Chicago Pro Teams

Bulls Lose Game Five of Eastern Conference Finals to Miami

2011-05-27T09:55:00.012-05:00

Last night's 83-80 loss to the Miami Heat was probably the worst Bulls loss I have ever witnessed and it was definitely the worst Bulls loss I have ever seen in the playoffs. It was a very disappointing loss and a very disappointing way to end this really good season. The Bulls were up 77-65 with under four minutes to go and somehow they couldn't hold on to the lead. I really thought the Bulls were going to win. They were winning pretty much the whole game. It's so frustrating to see the Bulls play well for three and a half quarters and lose just because Miami played really good for three minutes. It doesn't seem fair. This will be a historic loss. It reminds me a lot of game six of the 2003 National League Championship Series when the Chicago Cubs blew a 3-0 lead against the Florida Marlins after being five outs away from going to the World Series.

I should be happy with this Bulls season but right now I'm not. I didn't think they would win 62 games or make it to the Eastern Conference Finals but that was BEFORE the season started. Once the playoffs started, I was expecting the Bulls to get to the NBA Finals. I would have been happy if Miami proved that they were clearly the better team but they didn't. They played better in games two and three but the Bulls deserved to win games four and five. All Miami proved was that they could handle late-game pressure better than the Bulls. If the Bulls don't have fourth quarter collapses two games in a row, then they are right now one win after from the NBA Finals. So right now this season doesn't feel like a success because it feels like the Bulls could have accomplished more. I hate losing but I hate losing even more when I feel my team should have won. I really wish there could have been a game six in Miami because I really think the Bulls could have won that game and forced a game seven in Chicago. If Miami won game six (or game seven) by ten points, I would feel a little better about how the season ended.

In the past, I may have been really happy with a season like this but not anymore. I don't want to look at this season as a good learning experience for the Bulls. I agree that the Bulls are still a young team and got a lot farther than people expected but it's disappointing to see them fail when they were so close to a NBA Championship. People assume the Bulls will get this far next year but will they? I thought for sure the Cubs would get to the World Series in 2004 after reaching the NLCS in 2003. Since 2003, they haven't won another playoff game. I thought that the 2007 Chicago Bears would win the Super Bowl after the 2006 Bears lost in Super Bowl XLI. The 2007 Bears failed to make the playoffs and have made the playoffs only once since then. Nothing is guaranteed in sports. Next year, the Bulls may not win 60 games again. They may fall to the #3 seed in the East and they may not even make it past the second round.

Maybe the Bulls can do what the Chicago Blackhawks did. The Blackhawks fell just short of the Stanley Cup Finals in 2009 and then they won the Stanley Cup in 2010. I wish the Bulls can do what the Blackhawks did. I hope the Bulls come back even hungrier than they were this year. But I'm not sure if I believe that will happen. I really think this could be the closest the Bulls will get to the NBA Finals for the next five years.

Hopefully I'm wrong but I think five years from now, I will look back at this game and this series and get upset because the Bulls had a chance to win it all and they couldn't do it. Fans can't assume the Bulls will get another chance to reach the NBA Finals in the near future. I would not be surprised at all if it takes at least six years for the Bulls to get back to the Eastern Conference Finals. The Bulls were lucky that none of their starters suffered a season-ending injury. The other teams in the East will get better. Hopefully the Bulls get better too and can stay healthy for a second season in a row. The Bulls need to add one more good player. If they don't do that this off-season, then I'm not sure how the Bulls can get to the NBA Finals. Teams have discovered that the Bulls are for real. They won't be taken lightly next year. If the Bulls come back with the exact same team they had this year, I'm not sure they can get farther in the playoffs. They need to add one or two more players who can take the Bulls to the next level. They will have more experience going into next year no matter what but that is not enough.

At this point, I don't really care who wins the Heat-Mav's match-up in the NBA Finals. Whoever wins, it will mean nothing to me. It won't change the fact that the Bulls aren't gonna win the NBA Championship this year. If I had to pick one team to win, it would be Dallas. I don't really care much about Dallas, but I don't want Miami to win. Or maybe Miami should win. Not to show that the Bulls could have won the title if they faced Dallas because I already knew that but if Miami wins, then they got their championship and may be less motivated to win another one next season. If Miami loses, they will come back even hungrier than the Bulls. LeBron James really wants to win his first championship and to lose now after getting this close would really motivate him for next year. But I think I really do want Miami to lose. If losing motivates Miami more for next year then so be it. Next year, I would rather see the Bulls beat a motivated Miami team than a Miami team that has already won a championship. I hate the Heat and I hate LeBron. There was a time I wanted to LeBron to come to Chicago but instead he took his talents to South Beach. If he can stay there for the rest of his career if he wants. We got Derrick Rose and he's our Superstar.

I hope LeBron never wins a championship and I hope Rose leads the Bulls to a championship at least one time just to show LeBron that he made a big mistake. I hate LeBron and the Heat and I hope nothing but the worse for them. Bulls-Heat could be an epic rivalry for many many years and I want the Bulls to win a championship before the Heat do.

Hopefully the Bulls can get back to the Eastern Conference Finals next year and finish the job. Right now I am officially looking at this season as a step in the right direction but a missed opportunity the Bulls may never get again in the near future.

Derrick Rose is the NBA MVP

2011-05-04T03:52:00.010-05:00

Congrats to Derrick Rose! Youngest MVP in history! Thanks for making me proud to be a Bulls fan.

Does anyone still have doubts about the Bears?

2010-12-29T12:16:00.002-06:00

I wonder if there is anyone out there who think there is something the Chicago Bears cannot do.

When preseason started, people were predicting a 5-11 season which was insane because the Bears were 7-9 last year. Adding Brian Urlacher, Julius Peppers, Chris Harris, and Chester Taylor equals two less wins? I'd like to see how people came up with that prediction.

After a 4-3 start, people then started saying, "Their 2nd half schedule is a lot harder. They will beat the Bills and maybe the Lions. They will be lucky to win two games after the bye week." Since the bye week, the Bears are 7-1.

Then there were the people who said, "The Packers are still gonna win the division. That week 17 game is going to determine the division and Green Bay will win that game. The Bears are gonna have a hard time getting in as a wild card because the Giants own the tiebreaker over the Bears. If the Bears finish 10-6, I see them missing the playoffs." The Bears are now NFC North champs and would have won the division with a 10-6 record. The match-up with Green Bay this Sunday is pretty much meaningless for the Bears.

Then there was the doubts about the final four games. People said, "Those last four games are brutal. There's a really good chance they lose all four of those games. The Eagles are probably going to get that first round bye." Well so far the Bears have won two out of the first three games and they already clinched the first round bye.

So far this season everything that people doubted about the Bears were proven incorrect. Anything left? I really believe the Bears have a great chance to make it to the Super Bowl and why should anyone doubt that they will win the Super Bowl? The way this season is going, I wouldn't be surprised if Tom Brady broke his arm falling out of his hotel bed the day of the Super Bowl.

Bulls can beat the Cavs......assuming they don't get beat by the refs

2010-04-17T11:42:00.009-05:00

I think the Chicago Bulls match-up with the Cleveland Cavs very nicely. Let's re-visit the four regular season games:

Game #1: Bulls win 86-85

This was an impressive win for the Bulls. It was on the road and both Shaquille O'Neal and LeBron James were in the lineup for the Cavs. Yes the Bulls still had John Salmons and Tyrus Thomas but neither had a great game. Salmons scored 14 points but his +/- score was -2 (meaning that the Bulls allowed two more points than they scored when Salmons was on the court). As for Thomas, he scored only six points and had just one rebound and one block in 12 minutes. Also, LeBron had a pretty good game scoring 25 points with seven rebounds and six assists. If the Bulls could be the Cavs on the road with LeBron having a good game, why can't they do it again in the playoffs?

Game #2: Cavs win 101-87

The Cavs won this one but the Cavs were at home so it was an expected win for the Cavs. LeBron scored 23 points with 11 assists. The good thing about this game was that the Bulls trailed by only one point at halftime. The bad thing was that the Cavs outscored the Bulls 29-15 in the 3rd quarter. If the Bulls are going to have a chance in this series, they can't allow the Cavs to have a big quarter especially in the second half. It resulted in a Bulls loss in this game and it will probably result in a loss if it happens in the playoffs. A big concern is can the Bulls score enough. The Bulls scored 86 in game one but were able to somehow hold Cleveland to 85 points. The defense couldn't do it for a second time and Cleveland scored over 100. The Cavs have other scorers besides LeBron so it's important that the Bulls try to keep to Cavs under 100 points if they can.

Game #3: Cavs win 92-87

Even though they lost, this game was also impressive by the Bulls. Derrick Rose, Luol Deng, and Joakim Noah all did not play and yet the Bulls lost by only seven points. LeBron had another good game. This time he scored 29 points with 11 rebounds and seven assists. The Bulls were actually winning 78-76 with 6:11 left in the game. It doesn't matter that LeBron was on the bench for most of the fourth quarter....the Bulls were missing three of their best players! The Bulls are at full strength now and I think they might have won this game if no one was injured.

Game #4: Bulls win 109-108

LeBron James did not play for the Cavs. Bulls led by 12 in the third quarter but Cavs took a four point lead with less than five minutes left in the game. The Bulls retook the lead and held the Cavs scoreless in the last 1:31 of the game and won by one point. Rose scored 24 points. Noah scored 17 with 15 rebounds. The Bulls won this game but barely and LeBron was out the entire game. Not good. It's safe to say the Bulls would probably lose this game if LeBron was playing. Mo Williams had a great game scoring 35 points with six three-pointers. Antawn Jamison scored 23 points. It was a reminder that the Cavs have other players besides LeBron that the Bulls need to worry about.

The Bulls played tough with the Cavs during the four games. You can argue the Cavs would have won the series if LeBron played in the fourth game. I think the Bulls could have won the third game if Rose, Deng, and Noah were playing. The Bulls played the Cavs well during the regular season. The "experts" predicting a sweep are ignorant. This will not be a sweep. This will be an interesting #1 vs. #8 playoff series. This is really a #1 vs. a #5 because the Bulls are better than a #8 seed. If they did not get injuries to Noah, Rose, and Deng, the Bulls would not be facing the Cavs right now. If the Cavs treat the Bulls like a #8 seed, they will regret it. The Cavs need to stay focused. The worst thing they can do is worry about who they'll be facing in the second round. If they don't worry about the Bulls, there won't be a second round for them. I think this series could go at least six games. I really think LeBron is carrying the Cavs. If the Bulls can shutdown LeBron, the Bulls could do well. However, it is a concern that the Bulls nearly lost against Cleveland without LeBron and in the case of Cleveland, the loss of one player does make a huge difference. The Bulls are even capable of winning this series if Rose plays great, Noah plays great, and the Bulls shoot the ball very well.

My biggest fear may not be LeBron James at this point. I'm worried about the referees. I really think the refs are somewhat biased. James will get foul calls where there is no contact. Bulls players will get mugged under the basket and no fouls will be called. We might even see the Cleveland players flop on some plays resulting in the Bulls getting called for an offensive foul. I'm sure there will several moments in which the refs make questionable calls against the Bulls and in favor of the Cavs. My fear is that the Bulls will lose to the Cavs not because the Cavs played better but because the Cavs got the better calls by the refs. The player to watch is Derrick Rose. Last year Rose got no foul calls because he was a rookie. Now he's an all-star so he should get those calls now. However, there has been times during the regular season in which Rose got fouled and the refs didn't call it. Bulls TV announcer Stacy King has often said, "Rose is an all-star and no longer a rookie....he should be getting those calls now." Will the refs call it both ways? If they don't, it could play a huge role in the Cavs series victory.

I'm gonna say Cavs in six but I think the Bulls are definitely capable of making this series look like the Boston-Chicago series from last year only this year, the Bulls might actually finish the job.

Kelly Dwyer loves dissing the Bulls

2010-04-12T09:23:00.004-05:00

Yahoo! Sport's Kelly Dwyer is a Bulls fan but you would never realize it from what he writes in his posts. First, he said that the mid-season projection that the Bulls would finish the season with a 37-45 record was "probably" right and that the projected 37 wins "might be a little optimistic." The Bulls suffered a ten game losing streak since then and yet currently have 39 wins with a chance to finish with 41 wins....four more than the projected total Dwyer said the Bulls would probably get.

After that, you'd think Dwyer would stop bashing the Bulls but recently he was at it again. Dwyer wrote two pieces: one on the Bulls' chances of making the playoffs and the second one on the Raptors' chances of making the playoffs. In the Bulls post, Dwyer has harsh words but for the most part he's right. Dwyer says, "Chicago is at its worst offensively. It doesn't have a low post presence, and the team's best offensive options rely on the worst shot in basketball to make their hay -- the contested long two-pointer." That sounds mostly accurate. However, Dwyer never says if the Bulls are going to make the playoffs or not. He just says that it is "too tough to gauge."

In the Raptors post, he pretty much reveals he thinks the Raptors will make it. Dwyer points out all the problems that the Raptors have been having and then writes, "But they're up against the Bulls, who might be at full strength, but it's the saddest 'full strength' you've ever seen." Dwyer is just getting started. He later writes, "It shouldn't be a surprise if the Bulls actually drop all four of their games between now and the end of the season, the talent just isn't there, and there is sound justification for all four of Chicago's opponents (New Jersey, Toronto, Boston, Charlotte) to want to win whilst going with the full rotation." And he doesn't stop there. He mentions that the Raptors will be at home versus the Bulls and "even with Bosh out and the Raptors handing Chicago open shots, will the Bulls score enough to keep it close? I'd pencil this one in for Toronto." Dwyer wraps his post up writing, "Toronto has the easier schedule, and even without their best player, their strengths still seem to fly higher than Chicago's strengths. Whatever Chicago's strengths are."

Dwyer wrote his latest post this morning after his Bulls beat the Raptors 104-88 despite Dwyer's prediction that the Raptors would win. The Bulls are finally going to get praise from Dwyer now right? Well....sort of. Dwyer writes, "Let's give credit where credit is due. Chicago took this." That's a nice comment to make about the Bulls other than the fact Dwyer built it up as if he didn't want to admit his favorite team played well last night. Prior to the comment about the Bulls taking it, Dwyer wrote, "I was ready to go off on the Raptors, I really was. For having no heart. For failing to show up for the biggest game of the season, played in the wheelhouse (a home Sunday contest in the daylight hours) that has served them so well all season. For losing to a pretty bad Bulls team. By a lot." Sounds like he wanted to make it sound more like the Raptors lost and less like the Bulls won. However, Dwyer then wrote, "But a day later, I'm not sure that's the right take. Sure, the Raptors slept through this, but what were we expecting from these guys? Is this in any way out of character for the Raps? Haven't we seen this all season? Why are we supposed to get haughty when the Raptors went all Raptor on us?" So far so good. Dwyer is actually ripping the Raptors and actually said a nice thing about the Bulls. Dwyer wrote more nice things about the Bulls...so much that posting them all would take up too much space. Stuff about how the Bulls played with great energy on the road, how they were quicker than the Raptors, and how their defense really stepped up. And just when you think Dwyer has finally stopped hating on the Bulls, he writes, "Chicago is Chicago, so Toronto's not out of this yet."

I'm afraid to see what Dwyer will write next about the Bulls. He seems to rip them whenever he gets the chance and whenever they do something good, he gives them compliments that sound backhanded. I know because of his role as an NBA blogger he doesn't want to sound biased towards the Bulls but he has ripped the Bulls so much that it makes it seem like he is biased AGAINST the Bulls. I'm going to say this right now even though I'm afraid I might be wrong....the Bulls are going to make the playoffs. There I said it. I think they got it. I'm not saying that because I'm a biased Bulls fan....I'm saying it because the Bulls are the better team right now. Right now people are wondering if the Bulls can beat the Celtics and the Bobcats. But, can the Raptors win two games in a row? I believe the Raptors will lose at least one of their remaining two games and the Bulls will win at least one of their remaining two games. If that happens, the Bulls are in the playoffs. The Bulls could clinch as early as tomorrow night. I could be wrong but I want to give Dwyer the chance to rip me. I've been ripping on his predictions but I'm not giving him a chance to rip any of my predictions. So I'm officially predicting the Bulls will make the playoffs despite the fact their chances are seem to be barely better than 50-50 right now in my opinion. And what if the Bulls do make the playoffs? What will Dwyer say then? Surely he'll point out the fact the Raptors were missing Chris Bosh and ignore the fact the Bulls lost ten games in a row without Joakim Noah. He'll say that all the Bulls really won was the opportunity to get swept by Cleveland in the first round. The Bulls' season may continue but the Dwyer hating will not stop. If the Bulls do make the playoffs, I hope they do well enough against Cleveland to finally shut him up and make him admit the Bulls are not as bad as he says they are.

Bulls playoff chances/Could the Bulls get Chris Bosh?

2010-04-10T11:38:00.003-05:00

I regret to say I watched most of the 4th quarter and both overtimes of the Bulls-Nets game last night. I feel like I wasted one hour of my weekend for nothing. The Bulls should have won their game against the Nets (Nets won 127-116 in double overtime) even though it was the Nets who blew a double-digit 4th quarter lead. I can write a lot about what went wrong but I'll make it brief: missed free throws by the Bulls prevented them from winning in regulation and the refs screwed the Bulls in the first overtime. As for the second overtime, the Raptors dominated but there shouldn't have been a second overtime. The game should have ended in the first overtime. Derrick Rose got fouled causing him to lose the ball with 25 seconds left in the first overtime with the Bulls up two. He hits two free throws to put the Bulls up by four and the Bulls hold on for the win right? Wrong. There were no free throws because the idiot refs ruled that Rose lost the ball on his own and they gave the ball to the Nets after the ball went out of bounds. What the replays showed was a Nets player pulling on Rose's left arm and then the ball immediately coming out of Rose's hands. The Nets then tie the game with two free throws and the games goes to double overtime after Rose misses a potential game winning shot.

I could say more but nothing I say can change the loss to a win so the only thing left is to look forward to Sunday's important game versus the Toronto Raptors who are tied with the Bulls for the eight and final playoff seed and hold the tiebreaker. Can the Bulls make the playoffs? First of all, I expect the Bulls to beat the Raptors. They have been mediocre without star forward Chris Bosh and the Bulls should be able to take advantage of that like they did against Cleveland who was missing LeBron James. The problem is that the next two games after that (home vs. Boston, at Charlotte) are pretty much must-win games. However, I think the Raptors may lose one of their remaining games after the Bulls game. They are on the road against Detroit and home against New York but I think both of those teams will look to play spoiler. Detroit picked up a win against Miami which leads me to think they have a pretty good shot at stealing a win against Toronto on Monday especially considering Toronto will be playing the second game of a back-to-back against Detroit. But the Bulls need to stop hoping for the Raptors to lose and worry about winning their own games. Had the Bulls won last night, I would be very confident that the Bulls would make the playoffs heading into the Toronto game. With the loss, I still think they can do it but it's going to be harder now and the game against the Raptors is definitely a must win game for them. At this point, I can't predict if the Bulls will make it or not. I want to say they will make the playoffs but I'm not sure. They need to beat Toronto tomorrow and if that happens, I would have to say the Bulls would be the favorite to make the playoffs at that point.

Now, I also want to talk about Chris Bosh possibly going to the Bulls. In my opinion, the Bulls MUST make it to the playoffs. Not just to give them more playoff experience or for the rest of the nation to get a good look at Derrick Rose and see that the Bulls are just one star player away from being really good, but also because if the Bulls make the playoffs, that means Chris Bosh and the Raptors will not. As you might know, Bosh is a free agent after this season. I don't see why he would want to stay in Toronto and if the Raptors miss the playoffs, I think it's a lock that he leaves. And I think the team he might join is the Bulls. Think about it......Bosh was carrying the Raptors and now he is seeing what kind of team the Raptors are with Bosh out of the lineup. If the Bulls can make the playoffs without a player like Bosh, imagine how far they can go WITH a player like Bosh. This doesn't mean I'm completely confident Bosh would go to the Bulls but I think Bosh knows he has a better chance at winning a championship with the Bulls than he does with the Raptors so I think the Bulls have a good chance at getting him. But the Bulls MUST beat out the Raptors for that final spot or else Bosh might think the Bulls AREN'T a better situation for him than the Raptors and he might start looking for other teams that might be better for him. Or worst case scenario....not only do the Raptors make the playoffs but they actually do well against the Cleveland Cavs in the first round. If the Raptors were to be competitive with the Cavs, then Bosh might think the Raptors are just one key player away from being a contender and he might stay in Toronto. The point is that the Bulls making the playoffs makes them more likely to get Bosh and missing the playoffs makes them less likely to get Bosh.

Dwyer prediction update

2010-02-26T11:31:00.006-06:00

Not too long ago, Kelly Dwyer of Yahoo! Sports predicted the Bulls would finish the year at 37-45. Right now, the Bulls are 30-27 meaning they would have to go 7-18 or worse for Dwyer to be right. In his defense, he made his prediction right before the Bulls won five straight games on the road. So to make it fair, I said the Bulls would finish closer to 47 wins than 37 wins. So for me to be right, the Bulls need to finish with 43 wins or more. For Dwyer to be right, the Bulls need to finish with 41 wins or less. If the Bulls finish at 42-40, it's a tie between me and Dwyer.

So let's break it down:

I need the Bulls to go 13-12 or better.
Dwyer needs the Bulls to go 7-18 or worse.

Check back at the end of the season to see who is right.

UPDATE: Kelly Dwyer emailed me saying that the 37-45 record was a projection not a prediction. While that is correct, he did ask in the blog post, "Does that sound about right?" His response to his own question was, "Probably....The Bulls have quite a few road games left this year, so it's possible that the mathematic course toward 37 might be a little optimistic."

CM Punk returns to Chicago

2010-02-20T13:13:00.005-06:00

Ok so maybe technically WWE wrestling is not a sport but at least CM Punk is from Chicago. Both photos courtesy of me taken at the WWE event.

Tyrus Thomas traded to Charlotte Bobcats

2010-02-19T11:44:00.003-06:00

Tyrus Thomas is now on the Charlotte Bobcats and is now teammates with ex-Bull Tyson Chandler. The reason that is significant is because like Thomas, Chandler was someone the Bulls acquired in a draft day trade and had high expectations for. For a second, it seemed the Bulls were going to regret trading Chandler. In his full season away from the Bulls, Chandler averaged a career-high 9.5 points per game (PPG) and a career-high 12.4 rebounds per game (RPG) for the New Orleans Hornets during the 2006-07 season. The next year he averaged 11.8 PPG and 11.8 RPG and appeared to be the player the Bulls were hoping he would be. However, he has battled injuries in the last two seasons and is currently averaging 6.2 PPG and 6.6 RPG in only 28 games this season for the Bobcats.

