing.

That means having to eat the majority of his contract, and that is a dish that Hendry has no appetite for.

But if this is allowed to continue, it’s going to fester into something far worse than what we’ve witnessed to this point. Simply put, at some point, Zambrano’s frustration will boil over to the point of no return.

And I doubt that any of his teammates or management want to be hit by the shrapnel from that explosion.

Meanwhile, cognitive restructuring (changing the way you think) takes time. Trying to change years of destructive behavior is not easy to do.

According to the American Psychological Association, “Sometimes it’s our immediate surroundings that give us cause for irritation and fury.” They suggest that a change of surroundings may be necessary.

If so, then that lends even more credence to the idea that Zambrano has to go. For his good and the good of the organization.  

For you know that Zambrano isn’t going to be happy having both to face teammates that don’t like him and to return to the bullpen, a role he truly dislikes.

It’s time for Mr. Hendry to forget about trying to “fix” the man. Likewise, do not have the illusion that you can trade Zamrbano for prospects or find a team willing to absorb the approximately $45 million remaining on his contract.  

Just end this thing before someone gets hurt.

After all, deep breathing and meditation only go so far.

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If this is what he truly believes, then it’s no wonder that former Cubs broadcaster and current Sox color man Steve Stone was never hired as a GM.

I understand that Zambrano has not fared well in recent years as a pitcher—starter or reliever.

I also know that Big Z has not lived up to his humongous contract.

But to seriously suggest that the Cubs try and make their former ace a first baseman is about as stupid of an idea as I’ve ever heard.

Look, Zambrano’s reputation as a hitter is vastly overrated. He is a pitcher and even compared with other pitchers the only advantage he has is in the power department. 

In 583 ABs, about a full season for many players, Zambrano has hit 20 home runs.

But the rest of his offensive stats have been offensive.

He has struck out 208 times while drawing only six walks. Yes, you heard that right; no need to adjust your computer screen.

His OBP is just a few percentage points higher than his career batting average of .237.

His OPS is .634, which is not good.

In short, Zambrano is a terrible hitter who swings from his heels and hits more homers than the average pitcher but contributes nothing offensively when he is not hitting home runs.

Not to mention how bad he would be defensively…

Meanwhile, I have to think that Stone was taking a veiled shot at Carlos for his rant against Derrek Lee recently. In other words, if you think you are better than Lee, then show it.

Here is what Stone told WSCR radio:

“He’ll probably hit the ball as far as anybody on the team,” Stone told “The Mully & Hanley Show” on WSCR-AM 670, noting that Zambrano is a switch-hitter with a lifetime .237 average and 20 homers.

With Lee possibly on his way out of town after this season, “It might be time for [Zambrano] to take some ground balls at first base,” Stone said. “If you’re going to get anything out of Zambrano and if you can’t trade him …”

“There are teams that would take Zambrano as the fiery guy, but there are not teams that are going to take the 3-6, 5.65 ERA or whatever…The fact is, Carlos’ stuff is short. It’s been short for a bit.”

It’s true that Zambrano does not have much value as a pitcher, but he would have a lot less value as a hitter Mr. Stone.

Steve is a disgruntled former Cubs employee who likes to take shots at them as often as he can.

Still, he sounded so serious when he suggested this that one can only scratch their head and wonder if the man has lost his mind.

Or if he’s just an arrogant, self-centered a-hole. I vote for the latter.

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Giants beat writer Henry Schulman wrote a piece suggesting that an Aaron Rowand for Carlos Zambrano trade with the Cubs would make sense for both clubs if the future contract obligations could be worked out.  It sounds like a textbook case of wishful thinking to me, because the Cubs would be damned fools to trade Zambrano for Rowand.

Sure, the entire north side of Chicago is tired of the fitful eruptions of Mt. Zambrano, but the big Venezualan can still pitch.  In 55.2 innings pitched, Zambrano has 53 strikeouts.  Sure, he’s given up a lot of walks (and more hits than usual), but Zambrano has always given up a lot of walks.

