Chicago Cubs

Former Cubs outfielder Milton Bradley (Cubbie Nation/file)

Matt Capps was non-tendered by the Pittsburgh Pirates last weekend and has announced plans to select five or six finalists for each.

Odds are Capps wants to close but has said he'll accept a set-up role with a contender.

Capps has announced plans to select five or six finalists from the teams that are reportedly interested in his services which are: the Diamondbacks, Cubs, Orioles, Mets, Rangers, Yankees, Nationals, Rockies, Marlins, and Tigers.

A few days ago, I talked about the limited interest Orlando Hudson was receiving thus far on the free agent market (which included some great comments about possible landing spots for Hudson!). That same day, the Cubs traded away Milton Bradley for Carlos Silva , in a swap of horrible contracts that frees up some money for the Cubs to spend.

Now that the Cubs have finally moved Milton Bradley, it appears that former Ranger Marlon Byrd is the target of choice for GM Jim Hendry in his ongoing search for a center fielder.

The caveat, of course, is that Byrd must agree to a salary that fits within the budget that GM Jim Hendry has following the Bradley trade. Yes, the Cubs received cash in the deal with the Mariners, but that cash is spread over two seasons, first of all, and second, part of it has to cover the difference in Silva and Bradley's salary.

Sigh. I just finished watching the Red Sox press conference introducing Mike Cameron.

Charming. Charismatic. Humble. Relaxed. You got to see so many of the reasons why managers love Cameron, and what I had been hoping to see over at Clark and Addison sometime this winter.

That said, first off let me say that I was wrong. I didn't think it was possible for the Cubs to let Cameron pass them by. Somewhere, I suspect that Lou Piniella is still muttering things under his breath about it, and perhaps about Jim Hendry as well, but it's done. He ain't coming.

I hope Chicago Cubs fans are gearing up for another six months of disappointment, because this winter isn't giving any indication that 2010 will be any better than the season it will follow.

The Cubs closed their 2009 season with one singular goal: Unload Milton Bradley. The marriage was a failure almost immediately, and GM Jim Hendry made it clear when he sent Bradley home for the last few weeks of the season that he couldn't be back in Chicago next year.

Now that the Cubs' first choice, Mike Cameron, has been signed by the Boston Red Sox, it appears that former Ranger Marlon Byrd is the target of choice for GM Jim Hendry in his ongoing search for a center fielder.

The caveat, of course, is that Hendry has to move Milton Bradley before he can add payroll, so signing Byrd is no sure thing. By the time some team agrees to pay even $2 million of the $21 million owed Bradley, Byrd may be gone.

For Chicago Cubs GM Jim Hendry, for Texas Rangers GM Jon Daniels, and for free-agent outfielder Marlon Byrd, the last 48 hours have made an interesting, interwoven series of impacts upon the tone and tenor of the MLB offseason.

Lost amid the flurry of Monday's higher-profile deals, free-agent outfielder Mike Cameron agreed to a two-year pact with the Boston Red Sox.

The sudden interest in former Pirates closer Matt Capps really has me scratching my head. I guess teams smell blood, and want to seize an opportunity to sign a pitcher recently given his walking papers by a team badly in need of pitching but who realizes his value in arbitration would be over-inflated by his save totals.

It may seem a cheap and easy way for the Cubs to improve the bullpen. But not so fast.

Sure, he saved 27 games last season. But if there is a stat more meaningless than saves, then I haven't seen it yet.

I know that many Cubs fans can't separate their heart from their head when it comes to MLB's Hall of Fame. From Ron Santo to Andre Dawson, Cubs fans everywhere let their fan loyalty cloud their judgement.

And that's okay. In fact, it is to be expected. But, as usual, I stand alone as a die-hard Cubs fan (since birth) who is not only willing but able to separate fact from fantasy.

More on Santo later. The main premise of this article is The Hawk, aka Andre Dawson.