Cubs strengthen bench with Grieve

By Jim Callis
August 31, 2004

With Todd Hollandsworth slow to return from a bruised right shin he sustained in June, the Cubs moved to bolster their bench and outfield depth on Tuesday. They acquired Ben Grieve from the Brewers for a player to be named later and cash.

Grieve, 28, once was one of the most promising young outfielders in the game before his career took a downturn after the Athletics sent him to the Devil Rays in the Johnny Damon trade of January 2001. After three disappointing years in Tampa Bay, Grieve signed a one-year, $700,000 contract with the Brewers as a free agent. He hit .261/.364/.415 with seven homers and 29 RBIs in 108 games for Milwaukee. His power and bat speed aren't what they once were, and because he offers little as a baserunner and defender, he really shouldn't be used as a regular. He has career totals of .269/.367/.442 with 117 homers and 485 RBIs in 938 games.

The Cubs also added catching depth for September on Tuesday by picking up Mike DiFelice from the Tigers for a player to be named later.

September 3 update: The Cubs don't have much to do thanks to the Hurricane Frances-induced cancellation of their series with the Marlins, so they completed the trade with the Brewers that made outfielder Ben Greive a Cub. Chicago sent lefthander Andy Pratt to Milwaukee as the player to be named in the deal.

Pratt, 25, has had a nightmarish season with a case of the yips, struggling to find the strike zone with any consistency. After reaching the major leagues last year with the Braves--who acquired him from the Rangers in the spring of 2003 for lefthander Ben Kozlowski--Pratt fell all the way to the Rookie-level Arizona League in an effort to rediscover his command. He made four appearances in Chicago this year, walking seven in 1 2/3 innings with a 21.60 ERA before the Cubs mercifully sent him back down to the minors. He made 10 appearances in Double-A and Triple-A, walking 36 in 30 1/3 innings and giving up 41 earned runs (12.16 ERA).

Pratt always has had control issues in pro ball, and had walked 276 in 730 career innings. When he's right, he shows a low-90s fastball that sits at 92-93 mph, very good velocity for a lefthander, and also shows a power slider. Pratt throws a curveball and changeup that also can be average pitches, but he's never had the consistency to put the entire package together.