baseball7897

When was Miller a Cy Young candidate? Maybe in 2001.

Hes a good number 2 or 3 starter, but he is not an ace in my opinion.

Not sure I agree with that. So you would trade Zambrano in the middle of the season if he is not going to re-sign with the Cubs? What if the Cubs are in the playoff race, then would you still trade him? So your options would be to either trade Zambrano now, which would make no sense, or you trade him in the middle of the season when the Cubs are in the playoff chase. Im keeping Zambrano.

C- 1B- Helton 2B- Figgins 3B- Wright SS- OF- Swisher OF- Rios OF- Cuddyer Utility- Atkins SP- Carpenter SP- Matsuzaka P- Willis P- Haren Closer- Jenks My pitching is really weak, imo.

1-1) Albert Pujols 1-2) Jose Reyes 1-3) Johan Santana 1-4) Alfonso Soriano 1-5) Alex Rodriguez 1-6) Carlos Beltran 1-7) Ryan Howard 1-8) Miguel Cabrera 1-9) Carl Crawford 1-10) Chase Utley 1-11) Derrek Lee 1-12) Chris Carpenter 2-1) David Wright 2-2) Lance Berkman 2-3) Grady Sizemore 2-4) David Ortiz 2-5) Vladimir Guerrero 2-6) Manny Ramirez 2-7) Mark Teixeira 2-8) Travis Hafner 2-9) Derek Jeter 2-10) Carlos Lee 2-11) Matt Holliday 2-12) Carlos Zambrano 3-1) Jake Peavy 3-2) Aramis Ramirez 3-3) Justin Morneau 3-4) Joe Mauer 3-5) Paul Konerko 3-6) Miguel Tejada 3-7) Jason Bay 3-8) Hanley Ramirez 3-9) Jimmy Rollins 3-10) Roy Halladay 3-11) Brandon Webb 3-12) Dan Haren 4-1) Garrett Atkins 4-2) Ichiro 4-3) Vernon Wells 4-4) Brian McCann 4-5) Roy Oswalt 4-6) Felix Hernandez 4-7) Ben Sheets 4-8) Bobby Abreu 4-9) Jeremy Bonderman 4-10) Andruw Jones 4-11) Victor Martinez 4-12) Jermaine Dye 5-1) Michael Young 5-2) Robby Cano 5-3) Rafael Furcal 5-4) Francisco Rodriguez 5-5) Bill Hall 5-6) Cole Hamels 5-7) Brian Roberts 5-8) Joe Nathan 5-9) Adam Dunn 5-10) Ryan Zimmerman 5-11) Carlos Guillen 5-12) Chone Figgins 6-1) Daisuke Matsuzaka 6-2) Jim Thome 6-3) John Lackey 6-4) B.J. Ryan 6-5) Carlos Delgado 6-6) Billy Wagner 6-7) Rocco Baldelli 6-8) Rich Hill 6-9) Troy Glaus 6-10) Justin Verlander 6-11) Aaron Harang 6-12) John Smoltz 7-1) Ian Kinsler 7-2) Johnny Damon 7-3) Mariano Rivera 7-4) Jered Weaver 7-5) Huston Street 7-6) Brett Myers 7-7) Matt Cain 7-8) Scott Kazmir 7-9) Curt Schilling 7-10) Felipe Lopez 7-11) Hideki Matsui 7-12) Nick Swisher 8-1) Bobby Jenks 8-2) Jason Schmidt 8-3) Rickie Weeks 8-4) C.C. Sabathia 8-5) Dan Uggla 8-6) Juan Pierre 8-7) JJ Putz 8-8) Randy Johnson 8-9) Howie Kendrick 8-10) Rich Harden 8-11) Prince Fielder 8-12) Michael Barrett 9-1) Brad Lidge 9-2) Chris Young 9-3) Chipper Jones 9-4) Jeff Francoeur 9-5) Pat Burrell 9-6) Scott Rolen 9-7) Erik Bedard 9-8) Gary Sheffield 9-9) Trevor Hoffman 9-10) Richie Sexson 9-11) Barry Zito 9-12) Dontrelle Willis 10-1) Todd Helton 10-2) Takashi Saito 10-3) Mike Piazza 10-4) Delmon Young 10-5) Chad Cordero 10-6) Josh Beckett 10-7) AJ Burnett 10-8) Jonathan Papelbon 10-9) Tom Gordon 10-10) Julio Lugo 10-11) Barry Bonds 10-12) Corey Patterson 11-1) Chad Tracy 11-2) JD Drew 11-3) Francisco Cordero 11-4) Ervin Santana 11-5) Chris Ray 11-6) Coco Crisp 11-7) Stephen Drew 11-8) Bronson Arroyo 11-9) Jason Giambi 11-10) Brian Fuentes 11-11) Brandon Phillips 11-12) Alex Rios 12-1) Michael Cuddyer

