The Cubs have a hole to fit in their 2010 outfield, and it would appear to be the easiest way to add the "RBI bat" that Lou so desperately wants. The following are some options the Cubs have, ranked in the order I think would be most helpful:

Sign Mike Cameron to a one year deal. Cameron would simply be a stop-gap until Tyler Colvin or another long-term solution is identified for center field. With 2010 being Lou's final year and the veteran nature of the club, Cameron is the perfect player to try to take one last shot with the current group of players. He most likely won't hit over .255, but his OBP is not awful (career .340) and his power is still solid (has hit 22+ the last four years). Just as those offensive skills aren't declining, his stellar defense hasn't either as his 6.1 UZR/150 in 2009 was .9 above his career UZR/150. Cameron's relationship with Lou after playing for him in Seattle and his familiarity with the division should make the Cubs an attractive destination.This would also allow Fukudome to move back to right, where he can contribute more with his defense. I would guess you could get him for one year between $7-8 million; Cameron just appears to be a low-risk option. With as a good a starting pitching staff the Cubs project to have, putting the emphasis on defense is not a bad idea.

Trade for Brad Hawpe. Hawpe is due $7.5 mil in 2010 and $10 mil in 2011 and when paired with the emergence of Carlos Gonzalez and Dexter Fowler, the Rockies may be looking to trade him. Hawpe seems to be exactly what Hendry thought he was getting with Bradley: a left-handed power bat that gets on base at a high rate. With the how good the Rockies offense is, a package built around Andrew Cashner may be a good starting point. The problem is that Hawpe is absolutely awful in right field, posting a career UZR/150 of -19.9. This move would keep Fuku in center, and thus create a pretty poor outfield defense. For as much offense as he would bring, I don't think the trade-off would be worth it.

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Insert Chone Figgins in center. This as unlikely but I think it should be considered. Figgins speed, high average and decent OBP make him the ideal guy to fill that elusive leadoff spot. The position he has played most, and best, is third base, but he clearly wouldn't do this on the 2010 Cubs. One would think it most obvious to shift him over to second, but he has in fact played more games and has a better UZR/150 in center. The point has been made on this blog quite often that Jeff Baker could be a decent second baseman, so why not put Figgins in center? He wouldn't bring the power the Cubs may need out there, but he does bring a skill set the Cubs haven't had in a long time. I don't want to mention Juan Pierre but guess I have to (yuck). I don't see this being very likely though, because with all the teams after him, why would he choose to go to a non-playoff team that wants to drastically switch his everday position.

Hendry's prizes. I really hope this is not the the route the Cubs take, and I highly, highly doubt it will be. Marlon Byrd and Austin Kearns have been brought up time and time again over the years as Hendry trade targets. Both are free agents this season, and Hendry might be tempted. Kearns only appeared in 80 games for the Nationals last year because of injuries and was terrible. Marlon Byrd wasn't too bad for Texas, hitting .283 with 20 home runs for Texas. His career UZR/150 in center is .1 but in the corners he is above 10 at both spots (in much less playing time). Byrd might be serviceable but he would play too big a role on the 2010 Cubs to be effective. If Kearns can be got on a minor league contract or spring training invite, it might not be a bad idea.

Stay internal. This option is facilitated by Fuku's versatility, and could mean putting Fuld in center/right or putting/platooning Fox or Micah in right. A long shot would be starting Tyler Colvin in center, but with as much heat is on Hendry to not screw him up a la Felix Pie and Corey Patterson, that will not happen. This option stinks, and I would rather have Milton than go with it, but it is far more feasible. There is very little upside to this move. Fuld can't hit enough to be an everyday player and Fox/Micah's decent power don't make up for their defensive issues. All three may turn out to be quality bench players, but you just can't be a playoff team with them playing major roles throughout the whole year. Lou has been pretty effective in how he has used all three and that shouldn't change.

Bring back Milton Bradley. The likelihood that this happens is about the same as the Nationals winning the World Series next year. However, there are some merits to discussing it. It is going to be extremely hard to move him in a financially sensible deal. Aaron Rowand and Pat Burrell have been mentioned as potential high-priced, under-performing swaps, but do you really want either of them on the Cubs? What makes Bradley's return least likely is the negative comments about him from Aramis Ramirez, Alfonso Soriano, Ryan Theriot and others. However, if you look at this from a talent-only standpoint, the team will be hard-pressed to find a replacement of Bradley's abilities. Guys like Theriot, Fontenot and Rejo may have a lot of intangibles people like to spew out there, but you need talent to win. Bradley still put up a .378 OBP in an extremely down year. At 31 it seems hard to believe he is already declining, but the Cubs just don't seem to be the right fit for him.

Photo courtesy blogs.mycentraljersey.com.

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