Kaplan: A look at Randall Delgado and Zach Lee

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I spoke with former Los Angeles Dodgers general manager Dan Evans this afternoon as the rumors of a Ryan Dempster trade to the Atlanta Braves started to get hot and heavy. Several reports had the Cubs landing pitcher Randall Delgado for the 35-year-old Dempster, and if that deal does eventually happen, Evans believes that Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer will have done very well in the trade.

Dempster is an excellent guy for the Braves to land but at 35, he is not a big part of the Cubs' future. They are in a rebuilding mode and they need to add long term pieces that will be part of their organization for the foreseeable future.

"Randall Delgado projects as a solid No. 3-4 starter and he fits nicely into the Cubs rotation as he develops his game. He has a good fastball and a good changeup which are both solid pitches and an average curveball, Evans told me.

Evans is a fan of Dempsters and feels he will be a solid addition to the Braves rotation as they battle for a postseason spot either as NL East champions or as a Wild Card.

The Braves will be adding a very solid arm and person for the stretch run and the price is high when you have a number of teams after him. You have to give something to get something. If they do indeed finalize this deal I think Theo and Jed will have done very well for the Cubs, he told me.

I also asked Evans about the Dodgers top prospect, pitcher Zach Lee, who is reportedly on the Cubs radar in a potential Matt Garza deal.

I have watched Lee pitch and he is the real deal. He is a big, strong kid with plus velocity and he projects as a high-end rotation starter. He needs seasoning, but if the Dodgers make that deal they are indicating that they are most definitely going for it this season, he said.

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