Who Will the Cubs Get In Return for Ryan Dempster?

Going into the season, Matt Garza was predicted to be the prize of the trading deadline. He is still a major prize, but Ryan Dempster is the belle of the ball.

Dempster, who currently leads the Majors with a 1.86 ERA, is on the trading block and nearly every team has contacted the Chicago Cubs about acquiring him. He has the right to veto any trade and wants to pitch for a contender.

He is owed nearly $6 million for the rest of the season and the Cubs have said they would pick up most of the money if they receive an upgraded prospect in return.

Dempster has a short-list of teams where he would like to end up. Which teams are on that list and what are the Cubs looking to get in return for him?

FOX Sports is reporting that Dempster pinpointed the Los Angeles Dodgers and Atlanta Braves as his top destinations. He is rumored to be open to other destinations, which is good for the Detroit Tigers, Boston Red Sox, and Washington Nationals.

The Cubs have made it clear they want young pitching and/or a third base prospect. These teams will be renting Dempster, since he's a free agent at the end of the season. If they miss out on him, they will include many of these prospects in hopes of landing Garza.

Who can those teams offer? Let's take a look at who may be involved.

Detroit Tigers
The Cubs would LOVE to trade Matt Garza, Darwin Barney, and Dempster in a package to Detroit. They would ask for third base prospect Nick Castellanos, top pitching prospect Jacob Turner, and a few other young pitchers from the group of Bruce Rondon, Drew Smyly, Casey Crosby, Andy Oliver, and Brenny Paulino.

Detroit has all the right pieces to trade for any player currently on the Cubs roster.

Los Angeles Dodgers
The Dodgers have been very proactive on trying to acquire Dempster. They are rumored to have a deal currently on the table. No one knows which prospects are in the deal, but pitching is definitely the centerpiece.

The pitching prospects rumored in the deal begins with 20-year old Garrett Gould. He is the prospect most likely to be in the deal. Zach Lee, Nate Eovaldi, Allen Webster, and Chris Reed aren't as likely to be included, since L.A. thinks too highly of them to part ways.

A group of secondary pitching prospects that could be thrown in could include Aaron Miller, Angel Sanchez, Matt Magill, Chris Withrow, and Ryan O'Sullivan. The Dodgers are also trying to acquire Aramis Ramirez from Milwaukee and Shane Victorino from Philadelphia, so this group could all find new homes by August 1st.

Atlanta Braves
Even though Dempster would like to pitch in Atlanta, I don't see this deal happening. The Braves were looking hard at Zack Greinke, but Milwaukee's asking price was too high.

Atlanta is in a bad situation in the present day. They are finding it hard to trade for a veteran pitcher, since every team is asking for their stud pitching prospects in return. The group of Julio Teheran, Arodys Vizcaino and Sean Gilmartin are asked about in nearly every deal. If the Braves want Dempster, they would need to part with someone from that group. Using that reasoning, they could focus on cheaper talent, like Francisco Liriano or Jason Vargas.

Washington Nationals
Washington is in need of a veteran pitcher to fill-in for Stephen Strasburg, since he's on a innings limit this year. Their farm system isn't what it used to be. They have already called up most of their top-tier young talent.

Third base prospect Anthony Rendon is the only Nationals prospect in the Top 100 list that the Cubs would be interested in. The only pitching prospects they could include would be second-tier. Alex Meyer, Matt Purke, and Robbie Ray are those pitchers.

Boston Red Sox
The rumor out of Chicago is that Boston is scared to trade with Theo Epstein, because he knows their farm system so well. I would assume that Ryan Lavarnway would be asked about right away. Epstein isn't sold on Geovany Soto as the long-term catcher for the Cubs. There are big question marks about Lavarnway's defensive ability behind the plate, but he could be worth the risk.

The pitching prospect cupboard is pretty bare in Boston. Matt Barnes is the best pitcher in their farm system. If the Cubs trade with Boston, Epstein will get the most out of the trade. They may not get the young arms they covet, but other holes will be addressed.

If a mystery team ends up with Dempster, they will have given up a lot to leapfrog these teams.

2012 MLB: What We've Learned in April

The baseball season is only a month old and fans are already making instant judgments about their teams. They are either booking tickets for possible World Series games or looking ahead to 2013. You have already witnessed "Red Sox Nation" call for the head of their brand new manager after a small sample size of the season. No one can say that baseball fans aren't passionate about their teams.

