Lou Piniella may move Alfonso Soriano out of Cubs' leadoff spot

Lou Piniella accused Chicago reporters of "fantasizing" about Cubs lineups last year and complained that they beat the question of who bats leadoff into the ground.

[maddog]

You left one guy out of the mix - Brian Roberts, who I'll bet Hendry is still coveting.

[Northside Neuman]

Paul, if the Cubs are going to move Soriano down in the order, it sure as hell won't be to the three hole..

Look for him to bat 5th or 6th.

[Downstate Cub Fan]

I dont see us getting Brian Roberts,Bip Roberts or Tanya Roberts.That ship has sailed.McFail has no intentions of doing any favors for the Cubs.The 2 trades the Cubs have made with him were to his advantage not ours.

[Mac]

As I recall, the Cubs led the league in runs last year, by far. So what's the big fuss with Soriano leading off?

I like Soriano leading off, starting games with a homer or the 8th hitter or pitcher gets on and then we got a power hitter at the plate instead of a singles hitter.

[MNCubFan]

Its too bad the Trib writers can't do actual research and analysis. Maybe Paul should do more reading and less writing:

http://i94sports.blogspot.com/2009/02/one-bad...

[Comic Book Guy]

Mac wrote:

As I recall, the Cubs led the league in runs last year, by far. So what's the big fuss with Soriano leading off?
I like Soriano leading off, starting games with a homer or the 8th hitter or pitcher gets on and then we got a power hitter at the plate instead of a singles hitter.

Well, the fact that Fonzie was 7 for 40 in his last 10 regular games; batted an abysmal .178 during the play-offs, and batted about .200 (?)during April, 2008, I'd say plenty.

When Fonzie's good, he's very good, when Fonzie's bad, he's very bad. Inconsistency can kill a team and drive a player nutty.

I'd really be suprised if Lou has his line-up in place already. A smart manager would evaluate his players during spring training and adjust accordingly. So why should we expect Lou to be any different? No position should be "fixed", whether batting or fielding.

I'm more interested in seeing how Zambrano's arm is, how well Bradley fits into the chemistry of the team, and if Fukedome has gotten out of his funk.

Last year's team had a pretty good chemistry and there have been significant moves made in the off season that might have put that intangible at risk.

[Nada Surf]

MNCubFan wrote:

Its too bad the Trib writers can't do actual research and analysis. Maybe Paul should do more reading and less writing:
http://i94sports.blogspot.com/2009/02/one-bad...

All you have to distinguish is that you're a Cub fan and nobody will read anything you've written.

[MNCubFan]

Nada Surf wrote:

<quoted text>All you have to distinguish is that you're a Cub fan and nobody will read anything you've written.

I don't write a blog, but I read the good ones (that do actual research and analysis) to have something to contrast with the poor ones (like Paul Sullivan) who mostly parrots what is said by Hendry and Pinella, and whose analysis seems to be based on sleeping through a few games here and there.

[ty welke]

MNCubFan wrote:

Its too bad the Trib writers can't do actual research and analysis. Maybe Paul should do more reading and less writing:
http://i94sports.blogspot.com/2009/02/one-bad...

I agree with you. After reading the story my comment to myself was "Your Point?" If Lou flip-flops on his order as much as he does in this non-story, we may have a different line-up each day of the season.

[Really Old Guy]

They will still choke but enjoy the season anyway. People will be saying World Series after the first win yawn...I have seen this before at least a hundred times.

[bring a goat]

sounds like a good idea love a good cat fight. but as i said before the goat is dead until someone brings a goat to the dump on clark and addsion.

[Tadd]

Piniella didn't say where he would bat Soriano, adding to the guessing game. But a lineup of Fontenot, Theriot, Soriano, Milton Bradley, Aramis Ramirez, Derrek Lee, Geovany Soto and Fukudome would provide more speed and balance at the top.

The 3 hole is typically reserved for the best hitter on the team and Soriano is not the Cubs best hitter - way too many strikeouts behind your high OBP guys. Bradley or Lee will be the 3 hitter with Soriano 5 or 6.
That being said, Hendry should have focused less on Peavy and more on Brian Roberts this winter. This teams inconsistant offense for 5 years now can be traced to the fact that they don't have a bona fide professional lead-off hitter. You can talk all you want about "balance", they need a table setter for that "balanced" lineup. It will haunt them this year, too.

[Rank Stranger]

Looking for a couple team owners .Fantasy Baseball CBS trophy league all paid by CBS no fee H2H scoreing Live Draft Feb 21st/10am Both AL/NL roster send email invite request to [e-mail] 'FOR THE LOVE OF BASEBAL' thanks

[the truth is out there]

he is good and open to moving. He is a very good teammate and game changer. I dont know why soriano get the garbage from the lame fans anyway. He make the team playoff worth. The post season is another story, but they will change that.

[Barney]

I wonder how many time Uncle Lou says "look" during a single day.

[Craig]

Soriano can bat 9th for all I care, as long as they all hit in the playoffs.

[PLS]

Not sure why anyone would think Hendry can wave his magic trade wand and Roberts will just appear. Two teams (at least) need to be willing trade partners for the deal to go through. And with the man-behind-the-curtain (Angelos) pulling the strings on this one, it just ain't gonna happen. Among the many iterations last spring, the Cubs (allegedly) offered Ceda, Cedeno, Veal and Gallagher and that STILL wasn't enough to get it done. Maybe if Hendry agreed to throw in Vitters, Soto and Zambrano (while eating $80 mill on his deal)?

If the #3 spot in the order is reserved for the team's best hitter (which I agree with) then no way should Lee be hitting there. Back in '05 and '06, sure. But since then, he's reverted back to being the #6 hitter that he's been most of his career. I'd give Bradley first crack at the 3-hole.

In terms of Soriano, I'd stick him 5th and see what happens. Yes, that means he could be on base behind Ramirez, but unless Sori's past his leg woes, you're not really going to leverage his speed anyway. Of course, the other problem with that scenario is you have 4 righties in a row again (Ramirez, Sori, Lee, Soto). If Fukudome were to revert to his first-half form, then you could slide him into the 5th or 6th slot (his OPS in the 5th slot last season was .860), but then you might have Soto hitting 8th, which seems like a waste. It'll be interesting to see what Lou comes up with.

[Outa State]

PLS wrote:

Not sure why anyone would think Hendry can wave his magic trade wand and Roberts will just appear. Two teams (at least) need to be willing trade partners for the deal to go through.

It's AMAZING how many posters here fail to grasp this simple concept. Great post. Cubs fans should especially remember the Sosa years, when having a "superstar" on the roster did not guarantee a playoff spot or even a .500 record. It's about assembling the best possible TEAM using the resources available - something Hendry has done a pretty good job of.

[go tax ur self]

a well pay choker

[Barney]

go tax ur self wrote:

a well pay choker

Go learn English.