NL Central Preview

by indy on Feb 9, 2007 9:31 AM EST Comment 39 comments

I saw this link off of Deadspin... http://sweethomesports.com/cubs/?p=5

Another ignorant and delussional (yet serious) Cubs fan decided to save everyone some time, and break down the NL Central for us. Check it out if you'd like a laugh.

At one point he referred to Freddy Sanchez as "Freddy Guzman" and Prince Fielder as "Cecil Fielder Jr." (both have since been corrected.) He also dropped this beaut about the Reds that is still up....

"Not much more needs to be said outside the fact that their projected starting shortstop is Alex Gonzalez. Yes, the same Alex Gonzalez who should be on the Mt. Rushmore of Cub failure, right next to Leon Durham, Bartman, and Kerry Wood. He blew the double play after the Bartman incident that would have ended the inning, and stopped any damage in advance."

Ah Cubs fans... got to love to hate them.

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Department store parable

I love it. If it weren't for the Cubs over paying for things, on the whole the central would be more like an Aldi's wouldn't it?

This article is probably very much like something I would write if I wrote a serious analysis of the division, skewed and not really informed, it's that bad. Although, I don't think even I would have referenced the wrong Gonzalez.

"Sometimes life kicks you in the teeth, kids.....even when you're eating cake"- obc

by sukr on Feb 9, 2007 10:23 AM EST reply actions 0 recs

I felt pretty much the same way

"This article is probably very much like something I would write if I wrote a serious analysis of the division, skewed and not really informed,"

Yes, but if I were so inspired to write something like this, I would be skewed (because I honestly believe that this year, like every year, we will win the central) However, I would take the time to become more informed. Jeff Conine? one of our top 4 players? apparently, he could only name 4 or 5 reds.

GO REDS!

by ewquinn on Feb 9, 2007 11:08 AM EST reply actions 0 recs

What a moron

Instead of making corrections, he should just delete the whole post. I'd be embarrassed if I posted something like that. I mean, one mistake, ok, but his mistakes are massive.

He who laughs last obviously didn't get the joke.

by Daedalus on Feb 9, 2007 11:09 AM EST reply actions 0 recs

Touche

COVINGTON(KY)--- February 8 2007 --- Most local baseball fans would say that the Chicago Cubs had a very productive offseason. Dusty Baker is going to have a plethora of options to select for his starting lineup and rotation, for the first time in ages in Wrigleyville. Perhaps the most important offseason pickup was Gary Mathews, signed to patrol centerfield and bat leadoff. The Sarge will be joined by new second baseman Mariano Duncan, who had a phenomenal season last year in Washington.

The Cubs also secured two high dollar starting pitchers, LHP Bud Black(TOR) and RHP Jason Johnson(STL). It seems ownership is opening the purse strings, in anticipation of securing a new stadium deal on the South Side. Maybe a Dome, is what we're hearing.

Perhaps the most overlooked transaction is the acquisition of a new closer. The Bleacher Bums will no longer have to nurse their late inning suds, choosing instead to Suck It Duaner!

(ok...ok....i dont have time for this nonsense)

So now you know...who got mystified

by ohiobobcat on Feb 9, 2007 12:13 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

"Lost in the Ivy"

His blog is aptly named.

by satyanaas on Feb 9, 2007 12:18 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

in the previous post

it says, "There is no dominant team in the NL Central, and on any given day, a team could rise. Of course, it also helps to not be the Reds or Pirates."

Apparently these morons didn't watch last season. What was that team that nearly lost 100 games? Some baby animal?

He who laughs last obviously didn't get the joke.

by Daedalus on Feb 9, 2007 1:58 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

ummm...

all i can say is wow... I used to kind of like the Cubs a little... no more...

In accordance to the prophecy

by crolfer on Feb 9, 2007 5:20 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

This

is the sort of reason why I hate the Cubs. Ignorant, delusional fans with an undeserved sense of entitlement.

The Cubs are going to be bad this year, like they're bad almost every other year, and I'm going to enjoy it just like I enjoyed it last year.

I feel bad for the few decent Cubs fans out there (my SBN colleague Al Yellon over at Bleed Cubbie Blue is one), but there are far too many like this guy for me to not hate the team.

We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars. --Oscar Wilde

by JD Arney on Feb 9, 2007 6:24 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Response

Hey everyone, James here from Sweet Home Sports.