Baseball fans and analysts had some questions going into the 2012 season. How would Albert Pujols and Prince Fielder fare in the American League? Can the Red Sox bounce back from their late-season collapse in 2011? Is this the year that the Pittsburgh Pirates and Kansas City Royals finally make the playoffs? I do my best to explain what we have learned so far this season and what to keep your eye on in May.

April is such an odd month because you can't trust your team's record or the players' statistics. It is rare that a team ever leads their division from April to October. My favorite reaction is when a player gets a home run in the first game, you'll always hear, "he's on pace to hit 162 homers this season." It is one of my pet peeves and I'm sure that I'll hear it every year.

Here are some things that we have learned in April...

- Matt Kemp is really good. You already should have known that, but some analysts that he couldn't match his stats from 2011. They are partially correct since he's on pace to blow those numbers out of the water and contend for the triple crown.

- Stephen Strasburg is fully recovered from last season's Tommy John surgery. He currently has a K/9 of 9.56, which means that he averages over nine strikeouts per nine innings. He may have had a higher K/9 at this point during his rookie season, but he should have increased velocity by June.

- This is not the year for the Royals or Pirates. These teams are stocked with young talent, but they are off to bad starts. In 2011, Pittsburgh was contending for the NL Central division at the trade deadline, but hit a wall and lost most of their remaining games. The Royals are 6-16 and the Pirates are fairing a little better at 10-13. A lot of people thought that the NL Central would be a coin flip this season, but the St. Louis Cardinals are off to a hot start and the rest of the division isn't as bad as predicted.

- Bobby Valentine might survive the season. After the first two weeks, the fans wanted him out of Boston. The Red Sox have played well since and currently have a 11-12 record. It's not great, as long as they stay within five games of first place, Valentine will stay out of the hot seat.

- Bryce Harper is a future star. He has only played a couple of games in the Majors, but everyone has seen flashes of what Haper will be in a few years. He has a good bat and a cannon for an arm. I'm excited to see what he does the rest of the season, even if the Washington Nationals send him back to Triple-A for awhile.

- Yu Darvish could end up being the best signing in the off-season. I am skeptical of pitchers coming from Japan and adjusting to Major League hitters. Dice-K started off hot, but the second time a team faced him, they started to figure him out. The Texas Rangers have a powerful offense, so he doesn't need to be perfect to win games. As long as his ERA hovers around 4.00, he'll win double-digit games by July. He already has four wins, so he's on pace to have an excellent rookie campaign.

- The Cardinals might be a better team this year than in 2011. They lost Albert Pujols, but they added Carlos Beltran and they are getting more out of David Freese. Adding Lance Lynn to their starting rotation was a smart move. Chris Carpenter will probably miss the season and Adam Wainwright doesn't look like himself. Pitching could be an issue later in the season, but they are currently 15-8.

- It's impossible to hit homers at Wrigley Field in April. When the temperature hovers around 50 degrees, the ball dies in the outfield. The wind is usually blowing in and teams can't drive the ball over the ivy. The Chicago Cubs only had nine home runs in April. They are at the bottom of the league and it's bad when individual guys are leading your entire time.

- Bryan LaHair is not a 4-A player. The Cubs made a bold move this off-season and declared that LaHair would get a fair shot at being their everyday first-basemen. They traded for Anthony Rizzo this off-season and most assumed that LaHair would be keeping first-base warm. He is currently 2nd in many offensive categories behind Matt Kemp. He's batting nearly .400 and slugging almost .800, so he has earned his spot in the starting lineup.

- When the Cubs trade Matt Garza, they will get a lot in return. He is currently 2-1, 2.76 ERA, and a K:B ratio 3.6. MLB added an extra wild-card spot in the playoffs this season. The commissioner did a Cubs a huge favor, since more teams will still be in the playoff race. The price for pitching will be at a premium and the price will be driven up. Detroit, Boston, and Los Angeles need pitching and they'll have to give Chicago a king's ransom to get Garza.

- Moving the walls in at Citi Field hasn't solved the Mets offensive issues. The team has hit 18 home runs this season, but only 7 of those came at home. Lucas Duda is leading the team with four dingers and David Wright has regained his All-Star form, but the rest of the team needs to step up. Ike Davis is batting lower than the Mendoza line and isn't looking like a future All-Star.

- Albert Pujols is still adjusting to the American League. He has yet to hit a home run and he's not drawing as many walks. I don't believe that he's stressed out or that his skills are diminishing. It is difficult for a player to go from the National League to the American League. He is still adjusting to AL pitchers and to a new city. He'll have a much better May and you'll start to see his numbers multiply as it gets warmer.

