2007 Chicago Cubs

Assuming no more moves are made (something tells me there will be one or two more) here is the 2007 defensive line-up as I see it, starting with the starting pitching. 1. Carlos Zambrano 2. Mark Prior 3. Ted Lilly 4. Rich Hill 5. Jason MarquisI am taking a gamble here in thinking that Mark Prior is going to be healthy like they have said he will be for the last few years. However you would think, or at least hope, that th Cubs brass would get tired of being lied to about his status. So for one last time I am going to trust them.Catcher: Michael Barrett1st base: Derrick Lee2nd base: Mark Derosa3rd base: Aramis RamerizSS: Ceaser IsturisRF: Alfonzo SorianoCF: Jacque JonesRF: Matt MurtonWhile I hate to see Jones in center, or anywhere in the outfield, I love his bat. Sure he started off horribly, but managed to put together a decent season, notice i did not say amazing or even great. I believe he will be traded before the season ends, however for now he is still a member of the team, and i believe he will be starting as long as he is on the 25 man roster.Murton should be starting no matter what. He put together a great season, and he has a good command of the strike zone for his age. It is actually quiet nice to see a youngster who actually can take a base on balls instead of being a free swinger a la Corey Patterson, but i will get into him another time. Murton showed some power in the second half and i think that will continue into next season. I would like to see his numbers over a full season with Lou Pinella as his manager, and real hitting coach. I think he would be a great number two hitter behind Soriano since he has a high on base percentage. While he is not the fastest guy, he is not the slowest.Soriano even though the Cubs shelled out a crapload of money to me is a mystery at best. He is a good athlete so I believe he will only get better defensively, and with 22 outfield assists last year, i feel he would not be ran on as much as he did last year. Placing him in right field should turn some doubles into singles and a few into outs, and possibly reduce the risk of triples. With players not wanting to run on his cannon, it should keep a lot of runners from advancing home or even third. That should save some runs. However, a move to right field might cause some problems, and we all know he has a history of poor defense.Izturs will be both a positive and a negative addition. While his defense is superb, his offensive is non existent. Should never bat anywhere above the 8 hole. Ill admit i am not an expert when it comes to Izzy, im not impressed with what i have seen. If he is still injured i see either Ronny Cedano over Ryan Theriot taking his place. Theriot showed he could play late last year, so did Shawn Abner in 1988. Cedano would do better offensively being back at short, the challenge of switching positions during the middle of a season for a rookie will take its toll on a players over all confidence.A-Ram will post some similar numbers to last year. I see him picking things up defensively now that Dusty Baker is gone. Pinella is one to make him work hard and turn him into the great fielder that he has shown occasionally that he can be.Derosa is another mystery. Will he be the player he was in 2006 or will he revert back to his career average. Time will tell. Theriot should replace him if he struggles too much.D-Lee, 2006’s injury was still a problem even at the end, watch the tapes of his last games, it was just starting to gain strength back. Hopefully he will be fully recovered and back to his 2005 self.Barrett, hopefully he spent this off-season focusing on defense again. He is already a great hitting catcher, he defense showed signs of improvement, but there is still a long way to go.Now for the pitchersZambrano, The ace of this staff until proven otherwise. Young, eats innings, should benifit from not having Dusty leaving him in for 130-150 pitches a game. Good for 17 wins, could be his break out year with renew offense Zambrano could be a 20 game winner.Mark Prior, We all know what he can do when healthy. I am not sure how essentially having the last two years off will effect his performance, could be both positive and negative. Like Zambrano he should benefit from not having Dusty there mishandling the pitching staff. If injured everyone should move up a spot with Wade Miller taking over as 5th starter.Ted Lilly. The NL Central is a far weaker division than the AL East. Not having to face the Yankees or the Red Sox 7 times (like in 2006) should do nothing but improve his numbers. Pitching against the national league also will benefit his stats, considering he will get to face the opposing pitchers.Jason Marquis, Cards allowed him twice to take a beating, first vs the braves for 12 runs in 5 innings and 13 runs against the White Sox. Minus those two starts and his era lowers from 6.02 to 5.12, or a .90 reduction. Almost a full point lower, plus it would have been better for his confidence not to take the beatings that he did. Anyone who has ever pitched in baseball at any level should know that a minor adjustment can make the difference between a homerun and a harmless out. I am excited to see how this change that Larry Rothchild has corrected in Jason’s mechanics works out.Rich Hill, Has the potential to be great. I remember a game in 2005 where he held the yankees hitless for 4 2/3 innings. A full season should help him develop into his potential.All in all 2007 will be an exciting one. On paper they have the clear advantage in the NL central, and a good chance to win it all. The same was said however in 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006. Next time I will address the bench, and the bull pen. See you next time.

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