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* Which team - between the White Sox, Cubs and Cardinals - will have the best record at the end of the season? Explain.

posted by Rich Miller
Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 10:58 am

Comments

Is it football season yet?

Comment by IlliniPundit Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 11:05 am
The Cubs may have the best record at the end of the season, but I am hopeful that all three area teams will be in the playoffs.

What wins playoff games? Pitching. SO the Sox have the best chance of winning it all, hopefully against either the Cubs or the Cards in the World Series.

When the Sox won it al in 2005, they won their first game of the season 1-0. They won their last game of 2005, the final game of the World Series that year, by the same 1-0 score.

Comment by Capitol View Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 11:05 am
Cubs.

It’s mid-June and they’ve scored more runs and given up fewer runs than any team in the National League. Pinella is a master at handling the pitching staff; they’re getting production out of their 4 and 5 starters and they have a lights-out bullpen.

Cubs position starters are solid and they have a productive bench. They have players in the minors to make a move for another startin pitcher before the trade deadline. Look for Maddux, if he’ll waive his no-trade clause for a chance to be on a winner, or Sabathia, if the Indians don’t make run soon, to end the year with the Cubs.

The Cardinals have been surprising. I’m not a big LaRussa fan, but he’s done a masterful job so far. Ultimately, I don’t think they have the horses with Pujols down to overtake the Cubs. Possible wildcard in weak National League.

The White Sox right now have the best pitching in baseball, but their offense is feast or famine, longball or nothing. Incredibly slow team; like Jimmy Piersall once said of Greg Luzinski, it takes three hits to score Thome, Konerko, Dye, AJ or Crede from second. I think they’ll win the division, but because of a tough American League schedule, they’ll win fewer games then the Cubs.

Comment by wordslinger Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 11:15 am
Cubs, because their record is the best and they have a harder division than the Sox. (fingers crossed and knocking on wood)

Comment by Kevin Fanning Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 11:15 am
The Cubs, but they will choke in the playoffs.

Comment by Dirt Guy Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 11:16 am
Two Cub fan interns in a row. Not sure I can take another one.

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 11:17 am
The Cardinals, of course. The White Sox will continue to have an up and down season. they will come on strong in the end and will make the playoffs but will be eliminated. The Cubs will continue to be strong out of the gate but after the All Star break they will begin to fade. Kerry Woods will suffer another injury and not be the go to reliever. Lou’s team probably won’t even make the playoffs leading to more speculation about the fate of the team and the ball park. The price on both will drop. Blago will blame MJM for all of this and offer the club a million dollars to be paid later to buy better players.

Comment by Irish Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 11:23 am
Cardinals. Why? Because I like them, and, therefore, shall simply will them to victory.

Comment by Fan of the Game Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 11:23 am
St. Louis. The other teams are from Chicago.

That’s just the way it usually is.

Comment by Greg Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 11:25 am
Based on the results so far I would predict my Cubs. As long as they stay healthy and play with the “Cubby Swagger” Lou has convinced them they have they will be hard to beat. But I am taking this season one out at a time and praying for the best.

Comment by Dan S, a voter and Cubs Fan Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 11:28 am
The Cards, the Cubs and the Sox may all make it to the playoffs…all three look pretty good this year. But somehow I doubt that any of the three will be in the World Series.

Comment by Deep South Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 11:29 am
wordslinger said it all perfectly.

The stars have finally aligned this year. That God I’ll be alive for it.

Rich, you know the U of IL is 70% suburbanites…which means mostly Cub fans. The rest, sadly, are Cards fans from downstate. Sox fans here are like four-leaf clovers.

Comment by Paul Richardson Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 11:46 am
The Cubs because they are the better team. Its not rocket science.

Comment by Anon Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 11:47 am
I think the Cubbies…add another arm in the rotation & a healthy Zambrano should propel them to another central division title & the best record in MLB.

White Sox are hot and should be in the playoffs as well…I’m waiting for the Cards to fade away til next year.

Comment by scoot Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 11:47 am
I meant a healthy Soriano..even better

Comment by scoot Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 11:47 am
White Sox will have the better record of the three. I think the Cards, Cubs, and Brewers are going to start beating each other up. Plus the Pirates are having a decent season and the Reds (minus Dusty) have a .500 team.

As long as Detroit continues to rely on their offense and keep Todd Jones as their closer, they can’t catch the Sox. The Twins don’t have it this year. The Indians are the only team that could possibly catch the Sox, and they have Borowski back as their closer. Therefore, I think the Sox will win that division and have more wins than the Cubs. If they add a good hitter to the lineup (not a 44 year old Kenny Lofton) they have a chance to do some damage in the playoffs.

Comment by He Gone Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 11:49 am
===Rich, you know the U of IL is 70% suburbanites…which means mostly Cub fans.===
Still another good reason to attend Purdue.

