Jim Hendry The Genius...Just Ask Him

In 2003 Jim Hendry didn't wear a mask and didn't leave $20 on the nightstand for the Pittsburgh Pirates after robbing and "massaging" them to get Aramis Ramirez and Kenny Lofton. I stood and cheered for the red-faced one and gave him a "well done Sir" for the effort. When he signed Alfonso Soriano to a deal that will be in place long after his skills have diminished and the contract hangs like a 1986 LL Cool J rope chain around the Cubs neck - I still applauded his bold effort to win now. Even last year as Kosuke Fukodome tried tunneling through the Earth to get to Japan with each swing after June 1st, I STILL gave Big Jim a pass as every other team had the same take on Fukodome and the Cubs were certainly not alone in throwing big dollars at Fukodome in the bidding process. But this off season when he competed only with himself to obtain Milton Bradley and Aaron Miles - I saw the tell tale signs of the "Im Smarter Than You" disease that so many General Managers seem to contact after making several moves that are applauded by the masses. Look...Milton Bradley is a fantastic hitter. Honestly, from both sides of the plate - despite this years numbers the man knows how to hit. He works the count, rarely swings at a bad ball and will destroy an opposing pitchers mistake. But Milton Bradley is NOT an everyday National League outfielder. He is exactly what he was in Texas last year - a DH that can occasionally play the OF. But why Big Jim thought he was smarter than the 6 other teams that Bradley has played for in 7 years is beyond me. Well, I guess its not beyond me as I believe my diagnosis of his "Knowitallitis" is spot on. Even more damming of Hendry is his sneer at the demonstrated logic that even IF (and that's a HUG IF) Bradley COULD hold up and produce for 150 games in the OF he CERTAINLY will not hold up as the primary focus (target) if you will of the Chicago media and fans which have all ditched the loveable loser mantra and want to see a winning team. Or at the very least competitive. Hendry should have been crystal clear how the City of Chicago feels about players that quit and make excuses. Remember that "Sammy" guy who was caught by the surveillance tape leaving the final game early (after he said that wasn't true) "quitting" on his team. He is so dead and buried to Cub fans that even Ronny Woo Woo wont talk about him. So to sign Bradley and basically proclaim that he is "THE" difference maker, that he will be "THE ONE" to get you out of that playoff sweep purgatory that you have been in the last 2 years was not only dumb but was an outright middle finger to all that is logical. Bradley was the perfect player in Texas because he had The Josh Hamilton story and future ESPN made for TV movie protecting him every day from the spotlight. Uh...Jimmy....That AINT going to EVER happen in Chicago! And had your ego not gotten in the way - maybe you would have seen that. The more Gatorade dispensers Bradley breaks, The more "The Umps hate Me" comments he makes, The more games Lou has to send him home without dinner and the more he alienates his teammates...the WORSE its going to get for HIM and YOU! So Red faced Jim...If you have any sense whatsoever - you will be working the phones BEGGING an American league team to take Bradley. Detroit and Texas are in the thick of their respective races and both could use a DH / Outfielder. Take a page out of the NBA book and trade one bad contract for another and take Magglio Ordonez off of Detroit's hands. His contact is up and the option would allow you to be free and clear by next year. I'm not one of these meatballs that love every bench player or rookie but Jake Fox has demonstrated in a large enough sampling that he is a legit major league hitter. You already have a bad defensive outfield and your teams short and long term future both competitively and financially would be much better served rolling the dice on Fox instead of Bradley. But what am I thinking...Surely Jim Hendry - The Man Genius - has already thought about this.