Whether it's simply to catch up on the past or plot for the future, new Cincinnati Reds manager Dusty Baker has been chatting with his former Cubs co-aces, Mark Prior and Kerry Wood.

''I talked to Mark Prior [Wednesday], and I've heard from Woody and some other guys,'' said Baker, who will turn his focus to managing the Reds once his current gig as an ESPN analyst ends after the World Series.

Both pitchers could become free agents this offseason, and the Reds are starved for pitching.

You see, he's not supposed to be talking to either one of those guys about anything other than fishing and putting up aluminum siding on their new homes. Both players are still property of the Cubs, he's not even supposed to be able to talk ABOUT them. Dusty always had a bit of an ego, so maybe he doesn't think that rule pertains to him? I'm hoping someone from the MLB Offices looks into this.

Baker went on to rip the Cubs Organization in the rest of the article:

''The thing I'm most curious about is I haven't heard what was wrong with Mark,'' Baker said. ''Usually, you hear torn labrum or rotator cuff. I would like to know at least where and what was wrong.

Baker was reminded that the Cubs were more secretive during his watch in 2004, when the team insisted Prior's inactivity that spring was related to ''right Achilles tendinitis'' -- the ailment still listed in the Cubs' media guide for the pitcher's two-month stint on the disabled list -- instead of elbow trouble that eventually was reported by the Sun-Times.

''I know what it was,'' Baker said. ''I'm not going to say.''

Finally.....

As he did upon his arrival in Chicago, Baker is portraying himself in Cincinnati as a recruiter of talent. It never really happened with the Cubs -- unless you count the Neifi Perez signing in August 2004 -- but he promises to be more vocal about the hand he is dealt in Cincinnati.

''I'm hoping that if we do lose some players,'' he said, ''that I can be more assertive about reloading vs. just accepting what you're given.''

That could be perceived as a complaint about the talent he was given with the Cubs. Did Baker stay mum on what he wanted in Chicago?

''I've always done that, everywhere I've been,'' he said. ''You've never heard me say, 'I need this, I need that.' I've always accepted what I was given. I figured I could make it work no matter what it is.''

Ok, I was tired of Baker a few years ago and I'm already tired of his this off-season. By talking about these players, specifically, it has to be a violation. He is a member of the Reds Organization at this point and this is...tampering. It's not that Wood and/or Prior would play for Dusty, since he ruined their careers. It's that he's already trying to push people around. The Cubs need to report this quickly and make sure Dusty stays in line....

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