Cubs -- 2006 NL Wildcard???

[Littlemeyer]

OK, stop laughing...




Seriously. Stop....



OK. We're only 11.5 games back currently. Coming off of a 4-game sweep of the Cardinals. Seven more home games in a row. This is how you build momentum...winning at home. Get the crowd pumped, get the bleacher bums fired up...Prior going to the hill tonight, and he WILL collect his first win of the season. (Probably will be a no-hitter, but the Dbacks may be lucky and get an infield hit or something cheap like that...)

I predict by mid-September, the deficit will be less than five games. Anything can happen then...

Who's with me? Ralph Cramden? CanfaninBathtub? I know you're out there...We're not giving up yet!

[cumberlandredskin]

You have to belong to the Optimist Club,correct?

[Athens2005]

There are so many bad teams in the NL this year, that the Wild Card could literally come from anywhere.

Nonetheless, these teams are bad for a reason, and it looks to me like the current top teams: Cincy, Arizona, San Fran, will likely remain the top wild card contenders throughout the duration of the season.

Someone else will jump up and make a run soon (Atlanta looked dead this weekend, Houston, with its pitching, remains a possibility, Philly just traded away its chance), but I doubt that that team will be the Cubs.

Still, it's a lot more fun to believe you have a chance, than in the old days, when you knew your season was already over (pre Wild Card).

Not saying that I am a WC proponent, just pointing out the increased interest by fans of teams that otherwise wouldn't believe that they had any chance whatsoever.

[jaspcat]

Kerry Wood Scheduled for Thursday Return, Friday MRI, Monday Surgery
Oft-injured Chicago Cubs starter Kerry Wood is set to make his first start of the season Thursday afternoon against the Nationals. The team has also scheduled Wood for an MRI on Friday, and have reserved orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews for Monday for Wood’s reconstructive shoulder or elbow surgery.

“Kerry has a big week coming up,” said Chicago general manager Jim Hendry. “I’m sure the next five days are going to be a blur for him with all that’s going to happen. But I’m positive he’ll handle it very well and be ready to give us a start or two again next year.”

Disabled List Offers Mark Prior Two-Year, $8 Million Extension
June 29, 2006 | Onion Sports (http://www.theonion.com/content/sports)


CHICAGO—Mark Prior, the right-handed pitcher who has spent the first few years of his career on the disabled list, is now considering accepting a recent two-year, $8 million offer from the DL that would keep him not playing through the 2008 season. "I couldn't even imagine the DL without Mark Prior—over the years, he has become the face, stiff right elbow, strained subscapularis muscle, and inflamed Achilles tendon of our organization," said Kirk Gibson, manager and longtime former member of the DL, which is currently rebuilding by claiming young arms such as Kerry Wood, Ben Sheets, and Mike Maroth. "We firmly believe that Mark's best injuries are still ahead of him." While Prior's agent says the pitcher is exploring his options, experts predict that it is "inevitable" that Prior will return to the DL and, with the loyalty he's shown in the past, likely finish his career there.

:D

[Littlemeyer]

FCFS82 wrote: Greg Maddux gets traded to the Dodgers. Cubs are done, dood. Have been since April.




And Todd Walker to the Padres. Yep. I felt better at 12:09 pm central time.

Still ain't givin' up though...:ggrin:

(and to be fair, they were NOT done in April. Probably early May...)

[Will Lavender]

I peruse some of the baseball stat sites on occasion. Some of the better baseball writers were putting the Cubs in last or next to last in the Central...in May. And that was with D. Lee.

Of course, those same guys were putting the Reds either right in front of Chicago or right behind. So they don't know that much.

Anyway, the WC isn't going through Chicago. Nor do I think it's going through Cincinnati. Arizona will probably claim it, and I still think Atlanta and Milwaukee could make strong pushes in the last couple of months.

Wouldn't surprise me at all to see the Brewers come up and snag it. With Sheets back, they're one of the five or six best teams in the NL.

[Athens2005]

Will Lavender wrote:

Wouldn't surprise me at all to see the Brewers come up and snag it. With Sheets back, they're one of the five or six best teams in the NL.


I think Milwaukee's biggest problem is that their schedule is road-heavy down the stretch, and they have struggled away from Miller Park this season.

Sheets will help, but I'd be more concerned about the Kolb/Turnbow problem they've got on the back-end.

Nonetheless, plenty of head2head games with Cincy will at least give them a shot at catching the Reds. Whether or not the Reds wind up the team to beat, remains to be seen.

[Will Lavender]

Athens2005 wrote: Will Lavender wrote:

Wouldn't surprise me at all to see the Brewers come up and snag it. With Sheets back, they're one of the five or six best teams in the NL.


I think Milwaukee's biggest problem is that their schedule is road-heavy down the stretch, and they have struggled away from Miller Park this season.

Sheets will help, but I'd be more concerned about the Kolb/Turnbow problem they've got on the back-end.

Nonetheless, plenty of head2head games with Cincy will at least give them a shot at catching the Reds. Whether or not the Reds wind up the team to beat, remains to be seen.

I think the Brewers may have fixed their Turnbow problem with the with the acquisition of Francisco Cordero.

I haven't ever compared their stats, but to me Cordero looks like he has much more stable stuff than Turnbow. In the series against the Reds this weekend, he was always in control of his fastball. Turnbow, of course, wasn't.

[Littlemeyer]

This thread is veering off-topic. Cubs....wildcard....playoffs at Wrigley...all acceptable comments. Brewers? Reds? Other threads, please...;) j/k

(For the record, while my heart says Cubbies, my mind is saying Reds, Braves, Dbacks, Brewcrew....in that order. Something about the season the Reds are having...maybe the stars are aligned, or something sappy like that. Just feels right for them this year.)