Magdal

This was quite a thread. I read up to pg 5, so if this has already been said.....As to the OF vacancy: I would not rule out Ryan Ludwick as a possibility. He was missused by LaRussa all year, and if Tony stays with the team I can see him asking out. They have a lot to pull off after the season is over. How to keep Piniero, Holliday and DeRo is the main concearn. Ludwick, ignored all year will be a minor concideration. I wonder who the Cards would want in a trade?

Mark will not be a Card next year.

I read the thread on Bradley. But I really don't know what it means. Hard to know whats real. So many spins.

No, I have'nt. Will do that rite now.

I read on CT that Bradley was de-activated for bad comments for the rest of the season.....but if you guys have not heard that living in Chi, it must be bull.

No Sir. The only time it was brought up I made my loyalties quite clear. You are thinking of another.

No, LaRussa has given up on that play for life

God, I hate pitching duels!

I lost this site for a week....it was just gone! In the meantime everything I was pulling for went askew....Cardinals losing 5 of 6 to Atl/Fla was horrible. It should have been the other way around. The Cubs would be in real decent shape if that had happened. Im a Card fan as well as a Cubs, but the Cards are in already. LaRussa ran out some funky ass line-ups vs. the east...like he did not care if they won. Odd....you would think he cared about having the home field adv. I'm usually conflicted when the Cards/Cubs play, but last nite there was no conflict. Cubs needed the sweep, and I thot they had the win. It was Holliday's 1st hit in I don't remember when to nail down the coffin. My rediculas optimism is done for this year. (God, I don't want the Cubs to win the next 2 and draw me back in) See 'yall next year, God willing.

So here's this: I can see 'em winning 8 of the next 10 and getting that confidence back...sweeping teams and taking 2 of 3 from others. I hate to be a broken record, but Soriano not playing is the greatest addition by subtraction ever. His worthless ass being off the field HAS to pump up the guys that are producing. And don't think for a second that he has an ailment. Hendry can't make the 100 million dollar man seem like a FO mistake. He just shudda did it a month ago. (sit him) Stop it. You're going to make people think you actually believe this hogwash. Is it possible the cubs can go on a nice little winning streak here? Sure. Their remaining schedule is by no means impossible, but we're still EIGHT games back with only 24 left to play. We literally have less than a ONE percent chance of making the playoffs at this point. http://www.baseballprospectus.com/statistics/ps_odds.php LOL....now you got me doubting my own unrealistic hopes. You are probably right. If we don't catch Fla by tuesday, I will STFU.

Did I say we were a shoe-in? We may lose the next 6 games in a row....but the odds are better that we WIN the next 6. We are in a goddam tough spot but the Phils and Cards are the only teams that feel safe...all the teams behind them are nervous. What do we have to be nervous about? We are in the sh*t house already! Look at the teams we play the next week....you tell me we can't beat them? E.J....don't we have 22 games left? (I think) I count 23 left . . . but I'm an idiot The Cubs are 71-67, meaning they have played 138 games. A season consists of 162 games (barring cancellations), so technically, the Cubs have 24 games left. Let's consider the odds of catching Colorado: Since June 3, the Rockies have gone 60-28 (no, really!) for a .682 winning percentage. Before that, they were 20-32 for a .385 percentage. Say they play that bad for their remaining games, all of a sudden. That puts them at 9-13 to close out the year. Then, all the Cubs would have to do to catch them is go 18-6 (.750 winning percentage) to close out the year. So, all the Cubs need to do to get the wild card is play better than they have all year, and have the white-hot Rockies cool off to pre-June levels at the same time. That is correct. They got hot "all of a sudden", but they can't get cold the same way? I know it's a long shot, like that Philly winning the Kentucky Derby, or Buster beating Tyson or the Pirates beating the Yanks in '60. What's wrong with you guys? If in a week from now we are still 6 games back of the WC I will be less optomistic, but the fact is we COULD be 5 back in 3 days, with 20 games to go. How can you not have hope?

So here's this: I can see 'em winning 8 of the next 10 and getting that confidence back...sweeping teams and taking 2 of 3 from others. I hate to be a broken record, but Soriano not playing is the greatest addition by subtraction ever. His worthless ass being off the field HAS to pump up the guys that are producing. And don't think for a second that he has an ailment. Hendry can't make the 100 million dollar man seem like a FO mistake. He just shudda did it a month ago. (sit him)

How'd that snowball in hell do? The thing is, you have no faith. Not that I blame you....but I'm telling you that the laws of probabilities will swing to the Cubs as of now. You think that pixie dust can't blow east? Let us win the next 2 games.....you will see....just 2 games. You know we can do that. And if that happens the Cubs can catch FIRE! As will your jaded ass! ;)

Did I say we were a shoe-in? We may lose the next 6 games in a row....but the odds are better that we WIN the next 6. We are in a goddam tough spot but the Phils and Cards are the only teams that feel safe...all the teams behind them are nervous. What do we have to be nervous about? We are in the sh*t house already! Look at the teams we play the next week....you tell me we can't beat them? E.J....don't we have 22 games left? (I think)

But Aramis...they WILL lose again. They should have lost the last 2 games they won. Before this 6 game streak they had a 5 gm losing streak...a solid team does not do that. I can't state how much I feel Sori being outa the lineup helps the team...now if only someone would send Miles to Japan, or Hades or anywhere!

Wild Card update: We could be in better shape. Col has kept winning, but SF is tanking (and w/o Lince) will tank further. We passed Atl and St. Louis will provide the knockout punch this weekend. LA still playing .500 ball with Manny and Kemp doing nothing. Just keep winning..that's all. A Sori-free lineup is SO much better. In a week we will be ahead of Fla and even w/SF and knocking on that Colorado door. Keep the faith.

Cubs 4 for 5 and out hitting and out pitching the other teams so stop all the gloom. Braves behind us, next stop Fla. I find all this talk about draft picks while we're still in the hunt really bad. The Stro's Tejada got on Nat. TV last nite and said that they were still fighting for a spot and that's the way they roll....play it hard down to the final day! Pride guys. I think everyone is overlooking the biggest aquisition of the season by the Cubs: sitting Soriano for anyone on the bench improved the team by a mile. Lou could help things by taking a nap on the bench for about 3 hrs and letting the guys play! And you know even if we don't make it the team has a responsibilty to play their guts out vs. teams still in it...even the head case LaRussa will field his best team after clinching to be a spoiler for whomever, and that very well may be the Cubs.

Will there be an OGT after we win this one, Fred? (knocks wood)

Most have realized that they do, indeed, have lives, and that this team aint' going nowhere !! Sometime you must tell me about this "having a life" thing..... I think it's too soon to write the team off...4 or 5 in a row and we can leapfrog 2 teams!

Where is everybody Fred?

Back on track..another must win game. SF in the outhouse with freaky Deaky out, and Atlanta will most likely be bruised by the Cards later this week. Looks good.

Now I KNOW this game will rain out!

I'm watchin till we get 1 run behind

yep.....1st Mets series win in about a year.

A little hope to rip my guts out?