North Side November: Where Are the Chicago Cubs?

All is quiet on the northern front in Chicago baseball so far this winter.

Which is odd, because Jim Hendry's last few winters have been highlighted by more big game hunting than a weekend with Ted Nugent.

When a guy's resume includes bringing in names like Alfonso Soriano, Ted Lilly, Kosuke Fukudome and Milton Bradley, and when you consider how public Hendry's courtship of each player was, the fact that there hasn't been much of a peep from Hendry so far in November is intriguing to say the least.

Yes, he traded Aaron Heilman to Arizona. And yes, he signed John Grabow to a two-year extension.

But next to throwing around the salaries he's given Bradley, Fukudome and Soriano, these moves amount to about the same impact as breaking wind under water.

There have been reports that the Blue Jays contacted the Cubs to gauge interest in Roy Halladay.

Silence.

There have been rumors that Bradley's going to be traded to New York, Tampa, Texas, Japan and an asylum.

Silence.

Ted Lilly had surgery on his pitching shoulder. He might not be ready until May.

Silence.

Are the Cubs going to replace Van Halen's "Jump" with some Simon and Garfunkel tune when they take the field in 2010?

While Kenny Williams is adding AARP card candidates Omar Vizquel and Andruw Jones on the South Side of town, Hendry has been noticeably absent, which means one of two things: either his new "daddy," Tom Ricketts, took away his credit card, or something's brewing.

How, who, and where something goes down will likely develop in the coming weeks as the annual Winter Meetings take place. But from looking at Hendry's past, there's no reason to believe his future will continue to be this quiet.