Melvin has been quoted a number of times that Hall will start in Center! As he should. I believe the Brewers have a guy named, J.J. Hardy, who plays the ss position pretty well.

2007 AL central champions.

I heard he is going to try being a starter this season, but the Red Sox might need him in the 9th inning instead. Very talented pitcher.

The key to Cubs success is going to be the health of Mark Prior, IMO. If he is healthy to the point where he can go out and pitch every 5th day then I think the Cubs are the team in the NL central. The NL as a whole is not very good. There is not one team in the NL that scares me. Mets are going to have rotation problems, the Cards took a step back in their efforts to repeat, Houston lost Andy and Roger, the Padres have a hole at 3b and at the back end of the rotation. I don't see why the Cubs could not represent the NL in the World Series this year. Obviously health is going to play a major factor for them, but I still think they have the most depth in their bullpen and rotation than any other team in the NL this season.

The Brewers will contend for the NL central title in 07, but I think they're another year or two away from being serious contenders. Their biggest key to me is going to be the health of Ben Sheets. If he can make 30-35 starts this year, then I think they have as a good of a shot as another NL central team besides the Pirates.

They should put the franchise tag on Briggs, but I dont see that happening. I believe Ed Reed is going to be a FA at safety. The Bears need a safety, IMO. They're going to have to draft a line backer, a HB, possibly even a tight end, and a OL in the draft.

C – 1B – Todd Helton 2b – Chone Figgins SS – 3B – David Wright OF – Nick Swisher OF – OF – Util – Garrett Atkins SP – Chris Carpenter SP – Dan Haren RP – Bobby Jenks RP – P - Dontrelle Willis P – Daisuke Matsuzaka P –

