Opinionated
Our statistical wunderkind predicts the booms and busts of the 2009 Cubs and White Sox
From left: The sizzlers, Ramirez and Soto; the fizzlers, Dempster and Quentin
ABOUT THE STATISTICIAN |
SIZZLERS
ALEXEI RAMIREZ
2008: .290 avg. // 21 HR // 77 RBIs
2009**: .289 avg. // 19 HR // 78 RBIs
For him to do what he did in his first year in American baseball was impressive. Expect him (like Soto, below) to avoid a sophomore slump.
GEOVANY SOTO
2008: .285 avg. // 23 HR // 86 RBIs
2009**: .288 avg. // 25 HR // 83 RBIs
What we saw last year is a fair reflection of his skill set, and he might even be a touch better with a year of experience under his belt.
POWER NUMBERS |
FIZZLERS
RYAN DEMPSTER
2008: 17-6 // 2.96 ERA
2009**: 10-9 // 4.10 ERA
With Dempster, everything about 2008 screams “career year.” Expecting him to be as good as he was last year is rather optimistic.
CARLOS QUENTIN
2008: .288 avg. // 36 HR // 100 RBIs
2009**: .273 avg. // 21 HR // 72 RBIs
A case of regression to the mean. He had been a mediocre producer before 2008. There’s a chance he’s a late bloomer, but there’s also a chance he just had a career year.
PROJECTED SEASON STANDINGS |
SOX IN 2009: 73-89
We’re projecting the Sox to finish at the bottom of their division. They haven’t added much talent, and can expect weaker seasons out of Jermaine Dye, A. J. Pierzynski, and Mark Buehrle. Players usually get worse once they’re in their 30s.
CUBS IN 2009: 97-65
We’re expecting the Cubs to win their division easily. They should get a lot better in right field, where Milton Bradley is replacing Kosuke Fukudome. On the other hand, the bullpen looks to be a lot weaker than it was a year ago.
KEY: CUBS | White Sox
**Projected
Photography: (From left) Ben Margot, Paul Beaty, Brian Kersey, Duane Burleson/All, Associated Press
This article appears in the April 2009 issue of Chicago Magazine.
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Reader Comments:
how much were you paid by tribune company for your "predictions"? However, it's become an annual tradition to see the cubs get broomed out of the playoffs in the first round. I love it!
Soxfanjj is a perfect example of how the Sox fans consistently have a complex and all they worry about is the cubs. Must be an inferiority complex or something, but you all need to get a life! I know it sucks knowing no matter what happens, nobody will ever care about the Sox and what they do, but start to obsess over your own team instead of obsessing over what the Cubs are doing you toolbag!
Miguel is a great example of a cubs fan. Sox fans don't obsess about the chubbies. It's a laughing matter to all of us and reality is funny. The only reason we bring it up is because you guys get upset and that too is funny. It's called pushing buttons and it looks like yours got pushed. Who cares about the predictions. They are usually wrong anyway. And as far as baseball is concerned, you seem to care more about Wrigley field than the team. (which is why cubs fans don't really know much about baseball)I can't wait to see what happens when it gets renamed.
I would love to take you on in any baseball knowledge test. I am usually telling most Sox fans what is going on with their own team. So your broad generalization is false.
And yes, you do obsess over the Cubs...Ozzie does it, Kenny does it and so do all of you. Just because your team is irrelevant doesn't mean you have to consistently rib on the team in this city that is relevant.
It doesn't push my buttons and I could care less what White Trash Sox fans think anyway. Much like your team, your opinion is irrelevant.
I'm predicting a last place finish for the cubs. They've finished in last so many times that its bound to happen again. Any recent success they've had is just a fluke. The real cubs are he ones who finished in last place in 1994, 1997, 1999, 2000 and 2006.
Again, Martok proves my point. OBSESS!
Hey Miguel, do you have a birth certificate issue like Obama? Just kiddin'...hey, anybody can have a bad century! Just like our favorite, best selling t-shirt with the White Sox World Series Champions ring around the middle finger, this one's for you, Miguelita Mariposa!
Hola Miguelita Mariposa...you are kind of like what Ozzie called Mariotti, sipping your white wine with your fancy cheese and calling the South Siders names; well guess what lady, we can do the same!
A new season approaches, and with as much (tongue-in-cheek) love as I can muster for those fans of that little league team on the north side, I give you a hearty and heartfelt.....
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!
Q. What's the difference between a Cub fan and an aging Vegas hooker ?
A. The hooker knows the score.