Baseball Prospectus predictions (don't look, Sox fans)

Not too surprised although I would have thought 3rd ahead of the Twins and Royals. Sox have far more question marks than last year. I'm not too upset about the trades especially since Garcia did nothing until it was almost over but the reality is that Williams is essentially giving up on this year. We still don't have much of a SS, CF is shaky and I don't know who's playing LF. Oh yeah, 5th starter is a big question mark. It feels like 84-85 wins which isn't gonna get it done!

I believe the Cubs will finish second in their division. Right now, their offensive lineup looks solid...Soriano, Ramirez, Lee, Barrett, etc, but I have a real problem with their starting rotation. Zambrano, Lilly, Marquis, Prior, and Wood is not a strong enough to win the division. Plus, they have no closer. Relying on Ryan Dempster is a mistake. This has been my major issue with the Jim Hendry regime since day one. He has never been able to grooom a capable closer during his tenure and its inexcuseabel considering how important the closer position is. As far as the White Sox, they will still be a strong force for the division. Question is, how good will the Tigers be? I think they will win their division and the Sox will finish second.

The cubs as an organization pushed me away as a fan many years ago into becoming a sox fan.Just because they finally spend some money (only to sweeten a sale) i'm not going back.Now with that said i do believe they have the talent to win the division but as we saw last year with the sox talent doesn't mean you go to the playoffs.I do think that the white sox are still underestimated.Paulie, Thome,Dye,Crede is still THE toughest line to pitch through.

Yes, the Cubs have a potent lineup, but their pitching, oh their pitching is horrific. Talking about the Sox and no number 5, the Cubs have no 3, 4, or 5 starter. But boy can they swing the bats.

Reminds me of the 2000 Sox. I am a Sox fan I must admit. Whereas the Sox, I don't really like the moves, I wish they would've gotten a real SS (or Uribe plays like he was playing in 05').

Four good starters is enough, can cover for 5 inning Vasquez, with relief, and can still win 90-95 games. No other team in our division really made more than one significant move. I like our chances. And they won it all unlike Detroit, so they do have moxie. (My main problem with the Bears---finish the job).

Let's see what happens

Being a third generation Cubs Fan and having passed that curse on to my children, the prediction of the Cubs winning thier division should have me a little excited. Unfortunately what comes to mind is the late Steve Goodman's song ..."A Dying Cubs Fan's Last Request"...in which he states...."you raise up a young boy's hopes and then just crush 'em like so many paper beer cups year after year after year after year 'til those hopes are just so much popcorn for the pidgeons beneath the el tracks to eat..."

As a life long Sox fan, I am not surprised by the Sox prediction.. our division is very strong...However, I like being the underdog..I think our pitching staff, especially our bullpen, will be much better than last year and I think Uribe, Pods and Erstad will have solid years..and overall, I think we will play with more determination & urgency than last year..

Re the Cubs.. The Cards are still the team to beat..they have the best GM and Mgr & best player in baseball..However, the rest of their division looks weak so the Cubs have a shot for 2nd if they stay relatively healthy & play better fundamental baseball..those are 2 big ifs!!!

Roman,

This is the same Baseball Prospectus that picked the White Sox 4th in 2005. We saw how that worked out. The Cubs should win their division. You spend 300+ million you better win your division.

I dont care what the Baseball Prospectus predictions predicts. The problem with the White Sox last year was their bullpen and now it is the stongest in the majors. Yes the Tigers will be good again but honestly they have no leadoff hitter. If we as sox fans think that Scott Podsednik is bad then Curtis Granderson is even worse and played teerible down the stretch. Their is going to be some hangover from the Tigers and some hunger lost by just getting to the World Series. The Twins lost Liriano and Radke I wouldnt be too scared of them and the Indians dont show up until mid august so Sox fans RELAX. All is well on the South Side and look for big contributions from Haeger, Floyd, and Gio Gonzalez as well as Erstad and the sox will have 94 wins and are AL Central champs once again.

wish the sox still had garcia , polite getting hurt during the season last year really hurt. never heard of baseball prospectus

Who is the screw head that said K. Williams gave up on 2007,, Must be a Cubbie the demon laid MLB club.FAN.that cherishs a old worn down Baseball park with close to 100 years of ghosts haunting the club and fans...I like Pinella and believe he could bring them in 2nd or 3rd...not good enough to meet the 2005 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP CHICAGO WHITE SOX...as Ken Williams as an astute MLB GM did the right thing this off season. Obtaining 8 strong young arms for the rotation and Pen, Plus a Gamer like Erstad will help along with the strong core of players from last year to meet the Arizona Diamonbacks in the 2007 World Series.

