Cubs Sign Kerry Wood

As unlikely as this headline seemed at the beginning of this offseason, the Cubs have actually gotten Kerry Wood to come back and play with the team he spent 11 years of his career with.  After one and a half less than mediocre seasons in Cleveland and a dominant stretch run with the Yankees, Wood signed a one year, $1.5 million contract to play for the Cubs whom he last played for in 2008.  It may seem like Wood has been in the league for a very long time and this deal is to finish his career where it all started, going 'full circle', but he's only going to be 34 next year and he could stick around for a while.  His famous 20 strikeout game was 12 years ago, the same year he won Rookie of the Year, but he was only 21 that year.  This signing gives the Cubs a piece they needed badly this offseason in a veteran righty reliever.  There probably wasn't any better in that department than Wood, but his price tag was expected to shoo off the Cubs.  Having made $10 million last season (thanks, Indians), it seemed unlikely that he would accept the deep pay cut the Cubs but he did anyway and I personally could not be happier.  In 2008, Wood was huge in the success of that team recording 34 saves and an ERA of just 3.40.  His value even then was underrated because for a guy whose career average SO/BB ratio is 2.40 but in 2008 he held a ridiculous 4.67 SO/BB.  Kerry Wood should not have been let go after 2008, which would have prevented the acquisition of Kevin Gregg, who had plenty of forgettable moments with the Cubs.  From Kid K, Cub fans should expect a lot of strikeouts and plenty of walks, but an effective pitcher.  Wood is very stable as a pitcher and should fit in a perfect role with young and very inexperienced.  Wood is a great guy to have around, a role model for all the young kids on the Cubs these days and in the near future.  So far, the Cubs have picked up two solid gains: Carlos Pena and Kerry Wood.  The Cubs are going straight to their needs this season and aren't trying to do that thing where they pick up little pieces (cough, Joey Gathright and Luiz Vizcaino) in a futile attempt to balance the roster with the different five tool talents.