- Terms like "Grady Sizemore shirtless" and "Tim Lincecum shirtless" still brings me thousands of hits a month. I thought that the Sizemore search queries would taper off, but it hasn't happened. I am looking forward to weird Google searches that involve Bryce Harper, Evan Longoria, and Matt Kemp...it's only a matter of time.

- The Yankees should have hired Don Mattingly as their manager. I'm not saying that Joe Girardi is a bad manager, but Mattingly has personally improved Kemp, James Loney, and Andre Ethier. I watched an interview during Spring Training about what he has done to help each of them. He seemed to be a better developmental manager and would work well with the new crop of Yankees that are bound to play over the next few seasons.

- Jake Peavy and Johan Santana are pitching like it's 2008. The White Sox are looking very smart by signing Peavy. His career looked to be nearing its end, but he's had his best month in a few season. Santana is also out to a great start because his pitches look alive. Peavy and Santana are great stories and I hope they continue to dominate.

- Philadelphia Phillies are really missing Ryan Howard and Chase Utley. They are Philly's best two hitters and they have struggled this year. It doesn't matter if you have the league's best starting rotation, you need to score runs. It doesn't help that Jimmy Rollins is off to a bad start. The NL East will be one of the most competitive races this year. Washington and Atlanta are legit contenders and this could turn into a two team race if the Phillies can't manufacture more offense.

- The Tigers aren't a lock to win the AL Central. On paper, Detroit is the best team...by far. They started off hot, but they are currently 12-11. Their starting rotation has been a mess with Max Scherzer, Rick Porcello, and Adam Wilk all having an ERA over 5.50. Miguel Cabrera and Austin Jackson have been most of the team's offense. Prince Fielder is a second-half player, so he'll help carry the team down the stretch.

April was an exciting beginning to the 2012 season. I can't wait for what transpires in May and to see which teams prove their worth. You'll start to see the hitters catch up with the pitchers in May. Players who haven't found power this season (Pujols, Alfonso Soriano, Nelson Cruz), expect them to bounce back next month.

The following pictures are a treat to my female readers. You have all be very kind to this site and here's a little eye candy for you. (The first photo is the funniest picture that I've seen in a long, long time)

2011 MLB Betting Predictions - April 9th

I usually wait for the first week of the MLB season to play out before I start my MLB betting line posts. I did rather well over the last few years when I have done these and I hope I can help lead some people in the right direction. My picks are against the spread and I also do over/under lines. Will the Red Sox make it two in-a-row against the Yankees? Can the Indians keep up their offense? Here are the MLB betting lines & predictions for April 9th, 2011.

Philadelphia Phillies +1 1/2 (Roy Oswalt) vs. Atlanta Braves -1 1/2 (Brandon Beachy) - Over/Under 7 1/2
Phillies - Over

After the way that the Braves rocked Cliff Lee yesterday, the Braves will be bet heavy today. The Phillies are a veteran team and will have revenge on their mind.
You have to have a short memory in the MLB and they will get to Beachy early in this contest. The O/U is set at 7 1/2 and if this game goes the way I think, it will go over. The smart bet would be a parlay on the Phillies moneyline & the over.


New York Yankees +1 1/2 (Ivan Nova) vs. Boston Red Sox -1 1/2 (Clay Buchholz) - O/U 10
Red Sox - Under

The Red Sox started off bad this year, but they came out yesterday and took care of Phil Hughes early. Ivan Nova has better stuff than Hughes has right now, but you don't want the Red Sox to gain any confidence. Buchholz should handle the Yankees hitters and stretch the winning steak to two.


Kansas City Royals +1 1/2 (Bruce Chen) vs. Detroit Tigers -1 1/2 (Phil Coke) - O/U 9 1/2
Tigers - Over

Can you look at these starting pitchers and honestly think that they won't score a combined 10 runs? I'm scared at what Miguel Cabrera will do to Bruce Chen. The Tigers will win outright, cover, and this game will go over.

Tampa Bay Rays +1 1/2 (Wade Davis) vs. Chicago White Sox -1 1/2 (Philip Humber) - O/U 9
White Sox - Over

Wade Davis was rocky in his first start and the White Sox offense have looked very good. The Rays notched their first win last night, thanks to a Matt Thornton blow-save. The White Sox will bounce back and take care of business.