Boy, they call Cubs fans delusional. By the virtue of their moves and lack thereof the Sox will not bypass the Tigers. The Cards lack of decent pitching, makes the central wide open. I don't care who manages them. The Cubs are in as good of a position as anyone.

If Ozzie gives up the antics and concenterates on coaching his baseball team, I believe the Sox can compete for the Division Championsip and wind up with no less than a wild card. The pitching must come through, Contraras, Buhrle, and Garland are all proven winners who must perform. There is no reason to believe Konerko and Dye will not have very good years, Crede is coming into his own and the rest of the lineup is solid. If the Sox can concentrate on winning games this year, the sky is the limit.

As for the Cubs...I am a life long Sox fan who never saw Wrigley until I was 16 when I worked there as an Andy Frain Usher in the late 70's...I bought into the hype during the Bartman season and followed the Cubs for the next couple of years thinking that with Wood, Prior, Sosa, Lee and Ramirez they would break through. Never again, what a heartbreak, I don't know how you Cub fans can deal with this year after year. I wish them luck and an el train series.

Baseball Prospectus is a joke. first of all the cubs need better pitching. sure they spent all that money on offense, but all they got for pitchers was average at best. they will score a lot of runs and give up just as many. once again i see prior is going to be counted on in their rotation... what a joke. the sox should win their division of over achievers last year. sure they finished third last year but they won 90 games. the twins are plagued with no pitching this year and the tigers can't handle the pressure. look for brian anderson and pods to have big years this year. not to mention floyd to win at least 10 games in the 5th starter spot. javier looks poised to win 20 this year. things look good on the south side. (hey jay i hope they sell you to the st paul times in minn. you have never done anything good for this city... take a long walk off a short dock)

Where did the baseball prospectus predict the Sox would end up in '05? Exactly. I have learned over the past few years of watching ESPN and reading publications such as SI, ESPN Mag, and Sporting News to take these analysts predictions with a grain of salt. I prefer to let the results unfold on the field and dont get caught up in the predictions of the so-called "experts" The Sox are in arguably the best division in baseball, so anything can happen this year, but i can assure you they will not come in fourth. Oh and Cub fans, enjoy the first couple months of the season, because once June rolls around and 2 or 3 starters are out for the season, all you are gonna have to look forward to again is the offseason when the Tribune Co rolls out the red carpet for another big free agent signing so everyone can forget about the previous season and buy more tickets for '08.

All baseball "experts" always hate on the Sox. The Cubs wont win the central because they have one pitcher everybody know prior will get hurt and so will wood. cuubs might make it to the playoffs but they wont win it all. you cant buy a WS, if it doesnt work for the yankees it wont work for the cubs.

I would like to say that the Cubs pitching is not a weakness, it is a strength. Re: The comment posted by "Mark," Wood is no longer being relyed on as a starter, he will be a strong bullpen edition to what looks to be the best bullpen in the National League. Here is the rotation: 1. Zambrano, 2. Lilly, 3. Prior, 4. Hill, 5. Marquis or Miller. Bullpen: Miller or Marquis, Wood, Cotts, Eyre, Howry, Ohman, Dempster (Weurtz, Novoa, Marmol, etc...will be used when others go down). If Prior and Miller come back to their old forms (that is a HUGE if) the Cubs starting rotation looks to be one of the best in the National League as well. If not, it still looks a hell of a lot better than last year and with the lineup this team has (Soriano, DeRosa, Lee, Ramirez, Jones, Floyd/Murton, Barrett, Izturis) the starting rotation will not need to do much more than eat up innings and keep the team in the game until the later innings.

Having Darin Erstad is like having Aaron Rowand in the clubhouse - a fierce competitor who supports his teammates to no end. A low risk / high reward pickup that KW picked up for a song.

The bullpen is not as "hype" as much as people think. We have horses that throw serious heat, but mixing in a Chad Bradford type of reliever would keep opposing batters' timing in check.

