Cowtipper
01-01-2009, 10:10 AM
After an unexpected exit from St. Louis earlier this month, new Cubs second baseman Aaron Miles has a bit of a chip on his shoulder
Miles was non-tendered by the Cardinals for the second year in a row, then rejected a last-minute overture by St. Louis to sign a two-year, $4.9 million deal with the Cubs.
“I was a little surprised,” he said. “Given the situation, and how well I did last year, I felt like I was a part of the team over there. Financially, I understand why they did it. But you know, it was still kind of shocking because I figured I had a place over there.
“As far as that’s concerned, you play the game and you know this game is about money, and when it comes to signing players and how you make your team up… (but) in the end, they non-tendered me two years in a row and I just felt that the attraction to me being there wasn’t as big as it was before. They showed it by non-tendering me two years in a row.”
In case you missed it- that’s two years, consecutively.
Cubs general manager Jim Hendry said he had neither Miles nor Joey Gathright on his radar a month ago, before the Winter Meetings started. Both were non-tendered by their clubs for payroll reasons, and Hendry liked their relatively low price tags, and the fact both could hit from the left side and play multiple positions. It’s low-risk, finically, and gives manager Lou Piniella more options on double-switches.
Meanwhile, DeRosa’s departure to Cleveland, in a deal for pitching prospects Jeff Stevens, John Gaub and Chris Archer, set off much angst among Cubs fans. Many argued the team was downgrading at second base, losing power and production to get a switch-hitting singles hitter.
Hendry pointed to Miles’ versatility, the switch-hitting, his character and career average in day games. The signing was predicated on his ability to move DeRosa and his $5.5 million salary, which was not at all difficult. Hendry lauded DeRosa for his contributions over the last two years, but added: “We felt like we had to move forward in this direction, and that’s why we decided to make the deal.”
The reason for moving DeRosa had as much to do with his position as anything. With Derrek Lee, Alfonso Soriano, Aramis Ramirez, Ryan Theriot and Geovany Soto as everyday players, second was their only option for a lefty hitter.
“There really wasn’t another place to get more left-handed than at second,” Hendry said. “We certainly like the way Fontenot played last year and we think he’s deserving of more time, and that’s why the acquisition of Miles (was made). ... When you really stop to analyze it, if you want three, four, potentially five (left-handed hitters) on the field at the same time, then second base was an area we felt like we possibly could make a change. It certainly had nothing to do with the type of player DeRosa is, and he was an integral part of us winning the last two years. ... He certainly lived up to everything we thought he would be. But when you look at it from that perspective, moving forward, that was the area to probably change the deck at.”
Hendry spoke briefly to DeRosa but planned to talk later, he said. He declined to speculate on whether Miles would replace Alfonso Soriano as leadoff man, though it gives Piniella the option to change. Piniella has previously stated, repeatedly, that Soriano was his leadoff man and there were no other options on the roster.
But that chestnut is officially history, as Miles can bat at the top or the bottom of the order.
http://blogs.chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sports_hardball/2008/12/miles-gets-chip.html
Miles was non-tendered by the Cardinals for the second year in a row, then rejected a last-minute overture by St. Louis to sign a two-year, $4.9 million deal with the Cubs.
“I was a little surprised,” he said. “Given the situation, and how well I did last year, I felt like I was a part of the team over there. Financially, I understand why they did it. But you know, it was still kind of shocking because I figured I had a place over there.
“As far as that’s concerned, you play the game and you know this game is about money, and when it comes to signing players and how you make your team up… (but) in the end, they non-tendered me two years in a row and I just felt that the attraction to me being there wasn’t as big as it was before. They showed it by non-tendering me two years in a row.”
In case you missed it- that’s two years, consecutively.
Cubs general manager Jim Hendry said he had neither Miles nor Joey Gathright on his radar a month ago, before the Winter Meetings started. Both were non-tendered by their clubs for payroll reasons, and Hendry liked their relatively low price tags, and the fact both could hit from the left side and play multiple positions. It’s low-risk, finically, and gives manager Lou Piniella more options on double-switches.
Meanwhile, DeRosa’s departure to Cleveland, in a deal for pitching prospects Jeff Stevens, John Gaub and Chris Archer, set off much angst among Cubs fans. Many argued the team was downgrading at second base, losing power and production to get a switch-hitting singles hitter.
Hendry pointed to Miles’ versatility, the switch-hitting, his character and career average in day games. The signing was predicated on his ability to move DeRosa and his $5.5 million salary, which was not at all difficult. Hendry lauded DeRosa for his contributions over the last two years, but added: “We felt like we had to move forward in this direction, and that’s why we decided to make the deal.”
The reason for moving DeRosa had as much to do with his position as anything. With Derrek Lee, Alfonso Soriano, Aramis Ramirez, Ryan Theriot and Geovany Soto as everyday players, second was their only option for a lefty hitter.
“There really wasn’t another place to get more left-handed than at second,” Hendry said. “We certainly like the way Fontenot played last year and we think he’s deserving of more time, and that’s why the acquisition of Miles (was made). ... When you really stop to analyze it, if you want three, four, potentially five (left-handed hitters) on the field at the same time, then second base was an area we felt like we possibly could make a change. It certainly had nothing to do with the type of player DeRosa is, and he was an integral part of us winning the last two years. ... He certainly lived up to everything we thought he would be. But when you look at it from that perspective, moving forward, that was the area to probably change the deck at.”
Hendry spoke briefly to DeRosa but planned to talk later, he said. He declined to speculate on whether Miles would replace Alfonso Soriano as leadoff man, though it gives Piniella the option to change. Piniella has previously stated, repeatedly, that Soriano was his leadoff man and there were no other options on the roster.
But that chestnut is officially history, as Miles can bat at the top or the bottom of the order.
http://blogs.chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sports_hardball/2008/12/miles-gets-chip.html