Thoughts on offseason moves

So here's the first 'serious' baseball post. The Cubs were rather busy this offseason, so I wanted to give my thoughts and grades for each of their moves. So here they are, in the order they happened. (Oh, and I got most of my information from the Cubs web site - just look in the press releases.)

Resigned P Ryan Dempster, 4 yrs, $52 million: In light of how the free agent market went, I kind of wish they had waited longer to make this deal. Dempster had a great 2008, and seems to have the make-up and stuff to keep it up, but he probably could have been had for cheaper. I can't downgrade Jim Hendry for failing to be a psychic, though, and this was a nice match of player and team who wanted to be together. B

Trade P Jose Ceda for Florida P Kevin Gregg: This trade basically said, "Thanks for the memories, Kerry." Gregg's an ok reliever, but reminds me of Joe Borowski before his elbow blew up - lots of heart, not a lot of stuff. I hate to give up guys like Ceda, though, especially for the Gregg's of the world. C

Resigned P Chad Gaudin, P Neil Cotts, OF Reed Johnson to 1 year deals: Mostly depth signings, though all will probably see significant playing time. Guadin could be a very important set-up guy this year. B+

Sign OF Joey Gathright to 1 year deal: Jim Edmonds 2.0? Here's hoping the KC reject can resurrect his career. I'm ok with a platoon of Gathright, Johnson and Fukudome in center this year, but it doesn't excite me long-term. C+

Trade IF/OF Mark DeRosa for Cleveland Ps Jeff Stevens, John Gaub, and Chris Archer: This one stung. I understand needing to clear out some position players, especially ones that bat righthanded, but did you have to give up DeRosa? Besides having a fine offensive year he could play almost anywhere. The lack of flexible player like DeRosa will come back to haunt the Cubs, mark my words. The pu-pu platter of Indian pitchers doesn't excite me, either. Right idea - wrong guy (I would've shopped Soriano, hard.) D

Sign IF Aaron Miles to 2 year deal: He's not Mark DeRosa. Period. He'll be an ok 2nd basemen and does hit left handed, but it's a definite downgrade. And why did you have to give him two years? (At least he pitches once in while...) C

Trade P Jason Marquis and $ for Colorado P Jose Vizcaino: This, I like. Marquis fancies himself a Cy Young candidate. Apparently his actual performances have failed to pop that delusion of grandeur. Good luck in the thin air of Colorado! I also like how Hendry is stockpiling bullpen arms. Apparently he realizes his rotation is fra-gi-le (must be Italian). A solid and deep bullpen can mitigate that risk, at least somewhat. Nice trade here. B+

Sign OF Milton Bradley for 3 yrs, $30 M: Here's Hendry swinging for the fences. Best case scenario: Bradley keeps his cool, plays in 140+ games, and hits .325 with 35-40 HRs and 100-120 RBIs. Worst case scenarios: Bradley loses his temper, starts pouting, and ends up on the bench. OR he pulls his hammy/groin/calf/bicep/gluteous maximus and lands on the DL for half the year. Which are you getting? No one really knows, and that's where my beef with this deal lies. Why go after such a high risk player, when Bobby Abreu is hanging around for about the same price, without the injury concerns, and solid production from the left side of the plate? A team this close to contending needs a sure thing, not a roll of the dice. I really hope Bradley works out for them, because he can be a force and could allow the Cubs to trade some other hitters at the trade deadline, if need be (cough, Soriano, cough). History suggests this won't end well, though. Like the DeRosa trade, right idea, wrong guy. C-

Trade OF Felix Pie for Baltimore Ps Garrett Olson and Henry Williamson: Another center fielder of the future bites the dust. Honestly, this has been going on since Jerome Freakin' Walton! Olson and Williamson? Eh, depth for the system, I guess. Good luck in Baltimore, Felix. C

Trade P Michael Weurtz Oakland OF Richie Robnett and IF Justin Sellers: Guess there is such a thing as too many bullpen arms. Give Hendry credit - he is trying to stock/restock his farm system, but all he's got so far are a bunch of midling prospects. Better than nothing, I suppose. C

Trade P Garrett Olson and IN Ronny Cedeno for Seattle P Aaron Heilman: Garrett, we hardly knew ye! Did he even get a Cubs uni? I liked Cedeno, too, but he's never going to hit for much, and happens to be righthanded, making him expendable. I don't know what to think of Heilman, honestly. His change is nasty, but he's a two-pitch pitcher who wants to start. That usually doesn't go well, but if he can develop a servicable third pitch, he could be a steal. Low risk, high potential here - a nice trade, I think. B

Trade P Rich Hill for Baltimore player to be named: I feel for Rich, especially as he's a New Englander. He's got a bunch of talent but either hurt his back or his head's not on straight. I'm not sure the AL East is the place to try and straighten oneself out, especially if you're a pitcher, but best of luck to him. Classic change of scenery trade for Chicago. I like tying the player to be named to Hill's performance, by the way. C

Overall I'm skeptical. The outfield makes me nervous, and the starters are mostly injuries waiting to happen. The bullpen looks solid, except I'm not sure how Marmol will fare as a closer and I don't trust Gregg to pick up the slack if need be. I really think DeRosa will be missed badly - you just don't find utility guys who can hit like him terribly often. All in all, I give the offseason a C+. I don't think this team is better than last year's version, at least not right now. (Now, go get Jake Peavy and my opinion changes dramatically...)

What do you think?