This year will further prove the power shift from the AL East to the Central. 92 wins should earn at least a wild card berth.

If the Sox can make a late trade for that needed reliever I mentioned before, I feel confident that the White Sox will make another post-season appearence.

I had the great honor to meet Mr Santo when he was a patient at my last job. This man never denied anyone anything that was asked of him. No matter his circumstances he was an absolute gentleman. He never bad mouthed anyone and he just had this enthusiasm for the players and the team. He was very patient while everything went on with him at the hospital. And if you've ever been a patient you know there is the taffy pull and the hurry-up and wait thing going. When a guy come across like that you wish them the best. I'm too young to have seen him play but if he played half as good as he was gracious let him in the hall.

Reading the responses, far too many believe the Cubs' pitching is weak. I'm here to explain why our pitching staff is going to be a strength not a weakness. Zambrano is a legit Ace. Prior is mad, healthy, and going to dominate. Hill is our best young prospect, lefty, and lights out (think last September). Lilly handled the AL East, and is a steady vetern lefty. Miller, Marquis, or Marshall are more than capable #5's. Also, I happen to think that Samardzijia is most likely going to crush batters soon at any level. He may not get a shot this year, but I wouldn't be suprised if he does. He's been busy setting all Notre Dame's recieving records, right? Now he's giving up football completely to dominate batters for the Cubs? He must be a damn good pitcher to completely give up football. I don't see why he can't be one of the best pitchers in baseball. According to Lou he has a live arm. Add to that four pitches with more athleticism than anyone else on the mound. He's tall, competitive, and accustomed to the spotlight. The Cubs should take a long look at him for #5, if he can locate his fastball. He may be the key to a magical season. Sometimes you need to make the different move to make the difference. I'm not too interested in Marquis, truthfully. He's a Cardinal with an ERA over 6. I'm not a huge fan.

Plus, our bullpen is good. Remember when Dempster saved 33 straight or something? I think Wood will close eventually anyway, and believe me, Kid K can still mow 'em down. Eyre, Cotts, Howry, Weurtz- all quality set-up guys. Baseball Prospectus is on to something. The Cubs will lead the NL in HR and K's, the power categories, and flex our muscles all the way to the World Series Trophy!

As for the Sox- you had your glory, enjoy it. You still have a nice squad, though. I like your chances.

Go Bulls!

p.s. Can we please tender Lovie a reasonable extension, then dispel the Thomas Jones trade rumors, then give Lance Briggs a big hug, like tomorrow?

I don't believe that prospectus much. Sox shouldn't be much worse than last year. Maybe the prospectus was thinking of the 08 season after buerhle, dye, and crede leave, then fourth sounds about right. Besides, i think the sox minor league teams should be really good with all the new players williams got for them, that should make up for the sox not having a good 4 or 5 starter or a center fielder or middle infielder. Minor league baseball can be really fun to watch, maybe williams will trade crede and buerhle and get some more class a or aa players. Good to get the real young ones that you can get more of and keep longer in the minors.

As for the cubs, well, i doubt they'll be any worse than last year. And with their payroll being the same as the white sox, they seem to have more of their key players signed for the long haul, something i guess the sox don't believe in. Or maybe the cubs would rather rely on scouting to fill their minor league teams than trading starting pitching, i dunno. Guess after you win a world series you don't have to worry what the fans think, as long as they keep buying the tickets and and the beer.

Should be a fun season, especially in the white sox minor leagues and at wrigley.

The projection that the Sox will finish 4th doesn't surprise me considering Williams has been working feverishly to dismantle the team. I tried to give him the benefit of the doubt and I hoped he had a master plan for this offseason but I'm not for the rebuilding. The Sox are going to be second class citizens again in this town and Reinsdorf doesn't care! I have lost my faith and won't be going to games untl they prove me wrong!

Forget the Sox

Roman responds: It seems a little soon after a World Series title to give up hope.

Hopefully, the Cubs will be competitive this year and much improved. But first place? At best a long shot. Their pitching will prevent that from happening. Too many pitchers have to be healthy all year and good. But if the Tigers can come out of nowhere why not the Cubs? They are in a weak division after all. I predict 3rd place. A great closer would increase their post season chances. At least Dusty's gone!

