Keeping in mind that I’m a Cardinal fan, this ought to be a fun one. We’re looking at the Southsiders today.
Biggest Additions: Matt Garza, Carlos Pena, Kerry Wood, Reed Johnson, Fernando Perez, Max Ramirez
Biggest Subtractions: Tom Gorzelanny, Xavier Nady, Sam Fuld
Offseason Review: The Cubs upgraded a little this offseason, but not nearly enough. Matt Garza is an improvement over Gorzelanny, as long as he’s the guy that threw a no-hitter, and not the one who gave up runs in bunches at times with the Rays. Carlos Pena gives them some pop, but how long is it going to take before Cub fans get annoyed at his tendency to make outs… a lot of outs (let’s no forget, while he did knock 28 round-trippers, he also hit .196).
Season Preview: The Cubs clearly gave up on Piniella last season. Fun little stat: in Piniella’s last 66 games, the Cubs won 24; in Quade’s 37 games, the Cubbies won 24. Quade is going to do the best he can with this team, but I think they’re more focused on trying to sign Pujols in the offseason than winning during the season.
Final Record: 77-85, 4th in the NL Central
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