Alfonso Soriano -- .277, 46 HR, 95 RBI (2006)
Cesar Izturis -- .288, 62 RBI, 25 SB (2004)
Derrek Lee -- .335, 46 HR, 107 RBI (2005)
Aramis Ramirez -- .291, 38 HR, 119 RBI (2006)
Jacque Jones -- .285, 27 HR, 81 RBI (2006)
Michael Barrett -- .307, 16 HR, 53 RBI (2006)
Mark DeRosa -- .296, 13 HR, 74 RBI (2006)
Matt Murton -- .297, 13 HR, 62 RBI (2006)

Holy cow!

General manager Jim Hendry wasn't kidding when he said he was going to be aggressive when it came to improving the Chicago Cubs this offseason. There can be no doubt that Hendry is serious about making the Cubs contenders in 2007 after the club agreed to terms with Alfonso Soriano on a deal that will be worth $136 million over eight years if the two sides can work out the remaining details in the next few days.

That makes $230 million Hendry has spent on five players (Soriano, Aramis Ramirez, Kerry Wood, Mark DeRosa and Henry Blanco) during the last six days. And that's not counting left-handed pitcher Neal Cotts, obtained by Hendry in a trade with the White Sox on Thursday, or the $10 million over three years Hendry spent to lure Lou Piniella out of the broadcast booth to manage the team.

As it turns out, Hendry was just getting started with that first $95 million he spent at the GM meetings in Naples last week. With Soriano's signature, Hendry may have shifted the balance of power in not only the 2007 National League Central Division race, but the overall NL landscape as well.

Of course, spending money doesn't guarantee success, but in this case, it's more than just the money -- Soriano's contract is the fifth largest given to a Major League player in terms of total value -- because it also guarantees one of the Cubs' division rivals, Houston, which had a multiyear offer on the table to Soriano, won't get him. It also means NL East hopeful Philadelphia's effort to land protection for Ryan Howard and strengthen the Phillies' chances of dethroning the New York Mets in 2007 has suffered a significant setback. The Angels were also after Soriano.

Soriano was, without a doubt, the top free agent position player on the market, instant offense to the team fortunate enough to land his considerable skills. The 30-year-old, who could be an option in center field for the Cubs though he will probably play left, hit .277 with 46 homers, 41 stolen bases, 41 doubles and 95 RBIs last season as he became the first "40-40-40" player in Major League history. He is one of four players in MLB history to record 40 homers and 40 stolen bases in a single season, along with Barry Bonds, Jose Canseco and Alex Rodriguez.

With Soriano, the Cubs will have a 2007 lineup with at least three players who hit 38 or more home runs and drove in 95 or more runs in their last full seasons. A Cubs offense, which ranked 28th among MLB's 30 teams with 716 runs scored and 677 RBIs last season, could have an Opening Day starting eight that combined for 651 RBIs in their last full season.

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The Cubs offense had trouble setting the table for the middle of the order in 2006, so Hendry went out bought the most expensive place setting that money could buy for 2007. This result looks like a feast for Cubs fans.

Soriano and a healthy Cesar Izturis (or the newly acquired DeRosa) will give Piniella an extremely potent 1-2 punch at the top of the lineup. Adding Soriano in front a healthy Derrek Lee, Ramirez, Jacque Jones and Michael Barrett gives the Cubs a batting order with a formidable blend of power, speed and on-base ability, and one that has enough of a lefty-righty break to make life difficult for opposing pitching staffs.

If Hendry does nothing else between now and Opening Day, the Cubs should have a prolific offense next season and a clearly much improved team. Yet, it would be a mistake to assume Hendry won't up the ante one more time by signing a center fielder (perhaps Gary Matthews Jr.) before Christmas or go after another starting pitcher or two.

He certainly doesn't sound like a man who has finished his holiday spending spree.

"We won 66 ballgames," Hendry said of the 2006 record of 66-96. "We darn sure better be aggressive. That's what we told people we were going to do. We started with the manager we hired. We'll do whatever we can that's good for the ballclub.

"I thought it was essential that we bring back Aramis," he said. "From [seeing some of the money talked about at the GM Meetings], Kerry Wood walked away from a lot more money [when he re-signed with the Cubs]. I think it's a great story in the modern day world. Not too many guys chose to be that loyal. Henry Blanco could play 100 games for a lot of people right now," he said. "We felt it was imperative to keep those guys in-house. We have a lot of work still to do. We hope to keep it up."

When finalized, Soriano's deal will be the fifth-largest total package given to a Major League player behind Rodriguez ($252 million for 10 years), Derek Jeter ($189 million for 10 years), Manny Ramirez ($160 for eight years) and Todd Helton ($141.5 million for 11 years). It will also easily be the most lucrative given to a Cubs player, breaking the $75-million record Hendry gave Ramirez last week.

Soriano's arrival also means the Cubs, who have $80.25 million earmarked for 14 players next season not counting arbitration-eligible players like Carlos Zambrano, will easily have a player payroll in excess of $100 million -- perhaps as high as $118-$122 million. The latter figure would give the Cubs the second-highest payroll in baseball behind the New York Yankees, but most likely, the Cubs will wind up with the third highest -- assuming the Red Sox sign Japanese right-hander Daisuke Matsuzaka.

Hendry, however, hasn't closed the team checkbook yet. He is clearly serious about the Cubs going from the worst record in the league in 2006 to the playoffs in 2007.

You might say he is banking on it.