 |
| Friday, July 27 Cubs sweeten the pot for McGriff ESPN.com news services |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
CHICAGO -- The Chicago Cubs finally got their man. After weeks of trying, the Cubs on Friday acquired ageless first baseman Fred McGriff from the Tampa Bay Devil Rays for pitcher Manny Aybar and a player to be named. A deal for McGriff has been rumored since the All-Star break. But the 37-year-old slugger continually declined to waive a no-trade clause, choosing to remain with the worst team in baseball in his hometown.
"I have been thinking about it for the last two weeks," McGriff said Friday after changing his mind. "This decision gives me an opportunity to control my future. I had to think about everything as far as `Do I want to play?' and `Where do I want to play?' and `How long do I want to play?'
"From the start I didn't want to make a hasty decision. I knew I had until July 31. I knew I had time to think about it. I didn't want to jump out and do something. I wanted to analyze things." McGriff got a new contract to accept the trade, one that probably will result in him getting at least $1 million more that his current contract called for. ESPN.com's Jayson Stark breaks down some of the perks McGriff got from the Cubs in the new deal:
"I think time is what finally changed his mind. It just took him a while to come to grips that this was the best thing for him," MacPhail said. "It was never an issue about selling the Cubs. They were very comfortable with the Cubs. It was an issue about leaving home and family." The Cubs entered play Friday leading the National League Central by 2½ games but are in need of some power to protect Sammy Sosa, who leads the majors with 27 intentional walks. McGriff, who has 19 home runs, may provide that. The five-time All-Star has 436 home runs, 1,359 RBI and extensive postseason experience during a 16-year career.
A native of Tampa Bay, McGriff intended to finish his career in Florida after being acquired from the Atlanta Braves in November 1997. But the Devil Rays never prospered and McGriff never slowed down. He had 87 home runs and 352 RBI in 3½ seasons with the Devil Rays, moving to 27th on the all-time homer list. In Chicago, McGriff will play every day at first base, which has been shared by Matt Stairs and Ron Coomer, who have combined for 16 homers and 75 RBI. Coomer has also been playing third base with Bill Mueller on the disabled list. Sosa began play Friday with 34 homers and 98 RBI but supplies most of the punch for a team that is 11th in the league in runs scored.
"We've been doing it all year long," Sosa said. "Now it's going to be different. Fred is going to help a lot and give a lot of people opportunities."
McGriff has starred in the NL and is one of only three players -- Hall of Famer Frank Robinson and Mark McGwire are the others -- to hit 200 home runs in each league.
The Cubs are looking for help as they seek their first World Series title since 1908. McGriff may also provide some October punch if the Cubs get that far. He is batting .303 with 10 homers and 37 RBI in 50 postseason games, winning a World Series with the Braves in 1995. "It will be fun to see if I can help the Cubs get to the playoffs," McGriff said.
"My family has supported me and told me to do what is best for me. After the Albie Lopez trade, I realized that it could end up ugly, with me not playing. I didn't want to go out that way, I still feel I can play at this time." "He was the target guy for us and you can't let that die," said Cubs manager Don Baylor, who found out 45 minutes before Friday's 4-3 win over St. Louis that the deal was finally OKed.
"I guess the Fred McGriff saga is over and he's coming," said Coomer. "We'll see what happens. He's a good guy and a good player."
The player who will lose his starting job when McGriff arrives is veteran Stairs, who's been handling first base most of the season.
"Everything is positive. He will make the team better. I haven't had all that good of a year and he's had a great year. I'll get my at-bats somewhere," Stairs said.
MacPhail said there would be no resentment in the Cubs clubhouse because of the lengthy time McGriff took to make a decision.
"They want to win games and are confident Fred can help them," he said. Devil Rays general manager Chuck LaMar thanked McGriff for giving the team credibility but also expressed relief that his star accepted the trade. "This organization has to get back to building with young players and at the same time lowering payroll," LaMar said. "This trade, and trades like this one, give our young players a chance to establish themselves as major leaguers and reduce our payroll." The rubber-armed Aybar, 26, joins his sixth team in five major league seasons and fifth since the start of 2000. He is 16-18 with a 5.14 ERA in 168 games -- 28 starts. ESPN Radio 1000 in Chicago reported that the player to be named will be Triple-A shortstop Jason Smith, who is on the disabled list but is hitting .233 with four home runs and 71 strikeouts in 240 at-bats. Information from The Associated Press and SportsTicker were used in this report. |
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
McGriff trade
The newest Cub
