CHICAGO -- Kerry Wood prepared himself mentally and emotionally last season, knowing it might be his last one with the Chicago Cubs. Turned out, it was.
Wood wanted to stay with the only team he's ever pitched for, but the economic realities of the game and the team's needs in other areas prevented that from happening.
After recovering from serious shoulder problems and numerous injuries that have sidetracked his career as a starter, Wood became a top closer last season. And now as a free agent, he can hit the market and command a multiyear contract that the Cubs were not willing to offer.
"It's bittersweet. Obviously this is my first choice. I wanted to stay here and the best choice for me and my family. ... But that's part of baseball right now," Wood said in a conference call Friday.
Wood's comments came one day after the Cubs traded for Marlins reliever Kevin Gregg. General manager Jim Hendry told reporters that the fair thing was for the team to let Wood get a deal he deserved.
The GM had already told Wood face-to-face what the Cubs were planning and that getting him a multiyear was not one of the top priorities. On Friday, Wood lauded Hendry for his honesty.
Chicago hopes to bring back free agent starter Ryan Dempster -- the guy Wood replaced as closer last season -- and add some left-handed offensive punch.
But Wood is one of the most popular players in team history. He pointed out that Cubs fans watched him grow up from a "pimply faced, 17-year-old, and when my tenure is done I'm leaving married with two kids."
He's also leaving with a bag full of memories -- a 20-strikeout game against the Astros in 1998 in his fifth major league start when he went on to become the NL Rookie of the Year; a 2003 season when he helped the Cubs reach Game 7 of the NLCS, where he started and lost despite hitting a home run.
"I choked," he said the night of that defeat.
Wood said this season was one of the most gratifying he's ever experienced.
After winning the closer's role in spring training, he saved 34 of 40 games, his fastball blazing in the mid 90s mph again. He pretty much reinvented his career with the impressive return.
That career appeared to be nearly over in 2007 as he battled shoulder problems for a third straight season. But he made a stirring comeback in August that year after the pain in his shoulder mysteriously went away and pitched well in relief.
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