by Chris Replogle, KY3 News

creplogle@ky3.com

11:29 a.m. CST, November 29, 2011

CHICAGO, Ill. –  Albert Pujols cheered in Wrigley Field?  Say it ain’t so.

ESPN’s Jerry Crassnick reports the Chicago Cubs have contacted Pujols’ agent, expressing interest in the free agent.

New Cubs president Theo Epstein has preached patience early-on in an attempt to bring the organization its first World Series Championship since 1908.  That has changed. The new collective bargaining agreement goes against rebuilding through the minor leagues, making it harder to rebuild a team through the draft and international player signings.

Pujols leads all active Major League players in batting average (.318) and slugging percentage (.617).  He will turn 32-years old in January.  Why wouldn’t the Cubs go after him if the price is right? 

That may just be the problem writes Phil Rogers of the Chicago Tribune.

“The Cubs are being used by someone who is looking for teams to throw into the dormant “sweepstakes’’ for baseball’s two biggest name free agents — the 32-year-old Pujols and the oversized Fielder, neither of whom have generated the interest many suspected they would.  With the winter meetings approaching, it’s natural to look for teams who have pursued them with stealth.  But the Cubs are very, very unlikely to be one of those teams.”

So far, only the Cardinals and the Miami Marlins have rolled out the red carpet for the all-star slugger.  The Marlins offer apparently fell short of what the Cardinals offered before the 2011 season.  The Texas Rangers, Washington Nationals and the Los Angeles Angels all could make a push to sign Pujols.

Read the ESPN report.

Read Phil Rogers’ Chicago Tribune article.

CHICAGO (AP) – Theo Epstein was introduced Tuesday as the new president of baseball operations for the Chicago Cubs, who hope he can work the same magic for championship-starved team as he did for the Boston Red Sox.

“Cubs Welcome Theo Epstein” was splashed across the famous Wrigley Field marquee at the corner of Clark and Addison on Tuesday morning.

The Cubs haven’t won a World Series since 1908. Epstein says: “It feels great to be a Cub.”

The 37-year-old Epstein left the Red Sox with a year left on his contract as general manager. The Cubs finally made the announcement Friday night, but held off on the news conference until Tuesday, a travel day for the World Series.

Still to be determined is compensation from the Cubs to the Red Sox for plucking Epstein away.

There is still no sign of Theo Epstein in Chicago.

It has been more than a week since word leaked that Epstein was headed to Chicago to join the Cubs after nine years with the Boston Red Sox.

It may take even longer for an official announcement.

Major League Baseball prohibits major news announcements during the World Series, which kicks off Wednesday in St. Louis as the Cardinals host the Texas Rangers in Game 1.

A person familiar with the negotiations has told The Associated Press that Epstein has agreed to a contract with the Cubs with a year left on his general manager contract in Boston. The person says compensation issues must be worked out, speaking on condition of anonymity because there has not been an announcement.

Two years ago, a news conference was held to announce that the Ricketts family had acquired the Cubs from Tribune Co. But even that came on a travel day for the World Series teams and it involved a multimillion-dollar deal.

On a cloudy Tuesday near Wrigley Field, the grounds crew was readying the playing field for the winter ahead while other workers repaired lights in the grandstand. No news conference, and no word on Epstein.

The Cubs have declined comment. Red Sox owner John Henry said last week that he wanted Epstein to stay with the Red Sox, while acknowledging the stress of being the Red Sox GM.

If and when Epstein arrives in Chicago, he will have his work cut out for him. The club has chewed up and spit out managers and general managers for decades.

Can Epstein be the guy to end the mind-boggling run of mediocrity, ineptitude, bad luck, strange karma and missed chances, one that has reached 103 years without a World Series winner? Chairman Tom Ricketts apparently thinks so and is ready to hand the 37-year-old Epstein a five-year deal reportedly worth $15 million to $18.5 million.

