The Chicago Cubs are going to be dumping players like it’s out of style this week. With the Cubs willing to absorb most, if not all of Alfonso Soriano’s contract, I see him getting dealt this week. Carlos Pena is another one of the really solid trade chips the Cubs have with the Yankees and Pirates likely being the most interested. Marlon Byrd, Kosuke Fukudome and Geovany Soto are other starting players that could be on the move by this coming up Sunday. Blake DeWitt, Jeff Baker and Reed Johnson are reserve players who are wanted by other teams and the Cubs will likely move them if they get a decent prospect in return for them. The most likely pitcher to be dealt this week will be lefty reliever John Grabow. Starters Ryan Dempster, Carlos Zambrano and Rodrigo Lopez are all available for trade also. Righty reliever Kerry Wood doesn’t want to be traded but the Cubs could get something nice for him. The Cubs need to tear the roster down and rebuild it so that they can get back to winning in the future.

If I were running the Cubs I wouldn’t be having a firesale. But I would be making some deals with an eye on the future. First off I would deal Derek Lee and Jeff Baker to the Angels for 1B Mark Trumbo, OF Chris Pettit and righty relievers Kevin Jepsen and Francisco Rodriguez. I would then deal 2B/3B Mike Fontenot to the Phillies for righty relievers Scott Mathieson and David Herndon. Finally I would pay Kosuke Fukudome’s contract and deal him to the Padres for shortstop Lance Zawadzki. These deals would help the Cubs rebuild the bullpen quickly and it would open up RF for Tyler Colvin and 1B for Mark Trumbo. Make the moves Cubbies.

The Cubs are 36-47 on the season which has them in 4th place in the N.L. Central, 11.5 games behind the Reds. With that in mind I see the Cubs being sellers this month giving Cubs’ fans further heartache. Derek Lee, Ryan Theriot and Ted Lilly are the best trade chips the Cubs have to offer. They will likely try to move all three of them in separate trades. Mike Fontenot, Jeff Baker and Xavier Nady all have value to especially if the Cubs trade them to another N.L. team. But any dreams of getting rid of Kosuke Fukudome or Carlos Zambrano are likely just that….dreams….because it is very unlikely to happen. This month is going to really hurt, Cubs’ fans!

The Cubs would love to find a taker for 33-year old lefty swinging RF Kosuke Fukudome. He has played in 65 games for the Cubs this season and he is 51 of 189 (.270 avg, .791 OPS) with 24 runs scored, 6 homers, 24 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. Fukudome came to the Cubs three years ago from Japan with the reputation of being a big power hitter but he hasn’t shown much power in the majors yet. Fukudome has now played in 361 games in his three years with the Cubs and he is 309 of 1,189 (.260 avg, .771 OPS) with 182 runs scored, 27 homers, 136 RBIs and 22 stolen bases. The Cubs really want to move Fukudome so they can give the full time starting job in RF to 24-year old lefty swinging rookie Tyler Colvin. Colvin has played in 67 games this season for the Cubbies and he is 40 of 135 (.296 avg, .945 OPS) with 24 runs scored, 10 homers and 27 RBIs.

The Cubs need to make a big splash to help the bullpen from the right side or the season is going to be a huge disappointment for them. With that in mind the Cubs need to make a call to the Blue Jays and bite the bullet offering outfielders Tyler Colvin and Sam Fuld for Jason Frasor, Jeremy Accardo, Brian Tallet and Jeremy Reed. I know that Colvin is a fan favorite right now but the Cubs can’t afford to wait to make a deal. Frasor, Accardo and Tallet would give the Cubs a lot of help in the bullpen the rest of the year and the Cubs should consider pulling the trigger on a deal like this sooner rather than later. The Cubs could then flip a minor prospect like outfielder James Adduci to the Indians for Austin Kearns who will fill in as Kosuke Fukudome’s new platoon partner in RF. The Cubs need to get into the groove by adding to the bullpen or they might be a seller at the trade deadline in July.