So far, it seems like the Bulls have no big regrets about trading Chandler but it is unclear if the same can be said about Thomas. Thomas was the 4th overall pick of the 2006 NBA Draft and was considered one of the top players in the draft because of his athleticism. The Bulls saw flashes of promise from Thomas starting last year when he averaged 10.9 PPG and 6.4 RPG in the 2008-09 season. However this season, Thomas has seen a drop in scoring (8.8 PPG) and a slight drop in rebounding (6.3 RPG). His attitude problems and the fact that rookie forward Taj Gibson has been just as good as Thomas this season led to a decision by the Bulls to trade Thomas yesterday.

Thomas has amazing talent and he's still very young. The biggest problems he had on the Bulls were inconsistency and the fact he tried to do too much at times. Thomas now joins a team that is coached by veteran Larry Brown who is a very respected head coach. Maybe Brown can get the most of out Thomas's abilities which are blocking shots, grabbing rebounds, and finishing strong underneath the hoop. Thomas may never be a superstar but I see him being a valuable player for any team especially the Bobcats who seem to be a lock to reach the playoffs for the first time in franchise history.

I wish Thomas luck and I hope he does well. However, I also hope the Bulls don't regret trading Thomas. I think the Bulls were right to trade him because it was unlikely that they would have re-signed him after the season. I just hope someday the future the Bulls won't find themselves watching a great Tyrus Thomas highlight on ESPN and say, "I wish we had him right now."

Dywer predicts 37-45 season for Bulls

2010-01-30T13:10:00.002-06:00

Kelly Dwyer, a blogger for the Yahoo! Sports blog Ball Don't Lie, recently wrote in a blog entry that the Chicago Bulls will finish 37-45.

Dwyer writes,

"Does that sound about right? Probably. The team at once under and overachieves, the coaching can run from something that absolutely destroys the team's chances, to something that the team is able to overcome, and the result (as it was last year) is a record near or at .500. The Bulls have quite a few road games left this year, so it's possible that the mathematic course toward 37 might be a little optimistic."

In his defense, he wrote this on January 22nd which was one day after the Bulls lost their second straight road game and one day before they started their current five-game road winning streak. However, this was also after the Bulls won 8 of their last 13 games which was 8 wins in 11 games before the seven game road trip started with two straight losses. The Bulls were four games under .500 (18-22) when he wrote this so that means despite winning 8 of the last 13 games, Dwyer envisioned this Bulls team going 19-23 for the rest of the season. Is that a fair thing to say? No....not at all. The Bulls were a mediocre 7-8 in December but that is at least close to a .500 record. Even with the recent two and three-game losing streaks, the Bulls were 5-5 after 10 games in January. So since the end of November, the Bulls had been 12-13. They were slowly improving each month thanks to the fact Tyrus Thomas and Kirk Hinrich are now both healthy. Also, Derrick Rose is at 100% after being hurt to start the season. The Bulls appeared to be on their way up so why did Dwyer assume they'd go 19-23 for the rest of the season (42 games)? Maybe he failed to do much research about the Bulls and just assumed the Bulls would choke at the end of the season like always. There's just one problem with that.....the Bulls went 27-23 in their last 50 games last season. That's a longer stretch and a much better record. However, Dywer would argue the Bulls had Ben Gordon last year and this year they do not. That doesn't matter because the Bulls were 23-30 at the all-star break last year. It isn't the all-star break yet this year and the Bulls are already 23-22.

Ok...maybe it is unfair that I'm writing this now after the Bulls have won five games in a row. I wish I had written this earlier but oh well. What I'm trying to say is that Dwyer's 37-45 prediction is not gonna happen. Not because he was too optimistic by saying the Bulls would win 37 games but because the Bulls are probably going to win closer to 47 games. The Bulls have 23 wins right now with 37 games to go. According to Dwyer, the Bulls are going to win only 14 more games giving them a 13-24 record in the final 37 games. My prediction is that the Bulls will win 24 games giving them a 24-13 record in the final 37 games. Let's see who is closer.

Breaking Down Derrek Lee's Home Runs in 2009

2009-12-27T11:06:00.005-06:00

Derrek Lee hit 35 home runs in 2009. Alone that looks impressive but how impressive is it really? One of the problem with baseball statistics is that they show you how much but it doesn't show how meaningful it is. Just by looking at the home run total, you can't tell how many of those 35 home runs occurred in close games and how many of them were hit in blow-outs. So I decided to break up his home runs and see which ones were actually useful and which were meaningless.

NOTE: Let me briefly describe the meaning of some of the following terms. Anytime I use the word "clutch", it means 7th inning or later. A rally home run would be a home run hit that results in the team trailing by 3 runs or less. An insurance home run would be a home run hit with a 3 run lead or less. A game-changing home run is any home run that gives the team the lead or ties the game. A low value home run is a home run hit with the team up by four runs or more or a home run that results in the team still trailing by four or more runs. A game winning home run is a home run that puts the team in the lead for the remainder of the game. And finally a meaningless home run is any home run hit in a loss or a home run in a win that was not really needed in order to win (the last part is somewhat of a judgment call).

Now that you know what each term means, here are the numbers I got for Lee:

Total Home Runs- 35

Home Runs in wins- 26
Home Runs in losses- 9

Game Winning Home Runs- 10
Game Changing Home Runs- 17
Clutch Game Changing Home Runs- 3
Rally Home Runs- 6
Meaningless Rally Home Run- 4
Insurance Home Run- 6
Clutch Insurance Home Runs- 3
Low Value Home Runs- 6
Meaningful Low Value Home Runs- 1
Meaningless Home Runs- 14

Solo Home Runs- 21
Two-run Home Runs- 9
Three-run Home Runs- 3
Grand Slams- 2

First of all, the 26 home runs in wins and nine home runs in losses does not mean the Cubs were 26-9 when Lee hit a home run. There were a few times in 2009 when Lee hit two home runs in one game.

I have determined that Lee hit 14 meaningless home runs which means 21 of his 35 home runs were meaningful in helping the Cubs win. The number that is very interesting is that Lee hit 17 home runs that either tied the game or gave the Cubs the lead. Three of them came in the 7th inning or later and 10 of them ending up producing the game winning runs. 60% of Lee's home runs were solo home runs which seems to be normal but only 14% of Lee's home runs were either a three-run home run or a grand slam.

Another thing that I noticed was that Lee had only six low value home runs and one of them were actually meaningful. That's an encouraging stat because even without doing any research, you can see that at least four of Lee's home runs in losses could have been meaningful home runs if the rest of the team performed well enough to win the game.

Overall, I'd say Lee made a pretty good impact with his home runs. 74% of his home runs came in wins and the majority of his home runs were meaningful which are stats you want to see when someone hits that many home runs.

The Cubs should have kept Milton Bradley

2009-12-20T11:08:00.004-06:00

I'm saying this right now: Milton Bradley will hit good for the Seattle
Mariners and the Cubs offense will struggle in 2010 like they did in 2009. Milton Bradley hit .321 with a .436 OBP and a .563 SLG in 2008 with the Texas Rangers. According to Bill James, Bradley was one of just two American League hitters in 2008 who had an OBP over .400 and a SLG of .500 or more. The other was J.D. Drew of the Boston Red Sox who had a .408 OBP and a .519 SLG. However Drew's batting average was .280 that year which means Bradley was the only AL player that year to achieve the coveted .300/.400/.500 slash (BA/OBP/SLG). 2008 may have been Bradley's best season but certainly not Bradley's only good year. Bradley had an OPS over .800 in five of the previous six seasons before joining the Cubs. In fact, Bradley's OPS of .775 in 2009 with the Cubs was his lowest OPS since it was .722 in 2002. Yes that's right...2002. The most encouraging parts of Bradley's 2009 season with the Cubs was that his .378 OBP was actually above his career average of .371 and he had 470+ plate appearances in back-to-back years for the first time in his career. He also appeared in 120+ games in back-to-back years which is another career first. The Cubs kept Bradley healthy for the most part which is something he has struggled with for his whole career. In fact, Bradley was suspended on September 20, 2009 and ended up missing 16 games after he played his last game on September 17. Had he played in those 16 games, he would have played in 140 games for the first time since he played in 141 games in 2004.

I know Bradley had off and on the field issues with the Cubs. I know part of the reasons he failed is because he couldn't handle the pressure from the Chicago fans and media. However, the Cubs invested so much into him that I think they should have given him another chance. The pressure is not the only reason Bradley was frustrated. It was also because the Cubs were losing and he was hitting only .196 in the month of September. Bradley hit .308 with a .911 OPS in August. If he had continued to hit that well and the Cubs were still fighting for first place in September, maybe Bradley would be a lot more happy and maybe he would still be on the Cubs right now. But that didn't happen hence why Milton Bradley is on Mariners right now. If it did happen, I have no doubts Bradley would still be on the team right now. I think the team, the fans, and the media wanted to blame someone for the disappointing Cubs season in which they failed to make the playoffs for the first time since 2006 so they blamed Milton Bradley even though he's just one guy on a team of 25 players. I think all it would have taken was Bradley to be hitting decent and for the Cubs to be winning for Bradley to be still on the team. But again, that didn't happen and you can't play the what-if game.

What bothers me just as much as the Cubs giving up on Bradley too soon is who they actually got from the Seattle Mariners. The media and fans have praised the trade because the Cubs not only got rid of Bradley but were able to save about $6 million. The bad news is that the player they got in return is Carlos Silva. I'm going to ignore the fact that the Cubs owe Silva $16 million after the Mariners provided the Cubs with $9 million to help pay for the remaining $25 million left on Silva's contract. What bothers me more than that is that Silva hasn't been very good lately and that's saying it nicely. Silva had a 8.60 ERA in 30.1 innings in 2009. People have said that Silva was hurt during that year and that I should not get too concerned about that year so I won't. Instead, I'll bring up his 2008 season in which he went 4-15 with a 6.46 ERA in 28 starts. And I thought Jason Marquis's 14-16 season with a 6.02 ERA in the year before he joined the Cubs was bad. 4-15 with a 6.46 ERA?! And the Mariners gave this guy a $48 million, four year contract? Wow and it's not even like he was very good before he joined the Mariners. In the season before the Mariners signed him, he went 13-14 with a 4.19 ERA with the Minnesota Twins. That's not a bad year but it is not the year that should make you want to spend $48 million on the guy. I'm guessing that Seattle thought he would pitch a lot better the next season but clearly that did not happen. The Cubs saved $6 million but now they got a terrible pitcher. If the Cubs are content with saving $6 million, they should make sure Silva does not pitch a single inning for the Cubs. Seriously. Have him clean the clubhouse or something. Have him go to Dunkin' Donuts to pick up some donuts for Jim Hendry. Just don't have him pitch...at all.

It's early so I have no idea how this will turn out but right now, I'm worried. Something I have not mentioned yet is that the Cubs didn't exactly have a great offense last year. Bradley's departure leaves the Cubs with just three starters who had a OBP of .350 or higher in 2009. The World Series Champion New York Yankees had eight starters with an OBP of .350 of higher in 2009. Plus, Bradley is a switch-hitter and the Cubs wanted more players capable of hitting left-handed in the lineup so there is another problem the Cubs will need to fix. Meanwhile, the pitching looked really solid last year and the Cubs might have potentially weakened that department by adding one of the worst pitchers in baseball. So really this helps the Cubs get rid of a player they no longer wanted and saved them some money but really I can't see how the Cubs are more likely to win the World Series now than they were last week. They need to make some moves and add some more players. We'll see what happens and it should be another "interesting" season like always. But pay close attention to the Cubs' offense and what Bradley is doing in Seattle. Hopefully Bradley won't have a .900 OPS and the Cubs won't be saying, "Wow, it would be really nice to have Milton Bradley right now." Don't think for one second that the Cubs will rather have no off the field problems than a productive player. Manny Ramirez of the Los Angeles Dodgers is usually causing trouble but as long as he is hitting 35 home runs and driving in 100 runs, not many people in Los Angeles really cares. Let's just hope all goes well in Chicago this year and that Silva stays at least 100 feet away from the pitcher's mound.

Jay Cutler is still the franchise quarterback of the Bears

2009-12-18T10:38:00.002-06:00

It upsets me that the media has been calling Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler a huge disappointment. Someone on the radio today said that before the season started, 19 touchdowns and 22 interceptions were not the stats people in Chicago were expecting. Is he right? Of course he is. When I found out the Bears got Cutler, I was excited. I absolutely expected Cutler to have a better year than the year he is having right now. That said, I am not surprised that Cutler's numbers are bad. Jay Cutler has a mediocre offensive line blocking for him giving him very little time to get his feet set. When he does have time, his receivers either can't get open or they run the wrong route. Wide receiver Johnny Knox has been impressive but only when Cutler has time and when Knox is running past the defenders. Other than that, Knox isn't really that great. He just happens to be so fast that he can get open by simply being faster than everyone else. Take away his speed and he may not be on the Bears roster right now.

It's not just the wide receivers or the offensive line. It's the running game too. Bears running back Matt Forte has been disappointing. In his defense, a lot of that is because of the fact the offensive line isn't blocking for him but not being able to run the ball has hurt Jay Cutler. Teams are expecting the pass. Cutler can't do short and safe passes because most of the time the Bears defense has allowed so many points that the Bears need to score points and to score points you need to gain a lot of yards. So instead of attempting safe passes, Cutler has to throw down the field and make some risky passes and by the way, the defense is expecting the pass because the Bears can't run the ball. Cutler has thrown more passes than any quarterback in the NFC. It's not a big surprise that Cutler is throwing a lot of interceptions. Why isn't Brett Favre throwing more interceptions? He is known for throwing a lot of interceptions. Well let's see: he has a great running back, a fantastic offensive line, wide receivers that are talented, and a defense that plays really good. Basically Favre has everything Cutler doesn't have hence why Favre has thrown only six interceptions so far.

Most people in the media know all of about the lack of talent around Cutler and still say a lot of the blame goes on Cutler. I don't blame Cutler at all. He has poor talent around him and his yards thrown this year is among the top in Bears' history. Everyone saw what Cutler did in Denver with a good offensive line and good wide receivers. If the Bears can get their team to look similar to the team Cutler had in Denver, Cutler will look like the pro bowl quarterback he is.

Bears will regret cutting Benson Part 2

2009-11-01T16:49:00.010-06:00

Remember this blog post:

http://chicagoproteams.blogspot.com/2008/06/bears-will-regret-cutting-benson.html

It is the blog post I told you the Bears offensive line was preventing Cedric Benson from doing this:

Well now he's doing great with a great offensive line.....on the Bengals.

Looks like I was right.

Mark Buehrle is PERFECT

2009-07-24T10:36:00.005-05:00

PERFECT GAME FOR MARK BUEHRLE OF THE CHICAGO WHITE SOX

Did Reed Johnson Make The Catch?

2009-07-13T10:51:00.010-05:00

Look at these photos and see if Reed made the catch.

And take a look at this photo courtesy of the Chicago Tribune:

Chicago Pro Teams Prediction: Bulls will make the playoffs

2009-03-09T12:07:00.004-05:00

Yeah I know I said the Bears would make the playoffs and I was wrong but I think I'll be right about this one. The Bulls play a lot of home games for the rest of the year and they have played great at home. I think they will get the 7th seed but I'll play it safe and say the Bulls will get the 8th seed or better.

Worst Bulls loss I've ever witnessed

2009-02-27T21:19:00.001-06:00

February 27, 2009.

I'm going to remember this day as the day I couldn't be more embarrassed to be a Bulls fan. Let me explain why this is the worst Bulls loss I've ever witnessed. It is not just the game but other things as well. The Bulls faced the NBA's worst team with President Obama in attendance on the day after Chicago icons Norm Van Lier and Johnny "Red" Kerr died. And despite all this, the Bulls lose by a large margin. Makes me sick.

Goodbye to Norm Van Lier and Johnny "Red" Kerr

2009-02-27T21:17:00.008-06:00

It was a sad day for me yesterday when I found out Norm Van Lier had died. I felt just as sad this morning when I learned that Johnny "Red" Kerr had died as well. May they rest in peace and God bless their friends and family.

Bears Playoff Picture

2008-12-26T10:04:00.002-06:00

Well, the Vikings won't go 8-8 like I predicted but the good news is that a Vikings loss and a Bears win gets the Bears into the playoffs.

Here is the playoff picture for the Bears with help from ESPN:

The Bears clinch the NFC North with a Chicago win and Minnesota loss or tie OR Chicago tie and Minnesota loss. The Bears clinch a wild-card spot with a Chicago win and Dallas loss or tie and Tampa Bay loss or tie OR Chicago tie and Dallas loss and Tampa Bay loss.

NFC North Update

2008-12-08T09:08:00.002-06:00

Recently I made my NFC North predictions and one of my predictions was already wrong. I wanted to pick the Texans to beat the Packers in my story but I didn't want to look like a Bears homer. I had a feeling the Packers would lose and I did pick the Texans in my Yahoo! pick'em league but I just couldn't do it here because I was afraid I might be wrong. I need to start trusting myself more.

Here's an update on my predictions:

Week 15

Saints @ Bears: Bears Win (8-6)
Packers @ Jaguars: Packers Win (7-7)
Vikings @ Cardinals: Cardinals Win (8-6)

Week 16

Falcons @ Vikings: Falcons Win (8-7)
Packers @ Bears: Bears Win (9-6 BEARS) (7-8 PACKERS)

Week 17

Giants @ Vikings: Giants Win (8-8)
Bears @ Texans: Bears Win (10-6)
Lions @ Packers: Packers Win (8-8)

FINAL NFC NORTH STANDINGS:

Bears 10-6
Vikings 8-8
Packers 7-9
Lions 1-15 (I can't imagine them going 0-16)

Bears Notes: Dear fans who predicted a 6-10 record,

2008-12-08T09:05:00.001-06:00

First off...I got to address the Bears fans who said the Bears would go 6-10 (or worse). You need to have more faith in your Bears. As bad as the Bears were last season, they went 7-9. With better offensive weapons and an improved O-Line, I don't understand how people actually thought the 2008 Bears would do worse than the 2007 Bears. Maybe you were trying to send a message that you were frustrated with how 2007 ended but this is a new year. This isn't last year's Bears and they are proving it. I personally said the Bears would win at least 10 games this year. As of right now, I am right on track. If you are a Bears fan, it is best to be over optimistic than over skeptical.

Other things I want to say..........

What's up with the Chicago media trashing the Bears lately? First it was the St. Louis Rams game. After the win, all the media could talk about was not how good the Bears looked but how bad the Rams must be for the Bears to win so easily. Pretty much they said that the Rams got sacked 5 times because they can't block and got picked off 4 times because they can't throw. No mention of the fact that Urlacher and Briggs made nice deflections to set up the picks nor did they mention that not everyone was making sacks (only Harris, Brown, and Ogunleye I think). Instead of saying Matt Forte had a great game, it was about how poor the Rams are at stopping the run. Why is the media looking for ways to trash the Bears even when they win? They even went as far to say that the Bears are fortunate that there isn't a cheap win category in the standings.

Then there is Tom Waddle yesterday. I enjoy listening to him sometimes but he ripped the Bears on the NFL Network yesterday. He said that four of the seven Bears wins have came against the Rams, Jaguars, and Lions meaning the Bears are bad team taking advantage of weak opponents. That's not the Bears fault they had to face those weak teams. We had to be defended by Jim Mora of all people who was disagreeing with Waddle. Mora asked Waddle what he thought of the Vikings who by the way have 3 wins against the Jaguars and Lions and Waddle's response was the Vikings are the best of a bad bunch of teams in the NFC North. I personally don't care if we played in a division of 4th graders. A division championship is a division championship. Being the best team in your division is a big accomplishment no matter what Tommy Waddle says.

The last thing I want to say is that yesterday was a bittersweet sunday. I usually feel happy after the Bears win but this week was different. For the first time all season, the Bears don't control their destiny. Even though the Bears had to win and I'm glad they did, it was hard for me to get excited about the win knowing that the Vikings won. I still love the Bears chances to win the division but knowing that finishing 10-6 doesn't guarantee the Bears will make the playoffs is a frustrating feeling.

Chicago Pro Teams Prediction: Bears will win the NFC North

2008-12-06T10:06:00.002-06:00

This is a tough one because I have a hard trying to pick with my head than with my heart but I do like the Bears chances. The Packers will be lucky to finish 8-8 and the Vikings may lose 3 of their next 4 games. It's very possible that the Bears can win the division at 9-7.

I'll show you my week-by-week predictions for the rest of the season:

Week 14

Jaguars @ Bears: Bears Win (7-6 record for Bears)
Texans @ Packers: Packers Win (6-7 record for Packers)
Vikings @ Lions: Vikings Win (8-5 record for Vikings)

Week 15

Saints @ Bears: Bears Win (8-6)
Packers @ Jaguars: Packers Win (7-7)
Vikings @ Cardinals: Cardinals Win (8-6)

Week 16

Falcons @ Vikings: Falcons Win (8-7)
Packers @ Bears: Bears Win (9-6 BEARS) (7-8 PACKERS)

Week 17

Giants @ Vikings: Giants Win (8-8)
Bears @ Texans: Bears Win (10-6)
Lions @ Packers: Packers Win (8-8)

FINAL NFC NORTH STANDINGS:

Bears 10-6
Vikings 8-8
Packers 8-8
Lions ?????

It looks like 9-7 might be enough for the Bears but they would have to beat the Packers. That game makes me nervous because a Packers win and a Bears loss could end up with both teams finishing 9-7 and the tiebreaker would go to the Packers. So believe it or not, the team we should worry more than the Vikings may be the Packers but the team we should worry the most about is the Bears. The Vikings WILL lose at least two more games but can the Bears win 3 more games or 4 more games? I think they can but we have to wait and see.

Tribune "experts" make their predictions about the Bears

2008-11-19T09:05:00.006-06:00

I think they are wrong. I say 10-6 and 9-7 at worst.

UPDATE (December 19, 12:17 PM CT):

So far only Fred Mitchell is right. Shows how much the rest of the Tribune staff knows. Let's hope Fred is wrong about his Green Bay pick.

Goodbye Kerry Wood

2008-11-14T11:47:00.005-06:00

Yesterday Jim Hendry announced the Chicago Cubs will not re-sign veteran closer Kerry Wood. Wood, whose contact expired after the 2008 season, has played for the Cubs since 1998. He was my favorite Cub and he'll be missed.