Chicago Cubs +1 1/2 (Matt Garza) vs. Milwaukee Brewers -1 1/2 (Chris Narveson) - O/U 8 1/2
Cubs - Under

Matt Garza's Cubs debut had flashes of greatness. He stuck out double-digit Pirates, but still had a few dumb mistakes. Chris Narveson also had a good debut, but the Cubs bats have looked in mid-season form, if only their bullpen was in the same shape.

Washington Nationals +1 1/2 (Tom Gorzelanny) vs. New York Mets -1 1/2 (Chris Capuano) - O/U 8 1/2
Mets - Under

If this game was being played in any other park with these two pitchers, the line would be 10, but Citi Field is huge. Gorzelanny vs. Capuano might get ugly, but as long as they keep the ball down, it'll go under. I might want to stay away from this bet, these teams are so inconsistent.

Oakland Athletics -1 1/2 (Gio Gonzalez) vs. Minnesota Twins +1 1/2 (Nick Blackburn) - O/U 8
A's - Under

Gio Gonzalez was the buzzworthy pitcher in fantasy baseball this year and he will have a solid year. The Twins are just trying to get healthy, so Oakland has a slight edge in this game.

Cincinnati Reds -1 1/2 (Bronson Arroyo) vs. Arizona Diamondback +1 1/2 (Daniel Hudson) - O/U 8 1/2
Diamondbacks - Over

I learned a rule in Vegas last year...never bet on Bronson Arroyo! It doesn't help that he is still dealing with mono, that's a huge red flag. I really like Daniel Hudson in this contest.

Los Angeles Dodgers -1 1/2 (Hiroki Kuroda) vs. San Diego Padres +1 1/2 (Dustin Moseley) - O/U 7
Dodgers - Under

Kuroda has had solid numbers of the last calendar year, but he doesn't get much respect. It will help him that the game is at Petco Park, the Padres will have a hard time going yard against him.

Toronto Blue Jays -1 1/2 (Brett Cecil) vs. Los Angeles Angles +1 1/2 (Scott Kazmir) - O/U 9
Blue Jays - Over

Name the last time that Scott Kazmir looked like a pitcher that should be on a contender? I'll wait...

Cleveland Indians +1 1/2 (Justin Masterson) vs. Seattle Mariners +1 1/2 (Doug Fisher) - O/U 7 1/2
Indians - Over

Masterson looked great his first time out this year and they rocked the Mariners yesterday. Seattle looks bad and Cleveland wants to pound their former skipper (Eric Wedge).

St. Louis Cardinals +1 1/2 (Jaime Garcia) vs. San Francisco Giants -1 1/2 (Matt Cain) - O/U 6 1/2
Cardinals - Under

This game should be very low-scoring, since both Garcia & Cain looked very good in their debuts. The Cardinals will miss Matt Holliday, but the Giants bullpen, mostly Brian Wilson, hasn't been dominating.

Review: "Munson" by Marty Appel

Thuman Munson was a great catcher and team captain for the New York Yankees. He was tragically killed in a plane crash during the prime of his career. He had a great rivalry with Boston Red Sox catcher, Carlton Fisk, it even got personal a few times. Marty Appel has written a book about Munson and I decided that my brother, a big Red Sox fan should read it and write a review. It's a great book and I knew that he couldn't say anything bad about it. It proves that Munson's greatness can unite people, even if they bleed Red Sox crimson.

I am a Red Sox Fan.

I usually run away from anything having to do with George Steinbrenner and his hated "Evil Empire" in New York. However, as painful as it is to admit, I liked Marty Appel's Munson published by Doubleday. My reasons for liking this book had nothing to do with Munson's career as a Yankee. I could have cared less about his "American League Rookie of the Year" honors in 1970, his seven All-Star Game appearances, three Gold Gloves awards, 1976 American League Most Valuable Player Award or anything even slightly associated with the pin-stripe wearing Yankee captain. My reasons for loving this book had nothing to do with baseball at all. I liked it because of Appel's insight on Thurmon Munson the husband, father, friend and man.

Red Sox Nation may frown upon this but I have to be honest with myself about this book. This was a great read, and I enjoyed the insight and anecdotes that have never been told since the Yankee captain perished over 30 years ago. This book could not have been written by anyone else, and could only have been told by Appel who was a friend and biographer for Munson, and former Yankee PR director. Who better to give an inside look at the man, than someone who was there with him and who had direct access to his family, friends and teammates?

