Rumors are swirling around the North Side as usual, with the biggest being Adam Dunn. Adam Dunn wants to come to Chicago, and Chicago wants him. But what about the 2007-2008 offseason when the Cubs were supposed to get Brian Roberts or the 2008-2009 offseason when the Cubs were supposed to get Jake Peavy, now a member of the Sox? Will Adam Dunn be the next Brian Roberts or Jake Peavy? Or will the Cubs finally get their top priority and have it actually work out? Personally, I’m against signing Dunn, so I’ll project a roster without him in it.
First, I will look at the Cubs needs and surpluses, to decide who stays and who goes.
Catcher: Geovany Soto is a lock for the Catcher position. He has become the best offensive catcher in the National League and is returning to his 2008 form. Koyie Hill needs to go, and the Cubs could look in-house with Welington Castillo or Robinson Chirinos as their backup Catcher.
First Base: 1B is the Cubs biggest hole and someone will be brought in either way, as Colvin doesn’t seem to be moving from Right Field. Potential First Basemen to fill this whole include Adam Dunn, Lance Berkman, or Xavier Nady. I think the most likely possibility is Xavier Nady, as he is the cheapest and played well at 1B after filling in for the traded Derrek Lee last season.
Second Base: I am fairly sure the Cubs are sticking with Blake DeWitt as their starting Second Baseman. However, Darwin Barney may be able to steal the job away from him in Spring Training.
Shortstop: I’ll give you three seconds to guess who this will be. If you can’t do it then you really need to watch some more Cubs games. This Cubs rookie broke the MLB record for RBI’s in an MLB Debut in his MLB debut on May 7th, and went on to hit .300 with 10 Stolen Bases and 3 Home Runs while hitting primarily 2nd and 8th in the Cubs lineup. If you still don’t know who this is because the first month of the season was too much for you, it is 20-year old (21 by next year) Starlin Castro, the best thing to happen to the Cubs since… well, there aren’t many better, so it’s pretty hard to compare him.
Third Base: Though there are other option, current Third Baseman Aramis Ramirez has said he will pick up his player option for the 2011 season. This is likely Ramirez’s last season with the Cubs, as it seems that unless he turns it on big-time this season, that the Cubs will part ways with their main power house of several seasons past, as Ramirez’s next option is a Mutual option in which both the Cubs and Ramirez will have to agree to the terms of the expensive season, which isn’t likely at all.
Left Field: Alfonso Soriano has the largest contract in Cubs history, and is in no way movable. He id show that he has some gas left in the tank though with his improved play last season. But will he be decent for all of the four years left on his contract? Probably not. But he is still a valuable player and mentor to Starlin Castro. He batted .258 last season, which is decent, but definitely not phenomenal. But, he did show his power by stroking 24 homers last season and played improved defense and stayed healthy for the complete system. He’s the man whether the Cubs like it or not.
Center Field: At least for the time being, All-Star Marlon Byrd and his flashy glove will be patrolling Center Field. However, with Top Prospect Brett Jackson due up somewhere between May and July, Byrd, the Cubs lone All-Star last season may be on his way out sooner than the Cubs would’ve liked. They would get at least a decent return for him in any trade.
Right Field: With Kosuke Fukudome likely to be traded, that all but guarantees Tyler Colvin the Opening Day starting spot in Right Field. Colvin plays good defense and brings speed and a lot of power, including 20 home runs last season while being a bench player for half a season, but his overall batting could be better. Brett Jackson coming up would likely move Colvin to 1B or CF, or some sort of odd platoon like the one he was in at the beginning of last season.
Starting Pitchers: Carlos Zambrano will not be traded, and Ryan Dempster is a lock for the rotation as well. Tom Gorzelanny will probably be tendered a contract and be in the rotation as well. Carlos Silva could also return and Randy Wells and Casey Coleman will each be in competition for the last starting spot. Dark horses will include Andrew Cashner, Jay Jackson, Chris Archer, Trey McNutt, and Jeff Samardzija, but I think that Randy Wells will have a good Spring Training and be given the final spot in the rotation. I do think that some prospects come up in the middle of the season and bump Wells, Silva, and/or Gorzelanny from the rotation at that time, so we may be looking at a very fluid Pitching Staff.
The Opening Day Roster:
SP: Zambrano, Dempster, Gorzelanny, Silva, Wells
LR: Casey Coleman
MID: James Russell, Scott Maine, Justin Berg
SU: Andrew Cashner, Sean Marshall
CL: Carlos Marmol
C: Soto, Castillo
1B: Nady, Micah Hoffpauir
2B: DeWitt, Darwin Barney, Jeff Baker
SS: Castro, Darwin Barney
3B: Ramirez, Jeff Baker
LF: Soriano, Micah Hoffpauir, Sam Fuld
CF: Byrd, Colvin, Sam Fuld
RF: Colvin, Micah Hoffpauir, Sam Fuld
