wrveres wrote:nuggets wrote:WR, why are you so convinced Stoney will take over in Chicago?
its a joke.
Most Cubs fans will understand
Essentially because we all pitch tents for Stoney on the northside. (jokes are always funnier when you have to explain them, right?)
My biggest issue with Dusty was as follows...
Baker built up a reputation in SF of being the "ego" manager because of how well he dealt with Bonds.
So, he was brought into Chicago to make everyone get along with Sosa, and he ended up running him out of town (along with Stone and Carey). Now he has a team with plenty of talent, but very little ego (well, A-Ram, but he's a different animal than Bonds or Sosa).
In his defense, on paper the Cubs had one of the highest payrolls in baseball, but a giant chunk of that was still invested in Sosa (along with the injured Kerry Wood). He can't be blamed for Wood's injury, IMO, but he certainly could have handled Prior a little better.
Now that the Cubs will be completely out from under Sosa's contract, my prediction is that they'll make runs at big-name free agents. Furcal seems like an obvious fit, but personally I think they'll resign Nomar.
The best fit, IMO, is Brian Giles. His career .413 OBP in front of Lee and Ramirez would be gigantic, plus he could slip in at CF if need be.
Sorry... not trying to thread steal, but thought I'd clear the Dusty air.