1-1) Albert Pujols 1-2) Jose Reyes 1-3) Johan Santana 1-4) Alfonso Soriano 1-5) Alex Rodriguez 1-6) Carlos Beltran 1-7) Ryan Howard 1-8) Miguel Cabrera 1-9) Carl Crawford 1-10) Chase Utley 1-11) Derrek Lee 1-12) Chris Carpenter 2-1) David Wright 2-2) Lance Berkman 2-3) Grady Sizemore 2-4) David Ortiz 2-5) Vladimir Guerrero 2-6) Manny Ramirez 2-7) Mark Teixeira 2-8) Travis Hafner 2-9) Derek Jeter 2-10) Carlos Lee 2-11) Matt Holliday 2-12) Carlos Zambrano 3-1) Jake Peavy 3-2) Aramis Ramirez 3-3) Justin Morneau 3-4) Joe Mauer 3-5) Paul Konerko 3-6) Miguel Tejada 3-7) Jason Bay 3-8) Hanley Ramirez 3-9) Jimmy Rollins 3-10) Roy Halladay 3-11) Brandon Webb 3-12) Dan Haren 4-1) Garrett Atkins 4-2) Ichiro 4-3) Vernon Wells 4-4) Brian McCann 4-5) Roy Oswalt 4-6) Felix Hernandez 4-7) Ben Sheets 4-8) Bobby Abreu 4-9) Jeremy Bonderman 4-10) Andruw Jones 4-11) Victor Martinez 4-12) Jermaine Dye 5-1) Michael Young 5-2) Robby Cano 5-3) Rafael Furcal 5-4) Francisco Rodriguez 5-5) Bill Hall 5-6) Cole Hamels 5-7) Brian Roberts 5-8) Joe Nathan 5-9) Adam Dunn 5-10) Ryan Zimmerman 5-11) Carlos Guillen 5-12) Chone Figgins 6-1) Daisuke Matsuzaka 6-2) Jim Thome 6-3) John Lackey 6-3) B.J. Ryan 6-4) Carlos Delgado 6-6) Billy Wagner 6-7) Rocco Baldelli 6-8) Rich Hill 6-9) Troy Glaus 6-10) Justin Verlander 6-11) Aaron Harang 6-12) John Smoltz 7-1) Ian Kinsler 7-2) Johnny Damon 7-3) Mariano Rivera 7-4) Jered Weaver 7-5) Huston Street 7-6) Brett Myers 7-7) Matt Cain 7-8) Scott Kazmir 7-9) Curt Schilling 7-10) Felipe Lopez 7-11) Hideki Matsui 7-12) Nick Swisher 8-1) Bobby Jenks 8-2) Jason Schmidt 8-3) Rickie Weeks 8-4) C.C. Sabathia 8-5) Dan Uggla 8-6) Juan Pierre 8-7) JJ Putz 8-8) Randy Johnson 8-9) Howie Kendrick 8-10) Rich Harden 8-11) Prince Fielder 8-12) Michael Barrett 9-1) Brad Lidge 9-2) Chris Young 9-3) Chipper Jones 9-4) Jeff Francoeur 9-5) Pat Burrell 9-6) Scott Rolen 9-7) Erik Bedard 9-8) Gary Sheffield 9-9) Trevor Hoffman 9-10) Richie Sexson 9-11) Barry Zito 9-12) Dontrelle Willis 10-1) Todd Helton

I think there is an obvious answer why not put both in those positions now. The Cubs have serious doubts as to whether Pie is ready. Quade's comments at the Convention implied that Mike did not think Felix is ready and still has some things to learn and some adjustments to make. If Pie isn't ready, the Cubs are in conundrum. If Soriano is in RF and Murton/Floyd in LF, who is in CF. Jones might play there, but he may not handle it defenively either. If Soriano is willing (an he is) and able (that's the rub) then he solves the problem as Jones can stay at RF. Soriano in CF makes the most sense, regardless of Pie. Either way, the future appears Murton, Soriano, Pie, so putting Pie in RF doesn't make that much difference. Soriano has the arm and athleticism to handle CF, so it's learning the position more than anything else. I don't see Soriano having much problems in CF. CF should be easier to play than the other outfield spots mainly for better reads on the flyballs.

Clemens is one of the greatest pitchers ever to take the mound. I would like to see him pitch another year.

3B- David Wright 3B- Garrett Atkins 2B/CF- Chone Figgins 1B/OF- Nick Swisher Sp- Carpenter Sp- Haren Sp- Matsuzaka CL- Jenks I need some pitching.