Here's the final career stats for Wood as a member of the Chicago Cubs (1998-2008):

77 wins
61 losses
276 games
178 games started
11 complete games
5 shutouts
34 saves
1219.1 innings pitched
1407 strikeouts
3.65 ERA
1.25 WHIP
.215 BAA
2-time All Star
1998 National League Rookie of the Year

Week 3: This loss feels 10 times worse than Panthers game

2008-09-22T08:58:00.000-05:00

When the Bears were defeated by the Panthers, they were defeated by a good team who overcame some early mistakes. The Bears lost to the Bucs. Up until 6 minutes left in the game, the Bucs only had 7 points on offense. I don't know how the Bucs were able to score 10 points in such a short amount of time. I don't really think most of the blame should go on the defense however. I blame the offense more. All they had to do was pick up one more first down and they couldn't do it. Their inability to score touchdowns in the 1st half came back to be a big factor in the loss. Also, the Bucs wouldn't have even tied the game if Kyle Orton didn't throw the ball right at Gaines Adams. Sure everyone will look at Orton's nice overall stat-line but he only had one good half. Football is a game of two halves and Orton didn't play a full 60 minute game. What you do in the 1st half is just as important as what you do in the second half. The truth is that the Bears missed three opportunities to score a touchdown in the 1st half and that ended up deciding the game. I really don't like what I see from Orton. Not only is he nothing more than a game manager, he's prone to throwing interceptions now. He needs to have a big game against Philadelphia or else put in Rex Grossman. Lovie only gave Rex three games to start the 2007 season. Orton's rope shouldn't be too much longer than Rex's.

This loss hurt emotionally. I think it might have been the first time I saw the Bears allow a game-tying touchdown with under 15 seconds left in the game. I had this bad feeling that Griese would drive the Bucs down the field and tie the game. I was hoping it was just me being too nervous but that was exactly what happened. As for the Peanut Tillman penalty, wow. One minute I'm really happy knowing that the Bears will get the ball around mid-field at the least and the next minute I feel terrible. I actually felt that the three and out would lead to a Bears win and any hope I had was gone when I found out that Peanut got penalized. The only good news is that the Packers lost. If you look at the NFC North standings, the Bears are in 2nd place and only one game out of 1st place. That gives me reason to be optimistic especially since the Bears have yet to play a divisional game. Forget the wild card....it might be easier for the Bears to win the division.

I think the Bears will beat the Eagles. I can't guarantee it but now the media is probably off the Bears bandwagon again so hopefully the Bears will play with a clip on their shoulder. This will be a home game and the Bears have proven they can win games most people don't expect them to win. This team has sometimes been a team that can't beat the team everyone expects them to beat but beats the team no one expects them to beat. Brian Westbrook might even be inactive....I see no reason why the Bears can't win. For their sake, they need to have a good game and win. It's not a must-win by any means but this is a team that should be 2-1 and could have been 3-0 right now. If the Bears really feel they should be 3-0, they need to come out and prove it. The Bears beat the Eagles last year....they can do it again. Right now, I hope the Bears are pissed. I hope they don't care who is the next team on their schedule. They turned two potential wins into losses and I bet they don't want to have a three game losing streak. I really believe this team is talented enough to beat any team on the schedule and that the only team that can beat the Bears is themselves.

After the Eagles game, the Bears face the Lions and the Falcons so a win against Eagles could be the difference between the Bears starting 4-2 and the Bears starting 3-3. 3-3 certainly wouldn't be bad but being 4-2 six weeks into the season would be very important. The Bears lost a game they should have won so the best thing for them now is to win a game that they are expected to lose. I still think this is a ten win team but they got to start winning games or else their record will say otherwise. It doesn't matter who the better team is or who had the better game. The only thing that matters is which team has more points at the end of the game. The Bears need to make sure they are that team.

Cy Young Award: Webb vs. Dempster

2008-09-18T16:21:00.002-05:00

If you just look at W/L records, Brandon Webb edges Ryan Dempster (21-7 vs. 16-6).

However, Dempster edges Webb in ERA (3.02 vs. 3.26).

So who is having the better season? Webb has more wins but Dempster has the better ERA. Their WHIPs are nearly identical.

To find this out, I broke their ERA, WHIP, and K/9 into the 3 categories:

1. Games they won
2. Games they lost
3. Games with a No Decision
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Webb--

Stats in wins:

1.84 ERA 0.96 WHIP 6.8 K/9

Stats in losses:

8.15 ERA 2.12 WHIP 7.9 K/9

Stats in no decisions:

3.12 ERA 1.19 WHIP 6.9 K/9

Dempster--

Wins:

2.24 ERA 1.13 WHIP 8.2 K/9

Losses:

5.73 ERA 1.52 WHIP 9 K/9

No decisions:

3.09 ERA 1.25 WHIP 7.48 K/9
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Both pitchers did very well in games they won and both pitchers did awful in games they lost. I have to say that Webb seems to be more deserving than Dempster. He has 21 wins not because he got run support but because he had a 1.84 ERA and a 0.96 WHIP in those games. Dempster had a higher ERA and WHIP in his wins. You can't argue that the no decisions caused Dempster to have much fewer wins because his ERA and WHIP are higher in no decisions than they are in wins. As for Webb, he pitched well enough in those no decisions that you can't say the offense bailed him out of some extra losses.

It looks like if one of these two players wins the Cy Young Award, it will be Webb. I don't see how it will be awarded to Dempster instead of Webb.

Week 2: Orton nothing more than a Game Manager

2008-09-15T10:18:00.001-05:00

Kyle Orton is still the same Kyle Orton. He's still a guy who will not lose you any games but he won't win you any games either. Sunday's performance by Orton looked just like his performance against the Colts. Another 150 yards passing, no touchdowns, and no interceptions. I don't like Kyle Orton as a quarterback. I liked it at first because he is capable of not letting a mediocre offensive line affect him but so far the offensive line looks not too bad. What I don't like about Orton is that he's only effective from 1 to 10 yards. Orton can not complete the level 3 pass (15+ yards beyond the line of scrimmage). He over-threw Marty Booker late in the game which might have been a game winning touchdown. I can see Rex Grossman watching the film of this game making a list of all the plays he could have made that Orton didn't. I say give Orton one more start but no more if he continues to look average. Grossman may throw the occasional interception, but he will score touchdowns and will pass for well over 200 yards every game.

As for the game.....

I don't think the Bears "blew" it. Yeah they were up 17-3 but think about how they got that lead. Seven points came from the blocked punt and seven more points were set-up by the Peanut Tillman interception. The Carolina defense had a good game even though the scoreboard said otherwise in the 3rd quarter. I wasn't really surprised that the Bears offense didn't score any more points because special teams and defense got them 14 out of the 17 points. The reason the score was 17-3 is because the Panthers played poorly in the 1st half. Too many penalties by them killed most of their drives. In the second half, the Panthers made less mistakes and won the game. The Panthers won the game. I don't think the Bears lost it. They were fortunate to have a 14 point lead to begin with. It's too bad that there was still plenty of time left in the game. I don't blame Greg Olsen by the way. I don't know if I should fault him for the first fumble or not but I definitely can't fault him for the second fumble. Panthers safety Chris Harris is one of the best at stripping the ball. He makes players fumble. It's not like Olsen gave the ball to Harris on a silver platter. Harris forced it out of his hands. He led the league last year in forcing fumbles so I don't blame Olsen for that.

I am disappointed the Bears lost a game they could have won, but I don't think it was a game they SHOULD have won. The Panthers played better. However, that doesn't mean the results will be the same if these two teams meet again in the playoffs. The Bears know that penalties and turnovers loses games and now they will try to correct them. That's the only good thing about losses....you see your flaws easier and you know what you have to do to win the next game. Winning two games on the road against two SUPER BOWL contenders is really hard. The Panthers beat a really good Chargers team in week one and the Bears beat a Colts team that was able to beat the Vikings this week in the H.H.H. Dome. The Vikings are considered (not by me) the best team in the division so I like the fact the Bears are already up 1-0 in common opponents. Big win against a good Colts team and a close loss to a good Panther team with both games on the road....I am fine with the way the Bears season has started. I have very little doubt that this team will be in the playoffs and I really think this team is capable of winning it all.

Bears win wasn't an upset!

2008-09-10T10:03:00.001-05:00

Ok...maybe it was a small upset, but the Bears didn't do anything I didn't think they were capable of.

1. Kyle Orton- No turnovers, no touchdowns, and 150 passing yards....pretty much what I expected. He's a game manager.

2. Matt Forte- Didn't really expect 120+ yards rushing including a 50 yard run that could have been a 99 yard run if he started at the one but I knew Forte was capable of it. I've been saying he looks like another Thomas Jones....maybe even better. I am more convinced now that the Bears cut Benson not because of his legal problems but because Forte is a better player.

3. The Defense- How can you call the defense a surprise? What they did was more of an expectation. Creating turnovers, forcing 4th downs, and creating points is their game. I like the fact Indy had to settle for a field goal 2 times. Only one offensive touchdown by Indy. The Bears had two offensive touchdowns.

The only big surprise for me was that the offensive line did a really good job. They opened a lot of holes for Forte and Orton got sacked only once I think.

I said before the season that this is an 11-5 team. I was wrong....this is a 12-4 team. They played the way I wanted them to play and if they keep playing like this, book your tickets to Tampa right now. The Bears win by winning the turnover battle and running the ball and they executed both of them perfectly. This looks like a double digit win team not a 6-10 team like so many of the "experts" have predicted.That being said, it was just one game. As much as I want to say the doubters, "Preseason is meaningless....you were wrong about the Bears being a terrible team", all that win on Sunday means is that the Bears won't go 0-16. What I'm trying to say is that the Bears need to play like that every game. They need to run the ball, they need to protect the ball, and they need to take away the ball. If they can't do that next week, they might lose. They have to be consistent. They showed up last night, but they have to show up again next week and do the same thing. This is the NFL. Any team can beat any team. If the Bears don't play well, they probably won't win. The Falcons killed a decent Lions team. The Chiefs nearly beat the Patriots (being Brady-less is no excuse). The Bears can be a 12-4 team and I think they proved to everyone that they can, but they need to play good football every week. A great start but it is nothing more than that right now.

Is Soriano a bust for the Cubs so far?

2008-09-10T09:54:00.002-05:00

I think so.

Look at his recent stats:

2006 (with WASH): 46 HR 95 RBI 67 BB 41 SB .277 BA .351 OBP .560 SLG .283 ISO
2007 (with CUBS): 33 HR 70 RBI 31 BB 19 SB .299 BA .337 OBP .560 SLG .261 ISO
2008 (with CUBS): 27 HR 69 RBI 35 BB 19 SB .286 BA .344 OBP .548 SLG .262 ISO

He was a 40-40 guy with Washington. He hasn't even been a 20-20 guy with the Cubs. He had 41 SBs in 2006. He has 38 SBs in the last two years combined. Soriano was paid to be a top 5 OF in the ML. Is he?

Among MLB outfielders with at least 400 plate appearances:

-Soriano is ranked 29th in batting average
- Soriano is ranked 39th in OBP
- Soriano is ranked 20th in stolen bases
- Soriano is ranked 12th in Home Runs
- Soriano is ranked 8th in SLG
- Soriano is ranked 32nd in RBI
- Soriano is ranked 36th in runs
- Soriano is ranked 51st in walks (very low for a leadoff man)
- Soriano is ranked 46th in pitches per plate appearance
- Soriano is ranked 32nd in extra base hits
- Soriano is ranked 35th in total bases
- Soriano is ranked 39th in BB/PA
- Soriano is ranked 51st in BB/K
- Soriano is ranked 37th in Runs Created
- Soriano is ranked 6th in Isolated Power

How about among MLB leadoff men with at least 400 PAs:

- 10th in BA
- 13th in OBP
- 1st in SLG
- 7th in Ks
- 3rd in HRs
- 12th in runs
- 3rd in RBIs
- 12th in stolen bases
- 15th in walks
- 12th in Pitches/PA
- 7th in extra base hits
- 12th in BB/PA
- 17th in BB/K
- 11th in Runs Created
- 1st in ISOP

So the only good things Soriano does as a leadoff man is hit home runs, drive in runs, and has the highest isolated power. Power is the last thing you expect from a leadoff man. You want him to work the count, get on-base, steal bases, and score runs. Soriano does poor at that compared to other leadoff men. For a guy making as much as he makes, he has certainly been a bust. If the All-Star voting was up to only the coaches and players, Soriano wouldn't have made the roster. He's a solid and quality player but nothing more. Ryan Ludwick is having a much better season than Soriano and Ludwick is making #411,000 this season. Soriano is making $14 million this season which is more than Adam Dunn, Jermaine Dye, Jason Bay, and Carlos Lee. Josh Hamilton is making just $396,830 this season.

Chicago Pro Teams Prediction: Chicago and the playoffs

2008-07-28T10:19:00.002-05:00

I'll try this new thing called "Chicago Pro Teams Prediction" because I like offering my predictions and seeing how right or wrong I was. Hopefully I will be right with this on.

I predict.......that at least one Chicago baseball team will be in the playoffs this October.

Really, I think both the Cubs and the White Sox will go to the playoffs, but I am certain that Chicago will be represented in the 2008 MLB Playoffs. As for the World Series, I'm not ready to make any predictions about that yet.

Did You Know: how the Cubs and White Sox got their names

2008-07-28T09:47:00.004-05:00

This is kind of like what ESPN's Sportcenter's "Did You Know". The main differences in mine at times might be longer and it will be about Chicago teams instead of East Coast teams! Sorry, I couldn't resist. By the way, does Sportscenter still do "Did You Know". I can't remember now.

This hopefully will be the first in a series. I hope to do several "Did You Know"s in the future but we'll see I guess.

The first "Did You Know" or "DYK" as I might call is going to be how the Chicago Cubs and Chicago White Sox became the Cubs and Sox. Although it seems that has been their names forever, at one point they both had different names and they eventually got changed to Cubs and Sox. How did that happen? I'm going to tell you. The quotes are from Great Baseball Feats, Facts, & Firsts by David Nemec and Scott Flatow. According to the book, the Cubs were previously called the White Stockings, Colts, Orphans, Broncos, and Cowboys. The White Sox were previously called the Invaders after the American League "invaded" Chicago. The only reason the Cubs were the Colts was because their player-manager Cap Anson was in a play called Runaway Colt. When Anson left, that is when they started being called the Orphans. If they still named teams using that method, the Oakland A's would probably be called the Oakland Poormen because of their very low payroll.

First the Cubs:

"In 1901 Chicago sportwriters George Rice and Fred Hayner began referring to them as the Cubs because their roster was stocked with so many young players after the American League raids had depleted it."

That's kinda odd right? Sportswriters naming teams. Can you see that happening today? Imagine if a Pittsburgh sportswriter wrote, "The Pirates looked like a bunch of turtles out there the way they were reacting to plays." I really doubt the league would officially change the Pittsburgh Pirates to the Pittsburgh Turtles just because some sportswriter called them that.

And now, the White Sox:

The AL Chicago team changed their name to the White Stockings in 1901 "which had been discarded by its National League conterpart (the Cubs) in the late 1880s, but the sobriquet (meaning nickname...why couldn't they write that?) was immediately abbrviated to fit into sports page headlines."

So how about that? The Cubs are the Cubs because MLB really valued the opinions of sportwriters in the early 1900s and the White Sox are the White Sox because White Stockings was too long to fit in sports page headlines.

Interesting....did you know that?

Devin Hester Holdout

2008-07-28T09:26:00.002-05:00

This is a little late but I wanted to talk about the Devin Hester holdout that ended recently. I feeling was that he deserved to ask for more money, but it was wrong of him to not attend camp. I'm glad he only missed two practices, so I forgive him. He's now a Chicago Bear through 2013, which is great because I would love to see Hester retire as a Bear someday.

I don't want to see Favre with the Bears

2008-07-18T12:28:00.007-05:00

There is a possibility Brett Favre might be wearing Blue and Orange next year as a member of the Beloved Chicago Bears. I don't want to see that happen. It's not really because he is arguably Chicago's most hated opponent. It's also not really because I think Favre should retire as a Green Bay Packer like John Elway retired as a Denver Bronco, Dan Marino retired as a Miami Dolphin, and Troy Aikman retired as a Dallas Cowboy. Sure Favre was first with the Atlanta Falcons but Chicago Cubs great Ryne Sandberg started his career with the Philadelphia Phillies.

Those are just the other reasons. Here are the main reasons I don't want Favre to join the Bears:

He is no longer a young quarterback and he is past his prime. Favre is 38 years old and will turn 39 this October. He's not the same quarterback who led the Packers to two Super Bowls. Sure he had an impressive season last year. His 95.7 QB Rating was the highest season total for him since 1996, but can he do it again? I don't think he can. The Bears would be getting 2008 Favre not 1996 Favre. This would be like when the Washington Wizards got Michael Jordan or when the Boston Braves got Babe Ruth when Ruth was 40 years old. Brett Favre's best days are behind him now. Plus, everyone saw how bad he was in that Soldier Field game last December. That game he had a 40.2 QB rating and threw two interceptions. After the game, Favre said, “I’ve been playing 17 years, and that was the worst condition I’ve ever played in.” Now he might have to play there at least eight times next year? Do Bears fans really want to see that? Don't forget about his health. Sure, he has that long consecutive games played streak but he plays hurt. Call it heroic if you want but how heroic is he if he is throwing two interceptions in a game because his shoulder hurts? A healthy Rex Grossman or Kyle Orton is better than a banged up old Brett Favre. Playing hurt would be bad not to mention Favre would be pretty much insulting his teammates. He's basically saying, "A less than 100% Brett Favre is better than a healthy Rex Grossman." Helping the team isn't playing hurt. Helping the team is admitting you are too hurt to perform at your best. The Bears need a good and young QB not a QB who is too close to 40 and is towards the end of his career.
The Bears need a franchise quarterback, not a quarterback wanting to play one last season. The main reason the Packers want Favre to stay retired is because they want to finally start the Aaron Rodgers era. The Packers knew Favre wasn't going to play forever so they slowly developed Rodgers into their future franchise QB. The Packers don't want to wait anymore. They know Favre's best days are behind him. That is the same exact reason the Bears should avoid Favre. Hate them or love them, Grossman or Orton have a chance to become a solid starting QB for the next 10-15 years. Look what a franchise QB has done for teams like the New England Patriots and the Indianapolis Colts. Those two teams have combined for four Super Bowl championships. Hell, five of the last seven Super Bowls have featured either the Colts or the Patriots. Thanks to Tom Brady and Peyton Manning, those two teams are Super Bowl contenders every season. I'm not saying Orton or Grossman could be as good as Brady or Manning but I do see the importance of having one QB for 10-15 years. They are still at an age in which one of them can become the Bears franchise QB. Adding Favre just delays the start of the Grossman era or the Orton era. They lose a year if Favre joins the Bears. Unless the Bears become instant Super Bowl contenders because of Favre, it is not worth it. Besides, what if Favre hints that he wants to return in 2009? Now, Orton and Grossman have to worry about a second year in a row being backup to Favre. Grossman is only signed for 2008. With Favre talking about playing in 2009, Grossman might consider trying to sign with another team. If Tavaris Jackson does bad, maybe the Minnesota Vikings will want Grossman as their starting QB in 2009. Grossman might not even wait for Favre to announce if he is going to play in 2009. What if Grossman signs with Minnesota and Favre later decides to retire? Now Orton is the starting QB by default. The Bears would have to hope that Orton ends up having a better career than Grossman because signing Favre led to the Bears losing Grossman to the Vikings. I don't want to see Grossman win a Super Bowl with the Vikings and have me thinking that he should have won it as a Chicago Bear. You think we have quarterback controversy now? Adding Favre just makes this mess even worse.

The good news is that it is highly unlikely Favre will join the Bears. The Packers do NOT want to trade Favre to a division rival let alone the hated Chicago Bears. If Favre did however somehow end up playing for a NFC North team other than the Packers, it would likely be the Vikings. It's not "too hot" which was the reason Favre will try to avoid playing for the Tampa Bay Bucs and Favre played better indoors last season than outdoors. The Vikings of course play home games in a dome. Favre probably still has nightmares about his last Soldier Field experience. Whatever scenerio happens, it won't have Favre joining the Chicago Bears.....at least I hope not.

Cubs pitchers have great All-Star Game!

2008-07-16T11:18:00.004-05:00

A big reason for the Cubs success this year has been their pitching. Yesterday at the MLB All-Star Game at Yankee Stadium in New York, Cubs pitchers Carlos Zambrano, Ryan Dempster, and Carlos Marmol showed why they were three of four Cubs pitchers selected to the All-Star Game (the other being Kerry Wood who missed the game due to a blister).

Here are the stats for their performances:

Zambrano: 2 IP 1 H 0 ER 0 BB 1 K

Dempster: 1 IP 0 H 0 ER 0 BB 3 K

Marmol: 1 IP 0 H 0 ER 0 BB 2 K

Combined?

4 IP 1 H 0 ER 0 BB 6 K

Amazing and this was against "All-Star" hitters! I can't remember Dempster striking out the side the whole season and Marmol rebounded nicely from his last game in which he allowed four earned runs on five hits and one walk. The Cubs hitters Geovany Soto, Aramis Ramirez, and Kosuke Fukudome were a disappointing 0 for 4 with two strikeouts and one walk combined but the pitchers made the Cubs organization proud. Any doubt that Dempster and Marmol belonged in the All-Star Game was erased last night.

MLB Playoffs Predictions!!

2008-07-01T11:42:00.003-05:00

Eight teams will be fighting for the trophy you see at the beginning of this post, but which eight teams? It is still early but now that the season is officially half-way over, I will take a guess at the eight playoff teams in October.

Well here it goes:

AL CENTRAL: Chicago White Sox

Call me a homer but the Sox have a very good team. They already showed they have the pitching but now they have convinced me that their offense is elite too. If a team has a great combination of offense and pitching, they will be very hard to defeat. The big key is that guys like Jim Thome, Nick Swisher, and Mark Buehrle have put their struggles behind them and are playing great now.

Even Cubs manager Lou Piniella said, "The White Sox should win that division by a half-dozen games or more, to tell you the truth. They have everything you need. Everybody looks at the Cubs … look at the White Sox."

I agree. The Cleveland Indians, Detroit Tigers, and Minnesota Twins are good teams, but I think the Sox are just simply better.

AL EAST: Boston Red Sox

The Tampa Rays have been impressive but the Red Sox are just more experienced. They may be in 2nd place now but by the end of the season, the BoSox should be in 1st place.

AL WEST: Los Angeles Angels

The Angels win the division because they are a good team but also because the rest of the division isn't that good. The Oakland A's are currently 3.5 games out of 1st place as I type this but I think they are overachieving. Then again, the A's always overachieve, but the Angels have great hitting and solid pitching. The Texas Rangers are getting better but I doubt they are still in the race by September. The Seattle Mariners never had a chance and they are now 17.5 games out of 1st place.

AL WILD CARD: Tampa Bay Rays

It has to be the Rays. They would win the division if it weren't for the Red Sox. The Rays should have no problem beating out the New York Yankees, Twins, Tigers, A's, and Rangers.

