Can Money Buy Your Love?: A Cubs Preview (Part One)

$300 Million...that's the amount that the Cubs spent to field a competative team for this upcoming season. They resigned Aramis Ramirez, Kerry Wood, and Henry Blanco. They added Alfonso Soriano, Mark DeRosa, Ted Lilly, Cliff Floyd and Jason Marquis. But will this unexpected, Yankee-like mentality translate into wins? Let's break down the team to see how their roster compares with the teams in the upper-echelon in the league...

INFIELD

Do the Cubs have the best infield in the league? It's possible. They have the formula which is associated with success: power on the corners, stellar defense up the middle.

3B: Aramis Ramirez is almost assured of at least 30 homeruns and 100 RBIs this year with a healthy Derek Lee, and the additions of Soriano and Cliff Floyd. As for his defense, it gets better each year so there's no reason to believe that won't continue to be the trend. The knock on Ramirez is that he loafs around the field, at times not running to first base with as much effort as you would like to see. His laziness affected his defense at times when he failed to move his feet quick enough to make an accurate throw or to block a ball and keep it in front of him. Personally, this angered me to no end but when I thought more about it I think it was because of his injured groin and other nagging lower-body injuries. He's healthy now and vows to do his best to shed the "lazy" lable. The funny thing about his apparent lack of effort is that he's relatively fast when he wants to turn it on. A major question with Ramirez is whether or not the intensity he showed in the second half of last year will be there now that he's got his money. Ramirez projects to be the Cubs' best power hitter and I have a feeling he'll exceed everyone's expectations. Pencil him in for an All-Star spot this season.

1B: Lee is back and there's nothing being reported which would make me think he is anything but 100% at this point. At the end of last season, he showed flashes of power which is a good thing considering that wrist injuries usually take a full-year in regards to regaining your power stroke. No matter what, the defense will always be there for Lee. He saves the infield a good 30 errors a year if not more. So what should we expect of him as for his offensive stats? Will he revert back to the year when he almost won the triple crown? That would be a stretch and difficult for anyone to recreate but his numbers will be good. He has the lineup protection he needs this time around. The amazing thing with his potential triple crown season was that he was doing it alone so now with the aid of Ramirez, Soriano, Floyd, and Barrett, it's not unreasonable to think that he could put up all-star type numbers. I predict .300 avg, 30 HR, 100 RBI, 15 SB and a Gold Glove. Todd Helton's production is on the decline so I think that Lee will regain the title of NL's best defensive first basemen.

SS: Cesar Izturis is the best defensive player at his position in the league, period. He lacks any type of power at the plate but only two years ago he led the league in hits at the All-Star break. From then on, Izturis has found himself dealing with injury after injury which has obviously hurt his production. If his legs are healthy, he brings the element of speed to the lineup and if he is willing to be patient and take pitches, giving Soriano the chance to steal second, he might be the perfect fit as the second hitter. It would give the Cubs more speed at the top than they have ever had. Worst case scenario, Izturis is dropped to the bottom of the order and DeRosa is inserted behind Soriano. But Izturis makes more contact on a consistant basis than DeRosa and is far surperior in regards to speed and moving runners over with a bunt so Piniella is banking on Izturis working out in the 2-hole. One thing which will help him is hitting in front of Lee, Ramirez, Floyd, and Barrett because pitchers will not want to put him on base by walking him in front of guys that could put the game out of reach with one swing. I can see Izturis hitting .275, with 60 RBI, 30 SB and joining Derek Lee in accpeting his Gold Glove award...if he stays healthy.

2B: Mark DeRosa, although he has never won the award, is a gold-globe caliber second baseman. He has as strong of an arm as you will find in the league and he is accurate with his throws. His best position might be third base but he said he signed with the Cubs because of the chance to be the everyday second baseman. He had a breakout year at the plate last season but how much of that is due to half his games being played in Arlington, the Coors Field of the south? That said, DeRosa is at the age where baseball players are said to hit their prime so while his offensive statistics might have been inflated last year, don't expect too much of a drop-off. He is another possibility to hit behind Soriano if Izturis doesn't work out but his swing is a little longer than you would like from your two-hitter. A better spot would be batting sixth where he wouldnt have the pressure of taking strikes to allow Soriano to take off and he could utilize his decent power stroke to drive in runs. .290, 15 HR, 85 RBI seems like a reasonable projection for DeRosa.

