Molto

oh god, I think a feature on the top 50 fans would be a hell of a lot harder than 50 prospects. there would be a ton of ties on this board.

please, don't credit me for that list, which I think was done pretty damn good, I didn't contribute to it at all. if I did, it would be a pretty bad list since I have very little knowledge on the minor leagues. we will be visting the minor leagues this season, which is when I'll sharpen my knowledge on the players. until then, I shouldn't be given credit or add my insight to this. credit goes to jason and cerb, who really busted their ass on this and put a s***load of effort in this.

criticism accepted jim. as I have always said, we always consider this a work in progress and are always looking at ways to get better.

well, not like we are really lucky by missing Dreifort as the guy is an average pitcher.

I agree, smart cub fans don't like Sosa. they see his downside, which is the inability to do anything when it really matters.

valentin isn't the answer at the top, he's simply getting into one of his hot streaks right now, which will last a few weeks before he goes back to his old self.

hmm, an inconsistent ray durham who was nothing more than an ideal leadoff hitter matched with a #3 hitter mentality, or D'Angelo Jimenez, who knows what it means to be a leadoff hitter and is actually consistent. only reason I would want Durham is because he would bring speed over Jimenez and his defense is slightly better. other than that, he wouldn't help us as he'd probably be in a slump like everyone else on this team. no idea how we could say we need Durham, like leadoff is the teams problems.

umm, usually when he struggles, he battles just enough to go 5-6 innings, giving up 4-5 runs. Not a good ERA, but he battled nonetheless. better than what Kip Wells used to do, which was 2-3 innings, 7 runs.

how much time? like he's pitche terrible. since he's come up, he's show progress every year, now this year, he's struggling a bit, but he's still pitching strong. he's a guy we are gonna end up trading, then when he does good, people are going to complain and ask why we traded him. Garland will be good, he has all the tools, he just needs to put it all together and get some consistency.

I shouldn't be taking what you say serious since you aren't too bright (a bit hypocricy mixed in with little knowledge), but your saying Garland is a fluke? first of all, he hasn't put up great enough numbers to be considered a fluke. second, he hasn't drifted too far away to warrant it. he's a good, 23-year-old pitcher who needs time. those two runs shouldn't of crossed in the first inning and if he would've chose to lay off throwing his curveball, which wasn't working, he would've been fine.

yeah, which is why I question the validity of it. interesting nonetheless.

Skip Bayless, a former Tribune writer who covered the Cubs, was on ESPN Radio earlier today and wasn't surprised one bit that Sosa was caught with it. He said Sosa is one of the biggest phonies in sports that he's ever seen and that he's glad people will finally see the true Sosa. in fact, he said he knew of a couple people within the Cubs organization that suspected Sosa of taking steroids, but they never spoke of it because, well, it is Sosa and like major league baseball, they don't want to tarnish the home run crave, which of course brought in money.

yesterday's game was another showing a bad defense (Jimenez botched DP turn) and a questionable pen (Gordon). it is so freaking amazing how bad this team is actually getting/has been. I mean I don't think anybody thought it would get this bad. I'm still not on the verge of calling the season quits because I'm one of those people who think anything can happen, but this team has lost A LOT in the confidence department. a series of 3-4 games won't even get them out, they need a stretch, a LONG stretch, of strong play to bust out of this, which sadly may not happen till September. game was rough though. usually, after the game I go straight to writing the recap for it (AND IT HAS BEEN HARD PLENTY OF TIMES TO DO IT). this was the first time this season that I simply shut down my labtop and changed the channel once they scored.

although it isn't confirmed it is a corked bat, it would be very funny if it were and would be very interesting how the media would react to this. I'll say this though, Sosa looked pretty concerned and quiet on the bench.

sosa's bat shattered and the umpire saw something that looked to show the bat was corked. so they brought the bat to the umpire room brought the runner who scored on the play back to third.

being examined, should be interesting.

also, I don't mean to get peoples hopes all high. I simply hear/find something and think about it, then report it if I feel it is somewhat legit. a lot of stories I pass up on because they don't fit or come together, others I write on.

that is why I put rumor. if this was 100%, I would say it is going to happen, but it is a rumor and you must take it as it is, a rumor.

no, it was Borchard, Olivo and Jimenez, three guys who actually try to play the game right.

Sox up 2-1 on a Jimenez single.

I think other people can bunt. Hawk and DJ said brought up the point the other day that every player practices bunting every day, even if it is only 2-3 tries. I think most players can bunt if they really put their mind to it. problem is, too many players don't want to get the bat taken out of their hands, so if they act like they can't bunt, they will most likely be asked to swing. Manuel needs to be it into their heads.

very good point and very bad call by JM. what is sad though is no matter who it is, Borchard has to get to third. I think Manuel needs to be straightfoward with guys and simple "hey, somebody better be at third base at the end of your at bat" you gotta beat it into their heads that they have a job to do, and help this team win.

agreed. as much as fans hate it, slumps are a must for all young players who hope to succeed. Crede needs to go through this slump so he experiences it and adjusts to it. it is a test all young players go through. let him play.

well, it won't be up tomorrow, but perhaps Tuesday, Wednesday the latest.

what? I didn't say anything about 2001. I think you are questioning why I think we are out of contention. I didn't say it as if we are done, because I still think something can happen, but right now, we aren't in contention so might as well play Crede, a younger player.