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It
must have been a magical night.
Kerry Wood was back on the hill and the hated Houston
Astros were in town. No
one could have imagined what would happen. Sure, Cub fans were hoping they would win and that Wood would
get in a few good innings, but could they have dared to expect
what they received? All
Kerry did was to go out there and pitch six strong innings of
three-hit ball, and for an encore he hit a two-run homer!
My imagination can run wild at times, but did any fan even
daydream that Wood’s return could be so electrifying?
Too bad the fans couldn’t SEE the game on TV…but, that
whole issue I’ll save for another article!
[Mark
McGwire]
I
think the return of Wood is just what the Cubbies needed to get
back in the race. You know that with Don Baylor’s intensity, his managerial
skills will probably work. But,
the name of the game is pitching, no matter how many balls you see
flying out of the park! The
inspiration that Kerry brought the ball club is an energy that no
one can define. You
can’t coach it and you can’t really buy it, but it is
necessary if a team is going to be successful.
If Valdes can also return to the Cubs in fine fashion, the
team will then have the quality starts that they need to compete
in the National League.
The
Cubs’ everyday lineup is pretty solid.
Eric Young and Ricky Gutierrez have speed, and both are
batting over .300. Mark Grace is about as solid as you can be at first.
He doesn’t always put up the big numbers that some
experts like in first basemen, but he always seems to bat over
.300 and is very much a clutch hitter.
The team feeds a lot off of his energy.
The hot corner has been an adventure for this year’s
Cubs. At times, Shane
Andrews looked like he was going to be the real deal, especially
on that roof shot he hit down at Enron Field in Houston, Texas.
But for most of the first month, he has sputtered.
The plan now is to platoon that position with Willie
Greene. Greene’s
defense may be a little suspect, but he’s ripping the cover off
the ball, evidenced by his .545 average!
He may win the job outright, which could possibly make
Andrews either a utility player or even expendable.
[Sammy Sosa]
The
outfield generally is in good shape.
What Sammy Sosa has done over the last two seasons is
nothing short of amazing! Arguably,
no outfielder in history has strung two years together the way
that Sammy has! He is coming off one of his best Aprils ever, and we all
remember what he can do in June.
Amazingly, not too much is written about his defense.
With his speed and diving ability and his better than
average arm, he flat out gets it done between the lines. If you
were building a franchise, he would not be a bad foundation.
Now with Don Baylor at the helm, I expect that he will only
bring out even more in Sammy, and Wrigley could be even more fun
than it usually is. Although
Damon Buford got off to a bit of a slow start, he is expected to
be solid in centerfield. He
has the reputation for being a stellar defensive player with a
cannon for an arm. If
he does not produce, look for Chicago to possibly call up their
top prospect, Corey Patterson, from the minors.
They could then platoon that position or maybe even give it
to the kid to see what he can do.
Henry Rodriguez will hold down the job in left.
He, too, got off to a sluggish start, but had a good year
for the Cubs last season. He’s
always been a good hitter and can dial long distance fairly often
as well. And don’t forget, Glenallen Hill will be lurking in the
on-deck circle as a valuable pinch hitter and will see some spot
duty as well.
One
of the best deals that Chicago made during the off-season was the
re-acquisition of fan favorite Joe Girardi, catcher.
Girardi has been a big part of the Yankees’ success the
past few seasons, and his experience and leadership will be a
vital cog to the Cubs’ run for a division title or for a wild
card berth. Also,
don’t forget that the Cubs have longtime veteran Jeff Reed in
uniform, too. He
brings a left-handed bat to the lineup, is penciled in to catch
two days a week, is available for other spot duty and will serve
as a pinch-hitter from time to time.
The pitching
staff will no doubt determine how far the Cubs can go in 2000. The starting rotation shapes up like this:
- Kerry Wood
- John Lieber
- Ishmael Valdes
- Kevin Tapani
-
Scott Downs
While
they certainly won’t be confused with the Atlanta Braves staff,
whose staff will? If
they can give the team enough quality starts, they will be
competitive. The
decision to go out and get Rick Aguilera was a brilliant one.
He already has four saves just during the month of April.
He probably won’t make Cub fans forget Bruce Sutter or
Lee Smith, but by August, people will really be impressed by him.
The set-up men should include left-handers Felix Heredia,
Andrew Lorraine and Mark Guthrie.
The righties will be Brian Williams, Matt Karchner and Kyle
Farnsworth.
(To
top of second column)
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All
in all, I have to disagree with those who said the slow start
already eliminated the Cubs from the race.
I believe that the central division will be a season-long
dogfight. The only
team that may have a struggle to compete could be the Brewers, but
lately they’ve shown some fight…so don’t count them out
either.
What
can you say about the St. Louis Cardinals’ hot start?
Perhaps, that it was somewhat unexpected.
Especially when you consider that the Redbirds have really
not even been in a pennant race since 1996.
