Diamond Deliberations: Some 2009 'What Ifs' for the Average Fan

(Photo by Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)

The No. 18 prospect in the 2007 Atlanta farm system (according to Baseball America) is perhaps the brightest gem of all. Feliz has been compared to a young Pedro Martinez, an arm much like what we saw last year with Volquez.

Coming off a simply dominant 2008, Feliz has struggled a bit with command this year. Still, given his K/9 rates, his four-pitch repertoire, and the fact that he’s just 21, the Rangers have plenty to look forward to down the road.

This is yet another example of desperation netting the Rangers some Texas-sized returns (see Gagne, Eric, Boston, 2007).

3.   What if the Cubs had paid significantly less money for Bobby Abreu or Adam Dunn, or equal money for Raul Ibanez, instead of signing Milton Bradley?

This is a heart-breaker for Cubs fans. I sat beneath the press box for Uncle Milty’s Wrigley debut, which came via a pinch-hit appearance in the seventh because he was hurt, of course. He strode to the plate against the rival Cardinals with the Cubs trailing by two and the bases loaded with one out.

Ball one. Ball two. Ball three. Sitting in the catbird seat.

Strike one looking. Strike two looking. Strike three looking on a questionable inside slider.

Bradley turns, screams some choice words to the ump, and gets the ol' heave-ho while simultaneously making borderline contact with the ump—contact that would net him a suspension in the weeks to come. Six pitches, six takes, one big strikeout, one petulant temper tantrum, and an image that will last a lifetime.

It’s been that kind of year for Bradley. The mega-talented, enigmatic outfielder has battled inconsistency, controversy, and injuries all year. Here we sit on June 23, and the $30 million man has 16 RBI and is on pace to see less than 400 at-bats.

I know hindsight is 20-20, but what were the Cubs thinking? They were desperate for a lefty; I get that. They wanted a fiery leader; I sort of get that. As we saw with Atlanta, however, desperation will do bad things to you.

Fiery personalities rarely come without a certain degree of volatility and inconsistency. Dunn, Abreu, and Ibanez were all upgrades on the left side, and all of them brought less baggage and injury history than Bradley, a guy who has never survived a whole year in the NL away from the designated hitter spot.

And what’s more, Abreu and Dunn signed one-year deals ranging from $5-$10 million per annum. Ibanez got similar money to Bradley but has been the NL MVP thus far and is on pace for 54 home runs and 144 RBIs.

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