Laura

Welcome to the 2005 NSBB Predictions Contest! Optimistic about the 2005 Cubs? Pessimistic? Here's your chance to convert your opinons about the Cubs into prize packages! This contest consists of listing your predictions for Cubs team and individual players stats for the 2005 regular season. The categories and the scoring for each category are listed below. A sample entry is also included. This contest is not for the impatient or hasty – it will take the entire 2005 baseball regular season to determine the winners. The contest will open on March 3, the date of the first scheduled spring training game. All entries are due by MIDNIGHT Central Time April 4 (the midnight between April 3 / April 4). The thread will be locked at that time and no further entries will be accepted. Contest winners will be announced shortly after the 2005 season ends. Thanks, and good luck with the contest! Please use this thread for contest entries only -- feel free to discuss the contest elsewhere in the forum. This thread will be thread that is locked on April 4. Thanks! The Fine Print The contest is open to all NSBB posters. However, premium and non-premium members will be eligible to win different prizes. The non-premium poster who finishes with the top overall score among non-premium posters will be awarded 3 months of premium service. Premium posters who finish within the top 10 overall premium member scores will choose from a list of prizes donated by other NSBB members. The current list of prizes is below; additional prizes will be added as the season progresses. The premium posters will choose from the list in order of placement; depending upon the final number of prizes, each winner may get to choose more than one prize. To be considered a premium member for purposes of this contest, a poster must maintain premium membership by any means (yearly or monthly subscription, etc.) from April 1 through October 30. Tim will determine whether that requirement has been met, and his determination is final. If you are interested in bartering goods and services for premium membership, please contact Tim directly. The MLB.com stats page will be used to determine the final correct numbers for each category. If you submit an entry, then decide to change any submitted information, please either edit your original entry or delete it entirely and submit a new entry. You can edit your entries as many times as you wish up to the contest deadline. The final standing will be determined within a week of the final regular season game. Winners will be notified via PM and the standings being posted here and need to respond within a reasonable time frame to claim their prizes. Good luck! :D

I think a lot of people were throwing away their tickets rather than go to that October 3rd game. #-o They do continuously release tickets, usually shortly before a homestand, throughout the season. Those tickets include some fantastic seats, too, so don't despair if you didn't land any in this first go-around. You probably will be out of luck for the super-premium Saturday games unless you go the broker/ebay/scalper route (or sometimes the SRO route). C'est la vie!

Welcome aboard! You've been added to the list. :)

Welcome to the forums, thrive (even if it was the wrong thread)! :D

A question on this one... you're going by earned runs of the pitching staff, and not the overall runs allowed by the team? (In other words, unearned runs due to errors don't count?) I'd just like to be sure on that point before I start making my predictions. Correct - earned runs allowed. It is broken down as a separate category on the MLB.com team pitching stats page for people who are interested in seeing the 2004 results. (You can also get prior year team stats back to 2000 by replacing the "2004" in the url with the year of interest.)

We'll also be doing a second-half-only contest, but likely with fewer prizes (and no prize packages). :mrgreen: At least it will allow any newbie posters who join after the season begins to get in on some contest action.

Seriously, we will find a new house for this once we start taking entries. For now, the game thread forum is just fine, especially since spring training will be starting up. People will have a month to enter the contest, so it's not like it will be a complete surprise. :) AND a 1997 Cubs Information Guide has been added to the Flashback package.

And that may well happen when the contest opens. :)

You'll get the last laugh if you're right! :D

Definitely, the more the merrier! That's part of the reason it's posted early, even though it won't even kick off until the start of the spring training games.

The list is usually updated after every loss. I try to send out notices to people when they move ondeck to start. A quick count puts you at 32 or so ... so if the Cubs win 131 games, you're out of luck (as far as game thread starting goes, anyway). :D

We've had discussions on where to host it. Wherever it is hosted, there will be announcements for it in the other forums once the contest opens.

Luckily for you, I'm not entering this one (and there is a prize for second place). :P Edit to add: I'm not officially entering just because I'm pulling together the prize packages, etc. I may submit a sample entry and score it just for fun. :D

Once the contest opens for business, we'll set up a separate thread for entries. :D We're also going to go on a prize drive, and I hope you will consider donating something to it -- if you go to the game, splurge on an extra scorecard and postage to send it to me. I'll do the rest. It's almost spring training! 8)

