OPINION

By Ryan Fagan

updated 11:40 p.m. ET Jan. 20, 2009

Let's make something clear up front: The Cubs are operating with a pretty wide margin for error in the National League Central.

Nobody else in the division is spending any money to improve, and their closest competitors from 2008, the Brewers, have taken a couple of CC-sized steps backward after finishing 7 1/2 games behind the Cubs in 2008. Barring a catastrophic collapse — that's not happening because the Cubs have too much talent — Wrigley Field will host at least one playoff game for the third consecutive season.

The Cubs have been active this offseason, but that's not necessarily a good thing. And they're probably not done — we'll get to the Jake Peavy possibilities in a moment — and that might not be a necessary thing.

Chicago traded infielder/outfielder Mark DeRosa to the Indians for three minor league middle relievers who might not even reach the big leagues this season, and they signed supersub Aaron Miles away from the rival Cardinals to help make up for the loss of DeRosa's versatility. Miles is an excellent defensive player and has developed into a reliable singles hitter, but he is quite a step down offensively from DeRosa, who had 21 homers, 87 RBIs and a .376 on-base percentage in 2008.

The Cubs also let Kerry Wood leave as a free agent without offering the career Cubbie arbitration, so they won't get any draft-pick compensation for losing the closer who had 34 saves and 84 strikeouts in 66 1/3 innings last season. Into Wood's place steps former setup man Carlos Marmol, who has tons of talent but whose mental makeup will be questioned right up to the day he saves a game in the World Series (of course, the same could have been said for the Phillies' Brad Lidge last year). Kevin Gregg, the right-hander the Cubs acquired from Florida, also is in the ninth-inning picture. To get Gregg, they gave the Marlins right-hander Jose Ceda, a hard-throwing prospect scouts felt could have an impact on the big league level as soon as this season.

In addition, the Cubs signed Milton Bradley to a three-year deal to play right field. No doubt, the Kosuke Fukudome experiment didn't work out as planned last season; he was fine defensively but was a black hole at the plate in the second half. Something needed to be done, and now they're asking Bradley to step into the void. Some fans/experts worry about the explosive potential of having guys like Bradley, starter Carlos Zambrano and manager Lou Piniella in the same clubhouse, but scouts I talked with have no real concerns about Bradley's mental approach.

The bottom line with Bradley is that he is an intense competitor with a burning desire to win, and that's a fire the Cubs probably can use in their dugout. The issue with the Bradley signing is the length of the deal — three years — and the fact that he has played more than 100 games in the outfield only once in his career (in 2004 with the Dodgers). What can the Cubs reasonably expect from Bradley and his damaged knees over the next three seasons? Maybe 120 games in the outfield and a handful more as a DH in interleague play?

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