I’ve always felt that one of the components of a
championship formula is a hot start, coupled with a consistent
mid-season, adding some type of a surge around the All-Star break
and finishing with a nice stretch run starting in mid to late
August. It appears that the Cards have come out of the gate and
tried to attain the first variable in my formula.
The
everyday lineup is much improved.
In fact, the Cardinals have won EVERY game in which they
have NOT committed an error!
Defense and pitching win championships.
Mark McGwire receives tons of publicity for the bombs he
launches into the upper decks, but have you seen this guy play
defense? Of course,
he will make an occasional error, but he’s got a great stretch,
is an awesome target for the infielders, and he has incredibly
soft hands to make many good plays seem routine.
It also appears that with the addition of some new players,
that has taken a lot of the pressure off of Big Mac.
He’s already hit nine homers and he’s missed several
games with back spasms. He
may not hit 70 home runs this season, but if he stays healthy, he
should still be good for at least 50, and that will go a long way
towards the Cards’ title aspirations!
Fernando
Vina has been a great pickup at second base.
He appears to be a very competent leadoff man, which was
needed after the departure of
Delino DeShields. Vina is off to a hot start at .346, which is especially
exciting when you consider he’s coming off of major surgery. Edgar Renteria seems to be getting better and better at
shortstop. In fact,
the left side of the infield is young and hopefully will anchor
that part of the lineup for years.
Renteria, appears to be gaining more range and developing a
stronger arm year after year.
If he can contribute more offensively, that will be a bonus
for the St. Louis faithful. Fernando
Tatis had a breakout year in 1999. He also became the first player in major league history to
hit two grand slam homers in the same inning!
Unfortunately for the fans, he’s sustained a groin injury
and will be out for a while.
Hopefully, super-subs Craig Paquette and Placido Polanco
will help the Cardinals not miss a beat in his absence.
The
Cards outfield is intact as well.
Ray Lankford has gotten off to a very slow start, but is
showing signs of snapping out of it. He will man left field. The
Cards pulled off a blockbuster deal in sending last year’s ace
Kent Bottenfield to Anaheim for outfielder Jim Edmonds. The trade also cost the Birds one of their best prospects to
come along in years, Adam Kennedy (who is tearing up the American
League). Edmonds has
become known for his amazing, unbelievable catches that appear
nightly on Sportscenter. But
what many fans did not know is that he’s also a pretty good
hitter. I submit
evidence A to the people…his .380 batting average that already
includes nine homers! To
say the least, the Redbirds appear to be solid up the middle, a
factor that Whitey Herzog once stated was a must for a
championship contender. In
right field the Cards may have one of the best platoon situations
in all of baseball. Longtime
veteran Eric Davis, who finally appears healthy, will split time
with phenom J.D. Drew. Davis
is hitting .288 at posting time and Drew checked in at .348.
This platooning arrangement seems to have calmed J.D.’s
nerves and taken off the enormous pressure he was under last year.
It will be interesting to see how he responds in this, his
sophomore campaign. He
sure got those Phillies' fans fired up, didn’t he?
In
the catching department, the Cardinals sent us a little surprise.
Who knew Mike Matheny?
And who knew he was this good?
At the least, he will give young Cardinal catcher Eli
Marrero even more time to heal as he comes back from his bout with
cancer. I’m sure
that there are a lot of teams that would like to have two quality
catchers. That’s a luxury that the Cards hope they can count on
in 2000.
Perhaps
the biggest variable for St. Louis this season will be in the
pitching department. Most
of the big off-season movements were in this area.
They dealt with Colorado to bring in Daryl Kile.
So far, that move looks genius.
They also went out and got former Cy Young winner Pat
Hentgen and brought back Cardinal fan favorite Andy Benes, who was
a big part of the 1996 championship season!
Ricky Ankiel at times has looked like he could be a big
star in this league, even at the plate!
And Garrett Stephenson has held his own.
Other pitchers that the Cards will count on are Heathcliff
Slocumb, and of course they will hope that former Rockie Dave
Veres saves at least the 30 games he saved in the mountains last
year!
[Sammy and Mark]
Manager
Tony LaRussa now has a full deck…much like he did in his first
season in St. Louis back in 1996.
If he can play his Cards right, maybe this will be a
memorable year.
Whether
you are a Cardinal fan or a Cub fan or just a baseball fan in
general, this season promises to be an exciting one.
Get a hold of us here at the Lincoln Daily News. Let
us know how you feel. Who do you think will win the central
division? Can the
Cards hold on to first place through a long, laborious season?
Or will the Cubs come back now that their starting pitchers
are healthy? We want
to hear from you and have some fun.
I will print the results of your thoughts in an upcoming
Sports Talk. Until
then, see you at the ballpark.
Or better yet, take me to the ballpark!
(Special thanks to Greg Taylor for insider
info on the Cubs.)
[Jeff
Mayfield]
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