My 2014 Hall of Fame Ballot

This years Hall of Fame ballot is filled with numerous stars and very talented players that makes it tough to determine who should get in.

1. Greg Maddux
Easily one of the best pitchers of all time. Had great command and got outs without throwing too much pitched. He had a lifetime 3.16 ERA with 999 walks in 5008.1 innings. At one point in his career he won 4 straight Cy Young Awards posting a 1.98 ERA in that time period. He pitched for the Braves, Cubs, Dodgers, and Padres.

2. Craig Biggio
One of the greatest hitters to ever play on the Astros. He hit .281/.363/.433 with 3060 hits and 291 home runs as primarily a second baseman for the Astros. He hit well compared to other second baseman.

3. Frank Thomas
A great power hitter with 521 career home runs and a .555 career slugging percentage should lead him into the HOF. He had his best years in a White Sox uniform hitting .307/.427/.568 for them with 448 home runs. His plate discipline was also well known as he walked more times than he struck out in his career with 1667 walks and 1397 punchouts. He played for the White Sox, A's, and Blue Jays.

4. Barry Bonds
Despite being dogged by steroid rumors Bonds still makes my ballot. He is baseballs all-time home run leader and is the only player eligible for the Hall of Fame with an OPS over 1.000. He drew an unprecedented 2558 walks in his career for an OBP of .444. The 7-time MVP played for the Giants and Pirates in his career.

5. Sammy Sosa
The Cubs most prolific slugger hit .273/.344/.534 in his career with 609 career home runs. He is probably best known for chasing Mark McGwire in 1998 for the single season home run record. The 7-time All Star played for the Cubs, White Sox, Rangers, and Orioles.

6. Jack Morris
One of the most underrated pitchers of all time Morris pitched 3824 innings in his career with a 3.90 ERA. He punched out 2478 and walked 1390. He is best known for his 10 inning complete game in game 7 of the 1991 World Series in which the Twins eventually won. Morris pitched for the Tigers, Twins, Blue Jays, and Indians.

7. Roger Clemens
The great pitcher pitched to a 3.12 ERA in 4916.2 innings in his career with a 354-184 W-L record. Clemens punched out 4672 in his career while walking 1580.  He is also known for his involvement in baseballs steroid scandal being a suspected user and his involvement in multiple bench clearing brawls. He played for the Red Sox, Blue Jays, Yankees, and Astros in his career.

8. Mike Piazza
One of the best hitting catchers of all time Piazza hit .307/.377/.545 in his career with 427 career home runs. He was drafted in the 60th round of the MLB draft as a favor but he has become a Hall of Fame caliber player. Piazza had a .922 career OPS and has been one of the best hitting catchers of all time.

9. Tom Glavine
A member of Atlantas "Big Three" in the 90's Glavine was one of baseballs best pitchers during the 90's with a 164-87 record with 2228 innings pitched and 1465 strikeouts and adding 2 Cy Young Awards. Glavine finished 305-203 in his career with 2607 strikeouts and 4413.1 innings pitched. He pitched for the Braves and the Mets in his career.

10. Tim Raines
A very underrated hitter has been on the ballot far too long without induction but I am going to vote for him. He was a very good hitter and quick on the base paths. He hit .294/.385/.425 in his career with 808 career stolen bases. He had 2604 career hits and hit 170 career home runs. Raines played for the Expos, White Sox, Yankees, A's, Marlins, and O's in his career.

Javier Baez is a Top 5 Prospect

According to Baseball Prospectus writer Jason Parks Javier Baez will be in the Top 5 in BP's top 101 Prospects due out early next year. It should come as no surprise as Baez had a wonderful season for Daytona and Tennessee hitting .282/.341/.578 with 37 home runs in 130 combined games. He also showed some speed with 20 stolen bases and 4 triples.

One of the concerns about Baez is his plate discipline. He was able to walk 40 times in 577 plate appearances but also struck out 147 times which is a 25% rate which is up from 21% in 2012. The issue is not a big one yet. He still has another season to improve his discipline before he is considered big league ready.

 Baez was better defensively than current Cubs shortstop Starlin Castro. Baez fielded only .932 with 44 errors but he had a range factor of 4.88 which is much better than Castros 4.11.

