Turns out the Cubs added a nice bonus for the Tigers to take Jacque Jones off their hands: $2MM in cash. So let’s see here. Omar Infante will be up around $1.5MM in ’08, and the Cubs tossed in $2MM. Jones makes $5MM in ’08, though I’m not sure which team pays out the final chunk of his $4MM bonus. But I think it’s fair to say that this "salary dump" saved the Cubs about $1.5MM. The Tigers got Jones pretty cheaply.
So the Cubs didn’t clear much payroll, but they do have a clear vacancy in right field now. Kosuke Fukudome, as a left-handed hitting right fielder, is a perfect fit. I think the Cubs are on the right track with that one. Other considerations could include Ryan Church or J.D. Drew, in my opinion.
Gordon Wittenmyer notes in the above-linked article that the next order of business for Jim Hendry is re-signing Kerry Wood. This will be a good test of Wood’s loyalty, as some team is liable to come in with some kind of two-year, $15MM type offer.
