No shock if Cubs move Garza, too

Maybe it's the language barrier.

Perhaps it's that Chicago doesn't speak Theo.

Sounded like English to me, but apparently it was difficult to comprehend when Theo Epstein said, “There is a significant amount of work to do. I'm not going to put a timetable on it, but there's a lot to do to get this where we want it to be.”

Or maybe it was too complicated when Jed Hoyer said the Cubs would look for undervalued free agents to “fill holes” for the near term but wouldn't blow a large portion of the payroll on a big-ticket free agent to try to fix the mistakes of the past — at least not when they're years away from competing.

For two months Cubs management has been saying they're going to completely rebuild this from the bottom up, and yet this is still a news flash to many when they hear it — over and over and over again.

The Cubs are years away from fixing this organization, and that means not a single player on the roster is untouchable. No, not a single one, not even Starlin Castro.

Now, a reasonable person can quite easily assume that Castro is going nowhere, that he'll be 22 in March, is under control for five more years and has a huge future. His present is pretty good, too.

But if Cubs management was brought a package that included three potential Starlin Castro-type talents, they might consider it.

Again, I don't believe that will occur.

The point is that there's much concern the Cubs will trade Matt Garza, anger that they've dealt Sean Marshall, and worry about how it affects the 2012 season.

That's the disconnect.

Something's missing between the reality of where the Cubs are going to be the next two or three years and what some expect next season.

Think of it this way: Any player who isn't certain to be here and helping the Cubs in a significant way in three years is absolutely expendable if he can bring the Cubs something of value in return.

The Cubs aren't going to give away any reasonable assets, but Garza could net a huge package, so they're shopping him to see just how big that could be. If they can't get enough, the Cubs won't do it and they'll be happy to have Garza stay here and start for them, revisiting trades again in July and next off-season.

Garza will be 30 and a free agent in two years if the Cubs don't trade him or lock him up long term before that.

If he remains on the roster, they have time to decide whether they want to do that. But in the meantime they will consider all the options — only one of which is trading Garza for a package of players that helps them build for the future.

The deal

Baseball America is out with its top 10 Rays prospects and ranks shortstop Hak-Ju Lee No. 2 and righty Chris Archer No. 3, projecting Archer as Tampa's future closer. Both were acquired from the Cubs in the Matt Garza deal a year ago.

Bull stuff

How much did Tom Thibodeau like Rip Hamilton on Tuesday?

“Defensively,” Thibodeau said, “I thought he looked very good.”

It's a meaningless exhibition game and one shouldn't overreact to such a game, but Thibodeau doesn't toss around defensive compliments unless merited.

The stat

QB Caleb Hanie now has a career rating of 41.6, which makes him the worst Bears QB of the last 10 years among those who have started at least three games, worse even than Craig Krenzel's 52.5 and Jon Quinn's 53.7.

Take some time with that, but you probably shouldn't consider a large meal just before or after.

The new QB

You have to wonder how very little Josh McCown must have shown in practice for the Bears to keep going with Caleb Hanie.

At 0-2 after the terrible K.C. performance, McCown would have been in there if the Bears believed in him at all. And at 0-3 after the Denver game, the Bears came back with Hanie for a fourth start?

Yikes.

Hare apparent

Kim Jong Un is reportedly a Michael Jordan fan. He also takes Kwame Brown first in his fantasy league every year — which he wins every year by a billion points.

The quote

Derrick Rose, after signing a five-year, $94 million extension Wednesday: “Money, I don't think, is gonna change me.”

Best line

Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau: “I wish it were a 10-year contract.”

Best tweet

Deadspin: “After five days in captivity, Chris Kaman emerges to assure family that he is unharmed and Hornets are treating him well.”

Best dream

Emailer Tom Barnicle: “My wish for this holiday season is that George McCaskey wakes up Christmas morning as Rocky Wirtz.”

Best headline

Onion Sports: “New horse-racing initiative aimed at training thoroughbreds from inner city.”

And finally …

This tweet from Chris Kaman, on his trade from the Clippers: “I feel like my girlfriend broke up with me, but I still want to be friends because I really like her family.”

brozner@dailyherald.com

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