Daily Dos(e), 2/14/07

Does good writing exist?

• The narcissistic side of me won't allow this opportunity to go by.  I wrote a couple articles late last night, with the failed skewering of ESPN pushing my piece about something else much further down the page.  Read both.  Point out mistakes/disagreements.
  
• THT looks at 2B.  Look for a possible potential mention of probably Dustin Pedroia near the top.
  
• Dewey's House continues its top-5 per position lists: Catcher and First Base.
  
• Carlos Zambrano is upset, and wants you to know about it.  I'll echo sentiments from elsewhere and say this: The defining moment of Jim Hendry's tenure as GM could be coming soon, and if he fails to give some of the Cubs' loot to, well, someone who's actually a good pitcher (back up, Ted Lilly and Jason Marquis), then he'll struggle to find a job after the new owner fires him anyway.  He might struggle even if he re-signs Z.
  
• Top 100 Red Sox.  Whom?, you might ask.  Buck Freeman.  Exciting triples.  Also, pitcher Bill Dinneen.  Seems like too many N's.

As I mentioned earlier, Carlos Zambrano is ready for the money.  He wants an extension with the Cubs, but is prepared for the FA market should they not reach a deal soon.  Z has been above 200 innings in each full season as a starter, and hasn't posted an ERA above 3.66 since his first callup in 2001 (age 20).  He strikes out batters, keeps the ball in the park reasonably well, and his WHIP is slightly better than average (mostly due to some control problems).  Using the Zito contract as a baseline, What do you feel he is worth, and would he be a reasonable target for the Sox in the 2007 off-season?