I love the off season. The hatred for the Reinsdorf/Williams duo, the disappointment of Ron Santo being denied the Hall again, hashing out the Sox batting order or new pitching rotation, hearing random rumblings of "the Cubs should be good this year" - it's all coming together. Just when you thought the winter couldn't get any longer, the city is starting to divide into Sox fans and Cubs fans again. (We did spend some quality time together as Bears fans, though, didn't we?) Some people let a groundhog decide when spring will arrive, but here in Chicago, I know it's getting close. It will be interesting to see what the Cubs can do with their giant payroll, and the White Sox are defintitely going to finish better than 4th. North or South there's a lot to look forward to - we have great pitching, power hitters and managers who provide great sound bites - I can't wait for Opening Day!

Just came back from Mesa & cubs certainly will score runs.But off season pitching moves or non moves will keep cubs from contending.Lilly & Marquis ,give me a break! No true closer! The sox are becoming a low budget small market franchise it seems.Not surprising coming from Reinsdorf & his puppet! I pick cubs for third & sox for fourth. Have a nice summer!

If Ozzy gets the sox to play together and help each other out they should be fine.
For the cubs it is the same every year.Prior and Wood are question marks,santo is not in the hall (how many hall of famers does that chokejob 69 team need?),they lifted the curse at harry carry's for 20th time.(at least they didn't eat a baseball this year)and they have their new manager every 3 years.I just hope cub fans dont humiliate the whole city by crying on the sidewalk outside of wrigley again

win, lose or draw there is NOTHING better than an afternoon or evening at the "friendly confines" except being there to see them "play 2". predictions are all good and well but the games still have to be played and injuries, slumps and trades happen not to mention decisions like the one in '85 that took home field away from the Cubs and forced lights to be installed at Wrigley. so lets take the predictions with a 5 pound bag of salt and sit back and enjoy every frustrating play of the season.
GO CUBBIES!

Cubs fan (and I've been one for over 40 years) will grasp on to anything, if they believe just maybe it could be the year. Sox fans require proof before they start to believe. The Sox's division is tough, but they are still at the top tier of the AL teams, and intangibles should help teams with depth. Is the Sox's main worry really the fifth starter? If so, this is a top tier problem. The name of the game is pitching, so not matter what the Cubs do with the bats, it just won't matter. Having faith in Prior and Woods has proven to be unwise, so why are we behaving like somehow things will be different? Ernie Banks was the eternal optimist and that behavior has permeated all Cub fans, to where we want to believe. But just like the little boy asked Shoeless Joe Jackson "say it ain't so".

Ha. That is funny. I am a huge Cubs fan and I will say right now the Cubs are awful. They have a slight shot at 75 wins, but their pitching is TOO awful to do anything. And what about thier OK lineup? Lee was a one year wonder, although he is solid. All they have on a consistent basis is Soriano and arguably Barret, Lee, and Ramirez.

As for the Sox, they will win their division. Their pitsching staff is stacked, except for the #5 spot, and thier pen is among the best in the majors, IMO. All of that to go along with Thome, Konerko, Dye, Crede, Pierzinski, Iguchi, and not to mention sometimes Pods and Uribe. That is still a championship caliber team. Last year was simply an off year where the Sox did not have enough ambition. I fully expect them to at least make to the ALCS.

The Cubs? They have ZERO chance to make the playoffs. And dont compare that possiblity (there is none) to the Tigers miracle last year. The tigers will not make the playoffs, and neither will the Twins!

GO CUBS prove me wrong! (wont happen, ill be happy if that team gets 70 wins, as it would be an accomplishment).

Are you kidding? I think this is a joke. Cubs fan should be happy with a 70 win season, it would be a step in the right direction. However, the Sox have a 98% chance to win their division. The lack of big spending will hurt the Twins finally, and Sheffield will certainly get hurt for the Tigers. The Indians are the only team I see competing with the Sox, but they will fall short.
The prediction was without a doubt made by someone who SHOULD BE FIRED. The Sox are hungry again, and they are too stacked to be stopped (except #5 starter). The Sox will win 102 games, as Jenks said.

