On a 1-10 scale, my ratings of the Cubs' players:
C - Geovany Soto 6
1b - Derrek Lee 7
2b - Mark DeRosa 6
SS - Ryan Theriot 6
3b - Aramis Ramirez 9
LF - Alfonso Soriano 9
CF - Felix Pie 4
RF - Kosuke Fukudome 7
SP - Carlos Zambrano 9
SP - Ted Lilly 7
SP - Rich Hill 6
SP - Ryan Dempster 6
SP - Jason Marquis 5
CL - Kerry Wood 7
RP - Carlos Marmol 10
RP - Bobby Howry 9
I weight these players at 50% of the value of the starting eight and the top pitchers:
RP - Michael Wuertz 8
RP - Carmen Pigniatello 6
RP - Jon Lieber 6
C - Henry Blanco 6
OF - Reed Johnson 6
OF - Daryl Ward 8
IF - Mike Fontenot 4
IF - Ronny Cedeno 5
RP - Kevin Hart 4
Cubs total score: 113+27 = 140
I predict the Cubs will win 86 games this year, and finish second to the Milwaukee Brewers.
Monday, March 31, 2008
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Players Headed for Big/ Bad Years
Some players I am optimsitic about;
Carlos Marmol
Dontrelle Willis
Daric Barton
Joey Votto
Rickie Weeks
Corey Hart
Clay Buchholz
Matt Cain
Tim Lincecum
Jacoby Ellsbury
Nick Swisher
Kosuke Fukudome
Juan Uribe
Alex Gordon
Billy Butler
Ian Kinsler
Ryan Zimmerman
Fukudome
Ichiro
Justin Upton
Josh Hamilton
Matt Capps
Ben Sheets
Hank Blalock
James Loney
James Shields
Some I think are headed for disappointing seasons:
Gary Sheffield
Cole Hamels
Joe Borowski
Eric Byrnes
Juan Pierre
Pat Burrell
Fausto Carmona
Ubaldo Jiminez
Dustin McGowan
Felix Hernandez
Ryan Braun
David Ortiz
Kevin Gregg
Randy Johnson
Ryan Theriot
Im a little low on time, so I will finish this a bit later. Chew on this partial list, for the time being...
Carlos Marmol
Dontrelle Willis
Daric Barton
Joey Votto
Rickie Weeks
Corey Hart
Clay Buchholz
Matt Cain
Tim Lincecum
Jacoby Ellsbury
Nick Swisher
Kosuke Fukudome
Juan Uribe
Alex Gordon
Billy Butler
Ian Kinsler
Ryan Zimmerman
Fukudome
Ichiro
Justin Upton
Josh Hamilton
Matt Capps
Ben Sheets
Hank Blalock
James Loney
James Shields
Some I think are headed for disappointing seasons:
Gary Sheffield
Cole Hamels
Joe Borowski
Eric Byrnes
Juan Pierre
Pat Burrell
Fausto Carmona
Ubaldo Jiminez
Dustin McGowan
Felix Hernandez
Ryan Braun
David Ortiz
Kevin Gregg
Randy Johnson
Ryan Theriot
Im a little low on time, so I will finish this a bit later. Chew on this partial list, for the time being...
Saturday, March 29, 2008
2008 Season Predictions!
Well I/we are back here regularly to the Infield Box, now with the season technically already under way. Opening day, though, is for most teams (including our Cubs) not until Monday.
This is the twilight season of American League dominance, baseball fans. Believe it. The young talent is twice as good in the National. Either this year or next, the NL will begin a run of All-Star Game victories.
Here are how the 2008 races shape up, as I see it:
2008 AL East
1. Boston Red Sox
2. New York Yankees
3. Toronto Blue Jays
4. Tampa Bay Devil Rays
5. Baltimore Orioles
Why not again? One year at a time, Red Sox nation is achieving parity with the law of averages. The Yankees are the second best team here. They are too loaded for me to think that the Jays can catch them, though they do have a realistic chance. No, it is still not the Rays' year. When will it be? If the young talent develops, and the Red Sox get old, and the Yankees' pitchers disappoint, then there could be a run for this team. The Orioles are backing up the truck now. Erik Bedard was traded; Brian Roberts will be next.
