Center field shouldn’t be too much of a mystery for the Cubs in 2010. After disappointing numbers in right field in 2008, Kosuke Fukudome spent this season in center where he’s hit .260/.377/.423. He’s been roughly average as a defensive center fielder, and that batting line is good for the position. As a good hitter and average fielder, you’d think that Fukudome would have the position locked up.

But with Milton Bradley obviously done in Chicago, the Cubs are going to need to fill Fukudome’s old position, and Fukudome seems like the most likely candidate. If that happens, the Cubs will need to consider who to replace Fukudome with. I’m going to throw out Reed Johnson here. The Cubs have had ample opportunities to give Johnson a starting role and I think they recognize that he’s best used as a situational player - although he may be a better option than the two in-house options I’m about to talk about.

The Cubs have a pair of lefty rookies who may get a shot at the job next season. Sam Fuld has been embarrassingly lauded by Cubs fans, getting “Sammy” chants at least once at Wrigley field. He has played very well in limited major-league playing time this season, with a .288 average and .406 on-base percentage, though no power to speak of. He’s been below average in center field this season, but that’s in only 13 starts, which I agree means almost nothing - he ought to be at least average defensively. But Fuld is a 27-year-old rookie for a reason: his numbers in the batter-friendly Pacific Coast League at AAA were good but not especially impressive, suggesting nothing good about his major-league prospects.

Tyler Colvin is another option the Cubs may look at heading into spring training. Colvin was drafted by the Cubs in the first round of the 2006 draft, even though he probably could have been taken much later. But the Cubs saw something in him, and given his September callup, it seems like they may still. His minor-league career has been hurt by injuries, but finally healthy this year, he hit .300 and with power in AA, although he wasn’t great at getting on base. In only a few major league at-bats he hasn’t been impressive, but I wouldn’t be shocked if he was in the mix for at least a fourth outfielder spot for the Cubs in spring training.

If the Cubs need a center fielder and are going to go outside the organization, the options aren’t great - the best free-agent outfielders this offseason are not center fielders. The two that seem most likely to me are both in the division - Mike Cameron and Rick Ankiel. Cameron is the better player, but he’s older - he’ll be 37 next season. But the last two seasons he’s been a good fielder and a good hitter, and could potentially be an upgrade over Fukudome.

Ankiel is, meanwhile, not an upgrade. While his comeback and conversion from pitcher to position player is impressive, he’s not a good position player. He’s been, over the past few seasons, very slightly above average offensively, owing entirely to his ability to hit for power. This season he hasn’t hit at all. Defensively he’s been worse than Fukudome in center field. But he’s a free agent and Jim Hendry seems to have a thing for former Cardinals (Aaron Miles, Jason Marquis, Jim Edmonds) and I’m not going to be shocked if he makes a play for him.

Hopefully it won’t come to that - as we’ll see next time, if the Cubs are willing to spend money there are better options in right field, and anyway, Fukudome has found a position where he can be worth what he’s paid, so it doesn’t make a lot of sense to move him.