NL CENTRAL: Chicago Cubs

Can't call me a homer for this one. The Cubs are the best team in the NL and even though the NL Central St. Louis Cardinals have the NL's 2nd best record, the Cubs are still a better team than them. I don't see how the Cubs don't win the division.

NL EAST: Philadelphia Phillies

The Florida Marlins are making the race interesting but right now the Phillies are struggling and the Marlins are overachieving. The Phillies are probably more afraid of the New York Mets who will make it hard for the Phillies but the Mets will fall just short in the end.

NL WEST: Los Angeles Dodgers

The Arizona Diamondbacks are this year's Milwaukee Brewers (started 24-10 in 2007 and missed the playoffs). The Diamondbacks were 28-16 at one point this season and had the NL's best record. Now they are 42-41 and have seen their 6.5 game lead shrink to a 3.5 game lead. They peaked too early. Now instead of getting better, they are getting worse. That should give the Dodgers a chance to claim the division in the final weeks of the season if not earlier.

NL WILD CARD: New York Mets

I'm not very confident the Mets can all of a sudden start winning but I'm not very confident that the Cardinals or Brewers will keep winning either. I think there is still time for the Mets to turn their season around (like the Yankees did in 2007) and there is still time for the Cardinals to start struggling and miss the playoffs (like the Mets did in 2007).

Ok...come back in October and see if I'm right.

Breaking down the Cubs-Sox series

2008-06-20T09:53:00.002-05:00

Series Breakdown:

Game 1- Ted Lilly vs. John Danks

Cubs vs. Danks:

John Danks is a good pitcher. Only 3 of his starts haven't been quality starts. He is coming off a start against Colorado in which he allowed 0 ER and 5 hits in 6 innings. He isn't much of a workhorse. He has pitched 7 or more innings in a start only 2 times this season. His worst start was on April 9th against Minnesota when he allowed 7 ER and 3 walks in just 2.1 innings. But other than that start, he has been very good this year. In 11.1 innings against the offensively strong LA Angels, Danks has allowed just 2 ER.

Sox vs. Lilly:

Ted Lilly is the kind of pitcher who the Sox could struggle against. The Sox recently faced lefty Nate Robertson of the Detroit Tigers and he held the Sox to 3 ER in 6.1 innings. However, don't be surprised if the Sox get to Lilly. Lilly has had at least 4 rough starts this season. If Lilly has his stuff today, the Sox offense doesn't have much of a chance. If Lilly starts to struggle, the Sox could put crooked numbers on the scoreboard against him.

Prediction: Sox win a close one....Sox 5 Cubs 3

Game 2- Jose Contreras vs. Jason Marquis

Cubs vs. Contreras:

Jose Contreras has had a great season so far. His numbers don’t lie. His forkball has been a dominating out pitch for him. When Contreras gets ahead in the count, batters have little success against him. However, Contreras hasn’t been impressive in his last 2 starts. On June 10th against Detroit, he allowed more than 2 ER in a start for the first time since May 4th. Not only was it more than 2 ER, he allowed 6 ER and 13 hits. His most recent start was a quality one but he allowed 3 ER which is still more than he usually allows. For the second straight start, his ERA rose. His ERA has gone from 2.76 to 3.24 in 2 starts. He is still a good pitcher but he is starting to show he is capable of having a bad start. Now on a 2 game losing streak after being on a 4 game winning streak, Contrera’s confidence might have taken a shot. This is a good time for the Cubs to be facing Contreras.

Sox vs. Marquis:

In my opinion, it seems like the Sox are a great fastball hitting team but they are bad when they face someone whose plus-plus pitch isn’t a fastball. A guy like Jason Marquis with his sinker and splitter could really baffle the Sox. Marquis has been amazing in his last 2 starts. If Marquis throws strikes and doesn’t get too much of the plate, I really wouldn’t be surprised if the Sox scored only one or less runs off Marquis. The Sox offense can be bad enough that they can make any pitcher look like Cy Young.

Prediction: Cubs even the series….Cubs 5 Sox 2

Game 3- Ryan Dempster vs. Javier Vazquez

Cubs vs. Vazquez:

Some may consider him to be the ace of the staff, but right now Javier Vazquez doesn’t look like that pitcher. In his last 3 starts, he has allowed 4 ER or more in each start. His ERA which at the start of the month was 3.43 is now at 4.13. It has been a June swoon for Vazquez as his 7.27 June ERA might suggest. Like the Contreras breakdown, this is the right time for the Cubs to be facing Vazquez. Another positive for the Cubs is that this game will be a night game. Vazquez has a 4.86 ERA at night and has a .289 BAA (batting average allowed). At many times this year, Vazquez has looked like an All-Star pitcher but right now he looks mediocre.

Sox vs. Dempster:

If the Sox struggle against Marquis, they should consider not even showing up Sunday. Ryan Dempster will give the Sox problems. Dempster is great at getting teams to hit into outs and the Sox will be no exception. Like I said in the Marquis breakdown, Sox seem to struggle against pitchers who don’t rely on their fastball. Dempster’s splitter and slider is very good and I don’t think the Sox will do much against him. Oh and by the way, Dempster is 8-0 at Wrigley and the Cubs are 9-0 when Dempster makes a Wrigley Field start.

Prediction: All signs point towards a Cubs win in the rubber match….Cubs 6 Sox 1

Bears will regret cutting Benson

2008-06-11T15:55:00.004-05:00

The Chicago Bears offensive line was terrible in 2007. It was not Bears running back Cedric Benson's fault. Now Benson is slimmer and the offensive line is better, but the Bears cut Benson before he could get a fair chance to show off his skills. Don't believe me that the O-line was holding Benson back?

Watch this video:

Oh....and here is Benson before the Bears offensive line started to suck:

Classic Chicago Sports Video: Devin Hester's Super Bowl XLI kickoff return touchdown

2008-06-07T08:49:00.004-05:00

In a season in which it had looked like Chicago Bear return man Devin Hester had accomplished everything he could, he found another way to amazing Bears and NFL fans by becoming the first player to ever return the opening kickoff of a Super Bowl for a touchdown.

MVC Update: May 30th, 2008

2008-05-30T10:27:00.000-05:00

Just to remind you, here is a brief description of MVC and how the points system works:

For the 2008 season, I decided to come up with a way to decide who will be the Most Valuable Chicago Cub or MVC. Being the most valuable player is different from being the best player. You have to play great in key situations and be one of the main reasons your team won that day. The player with the best stats is not always MVP. For example, say Player A goes 3 for 4 with 2 doubles. Pretty good right? But what if he got all 3 hits with the bases empty and he never scored? Those 3 hits were a waste. Now how about Player B who goes 1 for 4 with a single but that single scores the final two runs and the team wins by one run? Player B in my mind is the MVP because his single won the game for the team. What I have done so far is pick a MVC for each Cubs game that the Cubs win. Occasionally I'll pick a MVC in an extra innings loss but not always. If the Cubs lose by 7 runs, obviously it is gonna be hard to pick a MVC so there will be game in which I don't pick a MVC. Because baseball is a team sport, here is how I will award points to players: 3 points for game’s MVC, 2 points for 2nd best impact, and 1 point for 3rd best impact.

Season Standings:

Carlos Zambrano +25
Derrek Lee +23
Ryan Dempster +20
Alfonso Soriano +20
Geovany Soto +16
Aramis Ramirez +15
Kosuke Fukudome +13
Ted Lilly +12
Reed Johnson +8
Jon Lieber +7
Ronny Cedeno +7
Mark DeRosa +7
Jason Marquis +6
Carlos Marmol +6
Sean Gallagher +5
Ryan Theriot +4
Rich Hill +4
Kerry Wood +3
Mike Fontenot +3
Daryle Ward +3
Felix Pie +2
Scott Eyre +1

Season Winners:

Zambrano +6
Soriano +5
Dempster +4
Soto +4
Lee +3
Fukudome +2
Lilly +2
Marquis +2
Lieber +1
Hill +1
Ramirez +1
Theriot +1
Fontenot +1
Ward +1
Gallagher +1

May 26--Dodgers @ Cubs: W 3-1
MVC: Ryan Dempster

1. Dempster +3
2. Lee +2
3. Ramirez +1

May 27--Dodgers @ Cubs: W 3-1
MVC: Sean Gallagher

1. Gallagher +3
2. Ramirez +2
3. Marmol +1

May 28—Dodgers @ Cubs: W 2-1
MVC: Alfonso Soriano

Soriano +3
Zambrano +2
Soto +1

May 29—Rockies @ Cubs: W 8-4
MVC: Geovany Soto

Soto +3
Marmol +2
Soriano +1

National League All Star Candidate: Ryan Dempster

2008-05-27T14:20:00.005-05:00

Believe it or not Chicago Cubs former closer, now current starter Ryan Dempster could make the all star game. In fact if he continues to play well, he should be an all star.

Look at where Dempster ranks among NL starters in numerous statistical categories:

Tied for 7th in wins (6)

4th in ERA (2.56)

5th in WHIP (1.09)

2nd in H/9 (6.14)

1st in opponent AVG (.189)

Dempster is even 12th in strikeouts with 56 Ks and Dempster isn't really a great strikeout pitcher (his K/9 is 23rd in the NL).

Last season the NL all star team had seven starting pitchers on their roster. So I will take seven of the NL's best starters (in no particular order) and compare them to Dempster:

Stats are through May 26, 2008:

Brandon Webb- 9-2 3.01 ERA 74.2 IP 64 K 1.10 WHIP .221 BAA

Carlos Zambrano- 7-1 2.47 ERA 73.0 IP 52 K 1.18 WHIP .241 BAA

Tim Lincecum- 6-1 2.17 ERA 62.1 IP 69 K 1.28 WHIP .240 BAA

Edinson Vólquez- 7-2 1.31 ERA 62 IP 76 K 1.28 WHIP .194 BAA

Tim Hudson- 7-3 2.97 ERA 69.2 IP 42 K 1.05 WHIP .227 BAA

Aaron Cook- 7-3 2.82 ERA 76.2 IP 35 K 1.20 WHIP .251 BAA

Ben Sheets- 5-1 2.93 ERA 67.2 IP 55 K 1.06 WHIP .233 BAA

---------------------------

Ryan Dempster- 6-1 2.56 ERA 70.1 IP 56 K 1.09 WHIP .189 BAA

There are other NL starters who also have a good chance to make the team (Johan Santana, Dan Haren, Cole Hamels, Jake Peavy), but I want to pick the best pitchers right now.

Here are Dempster's ranks when included with the seven pitchers:

Tied for 6th in wins

4th in ERA

4th in strikeouts

4th in innings pitched

3rd in WHIP

1st in BAA

The pitcher in the NL with arguably the most buzz right now is Webb. The only categories Webb leads Dempster in are wins, IP, and Ks. Wins are based a lot on how much run support you get, IP are important but not a stat usually looked at when selecting an all star team, and Ks are important but it doesn't really matter how you get outs because a groundout can be just as good a strikeout. Dempster leads Webb in all the categories that really matter: ERA, WHIP, and BAA. I'm not saying that Dempster is going to win the NL Cy Young Award because there are pitchers who are pitching better than Dempster, but he definitely should right now be considered for the NL all star team. Every team needs to be represented which could hurt Dempster's chances especially if Zambrano of the Cubs makes the team, but right now it is hard to list reasons why Dempster should not make the all star team.

Classic Chicago Sports Video: Mike Ditka singing the 7th inning stretch at Wrigley Field

2008-05-26T10:09:00.005-05:00

Even with many Chicago pro teams, there will be many times when there will be nothing worth blogging about. Either that or I'll be too busy (lazy is probably a better word) to write something. So, once in a while I'll make a video post of a classic Chicago sports moment. The first of many to come will be Ex-Chicago Bears coach Mike Ditka singing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" at Wrigley Field during a Chicago Cubs game. Just the fact that he is the great Mike Dikta is reason enough for this video to be special, but this rendition of "Take Me Out of the Ballpark" is one of the worst Wrigley Field has ever heard....and I say one of the worst only because Ozzy Osborne's singing might have been slightly worse. I'll just say Mike Ditka wouldn't go far if he was a contestant on American Idol.

Without no more introduction, here is Mike Ditka as the Cubs guest conductor of the 7th inning stretch:

Soriano's dropped ball brings back memories of Brant Brown

2008-05-26T01:15:00.005-05:00

Yesterday, the Chicago Cubs lost 6-5 to the Pittsburgh Pirates in 11 innings. The Cubs had a 5-4 lead with two outs in the ninth inning but Cubs left fielder Alfonso Soriano dropped a fly ball allowing the Pirates to tie the game.

Soriano said after the game, “It hit in my glove but I didn’t see the ball. I see very clearly when it got off the bat, but when the ball’s coming down it’s getting in the sun, so I lose it.”

Cubs fans have seen this before. On September 23, 1998, Cubs outfielder Brant Brown dropped a fly ball allowing the Milwaukee Brewers to win (link for video clip of the error is at the end of this post).

From http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/baseball/mlb/news/1998/09/23/cubs_brewers/:

Brant Brown drifted back in left field for the final easy out, sunglasses down to shield him from the glare of the late-afternoon sun. The ball landed right on his glove, drawing cheers from the Chicago fans. But the shouts of joy quickly turned to gasps as the ball dropped to the ground, possibly taking the Cubs' playoff hopes right along with it.

The Milwaukee Brewers scored three runs on Brown's error for an 8-7 victory Wednesday

"I don't know how to explain it," said Brown, who went to left field in the eighth inning as a defensive replacement. "The bottom line is I clanked it and we lost the game. You can say the wind, you can say the sun, but those are elements you play with every day. Hopefully, it doesn't cost us that much."

With a 7-5 lead in the ninth, Rod Beck (3-3) loaded the bases with one out. Beck gave up a single to Mark Loretta and a double to Jeff Cirillo, and then intentionally walked Jeromy Burnitz to pitch to Marquis Grissom. After Grissom popped up, Geoff Jenkins hit the fateful fly ball.

Here is a clip of that play with thanks to a Cubs.com Message Board poster for finding it.

Also, I have to include an audio clip of Ron Santo's famous "OH NO!!" call.

Most Valuable Cub Update!

2008-05-26T00:44:00.002-05:00

Just to remind you, here is a brief description of MVC and how the points system works:

Season Standings:

Carlos Zambrano +23
Derrek Lee +21
Ryan Dempster +17
Alfonso Soriano +16
Kosuke Fukudome +13
Aramis Ramirez +12
Ted Lilly +12
Geovany Soto +12
Reed Johnson +8
Jon Lieber +7
Ronny Cedeno +7
Mark DeRosa +7
Jason Marquis +6
Ryan Theriot +4
Rich Hill +4
Kerry Wood +3
Mike Fontenot +3
Daryle Ward +3
Carlos Marmol +3
Felix Pie +2
Sean Gallagher +2
Scott Eyre +1

Season Winners:

Zambrano +6
Soriano +4
Lee +3
Dempster +3
Fukudome +2
Soto +3
Lilly +2
Marquis +2
Lieber +1
Hill +1
Ramirez +1
Theriot +1
Fontenot +1
Ward +1

March 31, 2008- Brewers @ Cubs: L 3-4
MVC of the game: Fukudome

Fukudome +3
Zambrano +2
Marmol +1

April 3, 2008- Brewers @ Cubs: W 6-3
MVC of the game: Ryan Dempster

Dempster +3

Fukudome +2

Ramirez +1

April 5th, 2008- Astros @ Cubs: W 9-7
MVC of the game: Derrek Lee

Lee +3
Fukudome +2
Johnson +1

April 6th, 2008 – Astros @ Cubs: W 3-2
MVC: Carlos Zambrano

Zambrano +3
Lee +2
Wood +1

April 7th, 2008 – Cubs @ Pirates: W 10-8
MVC: Jon Lieber

Lieber +3
Ramirez +2
Cedeno +1

April 9-- Cubs @ Pirates: W 6-4

MVC: Dempster

1. Ryan Dempster +3

2. Felix Pie +2

3. Reed Johnson +1

April 10-- Cubs @ Pirates: W 7-3

MVC: Soto

1. Geovany Soto +3

2. Jon Lieber +2

3. Derrek Lee +1

April 13—Cubs @ Phillies: W 6-5

MVC: Lee

1. Lee +3

2. Wood +2

3. Zambrano +1

April 15—Reds @ Cubs: W 9-5
MVC: Lee

Lee +3
Dempster +2
DeRosa +1

April 16—Reds @ Cubs: W 12-3
MVC: Fukudome

Fukudome: +3
Zambrano: +2
Lee: +1

April 18—Pirates @ Cubs: W 3-2
MVC: Rich Hill

Rich Hill +3
Kosuke Fukudome +2
Mark DeRosa +1

April 19—Pirates @ Cubs: W 13-1
MVC: Jason Marquis

Marquis +3
Lee +2
DeRosa +1

April 20—Pirates @ Cubs: W 13-6
MVC: Aramis Ramirez

Ramirez +3
Dempster +2
Theriot +1

April 21—Mets @ Cubs: W 7-1
MVC: Zambrano

Zambrano +3
Ramirez +2
Cedeno +1

April 22—Mets @ Cubs: W 8-1
MVC: Ted Lilly

Lilly +3
Cedeno +2
Fukudome +1

April 23—Cubs @ Rockies: W 7-6
MVC: Theriot

Theriot +3
Ramirez +2
Hill +1

April 26—Cubs @ Nationals: W 7-0
MVC: Carlos Zambrano

Zambrano +3
Lee +2
Johnson +1

April 30—Brewers @ Cubs: W 19-5
MVC: Geovany Soto

Geovany Soto +3
Ryan Dempster +2
Mark DeRosa +1

May 2—Cubs @ Cardinals: L 3-5
MVC: Alfonso Soriano
Soriano +3
Lieber +2
Soto +1

May 3—Cubs @ Cardinals: W 9-3
MVC: Mike Fontenot

Fontenot +3
Lilly +2
Soto +1

May 6—Cubs @ Reds: W 3-0
MVC: Zambrano

Zambrano +3
Cedeno +2
Ramirez +1

May 9—D-Backs @ Cubs: W 3-1
MVC: Ted Lilly

Ted Lilly +3
Alfonso Soriano +2
Mark DeRosa +1

May 10—D-Backs @ Cubs: W 7-2
MVC: Alfonso Soriano
Soriano +3
Dempster +2
Eyre +1

May 11—D-Backs @ Cubs: W 6-4
MVC: Daryle Ward

Ward +3
Johnson +2
Lee +1

May 12—Padres @ Cubs: W 12-3
MVC: Carlos Zambrano

Zambrano +3
Soriano +2
Lee +1

May 14, 2008--Padres @ Cubs: W 8-5
MVC; Alfonso Soriano

1. Soriano +3
2. Lilly +2
3. Soto +1

May 15, 2008--Padres @ Cubs: W 4-0
MVC: Ryan Dempster

1. Dempster +3
2. Lee +2
3. Cedeno +1

May 16—Pirates @ Cubs: W 7-4
MVC: Alfonso Soriano

Soriano +3
Gallagher +2
DeRosa +1

May 18—Pirates @ Cubs: W 4-3
MVC: Jason Marquis

Jason Marquis +3
Carlos Marmol +2
Reed Johnson +1

May 19—Cubs @ Astros: W 7-2
MVC: Geovany Soto

Soto +3
Lilly +2
Ramirez +1

May 23—Cubs @ Pirates: W 12-3
MVC: Carlos Zambrano

Zambrano +3
Johnson +2
DeRosa +1

Hey The Bulls Have a Postseason Win!

2008-05-21T22:54:00.005-05:00

Chicago Bulls fans are partying like it's 1999.

Last Tuesday, the Bulls won the NBA Draft Lottery and has the #1 overall pick in the NBA Draft for the 1st time since 1999 when they drafted Elton Brand. If the Bulls keep the pick, they will either draft Derrick Rose, a 6-3 point guard from Memphis University, or Michael Beasley, a 6-9 power forward out of Kansas State University. Who should the Bulls pick? It's a no-brainer for me: Rose. It has little to do with the fact he's a Chicago kid. The Bulls are lacking a true point guard. I can't even remember the last time we had a real point guard. Even in the Jordan era, Ron Harper was really a shooting guard but had to play point. You look at successful teams like San Antonio (Tony Parker), Detroit (Chauncey Billups), New Orleans (Chris Paul), Utah (Deron Williams), Phoenix (Steve Nash), and you realize that point guards are important in the NBA like quarterbacks are important in the NFL. Rose has leadership qualities, can play defense, and can even be a solid scoring option. Most importantly, he knows how to be unselfish and make great passes to his teammates. He's being referred to as a combination of Paul and Williams. I really believe this kid has a chance to break the Bulls long streak without an all-star. In fact, he could become a superstar someday.

Rose is the player we need. Just look at our projected starting lineup with Rose:
pg. Rose
sg. kirk hinrich
sf. luol deng
pf. drew gooden
c. jokiam noah

That's a solid starting lineup right there and the Bulls will finally have a playmaker who can get open looks for guys like Deng, Kirk, and Gordon as well as dish down low to Drew and Noah. He'll make us so much better offensively. Think about it: the Bulls were trying to trade for Kobe Bryant who is a playmaker with leadership qualities and can help the team when the game is on the line. Rose can be that player and the Bulls don't have to trade any of their "core" players. Rose is the leader and star the Bulls desperately need. Guys like Michael Beasley are in the draft every year. A guy like Rose isn't always available. Add Derrick Rose and the Bulls will become instant contenders in the Eastern Conference.

Soriano should be dropped lower in the batting order

2008-05-18T09:52:00.003-05:00

Despite Alfonso Soriano's two home runs, he could of helped the Cubs a lot more yesterday. Both of his home runs were solo home runs. How are the Cubs going to benefit from Soriano's homers if they are just solo home runs? The Cubs get the same amount of runs out of a groundout with a runner at third with zero or one out compared to a Soriano home run. It is not coincidental that Soriano is hitting solo home runs. Besides the fact he is guaranteed to bat with the bases empty at least one time per game, he is hitting behind two of the Cubs worst On-base players: Reed Johnson and the pitcher's spot. The chances of either of them getting on aren't as great as the chances or Ryan Theriot or Derrick Lee or Kosuke Fukudome or Geovany Soto. One of the reasons the Cubs lost yesterday was because Soriano got just two RBIs out of his two home runs. If he was batting lower in the lineup, he'd probably get four RBIs for his home runs.

Now I know exactly why Soriano is still batting leadoff. Lou Piniella keeps talking about all this "Soriano doesn't like batting with runners on base and he is very comfortable at leadoff" bullshit. Here's the thing: Not only has Soriano came through this season many times with runners in scoring position but he wouldn't have to hit as many home runs if he was batting 5th or so. Let's say Soriano is batting with Lee on third and Aramis Ramirez on second. If Soriano hits a single, that's two RBIs right there which is one more RBI than he gets with all his solo home runs. And of course the obvious thing: if he hits a home run in that situation, it's three RBIs. As you saw yesterday, the addition of a few more RBIs can be the difference between a win and a loss. Soriano did a lot of damage in yesterday's loss, but he could have done a lot more.