2008 AL Central
1. Detroit Tigers
2. Chicago White Sox
3. Cleveland Indians
4. Minnesota Twins
5. Kansas City Royals
The Tigers are just too loaded not to win. How can ALL of it fail? There is to much talent here for bad individual seasons to stop a division title. I like the White Sox; Kenny Williams really knows how to build on the fly. After last year, it is easy to forget just how good many Sox players are. If Detroit just doesn't care, this could be a first place finish for the Sox. Cleveland has a thin rotation and a bullpen that goes way up or way down year to year. Guess which kind they are due for? I still like their lineup though. The Twins lack the great pitching they had in years past. But they will be ahead of the Royals because of Mauer and Morneau. Kansas City cannot match that, though Alex Gordon and Billy Butler, is in fact a great start.
2008 AL West
1. Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, California
2. Texas Rangers
3. Seattle Mariners
4. Oakland A's
The Angels will cruise in a weak division. Sure is nice to be the Angels. I think the Rangers will have a lot of hitting, and little pitching. Their pickup of Josh Hamilton was astute, and I think that Hank Blalock will come back strong. I really like Ian Kinsler, and Michael Young is still here. The Mariners added Erik Bedard. their idea that they should trade a blue-chip prospect like Adam Jones in order to "win now" was seriously misguided. They have some talent, but does anyone see them in the World Series? Oakland traded it's best hitter and best pitcher. Billy Beane is reloading. Daric Barton has a great upside. Don't forget about these guys for too long.
2008 NL East
1. New York Mets
2. Atlanta Braves
3. Florida Marlins
4. Philadelphia Phillies
5. Washington Nationals
The Mets will be more hungry than a veteran team normally is; we all know why. And now they have Santana, who hasn't been seen before by the NL hitters. The Braves never really die, do they? They have some good young talent. The Marlins also have a lot of talented youngsters. They have good young players on the rise both as hitters and pitchers. The Phillies really peaked last year. They have Rollins and Chase Utley. What else do they have? The Nationals plan to ride out this year based on their new stadium.
2008 NL Central
1. Milwaukee Brewers
2. Chicago Cubs
3. Houston Astros
4. Cincinnati Reds
5. Pittsburgh Pirates
6. St. Louis Cardinals
Wow, the Brewers have talent. I'm not sue if they are ready to win big or not, but they have too many players with chances to break out to overlook this team and to believe that the generally over-30 Cubs will be better. The Astros have some decent players. Here, that is good enough for 3rd. The Reds have some young talent, and Dusty Baker gets the most out of a team in his early years. The Pirates have some players who are good that you've never heard of, unless you play fantasy baseball. But have you seen the lineup that St. Louis plans to use? That could really implode if Pujols ends up having to have surgery (which he should do, since this year is a lost cause).
2008 NL West
1. San Diego Padres
2. Arizona Diamondbacks
3. Los Angeles Dodgers
4. Colorado Rockies
5. San Francisco Giants
Any of these NL West teams would be a threat even for second place in the NL Central. I like the Padres front-line pitching; Jake Peavy and Chris Young is a great leg up on the competition. They are better than Brandon Webb and Dan Haren. The Dbacks have a lot of very young players who might slip a bit when the league focuses on getting them out this year. They lack a true #3 hitter, and collectively strike out too much. The Dodgers have enough talent to win often enough. There are some good things about this team, but they are not a true threat. The Rockies in fourth? Really? Yes, but with about 75 wins. There is not one single veteran pitcher with a real resume here. Matt Holliday is the best offensive player, but most other players will have real problems repeating their performances. Todd Helton in particular has disappointed for several years now. The Giants have some outstanding young pitchers, such as Tim Lincecum, and Matt Cain. They have nothing else. The healing has begun; 2008 is the year the Giants take their medicine.
Wild Card Races:
AL Wild Card Contenders: White Sox, Yankees, Cleveland. Winner? White Sox.
NL Wild Card Contenders: Diamondbacks, Dodgers, Braves, Cubs, Astros, Marlins. Winner? I say Atlanta, though Lou Piniella (and it will be because of him if it happens) can will the Cubs in to the post season. IF that happens the common belief that it is the Cubs year will alter the usual we-are-cursed narrative that manifests in such things as the Bartman game.
This is the twilight season of American League dominance, baseball fans. Believe it. The young talent is twice as good in the National. Either this year or next, the NL will begin a run of All-Star Game victories.
Here are how the 2008 races shape up, as I see it:
2008 AL East
1. Boston Red Sox
2. New York Yankees
3. Toronto Blue Jays
4. Tampa Bay Devil Rays
5. Baltimore Orioles
Why not again? One year at a time, Red Sox nation is achieving parity with the law of averages. The Yankees are the second best team here. They are too loaded for me to think that the Jays can catch them, though they do have a realistic chance. No, it is still not the Rays' year. When will it be? If the young talent develops, and the Red Sox get old, and the Yankees' pitchers disappoint, then there could be a run for this team. The Orioles are backing up the truck now. Erik Bedard was traded; Brian Roberts will be next.
