SUNDAY, 8:19pm: The Angels haven't aggressively pursued a trade for help yet and may not have Lee on their radar at this point, a source told Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times. With their 9-4 victory in Seattle today, the Angels improved to 7-1 without first baseman Kendry Morales in the lineup.
FRIDAY, 7:15pm: The Cubs have not asked Derrek Lee to approve a trade, sources tell Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune. Lee's contract includes a no-trade clause, so the club could not deal him without his approval.
When asked about the trade rumors, Lee responded:
"Who are the 'excellent sources?'" the 34-year-old asked. "I've heard nothing on it. I've got nothing for you."
The first baseman also told reporters that he is not bothered by the trade speculation and wants to remain with the Cubs.
THURSDAY, 9:10am: MLB.com's Carrie Muskat hears that the Cubs have not talked to the Angels about Nady or Lee (Twitter link). That doesn't mean the Angels aren't interested, but it shows that talks are not far along.
8:08am: The Angels appear to be targeting Xavier Nady, according to Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times (via Twitter). Nady, 31, has appeared in three games at first for the Cubs this year.
WEDNESDAY, 10:40pm: The Cubs "may be involved in trade talks" that would send first baseman Derrek Lee to the Angels, according to Fred Mitchell and David Kaplan of The Chicago Tribune. The Halos, of course, will be without regular first baseman Kendry Morales for the foreseeable future following the fractured leg he suffered celebrating a walk-off grand slam last weekend.
The 34-year-old Lee missed tonight's game with a minor hamstring issue, but overall he's hitting just .232/.339/.366 on the season, down from last year's splendid .306/.393/.579 performance. The Cubs still owe him a touch under $9MM in salary for the remainder of the season, after which he'll become a free agent for the first time in his career.
We've already discussed the Angels' options for replacing Morales at length, though Lee's name was not mentioned.
This better be for no prospects and the Cubs kicking in money.
God, does it get much worse than being a cubs fan? They’ve got to be the most loyal fans on earth and give their club never-ending support and go into every season thinking “this year is finally gonna be it” and then the management goes and trades their captain…I truly do feel bad for you guys.
Being a pirates fan is worse I believe.
in order for dlee to get traded, it’d have to be like a few years back when maddux got traded for izturis. we’d have to 1) be out of it, 2) REALIZE that, and 3) want to do dlee a favor by shipping him to a better situation. Otherwise, it wouldn’t make sense to trade him without major prospects and NO desire to re-sign him this offseason. He’s hitting better lately, and he’s been a major cog for quite a while now, I definitely don’t see this happening in the least.
Stewie…Did you mean clog vs. cog? He looks like he’s not having any fun out there at all and he’s mentally done as a Cub. A change of scenery is in order. Maybe this time he will waive his NTC and go out west. They quietly tried to move him to SF a year or so ago and he blocked it. Let’s hope he’s ready to go this time. If JHen can get the Halo’s to take the entire contract, we’d not need to much in return. Maybe a BP prospect or a AA stick??
Angels don’t have the financial freedom to take on an aging slugger who would flounder in the AL. The difference is so vast it’s not worth getting into. Suffice it to say, the Angels won’t be bringing in Lee, or Berkman or Dunn.
They won’t be making a move, but if they do, the list is as short as LaRoche or Konerko and that’s it.
Curious – by “LaRoche”, did you mean Adam LaRoche, first baseman for the National League Arizona Diamondbacks? Of course you could have meant his younger brother Andy, who is currently a third baseman for the National League Pittsburgh Pirates.
I am almost certain he meant Adam, the first baseman since that is their need and Adam is the one who is available at the trade deadline. Andy would not be available and is not a need of the team.
I’m pretty sure he was sarcastically pointing out that both LaRoche’s are in the NL, because scotty said Lee wouldn’t do well in the AL.
Lee has been hitting considerably better of late. Seeing as the team has NO 1B option going forward, giving him up for a random half prospect is a moronic move. What good is it to give him up when there’s no one there to replace him?
Also, calling Cubs fans idiots is stupid as well. It IS loyalty. Loyalty is sticking by a team, even when no one else will. If we were to all give up on the Cubs and go switch our LOYALTY to another team, the same people that say Cubs fans are idiots for following them would call us bandwagon fans and unloyal. So, I’ll take being negatively called something GOOD over being a bandwagon loser like 90% of all baseball “fans.”
Lee will heat up and get his stats up…He may not hit .300 this year but he will hit at least .270 with 25-30 homers.
Agree
You do realize what Derrek Lee is hitting this year – right? 232/339/366. One of the WORST offensive lines for any 1st baseman in baseball.
As for “heating up” his May line was 257/352/381. That’s an improvement – but barely. Still an awful month.