MVC: April 19-20--Pirates @ Cubs

2008-04-20T16:51:00.004-05:00

April 19--Pirates @ Cubs: W 13-1

MVC: Jason Marquis

Jason Marquis-- 6 innings, 1 ER; RBI double
Derrek Lee-- 2 run HR in the first inning
Mark DeRosa-- 2 RBIs, 2 runs scored

April 20--Pirates @ Cubs: W 13-6

MVC: Aramis Ramirez

Aramis Ramirez-- 4 RBIs
Ryan Dempster-- 5 innings, 3 ER
Ryan Theriot-- 3 runs scored, 2 RBIs, 1 stolen base

Season Standings:

Derrek Lee +15
Kosuke Fukudome +12
Ryan Dempster +10
Carlos Zambrano +8
Aramis Ramirez +6
Jon Lieber +5
Geovany Soto +3
Mark DeRosa +3
Rich Hill +3
Jason Marquis +3
Kerry Wood +3
Reed Johnson +2
Felix Pie +2
Ryan Theriot +1
Carlos Marmol +1
Ronny Cedeno +1

Season Winners:

Lee +3
Dempster +2
Fukudome +2
Zambrano +1
Lieber +1
Soto +1
Hill +1
Marquis +1
Ramirez +1

Don't understand what "MVC" means? Click the link to find out.

The White Sox are back!

2008-04-19T10:14:00.003-05:00

Right now, the Sox are 10-6 after 16 games and are in 1st place in the AL central. It's early but in 2005 after 16 games, the Sox were 12-4 so the records aren't that much different. As many people know, the Sox went on to win 99 games and the world series that season. The Sox are doing many things right so far. Their offense has been outstanding, their starting pitchers have been solid, and their bullpen is one of the best in the league so far. I know it's only April, but I think this team will be on top of their division at the end of the season. The Sox face the New York Yankees on Monday and that should be one of the first opportunities to see if this team is for real or just taking advantage of a weak schedule.

The Bears should give Urlacher what he wants

2008-04-19T10:05:00.004-05:00

Recently, Brian Urlacher skipped the Chicago Bears' optional workouts because he wants more years added to his current contract. I think the Bears should just give Urlacher what he wants. In my opinion, he is still the best player on the team. The Bears should do the best they can to keep Urlacher happy. Lance Briggs is nothing without #54 standing next to him.

MVC: April 16 vs. Reds; April 18 vs. Pirates

2008-04-19T09:37:00.006-05:00

April 16—Reds @ Cubs: W 12-3
MVC: Fukudome

Fukudome: 2 Run double in 1st inning
Zambrano: 7 innings pitched with just 2 runs allowed; RBI single in 3rd inning
Lee: Solo home run in 3rd inning began a six run inning

April 18—Pirates @ Cubs: W 3-2
MVC: Rich Hill

Rich Hill: Pitched 5 solid innings
Kosuke Fukudome: His triple in the 3rd inning set up a 3 run inning
Mark DeRosa: 3rd inning RBI single tied the game; later scored the go-ahead run

Season Standings:

Derrek Lee +13
Kosuke Fukudome +12
Ryan Dempster +8
Carlos Zambrano +8
Jon Lieber +5
Aramis Ramirez +3
Geovany Soto +3
Kerry Wood +3
Rich Hill +3
Felix Pie +2
Reed Johnson +2
Mark DeRosa +2
Carlos Marmol +1
Ronny Cedeno +1

Season Winners:

Lee +3
Dempster +2
Fukudome +2
Zambrano +1
Lieber +1
Soto +1
Hill +1

MVC: April 15- Reds @ Cubs

2008-04-16T08:24:00.003-05:00

April 15- Reds @ Cubs: W 9-5

Derrek Lee--Hit game winning 3-run homer in the 5th inning. Started a inning ending double play in the 7th inning when the Reds had runners on the corners with only one out and down by one run.
Ryan Dempster--Pitched 6 innings and gave up only 4 earned runs.
Mark DeRosa--His two-run homer in the second inning gave the Cubs their first lead.

Season Standings:

Derrek Lee +12
Ryan Dempster +8
Kosuke Fukudome +7
Carlos Zambrano +6
Jon Lieber +5
Aramis Ramirez +3
Geovany Soto +3
Kerry Wood +3
Felix Pie +2
Reed Johnson +2
Carlos Marmol +1
Ronny Cedeno +1
Mark DeRosa +1

Season Winners:

Lee +3
Dempster +2
Fukudome +1
Zambrano +1
Lieber +1
Soto +1

MVC: April 13th- Cubs @ Phillies

2008-04-14T08:59:00.003-05:00

April 13th- Cubs @ Phillies: W 6-5

1. Derrek Lee- 2 RBIs; Nice defensive stop in the 9th inning which prevented the Phillies from scoring the winning run.
2. Kerry Wood- Pitched a scoreless 8th and 9th inning with the game tied.
3. Carlos Zambrano- Ran hard after hitting a groundball; forced Phillies IF. Chase Utley to rush his throw resulting in an error that allowed the go-ahead run to score in the 10th inning.

Season Standings:

Derrek Lee +9
Kosuke Fukudome +7
Ryan Dempster +6
Carlos Zambrano +6
Jon Lieber +5
Aramis Ramirez +3
Geovany Soto +3
Kerry Wood +3
Felix Pie +2
Reed Johnson +2
Carlos Marmol +1
Ronny Cedeno +1

Season Winners:

Dempster +2
Lee +2
Fukudome +1
Zambrano +1
Lieber +1
Soto +1

MVC--April 9-10: Cubs @ Pirates

2008-04-11T10:43:00.004-05:00

April 9-- Cubs @ Pirates: W 6-4

1. Ryan Dempster--Pitched 7 innings and only allowed one hit. Very good performance.
2. Felix Pie--hit game winning RBI single in the 15th inning.
3. Reed Johnson--RBI single in the 3rd gave the Cubs an early 1-0 lead.

April 10-- Cubs @ Pirates: W 7-3

1. Geovany Soto--Game winning 2 run home run in the 6th.
2. Jon Lieber-- 4.1 shutout innings.
3. Derrek Lee--2 RBIs

Scoring: 3 points for game’s MVC, 2 points for 2nd best impact, and 1 point for 3rd best impact.

Season Standings:

Kosuke Fukudome +7
Derrek Lee +6
Ryan Dempster +6
Carlos Zambrano +5
Jon Lieber +5
Aramis Ramirez +3
Geovany Soto +3
Felix Pie +2
Reed Johnson +2
Carlos Marmol +1
Kerry Wood +1
Ronny Cedeno +1

Season Winners:

Dempster +2
Fukudome +1
Lee +1
Zambrano +1
Lieber +1
Soto +1

Most Valuable Cub!

2008-04-09T10:25:00.004-05:00

For the 2008 season, I decided to come up with a way to decide who will be the Most Valuable Chicago Cub or MVC. Being the most valuable player is different from being the best player. You have play great in key situations and be one of the main reasons your team won that day. The player with the best stats is not always MVP. For example, say Player A goes 3 for 4 with 2 doubles. Pretty good right? But what if he got all 3 hits with the bases empty and he never scored? Those 3 hits were a waste. Now how about Player B who goes 1 for 4 with a single but that single scores the final two runs and the team wins by one run? Player B in my mind is the MVP because his single won the game for the team.

What I have done so far is pick a MVC for each Cubs game that the Cubs win. I'll do it sometimes for extra innings losses too. If the Cubs lose by 7 runs, obviously it is gonna be hard to pick a MVC so there will be game in which I don't pick a MVC. Because baseball is a team sport, here is how I will award points to players:

3 points for game’s MVC, 2 points for 2nd best impact, and 1 point for 3rd best impact.

I've already started this and I'll try to update the standing every week.

Season Standings:

Fukudome +7
Lee +5
Zambrano +5
Ramirez +3
Dempster +3
Lieber +3
Johnson +1
Marmol +1
Wood +1

Season Winners:

Fukudome +1
Dempster +1
Lee +1
Zambrano +1
Lieber +1

March 31, 2008- Brewers @ Cubs: L 3-4
MVC of the game: Fukudome
Fukudome +3
Zambrano +2
Marmol +1

April 3, 2008- Brewers @ Cubs: W 6-3
MVC of the game: Ryan Dempster
Dempster +3Fukudome +2Ramirez +1

April 5th, 2008- Astros @ Cubs: W 9-7
MVC of the game: Derrek Lee
Lee +3
Fukudome +2
Johnson +1

April 6th, 2008 – Astros @ Cubs: W 3-2
MVC: Carlos Zambrano

Zambrano +3
Lee +2
Wood +1

April 7th, 2008 – Cubs @ Pirates: W 10-8
MVC: Jon Lieber

Lieber +3
Ramirez +2
Cedeno +1

Will the high expectations hurt the Cubs?

2008-02-20T12:07:00.004-06:00

There is no question that a lot of people expect the Cubs to win the division again. The team has seemed to improve and the rest of the division hasn’t improved enough to contend with the Cubs. Last year, the Cubs won the division by default. This year, teams like Milwaukee, Houston, and Cincinnati have gotten a little better so the Cubs might not be able to back into a division championship. No big deal because the Cubs are the better team right?

Consider this:

It’s April and the 2008 season has begun. Almost every media outlet has picked the Cubs to make the playoffs and a few even have them as the favorite to win the NL. Clearly, the Cubs are no longer underdogs. However, the Cubs lose 3 close games to start the season. It’s only 3 games in a long season but a winning streak doesn’t immediately happen. Two weeks into the season, the Cubs are 4-8 and 4 games behind the 8-4 Milwaukee Brewers in the NL Central. It’s not just the team that’s doing badly, but some of the stars are struggling as well. Carlos Zambrano has a decent 3.45 ERA in 3 starts but his record is 1-2. In his last start, he lost despite pitching seven innings and allowing three runs. He could be 2-1 right now, but he’s 1-2 and that record doesn’t look Cy Young Award-caliber.

Alfonso Soriano in 50 ABs has a .222 BA. He has had four instances already this season in which he hit the ball hard for outs. Had those balls landed, Soriano would be hitting .300 right now. However, the fielders either made a nice catch or were in the right spot at the right time so Soriano has a mediocre .222 BA instead. Meanwhile, the media is going nuts. 4-8 isn’t terrible but the local media has already witnessed what slow starts did to the Chicago Bears and the Chicago Bulls. They pound Lou Piniella and the rest of the team with questions that range from “How can you guys improve?” to “Are you worried about how well the Brewers are doing?” The media is already asking Jim Hendry if he is thinking of making any deals. Hendry tells the media that he is not currently in discussion with any potential trades, but now some of the players are worried that they will be traded or released if the team doesn’t start playing better. The losing continues and the media continues to ask why this team is 7-15 instead of 15-7. The Cubs do eventually start playing better but it is a little late. The Cubs end the season in 2nd place, just 3 games behind the NL Central champion Milwaukee Brewers.

This is just an example and probably won’t happen, but it definitely could. Look how teams like the Chicago Bulls and Bears had such high expectations but the media started attacking them just 2 weeks into the season. The pressure was too large and they weren’t able to improve. Being the favorites can be a bad thing. A lot of times, it’s easier to be the underdog than being a favorite in which you are being criticized for every time you fail to do what is expected. The media was a little more understanding last year when the Cubs struggled because Piniella was in his first year, Soriano was trying to adjust to being on a new team, and the Cubs, despite getting a $300 million makeover, were still the defending last place team of the division. The media won’t be easy on the team this year if the 2008 Cubs struggle out of the gate. My point is that it is very important that the 2008 Cubs get off to a good start. If they don’t, I can almost guarantee you it will be ‘wait till next year’ for the Cubs.

Brady on the Bears vs. Grossman on the Pats

2008-01-02T18:37:00.001-06:00

This is originally from a post I made at the chicagobears.com message board:

Let's pretend that Tom Brady played his entire 2007 season with the Bears and Rex Grossman played his entire 2007 season with the Patriots.

Let's look at how Tom Brady would do:

First of all, Brady does not have Randy Moss as his #1 target. Brady's go-to guy is Bernard Berrian. Berrian probably gets about 10 more catches with Brady as his QB and gets maybe 2 more TDs.

Berrian's 2006 stats: 81 catches 1085 yards 7 TDs

Better...but he's still no Randy Moss.

Brady is playing behind a weak o-line and gets sacked 40 times. Because the Bears have no running game, Brady has to pass more and the opponent defense often goes in dime package knowing the Bears have no running game. The 2 extra defenders in the secondary causes Brady to have an average completion %. The QB pressure affects him and he ends up throwing 5 more interceptions than he would on the Patriots. His number 2 receiver isn't Wes Welker...it's Mushin Muhammad. Tom Brady has Devin Hester but the O-Line does a poor job of giving Brady enough time to get set and throw it to Hester deep downfield. When Brady gets time, he makes his usual good throws, but remember he has Bears receivers now. Berrian runs the wrong routes a few times and Muhammad continues to drop passes.

Brady with the Patriots in 2007:
16 G 4806 yards 68.9% 50 TD 8 INT 21 sacks 300.4 yards/gm

Brady with the Bears in 2007:
16 G 4100 yards 63.5% 22 TD 13 INT 40 sacks 256.3 yards/gm

Now let's look at Rex Grossman:

Rex Grossman is living the good life. His has an athlete 6-4 wide receiver named Randy Moss, a new #2 wide receiver named Wes Welker who had productive seasons with the Dolphins, 3 other solid wide receivers (Stallworth, Gaffney, and Watson) in case Moss and Welker are covered, and he has Laurence Maroney and Kevin Faulk instead of Cedric Benson and Adrian Peterson. It's hard to examine Rex Grossman using his 2007 stats. Not enough games played and the o-line was much better in 2006. Randy Moss had 23 TDs with Tom Brady. Tom Brady didn't magically turn Moss into a pro bowl receiver. Moss had similar stats in 2003 with 17 TDs on the Vikings. The QB was Daunte Culpepper. Rex Grossman and Culpepper have similar stats so Moss loses only 5 TDs with Rex as his QB. Welker had 112 catches and 1175 yards and 8 TDs with Brady. He had 67/687/1 with the Dolphins (QB: Joey Harrington for most of the season). Grossman is better than Harrington so Welker gets 75 catches for 780 yards and 5 TDs. The rest of the receivers under Brady scored 19 TDs. They score 10 with Rex.

Grossman with the Bears in 2006:
16 G 3193 yards 54.6% 23 TD 20 INT 21 sacks 199.6 yards/gm

Grossman with the Pats in 2007
16 G 4000 yards 63.5% 32 TD 10 INT 21 sacks 250 yards/gm

The point of this is to shown that Tom Brady isn't the greatest QB of all-time. Look at Brady's numbers before he got Moss, Welker, and Stallworth. My other point is that Rex Grossman isn't a bad quarterback. Grossman is a pro bowl QB with the Patriots.

Even at 5-8, Bears have slim playoffs hopes

2007-12-12T08:36:00.001-06:00

As of today, the Bears can still make the playoffs and the scenerio of that happening isn't as wacky as you might think.

Here is a scenerio that might happen and would get the Bears into the playoffs:

Bears win remaining 3 games (at Minnesota, at Green Bay, New Orleans)
Redskins loses at Minnesota, vs. Dallas, at NY Giants
Panthers loses vs. Dallas, vs. Seattle, at Tampa Bay
Vikings loses vs. Bears and at Denver, wins vs. Washington
Arizona loses at New Orleans and vs. St. Louis, wins vs. Atlanta
Lions loses at San Diego and at Green Bay, wins vs. Kansas City
Saints loses at Bears, wins against Arizona and Philadelphia
Eagles loses at Saints and at Cowboys, wins vs. Buffalo

NFC Wild Card Standing:
1. NY Giants
2. BEARS (8-8)
------------------
Vikings (8-8)---division record tie-breaker
Saints (8-8)----head-to-head tie-breaker
Cardinals (7-9)
Lions (7-9)
Redskins (6-10)
Eagles (6-10)
Panthers (5-11)

Bears have better than slim playoff hopes

2007-12-04T08:35:00.001-06:00

Believe it or not, every team in the NFC are still alive in the playoff race. Every team. Yes, the Falcons, 49ers, and Rams all are not eliminated yet from making the playoffs. So, if the Falcons have a shot, you better believe we have a shot.

The Bears main goal right now is to get back to .500 (7-7)

Bears play the Redskins on Thursday and then have nearly 2 weeks to prepare for the Viking on MNF. I think the Bears can win both games. The Redskins will be emotional unprepared for Thursday's game and just suffered a tough loss to the Buffalo Bills. The Bears are angry and can't wait to let off their angry on the Redskins. As for the Minnesota game, like I said the Bears will have about 11 days to prepare. They have already faced the Vikings once and that helps. The Bears have to figure out how to stop Adrian Peterson. Putting 8 men in the box might be able to stop him. The Bears should let the Vikings try to beat them with their weak passing attack. Adrian Peterson beat the Bears by himself in the last meeting. The Vikings would have lost without him. If the Bears take him out of the game, the Bears will win.

Upcoming schedules (possible results):

Detroit Lions schedule:
Sun 12/9 Dallas 1:00 pm LOSS
Sun 12/16 at San Diego 4:15 pm LOSS

Arizona Cardinals schedule:
Sun 12/9 at Seattle 4:05 pm LOSS
Sun 12/16 at New Orleans 1:00 pm LOSS

Carolina Panthers schedule:
Sun 12/9 at Jacksonville 1:00 pm LOSS
Sun 12/16 Seattle 1:00 pm LOSS

Washington Redskins schedule:
Thu 12/6 Chicago 8:15 pm LOSS
Sun 12/16 at NY Giants 8:15 pm LOSS

New Orleans Saints schedule:
Mon 12/10 at Atlanta 8:30 pm WIN
Sun 12/16 Arizona 1:00 pm WIN

Minnesota Vikings schedule:
Sun 12/9 at San Francisco 4:05 pm WIN
Mon 12/17 Chicago 8:30 pm LOSS

New York Giants schedule:
Sun 12/9 at Philadelphia 1:00 pm LOSS
Sun 12/16 Washington 8:15 pm WIN

Here is the NFC Wild Card Standings after 14 games:

1. NY Giants (9-5)
2. New Orleans Saints (7-7)
--------------------------
Chicago Bears (7-7)
Minnesota Vikings (7-7)
Arizona Cardinals (6-8)
Detroit Lions (6-8)
Philadelphia Eagles (6-8)

If the standings gets to that point, Bears control their own destiny. Wins against GB and the Saints would get them into the playoffs as the 2nd wild card team.

Why I want Kobe Bryant in a Bulls Jersey

2007-11-01T09:47:00.001-05:00

Maybe you agree with me, maybe not. Yes Kobe would be the go-to scorer the Bulls need and might be the player the Bulls need to take that next step, but here is why I really want Kobe:

In the 9 years since Michael Jordan played his last game with the Bulls, the closest player the Bulls came to having a superstar was Jalen Rose. The Bulls don't get respect because no one knows any of the players. Ben Wallace might be a recognizable name but he is more well-known for his afro or his fight with Ron Artest. I wonder how many ordinary fans know about Wallace's defensive ability. Kobe Bryant is well-known for all the right reasons. He is one of the best scorers in the NBA and he has 3 championships. He is the only active player to score 81 points in a game. Michael Jordan never scored 81 points in a game! Bryant is so famous that his 4 letter first name, Kobe, is recognizable. You tell someone that Kobe scored 34 points, everyone knows which Kobe you are talking about. Sure the Bulls have players that can be identified by their first name. They got players whose names are Thabo, Tryus, Jokiam, and Luol. The problem is, Bulls fans are the only fans who know the last name of those players. You think Luol Deng is a superstar? How many times is his name mentioned on ESPN? Why do fans want their team to win championships? It's because they want the nation to pay more attention to their city. The L.A. Galaxy got David Beckham this year. Did they think he'd be a good contributer? Maybe, but they'd be lying if they didn't think Beckham to draw attention to their team. I'm sure many people had not even heard of the L.A. Galaxy before Beckham joined the team.

Will Kobe get the Bulls a championship? I don't know. But the Bulls have a chance to get the best player in the NBA. We as fans will have the opportunity to see a NBA superstar 3-4 times a week. ESPN and other media outlets will be talking about what happened in Chicago not what is going on in LA or New York. I have been to about 2 Bulls games but I never saw Michael Jordan play in person. I am going to a Bulls game in December. This could be my only opportunity to witness a live performance by a future NBA hall of famer. The Bulls have to make this trade. I'm tired of the Chicago Bulls not getting the attention they deserve, less than a decade after they were the greatest team in the world. The Bulls no longer have Jordan and the Cubs no longer have Sammy Sosa. It's time for Chicago to have a superstar. I don't care what it costs. I want Kobe Bryant on the Bulls more than an Eastern conference title, which is the farthest this Bulls team will go in the playoffs.

Week 3: Bears-Cowboys Match-up

2007-09-20T10:01:00.000-05:00

Quarterback:

Rex Grossman vs. Tony Romo

Romo has been playing much better than Rex.

EDGE: COWBOYS

Running Back:

Cedric Benson vs. Julius Jones/Marion Barber

The Cowboys have duo running backs and together they'll probably be more productive than Benson.

EDGE: COWBOYS

Wide Receivers:

Moose Muhammad, Bernard Berrian vs. Terrell Owens, Sam Hurd/Patrick Crayton

Of course T.O. is an All-Pro, but the loss of Terry Glenn makes the Cowboys seem like a team with only one WR. The Bears could double team T.O. and force Romo to throw to Hurd and Crayton who aren't as good as Glenn.

EDGE: EVEN

Tight End:

Desmond Clark/Greg Olsen vs. Jason Witten

Witten has a touchdown and that gives him the edge.

EDGE: COWBOYS

Defensive Ends:

Mark Anderson, Adewale Ogunleye vs. Marcus Spears, Chris Canty

No debate here.

EDGE: BEARS

Defensive Tackles:

Tommie Harris, Darwin Walker vs. Jay Ratliff

Um..let me think...

EDGE: BEARS

Linebackers:

Lance Briggs, Brian Urlacher, Hunter Hillenmeyer vs. Anthony Spencer, Bradie James, Akin Ayodele, DeMarcus Ware

Briggs and Urlacher have 35 total tackles and 2 sacks. The Cowboys starting linebackers have 26 total tackles and 1 sack.

