Kerry Wood: Coming Back to the Cubs for 2011
Just as the Cubs believed with Mark Prior, Kerry Wood was christened as the next savior on the North Side far too early. Sure, Wood had some dominating outings in the first few years of his major league career, showing a poise and confidence on the mound that promised a great future ahead.
Wood missed the entire 1999 season due to an elbow injury, and never really regained the same dominant form. His most famous performance came in a 20 strikeout game in the summer of 1998 against the Houston Astros, eliciting comparisons to Roger Clemens and other hard-throwing righties of recent years.
Wood spent several more seasons with the Cubs at Wrigley, almost all of which were hampered by different injury issues, including strained triceps, Tommy John surgery, and other common pitching-related ailments.
In 2006, the Cubs exercised their team option on Wood and bought out the remaining $13 million dollars remaining on his contract, only to bring him back as a spot reliever for the 2007 summer. After another injury-plagued season as a short reliever, Kerry departed the Cubs for the Cleveland Indians in 2008.
Wood spent most of the next two seasons as the Indians closer, and as a part of the New York Yankees’ staff of relievers. The Yankees decided not to exercise their team option on October 27th, leading to speculation that the Texan-born Wood could be returning to Chicago to end his season as a Cub.
And in recent days, this speculation appears to have been proven true. Wood and the Cubs have been in deliberations over the past few days on a deal that would bring him back to Wrigley as the setup guy for Carlos Marmol in the 2011 season.
The Cubs could certainly do worse. Kerry Wood is a long-time fan favorite, and the Cubbies faithful will undoubtedly welcome his return.
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