Epstein was running the Red Sox when they won it all in 2004 to end an 86-year World Series championship drought. And Boston added another title, with Epstein at the helm, three years later.

Once Epstein departs, the Red Sox are expected to announce assistant GM Ben Cherington as his replacement. The Red Sox, who collapsed in September and missed the playoffs for a second straight year, must also find a new manager to replace Terry Francona.

One of the first chores in Chicago is the future of manager Mike Quade, who piloted the team to a 71-91 record in his first full season. He has another year left on his deal.

CHICAGO  — Derrek Lee came off the disabled list and hit a go-ahead grand slam with two outs in the ninth inning to lift the Pittsburgh Pirates over the Chicago Cubs 7-5 on Saturday.

Lee’s shot to left through the rain at Wrigley Field came off former teammate Carlos Marmol (2-5), who blew his NL-high 10th save. Marmol gave up a single and three walks in the inning.

Batting cleanup, Lee had three hits and five RBIs in the game. He had been sidelined since Aug. 10 with a broken bone in his left wrist.

Chris Resop (5-4) threw two scoreless innings in relief and Joel Hanrahan got three outs for his 34th save.

Alex Presley had three hits and scored a run for the Pirates.

Chicago’s Alfonso Soriano matched his season high with four RBIs, hitting a go-ahead, two-run double in the seventh. Aramis Ramirez reached base four times and scored three runs, while Carlos Pena reached in all five of his plate appearances.

Cubs starter Casey Coleman threw six strong innings, allowing six hits and two runs — one earned — while striking out six.

Pirates starter Ross Ohlendorf allowed seven hits and three runs in four innings.
The game was delayed for 91 minutes in the seventh because of rain.

The Cubs stranded runners in each of the first five innings and went 2 for 15 with men in scoring position. They’ve hit just .176 in those situations since the beginning of August, but Soriano provided some clutch hitting.

He tied the score at 1 in the third. Ramirez singled with one out, went to third on Pena’s double and scored on Soriano’s sacrifice fly.

The Pirates grabbed the lead back in the fourth when Ryan Doumit’s RBI double eluded Soriano in the left-field corner, scoring Neil Walker.

Soriano’s single and Marlon Byrd’s fielder’s choice drove in runs in the fifth, putting Chicago up 3-2.

The Pirates drew even against Kerry Wood in the seventh when former Cub Ronny Cedeno bounced a groundball triple into right-center and scored on pinch-hitter Garrett Jones’ sacrifice fly.

Coleman entered 0-4 with an 11.44 ERA in six outings this season at Wrigley Field and his struggles continued in the first inning. Presley’s one-out double and Lee’s RBI single were sandwiched around Andrew McCutchen’s walk.

McCutchen has reached base in his last 30 games against the Cubs.

It could have been worse for Coleman, but he escaped when Walker flied out on a hit-and-run play, with Soriano doubling McCutchen off second base to end the inning. Coleman settled in for his best home outing of the season.

Ramirez singled and Pena walked to start Chicago’s seventh-inning rally. Both scored when Soriano laced a double down the left-field line into the corner. The rain fell heavier through the inning and after Byrd was hit by a pitch, the umpires called for the field to be covered.

NOTES: September has been kind to Presley, who had a double and two singles. In three games since the calendar turned, the swift left fielder has gone 8 for 13 with four extra-base hits, two RBIs and four runs scored. … McCutchen was in Pittsburgh’s starting lineup. He left Friday’s game after being hit by a pitch on his left hand in his first at-bat. … Resurgent RHP Randy Wells will start for the Cubs in Sunday’s series finale. Wells has won his last four starts and is coming off a two-hit shutout of San Francisco. RHP Charlie Morton goes for the Pirates.

CHICAGO — Tyler Colvin’s RBI single in the 10th inning off Octavio Dotel lifted the Chicago Cubs to a 5-4 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday.