Finally, career wise, Lee’s April/March is pretty close to his best months. May tends to be his worst month, and June his best. But those are hardly consistent. Depending on the year the results can vary wildly. In 2008 he posted his best month by 250 OPS points in April/March.
The guy is earning $13m this year. That’s what he is worth when he is having a normal Derrek Lee type year. Given his performance to date and giving him the benefit of the doubt based off his track record, he’s probably a $6-8m player in 2010. That would mean that a team taking Lee on should receive at least $5-7m AND not be required to give up any talent. Obviously, if the Cubs kick in more money then your get better talent back.
Derrek Lee was 9th last year in mvp voting. He is a gold glove first baseman. Hits for power and average. Im sure the cubs want to just give him away for a couple million because their 8 digit salary cap could really use it.
LOL! YES, please let the Angels send whats left of their farm for a Lee rental. Awesome strategy to try and win a division you have little chance in.
Have little chance? The Angels couldn’t be playing any worse and they are 2.5 games back. Seriously get a clue.
This rumor has literally zero truth to it. It’s started by retard Cubs media. First and foremost, the Angels are stillt he favorites to win the division, they’re only 2 games out of 1st and it’s not like Texas or Oakland are actually good. The same thing happened last year and the Angels won the division by 10 games. Seriously the AL West is a joke, the Angels are a 85-90 win team and they blow away any team in their division before all is said and done.
Secondly, the Angels do not have a lot of available cash. So overpaid players like Derrek Lee, LAnce Berkman or Adam Dunn that simply wouldn’t hit in the AL are out of the question.
Third, Morales may be back in September. What happens if the Angels trade for Lee and Morales comes back in September? Can’t DH Lee, they already have Matsui. The OF is full. Not an ideal situation.
Fourth and possibly the most important. Mike Napoli has been doing a solid job at 1B. When defensive stud backstop Jeff Mathis gets back, that would relegate Napoli to the bench if the Angels had another 1B, and Napoli’s bat is too big to hide on the pine. The Angels have depth here in Napoli, Wood, Frandsen and Ryan. They also have a kid named Trumbo in AAA putting up Stanton like numbers.
Fifth, just icing on the cake, the Angels don’t have the freedom to trade their prospects right now. They need all of them because the team is aging and not gracefully. This is one of the deepest systems in baseball, not out of design, out of necessity. They aren’t young like the Rays.
i agree with maybe half of what you said… angels may not blow away everyone in the division, but i think that being only 2 games out for how they have played is a decent sign. i also agree with you about when morales comes back, so if it happens it will be interesting to see how that plays out.
i do not, however, agrree with you about the cash, napoli, and the prospects. 1. they have cash, i think its clear that moreno will do what it takes, plus its not $50 million, its only $9 and you would think that maybe the Cubs would be sending money their way. 2. You cannot say that napoli has being solid when he has played 2 games over there! 3. they angels are not going to have to give up top prospects and maybe nothing near that. we are talking about a 34 year old d-lee that has not so great numbers, not the d-lee that was an all-star caliber player.
Overall, i think it can be done, just questioning what the angels would have to give up/are the cubs going to pay any of the salary, and how fast a deal can get done because the angels cant sit around and wait
Proven veterans like Lee, Berkman, and Dunn won’t hit the AL, but yet you single out, among others, a AAA player (Trumbo) with a .314 OBP and a very ordinary .832 OPS in the thin Salt Lake air as someone who can hit AL pitching. Really? Really?
If the Angels acquire a player I’d rather them get one that is not struggling. That said, a change of scenery might be what it takes for a player of Lee’s caliber to pick things up again. I’m not sure the Cubs would wave the white flag just yet either although they are pretty far out.
If I had to rank the guys that I would love to see in an Angels uniform it would go like this:
1. Prince Fielder (for obvious reasons)
2. Garrett Jones (name has never been mentioned but the Pirates are in next to last place and they almost are always willing to deal, probably would not cost much, plus Jones can play OF if Kendry returns)
3. Derrek Lee (He may be struggling but he is intimidating and a new place may help him)
4. Mike Napoli (He will provide more than enough power)
5. Paul Konerko (Career .270 hitter with 25-30 HR power…not bad)
6. Jermaine Dye (Why trade prospects?)
6. Lance Berkman (Last on my list, his power numbers are on the decline, I’m skeptical he will even reach the 25 hr he put up last year plus his contract is a ridiculous $14.5M!!)
Fielder will take a lot to get, same with Jones. Lee and Konerko would be the best for trade wise. Napoli is already on the Angels. “Stros would probably want the world for Berkman and most likely won’t waive his clause. Dye would be ideal if the Angels can hold on. Lee might not waive his clause and Konerko might not waive his 10-5 rights.
