We all knew Dusty Baker had to go. Though injuries have battered this team's performance over the past few seasons, Baker has been absolutely incapable of salvaging a team that never seems to have a Plan B. Since turning around the team in 2003 (when he then proceeded to let the team implode in the playoffs), Baker has idly stood by as his team won 20 less games than they did two years ago.
But enough about the past, clearly today's focus is on the future. While America blatantly ignores the NLCS (ratings have continued to drop despite having a team from the largest media market in the country and the other in one of the most baseball dedicated cities) Lou Piniella's peculiar decision to return to the dugout has temporarily captured the spotlight.
Frankly I don't understand Piniella's decision at all. Sure, he pulled a struggling Mariners team out of the depths of sub-.500 but that was an entirely different team. The Cubs don't have a bevy of prospects or significant financial freedom to lean upon should things go awry (and they probably will).
Despite playing in a major city the Cubs are incredibly restricted financially because of their home field. Wrigley field is the 2nd smallest and 2nd oldest park, and despite recent renovations it still has very few luxury box seats (the main source of income from ticket sales). Considering all these factors and that the Cubs already have the 7th highest payroll in the MLB, they don't have much wiggle room. Furthermore, they will not be able to get away with paying Prior and Zambrano $10 million a year combined. Zambrano and Prior are both eligible for arbitration again this season and Zambrano will be a free agent in a year, Prior in 2.
Derek Lee will be returning, but nobody can attempt to estimate the range of numbers he will produce in 200 and I'm sure Piniella's zen-like patience and well natured attitude will prevent any additional problems should Lee, or any other injury recovering player, not return at full strength. (Insert extreme sarcasm here)
I apologize for turning this analysis of Piniella's decision into a rant on the Cubs' problems, but that's just the atmosphere that Lou will be entering into. The 3-year contract was smart from both perspectives considering Lou's necessity to win now and he will undoubtedly turn sour if the team and management don't play along the lines that he sees fit.
I never understood players rallying behind managers who mocked and berated them, but maybe that's what the Cubs need. Maybe the fans' passion hasn't been fully transferred into the hearts of the players. Maybe the Cubs rebound to .500 record, I just don't see it happening. Players may respond to intimidation but injuries and the front office certainly don't.
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
Monday, October 09, 2006
The Top 25 Teams in College Football, Week 6
Let's list and then discuss:
The second tier of teams (7-13) are one-loss teams, most on the upswing, and one of them reeling (Auburn). Should I have included Arkansas this highly? Well, why not? I didn't have them ranked at all last week, but they beat Auburn handily enough that they ought to be ranked ahead of them. And do I really feel like I'm injusticing teams like Georgia Tech and Iowa? The short answer is no. I'm trying to provide more of a 'power poll' approach, so there's bound to be some fluctuation.
Along those lines, I want to give credit to teams that may not have name value, thus relatively high rankings for undefeated Boise State and Missouri. 6-0 is good enough for the Top 15 in my book. In fact, I'm more worried about not ranking them 7th and 8th. But the fact is, I suspect they are worse than many one-loss teams (as do most observers, I imagine), and I don't consider either to be legitimate championship contenders. This all goes doubly for Rutgers, who is going to linger at the bottom of this list forever unless they go and beat West Virginia or something.
I think it's time to retire TEAMS TO WATCH and replace it with UPSET OF THE WEEK!!!
This week's upset of the week is:
Syracuse 27, West Virginia 21
Do I really think Syracuse will win? Maybe not. Do I think they can put in a scare? Sure!
1.
2.
3.
4. USC
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10. Clemson
11. Notre Dame
12.
13.
14.
15.
16. LSU
17. Georgia Tech
18.
19.
20.
21.
22. Virginia Tech
23.
24.
25.
The second tier of teams (7-13) are one-loss teams, most on the upswing, and one of them reeling (Auburn). Should I have included Arkansas this highly? Well, why not? I didn't have them ranked at all last week, but they beat Auburn handily enough that they ought to be ranked ahead of them. And do I really feel like I'm injusticing teams like Georgia Tech and Iowa? The short answer is no. I'm trying to provide more of a 'power poll' approach, so there's bound to be some fluctuation.
Along those lines, I want to give credit to teams that may not have name value, thus relatively high rankings for undefeated Boise State and Missouri. 6-0 is good enough for the Top 15 in my book. In fact, I'm more worried about not ranking them 7th and 8th. But the fact is, I suspect they are worse than many one-loss teams (as do most observers, I imagine), and I don't consider either to be legitimate championship contenders. This all goes doubly for Rutgers, who is going to linger at the bottom of this list forever unless they go and beat West Virginia or something.