Geovany Soto led off the 10th with a single off Dotel (0-2), advanced to second on Marlon Byrd’s sacrifice bunt, and scored on Colvin’s hit to center field just hours after the Cubs fired general manager Jim Hendry.

Soto also had a game-tying RBI double in the eighth inning. Darwin Barney homered and tripled, and Starlin Castro added two hits for the Cubs. Sean Marshall (6-5) pitched a perfect 10th to earn the win.

Castro, who leads the NL with 162 hits, has 301 in his career. He is the fifth Cubs player to pass 300 in his first two seasons.

Chicago beat the rival Cardinals for just the third time in 10 games this season, delighting a home crowd of 42,343 — the largest at Wrigley Field since the home opener in 1978.

The Cubs responded in their first game following the firing of Hendry, who was let go about three hours before the game. He was replaced on an interim basis by assistant general manager Randy Bush.
Yadier Molina hit a two-run homer for the Cardinals, and David Freese added a solo shot.

Cardinals starter Jaime Garcia left with a 4-3 lead after he scattered nine hits in 6 1/3 innings. Garcia, who entered the game hitting .085, added an RBI single.

Chicago’s Randy Wells gave up four hits in seven innings and struck out five. He set down the Cardinals in order in four of his seven innings, but was hurt by homers by Molina and Freese.

The Cubs nearly won the game in the ninth, but ran themselves out of the inning.

Tony Campana reached first leading off the ninth when second baseman Ryan Theriot bobbled a routine grounder for an error, but he was doubled up when Castro flied to center on what appeared to be a hit-and-run play. Reed Johnson followed with a two-out single, and Aramis Ramirez walked, but the threat ended when Carlos Pena flied out to right.

After trailing for 7 1/2 innings, the Cubs tied it 4-4 in the eighth. Soto’s double into the left-field corner scored Pena all the way from first base.

Molina’s second-inning homer opened the scoring, and Garcia’s single up the middle scored Theriot to make it 3-0. Freese hit a solo shot in the fourth to put the Cardinals ahead 4-1. He has an RBI in seven of his last eight games.

Barney brought the Cubs within 4-2 with his second homer of the season, landing a shot just barely into the basket in the left-field corner. His previous homer was April 25 against Colorado.

Barney added a triple when Lance Berkman overran a blooper into the right-field corner in the seventh. He scored when pinch-hitter Blake DeWitt’s fly to center was misplayed by John Jay, and the ball rolled to the wall for another triple.

With DeWitt on third and one out, representing the tying run, Jason Motte relieved Garcia and worked out of the jam by striking out Castro and getting Johnson on a grounder.

Notes:St. Louis’ Allen Craig made his first career start in center field as manager Tony La Russa wanted to give the slumping Jay a break. Jay replaced Craig in the fifth inning. Cubs pitcher Andrew Cashner threw his third live batting practice session on Friday, the latest step in his recovery from a strained right rotator cuff that has had him on the disabled list since April 6. Larry King sang “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” during the seventh-inning stretch. Edwin Jackson will start for the Cardinals on Saturday against the Cubs’ Matt Garza. Jackson will be making his first in Chicago since being dealt by the crosstown White Sox on July 27. He’s won both of his career starts against the Cubs. Garza is 1-1 with a 7.80 ERA in three career starts against St. Louis. The big crowd was entertained by the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds practicing over Lake Michigan a few blocks east of Wrigley Field during the middle part of the game in advance of the weekend’s air and water show in Chicago.

CHICAGO (AP) — Tyler Colvin’s RBI single in the 10th inning off Octavio Dotel lifted the Chicago Cubs to a 5-4 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday.

Geovany Soto led off the 10th with a single off Dotel (0-2), advanced to second on Marlon Byrd’s sacrifice bunt, and scored on Colvin’s hit to center field just hours after the Cubs fired general manager Jim Hendry.

Soto also had a game-tying RBI double in the eighth inning. Darwin Barney homered and tripled, and Starlin Castro added two hits for the Cubs. Sean Marshall (6-5) pitched a perfect 10th to earn the win.

