If Byrd has anything left in the tank, he could be okay. I wouldn't be surprised if he's cooked either, but it might be unfair to say that based on ~150 PA in 2012, and he
was a pretty decent player for the Cubs in 2010 and 2011, after all.
He'll compete for the last outfield spot on the bench with Andrew Brown. I think the outfield could end up being very fluid this year with multiple players getting chances given that the current group is largely inexperienced - Kirk, Baxter, and Cowgill each have less than 350 PA for their Major League careers. If one, two, or all three flop, then what happens? Ideally these guys hold their weight against RHP and Cowgill and Byrd platoon with them, but that's basically the best case scenario. For a team with such an inexperienced and ugly-looking outfield, there's no harm picking up a player like Byrd on a freebie deal and seeing what he has left. If he's finished, he won't last very long. The outfield won't be a strength of this team at all this year, but adding as many bodies as possible could help it from being a complete embarrassment.
Edited by nmigliore, 02 February 2013 - 10:25 AM.