Len Kasper and Ameet Sachbev on Sports Central

Big news: David Kaplan reports that the Cubs sale should be done by the end of the week.

Len Kasper talked with David Kaplan on Sports Central:

• Len says that Milton Bradley gets on base a lot. Len likes that he is a switch hitter who can split up Lee and Ramirez in the lineup.
• Kasper is hopeful that the Cubs offense could be even better than last year.
• Kap thinks that chemistry in the locker room is a bit over-rated at times.
• Len pointed out that nobody wanted to see Wood and DeRosa go, but pointed out that DeRosa is a free agent at the end of next year and Woody would have cost a lot of money.
• They pointed out that the core of this team has not changed.
• Len sees Hoffpauir filling Ward's role.
• Kasper really likes platoons and says Lou will use a platoon at second base and in center.
• He thinks that Lou will have more options off the bench in 2009.
• Kaplan thinks Andy Pettitte makes a lot of sense. Len agrees and says that Andy would be a 1 year deal and not cost you any players in a trade.
• Len points out that lots of guys don't have contracts yet for 2009.
• Dave and Len both watched the Cubs-Pirates game that was played on the MLB Network last night.
• The Len and Bob Bash is on Thursday night. The guys will have several good bands this year and says tickets are still available but going fast at hob.com.

David Kaplan is hearing that the Clap Group and the Rickets Group are out in front. He says that the Tom Rickets is most likely to get approval by baseball. The Rickets family is #1 in the running right now. Tom Rickets has been a big Cubs fan for a long time.

Kap had Ameet Sachbev of the Chicago Tribune on the show to talk about the sale of the team.

• Sachbev says there is more urgency to sell the teams since the holidays are over.
• He says that there is a push to get final bids in by Friday.
• Ameet thinks that the winner in the auction could be determined by the end of the week.
• He says the Trib. will be very careful before selling the team.
• Kap says that MLB could reject any owner that they don't want no matter who bids what.
• Sachbev says he thinks it would be very difficult for baseball to reject any of the 3 finalist who are bidding on the Chicago Cubs.
• Ameet doesn't want to give his opinion and favor any of the 3 candidates.
• He thinks that going back to last summer, the Rickets family is a very appealing bidder because they will keep family control of the Cubs and they want this to be a lasting generational investment for their family.
• Tom Rickets met his wife a Wrigley Field, Hersh Clapp also is a Chicago sports guy who has kept a low profile but he has a love of sports and the Cubs.
• Sachbev thinks Cub fans should be happy to get an owner who are fans of the team.
• The use the term "coming down to the wire".

Plenty coming up throughout the week.

I'll keep you posted.