Agree, Fielder would cost a lot. I dont think Jones would though. The Pirates didn’t get anything major in return for Bay, Nady, McLouth or Morgan in the past few years. I think a power bat like Jones has more value than Konerko, Berkman or Dye because of his flexibility to also play the outfield.
The new rumor of Nady would also rank up there with Jones however Nady has a history of injury so I’d still take Jones over Nady.
Why would you want Fielder? It makes no sense.
1. He will cost a fortune in prospects.
2. We already have an All-Star 1st baseman who is out until September.
3. What happens when Kendry is back and we have Prince. I don’t want to be paying $15-$20m for a DH.
As to your other guys …
1. Jones is a fluke. His 2009 numbers aside. He is 29 YO and is playing in his 2nd full season of baseball. And the results are not pretty.
2. Derrek Lee is an option. Assuming the Cubs kick in plenty of cash and get nothing in return.
3. Napoli is OK but I don’t like the idea of Mathis/Wilson getting 600PA’s between the 2 of them.
4. Konerko is an option but again the WS would have to kick in a lot of money – which I don’t see them doing.
5. Dye makes the most sense assuming you can land him on a $2-3m contract + incentives.
6. I’d love Berkman but again the Astros would have to kick in buckets of cash to get rid of him.
See I dont think Jones is a fluke he has plenty of power. Put him in a lineup with some protection and a ballpark that is more HR friendly than PNC. And you have to think if Kendry returns in September you have to have someone that is position flexible, assuming Matsui picks it up.
im pretty sure the pirates actually like Jones. he isn’t like Nady and McClouth who were going to get expensive really quick
Yah but they also seemed to like Morgan. Nobody on the pirates is untouchable except for McCutchen.
it would take more to get Dye. he already said it’s going to take a good amount to get him away from his family
Wow….Everyone bashing DLee, just like two years back, and the beginning of last year..He will turn it around everybody, now weather the cubs wanna wait for it is something else entirely… I absolutely love when people get vicious towards a player b/c he has had a bad month or two, teh Angels would be lucky to get DLee for the price of a couple B prospects
You have Lee only until the end of this year. All that counts is what he will do in 2010.
In 2008 Lee was just average. An OPS in the low 800’s. That’s not anything great. Of course, 2009 was a terrific year for him. In 2009 he had an awful March/April but was great every month after that.
Lee follows a weird pattern for success. Check out his OPS since 2003 (+/- is calculated as the difference between his current year and previous year):
03: 888
04: 860 (-28)
05: 1080 (+220)
06: 842 (-238)
07: 913 (+71)
08: 823 (-90)
09: 972 (+149)
10: 705 (-267)
The guy is the Bret Saberhagen of hitting. On odd years he performs the best. That is sandwiched by even years where his performance takes a dive. I’m sure it’s not anything other than a weird coincidence. It is strange though.
I’ve been wanting Nady back in a Padres uniform since he left…and it just so happens we may be looking for an OF. HmMmmmM….who can we trade? Stauffer? We have decent prospects…? I’d love to have Fukudome too! We almost had him in that bidding war.
If the Friars make a competitive offer (like more than the Cubs paying the entire way and getting nothing in return) then they will get them in a heartbeat.
Yeah, everyone overreacts every year when Lee starts out strugging. Last year the city was clamoring for Hoffpauir to take over 1B for Lee, because he was so washed up, and it ended up being one of his best years. I think once Lee and Aramis get it together, it’ll even out Fukudome’s yearly nosedive after a hot start, and they’ll start scoring more consistently. If Cashner can be good out of the pen and Howry can either get it together or get released, they’ve pieced together a good staff and a good lineup.
If not, start selling off pieces or wait until the summer and collect draft picks. Lilly and Lee are FA’s after the year, which will net a few picks with fill-ins of say an Adam Dunn and plugging Cashner or Jackson into the rotation. Next year will also be the last for Fukudome/Aramis, melting an additional $25-30M off the books. The only bad contracts remaining after next year will be Z and Sori. Consider the influx of the young talent we’ve got coming up, and I’d say we’re poised to rebuild on the fly pretty easily.
If we were to start selling off, I’d suggest Aramis to the Angels, DLee to the Rangers, Lilly to the Nationals or Dodgers, and Nady to anyone that’ll pay his salary and throw in an A prospect with a 94MPH fastball.
Be it Lee, Nady, Berkman, or Konerko, I think part of the package that the Angels offer should include Bobby Wilson. I would offer Wilson and Juan Rivera for a Nady/Lee trade or an Oswalt/Berkman trade (I’d include a pitching prospect for this last one), and would not offer more than 2 players for Konerko, though I’d rather have Garret Jones playing for the Angels than Konerko. Just playing GM here in case Reagins wants to read this
Do you idiot Cubby fans know anything? God this thread went from bad to worse? Nady….Xavier Freakin’ Nady? God you guys are stupid. Yes the Angels want a backup OF that can occasionally play 1B. Nevermind the fact that they have 3 better options than that (Napoli, Ryan and Rivera). Not only do the Cubs want to trade Nady to the Angels, they want good prospects or Wilson or Napoli included! Ok I’ll play your game your rogues. Since that can totally happen, I am now trading Rob Quinlan for Albert freakin’ Pujols, because that makes every bit as much sense as Nady.
