Looking Ahead

I have been lazy the last week and failed to comment on the Farnsworth trade. I can't really bring anything new to the table to discuss about the trade, only that I am glad he is gone. Tired of wondering whether the bad or good Farnsworth would show up from game to game. Tired of hearing all the clueless Cub fans saying he should be our closer because he can throw 100 MPH. These are the same Cub fans who watched him fail miserably on atleast 3-4 seperate occasions when he was all but named the closer.

He didn't bring us Danny Kolb, or Aubrey Huff or even Octavio Dotel. In the end Farns brought us Navarro who scouts say has a lively fastball but that is about it. Sounds like a youger Farnsworth doesn't it? The other two minor leaguers are rated so poorly that they have virtually no chance to make the Cubs this year or 2-3 years from now. I loved to hear how Farnsworth's name was always mentioned with Kolb, Huff, and Dotel because Cubs fans naturally inflated the value of Kyle.

Still the Dotel rumor will not die. Nothing is out of the realm of possibility. But the one point I argue over and over on the Cub Reporter is that the Cubs have nothing the A's want. They are just not going to trade him for prospects. Oakland has lots of good pitching prospects. So much like the Huff, Kolb rumors and the Beltran, Magglio deals the Cubs are not even on the radar.

The way I see it, there is only one possibility of improving the bullpen before the season starts with a quality player. And that is with Byung Yun Kim of the Redsox. The good and the bad...

If Kim shows a marked improvement in his pitching and attitude, the Sox will probably keep him. If not, the right-hander will be sent elsewhere....

Kim is a headcase. But it revolves around his desire to be a starter. In his country being in the bullpen is kind like a dis-honor, it means your not a good enough pitcher. That is the chip on his shoulder since he has come to the majors with the D-backs. I believe he is very unhappy with the Redsox because when he was traded to them they assured him he would remain a starter. They quickly fell back on that promise. It is not like Kim is a horrible starter either. 15 career starts 3.77 ERA, .237 OBAA.

It is hard to believe but Kim is only 26 years old, his best years are still ahead of him. I think as he matures more and understands that being in the bullpen in american baseball can actually be a good thing he will accept it and become a star. If I was Jim Hendry I would be seeing what the Redsox want for him and keep a close eye on him during spring training. A fresh start with a new ballclub that hasn't promised him anything would probably improve his attitude alot. But it must be made clear if he was ever traded to the Cubs, that we need a closer, and Kim himself would be one of the top choices to fill that void.

Kim is another one of my favorite players like Nomar and Walker(Why are they always Redsox or get traded to the Redsox? I like Schilling alot also -shakes head-). Kim is alot like Keith Foulke(another Redsox, wtf) where he can go more than 1 inning for a save, which makes him more versatile and available in tricky situations earlier. Kim should be an option the Cubs can't afford to ignore. Hey it's better than Dempster or Robb Nenn, lol.