Catcher: We all know that Michael Barrett can hit. He won the Silver Slugger Award two years running so offense is not his problem. It's his defense which is holding him back from that monster contract. But analyzing the statistics shows that he is in fact improving in this area. For as good a defense catcher as Henry Blanco is, Cubs pitchers actually had a better ERA when Barrett was behind the plate meaning that he is learning how to call a better game. If he can increase his percentage of runners thrown out while attempting to steal, there's no reason why he shouldn't be considered in the top-tier of catchers in the league. As of now, MLB.com has him ranked 6th so imaigne what they would think of him if he was better defensively. It is realistic to expect Barret to continue his offensive success. With a better lineup around him, it is logical to think that his stats will go up. I would say .285 avg, 25 HR, 85 RBI sounds about right.

OUTFIELD

The outfield is interesting. It could be great, or it could be a disaster. I love the addition of Floyd as both a left-handed presence and a clubhouse leader but can he stay healthy? Can Soriano handle a full year in center when he only has one season as a left fielder under his belt? If Soriano can't handle center, will Piniella swap Jones and Soriano or will he give Pie a chance? Can Piniella find enough bats for Matt Murton? Like I said, it should be interesting.

LF: Cliff Floyd and Matt Murton make quite the platoon in left but will either accept having to share time? Matt Murton feels like he is primed to break out and that platooning could ruin his rhythm. He has good patience at the plate and showed power to the opposite field which is a huge milestone for a young player's development On the other hand, Cliff Floyd has been voted to the All-Star game multiple times and when healthy is one of the best left-handed hitters in the game. If Murton only plays against lefties, which Piniella has hinted at, Floyd will be getting most of the playing time. As for the defensive side, neither is stellar but both will run through the brick wall at Wrigley for their manager. I honestly can't say what will happen in reards to LF. I am very high on Murton. I think he has a lofty ceiling in regards to his potential. But I just can't ignore the potency that Floyd brings to the lineup. To be continued...

CF: The $136 million question is whether or not Soriano can handle center field. He is definitely athletic enough and posseses enough speed to track down balls hit in the gaps but how will he deal with the swirling winds? You have to remember that this is no ordinary center field, this is Wrigley and the wind pattern changes from day to day. I wish that he could spend his spring training in Chicago so he could get ready for what is in store when the season begins but obviously it doesn't work that way. In a perfect world, I would play him in right but right field at Wrigley might be even harder than center because of the sun during day games and the small foul territory, half of which is occupied by the opposition's bullpen. The Cubs really don't have an alternate position for Soriano since they failed to work out a trade for Jones in the offseason. No matter what, Soriano is playing so the other outfielders better hope he works out in center because otherwise someone will be losing out on a lot of playing time. Offensively, Soriano is one of maybe two players, the other being Carlos Beltran, with the ability to steal 40 bases and hit 40 homeruns. Hitting in Wrigley will increase his numbers except for the start of the year when it is cold and homeruns are hard to come by. This is when his speed comes into play because Soriano can thrive without hitting the ball out of the ballpark by using his legs to beat you. He is the all around package who suddenly finds himself in a lineup which is much more talented than the one he had in Washington. There is no reason to expect anything but an increase in his statistics. 200 runs, 95 RBI, 40 HR, and 40 SB is a realistic projection for Soriano. That's incredible production considering he is batting leadoff.

RF: Jacques Jones is returning for his second season and looking to improve on his solid stats from last year. He played all season long having a problem with his rotator cuff which is why he bounced many of his throws. He's fixed that so expect him to go back to having a rocket for an arm. He, like Floyd and Murton, go all out when playing the field and he has the experience in right to be successful in Wrigley. While he is known to strike out more than he should, he has improved each year in that regard. He never loafs, has more than decent speed and never makes mistakes on the bases. He had a big problem hitting lefties last year so look for Piniella to switch DeRosa to right on days when they face a southpaw and insert Theriot, another young player the Cubs love, at second. I think that Jones hit his ceiling in regards to offensive stats last year and I expect him to duplicate those numbers (.280 avg, 25 HR, 85 RBI). I also expect his outfield assists to go way up now that he has fixed his shouler problem.

Tomorrow I will break down the bench players, the rotation, and the bullpen.