Chicago Cubs Baseball

Only time will tell whether Trader Jim’s recent acquisition of Jason Kendall will be seen as a steal or a bad deal. But judging from the fans’ boos after Kendall’s dubious Chicago Cubs debut, the Trade-O-Meter needle is definitely pointing to the negative side.

And ESPN’s Keith Law of the Scout.com offered little reassurance about Kendall’s abilities on local talk radio yesterday. To paraphrase Law, “He (Kendall) can’t hit, he can’t throw and he can’t run. Other than that, he’s a great player.”

Law further went on to say that Oakland GM Billy Beane couldn’t wait to move Kendall out. It’s hard to dispute Law’s comments considering the Cubs received $4.5 million in cash, while giving up light-hitting catcher Rob Bowen and pitching prospect Jerry Blevens.

There’s no question that Kendall’s skills, at age 33, are diminishing - particularly after donning the tools of ignorance for 11 major league seasons. But as we know, in baseball, the numbers may shade the truth, but they never lie.

Kendall entered the 2007 season as a career .301 hitter. His current .226 BA belies his career averages. Baseball fans know that Kendall isn’t going to deliver much, if any power, and any speed he had pretty much was lost at first base with the gruesome injury he suffered in 1999.

Considering the Chicago Cubs’ offense is relying more on dinkers than dingers to score runs these days , Kendall seems like a pretty decent offensive fit. He has, after all, a lifetime .375 OBP.

What did the Cubs have to lose anyway from an offensive standpoint? With the exception of Koyie Hill’s recent offensive showing, the Cubs have gone over a month minus any noticeable production from the catcher’s slot.

So has Trader Jim’s touch gone the way of Harry Potter’s magic wand? Did he jump the gun nabbing Kendall when some other, younger, more offensive-minded catcher might become available as we near the trading deadline? Or is Trader Jim holding the hot hand?

Time tells all and Trader Jim isn’t showing any signs of slowing down. The most recent rumor is Hendry has his sights set on Kansas City Royal’s reliever Zack Greinke.

Whether Kendall, Greinke or any other player picked up between now and the trade deadline is a steal or a bad deal, doesn’t matter to this Chicago Cubs fan. The fact is the Cubs are winning and Trader Jim and the Cubs front office is trying.

And that’s about all any baseball fan can ask for.