Cubs Need To Change Their Focus

This entire fall, the rumors surrounding the Chicago Cubs have been about one glaring need the Cubs have on their roster: a powerful, middle-of-the-order bat from the left side. The position of choice for this player has been delegated to right field, because of the growing dissatisfaction with last year's underwhelming rookie, Kosuke Fukudome.

However, the Cubs might not need to add a big bopper to have a completely different feel about their offense in 2009.

The dynamic currently being sold to Cubs fans is that Reed Johnson and Fukudome will platoon in center field with Alfonso Soriano in left. Meanwhile, the Cubs have two more potential center fielders on their roster in youngster Felix Pie and urban legend Joey Gathright.

In the infield, the Cubs don't appear to need a great deal of change to take place. The corners are set with Hank Aaron Award-winner Aramis Ramirez at third and Derrek Lee at first. Mark DeRosa and Ryan Theriot played well together in the middle, with Mike Fontenot, Micah Hoffpaiur, and Ronny Cedeno coming off the bench.

God's gift to Cubs fans in 2008, Geovany Soto, will continue to catch in 2009.

Looking at the pieces in place, it's easy to see how the management could sell fans on the idea of needing a left-handed power bat. The only lefties on this roster are Fontenot, Hoffpaiur, Pie, and Fukudome, none of whom appear to be in the mix for the bulk of the at-bats at their primary position.

So we start hearing the laundry list of this year's recycled noise: Adam Dunn, Bobby Abreu, and Milton Bradley are all guys we're supposed to begin salivating over as fans. I'm not buying any of these three, and I believe the Cubs could dramatically change their offense by making another change.

I am not saying that Joey Gathright is the answer to anything. Frankly, the signing of him continues to puzzle me. He's almost the same player Pie is, but he's six years older with almost the same amount of experience. While Gathright probably runs the bases better than Pie, what he adds between first and home he gives up defensively.

However, I do like the idea of someone like Gathright coming into the mix. And, furthermore, I think that a legitimate leadoff man who can steal bases could change the Cubs offense on an enormous scale.

Here are the changes I would make to the Cubs batting order, and the effect each would have:

1. Move Soriano to the No. 2 spot. I can tell already the criticism of this move: he doesn't get on base enough and has a swiss-cheese swing.

My response is simple. If there's a rabbit in front of Soriano that can get on base regularly (thus being the issue with Gathright), then it does two things. First, a runner creates holes in the defense because he forces movement and the pitcher's attention to be on him more than the batter.

Secondly, and most importantly, the relationship between Soriano's abilities at the plate and a runner would be an incredible dynamic for a pitcher to deal with. Everyone knows that Soriano's kryptonite is a breaking ball; he saw one of the highest percentages of breaking pitches in baseball last year. If a pitcher is only throwing off-speed stuff, the runner can get a better jump. On the other hand, throwing a fastball to Soriano to keep the runner honest might end up in the seats.

2. Move Ramirez up to third, bat Soto fourth, and Lee fifth. Ramirez is not going to be confused with Gathright during a running drill, but he hits into fewer double plays than Lee or the slower catcher Soto.

Soriano is still a decent base runner (though he's crazy if he thinks he'll steal 30 bases again), and having him running behind another quick player could turn a single into the gap into two runs. Other than Rick Ankiel, there aren't many respectable arms in the outfields of the NL Central. By moving Ramirez and Soto up, there are going to be more line drives with runs to be batted in.

3. Make everyone on the team learn to bunt like Reed Johnson. Last year, Johnson was probably the best bunter in a Cubs uniform since Jerome Walton. He's never going to steal 30 or 40 bases in a season, but if everyone on the team could bunt half as well as Johnson, moving one or two runners over regularly wouldn't be that far fetched.

Johnson showed the ability to not only lay down a dying sacrifice with backspin, but he also displayed the ability to jab-bunt into defensive holes for a hit. Like in the scenario described above, speed forcing movement creates problems for a defense. There are not that many Gold Glove winners in the Central, so forcing the issue could wreak havoc on the division.

4. Send Fukudome to Iowa. I'm sick of the idea of "trying to fix" a player. Fukudome has minor league options, so use them. Send him to Iowa until he figures his swing out and can keep his hips and shoulders closed. The Cubs, contrary to the belief of GM Jim Hendry, don't need five centerfielders. Even if Pie or Gathright aren't on the roster on Opening Day, we don't need that many outfielders. Send him down.

5. Finally, fire Larry Rothschild as pitching coach; hire Greg Maddux as his replacement. While the repeated division championships of Lou Piniella are undeniable, I was personally in favor of bringing back a hometown guy like Joe Girardi for the manager's job. Now, the Cubs have the opportunity to not only do right by a former player, but improve a situation on the team.

I have never been impressed by Rothschild as a pitching coach. How he handled Mark Prior and Kerry Wood, in tandem with "Keep Goin" Dusty Baker, may of ruined one career and forced another to the bullpen. The promise of the pitching staff the last two years has been enormous, and so has the disappointment. Carlos Zambrano's career has been an underachievement to date, and Rich Harden could learn a few things about working quickly from the Madd Dog.

Maddux has always been known for his preparation and insight. While he was a Cub in the last few years, Zambrano noted how much he learned just by watching. Well no more watching; bring Maddux back to where he belongs and make him the pitching coach.