EDGE: BEARS

Cornerbacks:

Nathan Vasher, Peanut Tillman vs. Nate Jones/Terence Newman, Anthony Henry

EDGE: BEARS

Safeties:

Danieal Manning, Adam Archuleta vs. Roy Williams, Kem Hamlin

The Cowboys safeties are actually pretty good.

EDGE: EVEN

I'm not longer doing Special Teams because I'm assuming no team has a better Special Teams unit than the Bears.

Keys to Victory:

- Big game for Rex

Rex has to have less interceptions and needs to pass for more yards.

- Throw the deep ball

The Bears should go deep to Berrian on Sunday. It worked last year so why won't it work this year?

- No turnovers

I'll make this prediction: If the Bears make no turnovers, they will win the game.

- Pressure Romo

In this week's Sports Illustrated, Paul Zimmerman said, "If the Cowboys can block the Bears' rush, I see decent numbers for Romo and a Dallas win over the defending NFC champs."

I assume that if the Bears can get to Romo, they should be able to win.

Week 2: Bears vs. Chiefs

2007-09-20T09:39:00.000-05:00

Chicago Bears 20
Kansas City Chiefs 10

The Good:

Bears RB Cedric Benson ran for 101 yards on 24 carries.
KR/PR Devin Hester returned a punt 73 yards for a touchdown. Hester had 5 punt returns for a total of 143 yards. He was named NFC Special Teams Player of the Week.
LB Lance Briggs had 12 total tackles (11 solo), 1 sack, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery, and a defected pass. I would say that's a good game.
MLB Brian Urlacher had 9 total tackles (8 solo) and had his first sack since 2005.
John St. Clair, a reserve offensive lineman, caught a 2 yard touchdown pass.

The Bad:

QB Rex Grossman threw two interceptions.
The O-line allowed three sacks.
The Bears had three turnovers, but the Chiefs only scored three points off turnovers.
The offense scored only 13 points and three points were thanks to Hester whose punt return got the Bears to the Chiefs 18 yard line.

Why the Bears won:

Grossman wasn't much better and the Bears had a lot of turnovers. What was the difference? More points. The Bears had three points last week and scored 20 points this week. The key reason was Devin Hester who scored a touchdown and helped set up a field goal.

Player of the Week: Devin Hester- 143 punt return yards, 28.6 PR AVG., 1 TD

You're better than that player of the week: Rex Grossman- 20-34 160 yards 1 TD 2 INT

Week 2: Bears-Chiefs Match-up

2007-09-13T10:00:00.000-05:00

Quarterback:

Rex Grossman vs. Damon Huard

Huard passed for only 168 yards last week against the weak Houston Texans. Rex Grossman is going against a defense that was 18th against the pass in 2006 and Huard is going against the Bears defense that made Phillip Rivers look like an ordinary QB, not an AFC pro bowler.

EDGE: BEARS

Running Back:

Cedric Benson vs. Larry Johnson

Even though Cedric Benson could likely end up with more rushing yards on Sunday than Johnson, Johnson is the better RB.

EDGE: CHIEFS

Tight End:

Desmond Clark vs. Tony Gonzalez

If Antonio Gates is the #1 TE in the NFL then it is very possible that Gonzalez is #2 or #1a.

EDGE: CHIEFS

Wide Receivers:

Bernard Berrian, Moose Muhammad vs. Samie Parker, Dwayne Bowe

Bears catch a break with Chiefs starting WR Eddie Kennison not playing on Sunday with an injury. Bowe is a rookie and Parker scored one TD last year.

EDGE: BEARS

Defensive Tackles:

Darwin Walker, Tommie Harris vs. Alfonso Boone, Ron Edwards

Haha, this is should be a good match-up for the Bears. Boone is an ex-Bear that the Bears got rid of because guys like Harris and Dusty Dvoracek were better. Edwards had 2.5 sacks last year but still nowhere near as impressive as Harris and Walker.

EDGE: BEARS

Defense Ends:

Adewale Ogunleye, Mark Anderson vs. Tamba Hali, Jimmy Wilkerson

Hali had 8 sacks in '06, but Wilkerson, playing in his 5th season, has 0.5 career sacks. Anderson and Ogunleye already have one sack each.

EDGE: BEARS

Linebackers:

Lance Briggs, Brian Urlacher, Hunter Hillenmeyer vs. Derrick Johnson, Napoleon Harris, Donnie Edwards

The trio of Johnson, Harris, and Edwards is an impressive one that combined for 275 tackles and 9.5 sacks. The Bears trio had only 44 more tackles and 8.5 less sacks. I'll give the Bears the
edge but it's only a slight one.

EDGE: BEARS

Cornerbacks:

Nathan Vasher, Peanut Tillman vs. Ty Law, Patrick Surtain or Benny Sapp

Surtain is listed as the Chiefs 2nd CB on the depth chart but didn't play last sunday. About 4 years ago, I would have given the edge to KC, but Sustain and Law are now both in their 30's and they won't be as big of an impact as Nate and Peanut.

EDGE: BEARS

Safeties:

Adam Archuleta, Danieal Manning vs. Jarrad Page, Bernard Pollard

Bears are better even without Mike Brown. Page and Pollard combined for 45 tackles in '06.
Archuleta alone had 60 tackles last season.

EDGE: BEARS

Punters:

Brad Maynard vs. Dustin Colquitt

Colquitt had a 44.3 punt avg. last season. Maynard's avg. was 44.2.

EDGE: EVEN

Kickers:

Robbie Gould vs. Justin Medlock

Medlock is a rookie. Gould made the pro bowl last season.

EDGE: BEARS

Kick/Punt returners:

Danieal Manning, Devin Hester vs. Jeff Webb, Eddie Drummond
Webb and Drummond are both decent returners but neither of them have the same impact as Hester.

EDGE: BEARS

KEYS TO VICTORY:

- Pass more, run less

The Bears gave Benson his shot and he did ok. The Bears need to throw the deep ball. They'll get more yards and score more points. Grossman should throw to Hester or Berrian. Law and Sustain are not as young as they used to be and might have lost a step. This Chiefs defense should be much easier than the Chargers defense

- Protect the football

Turnovers are the reason why the Bears lost last week and if they do it again this week, they could easily lose the Chiefs. If you don't think so, think back to last year with the 2 games against Miami and Green Bay on New Year's Eve. There are no guaranteed wins. I'm not saying be conservative. The last thing the Bears want is a defensive struggle like last week. Benson has to handle the ball with 2 hands, Berrian has to run his routes, and Grossman has got to make smart decisions. The Bears can be aggressive and still be able to not turn the ball over.

- O-line has to protect Rex

Grossman struggled last week because he was getting pressured. If Grossman has time in the pocket, he'll have a great game.....I guarantee it.

- Force turnovers

Even though the offense should do their job, it would be great if the Bears get a bunch of takeaways. The Bears offense does a lot better starting from the OPP. 45 yard line instead of their own 20 yard line.

- Get Hester involved

The Chiefs secondary seems mediocre at best. The punter won't kick it to Hester, so Grossman has got to find a way to get him the ball on offense.

Week 1: Bears at Chargers

2007-09-11T12:23:00.000-05:00

Chargers 14
Bears 3

Good:

Mike Brown had 2 takeaways: an interception and a fumble recovery.

Adewale Ogunleye, Mark Anderson, and Nathan Vasher had sacks.

Tommie Harris forced a fumble.

The Bears Defense held LaDainian Tomlinson to 25 yards rushing.

Bad:

Four turnovers (Grossman INT, McGowan fumble, Benson fumble, Peterson fumble)

Cedric Benson had only 42 rushing yards.

Why the Bears lost:

Turnovers is why the Bears lost. The Chargers got all their points of turnovers. If the Bears were to protect the football better then they could of won. The punt that bounced off Brandon McGowan is what really lost the momentum and the game for the Bears.

Preseason Week 4: Chicago Bears vs. Cleveland Browns

2007-08-31T10:31:00.000-05:00

Browns 19 Bears 9

The Good:

Bears QB Chris Leak was impressive. Leak was 11-16 for 88 yards and one touchdown. Too bad there is no room for him on this Bears team.
Bears RB Garrett Wolfe was outstanding. He only average 1.8 yards per carry rushing the ball, but he caught 6 passes for 53 yards and he made a couple defensive players completely miss him when trying to tackle Wolfe.
Bears WR Mike Hass made only one catch but it was a great touchdown grab that is being called the Bears' catch of the preseason.
Bears WR David Ball is unlikely to make the cut but he had a solid game. Ball had 4 catches for 40 yards including an amazing one-handed catch in the end zone, but unfortunately Ball landed out of bounds and the catch was ruled incomplete. Hass scored on the next play.
After being down 19-3 at halftime, the defense prevented the Browns from scoring any more points.
Bears rookie CB Trumaine McBride led the Bears with 8 tackles.

The Bad:

Bears QB Brian Griese was only 1-3 for 12 yards in limited action, but what disappointed me the most was that he had WR Mark Bradley open twice and he overthrew him both times.
The Bears special teams allowed 9 points. Bears safety and kick returner Danieal Manning fumbled a kick-off out of bounds in the Bears end zone for a safety. Browns' punt returner Josh Cribbs returned a punt 70 yards for a touchdown.

Why the Bears lost:

The Browns made fewer mistakes than the Bears and that is one of the big reasons the Browns won. The Bears can't be allowing safeties and punt returns for touchdowns. Plays like that lose games. The Bears also hurt themselves by making 3 mistakes on offense that cost them at least a field goal:

Bears QB Kyle Orton had the Bears at the Browns' 44 yard line when he threw an interception on 1st down. 14 more yards and they would have been in Bears kicker Robbie Gould's field goal range.
Leak had the Bears at the Browns' 23 yard line and was then sacked for -12 yards. Gould's 53 yard field goal attempt on the next play was no good.
Leak had the Bears at the Browns' 36 yard line and it was 1st down. Leak's next pass was intercepted.

What hurt the Bears was special teams mistakes and drive killing plays on offense. Also, Browns punter Dave Zastudil did a great job at punting the ball inside the Bears' 10 yard line making it hard to score.

Kobe to the Bulls?

2007-06-17T11:17:00.001-05:00

Many News sites have said that L.A. Lakers superstar Kobe Bryant is demanding a trade and the Chicago Bulls are a possible destination.

Excerpt from Msnbc.com's article about Kobe:

Just weeks after announcing on a sports radio show of being "frustrated" and expressing a desire to be traded from the Lakers only to later back off after talking to coach Phil Jackson, Bryant met with Lakers owner Jerry Buss on Friday in Barcelona and reiterated his trade demand, the Los Angeles Times and Press Enterprise (Riverside, Calif.) reported.

Bryant is the only NBA player with a no-trade clause in his contract. He had said he would waive that clause. But he could make a trade more difficult because he has a three-team wish list, the Press Enterprise reported Friday. Two of the teams are the Chicago Bulls and New York Knicks.

One report had the Lakers hoping to acquire Bulls center Ben Wallace, Ben Gordon, Luol Deng and Chicago's No. 1 draft pick (9) for Bryant.

But the sources said every team, including the Bulls, knows the Lakers will try to "gut" a team in order to get as much value as possible for Bryant.

Bryant could also veto a trade if he thinks the team has to give up too many players, which, the sources said, could also make a trade more difficult.

For a team to acquire Bryant, it cannot swap one or more players exceeding 125 percent of his $19,490,625 million salary he'll earn this season.

Chicago Cubs Week-in-Review: April 9-15

2007-04-16T08:44:00.001-05:00

Cubs weekly record: 1-4
4/9 vs. Houston Astros L 3-5
4/10 vs. Houston Astros L 2-4
4/11 vs. Houston Astros Postponed (expected to be made up on July 12)
4/13 vs. Cincinnati Reds L 5-6
4/14 vs. Cincinnati Reds W 7-0
4/15 vs. Cincinnati Reds L 0-1

Cubs overall record: 4-7 (6th in NL Central)

Notable Season Stats (as of Monday April 16):

Derrek Lee: .372 AVG 6 R 5 2B 8 RBI
Aramis Ramirez: .406 AVG 5 R 1 2B 1 HR 5 RBI
Alfonso Soriano: .234 AVG 5 R 6 2B 1 RBI
Cliff Floyd: .276 AVG 29 AB 4 R 2 2B 2 RBI

Rich Hill: 2 GS 2-0 0.64 ERA 14 IP 4 BB 11 K
Ted Lilly: 3 GS 1-1 2.37 ERA 19 IP 3 BB 24 K
Carlos Zambrano: 3 GS 1-2 7.88 ERA 16 IP 11 BB 10 K
Ryan Dempster: 5 GP 0-0 0.00 ERA 2 SV 5.0 IP 1 BB 8 K

Player of the Week: Rich Hill
1 GS 7 IP 3 H 0 ER 4 BB 5 K

Important Fact of the Week: Cubs are 1-4 at home this season.

Lou Piniella

It was only the 2nd week of the season and Lou is already losing his temper.

Postgame comments by Cubs manager Lou Piniella after the Cubs blew a five run lead and ended up losing 6-5 to the Cincinnati Reds on Friday April 13:

-"This guy (Zambrano) is your ace, you got a 5-0 lead with the eighth and ninth hitters coming up, you feel pretty good about that inning and all of a sudden it turns into a six-run inning."

- "What do I do? I pitch him when it's his turn again. What else can I do?"

-"And then I bring in the reliever (Will Ohman) who's throwing 30-to-40-foot curveballs to boot. I can see. I can start to see some of the ways this team has lost ballgames. I can see it. We've got to correct it obviously. ... This game here is one that got away from us that really shouldn't."

-When asked what's not working:
"What the hell do you think isn't working? You see the damn game."

If Lou is going to be this upset in April, how will he act in July?

Carlos Zambrano

Carlos Zambrano has been struggling. Zambrano has allowed 17 hits and 14 earned runs in 16 innings. Zambrano's WHIP (walks plus hits per inning) is 1.75, which higher than the Cubs' WHIP average of 1.14. Zambrano struggled in April last season.

Zambrano in April 2006:
6 GS 0-2 5.35 ERA 33.2 IP 33 H 20 ER 25 BB 38 K 1.72 WHIP

Hopefully he will improve later in the season.

Rich Hill

Zambrano is still the ace of the Cubs, but not by much. Rich Hill has been pitching great and has a 0.64 ERA after two starts. Hill has a chance at making the NL All-Star team and I predict that he will win at least 16 games this season.

Cubs Lack of Offense

So far the offense has been disappointing. This is an offense that could potentially have three players hitting 40+ home runs this year. The Cubs have scored three runs or less in 5 of their 11 games and have scored four runs or less in 7 of their 11 games. The Cubs lack of hitting is one of the main reasons the Cubs are 4-7.

Chicago Cubs week-in-review: April 2-8

2007-04-05T11:20:00.001-05:00

Cubs weekly record:
4/2 L 1-5 @ Cincinnati Reds Box Score
4/4 W 4-1 @ Cincinnati Reds Box Score
4/5 L 2-5 @ Cincinnati Reds Box Score
4/6 W 9-3 @ Milwaukee Brewers Box Score
4/7 W 6-3 @ Milwaukee Brewers Box Score
4/8 L 4-9 @ Milwaukee Brewers Box Score

Cubs overal record: 3-3 (tied for 3rd in the NL central)

Notable Season Stats at the end of the week:

Derrek Lee: .440 AVG 4 R 3 2B 3 RBI
Aramis Ramirez: .440 AVG 4 R 1 HR 4 RBI
Mark DeRosa: .333 AVG 7 R 2 HR 6 RBI
Alfonso Soriano: .214 AVG 2 R 4 2B
Michael Barrett: .158 AVG 1 R 3 RBI

Carlos Zambrano: 1-1 6.00 ERA 12 IP 8 K
Ted Lilly: 1-0 1.29 ERA 7 IP 9 K
Jason Marquis: 0-0 1.50 ERA 6 IP 1 K
Rich Hill: 1-0 1.29 ERA 7 IP 6 K
Wade Miller: 0-1 13.50 ERA 4 IP 0 K
Scott Eyre: 0-0 22.50 ERA 2 GP 2 IP 3 K
Ryan Dempster: 0-0 0.00 ERA 2 GP 2 IP 3 K

Player of the Week: Aramis Ramirez

Important Fact of the Week: Cubs are 3-1 when scoring 4 or more runs

The Cubs started the season with a record of 1-2 after the Cubs' offense only scored seven runs in the first three games. The Cubs had a good shot at winning two out of three against the Reds in the final game of the series, but Bob Howry blew a 2-1 lead in the 7th and Reds eventually won 5-2. Against the Brewers, the Cubs' offense did better and averaged 6.33 runs per game during the three game series. After winning the first two games, Wade Miller had a bad game in the final game of the series allowing six runs in only four innings and the Brewers won 9-4 on Easter Sunday.

Player Notes:

Carlos Zambrano

Zambrano has shown that he can't pitch well on opening day:

Opening Day 2007: 5 IP 6 H 5 ER 5 BB 2 SO 2 HR
Opening Day 2006: 4.2 IP 7 H 5 ER 5 BB 5 SO 2 HR
Opening Day 2005: 4.2 IP 7 H 3 ER 4 BB 8 SO 1 HR

Could it be a fluke that Zambrano pitches bad on opening day? Maybe. However, I think he gets too excited on opening day. It is probably hard to be the first pitcher of the first game of the season. If Zambrano struggles during opening day, how will he do in the playoffs?

Zambrano in the 2003 playoffs:

2 GS 0-1 5.40 ERA 16.7 IP 5 BB 12 SO

Those aren't great stats. If the Cubs reach game 7 of the world series, they might have to consider maybe having someone other than Zambrano start.

Ted Lilly

Great game for Lilly during the Cubs 4-1 win over the Reds on April 4th:

(W) 7 IP 3 H 1 ER 1 BB 9 SO

This is why the Cubs got him and I hope he can be a 15 game winner with a sub-4 ERA.

Rich Hill

In the first five innings of Hill's first start on April 6th, Hill allowed no hits and no walks. Hill pitched seven innings, allowed just one hit which was a home run ending his bid for a perfect game and a shutout, and walked zero batters. If Hill can keep it up, he has a chance at being a NL All-Star this year.

Mark DeRosa

I was hoping he would be good but I didn't expect him to be leading the Cubs in home runs after the first week of the season. So far, he is hitting better than Alfonso Soriano. DeRosa ranks 1st on the Cubs in home runs and RBIs and rank 3rd on the Cubs in batting average. I don't expect him to hit 40 home runs, but he is off to a great start.

What will the Bulls' seed be when the playoffs start?

2007-03-15T09:57:00.000-05:00

The Bulls are currently the 5th seed, but I think they could be higher than that once the playoffs start. I decided to predict the records of the teams who the Bulls are either going to have to pass or have to stay in front of.

NOTE: I have not included the Toronto Raptors, who are currently the #4 seed. After looking at their remaining schedule, I don't think they will win as many games as the Bulls so it would be meaningless to try to predict their record. The reason the Raptors are #4 even though the Bulls are better is because they are leading their division and the Bulls are not. Division leaders are guaranteed a top 4 seed. I think the Raptors will win their division, so if the Bulls can not finish better than the Detroit Pistons and the Cleveland Cavaliers the Bulls will have a lower seed than the Raptors.

Detriot Pistons: Currently 41-22

Mar 16 at Phoenix- L
Mar 18 vs Dallas- L
Mar 20 vs Philadelphia- W (42)
Mar 22 at Houston- L
Mar 23 at San Antonio- L
Mar 25 at Milwaukee- W (43)
Mar 26 vs Denver- W (44)
Mar 29 at Chicago- L
Mar 30 vs New Jersey- W (45)
Apr 1 vs Miami- W (46)
Apr 3 at Indiana- W (47)
Apr 4 vs Chicago- L
Apr 8 vs Cleveland- W (48)
Apr 9 at New York- W (49)
Apr 11 vs Orlando- W (50)
Apr 13 at Toronto- W (51)
Apr 15 vs Philadelphia- W (52)
Apr 17 vs Toronto- W (53)
Apr 18 at Boston- W (54)

Predicted Record: 54-28

Cleveland Cavaliers: Currently 40-25

Mar 17 vs Utah- L
Mar 20 at Charlotte- W (41)
Mar 21 vs Dallas- L
Mar 23 vs New York- W (42)
Mar 25 vs Denver- W (43)
Mar 27 at Indiana- W (44)
Mar 28 at New York- W (45)
Mar 31 at Chicago- L
Apr 1 at Boston- W (46)
Apr 3 at Minnesota- W (47)
Apr 5 vs Miami- W (48)
Apr 6 at Washington- L
Apr 8 at Detroit- L
Apr 12 vs New Jersey- W (49)
Apr 14 vs Atlanta- W (50)
Apr 17 at Philadelphia- W (51)
Apr 18 vs Milwaukee- W (52)

Predicted Record: 52-30

Washington Wizards: Currently 35-28

Mar 17 vs New Orl/OKC- W (36)
Mar 20 at Portland- W (37)
Mar 21 at Seattle- W (38)
Mar 23 at Golden State- W (39)
Mar 24 at LA Clippers- W (40)
Mar 26 at Utah- L
Mar 28 vs Philadelphia- W (41)
Mar 30 vs Toronto- L
Apr 1 at Milwaukee- W (42)
Apr 3 at Charlotte- W (43)
Apr 4 vs Charlotte- W (44)
Apr 6 vs Cleveland- W (45)
Apr 7 at New Jersey- W (46)
Apr 10 vs New Jersey- W (47)
Apr 11 at Miami- L
Apr 13 at Atlanta- W (48)
Apr 15 vs Chicago- W (49)
Apr 17 vs Orlando- W (50)
Apr 18 at Indiana- W (51)

Predicted Record: 51-31

Chicago Bulls: Currently 39-28

Mar 17 at Memphis- W (40)
Mar 20 vs LA Clippers- W (41)
Mar 22 vs Denver- W (42)
Mar 25 at Indiana- W (43)
Mar 26 vs Portland- W (44)
Mar 29 vs Detroit- W (45)
Mar 31 vs Cleveland- W (46)
Apr 1 at Atlanta- W (47)
Apr 4 at Detroit- W (48)
Apr 6 vs New Jersey- W (49)
Apr 8 at Toronto- W (50)
Apr 10 vs New York- W (51)
Apr 13 vs Charlotte- W (52)
Apr 15 at Washington- L
Apr 18 at New Jersey- W (53)

Predicted Record: 53-29

Miami Heat: Currently 34-29

Mar 15 at New Jersey- W (35)
Mar 16 vs Sacramento- W (36)
Mar 18 vs Orlando- W (37)
Mar 21 at Atlanta- W (38)
Mar 23 at Indiana- W (39)
Mar 24 vs Philadelphia- W (40)
Mar 26 vs Atlanta- W (41)
Mar 28 at Toronto- L
Mar 30 at Minnesota- W (42)
Apr 1 at Detroit- L
Apr 3 vs Toronto- W (43)
Apr 5 at Cleveland- L
Apr 6 at Boston- W (44)
Apr 8 vs Charlotte- W (45)
Apr 10 at Charlotte- W (46)
Apr 11 vs Washington- W (47)
Apr 13 vs Indiana- W (48)
Apr 16 vs Boston- W (49)
Apr 18 at Orlando- W (50)

Predicted Record: 50-32

Here is my predicted playoff seeding:

1. Pistons 54-28
2. Bulls 53-27
3. Wizards 51-31
4. Raptors
5. Cavaliers 52-30
6. Heat 50-32

I have the Bulls getting the 2nd seed in the playoffs. I offer no guaranttees. It is very likely that each team will have 1-2 less wins than my predictions. There are many games each team could very easily lose, but I have picked the wins based on games they should win. For example, it can be argued that the Cleveland Cavaliers could beat the Washington Wizards on April 6. However, because the game is in Washington, I said that the Wizards would win. Now, you may notice that I have the Bulls beating the Pistons in Detroit. I picked the Bulls to win because the Bulls beat the Pistons by 17 points in their 1st meeting and then lost by 2 in Detroit after leading by as many as 16 points. I think the Bulls should beat the Pistons, because I don't think Detroit is better than the Bulls and I don't see any reason for me to believe that the Bulls will lose. I hate making predictions because I'm not always right. We'll see how close (or far away) I was at the end of the season.