When I said A level prospect, I meant A ball, not A-grade….
Why do you even take that guy seriously? This is a guy who touts a 32 year old AAA player in Ryan, thinks a mediocre AAA prospect (Trumbo) is more likely to hit AL pitching than Lee, Berkman and Dunn, talks about Napoli as a backup OF’er and occasional first baseman, thinks Bobby Wilson is worth something when he’s just a fringe prospect, and compares the acquisition of Nady to trading Rob Quinlan for Pujols. It’s all nonsense. Why even dignify anything he says with a response?
i think bobby wilson is better than a fringe prospect. the guy plays solid D and hits fairly well (not a lot of power but has hit between 275-310 in AAA). only reason he hasn’t really had regular playing time is bcuz of Mathis and Napoli. he is definately not just a throw away type piece
Realistically, Mathis should be a backup. A .608 career OPS is just plain awful. There’s no way his plays good enough defense to make up for that kind of “offense”. He wouldn’t start for most teams so if he’s holding back Bobby Wilson, that should tell you something. And as a good defensive catcher with no power, Wilson also projects as a backup, although he may carry more value to the Angels than any other team, given Mike Scioscia’s deep-seated need to play defensive catchers. But really most teams have this kind of player in the system. The Cubs have two in Robinson Chirinos and Steve Clevenger so it’s very unlikely the Cubs would ask for him anyway. But if you’re the Angels and you want to land an impact bat, why would you refuse to part with your 3rd string catcher?
Check out all the flags the Angels have raised since Scioscia took over the Angels. He could send out the worst offensive catcher in baseball, as long as the Angels keep winning, I’m not going to question it. As for Wilson, we won’t give the Cubs out 3rd string catcher because we can get a hell of a lot more from him, either with the team or via trade, than half a year of a struggling, unproven in the AL 34 year old first baseman. Let’s not forget the Angels would be forced to take on a considerable amount of cash too.
In reference to Trumbo, yeah the OBP sucks in AAA, but I’d still take Trumbo over Lee. Why? Becuase his power numbers suggest he should be ready for a chance soon and mostly importantly, he’s 13.5 million dollars cheaper than Lee and we don’t have to give up any prospects.
As for Ryan, I take him above Nady any day of the week. Reason, we don’t hav to give up a prospect and Ryan is healthier. Quit trying to sell the Angels Cubs trash. We’re better than that.
Seriously, is there one intelligent Cubs fan out there? Well there must be, a Cubs fan started this site, now where are all the rest?
Where is Suzysman when you need him/her ?
Look if your talking about Bobby freakin’ Wilson right here. He’s what 27 ?
Here are the numbers: SSS alert, 23 PA.
.095/.174/.143. (AVG/OBP/SLG)
He’s sporting a shiny .156 wOBA. He has been worth -0.3 so far.
Where is Suzysman when you need him/her ?
Look if your talking about Bobby freakin’ Wilson right here. He’s what 27 ?
Here are the numbers: SSS alert, 23 PA.
.095/.174/.143. (AVG/OBP/SLG)
He’s sporting a shiny .156 wOBA. He has been worth -0.3 so far.
If the Angels got Derrek Lee they could win EVERYTHING!!! Remember, DLee always starts the season slow then catches fire starting in June and I mean Consistant SUPERSTAR!!! 30-40 BOMBS EVERY YEAR. and has a WORLD SERIES RING and a GOLD GLOVE!!! C’MON Arte Moreno, Lets do this!!!
haha, good one!
DERREK LEE TO ANGELS WOW!!! If the Angels got Derrek Lee they could win EVERYTHING!!! Remember, DLee always starts the season slow then catches fire starting in June and I mean Consistant SUPERSTAR!!! 30-40 BOMBS EVERY YEAR. and has a WORLD SERIES RING and 3 GOLD GLOVES!!! C’MON Arte Moreno, Lets do this!!!
The Cubs also need to “shake up” the line up .. and never have Lee batting 3rd… or 4th the 3rd and 4th hitters are the best hitters on the team.. Byrd and Colvin best hitters on the team.. it should be Fukudome leading off Theriot #2 Byrd Third. Colvin 4th Fontenot 5th.. castro 6th Hill 7th.. Lee 8th and the pitcher 9th… and lee is a maybe.. tracy is crap but he’s better then lee
Anahiem wont win sh*t with Lee.. but he needs to be off the Cubs