?
the cubs might win 70 games!
doubt it.
Sox will win 105, 3 more than Jenks said. They are hungry again and are toooooo stacked to blow it again, especially with that ridiculous lineup and bullpen, along with that awesome pitching staff except for the #5 spot

Yeah Yeah Yeah - same stuff I heard in 05 from the know it alls of baseball at Baseball Prospectus. Truth is nobody knows what any team will do right now. Jeez...Spring training just started. To say this team will win or that team will lose is truely stupid. The Cubs may win - or maybe not. Same for my beloved White Sox. Both sides of town just have to wait and see. Enjoy the season and the wonderful game of baseball - and forget all the crap these baseball geniuses predict.

Yea! Game 1 of the spring season. Bout time, been a long winter.
Don't like what I'm hearing about K Wood 'muttering' about his bp pitching. I've got a feeling kid K aint back the way some people think he is. We'll see. I'd still like to hear some detail on the hot-tub fall, something doesn't ring true here. Prior hasn't pitched a full season since???? You really gonna pencil him in for 200 plus innings? I don't think so. The volatile Zambrano? You never know with this guy, great stuff and fun to watch, but is he really the guy you want pitching in the 'big' game? Wade Wilson has an 85 mph fastball. You don't go overnight from a power pitcher to a finesse guy. What does that leave you???
Hill with a 6-3 record in Sept when they are 87 games out. Two inning eaters with career numbers in the .500 area. Bullpen looks good outside of Eyre(terrible 2nd half)& Dempster, who still doesn't get why they stop giving him the ball at the end of the season. Offense should be pretty good. Be nice if everyone could stay healthy for once. Weak division, they could finish anywhere from last to first.
Sox should be right there in a much tougher division. Without key injuries, they can be #1 in the division. Imagine though if they would have lost talent similar to what the Cubs did, where they would have finished in '05 or '06.

The Baseball Prospectus doesn't seem to be a fairly respected publication here in Chicago. Predictions are meaningless. The
so-called "experts" don't know anymore than you and I who will do well in the upcoming season. I would be happy to see both teams win their divisions and go deep in the playoffs. A cross-town World Series has to happen some day, they did it in New York a few years back, why not Chicago?

I must be dreaming.

please tell me how a team who has no pitching depth and no defense can win a division?the cubs,has baseball prospectus forgot about fundementals?cubs cant field.now the sox in forth?please maybe second place,detroit will have some injuries that will hurt there team team to watch?cleveland if they get a closer.

Quit crying about the cubs. They're losers and they'll always be losers, just like every other sports team in this city. Oh they'll draw people to the park so people can see wrigley field (wow) and get druck out of their minds, but that'll be the only thing the cubs well compete in this season. Hard to believe fans STILL blame bartman fo blowing th '03 playoffs. Typical.

The Cubs didn't drop $300 million to improve by four wins. They have no expectation that Prior, Miller or Wood will even pitch an inning this year. If they are healthy that is a party bonus and gives Pinella a tough decision.

When picking the division, it is not so much what the Cubs have as it is what the others don't. The division was won last year with 83 wins. The Cards have pitching issues as does Houston.

I'm a little surprised at all the baseball prospectus bashing on this site. I don't look at it on line so maybe they predict what place everyone will come in on their site. But I do get their books and they don't say what place a team will finish as far as I can see. They predict how many wins a team will have based on the history of the players they have on the team. Sometime teams perform beyond their average talent. And sometimes teams are better because of this.
I'm looking at the 2006 baseball prospectus and there are a few things they say before last season that prove they know what they are talking about. After their analysis of the 2005 season they say the Sox outperformed by 9 games. They say with the runs they scored and the runs given up they should have been 90-72.
They say this is where they expect them to be again in 2006. Right on the money. They go on to say one of the biggest areas of overachievment was in the bullpen. Specifically Cotts and Politte.
I think they nailed that one too, if we see what happened with these two guys in 2006. They also suggested dealing Posednik instead of Rowand. They suggested dealing Brian Anderson instead of Chris Young. For those of you who don't know Chris Young, you will. Williams traded him to Arizona. He will be a stud center fielder.
The bottom line is Baseball Prosepectus is right about most of the analysis they give. Fortunately for us, this is baseball and sometimes the unexpected happens. Sometimes miracles happen. How boring would it be if everything happened as predicted. I wish good luck and good health to both sides of town.

As much as I love the Cubs, they have no chance to even win 80 games. Their pitching is awful, thier lineup overrated.

