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Cubs Trade Michael Barrett to San Diego

June 20, 2007 by cubsnet

The Chicago Cubs have traded Michael Barrett to the San Diego Padres, reports ESPN.com. The Cubs get back catcher Rob Bowen, a minor league pitcher (unknown at this time), and cash considerations. There must have been more to Barrett's personality conflicts than Cubs' players were letting on, for the Cubs do not have another catcher who can hit for much. Barrett was in last night's lineup, hitting 5th, going 2-for-5, in the Cubs' 5-4 win over the Rangers.

Bowen, 26, has been the Padres' backup catcher the past two seasons, and is actually having a good year at the plate this season, hitting .268/.371/.439 in 98 plate appearances.

UPDATE (10:45am): FOXSports.com's Ken Ronsenthal reports that instead of a minor league pitcher, the Cubs have acquired minor league outfielder Kyler Burke. (Hat tip: Another Cubs Blog.)

UPDATE (1:05pm): Jim Hendry, unsurprisingly, says the trade was about defense, not personality conflicts: "We just felt like we were trying to shore up the position in a little different fashion, a little bit more defensively." Also, Greg Maddux gave the Padres an endorsement of Barrett.

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Wow

June 20, 2007 by Brian C, 2 years 2 weeks ago
Comment id: 2588

Didn't see that coming.

That said, I have mixed feelings on Barrett. He had been a very good - and very consistent - offensive catcher since he got to the Cubs. That's unusual - the Cubs haven't had a good-hitting everyday catcher since the Rick Wilkins glory days. And those did not last long, sadly. Very sadly.

But he seems to have gotten worse behind the plate as time has gone on, and now that his offense has slipped, that's become a huge problem. He hardly seems to be able to do anything right back there anymore. A good example - the bunt hit last night by Gerald Laird. That ball barely made it onto the infield grass. I thought it should have been a fairly easy play by Barrett, but he was nowhere to be found. Marshall had to go get it, and by the time he got there, he didn't have a play. I didn't see the replay (I was at the game), but I don't think Barrett even moved.

So, like I said, mixed feelings. I'm sad to see him go, but I think a swap for Bowen is actually a pretty good deal for Hendry. He's an interesting player, with a track record of some success in the minors (although not lately).

Decent

June 20, 2007 by Charles Rector, 2 years 2 weeks ago
Comment id: 2589

Sounds like a good trade. Perhaps Hendry really is getting better as a horse trader after all.

What's This?

June 20, 2007 by Charles Rector, 2 years 2 weeks ago
Comment id: 2590

Here's a pink shaded text that appeared above this thread right after I posted:

warning: Missing argument 3 for subscriptions_comment_page() in /home/steffens/public_html/sites/all/modules/subscriptions/subscriptions.module on line 633.

RE: What's This?

June 20, 2007 by cubsnet, 2 years 2 weeks ago
Comment id: 2591

Yes, I'm aware of that problem, and haven't come up with a fix yet. Thanks for letting me know you're having the problem, too. It has to do with receiving email notifications of new comments on posts.

Paul Sullivan on the trade

June 20, 2007 by cubsnet, 2 years 2 weeks ago
Comment id: 2592

The Chicago Tribune's Paul Sullivan has a good and interesting take on the trade. He concludes: "This trade doesn't make the Cubs better, but it certainly makes them a little duller."

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