November 16, 2008 The Chicago Tribune reports the Cubs are interested in bringing in a prototypical leadoff man such as Brian Roberts or Rafael Furcal so that Alfonso Soriano can move down in the batting order.
Our View:Ryan Theriot is not mentioned as a possibility to move up in the batting order, which is unfortunate considering his speed and high on-base percentage. Soriano would likely lose some plate appearances and steal chances if he moved down in the order, but he has missed time with injuries over the last two seasons anyway.
October 18, 2008 The Chicago Cubs will likely sign GM Jim Hendry to a contract extension of three years, according to the Chicago Daily Herald.
Our View:Hendry was denied permission to talk with the Seattle, and the Cubs clearly don't want to lose their 53-year-old GM.
October 2, 2008 Alfonso Soriano was one of several Cubs who struggled against some excellent Phillies pitching on Wednesday. He was 0-for-5 for the day.
Our View:Soriano might be feeling the pressure of playing on a Cubs team that is expected to win. He is a streaky hitter and the Cubs' faithful are likely praying he can turn it on starting in Game 2.
September 25, 2008 Alfonso Soriano and the Cubs take on the Mets and pitcher Pedro Martinez Thursday, which has historically been a bad thing for Soriano. In his career, he his hitting a lowly .163 (7-for-43) with no walks and 15 strikeouts against the wiry right-hander.
Our View:Granted, a lot of this took place when Martinez was with Boston and Soriano was with the Rangers or Yankees, but the numbers are startling nonetheless.
September 20, 2008 Alfonso Soriano led the Cubs to a 5-4 win over the Cardinals Saturday as he went 1-for-4 with two RBI.
Our View:He remains one homer away from 30 and one steal away from 20 with eight games to go.