As much as I hate to say this, the White Sox will make it to at least the ALCS. They are stacked

GO CUBS

That's right Sox fans you were picked for 4th in 2005 and played over your heads to win it, that's why no one gave your team any respect and still doesn't. After 90 years of nothing and and playing second banana to a so called loser team.....what does that make you? You play in a concrete toilet bowl and make fun of a baseball shrine like Wrigley....Well it's your turn to cry losers, you and you team's luck has run out and Mr Wizard (Williams) has run out of lucky (on the cheap)moves. See you back in obscurity where you belong

CUBS FANS CAN YOU ALL STOP BELIEVING THAT MARK CUBAN IS GOING TO BUY THE CUBS THIS RUMOR POPS UP EVERY FEW MONTHS HE HAS SAID MANY TIMES HE ISN'T GOING TO BUY THE CUBS AND IF HE IS GOING TO BUY A BASEBALL TEAM IT'S GOING TO BE THE TEAM HE GREW UP WATCHING THE PHILLY'S.

Specifically, it was Joe Sheehan at Baseball prospectus who predicted the Sox would finnish in 4th place. Joe likes to mention that he's good friends with Derek Jeter and his brother too-(how insightful...). Baseball Prospectus is also the same publication that hails Oakland GM Billy Beane as some sort *God* among baseball general managers, but claims Sox GM Kenny Williams, needs adult supervision. Guess which GM has a World Championship to their credit, and which one does not?

Kenny Williams gave up on the Sox last year at the trade deadline. The Sox still have problems in center, left & shortstop. And who knows who the fifth starter will be, let alone not knowing if the bullpen is fixed. Too many question marks. I think the Sox will not win 90 games and still finish 3rd. As for the Cubs with all the money they spent and being in the weakest division in baseball I think they really have a shot at making the playoffs. Enjoy the season!

I expect the Sox to win at least 90 games this year and I would hope for 95 wins. Garcia will be missed, but I also expect Buerhle to continue his poor pitching. The rotation however will do as well as last year and the bullpen is definitely improved. Darin Erstad was a great pick-up and will play cf close to half the games. I expect the Tigers to fall back and the Indians to step up.

I will predict 2nd place for the Cubs, who have only one good starter and many other changes in store. Lou will get them into serious contention by next year if not sooner. The Cards will take the division this year.

The fact of the matter is it doesn't matter what any "expert" or group of experts think. There haven't been many teams that have won it all recently that were expected to. Every year there are a few surprise teams that most experts completely miss, and a few that are expected to play well end up bombing. Also, I think many times "experts" try to pick the next best thing to show that they are smart. They are successful at times, but totally blow it others. So who really knows and who really cares. It's just a prediction.

Almost every team has many question marks, expect maybe the Tigers. But who knows, when the season starts what everyone loves about them may change...as it usually does from season to season. Who expected Buerhle to crap out last year? Or predicted in the beginning of the year that the Sox would finish in 3rd place? Or the Cards to beat the Tigers?

The Sox should finish 1st or 2nd, as should the Cubs. I think the Tigers and Astros will win their respective divisions, but both Chicago teams have a good chance to win their divisions. But you can't count out the Cards, they have a great organization. And Twins and Indians have a good chance too. Lots of "ifs" on both sides of towns, but if those turn out as positives, they'll both be really good.

Go Sox!

Big ups to the Cubs - players and coach. Not the fans (as a whole). Cubs had noone on their jocks when they sucked. Blackhawks fans get more ups. They are not satisfied with ambiance, and HATE management! Now those are fans. They tell management to take their ambiance and stick it! (pun intended). But BIG ups and much love to the Southsiders! Southsider traded a guy that is more decorated than any pitcher in town. That shows you what conversation we are having here. Sox are trying to win it all. Cubs are just trying to keep seats filled and thats cool because its like Hollywood over there. You want to talk about BASEBALL, put down those beers and sunblock and come on over to the southside. Where there is parking, a state of the art stadium, and real diehard fans and a team that will leave it all on the field for you. Sox play in the toughest division in baseball EVERY team in baseball outside of that division finishes in 3rd or 4th place - if they were in the Central including RedSox and Yankees, expecially if they play like they did last year. Sox had an off year and still almost won 100 games. I don't care what the Sox do this year, as long as they give me their hearts. At least its real baseball.