I think it's time to retire TEAMS TO WATCH and replace it with UPSET OF THE WEEK!!!
This week's upset of the week is:
Syracuse 27, West Virginia 21
Do I really think Syracuse will win? Maybe not. Do I think they can put in a scare? Sure!
Monday, October 02, 2006
The Top 25 Teams in College Football, Week 5
Another week passes in college football with little change in my Top 10 (no change, in fact).
However, despite the lack of upsets, this may have been the most exultant week of football for me in three years or more. My beloved Fighting Illini wandered into East Lansing 26-point underdogs and came out 23-20 victors. If you follow the Big 10, you will by now have heard a-plenty how John L. Smith has lost his team, about how MSU played with no fire. Well, let's not discredit the Illini. After 3 years of ineptitude, mainstream football commentators, who always seem to latch onto a trend just when it ends, began to spew all kinds of verbal vomit in Illinois' direction this season. Even after their victory Saturday, I watched in disgust as Craig James stated that MSU had lost to what he had called last week "the worst team in America." I won't deny that Illinois got off to a less-than-stellar start this season, but the fact is, this is clearly a team on the upswing. They earned their victory over MSU, and they took MSU out of the game early themselves. The Spartans came out firing, but Illinois forced a key fumble on one drive, held them to a field goal on the next, and then took the lead on a 69 yard TD pass. These were the events that silenced Michigan State, not the hangover from their blown game against Notre Dame.
1. Ohio State
I'm praying for an OSU-Michigan game between two 11-0 squads, to decide who goes to the national championship game.
2. Michigan
As a Big 10 fan, I'm not very excited about a lot of the other teams. My dream game may become a reality.
3. USC
On paper, you'd think their offense would be more potent. We're hearing a lot about John David Booty, but he's not putting up the points just yet. The running game may be more to blame.
4. Auburn
Definitely not making it through the SEC unscathed.
5. Florida
Ditto. Will in fact, lose next week against LSU.
6. West Virginia
7. Louisville
8. Texas
9. LSU
10. Clemson
11. Oregon
This doesn't have much to do with Oregon, but Arizona State is awful. Everyone should have seen it coming when they struggled against Northern Arizona to start the year. I don't blame Dirk Koetter for causing a 'quarterback controversy,' however. Obviously, he handled it in the wrong way, by changing his mind, but I think the negative effects of a quarterback controversy are largely a self-fulfilling prophecy. No one balks about a cornerback controversy or a right guard controversy. Obviously, the quarterback is the team leader, but I think more teams would benefit from being less rigid about who lines up under center (see the Leak-Tebow arrangement). And even with Rudy Carpenter's struggles, in my mind, there's no way you can pass on a guy who completed 68% of his passes and led the country in pass efficiency as a freshman.
12. Notre Dame
Put the lid on a bad 4-0 Purdue team.
13. Oklahoma
14. Georgia
So what's so great about this Matthew Stafford again?
15. Florida State
16. Tennessee
17. Georgia Tech
Proved me damn right for putting them in my Top 25. I only wish I'd ranked them higher.
18. California
19. Virginia Tech
20. Iowa
I'm not dropping them much because they performed about how I expected. Sorry.
21. Boise State
An impressive win, and obviously, they replace TCU as the mid-major team to watch.
22. Penn State
23. TCU
24. Rutgers
5-0, and ready to face WVU in a few weeks.
25. Missouri
Another 5-0 sleeper.
Fallen out:
New Hampshire
I was having a more and more difficult time justifying keeping a 1-AA team in the rankings to myself, and a 52-49 win over Delaware (admittedly, a tough 1-AA opponent) is reason enough to drop them out. I supposed I ranked them so highly to point out how the elite 1-AA teams are underrated, but they're certainly not good enough to hang with the Top 25 in Division 1-A.
Nebraska
I was willing to keep them around for awhile, but I still don't have any evidence that they've turned the corner.
Team to watch:
So far, all of my teams to watch have performed ably. Rutgers and Missouri have each moved to 5-0, earning a spot in my Top 25. Houston, although they lost last week, very nearly got Larry Coker fired early, and have a good chance to steamroll C-USA. So who this week's sleeper?
