DCNashville

Thanks for the input. Anyone else wanna help me out before week 1 gets rolling??

Yesterday, we held our 5th annual draft. In our league, we start 2 QBs, 2 RBs, 3 WRs, 1 TE, 1WR/TE, 1 WR/RB, 1 K, and 1 DEF. Here's what I ended up with: QB- Michael Vick (47), Aaron Brooks (54), David Carr (94), Eli Manning (114) RB- Willis McGahee (7), Clinton Portis (14), Fred Taylor (67), Michael Bennett (107), Stephen Davis (147), LaBrandon Toefield (187) WR- Marvin Harrison (27), Javon Walker (34), Isaac Bruce (74), Larry Fitzgerald (87), Keenan McCardell (134), Terry Glenn (167) TE- Randy McMichael (127), Eric Johnson (174) K- Ryan Longwell (194) DEF- Carolina (154) Overall, I'm pretty happy with my team. Portis may have been a risk over a back like Domanick Davis, but I think his upside is better for this season. I mean, the guy had 1300+ yards in a major down season for him. Taylor at #67 could be a steal if he ends up healthy. Bennett and Davis have both been named week 1 starters, so getting them after pick 100 is solid. I think my WRs are good, especially since I was able to bolster that corps with Fitzgerald as my #4. McCardell and Glenn should end up the #1 options on their team as well, so they might contribute for me, at least on bye weeks. QBs are somewhat shaky, but at least I ended up with two decent back-ups. I'm keeping my eye on Eli this year. With all his weapons (Tiki, Plaxico, Shockey, Toomer), he is poised to make big strides. What do you think of my team? Where am I weak? Which player do you like? Hate? Thanks for the input.

Have you looked at how many times those East teams play each other in Sept? Its something like each of those teams facing each other nearly all month. We'll be gaining ground on someone everyday we win...we just need to hope one of those East teams doesnt get on an exceptional role.

And before anyone says "Well they fired their manager!", Garner had been at the helm for 28 games already when the Astros hit 56-60. It wasn't like a magical turnaround happened immediately.

The Houston Astros were 56-60 this date last season. We are currently 57-61. Could this series with St. Louis (3 of 4) give us the kind of boost that the Astros got by beating us 3 of 4 last August? I still haven't given up...lets sweep the Stros and get back in this thing!

How is Pedro clearing waivers? And Posada? If a team claims them and the Mets/Yankees don't pull them back, the claiming team would be stuck with a lot of money for a lot of years.

Aggreed, and aside from Nomar, and cpattt we would've been better off releasing the rest on that list. Since these guys are part time starters for the Cubs why would they be worthless to other teams? Unless Hendry and Baker are the worst in MLB at their jobs other teams may have an interest in them because for some reason they are on the Cubs. Move CPatt to the Angels Nomar to the White Sox With the records of the Angels and White Sox, I doubt either player would get that far through waivers. Nomar, maybe, but some bad team would take a chance on Corey.

Great point. I know this team has been maddeningly inconsistent all season, but they've also played without Nomar, Lawton, and Williamson all year. These three additions, along with the addition of Wood to the pen, make this a very different team. I know we all fear that Dusty will blow this thing, but I still can't believe no one holds out any hope for a team 5 back with almost 60 games to play, 10 of them with the leader.

I assume you're referring to Murton? While I agree 100% that he should be playing over Macias/Hollandsworth, I'm not ready to annoint him "one of our best hitters" yet based on such a small sample size. However, I'd start him everyday the rest of the season to see what we've got in him. Dusty would get that a lot sooner if he he saw more than .295 next to Macias' name.

You don't have to convince me that Dusty blows. I haven't liked the hire from day one. I just think at some point the talent we have here that Dusty WILL play (Prior, Z, ARam, Lee, Nomar, etc) will finally play to its potential, something they havent done all year.

In fact, the Astros were left for dead at 56-60 last year on August 14th. Why should we give up all hope now?

On this date last year, the Houston Astros were 55-54. They ended up winning the Wild Card with 92 wins. I'm sure most of their fans said the same things. Realistically, I think Dusty will find some way to keep us out of the Wild Card. However, to say we have "no chance" especially considering the schedule is just "Cubsimism" that creeps into all of us this time of year.

Also, in September we have 15 games with the Pirates, Reds, Giants, and Brewers. While I remember the collapse of '04, we are still set up for a strong finish down the stretch.

Is this scenario too far-fetched? A. We make up one game in the standings in August and one game in the standings in September in games where we don't play Houston. That brings us back to within 3 of the Astros. All we have to do is play a game better than the Astros each month (not including head-to-head match-ups). We're due for a hot stretch at some point, and with our regulars back its bound to happen sooner or later. I'm also convinced Houston will cool off...I know many of us said the same thing last year, but they are a year older and are minus Jeff Kent and Carlos Beltran. B. In our ten remaining games with the Astros, we go 7-3. Given the way the two teams are currently playing, that may seem far-fetched. But a lot can happen in a couple of weeks, let alone two months. C. Beat Milwaukee 2 of 3 in September and play one game better than them the rest of the way. We surpass the Brew Crew, probably by a healthy margin. D. Win the next game against the Mets and play two games better the rest of the way. With Z going tomorrow, I think this isn't unreasonable. The Mets just aren't a great team and their September schedule is rough (see below). We surpass the Mets. E. Win 2 of 3 from the Marlins this month and play two games better than them the rest of the way. The most difficult to accomplish, but possible especially considering their schedule. Their FINAL TWENTY-NINE GAMES are against the Mets, Nationals, Phillies, Astros, and Braves. We surpass the Marlins. F. The Nats and Phillies play 4 next week, and 3 in the final series of the season. No matter the outcome, we have a great chance to gain ground on either team. In Sept-October, the Phillies play TWENTY-SIX games against the Nats, Braves, Marlins, and Mets. That is a brutal stretch. The Nationals also have TWENTY-SIX GAMES during the final month against those same teams, Phils included. We surpass the Phillies and the Nats. Bottom line, we've got to play a whole lot better during the next two months, but the schedule gives us a fighting chance. The Eastern teams are likely to beat up on each other and let us make up ground, and we control our own destiny against the Astros. I'm still going to believe we're in it until I see what happens in Houston next week.

How do you explain his pre-injury 2003, then? The numbers he put up indicated that he was a superstar in the making. Something has happened between then and now...I'm not sure you can blame his struggles this season on the Cubs "rushing" him through the minors. Welcome aboard! Thanks!

How do you explain his pre-injury 2003, then? The numbers he put up indicated that he was a superstar in the making. Something has happened between then and now...I'm not sure you can blame his struggles this season on the Cubs "rushing" him through the minors.