Chicago Cubs - Could it finally be???
Author's product rating: 
| Advantages: |
Great pitching, solid lineup |
| Disadvantages: |
that darn curse |
| Recommend to potential buyers: |
yes |
Well hoping not to be the Steve Bartman of Ciao and jinx the cubbies, but Chicago's favorite sons are looking, dare i say, like a World Series Champion type team? Shutter the thought. That would have to be the way you would describe them thus far in 2008. The Cubs boast the Majors best record at 39-22, and are leading their division by a solid 4 games over St. Louis. They recently just had a 9 game winning streak and are flying high. Can it last? Lets take a look.How have the Cubbies gotten to this point. Well it seems like a cliche, but its been done with great pitching, solid hitting, and a stout defense. Pitching has led the resurgence of this exciting team and should continue to as long as they can avoid the injury bug. The starting staff has been solid, led by the fiery Carlos Zambrano, who boasts a staff best 8-1 record. He has been rock solid as always. Number 2 man in the rotation, Ryan Dempster, who was brought out of the bullpen this season, is a gaudy 7-2, and showing the goods that made Lou Pinella bring him back to the starting rotation.A solid staff though must have at least 4 good, serviceable starters and the Cubs have had this to this point. Ted Lilly has contributed 5 wins, Jason Marquis has tossed in 3, and Sean Gallagher has emerged as a very good fifth man in the rotation, with a 3-2 mark in limited duty thus far. Maybe one of the biggest factors in the resurgence has been the good health and emergence of Kerry Wood in the closer's role. Wood has shaken off some early season rustiness, and settled in to notch 17 saves thus far. Also big in the Cubs bullpen has been youngster Carlos Marmol, who has made 32 appearances, recorded 3 saves, pitched to an ERA of 2.35, and been the dependable setup man need to get the games to Wood in the ninth. Also exceeding expectations out of the pen have been Michael Wuertz, Bobby Howry, and Scott Eyre, who have made solid contributions.A team cannot succeed though without swinging the bats, and the Cubs have done just that. One of the main reasons for the upwing has been the addition in the offseason of RF Kosuke Fukudome, who has been a sparkplug at the top of the lineup as is batting an impressive .300 in his first season. Also batting at a high clip are infielder Ryan Theriot at .329, and slugging third baseman Aramis Ramirez, who is belting at a .302 clip with 9 homers and team leading 41 RBI's. This team also can beat you with the power in their lineup. Tops on this list are the Cubbies big guns, LF Alfonso Soriano and First Baseman Derek Lee. Soriano, who has been front and center in the Cus rebirth, has lashed out 14 home runs and drove in 39, while Derek Lee has tallied 13 homers and 39 RBI's. Toss in Giovanny Soto, who has smacked 10 homers from the catcher's spot, and you can see the Cubs have the power department covered.Role players also play a big part of building a championship team and the Cubs have had plenty of big contributors here. First off, Jim Edmonds has sparked the Cubs with wonderful defense and a solid stick since being picked up 16 games ago. Reed Johnson, a waiver wire pickup from Toronto in the offseason, has given the team solid defense and another quality bat. Also adding punch to the lineup have been infielders Ronny Cedeno, Mark DeRosa, and Mike Fontenot. With all of this firepower on offense, and the solid work of the pitching staff, it is easy to see why the Cubs have ascended to the top of the league at this point in the season. Can it last? I for one sure hope so as the folks on that side of Chicago have suffered long enough. Injuries and the dog days of summer though can have their effects on people though. With that said, stick with the Cubs till the end. Maybe, just maybe, we can imagine Harry Carey screaming once more "CUBS WIN" as the team celebrates at good ole Wrigley Field.
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