Baez has the potential to be a superstar and with the "Big Four" of Jorge Soler, Baez, Albert Almora, and Kris Bryant coming up soon the Cubs could be contenders as soon as 2015.

Cubs should sign Tanaka

The Cubs are building from the farm, but the problem is that they do not have many top pitching prospects at higher levels which means they need to go the trade route/open market to find pitchers. The Cubs do have Kyle Hendricks, a 24-year old RHP who was lights out in 166.1 innings pitched for AA and AAA. But they could always add more and adding Japanese pitcher Masahiro Tanaka would add to their rotation.

Tanaka is a very special talent posting a 24-0 record last season which is absolutely amazing. Over a quarter of Rakutens wins came from Tanakas season. He has a splitter which drops out and he can command it. He doesn't have the power Yu Darvish has but he can locate his pitched effectively and efficiently. Tanaka also rarely gives up home runs with 6 given up in 212 innings.

Cubs rotation if they sign Tanaka:

1. Tanaka
2. Jeff Samardzija
3. Travis Wood
4. Edwin Jackson
5. Jake Arrieta

Cubs rotation if they do not sign Tanaka:

1. Samardzija
2. Wood
3. Jackson
4. Arrieta
5. Chris Rusin/Kyle Hendricks

Very early 2014 Cubs predictions

 Starting Lineup:
C Welington Castillo .265/.321/.452 16 home runs 72 RBIs
1B Anthony Rizzo: .273/.351/.478 28 home runs 95 RBIs
 2B Darwin Barney .221/.274/.321 2 home runs 26 RBIs
SS Starlin Castro .290/.336/.412 7 home runs 58 RBIs
3B Luis Valbuena .231/.326/.401 5 home runs 32 RBIs
LF Junior Lake .286/.321/.426 17 home runs 67 RBIs
CF Justin Ruggiano .251/.321/.436 22 home runs 71 RBIs
RF Nate Schierholtz .256/.308/.421 11 home runs 55 RBIs

Pitching Rotation:
SP Travis Wood 12-11 3.43 ERA 156 strikeouts
SP Jeff Samardzija 13-13 3.61 ERA 212 strikeouts
SP Edwin Jackson 8-12 4.12 ERA 143 strikeouts
SP Jake Arrieta 10-6 4.16 ERA 112 strikeouts
SP Chris Rusin 11-13 4.63 ERA 104 strikeouts

These are very early predictions so don't put too much weight on them. When Spring Training rolls around we will know more about who looks good and who doesn't. Also the offseason isn't done so any of these players could be traded as well.

Cubs sign reliever Jose Veras

The Cubs have added to their bullpen again as they have signed reliever Jose Veras to a 2-year 9.5 million dollar deal with the second year being a team option according to Enrique Rojas of ESPNDeportes.com. Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com also reported that Veras would be the Cubs closer. Veras, 32, had a nice season for the Astros and the Tigers in 2013 posting a 3.02 ERA in 67 games last season while saving 21 games.

Veras gave up 45 hits in 62.2 innings and has given up 300 in 377 career innings. A fantastic rate and something the Cubs would like to improve upon as they had an 8.3 H/9 last season. Veras also strikes out batters at a high rate as he struck out 60 batters in 67 games pitched.

I really like what the Cubs have done to their bullpen by adding 2 relievers who had nice years last year. If not closing Veras is at least a solid set up man.

Cubs interested in Jonathan Sanchez?

A report came out from Mark Gonzales in the Chicago Tribune that the Cubs were interested in FA LHP Jonathan Sanchez. This interest doesn't surprises me as the bottom of the rotation would be Jake Arrieta and Chris Rusin. It would be nice to be able to add another pitcher into the mix for the 5th spot.

Sanchez struggled in 4 starts for the Pirates this season posting a 11.85 ERA in 13.2 innings. He was released by the Pirates in early May and was picked up by the Dodgers where he struggled in their minor league system.

I think Sanchez, 31, could have a rebound year in 2014. He hasn't pitched well since 2011 but he actually walked less and struck out more batters than in 2012. The problem was giving up hits and giving up home runs but that could be fixed by trying to pitch down more.

If the Cubs sign him it will be on a minor league deal. It would be better to play it safe than risk some money on a struggling starter.

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