No one expected the Sox to finish any higher than third in the division the year they won it all. No one knows what the new faces in the pitching staff will do, if Buerhle will return to his better form, or if there will be any significant injuries. When the Sox got Garcia, no one knew if he would be OK, and we all scratched our heads when the Sox traded him away along with McCarthy. They could end up fourth, or make it to the playoffs.

One thing's for certain, I'll be following every pitch. Baseball is here again. :)

Look people, Ozzie talking or not will have no bearing on where they finish. Ozzie is going to talk, get over it. Cubs have a decent team on paper, but we all know how far that goes. The best thing baseball lovers can do is wait and see.

The Cubs destiny is to be the first professional sports team ever to have 100 losing seasons in a row; my friend Jack in California is even planning on coming back for the big parade planned on Chicago's south side to play President Teddy Roosevelt for the occasion. The Sox won't finish as low as fourth either, but I'm not holding my breath that Buerhle will bounce back this year. Without a Buerhle bounce back, the Sox will finish no better than second... behind the Twins, not behind the one and done Tigers.

Baseball Prospectus must be the same group who picked Baltimore, San Diego, New Orleans, and Dallas as the money in the NFL playoffs this year. OUCH! Anyway, they've now moved on to their next semester in class and have picked the Sox fourth; which should easily make them a first or second place finish by Prospectus standards (aka a guestimate). Minnesota will have key injuries to both pitching and hitting (my guestimate), Cleveland will lead the division in underachievers (my guestimate again) and K.C. will be ---- well, K.C. (no guestimate needed). Detroit will be solid again but had a lot of intangibles go their way last year. Doesn't happen back to back often. As for the Sox. They missed EVERY opportunity in the book. Third base and less than two outs, and the NEW relief staff will be our silver clouds this year as they both shine. The defense is solid, the hitting will keep third base runners flowing, and the pitching will have two horses rotating each month (as usual) until September when they all get hot and battle each other in a game of KING OF THE MOUND (my guestimate). Hey Baseball Prospectus? Watch out. You just may have a new classmate next year. I guess?

What a waste of time arguing about predictions...The season starts shortly and we'll see...What's the point about arguing about things you have no control over...I told someone a few years ago that the Red Sox, White Sox and Cubs would all win the Worlds Series within the next 4 years...That was four years ago...Oh yea, I said they all would win and then the earth would end also thinking that God wouldn't let the fans of those cities enter His Kingdom without experiencing A World Series Championship...The Cubs may have the team to do it...We are a country being led by a Texas Rangers Fan...What does this all mean???...I dunno ummm Ron Santo for President!?!?!!!...It's going to be a good summer for Chicago Baseball fans!!

Can someone please list the baseball prospectus predictions for all divisions along with win totals...thanks...FC

Roman responds:

NL CENTRAL
Chicago 85-77
Milwaukee 84-78
St.Louis 81-81
Houston 79-83
Pittsburgh 77-85
Cincinnati 71-91

NL EAST
Philadelphia 87-75
New York 85-77
Atlanta 81-81
Florida 79-83
Washington 66-96

NL WEST
Arizona 88-74
San Diego 86-76
Los Angeles 80-82
Colorado 80-82
San Francisco 78-84

AL EAST
Yankees 93-69
Red Sox 93-69
Blue Jays 80-82
Devil Rays 77-85
Orioles 74-88

AL CENTRAL
Twins 91-71
Indians 89-73
Tigers 85-77
White Sox 72-90
Royals 67-95

AL WEST
Angels 87-75
Athletics 81-81
Rangers 80-82
Mariners 73-89

Its the heart in the fans and the club. Good bad or indifferent every year they put all they have into the game for the Cubs Fans! I do not see the kind of support for the Sox that the Cubs have all the time, win or lose. Sox fans start to fall away when the Sox start a losing sreak, or blame someone else for their woes. We take what we're given, we may not like or enjoy losing but place the blame where it belongs, on the players for either team. I would rather play ball in a park with a sense of history and with or with out the World Series glory, we keep coming back and supportin' those Cubbies.Take a look at those empty seats at US Cellular during the week day or night games. Anyone can fill a stadium on a weekend, but the Cubs do it ALL THE TIME! Quit being buttheads and knocking the Cubs, fans,and then Wrigley Field? You running out of things to knock or kick around? If you support your team North or Southside, DO IT!You do not have to trash the other team because its the old fashioned thing to do!