After reading Munson I have to admit that while I don't want to see another Yankee enter the Baseball Hall of Fame, but I do feel that the Hall needs more Thurmon Munson's in it. His love of family, friends and community kept pulling him home to Canton, Ohio, and in the end he died far to short in the town he loved so much. His whole reason for taking up flying was to allow him more time at home with his family and friends that he loved so much. Why did I pick this book up and read it? As a Red Sox fan I am not sure, but I am glad I did. I came away from it with a huge respect for him as a man, husband and father. I just wish number 15 had not worn the pin stripes for those years and had made his wish for playing with the Indians become a reality. Maybe that would have made reading this book about a Yankee captain a little easier for this Red Sox fan, and the world may still have this beloved captain.

-Gran Roberts

Teixeira Will Be In Pinstripes

It took long enough, but the Yankees got their man. Mark Teixeira will sign an 8-year deal worth $180 million dollars. That is $22.5 million a year for a man who has been the last two years' trading deadline prize. This deal will shore up the 28-year old for the prime of his career. With the signings of C.C. Sabathia and A.J. Burnett, it looks like the Yankees are back to buying their way to the World Series.

The Red Sox, Orioles, and the Nationals were the only other teams left in the bidding war after the Angels pulled out earlier this week. As of yesterday, it didn't even look like the Yankees were in the mix for Teixeira, but money talks and the Yankees threw too much on the table for anyone to resist. New York will now try to move either Johnny Damon, Hideki Matsui, Xavier Nady, or the newly acquired, Nick Swisher.

The Yankees are opening up a new stadium and look like they are wanting to bless the new ground with not one World Series championship, but a string of championships with the years attached to these monster deals this off-season. I'm waiting for the Red Sox to make their move, I don't know what could trump these moves the Evil Empire has made the last month. The Red Sox will have to sign Jesus of Nazareth.

As a consolation prize for not signing Teixeira, the Nationals signed Corey Patterson. I can't even imagine trying to explain that move to their fanbase.

The Mustache Is Back!

Jason Giambi hasn't exactly been doing great in the 2nd half this season. I think I may have jinxed him in one of my "Fantasy God" posts. I have him on both of my fantasy baseball teams, but here lately, I have been benching him. He shaved off his mustache a few weeks ago, but I was watching the Yankees/Red Sox game yesterday and I noticed that the mustache was back and looking good. He did end up hitting a homer in last night's game, but it was a meaningless solo shot very late in the game.

Giambi had more of an impact in today's game against the Red Sox. He hit a pinch-hit 2-run homer in the 7th inning to tie up the game 2-2. Later in the game he hit a walk-off single that score the winning run. I know the Yankees may almost be mathematically out of the running for the post-season (okay, I know they aren't, but the Rays, Red Sox, White Sox, and Twins are playing very well), but the Yankees are making thing interesting.

The Yankees do play the Red Sox again later in the season and could squeak in if either one of the Sox teams or Rays fall off. Derek Jeter has never been sitting at home in October and I feel that he will be very motivated and get his team start playing like a normal Yankees team.

The mustache is back, now if I can only get McDonalds to bring back the McRib.

Manny Loves L.A.

Manny Ramirez made his Los Angeles Dodgers debut last night, and the normally quiet Dodger fans were loud for a change. Every fan from the front row to the All-U-Can-Eat Dodger Dog section, was chanting "Man-ny Man-ny" every time he was up to bat. Could Manny change the dynamic of being a regular, non-caring Dodger fan?

If I have learned something about Manny Ramirez during his career is that he has a way of making fans actually care about the team he is on. If you look back to his days in Cleveland, the team was a lowly basement dweller that was relying on Albert Belle for cheers. Manny changed the dynamic of the team and carried them into the playoffs year after year. His arrival in Boston was roughly the same, the Red Sox had a decent team, but could never win a championship, Manny helped them win two. The Dodgers could easily win the NL West, since no other team seems to want it. The Diamondbacks looked like another trip to the playoffs was a lock, but then June and July came and Justin Upton decided that he couldn't hit the baseball. The Dodgers has a really good shot at winning the West and even a better chance if Brad Penny starts pitching up to his talent and if they can pull off a waiver trade to pick up Greg Maddux.

The acquisition of Manny made a lot of things happen. Andruw Jones is now expendable and possibly Juan Pierre could see his way out of L.A. during the waiver period. Manny might have the defensive abilities of a bored little leaguer, but his offensive abilities cannot be over-shadowed by anyone in the game.