I'm new to Red Reporter, and with the shit storm our NL Central preview created, I felt it necessary to say a word or two.

The two guys and I who created the site are all White Sox fans, and in creating a site about Chicago teams, we asked around for Cub writers. The one who answered the call seemed together enough during our screening process so we signed him on.

Being a blog, and not professional writers ourselves, with day jobs of our own, we expected his stuff to be on point, and obviously it was factually off in places. If we had money to hire a fact checker, maybe this wouldn't have happened. If we ourselves were getting paid for the blog, it wouldn't have happened. And it ain't gonna happen again, trust me. We fully expect the author to respond to the criticism in his next post, and qualify his opinions more succinctly.

Sweet Home Sports

by james@lifeinthecell on Feb 9, 2007 6:38 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

New Predictions:

Soriano is gonna get hurt in Spring Training.

Derek Lee will break his right arm and have to swing with one hand the whole season.

Felix Pie will be declared inelgible for MLB.

Kerry Wood and Mark Prior will get into a huge fight breaking one another's right arms, ending the other's career.

Lou Pinella will spend more time ejected in the clubhouse than in the dugout.

Ummm... and they'll still finish ahead of the deadbirds...

In accordance to the prophecy

by crolfer on Feb 9, 2007 10:02 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Et tu, Reds fans?

As a Cub fan who lurks here frequently (good site), I decided I had to sign up, because my cubfan vanity has been bruised to brilliant shades of black and cubbieblue....plus, that blog entry you linked was THAT embarrassingly stupid. For the record, there are well-made, intelligent Cubs blogs--I've never even heard of "Lost in the Ivy" before this evening, and it seems like I was living in ignorant bliss, because frankly, it sucks.

Referencing the subject-line of my post, I'm consistently surprised that Reds fans harbor such ire for the Cubs and co. Sure, the Cards are the Capulets to our Montague, and I personally can't stand the Astros (following my longstanding policy of despising any team from Texas), but I've never had a problem with the Reds. In fact, I can't list a single player on your roster that doesn't seem classy enough...hell, I laughed when Arroyo knocked his second dinger off Rusch last season (I gave more of a bemused groan after the first).

Yes, there are a lot of stupid Cubs fans...such is the catch for any team with a large fanbase. Many Yankee fans are like the conceited rich girls who drive around in dad's Lexus...of the sportsfan world (bear with me); many Red Sox fans are similar to Cubs fans; Dodgers fans haven't yet mastered the concept of showing up when games start, and leaving when games end. I personally believe that every team has a proportion of intelligent fans, along with their requisite large mob of drunken morons (and the fact that being a Cubs fan has become trendy durng my lifetime doesn't help). Believe me, I don't enjoy suffering these idiots any more than you do. My point, which has apparently become longwinded, is that a lot of your ire for my entire fanbase is ignorant. I'm sure I could pick out dozens of racist, drunk, ignorant, or stupid fans out of the crowd at any Reds game (or any sporting event). It's the same situation with any outsider looking in: most of the rest of the world sees all Americans as a boisterous mixture of redneck, cowboy, and backwoods simpleton, when in reality that characterization is heavily influenced by, er, certain high-ranking members of our government.

Anyway, I'm tortured enough by my undying fandom for this franchise. Being a Cubs fan makes me feel like a parent watching their beloved child drop out of school due to a glue-sniffing habit at times, but I still enjoy them. I'm well aware that many of my fellow Cub fans go heavy on the kool-aid, but I like to call myself a realist (but then that is too subjective, so just call me a pessimist). Anyway, I wanted to see the Cubs go into a rebuilding year or two, because I think spending all of this money is tantamount to using band-aids to plug up a leaky dam (and I would give my right hand for someone to teach Jim Hendry that walks are kosher and sabermetrics are your friend), but I think you're lying to yourselves if you don't think the Cubs will contend to some degree this season. Using the combined VORP that these players put up last season, the Cubs fall within the level that last year's playoff teams achieved. Jeff Sackmann, the great Brewer's blogger used a stat-based approach with the help of PECOTA to project the Cubs at around 86 wins, which I think may be a hair optimistic, but I do believe they'll finish over .500. And I think all but the most delusional of Cards fans will agree that they fell ass backwards into the championship (plus that rotation practically has more questions than yours and ours combined....then again, they have the best pitcher in our division, and the best player in baseball), so this may prove to be one of the more exciting divisional races in recent memory.

by Thelonious on Feb 10, 2007 4:57 AM EST reply actions 0 recs

Well written!

