So it's Chitown Sports' Turn to Pile on Jim Hendry

So you would think that having the summer off would allow for more blogging time, but the whole "not-having-a-laptop" thing negates that advantage. But I'm typing this on a new one, where the keyboard is almost entirely on the left side of the computer, so expect at least 20% more typos in this the coming posts.

I know I'm not breaking any new ground in suggesting that Jim Hendry has been part of the problem in Cubs land for a while now. I just want to add my two cents.

It seems like Hendry has gotten a free pass from Cubs fans for two things: rebuilding the minor league system, and the Aramis and Derrek trades. I'll start with the minor leagues.

For years it feels like I've been hearing "The minor league system is getting better." "Just wait until (so-and-so) comes up." Yet I can name on one hand the number of home-grown Hendry prospects have lived up to the hype in a Cubs uniform (Soto, Castro, Marmol...maybe Angel Guzman gets a pass). Otherwise, the prospects that come up always manage to underwhelm. Matt Murton. Ryan Theriot. Micah Hoffpauir.

Maybe you can argue that expectations should never be that high with these guys to begin with, but it's hard to tell since so often their way is blocked by overpriced veterans Hendry stupidly signed or traded for (you need names? Really? Fukudome, Soriano, Milton fucking Bradley, even Jacque Jones. I think I was the only person in Chicago who liked Jacque Jones.)

If we have this talent in the minors, where are the power hitting outfielders? I believe the last one's name was Corey Patterson. Front line starters? The last one was Big Z. Corner infielders? Hee Seop Choi?

I guess we haven't needed corner infielders much, since Hendry did pull off two of the biggest heists in the last decade with the Aramis and Derrek trades. I'll give him credit for Nomar, too, since although Nomar didn't do a whole lot in a Cubs uni, he didn't cost them a whole heck of a lot, either.

The problem is that almost every trade since then has been a loss for the Cubs. Juan Pierre. Greg Maddux for Caeser Izturis. Theriot and Ted Lilly for Blake Dewitt (Hendry apparently loves weak hitting Dodger infielders). Mark DeRosa for nothing. I know some of these trades (like Derrek last year) are designed to give a veteran another postseason chance, but it's an indictment of Hendry that we're in that situation in the first place.

The Cubs aren't getting better until there are changes up top, and we start running the club with some sort of long term plan. That can't happen with Hendry. He has to go.