Castro, who leads the NL with 162 hits, has 301 in his career. He is the fifth Cubs player to pass 300 in his first two seasons.

Chicago beat the rival Cardinals for just the third time in 10 games this season, delighting a home crowd of 42,343 — the largest at Wrigley Field since the home opener in 1978.

The Cubs responded in their first game following the firing of Hendry, who was let go about three hours before the game. He was replaced on an interim basis by assistant general manager Randy Bush.

Yadier Molina hit a two-run homer for the Cardinals, and David Freese added a solo shot.

Cardinals starter Jaime Garcia left with a 4-3 lead after he scattered nine hits in 6 1-3 innings. Garcia, who entered the game hitting .085, added an RBI single.

Chicago’s Randy Wells gave up four hits in seven innings and struck out five. He set down the Cardinals in order in four of his seven innings, but was hurt by homers by Molina and Freese.

The Cubs nearly won the game in the ninth, but ran themselves out of the inning.

Tony Campana reached first leading off the ninth when second baseman Ryan Theriot bobbled a routine grounder for an error, but he was doubled up when Castro flied to center on what appeared to be a hit-and-run play. Reed Johnson followed with a two-out single, and Aramis Ramirez walked, but the threat ended when Carlos Pena flied out to right.

After trailing for 7½ innings, the Cubs tied it 4-4 in the eighth. Soto’s double into the left-field corner scored Pena all the way from first base.

Molina’s second-inning homer opened the scoring, and Garcia’s single up the middle scored Theriot to make it 3-0. Freese hit a solo shot in the fourth to put the Cardinals ahead 4-1. He has an RBI in seven of his last eight games.

Barney brought the Cubs within 4-2 with his second homer of the season, landing a shot just barely into the basket in the left-field corner. His previous homer was April 25 against Colorado.

Barney added a triple when Lance Berkman overran a blooper into the right-field corner in the seventh. He scored when pinch-hitter Blake DeWitt’s fly to center was misplayed by John Jay, and the ball rolled to the wall for another triple.

With DeWitt on third and one out, representing the tying run, Jason Motte relieved Garcia and worked out of the jam by striking out Castro and getting Johnson on a grounder.

NOTES: St. Louis’ Allen Craig made his first career start in center field as manager Tony La Russa wanted to give the slumping Jay a break. Jay replaced Craig in the fifth inning. Cubs pitcher Andrew Cashner threw his third live batting practice session on Friday, the latest step in his recovery from a strained right rotator cuff that has had him on the disabled list since April 6. Larry King sang “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” during the seventh-inning stretch. Edwin Jackson will start for the Cardinals on Saturday against the Cubs’ Matt Garza. Jackson will be making his first in Chicago since being dealt by the crosstown White Sox on July 27. He’s won both of his career starts against the Cubs. Garza is 1-1 with a 7.80 ERA in three career starts against St. Louis. The big crowd was entertained by the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds practicing over Lake Michigan a few blocks east of Wrigley Field during the middle part of the game in advance of the weekend’s air and water show in Chicago.

CHICAGO, Aug. 11 (UPI) — Alfonso Soriano had an RBI double and one of Chicago’s three solo homers Wednesday, carrying the Cubs to a 4-2 win over Washington.

The victory came on the night the Cubs honored third baseman Ron Santo, who spent 14 years with the team and who died in December at age 70.

A statue of Santo was unveiled outside Wrigley Field prior to the game with the Nationals.

Soriano’s run-scoring double in the fourth put Chicago in front for good at 2-1. The Chicago homers came from Geovany Soto in the second, Reed Johnson in the fifth and Soriano in the sixth, his 20th of the season.

Rodrigo Lopez (3-3) picked up the victory, allowing a run on five hits in 5 2/3 innings. He struck out four and did not walk a batter.

Carlos Marmol struck out the side in the ninth for his 23rd save.