Is 50 wins still realistic for the Bulls?

2007-03-15T09:42:00.001-05:00

A while ago, I made my predictions on how many more games the Bulls would win. The Bulls have 39 wins, so they are still 11 wins short of 50 wins.

Here is how I did so far with my prediction (actual result in parentheses):

Feb 20 vs Atlanta- W (W)
Feb 22 at Cleveland- L (W)
Feb 23 vs Washington- W (W)
Feb 25 at Detroit- L (L)
Feb 26 vs Orlando- W (L)
Feb 28 vs Golden State- W (W)
Mar 2 vs New Orl/OKC- W (W)
Mar 4 at Milwaukee- W (W)
Mar 7 at Miami- L (L)
Mar 8 at Orlando- W (W)
Mar 11 at Boston- W (W)
Mar 13 vs Boston- W (W)
Mar 14 at Philadelphia- W (W)
Mar 17 at Memphis- W (?) (40)
Mar 20 vs LA Clippers- W (?) (41)
Mar 22 vs Denver- L (?)
Mar 25 at Indiana- W (?) (42)
Mar 26 vs Portland- W (?) (43)
Mar 29 vs Detroit- W (?) (44)
Mar 31 vs Cleveland- W (?) (45)
Apr 1 at Atlanta- W (?) (46)
Apr 4 at Detroit- L (?)
Apr 6 vs New Jersey- W (?) (47)
Apr 8 at Toronto- L (?)
Apr 10 vs New York- W (?) (48)
Apr 13 vs Charlotte- W (?) (49)
Apr 15 at Washington- L (?)
Apr 18 at New Jersey- W (?)(50)

I still have the Bulls winning 50 games. I want to make changes to my current predictions. I have decided to change my predicted losses to Denver, Detroit away, and Toronto away into wins. That would have the Bulls finishing the season with 53 wins.

Chicago Cubs questions (and possible answers) entering the season

2007-02-27T09:38:00.000-06:00

If the Cubs want to be playoff contenders, they have many questions that need to be answered:

Pitching Questions:

#1. Will Mark Prior/Wade Miller be and stay healthy?
#2. Will Rich Hill avoid the sophomore slump and pitch as well as he did last year?
#3. Will pitching in different league turn Ted Lilly into an all-star pitcher (or at least a productive middle of the rotation pitcher)?
#4. Can Jason Marquis bounce back after having the worst season in his career?
#5. Will Ryan Dempster be the closer this year and have a ERA below four?
#6. Can Kerry Wood be effective again and stay healthy?

Hitting Questions:

#1. Can Cesar Izturis provide offense (like he did in 2004) as well as defense?
#2. Can Derrek Lee hit 45+ home runs (like he did in 2005) after he missed 100+ games last year?
#3. Will Alfonso Soriano provide great numbers again, or will the pressure of being the top player on a playoff contender cause him to have a disappointing year?

The Big Question:

Can the Cubs make it to the playoffs?

While I can't answer the questions now, here are the positive and negative answers to my questions:

I'll start with the negative answers:

Pitching answers (negative):

#1. Prior and Miller miss a lot of the season. Prior makes 12 starts and Miller has to pitch out of the bullpen after a long stay on the disabled list.
#2. The batters adjust to Hill after seeing him more and Hill has a disappointing year: 9-16, 4.87 ERA
#3. A new league doesn't produce new results for Lilly: 10-14, 4.45 ERA
#4. Marquis doesn't fix his problems and has another bad season: 8-17, 5.98 ERA
#5. Dempster loses his job as closer after failing to record saves early in the season: 4+ blown saves, 4.67 ERA
#6. Wood is unable to pitch frequently due to arm problems. Wood makes 13 appearances out of the bullpen.

Hitting answers (negative):

#1. Izturis struggles to produce offensively: .205 batting average, .245 on-base percentage
#2. Lee stats are not as good as they were in 2005: 28 home runs, .275 AVG
#3. Soriano has a good season but not as great as everyone was hoping for: 31 HR, 73 RBI, .262 AVG, .323 OBP

Negative answer to The Big Question:

Cubs finish 82-80, 3rd place in the NL central. No playoffs appearance for the Cubs in 2007.

And here are the positive answers:

Pitching questions (positive):

#1. Prior and Miller are healthy most of the season: Prior 15-8, 3.35 ERA; Miller 11-13, 4.12 ERA.
#2. Hill has an even better season than last year: 16-9, 3.34 ERA
#3. Lilly has the best season of his career because he no longer has to face good hitting AL teams: 17-11, 3.41 ERA
#4. Marquis rebounds nicely from his horrible 2006 season: 15-9, 3.81 ERA
#5. Dempster improves from last year's bad season: 35 saves, 3.12 ERA
#6. Wood is healthy and ends up being a key member of the Cubs bullpen: 73 GP, 3.24 ERA

Hitting answers (positive):

#1 Izturis hits pretty good for a #8 hitter: .282 AVG, .325 OBP
#2. Lee proves that he is 100% healthy: 41 HR, 113 RBI, .321 AVG
#3. Soriano shows that his 2006 season was no fluke: 48 HR, 102 RBI, 43 SB, .287 AVG

Positive answer to The Big Question:

Cubs win 95 games and finish 1st in the NL Central. Cubs make it to the playoffs.

My answers are just guesses and it is too early for my questions to be answer. I am hoping for the positive answers to happen, but I am worried that some or most of the negative answers will happen. The only way to find out is to watch the entire 2007 baseball season.

Bulls may trade for Abdur-Rahim, Wells

2007-02-22T09:35:00.000-06:00

According to the Chicago Tribune, the Bulls are unlikely to acquire Memphis Grizzlies forward Pau Gasol, but might trade for Sacramento Kings forward Shareef Abdur-Rahim or Houston Rockets guard Bonzi Wells.

Here is an excerpt from today's article in the Tribune titled "Bulls have eyes for Abdur-Rahim, Wells":

Kings forward Shareef Abdur-Rahim is the most prominently mentioned possibility in the latter scenario, though a late rumor Wednesday had the Bulls trying to pry Bonzi Wells from the Rockets.

A Bulls team source said Paxson wasn't optimistic but had to wait until Thursday to see if Grizzlies general manager Jerry West would lower his asking price for Gasol. That chance has been rejected categorically in public comments from West and Grizzlies owner Michael Heisley.

Paxson is active, though, and said to want a deal with his team underachieving in the winnable Eastern Conference.

P.J. Brown's expiring $8.6 million salary has drawn considerable interest, but the Bulls are keeping him in case the Gasol talks change direction Thursday. Neither team expects that to happen.

The Bulls also have the expiring deals of Michael Sweetney and Malik Allen, which could be used in a deal with the Kings. Abdur-Rahim has three years and $18.6 million left on his deal.

Wells is a post-up guard about whom coach Scott Skiles has talked favorably in the past. Off the court, Wells has been cited for criminal trespass while with the Trail Blazers and had several run-ins with coaches, including being deactivated earlier this season by Jeff Van Gundy for a lack of conditioning.

Those character issues would seem to run counter to the philosophy of an organization that has sent Tim Thomas home and J.R. Smith to the Nuggets for lesser transgressions.

Wells' $2.1 million salary is a matchable trade with Sweetney's $2.7 million deal.

Skiles met with Paxson on Wednesday morning before the team departed for Cleveland.

"As coaches, even though I know more than the average person, I still have to operate under the assumption that this is the team we're going to [have] the rest of the season," Skiles said. "If you don't do that, you're making a mistake."

Sam Smith wrote what he thinks Bulls chances are of getting either Abdur-Rahim or Wells in his column today:

The talk is that the Kings want to come out of the deal with a young player, a draft pick and salary-cap relief. They don't have all those assets, which could open the way for the Bulls to end up with Shareef Abdur-Rahim.

Wells is a post-up guard who is on the outs with the Rockets and again exhibiting unreliable behavior. His contract status, though, is favorable. He has an opt-out after this season he says he will use, and he had a great finish for the Kings last season.

Wells inexplicably rejected an offer of about $30 million to re-sign, and Wells was left to take just $2 million from the Rockets. There's a good chance he would be motivated for two months to get a new contract and could be a weapon for a team like the Bulls if they don't make a major deal. Still, the Bulls have a history of avoiding potentially difficult players such as Wells.

For two months, the Bulls probably could put up with a character. Perhaps Houston would accept salary-cap relief and a second-round pick.

I don't really want either trade to happen. Most likely the Bulls might have to trade one of their young stars: Ben Gordon, Kirk Hinrich, Chris Duhon, Luol Deng, or Andres Nocioni. Unless the Bulls can get a trade done without including those five players, I say let the trade deadline pass and stick with the players the Bulls have now. The Bulls are already a good team and my fear is that a trade could make them worse, not better.

Who's better: 2003 Cubs or 2007 Cubs

2007-02-21T10:16:00.000-06:00

A good way to see if the 2007 Chicago Cubs are going to make the playoffs is to compare them to the most recent successful Cubs team. The 2003 Cubs not only made the playoffs, but they also were one win away from reaching the World Series. I decided to compare the two teams. Instead of comparing the entire team, I compared the starting line-ups and the starting rotations of both teams. I do think the bench and the bullpen are important, but a team's starters play the majority of the game (and I didn't have the time of effort to go into a huge comparison).

NOTE: The offensive starters and starting rotations I will use for the 2003 Cubs will be from the roster they had going into the playoffs. The players the Cubs acquired during the season (Kenny Lofton, Aramis Ramirez, and Randall Simon, etc) helped the Cubs get into the playoffs and into the NLCS. For the 2007 Cubs, I will create the starting line-ups and rotations using the depth chart on http://www.cubs.com/ that way I'm using an expert opinion to determine who the starters might be instead of using my opinion which will most likely end up being wrong. Stats of 2007 team are from the 2006 season.

Offensive Starters
-------------------
1st base:

Randall Simon 16 HR 72 RBI .276/.309/.434 410 AB

vs.

Derrek Lee 8 HR 30 RBI .286/.368/.474 175 AB

2nd base:

Mark Grudzielanek 3 HR 38 RBI .314/.366/.416 481 AB

vs.

Mark DeRosa 13 HR 74 RBI .296/.357/.456 520 AB

Shortstop:

Alex Gonzalez 20 HR 59 RBI .228/.295/.409 536 AB

vs.

Cezar Izturis 1 HR 18 RBI .245/.295/.318 192 AB

3rd base:

Aramis Ramirez ('03) 27 HR 106 RBI .272/.324/.465 607 AB

vs.

Aramis Ramirez ('07) 38 HR 119 RBI .291/.352/.561 594 AB

LF:

Moises Alou 22 HR 91 RBI .280/.357/.462 565 AB

vs.

Matt Murton 13 HR 62 RBI .297/.365/.444 455 AB

or

Cliff Floyd 11 HR 44 RBI .244/.324/.407 332 AB

CF.

Kenny Lofton 12 HR 46 RBI .296/.352/.450 547 AB

vs.

Alfonso Soriano 46 HR 95 RBI .277/.351/.560 647 AB

RF:

Sammy Sosa 40 HR 103 RBI .279/.358/.553 517 AB

vs.

Jacque Jones 27 HR 81 RBI .285/.334/.499 533 AB

C:

Damian Miller 9 HR 36 RBI .233/.310/.369 352 AB

vs.

Michael Barrett 16 HR 53 RBI .307/.368/.517 375 AB

Comments on the offensive starters:

It seems like the '07 team has a better offensive infield. Although Simon posted higher HR and RBI totals, notice that Lee had over 200 fewer AB. Also, Lee's AVG, OBP, and SLG are higher than Simon's. The only edge the '03 team has on the infield is Gonzalez over Izturis. Although Izturis has the higher average, Gonzalez has a better SLG and has the same OBP Izturis has. Also, DeRosa may have more power, but I think Grudzielanek may be the better hitter because he has a higher AVG and OBP. I'll say there is no edge between the two second basemen.

I have to say that the '03 team has a better hitting outfield. Soriano does have the best stats, but Alou, Sosa, and Lofton (who by the way has a better AVG and OBP than Soriano) are a better offensive group than the '07 outfield led by Soriano. Although Jones and Murton posted good numbers in '06, can they do it again in '07? I'm also worried about Floyd who had the fewest AB of the outfielders that were listed.

A big plus goes to the '07 team for having a good offensive catcher. Most teams' catchers are bottom of the order hitters, but Barrett is arguably one of the best hitting catchers in the National League. Barrett destroys Miller in AVG, OBP, and SLG and even had more AB than him.

Overall, I think the '07 team is a slightly better hitting team.
__________________________

Starting Rotation
------------------

#1:

Mark Prior ('03) 18-6 2.43 ERA 245 SO 211.3 IP

vs.

Carlos Zambrano ('07) 16-7 3.41 ERA 210 SO 214.0

#2:

Kerry Wood ('03) 14-11 3.20 ERA 266 SO 211.0 IP

vs.

Ted Lilly 15-13 4.31 ERA 160 SO 181.2 IP

#3:

Carlos Zambrano ('03) 13-11 3.11 ERA 168 SO 214.0 IP

vs.

Jason Marquis 14-16 6.02 ERA 96 SO 194.1 IP

#4:

Matt Clement 14-12 4.11 ERA 171 SO 201.7 IP

vs.

Rich Hill 6-7 4.17 ERA 77 SO 99.1 IP

#5:

Shawn Estes 8-11 5.73 ERA 103 SO 152.3 IP

vs.

Mark Prior ('07) 1-6 7.21 ERA 38 SO 43.2 IP

or

Wade Miller 0-2 4.57 ERA 20 SO 21.2 IP

Comments on the starting rotations:

Clearly the '03 team has the better starting rotation. However, the bottom of the rotation players on the '07 team could end up pitching their way into the upper half of the rotation. If healthy, Prior's stats could look more like '03 Prior and less like Estes. Hill's stats are average, but if he hadn't started the '06 season so bad, his ERA would be under four easily. I'm not sure if Miller will have a spot in the rotation, but he too could have a good season if healthy. Prior and Miller combined for 14 starts (nine for Prior and five for Miller) in 2006 so it is unfair to say that Clement and Estes were better pitchers than them just because they had better stats. I would like to see both Prior and Miller pitch 100+ innings in a season before trying to compare them to anyone.

The top half of the rotation is dominated by the '03 Cubs. Although Zambrano is a Cy Young candidate, it will be interesting to see if newcomers Lilly and Marquis are able to keep their ERA below five. Lilly is coming from the AL East that has teams like the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox, so I expect his ERA to be lower in 2007. Marquis is from the NL so he has less of an excuse than Lilly. Seeing that Marquis is in the same division this year as he was last year, I don't see Marquis improving as much as Lilly. The '03 team had Prior, Wood, and Zambrano at the top of the rotation and all three of them:
a.) had 14 or more wins
b.) had an ERA below 3.50
c.) pitched over 210 innings

Those achievements make them more impressive than the 2007's potential top three starting pitchers.

The '03 team had three potential #1 starters (Prior, Wood, and Zambrano) and Clement could have been easily a #2 or a #3 on another team. Overall, the '03 team had the better pitching and their pitching helped get them to the NLCS in 2003.
_______________________________

I am not going to make a prediction of who will end up being the better team. This is only a comparison. There is no way of telling whether the 2007 Cubs will finish first or last. No one knows who will get injured and who will be traded. The only way to find out is to wait until the end of the 2007 season.

Can the Bulls Win 50 Games?

2007-02-19T09:54:00.000-06:00

In today's Chicago Tribune, there is a short article titled "Bulls' 50-win goal seems like a stretch".

Here is an excerpt from that article:

Players are giving more voice to a quietly formed goal of 50 victories, even as it appears to be slipping away.

The Bulls must go 21-7 over their final games—14 at home, 14 on the road—to meet this goal, which seemed a foregone conclusion in the giddiness after signing Ben Wallace. The way the Bulls limped into the break, with five losses in six games, suggests the task will be tall.

Poor decision-making on offense, a recent lack of focus and intensity on defense and an injury to Andres Nocioni, whose participation Monday is questionable, has left more reasons for pessimism than optimism recently.

Still, hope exists.

"This is the time of year where we've started playing really well the last two years," coach Scott Skiles said. "We're close in a lot of games to playing really well. We've had our inconsistencies. We need to come out of the gate and play well after the break and try to build some momentum."

Indeed, the Bulls have closed the last two seasons by going 21-12 after the break in 2004-05 and 18-12 last season. But improvement is needed, especially in terms of consistency. Indeed, the Bulls seem to have one prolonged stretch of inconsistency and bad play each game, from which they don't recover.

K.C. Johnson, the author of the article, said that the Bulls must improve on bench play, the transition game, and energy levels.

I have listed the Bulls remaining games. The Tribune article said the Bulls must go 21-7 to reach 50 wins (they are currently 29-25). I am going to predict the outcome of each game and see what are the Bulls chances of winning 50 games.

Feb 20 vs Atlanta- W (30)
Feb 22 at Cleveland- L
Feb 23 vs Washington- W (31)
Feb 25 at Detroit- L
Feb 26 vs Orlando- W (32)
Feb 28 vs Golden State- W (33)
Mar 2 vs New Orl/OKC- W (34)
Mar 4 at Milwaukee- W (35)
Mar 7 at Miami- L
Mar 8 at Orlando- W (36)
Mar 11 at Boston- W (37)
Mar 13 vs Boston- W (38)
Mar 14 at Philadelphia- W (39)
Mar 17 at Memphis- W (40)
Mar 20 vs LA Clippers- W (41)
Mar 22 vs Denver- L
Mar 25 at Indiana- W (42)
Mar 26 vs Portland- W (43)
Mar 29 vs Detroit- W (44)
Mar 31 vs Cleveland- W (45)
Apr 1 at Atlanta- W (46)
Apr 4 at Detroit- L
Apr 6 vs New Jersey- W (47)
Apr 8 at Toronto- L
Apr 10 vs New York- W (48)
Apr 13 vs Charlotte- W (49)
Apr 15 at Washington- L
Apr 18 at New Jersey- W (50)

Surprisingly, I have the Bulls winning 50 games and finishing at a record of 50-32. The games I think the Bulls will win are games the Bulls will probably be the favorite to win. There is a good chance the Bulls will lose some of the games I have marked down as wins, but they could also win some of the games I have marked down as losses. I am not an NBA expert, so I can not guarantee that the Bulls will win 50 games. You are just going to have to watch the remaining games and find out.

Chicago Loses to Detriot in Shooting Stars Challenge

2007-02-17T20:08:00.001-06:00

The Chicago team, represented by Chicago Bulls' Ben Gordon, Chicago Sky's Candice Dupree and ex-Bull Scottie Pippen, lost tonight in the finals to the Detriot team during the Shooting Stars challenge. The Shooting Stars Contest was part of the All-Star festivities tonight in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Here is a brief summary of the contest from http://aol.nba.com/allstar2007/shooting_stars/:

Team Detroit won the 2007 Haier Shooting Stars challenge by default as team Chicago took its shots out of order in the final round on Saturday. The team of Bill Laimbeer, Chauncey Billups and Swin Cash had the second-best first-round time by finishing the six-shot course in 1:06 and then needed just 50.5 seconds to complete its final-round run. Chicago had the best first-round time (48.9 seconds), followed by Detroit, defending champion San Antonio (1:32) and Los Angeles (2:00).

Like the summary said, Detriot had a time of 50.5 seconds in the finals. Chicago was doing good and then Gordon shot when Dupree was supposed to shoot. Chicago finished with a better time, but after the officials looked at the replays, it was announced that Chicago was disqualified and Detriot was named the winner. I'll forgive Gordon since it was only an All-Star contest, but Pippen, who made what would have been the winning shot, and Dupree are probably mad at him for costing them a chance at winning the $15,000 prize to the winner that goes to each player.

Pippen Wants to Play for Heat

2007-02-17T10:54:00.002-06:00

Today's Chicago Tribune reported that the Miami Heat are the team Scottie Pippen would like to play for.

Here is an excerpt from Sam Smith's article in today's Tribune:

Pippen, never shy about stating his opinions and intentions, made it clear he'd love to play for the Miami Heat.

"I'm looking at teams like Miami, Cleveland, Dallas, San Antonio. I feel there are a few teams I could help," Pippen said.

Sitting at a nearby table later on, Kobe Bryant said he'd call Pippen and ask him to consider the Lakers.

"I'd like an opportunity to help a team contend for a championship," Pippen said. "I'd like to go play with Shaq. That would be the ideal place. He's probably the best in the game, he and Dwyane Wade. Teams in the East still are bunched up, but [the Pistons and the Heat] will be fighting it out in the Eastern finals."

Though O'Neal said he hadn't heard about any Pippen interest in Miami, Wade was excited.

"I'm already playing with [Gary] Payton and Shaq; Scottie and Michael are two guys I used to play with on video games," Wade said. "To add Scottie to the mix, that would be crazy. It would be a dream."

It seems like the Chicago Bulls are not one of the teams Pippen is looking at. He wants to play for a team that is a title contender and not a team that could be a first round exit in the playoffs. Pippen said, "I don't see anyone really a threat to them." The "them" is his quote was probably the Miami Heat. Pippen said, "the Bulls still are lacking that inside presence." The Heat, unlike the Bulls, do have an inside presence: Shaquille O'Neal. Although the Heat are currently the eight seed in the Eastern conference, Pippen probably thinks they are one key player away from being a serious contender and he is hoping he is that key player. However, just because he wants to play for the teams he mentioned doesn't mean they will sign him. The Bulls are probably still a possible destination for Pippen, but it is unlikely that the Bulls will be able to sign him if Miami, Cleveland, Dallas, or San Antonio offers him a contract. The Bulls and the rest of the NBA will get a good look at Pippen tonight when he participates in the "Shooting Stars" contest during the All-Star weekend festivities.

