Cubs Sign Scott Baker to 1 Year Deal

[Tryptamine]

never heard of this guy. what's the point of signing players to one year contract? he will probably get traded halfway thru the season

Very solid pitcher. From 2007-2011 he was worth between 2.6 and 3.5 WAR. His peripherals are always solid, his K/9 seem to be increasing, his only real downfall, other than the surgery, is that he's a pretty extreme fly ball pitcher.

[ReJo]

Very solid pitcher. From 2007-2011 he was worth between 2.6 and 3.5 WAR. His peripherals are always solid, his K/9 seem to be increasing, his only real downfall, other than the surgery, is that he's a pretty extreme fly ball pitcher.

May want to skip him on those days when the wind is howling straight out. He should be awesome at home in April and May though

[BobTheAutomator]

never heard of this guy. what's the point of signing players to one year contract? he will probably get traded halfway thru the season

This is likely the feeling of over 90% of Cubs fans, but this is likely the type of signing you can see until the FO decides the farm and "core" is where they would like it to be and starts to sign longer term deals.

[ABE32]

i don't see this as one of the two SP for the rotation.... does anybody else feel this way?

I feel like he is just going to battle for our 5 spot

Doubt it I think he will be in line for the 4th spot behind shark Garza and one of the following:McCarthy/Johnson/Liriano/Haren

[Yagyu+]

I don't know if we should expect to see Baker's spot in the rotation skipped every so often, but a Carlos Villanueva signing might make more sense now as he could help offset any innings limitations if/when he's needed beyond bullpen duty.

[JBears79]

I like the signing but I don't consider Baker a lock for the rotation. I think he comes in to battle for the fifth spot and to be added depth.

[Muhammad73]

I don't know how I feel about this. I like the pickup, but if this a signing meant to fill the three or four spot rather than battle for the five I might take issue. I just hope this doesn't mean that we signed Baker in place of a McCarthy or Liriano, whom have much more upside and return value.

[SenatorMendoza]

I assume he's a virtual lock for the 5th spot. I get the reason why he signed with the Cubs, for not a lot of money is the promise he's going to get a long leash in the 5th spot. I don't know if the Cubs can promise a number of starts to a pitcher returning from injury. But if anyone is thinking the Cubs are planning on carrying Baker as the 6th starter they'll be disappointed. This is Paul Maholm 2.0.

[gocubs2118]

I really hope he's the first of 3 SP's they sign this off season and not just 2.

[JBears79]

I assume he's a virtual lock for the 5th spot. I get the reason why he signed with the Cubs, for not a lot of money is the promise he's going to get a long leash in the 5th spot. I don't know if the Cubs can promise a number of starts to a pitcher returning from injury. But if anyone is thinking the Cubs are planning on carrying Baker as the 6th starter they'll be disappointed. This is Paul Maholm 2.0.

While this could be true, I don't get that vibe at all from this. I don't see how a player coming off TJS could be considered a lock for the fifth spot, though I do think he ends up as our fifth starter.

[Tryptamine]

He's 31

He's also a pitcher, so by long term I mean 2-3 more years after 2013. Basically until he's 34 or 35.

[gaughan333]

so if you sign someone like greinke to a 6 year contract what is that, super long term? extra long term? long term xl? grande long term

[{Ron!n}]

I really hope he's the first of 3 SP's they sign this off season and not just 2.

If they sign three, does that mean Garza is gone?

Shark, Wood, Baker, Garza, X, Y leaves an odd man out. Plus you've got Rusin and the other guy battling for spots.

[sturick]

I assume he's a virtual lock for the 5th spot. I get the reason why he signed with the Cubs, for not a lot of money is the promise he's going to get a long leash in the 5th spot. I don't know if the Cubs can promise a number of starts to a pitcher returning from injury. But if anyone is thinking the Cubs are planning on carrying Baker as the 6th starter they'll be disappointed. This is Paul Maholm 2.0.

This...assuming his health he should get the 5th spot. As long as he doesn't pull a Volstad that is.

And we can only hope this is Maholm 2.0

Maholm 1.0 worked out splendidly if you ask me.

[CubsFanBudMan74]

I don't know if we should expect to see Baker's spot in the rotation skipped every so often, but a Carlos Villanueva signing might make more sense now as he could help offset any innings limitations if/when he's needed beyond bullpen duty.

villanueva is looking to sign with a team that can promise him 30 starts