2008 AL Central
1. Detroit Tigers
2. Chicago White Sox
3. Cleveland Indians
4. Minnesota Twins
5. Kansas City Royals
The Tigers are just too loaded not to win. How can ALL of it fail? There is to much talent here for bad individual seasons to stop a division title. I like the White Sox; Kenny Williams really knows how to build on the fly. After last year, it is easy to forget just how good many Sox players are. If Detroit just doesn't care, this could be a first place finish for the Sox. Cleveland has a thin rotation and a bullpen that goes way up or way down year to year. Guess which kind they are due for? I still like their lineup though. The Twins lack the great pitching they had in years past. But they will be ahead of the Royals because of Mauer and Morneau. Kansas City cannot match that, though Alex Gordon and Billy Butler, is in fact a great start.
2008 AL West
1. Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, California
2. Texas Rangers
3. Seattle Mariners
4. Oakland A's
The Angels will cruise in a weak division. Sure is nice to be the Angels. I think the Rangers will have a lot of hitting, and little pitching. Their pickup of Josh Hamilton was astute, and I think that Hank Blalock will come back strong. I really like Ian Kinsler, and Michael Young is still here. The Mariners added Erik Bedard. their idea that they should trade a blue-chip prospect like Adam Jones in order to "win now" was seriously misguided. They have some talent, but does anyone see them in the World Series? Oakland traded it's best hitter and best pitcher. Billy Beane is reloading. Daric Barton has a great upside. Don't forget about these guys for too long.
2008 NL East
1. New York Mets
2. Atlanta Braves
3. Florida Marlins
4. Philadelphia Phillies
5. Washington Nationals
The Mets will be more hungry than a veteran team normally is; we all know why. And now they have Santana, who hasn't been seen before by the NL hitters. The Braves never really die, do they? They have some good young talent. The Marlins also have a lot of talented youngsters. They have good young players on the rise both as hitters and pitchers. The Phillies really peaked last year. They have Rollins and Chase Utley. What else do they have? The Nationals plan to ride out this year based on their new stadium.
2008 NL Central
1. Milwaukee Brewers
2. Chicago Cubs
3. Houston Astros
4. Cincinnati Reds
5. Pittsburgh Pirates
6. St. Louis Cardinals
Wow, the Brewers have talent. I'm not sue if they are ready to win big or not, but they have too many players with chances to break out to overlook this team and to believe that the generally over-30 Cubs will be better. The Astros have some decent players. Here, that is good enough for 3rd. The Reds have some young talent, and Dusty Baker gets the most out of a team in his early years. The Pirates have some players who are good that you've never heard of, unless you play fantasy baseball. But have you seen the lineup that St. Louis plans to use? That could really implode if Pujols ends up having to have surgery (which he should do, since this year is a lost cause).
2008 NL West
1. San Diego Padres
2. Arizona Diamondbacks
3. Los Angeles Dodgers
4. Colorado Rockies
5. San Francisco Giants
Any of these NL West teams would be a threat even for second place in the NL Central. I like the Padres front-line pitching; Jake Peavy and Chris Young is a great leg up on the competition. They are better than Brandon Webb and Dan Haren. The Dbacks have a lot of very young players who might slip a bit when the league focuses on getting them out this year. They lack a true #3 hitter, and collectively strike out too much. The Dodgers have enough talent to win often enough. There are some good things about this team, but they are not a true threat. The Rockies in fourth? Really? Yes, but with about 75 wins. There is not one single veteran pitcher with a real resume here. Matt Holliday is the best offensive player, but most other players will have real problems repeating their performances. Todd Helton in particular has disappointed for several years now. The Giants have some outstanding young pitchers, such as Tim Lincecum, and Matt Cain. They have nothing else. The healing has begun; 2008 is the year the Giants take their medicine.
Wild Card Races:
AL Wild Card Contenders: White Sox, Yankees, Cleveland. Winner? White Sox.
NL Wild Card Contenders: Diamondbacks, Dodgers, Braves, Cubs, Astros, Marlins. Winner? I say Atlanta, though Lou Piniella (and it will be because of him if it happens) can will the Cubs in to the post season. IF that happens the common belief that it is the Cubs year will alter the usual we-are-cursed narrative that manifests in such things as the Bartman game.
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