In the last month  or so, 4 pitchers have notched their 100th wins in the major leagues. Carlos Zambrano started  the milestone march, hitting the century mark on June 5th.  Brad Penny then followed on June 17th, with Ted Lilly and Josh Beckett reaching their marks on July 11th and 12th respectively.  Each traveled their own path towards 100 wins, with Penny and Beckett both starting with the Marlins and winding up with the Red Sox, Lilly spanning most of North America (two stops in Canada, Oakland and New York, only to wind up in the middle of the Continent) and Zambrano staying in Chicago for all 100 of his wins.

With his circuitous route, Teddy Roosevelt Lilly took 271 games and 246 starts to reach the milestone, while Penny did it in 264 games and 260 starts.

What really drew my attention was the similarities between Josh Beckett and Carlos Zambrano. Each came into the league in 2001, with Beckett taking 211 starts while Carlos took 219 starts to reach 100 wins.  The similarities don’t stop at wins either.

Career Numbers for Beckett through 1309 IP (blame it on the blisters):

ERA: 3.74

CG: 7

SHO: 4

Hits: 1186

Earned Runs: 544

Home Runs: 136

Strike Outs: 1241

Career Numbers for Zambrano through 1484 IP:

ERA: 3.48

CG: 8

SHO: 3

Hits: 1248

Earned Runs: 574

Home Runs: 123

Strike Outs: 1254

Yes, Beckett gives up the long ball more often, but also has a better K/9 rate. The other numbers aren’t so different considering the slight difference in innings pitched.  Although as Carlos reminds us there is One Big Difference.

Beckett has won a World Series Ring, while the Cubs haven’t come close.

When Beckett was traded from the Marlins, it appeared as if the Marlins got a pretty good deal. Hanley Ramirez has performed at or above expectations becoming a fixture at shortstop for the foreseeable future or until the next youth (see High School) movement of the Marlins. The other players shipped from Boston included Jesus Delgado, Harvey Garcia and Anibal Sanchez. Delgado and Garcia have bounced around the minors with limited time in the majors, while Sanchez has been tantalizingly inconsistent, throwing a no-hitter in 2006 and tearing his labrum the next year.

Interestingly enough, the Marlins passed on a deal with the Rangers that would have reportedly yielded Hank Blalock and John Danks in exchange for the native Texan, Beckett.  One could argue that the Marlins would be better off with this duo than the cache of prospects they received from Boston.

With all the talk of Zambrano’s trade prospects and Toronto’s requests for four major-league ready prospects in exchange for Roy Halladay, it got me wondering whether the Cubs should pull the trigger on a Zambrano trade and if so what approach should they take? He’s no Halladay but he’s still a #1 starter who routinely gets through the sixth and seventh innings. Rather than four prospects, why not two good prospects and a low A.

If the Cubs can’t win a playoff series with Zambrano as their #1 because of an anemic offense. While the Cubs have plenty of young guys who have shown they can have moderate success if they’re given the playing time, they are still stuck with Theriot, Fontenot in the infield and Soriano and Bradley in the corner outfield spots. The first priority for upgrading would be the middle infield, strengthening their lineup for the inevitable NL Wild Card Round.

Sam "The Investment Banker" Fuld

With Jake Fox and Sam Fuld showing some promise as outfielders in the Cubs system, there might be less of an emphasis on getting an outfielder in return, but I would expect the Cubs to look for two legitimate major league starters in return for Carlos Zambrano.

Why not look to where the Marlins missed? The White Sox certainly benefited from their trade of Brandon McCarthy for the aforementioned John Danks. With McCarthy’s demise and Nolan Ryan at the helm of the organization, there is certainly an emphasis on getting starting pitchers who do not need to be coddled or babied. Carlos might be crazy but you don’t have to coo in his ear to get him to pitch well.  As an added plus, the Rangers are hanging tough in the AL West, only a game and a half behind the Angels in a competitive year for the entire division.

What might the Rangers have to offer, well, let’s start with the potential trade’s Hanley Ramirez, Rangers starting shortstop Elvis Andrus. Andrus was hitting .270 around the beginning of July before cooling off a bit over the last two weeks, but was widely regarded as one of the top 5 shortstop prospects in the league and so good that Hank Blalock was moved over to 3rd base to accommodate him.

The Cubs could replace Zambrano with another fellow Venezuelan, Martin Perez, a lefty with a great curveball who has pitched well at Single A this year, and is currently regarded as the 5th best prospect in the Rangers organization. Throw in another prospect or two and you’ve strengthed your infield in the now and your rotation for the near future, while further strengthening the farm system.

While this may be a little out of left field, it’s worth thinking of what the Cubs could get from trades since their recent history with free agent signings have left much to be desired.  See Soriano, Bradley, Fukudome.

With that, who do you have your eyes on in other organizations? What do you think is the weak spot that could be strengthened in a trade?

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