One trade done, one to go?
As of early this afternoon it is still unknown if the Cubs will pull the trigger on a deal to acquire second baseman Brian Roberts from the Baltimore Orioles. Talks supposedly include Cubs pitchers Sean Marshall and Sean Gallagher as well as Ronny Cedeno, but the deal could potentially cost the Cubs more young talent. I’m not so sure we should give up the farm (or farm club) for this guy, despite his .377 OBP and 50 stolen bases last year. Given our pitchers’ history of falling apart during the season, either physically or mentally, I think that we need to stay as deep as possible in the starting pitching department. Dempster hasn’t even shown yet that he can be a reliable fifth starter.
One trade that did happen last weekend was the Cubs trading Angel Pagan to the Mets for minor leaguers Ryan Meyers (right-handed pitcher) and Corey Coles (outfielder). Pagan ended last season on the DL with colitis, but I’ve read rumors that Lou and he never really clicked. I’ll miss the oxymoronic name and his occasional clutch hit, but there didn’t appear to be room for him in the outfield anyway, so might as well restock the farm club when we’ve got a chance.