The Cubs have designated righty reliever Luis Vizcaino for assignment. He pitched in 4 games (0 starts) for the Cubs this season and he was 0-0 with a 0.00 ERA and a 0.55 WHIP. The Cubs have recalled righty reliever/starter Jeff Samardzija to replace him. He has pitched in 3 games (2 starts) in AAA-ball this season and he was 0-0 with a 3.75 ERA and a 0.83 WHIP. According to Baseball America Samardzija is their #2 rated prospect. His first game with the Cubs didn’t go too well this season as he worked 1 inning allowing 4 hits and 2 earned runs.

The Cubs have released 26-year old righty pitcher Chad Gaudin. Gaudin did not pitch well for the Cubs after coming over from the A’s last season in the Rich Harden trade. Gaudin pitched in 24 games (0 starts) for the Cubs last season and he was 4-2 with a 6.26 ERA and a 1.43 WHIP. Gaudin has now pitched in 185 games (50 starts) in his major league career and he is 28-25 with 2 saves, a 4.45 ERA and a 1.52 WHIP. Don’t feel bad for Gaudin as some team will likely snap him up next week.

The Cubs gave 30-year old switch hitting Milton Bradley a lot of money to man RF for them in 2008. The question is…..Can he stay healthy? Bradley hasn’t been the most durable player around and it will be interesting to see how well he gets along with Lou Piniella in 2009. Bradley played in 126 games for the Rangers last season and he was 133 for 414 (.321 avg, .999 OPS) with 78 runs scored, 22 homers, 77 RBIs and 5 stolen bases. Bradley made 3 errors in only 19 games in RF last season for the Rangers but he showed outstanding range as he’s a natural CF.

39-year old righty swinging So Taguchi will start the season in AAA. He played in 88 games for the Phillies last season and he was 20 for 91 (.220 avg, .580 OPS) with 18 runs scored, 9 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. He has now played in 666 games in his major league career and he has a batting average of .279 with a .717 OPS so he’s a better hitter than he showed last season.

26-year old righty swinging Jake Fox is the #24 rated prospect for the Cubs heading into the 2009 season according to Baseball America. Fox is a converted 1B so don’t expect him to be a ace on defense. He played in 134 games in AAA+AA ball last season and he was 145 for 505 (.287 avg, .920 OPS) with 93 runs scored, 31 homers, 105 RBIs and 7 stolen bases.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2009 SEASON: A-

The Cubs have a lot of depth in center field but quality could be an issue. 31-year old lefty swinging Kosuke Fukudome and 32-year old righty swinging Reed Johnson will probably platoon in CF. Fukudome was a huge bust for the Cubs as a rookie last season. He played in 150 games for the Cubs last year and he was 129 for 501 (.257 avg, .738 OPS) with 79 runs scored, 10 homers, 58 RBIs and 12 stolen bases. The Cubs expected much more than that from him last season. Fukudome played in 12 games in CF last season and he didn’t make any errors while showing poor range.

Reed Johnson is a all out player who always gives his all. He played in 109 games for the Cubs last season and he was 101 for 333 (.303 avg, .778 OPS) with 52 runs scored, 6 homers, 50 RBIs and 5 stolen bases. He only made 1 error in 78 games in CF last season but he showed pretty poor range.

27-year old lefty swinging Joey Gathright will also get some P.T. in CF in 2009 for the Cubs. He played in 105 games for the Royals last season and he was 71 for 279 (.254 avg, .583 OPS) with 41 runs scored, 22 RBIs and 21 stolen bases. Gathright only made 1 error in 100 games in CF last season for the Cubs but he also showed below average range.

27-year old lefty swinging Sam Fuld is likely too far down the depth chart to get much of a chance. Fuld played in 105 games in AA+AAA ball last season and he was 106 for 402 (.264 avg, .729 OPS) with 59 runs scored, 6 homers, 52 RBIs and 10 stolen bases.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2009 SEASON: C-

The Chicago Cubs need a healthy Alfonso Soriano if they want to repeat as Central Division Champions in 2009. Soriano played in 109 games for the Cubs last season and he was 127 for 453 (.280 avg, .876 OPS) with 76 runs scored, 29 homers, 75 RBIs and 19 stolen bases. In 108 games in LF last season Soriano made 5 errors while showing below average range. But, Soriano did have 10 assists last season in LF showing off his gun.

Speedy Joey Gathright will be Soriano’s back up in LF. He only played in 3 games in LF last season with the Royals but he didn’t making any errors there while showing good range because of his speed.

26-year old lefty swinging Brad Snyder will start the season in AAA and he’ll get a call from the Cubs if they have some injuries. He played in 115 games in AAA-ball last season and he was 101 for 411 (.246 avg, .723 OPS) with 52 runs scored, 12 homers, 61 RBIs and 7 stolen bases. He doesn’t appear to have much of an upside.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2009 SEASON: A-

The Cubs have released pitcher Ken Kadokura. Kadokura pitched in 6 games this spring for the Cubs and he was 1-0 with a 4.26 ERA and a 1.58 WHIP. This is a good sign for the Cubs’ bullpen in 2009 as Kadokura wasn’t good enough to make it.

The Cubs have traded 26-year old righty reliever Rocky Roquet to the A’s for a player to be named later. Roquet pitched in 46 games (0 starts) last season in A+AA ball in which he was 4-2 with 3 saves, a 3.36 ERA and a 1.31 WHIP. Roquet was blocked from pitching in Chicago due to their depth in the bullpen so maybe the player to be named will be more valuable to the team down the road.