There are some news stories about acquisitions the Cubs are making. A couple good, one potentially good and another that's alright if....

Picking up Damian Miller is nothing but a good move, in my book. At any rate, it's an improvement. He calls a good game, and his bat is better than either Joe Girardi or Todd Hundley's. They guy he'll apparently be platooning with, Paul Bako, is decent, as well. He's good for a platoon. If I'm not mistaken, Bako was Maddux's personal catcher during Bako's days with the Braves. He's good for a platoon.

The one that is potentially good is Mike Remlinger. He's had a great run with the Braves over the last few seasons. I say this is a potentially good move simply for the track record the Cubs bullpen seems to have. But the guy's a lefty and he's good for 70+ appearances. I'd hope they'd think about cutting him back to 55 appearances or so, a stopper of sorts. A good setup for Farnsworth and whomever they get to close (if it's not Farnsworth).

The one that's got me thinking is this trade that hasn't quite gone through with the Dodgers.

Todd Hundley is expected to go to the Dodgers for Eric Karros and Mark Grudzielanek.

I'm all for dumping Todd Hundley's salary. I've actually liked the effort he's put in that I've seen. But his attitude, at least as portrayed on the television, always bothered me a bit. He's got that Paul O'Neill bitchy problem. Besides his problems at the plate, though, he never struck me as totally having the pitching staff under control. He often seemed at a loss. But then, I'm comparing him to Joe Girardi, who's one of the smartest catchers to play the game. You'll see Girardi managing before too long, methinks.

And picking up Grudzielanek doesn't bother me, if they intend on using him on the bench in a backup/pinch-hitting capacity.
I'm tired of the Cubs' picking up veterans to play in these positions. I want them to give Bobby Hill a chance. He's got crazy little man speed.

Eric Karros is something of a question.

Here's what I hope: They'll use Karros as further trade bait. Maybe pick up a couple of relievers for him.

The Cubs have Hee Seop Choi, and they've always been high on him. I hope this isn't some kind of swerve to put a veteran instead of a rookie in at first.

Just a thought: Can you teach a 35 year old Karros to play third base?

Nah.

I'm sold on Mark Bellhorn for third base. He's a solid bat. Granted, last year was a career year for him, and he's not likely to repeat those kid of numbers. He's a solid glove, too.

And there was talk that Jeff Kent wanted to play for Dusty Baker. Could they talk Mr. Kent into playing third? Or perhaps Grudzielanek or Hill in order to let Kent play second?

I have to admit a lineup with Sosa and Kent looks nice.

A couple more thoughts before I move on:

Moises Alou must have a better year.
They need his bat. He needs to get somewhere close to 2001 levels. You could plug him in that two spot.

and.

I will not get all optimistic over this season. I got optimistic last season, and look what happened.

Of course, these are the Cubs. What am I thinking of?

Moving forward:

Andy Richter Controls the Universe is back on Fox, Sundays at 8:30 Central. It was great last season. The first episode this year had funny parts, but I'm confident it'll be better. Andy Richter is one of the funniest guys on television. He made Conan O'Brien for me, and I haven't watched Conan regularly since Andy left. I'm watching Andy Richter Controls the Universe. You should too.