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mrschroeder08 partyvancaptain pee_callus25 Tags 2010 Preview 5 Million Dollar Black Hole AAAA Aaron Heilman Aaron Miles Alfonso Soriano Andres Blanco Angel Guzman Aramis Ramirez Arizona Diamondbacks Atlanta Braves B.J. Ryan Baltimore Orioles Bob Brenly Bobby Scales Bonehead Booing Boston Red Sox Brett Jackson Bullpen Canadian Concoction Captain Kneejerk Cardinals Carlos Marmol Carlos Silva Carlos Zambrano Chad Fox Chad Tracy Chicago Cubs Chicago White Sox Cincinnati Reds Cleveland Indians Cold War Colorado Rockies Contracts Cubs-Cardinals Rivalry Cubs sale Cubs Curtis Granderson Daniel Herrera David Patton Derrek Lee Designated Hitter Detroit Tigers Disabled list Dominance ERA+ ERROR Esmailin Caridad ESPN Sucks Eternal frustration Eternal Optimism Farewell Farney Florida Marlins Free Agency Future Gatorade Geovanny Soto Geovany Soto Gerald Perry Grades Houston Astros I-Cubs Injuries Jake Fox Jason Marquis Jason Waddell Jeff Gray Jeff Samardzija Jim Hendry Jim Wolf Joey Gathright John Grabow Jose Ascanio Kansas City Royals Kerry Wood Kevin Gregg Kevin Hart Kevin Millar Koyie Hill LaTroy Hawkins Legendary Lineup Los Angeles Angels Los Angeles Dodgers Lou Piniella Luis Vizcaino Man Crush Mark DeRosa Marlon Byrd Micah Hoffpauir Middle Infield Midwestern Bias Milton Bradley Milwaukee Brewers Minnesota Twins Minor Leagues MLB 2K9 Neal Cotts New York Mets New York Yankees Oakland Athletics October Offseason Opening Day OPS+ Payroll Philadelphia Phillies Pittsburgh Pirates Playoffs Randy Wells Rant Rich Harden Ryan Dempster Ryan Freel Ryan Theriot Sam Fuld Sam Zell Sammy Sosa San Diego Padres San Francisco Giants Sandy Alderson Sean Marshall Seattle Mariners St. Louis Cardinals Steroids Strikeouts Suckiness Tampa Bay Rays TBS Texas Rangers Tom Gorzelanny Tom Ricketts Toronto Blue Jays Trade Tribune Company Tyler Colvin Von Joshua Waivers Walks Washington Nationals WTF Xavier Nady RSS Feed Where was this last October? What a beautiful game from a Cubs perspective, for the most part. Dempster pitched as if someone told him his contract was running up. Milton Bradley finally joined the Cubs. Reed Johnson (who Lou chose not to play last October, not like it would have mattered) not only put down a great squeeze, but also hit a tape measure shot. It was a refreshing game to watch, even if we had to endure Buck and McCarver. Blech. With as many problems as this team has with health, umpires, Gatorade dispensers, walks and breaking balls, they have a lot of potential. I'll say it again, this lineup has the potential to be great. The starting rotation is really, really good. The bullpen... well... not everything can be a strength. Now before you think I flip flopped on Hendry's GMing, I just want to note that the Cubs have the 3rd highest payroll. They BETTER at least have this much potential. Unfortunately, the Red Sox (ugh) who spend roughly as much, have much more to show for it. Back to being positive though: look at the Cubs. Ramirez is injured. Harden is gone. Heilman still can't throw strikes. There is no left hander in the bullpen who has thrown a major league pitch. Soriano is about as useful in left field these days as that flock of sea gulls he hung out with towards the end of the game (and again is getting paid $17 million more). But the end result is at least a series tie with the best team recordwise in baseball. That is why it is so maddening when they score 5 runs in 6 games. Eventually, Aramis will be back. Harden will be back, for at least a while. Soriano will hit again. A trade will be made to get bullpen help, hopefully a good one. The only thing is, as a Cubs fan, I wonder what will go wrong once those things go right. If by some chance, nothing goes wrong, then these Cubs will be a force. Posted in: Eternal Optimism Welcome to the Blue Ivy. Here I will share my half-baked Cubs thoughts with the generally apathetic and non-existent readership. I was intending on getting this up and running by the beginning of the season, but I was honestly just too lazy to do so. Anyways, I am hoping some more of you (Dan, I'm looking at you) will join me to post some entertaining observations, some interesting insights, and a whole lot of nonsensical ranting. With any luck, by the end of October, we will have this as a log of our thoughts and feelings during the Cubs championship season. Then again, bloggers have been saying that for 100 years...er... something like that. Posted in: Cubs, Eternal Optimism | ||