Cubs fans, Opinions please...

[RebelBruiser]

I'm refusing to get excited about this year's team, because I think their peak potential is about 85 wins and maybe hanging around the Wild Card race until the final couple weeks.

Anyway, it seems early on their problem has been scoring runs, along with some shaky bullpen work. The starting pitching has been very good. Actually, I don't think the pen has been nearly as bad as people say it has either, so I'm leaning more toward the bats being the main glaring issue.

Well, as I look down their line up for today's game, I noticed something. Obviously Lee and Ramirez are slumping at the same time to start the season, which is the reason for the lack of scoring. I believe if you add their two averages together, you get around 0.350. That's not good for your 3 and 4 hitters. Well, so I look at the rest of the regular starters, and I notice that the other 6 regulars are all either above .300 for the year or just below it, and you could take it a step further to include the 4th outfielder, Colvin among that bunch.

So I guess my question is, if and when Ramirez and Lee turn it around, is there a chance this team could make a run, or am I fooling myself with hopes that I might have something to help me get through to football season?

 

[Coach34]

by the time Lee and Ramirez start hitting, everybody else will stop

 

[IBleedMaroonDawg]

And that was it. I predict an early....

 

[DawgatAuburn]

This is a 75 win team, max.
Lee and Ramirez are in the beginning of their career decline. Age will get them, and they are not exactly Cal Ripken when it comes to being healthy.
The contracts the Cubs have on the books will prevent them from being contenders until 2012 at least, UNLESS the new owner decides to have a Mark Cuban/Daniel Snyder win at any cost mindset. You see how well that has worked for Snyder.

The best hope is to be sellers at the break, try to offload some vets at the deadline, most likely A Ram, and pin your hopes on the farm and free agency in 2012 or 2013.

 

[RebelBruiser]

My question is, when does Jim Hendry get some blame in this?

He has his highest paid player now working middle relief. I believe Z is the highest or at least Top 2.

His other major long-term investments are in an outfielder that strikes out too much and doesn't steal bases anymore, a 3rd baseman that's actually very good when healthy, but can't seem to stay healthy, and a 1st baseman that I think has been a good investment. The problem, as you say with Lee and A-Ram is that they are getting older, and they're still on the books for a good bit longer, just like Soriano.

Those are some bad investments, and it basically hinders their ability to do anything other than hope the farm system pans out. I feel like Hendry should lose his job over this if they don't pull of a miracle run this year, or luck into getting out of some of those contracts. Am I way off on that?

 

[Tito Cheeseburger Jr]

[No message]

 

[zerocooldog]

the guy that revolutionized the 2nd base position, HOF legend Ryne Sandberg to take this team over?</p>

 

[Coach34]

.

 

[zerocooldog]

asdf

 

[Todd4State]

is this- I think he's kind of the glue that holds that team together. He's a very underrated player in general. Offensively and defensively. The Cubs can not afford to take him out because even if he's not hitting, he makes the Cubs better because of the potential that he could break out at any moment.


I think the Cubs could make a run if not win the Central because of their potential talent, but right now it does seem like there is something that's not quite gelling the way it should. At the same time, it's still very early in the season, and they could very well gel at some point.

I would say what the Cubs need is some power because if you have that many guys hitting well, and you're having trouble scoring runs, I'm going to assume it's probably because they're hitting singles.

Now is this Hendry's fault? Probably a good bit of it is, but at the same time, he had the owners possibly pressuring him to make the deals. I think what happened is you had the Cubs two main rivals- the White Sox and Cardinals winning the World Series in 05 and 06, and then before that you had the Red Sox- the cursed team of the AL winning in 04, and I think the Cubs decided to all out to try to win immediately and they got themselves some bad contracts. They did make it to the playoffs at first, but the consequesnces are starting to catch up with them. That and the fact that they didn't build their farm system very well in the meantime. The fact of the matter is, if the Cubs had go prospects, they could trade to get what they need, and they may still be able to do that, but it's a lot harder because they can offer only so much. That's why Jake Peavey is playing on the Southside- the Cubs couldn't give the Padres enough in return.

Now as far as Lou Piniella- I have always liked Lou and he is one of my favorite managers of all time. If the Cubs hire Ryne Sandberg, it might work out, but he also has no MLB mangerial experience. Lou has won before and knows how to do it. Hiring Sandberg in my view would be kind of risky- but who knows he may turn out to be a HOF manager.

 

[SLUdog]

then they wouldn't be the "lovable losers". Go Cards!

 

[bulldogbaja]

I mean I haven't really followed baseball in awhile, but dang.

 

[Barksaholic]

in all seriousness, i think they have a nice run or two in them. will it be enough to capture the wc spot? i have my doubts. but i think they should find themselves in relative contention for it by august. over the weekend i thought they may have found a groove but like always, you just can't get too comfortable with the cubbies.

 

[DawgatAuburn]

Lee is hitting about .190. ARam is hitting about .160. If you add their two averages together, as Bruiser said, they are hitting about .350.

 

[RebelBruiser]

Lee is hitting about .190. ARam is hitting about .160. If you add their two averages together, as Bruiser said, they are hitting about .350.

Yea, I may have not made perfect sense with that, since you can't add averages together, but neither one of them is hitting their weight. That's the point. When your 3 and 4 hitters are below the Mendoza line, you're not going to score.