It's been a while since I actually wrote something about baseball, but given that my internet connection kept crapping out the last few times I've tried to write about the Blackhawks, I'm taking that as a sign that I need to actually put up a Cubs post (That and with one win needed to secure a Stanley Cup, I'm too damn nervous to write anything worth a shit about hockey anyway).

Anyway, I had kind of an off the wall idea the other day that I'd like to share: trade Ryan Theriot. Look, I know the guy is a fan favorite and all, but with the addition of Starlin Castro, the Cubs have a plethora of middle infielders right now, plus more of them in our system (Darwin Barney, DJ LeMahieu, etc). Of all of them, Theriot is probably the most attractive trade chip, at least in my opinion. And I'll be honest, I've never really gotten the whole The Riot lovefest thing in Chicago. I'm not saying I actively hate the guy, like Bad Kermit over at HJE, but if he were on a different team tomorrow, I'd shrug and go "Meh". Mike Fontenot and Jeff Baker could easily platoon at 2nd for the rest of the season and probably combine for equal or better numbers than Theriot.

I even have a destination in mind: San Diego. Why San Diego? Why not? They've put together a good season to this point and unless something drastic happens, they're likely to be buyers rather than sellers, but they're still not going to be able to buy much with their payroll as it is. Currently, they're running the corpse of David Eckstein out there at short and maybe they'd like the 2010 version. Right now shortstop Everth Cabrera is on the DL and they've recalled some kid named Zawadzki to fill in. With his ability to play short and second, Theriot would give them some flexibility and he'd fit right in with their current youth movement.

And the return? Tim Stauffer. The Padres have a lot of good young pitching, so I think they could afford to give up Stauffer, who's rehabbing in Triple A after an emergency appendectomy. Stauffer's been great as a starter, but he's also logged some bullpen time. He could be a fantastic addition to the Cubs relief core. In 23.1 innings pitched this year, Stauffer has 2 wins, 19 Ks, and an 0 .39 ERA with a 0.94 WHIP. Not too shabby. I'd love to see him pitch out of the bullpen and maybe compete for a rotation spot next season.

Let's be clear: this is not a trade rumor. It's bad speculation at best. Could this trade ever happen? Probably not. So why did I write the post? Probably for the same reason you read it.