As I've noted before, Xavier Nady is a good ballplayer when he is healthy, so the Cubs pickup is a pretty good move. I can't help but feel they have got to be projecting Nady for a little bit more than being the right-handed part of a platoon with Fukudome. For one thing - and this is even more the case with the Cubs being so top-heavy with RH hitters - the right-handed part of a platoon is going to get 150 ABs or so. If he is healthy, Nady is too good a player to limit in this way. He can only play LF or RF, so I wonder if he isn't also a kind of back-door insurance on Soriano's return from injury. Most of the Cubs off-season moves seem to be predicated on Soriano coming back full-strength, at least as an offensive force, but maybe this indicates a little uncertainty on this score.
Signing Chad Tracy, who had some good years with Arizona before he seemingly fell apart because of persistent injuries, is a weird selection, but it is only a minor league deal. He can back up at 1B or 3B, and would give you an ineffective bat off the bench, I suppose, but maybe he is just a shot in the dark, or just a return to bottom feeding for Hendry.
The Cubs were reported to be in negotiations with Kiko Calero recently, but so far nothing much seems to have come of it. MLB Trade Rumors reports they have an interest in Chan Ho Park, who is getting a little long in the tooth, but still throws hard. He doesn't seem to be a contender to start anywhere, and actually his numbers as a starter last year were really bad, but his numbers in relief were better. On paper, this looks like a harmless acquisition, but why do I have the persistent thought that Lou will use this guy up before the ivy turns green?
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