Ever since the news broke that the Cubbies had been eyeing Jim Edmonds, my heart began dropping. I'll be honest—I hadn't heard the Cards had let him go, and my first thought was: Why are we picking up their garbage? If the Cards don't want or need him, why should we?
Then I read that the Padres had let him go as well, last Friday. My jaw dropped to the ground in awe. If the worst team in baseball was getting rid of a guy because he wasn't producing, it had to be bad—below the Mendoza line bad, as it turns out.
Now, I didn't exactly watch the game today, Edmonds' first game as a Cub, but I kept track of how it progressed as it went. In the second, a hit in his first at bat—not too bad, I thought to myself. From there, nothing. With men on base, nothing. I've been hard on Felix Pie this year, but to trade him for a hitter that can't seem to hit in a critical situation, just seems like the sort of move a fool would make.
I understand Edmonds is coming off a calf injury, and we can see from Alfonso Soriano's slow start, and subsequent hot bat, that things can turn around. Combine that with the minimal amount the Cubs are having to shell out for Edmonds (so far as I've seen, it's a prorated portion of the Major League minimum), and it might come out to being an iffy move. But potentially, it's a move that comes at the cost of working on Pie, even on irregular playing time, to a point where he could quickly become a viable option in the outfield.
Perhaps it's too early to say. Rumor has it that Edmonds may not get a start until sometime next week—the Pirates have three southpaws lined up as starters for the weekend set—so he may not be seen unless popped in as part of a double-switch. But, based on the season numbers, and what we've seen today, I'm prepared to chalk this up to a horrible gamble by the Cubs' front office.
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4 months ago
Well since Edmonds started yesterday, his first day with the team, I guess Piniella has a more defined role for him than some Cubs fans thought. I wonder if his defense is any better than Pie's would be. I know he will hit better than Pie though...
4 months ago
Pie was not traded, just sent back to Iowa to work on his swing. For what it cost the Cubs, this was a no-brainer. Pick up another lefthanded bat and an older but still good enough to cover the wrigley centerfield position defensive player. His best may be behind him, but I think he still has something left in the tank
4 months ago
I don't think it was a bad move by the Cubs front office. He was a cheap fix and buying more time for Pie to develop in the minor leagues. The kid has shown he has the talent to play, he just needs a little more refinement. Maybe with this case the Cubs can avoid having Pie turn out like Corey. And if it doesn't work out with Edmonds, then it didn't cost them much. Keep up the good work!
4 months ago
It was a terrible move by Lou Piniella, not the Cubs front office. For about $300,000 it makes perfect sense to pick him up. It was a terrible move by Lou to start him however. He is aging and not even close to a good fielder. With Soriano and Edmonds in the outfield, the Cubbies may have the worst defensive outfield in baseball now. With Pie out there at least both gaps are VERY small because he can run down almost any ball hit his way. I've said it all along: WHO CARES IF THIS GUY CAN'T HIT! He hits in the 8 spot. Anything over a .220 average is decent in the 8 spot.
from 4 months ago
"ot even close to a good fielder."
Yeah, his 7 gold gloves mean nothing.
I'd say being a good fielder is all he has left.
4 months ago
I remember Edmonds talking a lot of smack about how he hates playing in Wrigley because of how awful the field is.
Now he gets it everyday! Ha!
from 4 months ago
Well they re-surfaced the field so ha! Even as a life long Cubs fan I recognized Jim Edmonds as one of the best center fielders I had ever seen. I was overjoyed at the news of Edmonds coming to Wrigley.
4 months ago
Being a Cardinals fan for about 10 years now I've seen the fall from grace Edmonds has been through. His high point was probably when he, Rolen, and Pujols all hit 30+ HR in 2004 and made it to the World Series. That was probably when he was his most productive but he still made some great catches in center field afterwards. Seeing him being released by the Padres was really hard to see but for the price the Cubs signed him at really wasn't a bad move. He's a veteran and when he's not playing he can help out the younger players because even though he can't hit like he used to, he's still a wealth of information.
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