FanHouse CarlosMarmol

The Cubs continue to make minor tweaks to their roster as they cling to relevancy in the NL Central race. After recalling Kevin Hart and Sam Fuld in the past few days, relief pitcher Jeff Samardzija was brought back to the big leagues Tuesday. He'll replace Jose Ascanio in the bullpen.

Samardzija, the highly popular pitcher who once played wide receiver for Notre Dame's football team, came onto the scene with a solid rookie season in 2008. He worked 26 times and compiled a 2.28 ERA. Earlier this year, though, Samardzija had a rough go at the major league level. In five outings, his ERA was a large 8.10.

From the Windup is Matt Snyder's extended look at some aspect of America's pastime each Thursday.

With the recent news that Mark DeRosa is on the trade block and the White Sox have possibly landed Jake Peavy, junkies of major league baseball trade rumors got an early glimpse at what promises to be a very interesting July. It's far to0 early to know exactly who will be in the market for what -- or who can afford to take on temporary payroll in this economy -- but it's certainly fun to speculate. Let's do it.

Through the first 36 games of the season, it's been quite the bumpy ride for the Cubs. They've gone through as much adversity as they faced during the entire 97-win campaign that was the 2008 regular season. There have been myriad injuries, a suspension, many players suffering through extended slumps, excessive booing by the fans, bullpen meltdowns, and a much, much tougher division.

And yet, Lou Piniella's troops are 21-15. You know what their record was after 36 games in 2008? An identical 21-15.

Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the Roto Rush is your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday.

He's only 21 years old. He's only 21 years old. Whenever you get frustrated that your future fantasy stud is struggling, it's important to take a breather and repeat those words. When I was 21, I think I spent my Wednesday nights playing Counter-Strike and eating bad pizza. Justin Upton, on the other hand, has to deal with expectations that he's the next Willie Mays. Whatever happened to the 27-year-old "breakout" rule? Suddenly it's six years younger?

The biggest weakness in the early going of 2009 for the Cubs has been bullpen depth. Carlos Marmol and Aaron Heilman have been good, but they can't pitch every night. It appears the Cubs are going to halt the project of stretching Jeff Samardzija out so he can be a starter in favor of adding him to the bullpen. He would be part of the bridge to the eighth inning, giving Lou Piniella another option to Heilman.

According to the Chicago Sun-Times, in order to make room for Samardzija, the Cubs will designate Luis Vizcaino for assignment, meaning they have 10 days to trade him, or else he'll be released.

It's always nice to know how secure a closer's job is and who's next in line if somebody loses their 9th inning job. Each week The Closer Report will give you that information. And if that wasn't good enough we'll rank the closers from top to bottom.

Here's an interesting statistic. Somewhere between 30 percent and 40 percent of the closers who are listed as the the team's official closer will not be in that role by the end of the season. It's the case every year. Whether a closer loses his job due to injury or just plain can't get the job done, you're going to learn that you can find saves on the waiver wire throughout the season. You just have to know where to look.

We haven't even completed two full weeks of the Major League Baseball season yet, but the (arguably) best rivalry in the National League is already giving us a taste of what an exciting race the NL Central could be this year. With all due respect to the Reds, Astros, Brewers and Pirates, and with all due disclaimers about how long the baseball season is, it seems blatantly obvious the two best teams in the division are the Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals.

For the past three days, the two teams have put on an entertaining show for anyone fortunate enough to be watching. Each game went down the wire, with both teams showing a flair for the dramatic.

Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the Roto Rush is your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday.

Someone forgot to tell Erik Bedard and Travis Hafner that this isn't 2007. Or maybe it is?

I always love good redemption stories and the surprises they bring for fantasy owners. But through just one week of the season, looks can be deceiving ... or hints of something entirely palpable. The dilemma with rotisserie league outcasts like Bedard and Hafner is you're dealing with this nagging birdie in the back of your mind telling you this can't be real.

From time to time this season, we'll be checking in with some analysis of how fantasy relevant players actually look during the games, and try to ascertain what it might mean moving forward. These are going to include things you won't be able to find unless you watched the games, because there is only so much a stat sheet can tell you.

First up, the entire Chicago Cubs team. Why? Well, because there aren't many teams with more fantasy relevant players -- and they are my favorite team, so I've seen every pitch thus far.

Just as Knox posted his results from our recent FanHouse draft, I'll throw mine on here, too, for your critiques. Mr. Bardeen laid out the league format here. Year 101 is my team name, as you can see from the title to this piece, and it has a little something to do with my favorite baby bears.

Somehow, I ended up with the top pick in the draft. I haven't had this happen to me in years. Honestly, I can't remember the last time I picked first in fantasy baseball or football. Well, I'd been preaching -- since A-Rod fell injured -- what to do with the top choice. I had to put my money where my mouth was.