So 5 of the 8 position players on the Cubs are better than the Cards, and 6th one is a wash this year (Lee/Pujols). So that means that you'd only take the Cards for 2 of the 8 positions? And yet the Cards have scored 80 more runs than the Cubs. I don't get your logic. isn't wolf a cards fan? I don't know. His logic is flawed, regardless of who he's a fan of. i'd take burnitz over taguchi, barrett over molina, and a healthy nomar over eckstein. i'd also take walker over grudz (he's better in every offensive category of significance). aram and rolen will probably be a wash from here on out. i'd take pujols over lee, edmonds over anyone in the national league, and larry walker over whatever there is that's left. the fact is, the cubs have a better OPS than the cards, despiet the fact that the cards have scored 80 more runs is a testimony to either the .012 OBP advantage (and a better hitting philosophy) that they have over the cubs, or luck. bp third order adjusted standings CARDS 85-63 677 runs scored, 579 runs allowed CUBS 79-68 688 runs scored, 639 runs allowed the cards are the best team in the division, but they've been real, real lucky too. they're 9.5 games better than projected (the white sox are the only team luckier, with 9.8, and that number has been dropping for some time now). the cubs are 6.5 games worse than projected, which is third most unlucky, behind only the mets (-9.5) and rangers (-8.2).