Cubs in Winter Ball, Rumors, and More

Well, here's the latest Cubs rumors from yesterday and today.

• Buster Olney says that the Cubs have maxed out their spending this winter.
• Bruce Levine and others have been saying that the Bradley deal should be done around the first of the year, so we'll see what happens soon, I expect the Cubs to make at least 1 more move before the convention.
• Interesting article I found about Jim Hendry's first round picks.
• Jason Stark says that the Dodgers have contacted Adam Dunn. The Cubs, Nationals, Mariners, and Orioles all also have interest.
• Stark adds that the Cubs have believed to be his top choice before the Dodgers entered the mix.
• The Dodgers also have interest in Bobby Abreu. They seem to be interested in a lot of the same guys as the Cubs.
• Former Cub Micheal Barrett has agreed to a minor league deal with an invitation to Spring Training with the Blue Jays.

Some guys in the Cubs system have been playing Winter Baseball in Venezuela, the DR, and Mexico. I decided to check in on some of their stats:

Andres Blanco (VWL)- .280, 2 HR, 25 RBI, 58 Games

Ronny Cedeno (VWL)- .278, 4 HR, 24 RBI, 46 Games

Jake Fox (DWL)- .353, 3 HR, 31 RBI, 3 Games

Sam Fuld (VWL)- .333, 4 HR, 22 RBI, 55 Games

Felix Pie (DWL)- .304, 1 HR, 7 RBI, 20 Games

Jose Ascanio (traded to FLO) VWL- 3-1, 7 SV, 3.10 ERA, 29 IP

Angel Guzman (VWL) - 2-1, 5.54 ERA, 26 IP

Rich Hill (VWL)- 1-2, 6.86 ERA, 21 IP

Carlos Marmol (MWL)- pitched 2 innings allowed 0 runs

J.R. Mathes (VWL)- 2-3, 3.86 ERA, 32.2 IP

The main thing in noticed is that both Rich Hill and Felix Pie have struggled.

I got this Pat Hughes and Ron Santo CD for Christmas and would recommend it if you enjoy listening to Pat and Ron on radio. It plays lots of their funny moments and I enjoyed. Click Here for the link.

Cubs Trivia Answer from Sat.: Only 2 Cubs remain from '03; Aramis Ramirez and Carlos Zambrano.

I'll keep you posted.