And I don't despise the Cubs. Just the Yankees, Braves, Cards, and anyone playing the REDS!

Reds fan for 40 years!

by gejoe on Feb 10, 2007 4:33 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

My disdain for the Cubs

While your comment was intelligent, well-thought, extremely long winded, and respectable, I still dislike the Cubs even more so than say... the Yankees.

For me, it all comes down to 2003 when the Cubs bandwagon reached it's pinnacle and every non-die hard came out of the wood work to support the Cubs because "It was the cool thing to do." People who could care less about the team previously jumped on the bandwagon because the Cubs were just so cool to root for as "loveable loosers." It made me sick seeing otherwise non-baseball fans parading around in their Cubs shirts and hats trying to "fit in." It irked me similar to seeing guys 'pop' the collar of their shirt up, or people wearing sweatbands as a fashion statement.

Sure their are some great Cubs fans, I'm sure you're one of them. But I still a lot of uninformed Cubs fans that assume Carlos Zambrano will win 23 games, that 'Freddy Guzman' just had a fluke year last year, and think "I'm smart, because I don't blame Bartman for Game 6, although I can't figure out which Alex Gonzalez booted that ball.'

by indy on Feb 12, 2007 9:15 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs

You should have been in Chicago for '03

by Red Menace on Feb 12, 2007 9:36 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I was at the University of Illinois in '03...

and that was much worse than Chicago-proper. In my case, I had the displeasure of witnessing idiot frat boy bandwagon cubs fans who sported their brand new cubs hats along with their popped collars and ridiculous Dusty Baker-esque wrist bands. It made me sick. However, redemption came for me in the form of the worst collapse in sports history... what sweet sorrow that was.

"if you love the reds so much, why don't you marry them?"

by BobbyO on Feb 12, 2007 3:50 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I was in the suburbs

A campus full of non-sports fans all of a sudden appropriated Cubbie blue. And they weren't even prescient enough to do it for the September pennant race. It took the Cubs' first round victory and some of the Florida series for them to catch on.

by Red Menace on Feb 12, 2007 7:36 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

the first time i went to wrigley

was June 28, 1997. The game was sold out and we had to buy tix from a scalper. They ended up 74-88 that year in fifth place. I thought Cubs fans were great for filling a stadium for a losing team. We couldn't fill a stadium last year and we were in first place! (Just for comparison.)

Bandwagon <strike>fans</strike> losers happen with all winning teams. The Cubs just happened to have more of them because WGN brought the Cubs into the living rooms of the nation for years and years and the only natural enemy of the Cubs was St. Louis. Some of the most enjoyable Reds games I've attended were at Wrigley because of the good-nature of the fans.

And Ryne Sandberg is one of my favorite players ever.

He who laughs last obviously didn't get the joke.

by Daedalus on Feb 12, 2007 12:59 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Wrigley

You do have to give them credit for filling that place very game, every year. I will never question their passion for their Cubs

"Pitchers did me a favor when they knocked me down. It made me more determined." -Frank Robinson

by Caleb on Feb 12, 2007 5:56 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I guess...

they are like the quote from the Sixth Sense:

"I see dead people.Walking around like regular people. They don't see each other. They only see what they want to see. They don't know they're dead."

I see Cubs fans. Walking around like regular people. They don't see anything else. They only see what they want to see. They don't know they suck.

"Pitchers did me a favor when they knocked me down. It made me more determined." -Frank Robinson

by Caleb on Feb 12, 2007 6:02 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Classic

Can I get a hooha?

by Slyde on Feb 12, 2007 7:01 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Cubs

Will contend, to a point, this season. But then again every one does. Will they be improved? Yes, but then again you could field the exact same squad from 2006 and they would have to be a few games better than that miserable bunch. I'll be suprised if the Cubs finish .500 or better. I'll be shocked if the win the division. And I'll be amazed if they make the World Series. And I'll be pissed if they win it.

Prediction:

Cubs 78-84 fourth place.