My gut says Zambrano is only minor adjustments and/or a trade to a pitchers’ park (Wrigley has always been a hitters’ park, at least once the warm days of summer arrive) away from success.  AT&T is only a hitters’ park on those five days every Summer when San Francisco experiences true summer weather.  Then the fog roles in, the temperature drops, the wind picks up, and it’s happy time for pitchers again.

Rowand is 32 this year (turns 33 on August 29), and Zambrano turned 29 on June 1st.  Who do you think is more likely to get his groove back at this point in their career?  The answer should be obvious.

Rowand would benefit from playing in Wrigley, but he’d still have to start swinging at strikes, something he’s had extraordinary difficulty doing this year, and something he’s never been particularly good at at any time in his career.

What I find most appealing about the possibility of the Giants acquiring Zambrano is that it would free up Jonathan Sanchez (and prospects) to trade away for the slugger I’ve been dreaming about.

The Giants need to do something to find a way to score the base runners they aren’t scoring now.  Someone who could hit the two- or three-run bomb at least as often as he hits into the double play would surely hit the spot.

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Don’t be fooled by what some of the Cubs players and management will tell you, the truth is that the majority of the players do not like Carlos Zambrano and wish he was elsewhere.

This is nothing new—Cubs players have long disliked Big Z.

Now, this latest incident where Zambrano stormed into the dugout and seemingly yelled at everybody and anybody hasn’t helped the relationship.

But according to sources within the organization, this is not the first time that the majority of Cubs players have privately wished that he would move on.

The Cubs have been losers for far too long, and frustration is understandable. In fact, I wish more players had the passion and the fire that Zambrano has.

But this is not the way to express yourself. It breaks the team apart, and it ends up being counter-productive.

So now the Cubs decide to send Big Z to an unspecified doctor to treat an unspecified problem?

What about when he turned catcher Michael Barret’s face into a hamburger?

Oh yeah, I forgot: Zambrano was pitching well at the time.

Teams only seem to be concerned about players when they are not performing up to expectations. And there is not doubt that Zambrano has been a disappointment since signing a $91.5 million contract in 2008.

I’m not trying to suggest that this is not Carlos Zambrano’s fault, because it is.

Rather, this is to let Cubs fans know that this specific incident is not the first time that Zambrano has rubbed his teammates the wrong way.

Now, you may reply that perhaps that is because the team has always had players who are not winners.

But when a player, especially a pitcher, tries to assert himself, he had better be a shining example of excellence.

But the last time I checked, Zambrano’s ERA was 5.66.

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In January 2010 Joel Sherman of the New York Post reported that two American League officials said the Cubs were “definitely dangling” Carlos Zambrano, while conceding he would not waive his no-trade clause. At that time Cubs general manager Jim Hendry declined to discuss the report.

Recent events (Friday’s dugout incident) may have the Cubs “dangling” Zambrano, and it is likely that he would now waive that no-trade clause.

Zabrano’s salary is nearly $19 million per year and runs through 2012. This, along with the Cubs (manager Lou Piniella and Hendry) labeling him a head case, will make moving him a challenge.

To make matters worse, the Cubs most definitely will need to take on a serious chunk of his salary for whoever takes him.

Zambrano, a career .237 hitter with 20 home runs, is best suited for a National League team.

The question is, who in the National League needs Zambrano and can afford his salary, even with a portion taken out?

I believe Philadelphia is the answer.

Derrek Lee’s contract will expire at the end of this season and I don’t see him returning to the Cubs. Therefore, the Cubs need to search for a replacement. The Phillies have a prospect (Matt Razzotti) who could possibly fill that role.

Razzotti, a 2007 sixth-round draft choice, played college ball at Manhattan, where he hit .367 for his career. Currently, he is in Double-A with Reading of the East Coast League and is hitting .378 with 10 home runs, 35 RBI and .682 slugging percentage in 42 games.

If Hendry could pull this off with out sending to much money Philadelphia’s way, I would be all for it.

Sure, Razzotti is a sleeper, but if it worked out the Cubs would release themselves from Zambrano and would grab a worthy candidate to replace Lee.

GO CUBS GO!

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