Here's a list of some of the FANTASTIC donations that have been received so far. Prize Packages Down on the Farm - burnt out cubbie fan Black Diamond Jaxx BP jersey (DJaxxFan) --game-worn and signed by Mike Amrhein 2003 Diamond Jaxx magnet schedule featuring Mark Prior in his Jaxx uniform (DJaxxFan) Diamond Jaxx pin (DJaxxFan) 2 Diamond Jaxx small helmets (DJaxxFan) 2004 Iowa Cubs Yearbook (Sherwood921) 2004 Iowa Cubs Media Guide (Sherwood921) Aramis Ramirez Appreciation - UMFan83 Russell Athletic Blue Alternate Aramis Ramirez Jersey, Adult Size M (Serena) --new, no tags, gift, never worn 2004 Bowman Sterling Aramis Ramirez game-used bat card (Serena) April 2005 Wrigley Field Scorecard (Aramis on the front cover) (Serena) Hall of Fame Spectacular - Dr. Cub Autographed official league baseball- Fergie Jenkins. (inscribed HOF 7/21/91) (Vance) 1983 Fleer Ryne Sandberg rookie card (Vance) 1987 Fleer Ryne Sandberg card (#572) (Serena) 1996 Topps 15 card Cubs team set with Big Topps Ryne Sandberg card (Vance) Commemorative reprint of 1984 Topps Sandberg card - distributed at Wrigley Field June 23, 2001 - still in promo wrapper (Serena) Greg Maddux rookie card (Vance) Greg Maddux 1987 Topps Traded BCCG Graded 10 rookie card (Serena) Ron Santo Appreciation - US Soccer This Old Cub DVD (NCCubbieFan) --new, unopened Ron Santo Commemorative Jersey Retirement Baseball Card – promotional giveaway September 28, 2003 (Serena) Sammy Sosa Appreciation - Vance Going ... Going ... --original Chicago Tribune Sports Section announcing Sosa trade (Serena) Stock Print of Sammy Sosa's Thank You Ad (Serena) Set of 4 Sammy Sosa cards --1990 Topps #692 rookie card (Serena) --1990 Upper Deck #17 rookie card (Serena) --2001 SP GameBat Milestone Edition: Piece of the Action (game-used bat card) #M-SS (Serena) --2001 Sweet Spot Game-Used Jersey card #J-SS (blue swatch) (Vance) --All cards are stored in topholders and are in excellent condition. Sammy Sosa McFarlane MLB Series 6 Baseball Figure (Serena) Take Me Out to the Ballgame FanPack 1 - Tinkers2Evers 1971 LP Record: Great Moments in Cubs History, narrated by Jack Brickhouse (NCCubbieFan) --includes radio calls of highlights from Cubs history, with emphasis on the 1969 and 1970 seasons. 1938-style Cubs hat, one size fits all (Serena) --promotional giveaway for 2003 Yankees series Wrigley Field "Friendly Confines" Poster - excellent condition (Serena) --undated, need to examine ... appears from CF flags that photo was from the NL East - NL West days Take Me Out to the Ballgame FanPack 2 - Fred Hornkohl Book: Where’s Harry? – Steve Stone Remembers His Years with Harry Caray -- By Steve Stone and Barry Rozner (NCCubbieFan) Harry Caray Baseball Patch (Serena) Cubs "Believe" blue bracelet in wrapper (Serena) http://www.wrigleyvillesport.com/istarimages/p/p-38038!STA.jpghttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/laserena06/NSBB%20Predictions%20Pics/2bbe4747.jpg The Ex-Cub Factor - Treebeard Steve Traschel autographed card (Vance) Tom Goodwin autographed card (Vance) Scott Bullett autographed card (Vance) Mark Bellhorn autographed rookie card (Serena) --1996 Bowman #221 Kent Mercker auto card (Braves uniform) (Vance) NorthsideBaseball.com Shopping Cart NSBB T-Shirt, Adult Size L (Tim) --signed by Jim Hendry, Oneri Fleita, Jon Leicester and Jason Dubois Personally Designed Avatar by JonMDavis (Jon, duh) Emoticon of your choice added to regular & premium package (Tim) --must adhere to NSBB guidelines Flashback - TrueBlueCubFan Pin from DJaxx 2003 Championship Series (DJaxxFan) 2003 Diamond Jaxx magnet schedule featuring Mark Prior in his Jaxx uniform (DJaxxFan) Dawson rookie card (DJaxxFan) Mark Grace rookie card (DJaxxFan or Vance, I can't remember!) David Kelton autographed rookie card (DJaxxFan) 1977 Cubs Team Poster (Serena) Armed and Dangerous Renyel Pinto 2004 SP prospects card (Vance) Bobby Brownlie 2004 Bowman 1st year card (Vance) Carlos Zambrano 2000 Topps Traded rookie card (Vance) 2005-06 Peoria Chiefs Calendar, signed by Matt Weber and Jonathan Hunton (RHPs) (Calendar goes through 4/06) (Serena) A HUGE thank-you and round of applause to the NSBB members who have made donations so far: DJaxxFan JonMDavis NCCubbieFan Serena Sherwood921 Tim Vance_the_Cubs_Fan --I hope I got the attributions correct on all of the donated prizes ... yell at me if I didn't! This contest is about supporting this site and making it the best Cubs fan resource and discussion site!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/laserena06/jpeg1062283476.jpg Probably a ~little bit~ before then. :)

Welcome aboard! You've been added to the list.

Thanks a lot for getting those pictures, burnt! I was trying to scrawl out my renditions of the artist's renditions ... your pictures are much more useful! :)

Unfortunately, no. I did tell him that I'd like to see him start many games in left this season, though. Slacker. :lol: I was able to get Dubois to sign an extra NSBB tshirt, and I told him that it was a great Cubs fan website that has a Jason Dubois Bandwagon up and running. He smiled and said, "That's great!" :) That's the extent of the conversation -- it was a mob scene in front of the table, so I couldn't really stand off to the side and chat. But you can rest easy, Vance -- the Bandwagon did get a plug.

Excellent! Everyone who has signed up so far should be added to the list now. :)

Welcome back! You've been added to the list. I'm going to start a Spring Training thread to see how people want to do those games.

Who does not love this picture? WHO??!!! http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/laserena06/getyou.gif http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/laserena06/buzzerbeater8ml.jpg

If anyone else thinks so, please say so. [two cents=cubmanpi] This doesn't seem like a half bad idea to me. [/two cents] Welcome aboard! Thanks for the two cents. We'll keep that option in mind as the season approaches.

No problem -- feel free to sign back up if it looks like your schedule will work out.

Problem fixed, CT. You can turn that frown upside down! :D That's a smile, not an upside-down frown! Work on that too! Anyway, count me in for game thread starter. You're in! His smiley was a frown, mine was his turned upside down. I think that makes sense. :flower: