Trib: Dubois To Take Over As Starting Leftfielder
"Jason Dubois will get a shot at becoming the everyday left fielder, beginning Monday," reports the Chicago Tribune's Paul Sullivan. "The Cubs have decided to make Todd Hollandsworth a backup and aren't currently seeking outfield help." (HT: The Cub Reporter.)
Until I see Dubois start five games in a row, I'm skeptical. Unfortunately, Sullivan doesn't state a source for his information. The bit about Dubois (part of a notes column) just goes on to include a quote from GM Jim Hendry regarding why the Cubs aren't actively seeking a trade for a new leftfielder (no one else is willing to trade someone the Cubs might want). Carrie Muskat's MLB.com notes column today did not include any indication that Dubois would be taking over in left on a full-time basis.
Questions left unanswered: What does "get a shot" mean? A few games? A month? Does Dusty Baker know about this plan? What (or who) is stopping Baker from trotting Jose Macias or Ben Grieve out to left (the former option being much worse than the latter)?
It will be interesting to see what the Sun-Times and Daily Herald report in Monday's editions.
Hollandsworth is hitting .221/.295/.337 in 95 plate appearances this year. Dubois is hitting .300/.344/.700 in 32 plate appearances.
Regarding Hollandsworth, I feel bad for him. I really wanted it to work out for him after his excellent 2004 season before going down with a leg injury. Not only would Hollandsworth's success have been good for the Cubs, Hollandsworth appears to be one of the better people associated with baseball.
UPDATE (5/9/2005 10:00AM): As I figured given Sullivan's lack of a source, neither the Sun-Times nor the Daily Herald report today that Dubois will be taking over in left. The S-T just mentions that Ben Grieve played for Hollandsworth on Sunday. Mike Spellman of the DH, after noting that Grieve played instead of Dubois on Sunday, writes that Dubois "will continue to wait his turn," indicating that his turn has yet to come.
UPDATE II (1:00PM): An email to Paul Sullivan asking him who his source is produced this response: "I hope you're kidding me. Just watch and you'll find out if it's true or not."
UPDATE III (10:15PM): This article has been updated here.
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Wow, Paul Sullivan is a jerk.
Wow, Paul Sullivan is a jerk. I'm not sure I'd go around and tell everyone who my sources are, but he could have responded a little more nicely at least.
I agree that it's going to take a while for Dubois to get it going. He might have a big game right away, but I'm reserving judgement on Dooby for at least a week.
-MikeJ
Old Style Cubs
http://oldstylecubs.blogspot.com
The problem with the way Sull
The problem with the way Sullivan writes the short bit about Dubois is that, not only does he not state a source for his information, he doesn't even say if he has a source. My email to him was an attempt to find out if the information was coming from the coaching staff or the front office or both. He didn't have to name a name, either in the article or in his response to me. As it is, we're left wondering if Sullivan actually has a source for the information or if he's just speculating.
And, yes, I believe Sullivan could have responded in a kinder manner. But I did place the CubsNet.com address in the signature line of my email to him, and we all know how Sullivan views online-only writers.
Ha, fair enough on Sullivan.
Ha, fair enough on Sullivan. Sources or not, though, I still hope he's right.
--
Mike Jansen
Old Style Cubs
Well, he's not
so now let's see who's the ***, eh.
****, and I actually had some hopes for this team