We're not scaremongering. This is really happening.
Is there anything to like about Jim Edmonds to the Cubs (which is apparently a done deal)? If you're a Cubs fan, no. If you're not a Cubs fan ... well, still, the answer is no. It's just bad baseball sense in every regard.
Why? Let me count the ways.
1. Felix Pie needs more at-bats in the majors. Every prospect is different, of course, but right now it seems clear that the best thing for the Cubs to do with struggling prospect Felix Pie -- that left-handed bat the Cubs apparently hope to get out of Edmonds -- is to stick him in the eight hole and let him figure things out. This works because the Cubs don't have to hide their catcher's bat low in the order. It also works because Edmonds is 38 and not at all good at baseball while Pie is a 23-year-old potential everyday center fielder.
2. Jim Edmonds presents no improvement vis a vis Pie. Pie's offensive numbers are bad this year, but his glovework, speed, and arm strength make him a worthy defensive center fielder. Even in his prime, Edmonds was overrated in the outfield. Now he's just bad. Offensively, I mean, the Padres just cut him. And they have no hitting whatsoever. Why? Because Edmonds put up .178 /.265 /.233. Jim Hendry has seen those numbers, right? Right?
3. Every single Cubs fan hates this man. If you don't hate this man, you are not a Cubs fan, or you just haven't been paying attention. Why do Cubs fans hate Jim Edmonds? Because he is a giant, raging deutschebank that played for the Tony La Russa Cardinals for years. He dives unnecessarily and gets disproportionate amount of love from broadcasters. He is the flashpoint for every Cubs fan's hatred of those Cardinals. Seriously, with this signing, Jim Hendry risks more than just a marginal decrease in his baseball team's ability, which, make no mistake, is exactly what Edmonds will bring. Hendry risks alienating the entire fan base much, much worse than if he just sacked up and signed Barry Bonds.
Seriously, this signing sucks. It sucks. I can't put any more succinctly or accurately than that.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
5-14-2008 @ 1:10PM
Scott said...
I watched him try to play CF this year, and he can't anymore. To see him play in the same game as Chris Young is like watching the tortoise and the hare, except this time the tortoise takes the nap.
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5-14-2008 @ 4:17PM
Illinoisguy said...
This type of ignorant, seething hatred toward one of the game's best the last half decade simply because he was a centerpiece of a very good a rival's team is just another example of why Cubs fans are among the worst in baseball.
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5-14-2008 @ 4:42PM
Maxwell_Q said...
Wouldn't the better move, at least for a little while, be to try keeping Pie around and batting him ninth with the pitcher batting eighth? Setting aside the fact that both the Cardinals and Brewers do it for their own reasons (which make more sense for the Brewers than the Cardinals given the players involved), this would seem to make a fair amount of sense since Pie would likely get better pitches to hit with Soriano batting behind him. If Pie has any chance of showing that he can be the hitter he was in the minors in the majors, it would be batting with that kind of protection behind him. Plus, it sort of solves the Soriano as a leadoff hitter who is not a leadoff hitter problem after the first time through the order.
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5-14-2008 @ 6:55PM
alyse said...
yes, i totally agree, i never liked him because a. he played for the cards (they r like t.u of the MLB,& i dont like the cardinals one bit ) b. he robbed brad ausmus in the play offs of a great hit a couple of years ago, & c. he stinks this year
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5-14-2008 @ 8:37PM
Cornelius said...
completely agree. what is hendry thinking?
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5-15-2008 @ 10:32AM
marcus said...
shoot-i'm a cards fan and this disgusts me. for two reasons: 1-that the cubs spent money on this, instead of taking the fan favorite and creating a player. 2-the cubbies management just hired one of the most hated enemies in history. ever. this is a guy who they regularly beaned, who regularly stole hits from them, and who also happened to be a cardinal. wtf?
the only good news is the cubbies now have this anchor in their centerfield...looks like the cards will pick up at least 3 games in the standings now. so as a cards fan, thank you jim hendry.
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