1-1) Albert Pujols 1-2) Jose Reyes 1-3) Johan Santana 1-4) Alfonso Soriano 1-5) Alex Rodriguez 1-6) Carlos Beltran 1-7) Ryan Howard 1-8) Miguel Cabrera 1-9) Carl Crawford 1-10) Chase Utley 1-11) Derrek Lee 1-12) Chris Carpenter 2-1) David Wright 2-2) Lance Berkman 2-3) Grady Sizemore 2-4) David Ortiz 2-5) Vladimir Guerrero 2-6) Manny Ramirez 2-7) Mark Teixeira 2-8) Travis Hafner 2-9) Derek Jeter 2-10) Carlos Lee 2-11) Matt Holliday 2-12) Carlos Zambrano 3-1) Jake Peavy 3-2) Aramis Ramirez 3-3) Justin Morneau 3-4) Joe Mauer 3-5) Paul Konerko 3-6) Miguel Tejada 3-7) Jason Bay 3-8) Hanley Ramirez 3-9) Jimmy Rollins 3-10) Roy Halladay 3-11) Brandon Webb 3-12) Dan Haren 4-1) Garrett Atkins 4-2) Ichiro 4-3) Vernon Wells 4-4) Brian McCann 4-5) Roy Oswalt 4-6) Felix Hernandez 4-7) Ben Sheets 4-8) Bobby Abreu 4-9) Jeremy Bonderman 4-10) Andruw Jones 4-11) Victor Martinez 4-12) Jermaine Dye 5-1) Michael Young 5-2) Robby Cano 5-3) Rafael Furcal 5-4) Francisco Rodriguez 5-5) Bill Hall 5-6) Cole Hamels 5-7) Brian Roberts 5-8) Joe Nathan 5-9) Adam Dunn 5-10) Ryan Zimmerman 5-11) Carlos Guillen 5-12) Chone Figgins 6-1) Daisuke Matsuzaka 6-2) Jim Thome 6-3) John Lackey 6-3) B.J. Ryan 6-4) Carlos Delgado 6-6) Billy Wagner 6-7) Rocco Baldelli 6-8) Rich Hill 6-9) Troy Glaus 6-10) Justin Verlander 6-11) Aaron Harang 6-12) John Smoltz 7-1) Ian Kinsler 7-2) Johnny Damon 7-3) Mariano Rivera 7-4) Jered Weaver 7-5) Huston Street 7-6) Brett Myers 7-7) Matt Cain 7-8) Scott Kazmir 7-9) Curt Schilling 7-10) Felipe Lopez 7-11) Hideki Matsui 7-12) Nick Swisher 8-1) Bobby Jenks

Naturally that's true, but that's not the point I was making. My point is that despite his success as a reliever, Wainwright has yet to prove himself a capable starter, and therefore his immediate placement in that 2-3 spot in the rotation makes for risky business. Shush, let baseball7897 pick Wainwright in the next round of our draft. Wainwright needs to develop a changeup if he wants to remain a starter. He could get away with having having only two pitches in the bullpen, because you only need two pitches when you're a relief pitcher. He showed he could command his breaking pitch in any count he was in, and he also showed the ability to locate his fastball in the 4 and 1 spot.

Im really, really high on Wainwright. I think I have said that before. The Cards have alot of question marks in that rotation. Can Carpenter and Kip Wells stay healthy for an entire season? Can Wainwright and Reyes step up and pitch 175+ innings? And who is going to be the 5th starter?

He better stay healthy for the Halos this year.

3B - Wright 3B - Atkins 2B/CF/3B - Figgins SP - Carpenter SP- Haren SP - Matsuzaka I like what I have.

Dave Duncan works very well with veteran type pitchers who are coming off some kind of injury.

I'm not asking for numbers, and I'm certainly not claiming he's great at calling a game. What I am saying is that you might be over-estimating the impact that actually has. Sure, every pitcher would love to have a catcher that can call a great game, and I think every catcher who reaches the majors should have a decent idea of how to call a game. However, the pitcher is the one that throws the ball. And unless specifically told otherwise, he has the ability to shake off the catcher. I'd like to think that if a starting pitcher has an issue with the way his catcher calls games, the pitcher would be smart enough to sit down with him before the game and go over his gameplan for approaching the opposing lineup, talk to him between innings, etc. And for the record, I'm all for throwing 0-2 fastballs...just not in the strikezone. You can use it to set the hitter up for something else. You can try to throw it a few inches off the plate to see if the ump will give you the call or if the hitter will fish for it. You can throw it inside off the plate to try to move the hitter back a little. I'm not saying throw it in EVERY 0-2 count. But if you can spot it well, it can be an effective 0-2 pitch. Agreed. The fastball is still the best pitch in baseball. If you can locate your fastball consistently, you will have a whole lot of success.

Agreed.

I thought I may get chance at him in the next round. Maybe we can make some kind of deal after the draft.