Ross Detwiler (1-2) gave up three runs on seven hits in five innings to take the loss. Chicago had dropped two in a row and the Nationals had won two straight.

CHICAGO (AP) – Greg Dobbs hit a two-run homer and drove in the go-ahead run with a bases-loaded walk in the eighth inning, leading the Florida Marlins to 7-5 victory over the Chicago Cubs on Sunday.

After Dobbs’ four-pitch walk against Kerry Wood (1-5), Logan Morrison capped Florida’s three-run rally with a two-run single to center that made it 7-4.

Aramis Ramirez hit a two-out RBI double in the bottom half but Randy Choate came in and got Carlos Pena to bounce out to end the inning. Leo Nunez allowed Marlon Byrd’s leadoff single in the ninth before retiring three straight for his 26th save.

Hanley Ramirez homered during Florida’s three-run first, belting a long solo drive for his ninth of the season. John Buck hit three singles and reached four times.

Four Florida pitchers retired 20 straight batters after Darwin Barney’s single in the second, the streak ending with Starlin Castro’s two-out walk against Steve Cishek in the eighth.

Reed Johnson, Castro and Ramirez each doubled and scored during Chicago’s three-run first. Johnson added a sacrifice fly in the second.

Randy Wells allowed four runs and eight hits in six innings for Chicago. The right-hander has surrendered at least four runs in each of his last five starts and is winless since he beat Arizona in his first game of the season on April 4, a span of nine starts.

The Marlins staked Chris Volstad to an early 3-0 lead, but the 6-foot-8 right-hander was removed for a pinch hitter in the fourth. He gave up six runs and four hits.

Burke Badenhop replaced Volstad and threw three perfect innings. Edward Mujica (8-2) tossed a perfect seventh and leads the Marlins in victories.

Florida won three of four in the series to improve to 14-9 under 80-year-old manager Jack McKeon. It has won 12 of 16 overall.

Wells’ first-inning problems continued on Sunday. He walked leadoff hitter Emilio Bonifacio and Dobbs followed with an opposite-field homer that landed in the basket in left-center.

One batter later, Ramirez launched a 3-2 pitch that nearly left Wrigley Field just a shade to the left of center. The ball landed behind the camera booth behind the batter’s eye.

Wells has allowed 13 first-inning runs in 10 starts this season, including five of the 10 homers he has surrendered.

The Cubs bounced back with three in the bottom half against Volstad. Blake DeWitt singled home Ramirez with two outs, tying it at 3.

Wells recovered to throw a scoreless second, but Volstad’s problems continued. Geovany Soto and Barney singled to start the Cubs second. Each runner moved up on Wells’ sacrifice, and Johnson drove in Soto with a fly ball to center.

Buck singled in Mike Stanton to tie it in the fourth, and the Marlins went ahead for good during a wild eighth inning.

Stanton started the inning with a strikeout but hustled to first when Wood’s fastball struck home plate umpire Phil Cuzzi in the mask and rolled back to the screen.

Mike Cameron hit into a double play, but Wood hit Buck, who was replaced by pinch-runner Brett Hayes. Wood then walked pinch-hitter Wes Helms and Emilio Bonifacio reached on an infield single to load the bases for Dobbs.

NOTES: The Marlins play at New York on Monday to make up a May 17 rainout. RHP Clay Hensley will start for the first time this season. He’s been on the disabled list since June 3 with a right shoulder sprain and before that pitched out of the Florida bullpen. McKeon said Hensley won’t be on a strict pitch count and will “go as long as he can go.” … Cubs manager Mike Quade said before the game that he planned to give struggling closer Carlos Marmol another day off. Marmol, who has allowed six runs and walked six batters over his last 1 2-3 innings, is working with pitching coach Mark Riggins to iron out some mechanical issues. … Bonifacio extended his career-high hitting streak to 16 games with an infield single to start the fifth. It’s the longest active streak in the major leagues.

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