The Arizona Diamondbacks need a 2B while the Cubs could be in the market for a corner outfielder with pop. So I propose that the Cubs offer Mike Fontenot to the D-Backs for Conor Jackson. Fontenot would likely start at 2B for the D-Backs while Jackson would likely back up at LF, RF and 1B for the Cubs next season. It is a win/win trade for both teams so it makes too much sense to really happen.

[kml_flashembed movie="http://www.youtube.com/v/UoVfw77oz2Y" width="425" height="350" wmode="transparent" /]The Cubs and Blue Jays are reportedly considering a deal that would sent Milton Bradley to the Blue Jays for 30-year old righty swinging center fielder Vernon Wells. The Cubs want the Blue Jays to split the difference on the contracts meaning that they would send $43 million bucks to the Cubs along with Wells. The Cubs should jump at making this deal as Milton Bradley is a pain in the butt for team management and the fans really don’t like him either. Wells played in 158 games for the Blue Jays last season and he was 164 for 630 (.260 avg, .711 OPS) with 84 runs scored, 15 homers, 66 RBIs and 17 stolen bases. That was a pretty bad year for him so it’s possible that the slide will continue. Or, he could be tired of losing on the Blue Jays and coming to the Cubs might revive his bat. Wells has now played in 1,236 games in his major league career and he is 1,368 for 4,880 (.280 avg, .799 OPS) with 710 runs scored, 192 homers, 725 RBIs and 84 stolen bases. Wells would also give the Cubs a legit defensive center fielder so they should really consider making this deal.

[kml_flashembed movie="http://www.youtube.com/v/ZR5y4lTdDII" width="425" height="350" wmode="transparent" /]The Cubs want to get Milton Bradley out of the Windy City as quick as possible. The hot rumor around town is that the Cubs would like to trade Milton Bradley and cash to the Rays for Pat Burrell who struggled as a DH in Tampa. Bradley played in 124 games for the Cubs last season and he was 101 for 393 (.257 avg, .775 OPS) with 61 runs scored, 12 homers and 40 RBIs. Those numbers are certainly not worth $10 million bucks per season. The Rays might hold the Cubs’ feet to the flame and try to extract a pitcher from them like right reliever Angel Guzman. Guzman pitched in 55 games out of the bullpen for the Cubs last season and he was 3-3 with 1 save, a 2.95 ERA and a 1.05 WHIP. Even if they had to throw in Guzman and cash to get Bradley out of town the Cubs need to do it! 33-year old righty swinging Pat Burrell would likely start in LF for the Cubs who would have to move Alfonso Soriano to CF with Fukudome (if he’s still in town in RF). Burrell played in 122 games for the Rays last season and he was 91 for 412 (.221 avg, .682 OPS) with 45 runs scored, 14 homers and 64 RBIs. He whiffed 119 times last season as he looked very uncomfortable as a DH. A return to the field would likely do him a lot of good. He has played in 1,428 games in his 10-year major league career and he is 1,257 for 4,947 (.254 avg, .838 OPS) with 700 runs scored, 265 homers and 891 RBIs.

28-year old righty starting pitcher Carlos Zambrano didn’t have his best season in 2009 for the Cubs. He has started 27 games this season for the Cubs and he is 9-6 with a 3.69 ERA and a 1.37 WHIP. In nine seasons with the Cubs, Zambrano has pitched in 258 games (237 starts) and he is 105-67 with a 3.50 ERA and a 1.29 WHIP. I know that Lou Piniella has had some problems with Zambrano this season but he would be very hard to replace especially if the Cubs goal next season is to win a World Series.

The Chicago Cubs have suspended the overpaid and under-performing outfielder Milton Bradley.  The Cubs made a terrible move in signing  Bradley earlier this year to a three-year $30 million deal.  Everyone outside Cubs nation knew this was a terrible signing, as the prima donna outfielder has never been able to fit in with any club.  The Cubs are probably going to trade Bradley after this year, but don’t expect very much in return as this guy is a cancer to any baseball clubhouse.  The Cubs are Bradley’s seventh team in nine seasons in the majors and he has been a problem everywhere he has gone.  This may be the last straw for GM Jim Hendry’s job, as this was one of the worst signings the Cubs have made in years.