Cubs Convention has new features for all ages

Ever since the Padres acquired Yonder Alonso from the Reds on December 17, there has been rumors that the Cubs were after the Padres other first base prospect Anthony Rizzo. Well today, the Cubs finally landed him and righthander Zach Cates in exchange for Andrew Cashner and Kyung-Min Na. Rizzo was ranked as the Padres top prospect by Baseball America after hitting .331/.404...

Another trade could be on the horizon for Theo Epstein. A day after sending Carlos Zambrano to the Marlins, the Cubs president of baseball operations is shipping around outfielder Alfonso Soriano and has spoken with at least eight American League teams over the past six weeks, according to ESPN.com. MASNsports.com reports the Orioles are one of the teams that inquired about the outfielder...

Last year, we began what we hope becomes a tradition here at Rumors and Rants and tipped our hats to Cheap Trick by naming the losers of the year in every sport we pay attention to. In case you are wondering, there is no scientific formula to being named loser of the year. It’s more of an artform. So consider this a Van Gogh of losers. NBA Loser of The Year — LeBron...

Cubs president Theo Epstein said he wasn’t trying to make a particular point when he traded Carlos Zambrano to the Miami Marlins for a choirboy this week. “You don’t have to be a choirboy to be accepted into the Cubs’ clubhouse,’’ Epstein said after the trade became official Thursday. But in making what promises to be the signature move of his first winter with the Cubs...

Jed Hoyer's stay in San Diego as their General Manager was short (hired by the Padres in October 2009), but far from uneventful.  The most notable move made in Hoyer's era as the GM of the Padres was dealing Adrian Gonzalez to the Red Sox in December 2010 for a package of prospects that included first baseman Anthony Rizzo.  Just a few short months after being hired by...

Steve: You know you're really in the midst of an effed up bizarro Red Sox world when the most recent news item in the Globe's Sox blog opens up with "Theo Epstein accomplished something pretty big yesterday…" Mike: Sigh. Mike: It's gonna get bettah, right? I mean it has too...

The Chicago Cubs were looking for a first baseman, and they got one on Friday, but not one of the ones you were thinking of. The team acquired Anthony Rizzo, along with pitcher Zach Cates, from the San Diego Padres in exchange for pitcher Andrew Cashner and outfielder Kyung-Min Na. Cubs president Theo Epstein and GM Jed Hoyer are plenty familiar with Rizzo, as he was initially traded...

Cubs president Theo Epstein said he wasn’t trying to make a particular point when he traded Carlos Zambrano to the Miami Marlins for a choirboy this week. “You don’t have to be a choirboy to be accepted into the Cubs’ clubhouse,’’ Epstein said after the trade became official Thursday. But in making what promises to be the signature move of his first winter with the Cubs...

Anthony Rizzo joins a Jed Hoyer organization for the third time since being drafted in 2007. To read the rest of the post, be sure to visit us at www.viewfromthebleachers.com

The Cubs officially traded Carlos Zambrano to the Marlins for Chris Volstad today, paying all but $2.5MM of the $18MM owed to him next year. President of baseball operations Theo Epstein spoke to reporters after the trade was announced, so let's recap... "Best case scenario is that if it did work, [Zambrano would] be leaving as a free agent at the end of the year...

RSBS Special Correspondent and founder of Epsteinism, Mr. Johanna Mahmud reports:“ No one in Russia believes in god.”You know why? Because it’s cold! It’s cold there like it’s cold in Chicago right now!!I know it’s not manly to act depressed while living in a wonderful place like this but, it’s cold. AND I’M NOT A REAL MAN.Despite my depression, I know one...

If we learned anything from Jed Hoyer’s stay in San Diego, trading with him probably isn’t the best idea. With the likes of Theo Epstein and Jason McLeod as reinforcements, it doesn’t help matters. On Friday, Josh Byrnes and the San Diego Padres traded first basemen Anthony Rizzo and right hander Zach Cates to Hoyer and the Cubs for right-handed reliever Andrew Cashner and...

Let the Theo Epstein overhaul continue. Matt Garza may have been the most popular name tossed around this off-season, but Carlos Zambrano was the first Chicago Cubs’ pitcher to be traded. After three injury-riddled season — and a ton of headaches — the Cubs elected to deal the sole survivor of the Dusty Baker era to the Miami Marlins. In return, the Chicago Cubs...