Wisconsin (4-1)
After playing Michigan closer than expected, the Badgers hung 52 on Indiana by the 3rd quarter. Obviously, Indiana is a doormat, but blowout victories of that nature are still impressive. Best of all, they have 3 home games coming up against Northwestern, Minnesota, and Illinois, and a road game against a defenseless Purdue. They should be favored in all 4, and barring an upset, will be 8-1 heading into a key stretch with a home game against Penn State and then going on the road against Iowa.
However, despite the lack of upsets, this may have been the most exultant week of football for me in three years or more. My beloved Fighting Illini wandered into East Lansing 26-point underdogs and came out 23-20 victors. If you follow the Big 10, you will by now have heard a-plenty how John L. Smith has lost his team, about how MSU played with no fire. Well, let's not discredit the Illini. After 3 years of ineptitude, mainstream football commentators, who always seem to latch onto a trend just when it ends, began to spew all kinds of verbal vomit in Illinois' direction this season. Even after their victory Saturday, I watched in disgust as Craig James stated that MSU had lost to what he had called last week "the worst team in America." I won't deny that Illinois got off to a less-than-stellar start this season, but the fact is, this is clearly a team on the upswing. They earned their victory over MSU, and they took MSU out of the game early themselves. The Spartans came out firing, but Illinois forced a key fumble on one drive, held them to a field goal on the next, and then took the lead on a 69 yard TD pass. These were the events that silenced Michigan State, not the hangover from their blown game against Notre Dame.
1. Ohio State
I'm praying for an OSU-Michigan game between two 11-0 squads, to decide who goes to the national championship game.
2. Michigan
As a Big 10 fan, I'm not very excited about a lot of the other teams. My dream game may become a reality.
3. USC
On paper, you'd think their offense would be more potent. We're hearing a lot about John David Booty, but he's not putting up the points just yet. The running game may be more to blame.
4. Auburn
Definitely not making it through the SEC unscathed.
5. Florida
Ditto. Will in fact, lose next week against LSU.
6. West Virginia
7. Louisville
8. Texas
9. LSU
10. Clemson
11. Oregon
This doesn't have much to do with Oregon, but Arizona State is awful. Everyone should have seen it coming when they struggled against Northern Arizona to start the year. I don't blame Dirk Koetter for causing a 'quarterback controversy,' however. Obviously, he handled it in the wrong way, by changing his mind, but I think the negative effects of a quarterback controversy are largely a self-fulfilling prophecy. No one balks about a cornerback controversy or a right guard controversy. Obviously, the quarterback is the team leader, but I think more teams would benefit from being less rigid about who lines up under center (see the Leak-Tebow arrangement). And even with Rudy Carpenter's struggles, in my mind, there's no way you can pass on a guy who completed 68% of his passes and led the country in pass efficiency as a freshman.
12. Notre Dame
Put the lid on a bad 4-0 Purdue team.
13. Oklahoma
14. Georgia
So what's so great about this Matthew Stafford again?
15. Florida State
16. Tennessee
17. Georgia Tech
Proved me damn right for putting them in my Top 25. I only wish I'd ranked them higher.
18. California
19. Virginia Tech
20. Iowa
I'm not dropping them much because they performed about how I expected. Sorry.
21. Boise State
An impressive win, and obviously, they replace TCU as the mid-major team to watch.
22. Penn State
23. TCU
24. Rutgers
5-0, and ready to face WVU in a few weeks.
25. Missouri
Another 5-0 sleeper.
Fallen out:
New Hampshire
I was having a more and more difficult time justifying keeping a 1-AA team in the rankings to myself, and a 52-49 win over Delaware (admittedly, a tough 1-AA opponent) is reason enough to drop them out. I supposed I ranked them so highly to point out how the elite 1-AA teams are underrated, but they're certainly not good enough to hang with the Top 25 in Division 1-A.
Nebraska
I was willing to keep them around for awhile, but I still don't have any evidence that they've turned the corner.
Team to watch:
So far, all of my teams to watch have performed ably. Rutgers and Missouri have each moved to 5-0, earning a spot in my Top 25. Houston, although they lost last week, very nearly got Larry Coker fired early, and have a good chance to steamroll C-USA. So who this week's sleeper?
Wisconsin (4-1)
After playing Michigan closer than expected, the Badgers hung 52 on Indiana by the 3rd quarter. Obviously, Indiana is a doormat, but blowout victories of that nature are still impressive. Best of all, they have 3 home games coming up against Northwestern, Minnesota, and Illinois, and a road game against a defenseless Purdue. They should be favored in all 4, and barring an upset, will be 8-1 heading into a key stretch with a home game against Penn State and then going on the road against Iowa.
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