"Your shower shoes have fungus on them. You'll never make it to the bigs with fungus on your shower shoes." - Crash Davis

by Caleb on Feb 10, 2007 8:25 AM EST reply actions 0 recs

unfortunately for you

Not a single stat-based projection agrees with your assessment.

by Thelonious on Feb 10, 2007 3:29 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

This gives me an idea for a book...

It seems like some trust their instincts, while others base their predictions on stats. This seems like a fertile topic for discussion. Does anyone else have any thoughts on this?

by Red Menace on Feb 10, 2007 3:36 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

i didnt realize

there was a rift between those who rely on stats and those who use their "guts"... are you sure?

And in the end the love you take is equal to the love you make.

by boobs on Feb 10, 2007 3:49 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

the hair that I tore out of my head

every time Dusty Baker referred to walks as "clogging the bases" seems to lend credence to the existence of said rift.

Perhaps we should designated each camp using some sort of time-based "school" system.

by Thelonious on Feb 10, 2007 3:57 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I detect condescension

How about the "old school" and the "nerd camp", that way both groups are equally disparaged. :)

"Sometimes life kicks you in the teeth, kids.....even when you're eating cake"- obc

by sukr on Feb 10, 2007 4:01 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

that's a badge of honor, my friend

The Cubs fans I know hope some of the old school proponents associated with the Reds will run Adam Dunn out of town. Sure, his defense is Alou-esque and he beats Soriano in strikeouts annually, but he's a sabermetrician's dream, and he's probably the second biggest cub-killer in baseball (you should see what Carlos Lee does to us).

by Thelonious on Feb 10, 2007 4:30 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

In my book...

Austin Kearns held the title of biggest cub-killer (certainly more than Adam Dunn) up until his departure from the Central last season. Recall: he almost single handedly eliminated the sCrUBS from contention in 2005.

"if you love the reds so much, why don't you marry them?"

by BobbyO on Feb 10, 2007 8:29 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

hello

They are the Cubs. There is no stat that can quantify their existence. I think 4th place will be a great improvement for a team that was one of the worst in baseball last season.

"Your shower shoes have fungus on them. You'll never make it to the bigs with fungus on your shower shoes." - Crash Davis

by Caleb on Feb 10, 2007 7:46 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

would you recommend this whole delusional thing?

I've been thinking about trying it, but I don't know how my body will react.

by Thelonious on Feb 10, 2007 9:57 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Ok, you've won me over

It's the Cubs to lose.

by Red Menace on Feb 10, 2007 10:25 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I wouldn't say that

I'd say it's still the cards' to lose. I just firmly believe that we're looking at a tight divisional race, and 3 or 4 teams in our division have a chance at winning it when all is said and done.

by Thelonious on Feb 11, 2007 4:05 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs

the Cards?

Beyond Albert Pujols and Chris Carpenter, that team has nothing but a bunch of hasbeens - some hasbeens that were really good, of course, nevertheless, they are aging stars.

This whole division is going to be as bad as last year - it's anyone's division, and I agree it's going to be tight, and it should be a fun year.

My two cents: As with everything in life, balance is a necessity when making predictions. A proper balance between old school and nerd camp is in order. The stat that always makes me laugh is that "lucky" stat. It's the "should have" stat that never reflects reality. It's why people are saying the Reds are going to be last this year, because they "got lucky" last year and played better than they "should have." The funny thing is that people are saying the same thing about the Reds this year as they did prior to last year based on the "should have" stat. Should have? They didn't. They played well enough to be in the playoff race until the last week of the season. Based on the "should have" stat, the Cards shouldn't have won the World Series. The Yankees "should have."

Totally unrelated: Someone hacked into MLB.com and filled it with sex links. I really hate people sometimes. What kind of moralless jerk do you have to be do something like that?

He who laughs last obviously didn't get the joke.

by Daedalus on Feb 11, 2007 2:43 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

MLB.com

is fixed now.

He who laughs last obviously didn't get the joke.

by Daedalus on Feb 11, 2007 2:44 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

strawman!

by Red Menace on Feb 11, 2007 8:12 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I think

i got confused as to what diary i was commenting on. i think i meant to put this in the pirates one. because i thought i was responding to a discussion on the reds doing better than they "should have" last season. that discussion is on this site somewhere, isn't it?

He who laughs last obviously didn't get the joke.

by Daedalus on Feb 11, 2007 8:17 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs