Sammy Sofa

Yeah, but if you're going by ST sample size he's going to hit something like 50 home runs.

If Olt is playing well enough to be considered a loss, I don't think he'd lose any playing time to Javy. As for Valbuena, yeah, he's having an awesome spring, but I'm certainly not expecting him to be much more than he has been, which is a low BA guy with decent pop and good discipline. I mean, I guess he's better than Barney at the plate, so your point still stands in that Javy wouldn't be replacing a COMPLETE black hole. Well, unless Castro is broken.

Good Lord, I must have completely blocked that out. It's like you just unlocked a repressed traumatic memory.

I really just want to start going as much as I can again.

Are you going to the opener or did someone else in your group grab those? I put in less money so Opening Day is never mine barring a miracle, but I'm going the next day. I'm more happy I managed to get the Yankee games and the ones with the Dodgers.

I would kill for the old Dugout archives to be available, just so I could find the awesome one where they realized Yankees-era Farnsworth looked like a coked up Chris Sabo.

Baseball is just a week away and I am finally feeling ALIIIIIIIIIIIIIVE.

You figure that out when you have to; Alcantara isn't pushing anyone out of the way right now, and Valbuena definitely isn't.

Why would you trade him? If he's working you want him. Bryant can go to the outfield and Baez can stay at SS or move to 2B. Yeah, and defensively, that would be ideal too. Right. Valbuena is nice, but he's either a placeholder or a guy you settle for because the ideally better options didn't work out.

Why would you trade him? If he's working you want him. Bryant can go to the outfield and Baez can stay at SS or move to 2B.

They're not going to have to pull that stupid mascot; the response from kids so far seems to have been plenty positive, so who gives a [expletive]? He'll keep showing up charity events and whatnot and have his spot at Wrigley for kids to go see him...who gives a [expletive] if a bunch of dolts are booing a cartoon bear?

Chris Paul plays for the Sixers now? Go sit down.

Olt grounds out to 3B.

Rizzo RBI double (Barney has, of course, walked twice today, fueling meaty meatball boners everywhere).

This seems depressingly like a very familiar precursor to the season that awaits. IT'S JUST ONE ST GAME.

6 Ks in his last 30 PAs http://replygif.net/i/828.gif

OLT WALK. Urge to believe...rising.

The Cubs are on my TV. Olt is up to bat. I am ready to believe.

But it's not necessarily disingenuous; it's not beyond the realm of possibility that the financial restrictions inspired an "oh well"-approach to at least one of the last two seasons.

Then they failed to put together anything resembling a decent baseball team. Neither scenario is very encouraging. There's really not a way to positively spin the major league team the last few years.

I'll admit, I don't recall any recent updates off the top of my head, but I figured May was about as optimistic as you could get. Has he pitched to hitters at all yet? No idea; I think I had heard May on the radio, but it was probably an early projection.

Dammit, really? I thought he was only going to miss the first few weeks.

Fujikawa.

But like I said, sustained success. The Cubs went back to the playoffs after a drought in both 2007 and 2008, and we all know how that ended. How many of those 13 teams have consistently gone to the playoffs between 2007 and 2013? Were the Cubs just an unfortunate outlier? And who isn't arguing that the financial restrictions aren't real? That's the main criticism against the Ricketts. Just because it's the unavoidable reality of the situation doesn't mean it's not something they shouldn't be criticized for. They've handicapped a major market team.

I agree that all of that would be an improvement, but I just don't see how that's potentially putting them at 90 wins. 90 wins sounds like Baez and Bryant showing up and kicking ass, the Cubs trading for at least one fantastic starting pitcher and re-singing Shark and Castro and Rizzo not just bouncing back but improving...at least. That's a lot that has to go really right. It's not that I don't think they won't get to that point along those lines, but I don't think 2015 is the year it's likely to happen. I think there's going to be growing pains/busts. I think you're forgetting how completely and utterly awful the pen was until Gregg showed up last year. Just not giving away half the games they did by having nobody who could get guys out consistently after the 6th inning will be a big help. If the rotation is halfway decent, you get a bit of a bounce back from Castro and Rizzo, and you're not selling off parts at the deadline, that 65 wins from last year is probably closer to 75-80 this year and then you add in Bryant and Baez to replace Barney and an OF. Granted, you don't have Soriano propping up the offense this year, but you have the potential to make up for some of that with Olt. But you're not adding Bryant this year, who knows how long they're stuck with Barney this year and "adding an OF" definitely isn't happening this year. I'd be perfectly happy with 75-80 wins this year and it's what I hope they do. I just think 90 wins is a ridiculous long shot.