NBA was probably right for not picking Thomas, Sefolosha

2007-02-16T16:20:00.001-06:00

I was disappointed when I saw that Chicago Bulls rookies Tyrus Thomas and Thabo Sefolosha were not picked to be on the rookie team for tonight's Rookie Challenge All-Star game. I was even more upset for Tyrus because he was the fourth pick overall in last year's draft. Only nine players were selected to play for the rookie team, but I thought Thabo and Tyrus were good enough to be one of those nine players. I was wrong. Thabo and Tyrus were left off for a good reason. I checked the stats of the rookies playing in tonight's game and I compared them to Thabo and Tyrus's stats. Because they play on a playoff team, Thabo and Tyrus's minutes per game are lower than anyone on the rookie team. Therefore their stats aren't as good as the players selected to be on the rookie team. So, I decided to research everyone's stats per 48 minutes. Looking at their stats per 48 minutes would tell me how they would do had they played the entire 48 minutes of a basketball game. The problem with stats per game is that if a person scores four points in four minutes in a game, he would have only four points per game. However, he would have 48 points per 48 minutes. It is unfair to call someone better if he scored 23 points in 35 minutes and the other person scored 20 points in 20 minutes. The person with 20 points played 15 less minutes than the person with 23 points. So, by adjusting the stats to stats per 48 minutes, everyone had an equal opportunity.

Tryus is a forward so I compared him to the other rookie forwards and Thabo is a guard so I compared him to the other rookie guards.

NOTE: The following stats are all stats per 48 minutes. For example, points is points per 48 minutes, rebounds is rebounds per 48 minutes, etc. (* means on rookie team)

Forwards:
*Andrea Bargnani 21.5 points 7.0 rebounds 1.6 assists
*Paul Millsap 18.6 points 13.6 rebounds 1.9 assists
*Adam Morrison 19.2 points 4.8 rebounds 3.3 assists
*Jorge Garbajosa 14.3 points 8.6 rebounds 3.4 assists
Tyrus Thomas 16.2 points 12.9 rebounds 1.9 assists

I noticed that everyone had an edge on Tyrus except for Jorge Garbajosa. Therefore, at first I thought that Tryus should have been named to the team instead of Garbajosa. Also, Tyrus was the 4th pick overall in the draft and fans might have wanted to see him. The only reason I can think of why Tryus wasn't selected was because of the slam dunk contest. Tryus is scheduled to be in the Slam Dunk contest tommorow night. The NBA might have been worried about Tryus getting hurt in the Rookie Challenge and that he would not be able to play in the Slam Dunk contest. If Tryus did get hurt, it would be very difficult for the NBA to get a good replacement in time so the contest would remain competitive. I would rather see Tyrus play in the Slam Dunk contest so I think the NBA made the right decision in not selecting Tryus to play on the rookie team.

Guards:
*Jordan Farmer 15.4 points 4.8 rebounds 6.1 assists
*Randy Foye 20.4 points 6.1 rebounds 5.6 assists
*Rudy Gay 19.6 points 7.9 rebounds 2.1 assists
*Brandon Roy 21.8 points 5.9 rebounds 4.9 assists
*Marcus Williams 20.6 points 5.9 rebounds 8.7 assists

Thabo Sefolosha 13.5 points 8.0 rebounds 3.4 assists

This comparison was not as close as I thought it would be. Thabo may be the best rebounder of the bunch, but he is not as strong in the other categories. The five guards selected are statistically better than Thabo, so I agree with the NBA on not selecting Thabo to play on the rookie team.

One more thing to mention: Tyrus and Thabo are both among the top defensive rookies in the NBA this season. However, the Rookie Challenge is more of an entertainment game than a competitive game. The defense is usually weak on both teams. Despite the game being 40 minutes instead of 48 minutes, the Sophomores beat the Rookies by a score of 142-118 in the 2004 Rookie Challenge. The last time neither team reached 100 points was in 2000 when the Rookies won 92-81 in overtime.

Pippen may return to the NBA

2007-02-16T10:27:00.002-06:00

The Chicago Tribune reported today that former Chicago Bulls player Scottie Pippen is considering making a comeback to the NBA and he hopes to play for a playoff team.

Here is an excerpt from Sam Smith's article in today's Tribune:

Pippen, who turned 41 on Sept. 25, says he's in better condition and health than at any time in the last five years. And in the Eastern Conference, his veteran presence could change the balance of power and be a major influence in the playoffs. Or he might be the long-sought backup to relieve the pressure on the Suns' Steve Nash. The possibilities are intriguing.

"I'm thinking of trying to come back for the playoffs," Pippen said. "Something like the last two months of the season, somewhere I can come back and play limited minutes to start, play point forward for someone and build toward the playoffs. It's something I've been thinking about for the last three months."

"Being out of the game, my body feels great," Pippen said, adding that his body fat is at an all-time low 5 percent and he's at his top playing weight of about 220 pounds.

"Taking this break, it feels amazing. I'm looking at somewhere I could play maybe 15 minutes. I'm not trying to be a big-money guy or anything, [just trying to] get with a team I can help in the playoffs.

"My knee is good," Pippen said. "I've been working out regularly, doing drills. I see my body like guys like Kareem (Abdul-Jabbar, who played till he was 42) and Robert Parish (who played until just short of 44). My body is lanky and flexible like theirs. That gives me some hope I can do it.

"I'm moving good. I feel pretty fast and you don't forget the game. I watch and see so many young guys who don't know how to run a team and I feel I could help someone."

Sam Smith also writes, "[Pippen] didn't mention the Bulls as a possible destination, but he doesn't seem like a good fit with their surplus of guards and small forwards."

In Smith's article, he mentions that Pippen said his condition and health is better than at any time in the last five years. Five years ago, Pippen was in the middle the 2001-2002 season and was playing for the Portland Trail Blazers. That season he started in 60 games and averaged 10.6 points per game. Pippen also averaged 32.2 minutes per game which is more than the 17.9 minutes per game he averaged with the Bulls in the 2003-2004 season.

I think the Bulls should consider getting Pippen. If he is as healthy as he says he is, the Bulls should take a chance on him. The Bulls should schedule a workout for Pippen to see how heathly he is and if they think he is in good shape, then I think the Bulls should release Viktor Khryapa and sign Pippen. The Bulls should be one of the teams Pippen wants to play for and the Bulls are currently on track to be in the playoffs this year. Not only can Pippen be a leader with veteran experience, he can also maybe even contribute to the team which was something he didn't do as a Bull in the 2003-2004 season. The Bulls can get an early look at Pippen tommorow. According to Smith's article, Pippen will participate in the "Shooting Stars" contest tommorow night as part of the All-Star festivities. He will be joined by Bulls guard Ben Gordon and the Chicago Sky's Candice Dupree. Let's hope Bulls G.M. John Paxson will be watching.

Bulls Lose to Weak Eastern Team

2007-02-15T09:54:00.000-06:00

The Chicago Bulls can probably think of many excuses for losing 100-85 to the Charlotte Bobcats last night. It was the last game before the All-Star break. This was the second game in a row for the Bulls. According to an article at www.bulls.com, the Bulls didn't arrive in Charlotte until 3 a.m. because the snowstorm in Chicago delayed their flight. All of them would have been good reasons except for the fact the Bulls were facing the Bobcats who entered the game on a four-game losing streak with a record of 18-33. This was a game that the Bulls could of, should of won, but they didn't. On December 23rd, the Bulls crushed the Bobcats by a score of 115-76. It was the Bobcats worst loss in their three-year history according to www.bulls.com. It seemed likely that the Bulls would win again especially after leading 29-24 at the end of the first quarter. However, Gerald Wallace's three pointer at the buzzer gave the Bobcats a 49-45 lead going into halftime. A basket by Kirk Hinrich got the Bulls within three points with under nine minutes left in the third quarter, but that would be the closest the Bulls would get to getting the lead back. The Bobcats outscored the Bulls by 11 points in the second half. Ben Gordon led the Bulls with 20 points. Emeka Okafor of the Bobcats grabbed 21 rebounds and scored 15 points with six blocks. Wallace of the Bobcats had a game-high 32 points.

Here are the post-game quotes provided by www.bulls.com:

Quoting Bulls Head Coach Scott Skiles

On the loss:

“It was definitely an embarrassing effort, and an embarrassing loss. Right from the beginning we started slow. We hung in there for a while, but they just wore us down, and we weren’t able to get anything going. We're not playing like a high-level team. No reason to run from that, it's true.''

On Luol Deng:

“I thought he gave a great effort. We just didn’t provide any support at all. He was alone with Wallace, and didn’t get the help over there. Overall I think he gave a great effort.”

On Gerald Wallace and Matt Carroll:

“Our game plan against them was to get up on them to try and create turnovers, which we’ve been very good at. [We wanted] to get out on the open floor and disrupt their offense, and we just didn’t do those things. We were really soft on Felton and soft on the ball out in front. When they went into their high pick-and-roll game our traps were soft, and allowed them to split us a little bit. We were in a rotation game, and they made open shots.”

On the second quarter:

“Even though we were staying with them points-wise, we could tell from the bench we weren’t totally here tonight. That doesn’t mean you can’t go on and win the game. You know… its not we felt totally defeated. We felt like we could get something going, and somebody could spark us. At one point we were one for ten off the bench, so going to the bench wasn’t working. We just were not really able to find anyone to spark us.”

On missing Andrés Nocioni:

“We missed him for sure. I mean not only do we miss his shooting and his points, but there are also certain match-ups he can really exploit. When we go small, and he’s the four spot he can guard the fours, as well as get into his pick-and-pop game and make shots. So we definitely miss him. "

On Okafor’s effectiveness:

“There’s no question. He gave us problems all night long. I thought he was aggressive early. His rebounding was a big factor in getting in getting some easy hoops. Then there are his blocks. A blocked shot usually leads to an easy basket. He put up six tonight, and in the third when we seemed to be getting momentum he blocked a few.”

On getting the bench going:

“We knew when we put Ben Gordon in the starting line up that there was a risk of taking points away from our bench. Your putting a guy in the starting line up that, at the time we did it, who had just got 40 points off the bench a couple weeks before that. That’s why we put Andrés back there to get some points coming off the bench. Those are the points you miss off the bench. I mean guys on the bench are getting an opportunity. They need to seize that opportunity, and they’ve struggled with that so far. We’ve just got to do a better job off the bench, and find ways to be productive.”

Quoting Bulls Guard Chris Duhon

On his shooting:

“I’ve just been shooting with confidence and trying to take good shots. It’s been a normal movement for me, it’s never been a guess of whether or not I should or should not shoot this. It’s just been going in."

On the game:

“It is hard to explain. It is very disappointing. We know we are a better team than what we are displaying. We haven’t been able to play to a high level. Its like we coast and coast and we wait until we are down and then try to put out one last burst to win the game. We just need to do more than that to win.”

Quoting Bulls Guard Kirk Hinrich

On the game:

“It is definitely not a high point. We talked about getting some momentum going here before the break. We wanted to get a couple of games. But it just did not happen tonight.”

On the first half of the season and upcoming break:

“It was the complete opposite. I’m just disappointed. With the first half we had opportunities that we just missed. It is easy to think back about all of the opportunities we had to win games and we just didn’t take advantage of the situation so far. After the break we just have to come back and defend more consistently, get more consistent on offense and finish our games.”

Quoting Bulls Forward Luol Deng

On the game:

“It was tough. We didn’t play with a lot of energy. Maybe the trip had something to do with it, I don’t know. We really tried to find our offense and our defense wasn’t where it was supposed to be. We just didn’t give ourselves a chance to win the game.”

On the second half of the season:

“We are an energy team so the break is really going to be good for us. When we come we have to realize that we need to play with a lot of energy like we have done before.”

Quoting Bobcats Head Coach Bernie Bickerstaff

On the game:

“I thought the guys defended their shooters consistently and made them earn it. The Bulls are a very good basketball team. They execute well and put pressure on you. I thought it was a very consistent performance; we had 24 assists and 36 field goals. You have to go from strong to weak side against them.”

On Emeka Okafor:

“We told him he ended up with 21 rebounds, and he still thought that wasn’t enough. He had six blocks, and they were at critical times in the game. Other than his rookie year, the thing with Emeka is that he still has to learn how to play 82 games.”

On team efficiency:

“We were pretty good tonight. We did all the right things, all the hustle things, and we shared the ball. We moved the ball from strong to weak side, and that’s the only way you can play against Chicago.”

On going into the All-Star Break with a win:

“I think it’s good. Hopefully we can get healthy so that we can come back and get busy.”
On the first half of the season:“We’re probably a little ahead of schedule compared to last year. There were a couple games along the stretch I thought we could pick up. When you consider everything, I still take my hat off to the small group of guys who held us down on the road trip. We had other guys out, and we really could have been buried. Those guys stepped up, and kept us playing in Los Angeles and Denver. They saved the day for us.”

Quoting Bobcats Forward Gerald Wallace

On the game:

“(We played) the way we want to play every game, but especially right before the All-Star break. We’re coming off a little slump, so we came out and tried to be aggressive. We knew they played last night, and we remembered what they did to us in Chicago on our back-to-back.”

On Chicago playing the second game of a back-to-back:

“(They were tired), but they’re still a good team. We figured that we could run them and take them out of what they were doing. They’re primarily a jump-shooting team, so we knew that with them playing last night in a close game, their legs would eventually get tired and they would start missing. The thing about that was that we had to rebound. We knew we couldn’t give up rebounds, but we kept giving them second chances. Once we buckled down on that and got our offense going, they weren’t able to do what they wanted to do.”

On getting a win going into the All-Star break:

“It’s good to get momentum going into the second half of the season. We had lost four games in a row, so we didn’t want to go into the second half of the season on a five-game losing streak.”

On their play:

“They made me play one-on-one because they don’t like to rotate. They like to get up on you and press you, then rely on Ben Wallace to clean up the penetration. We got the ball swinging, found open looks, guys got drives to the basket on their close-outs and we had great rotation. We took them out of what they did and approached the game with more aggressiveness than they did tonight.”

On the second half of the season:

“We want to finish strong. We need to come out and make a playoff push. We may not make the playoffs this year, but (it would be nice) to make a push and have something to play for in April instead of playing just for pride like the last two years. (It would be nice) having a goal that we can try to reach for and accomplish.”

Quoting Bobcats Guard Raymond Felton

On getting a win before the All-Star break:

“It’s very important to go into the break with a bang so that when we come back, we come back on a positive note because we got a win. Then, we’ll try to come back from there and make the second half of the season a good one, try to make a run for the playoffs.”

On Emeka Okafor:

“That’s what Emeka (Okafor) does. I feel much more comfortable out there playing defense when I know I’ve got a big man down there that’s going to clean up like that. I can pressure like I want to, I can be physical like I want to, and I can reach, because I know if I make a mistake, he’s going to clean it up. It’s a lot of fun playing with him.”

On playing in the Rookie-Sophomore game in Las Vegas:

“I’m looking forward to going out there because it’s a wonderful experience. Our team and our players are getting some publicity. That means a lot to our team and to our fans. It’s going to be a lot of fun. Adam and I are going to represent the Charlotte Bobcats the way we’re supposed to. (Adam and I) are teammates, but when we’re out there, there’s going to be a lot of junk-talking. We’re going to have fun with it, and somebody’s going to get bragging rights.”

On the season so far:

“I’m not satisfied, but I’m happy with where the team is at right now. I see a bright future for us.”

Atlanta's Johnson picked over Gordon, Deng

2007-02-14T16:15:00.001-06:00

Chicago Bulls players Luol Deng and Ben Gordon were denied as a replacement player for injured Eastern All-Star Jason Kidd of the New Jersey Nets.

According to http://aol.nba.com/allstar2007/news/johnson_070214.html?rss=true:

Atlanta Hawks guard Joe Johnson has been named by NBA Commissioner David Stern to replace injured East All-Star Jason Kidd (back) of the New Jersey Nets on the Eastern Conference Roster for the 2007 NBA All-Star Game on Sunday, February 18 in Las Vegas.
Johnson, in his sixth NBA season, will be making his first NBA All-Star appearance.

Johnson not Deng or Gordon will
be playing for the East instead of
Jason Kidd during the All-Star
game.

Bulls comeback then lose in final seconds

2007-02-14T10:40:00.000-06:00

After being down by eight with under two minutes to go in the game, the Chicago Bulls took the lead and then lost two free throws later by a score of 112-111 to the Toronto Raptors. The Raptors led for most of the game and after Andrea Bargnani made both free throws to give Toronto a 110-98 lead with 4:04 to go, it seemed like the Bulls were on their way to a loss. However after getting within eight points, Chris Duhon hit two three pointers and Toronto's lead was down to two with 35 seconds left. The Bulls got the ball back when Toronto threw the ball out of bounds. With 21 seconds left, Ben Gordon drove to the lane, got fouled, and made the basket to tie the game at 110. Gordon would make the free throw giving the Bulls a one point lead. With 9 seconds left, T.J. Ford's shot was blocked by Tyrus Thomas. However, Chris Bosh of the Raptors came down with the rebound and was fouled by Thomas. Bosh made both free throws and Toronto went up 112-111. The Bulls had only 2.1 seconds left to try to win the game. The ball was inbounded to Gordon whose mid-range jumper at the buzzer fell short of the rim. Bosh led the Raptors with 25 points and 14 rebounds. Deng scored 30 points for the Bulls.

Here quotes after the game provided by http://www.bulls.com:

Quoting Bulls Head Coach Scott Skiles

“We were almost able to steal it. We just did not have enough at the end. They probably deserved to win. They outplayed us for 40 minutes. I thought we came out in the second half with a lot more energy and got back in the game. We just could not get over the hump. We got it close and they took it back up to five or eight. Not until the very end were we able to get it close. We fouled, they made two free throws and we missed the last shot."

On Gordon’s shot to win it, was there contact?

"A little bit, but not enough to call it there."

There was good ball movement early, but it looked like you were a step slow:

"We were more than a step slow. Their bigs are like ours. Bargnani is like a guard. He is very skilled. Garbajosa is skilled and so is Bosh. They can put the ball on the floor and shoot threes. We tried multiple pick and rolls coverages but we couldn't stop them. Not until we went with the zone late with the small line-up did we have any success at all."

On using 11 guys in the first quarter:

"It was clear from the first four or five possessions that we were a step slow. It is understandable. I'm not mad at anybody at that point. I'm just trying to find something to get going. We need to get a lift off our bench. We are not getting enough energy and the kind of play off our bench. It hurts that we do not have Chapu (Nocioni) coming in and we are not getting enough off the bench except Chris Duhon."

Is it a challenge to go with the small line-up?

"In the last two years it is something we have had to go to. We were hoping early in the season that it was not something we would have to go to. So many teams play small now. Our turnovers and ballhandling have been questionable lately so we like the three guards out there."

On the Tyrus block at the end and the defensive effort:

"We needed to get over quicker but I can't fault the effort of our guys in the last three minutes of the game. I like the fact that the call was made if it was a foul. There are too many times that the guys hold the whistle at that time of the game. The problem is that I don't know the secret of getting the call. Tonight they got it and I like that generally. I like if a guy shoots it with a second on the clock and he gets the foul call. I think it is inconsistent sometimes."

Quoting Bulls Guard Chris Duhon

"It was tough to come all the way back at the end and even get the lead. We just couldn't get the right play at the end. We got in late last night. Even with the day off, you still feel the effects of different time zones. With us knowing we have to leave right after and go right back on the road, that can be mentally tiring as well. We played pretty well tonight, we played well enough to win. We just didn't win."

Quoting Bulls Guard Ben Gordon

"We really didn't take control of the game like we should have in the first half. To get so close and lose, I'm a little disappointed."

Was there contact on your final shot?

"Absolutely. But we didn't get the call. I don't know why. I thought they got a lucky one at the other end. That's just how the game went."

Quoting Raptors Head Coach Sam Mitchell

"The Bulls are a good basketball team. They played hard. We had the lead with two minutes to go, up by ten, and they made shots and kept getting extra shots. I kept telling my team they are not going away."

What's different about this year's Raptors team?

"We're a better basketball team. I think the record says that. We have a lot of guys who can make plays. T.J. has won some games down the stretch, Garbo (Garbajosa), Bosh, Andrea, all the guys. We're just a better basketball team. Rasho and Jose had good games, we're just a better basketball team."

Quoting Raptors Guard Anthony Parker

Late in the game, how would you have played this any differently?

"I had a decent look in the corner, Mo (Peterson) had a decent look in the corner - if one of those three's goes in, that's the icing on the cake. So I don't know if I would change anything except, of course, the turnover. I just lost the ball. It came at a funny angle and I just lost the ball. I think we played decent defense. They hit some tough shots, that's why they're a good team. To come into Chicago, on their home court after the streak they've had, is a great feeling."

Bulls-Raptors Preview

2007-02-13T16:16:00.000-06:00

Bulls vs. Raptors
7:30 PM
United Center
Ch: Comcast Sports Net
Bulls by 5

Probable Starters

Chicago Bulls
C. Ben Wallace
PF. Tyrus Thomas
SF. Luol Deng
SG. Ben Gordon
PG. Kirk Hinrich

Toronto Raptors
C. Rasho Nesterovic
PF. Chris Bosh
SF. Jorge Garbajosa
SG. Anthony Parker
PG. T.J. Ford

Players to Watch

Chicago Bulls

Tyrus Thomas: Thomas had 9 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 blocks in the Bulls 116-103 win over the Phoenix Suns last Sunday night. Thomas could get the start tonight if P.J. Brown hasn't fully recovered from his sore back. Toronto is ranked 29th in the league in rebounding, so Thomas has a shot getting 10+ rebounds.

Toronto Raptors

Chris Bosh: Bosh is scoring 23.2 points per game along with 10.7 rebounds per game for the Raptors. On February 7th, Bosh scored 41 points in a Raptors 113-103 win over the Orlando Magic If Brown is out, Bosh will be defended by Thomas most of the night. Bosh could have a big night if Thomas struggles to guard Bosh. Bosh is also the bigger player. Bosh is listed at 6 foot 10 inches, 230 pounds and Thomas is 6 foot 9 inches, 215 pounds.

Notes
-The Bulls are 29-23, 3rd in the Central division. The Raptors are 27-24, 1st in the Atlantic division.
-The Bulls are 20-6 at home. The Raptors are 9-17 on the road.
-The Bulls have won 6 of their last 10 games. The Raptors have won 8 of their last 10 games.