Comment by Bill Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 12:06 pm
lol

Comment by Kevin Fanning Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 12:09 pm
The Cubs will re-acquire Greg Maddux from the Padres before the trade deadline, and he will go 6-2 the rest of the way in his farewell season.

The Cards will be pesky but eventually their injuries will catch up to them.

The Sox might just sneak up on everybody and win it all, without much previous fanfare. They will need to get by the other Sox to do it, though.

Subway Series 2008 - Hey! Hey! Holy Cow! You can put it on the boaaaaard - YESSSSSSSSSS!

Comment by Six Degrees of Separation Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 12:10 pm
Irish — Who is Kerry Woods?

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 12:11 pm
Tiger’s younger brother.

Comment by Six Degrees of Separation Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 12:12 pm
I’ll start out by saying that I am a Cubs fan.

I believe the Cubs will finish with the best record in the National League. The West stinks this year and unless Arizona wins 20 out of 25 again this summer, they’ll finish about 10 games back. The Phillies could overtake the Cubs, but I think the Mets will play better down the stretch to keep their win total down.

By virtue of the Cubs winning the division, that means that they have more victories than the Cardinals, plus the Cubs will beat up on the Cards pitching later in the year when the Cards aren’t exceeding expectations.

The Sox are too streaky to have a better record than the Cubs. After winning 7 in a row, they were swept by the lowly Tigers and then lost two of three to a team that the Cubs just swept four straight. The Sox play in a more difficult league than the Cubs and Cards. They are too slow and rely too much on the home run. Carlos Quentin will play well, but not this well. He’s unproven and teams will soon figure out the holes in his swing. Their bullpen will hold up strong throughout the season and the key to their wins total is whether Danks and Floyd can continue to pitch the way that they have.

I believe the Cubs are the most balanced team in all of baseball. Their only “rookies” are an experienced outfield from Japan and a catcher who started in the playoffs next year. The starters have all pitched a few seasons and the bullpen has all pitched on the postseason as well. Their biggest flaw at this point is their fielding, which is suspect at times. The Red Sox are a close second, but they’ll miss Ortiz’s bat come playoff time. And the Boston magic has to wear off at some point.

In the end, it would be great to see the Cubs, Cards and White Sox in the playoffs. So much is made of the Red Sox and Yankees rivalry. It disappoints me that the Cubs and Cards aren’t on the national stage due to an east coast bias, however the Cubs and Cards haven’t had similar playoff confrontations.

A dream season for me would be defeating the Cards in the NLCS and then beating the White Sox for the World Series. However, winning it all would be just as nice.

Comment by Downers Delight Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 12:15 pm
As much as I hate to admit this because I am a Cardinals fan, I think the Cubs will have the better record. It seems like it is a pretty down year for talent in the National League. The Cubs are by far the best team. They should be able to rack up alot of easy wins — as they have done already. It will be interesting to see how they fare against even better teams like the Red Sox or Angels in the World Series.

Comment by GA Watcher Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 12:20 pm
Cubs finish with the best record.
Cardinals win the wild card.
Cubs get smoked by the Phillies in the NLCS.

My White Sox win the World Series on the strength of its pitching. Bullpen has been solid (Dotel annoys me though) and starting pitching has been pretty good (Buehrle excepted, given his contract).

Comment by Ravenswood Right Winger Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 12:26 pm
The Cubs. Because HOPE springs eternal, and we Cub fans deserve to be rewarded for our years of unrequited devotion.

Comment by puzzler Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 12:31 pm
I just hope the cubs get bumped out of the playoffs. As a Sox fan, I will thoroughly enjoy the anguished cries from Naperville after we have a confirmed Century of Fail

Comment by dan l Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 12:33 pm
Dan S coined the term “Cubby Swagger” and I almost choked on my lunch. Cubby Swagger???? Is that a combination of swoon and stagger?

Cardinals win 97 games, Cubs 95, Sox 88.

Comment by Budget Watcher Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 12:39 pm
Cubs will have the best record of the three, but they won’t keep up the pace they’re on.

Cards pitching is held together with spit, shoe polish and duct tape; it won’t last.

White Sox pitching can’t continue at this rate, which has been so good it has hidden the offense’s shortcomings.

I think the Sox are still quite likely to finish out of the playoffs, with the Tigers the greatest threat to overtake them and the Indians and Twins not entirely out of it.

Though they won’t play .650 ball all the way, Cubs will still run away and hide, with Reds and Brewers challenging the Cards among also-rans.

Comment by Reality Check Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 12:40 pm
The Cards! For the cubs to be “winners” would be a violation of their National Historic Site” designation. By the way, that is for a century without a Series Win.

Comment by A Citizen Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 12:57 pm
This is the year Cubs fans! The baseball gods have ended the suffering of the White Slobs in 2005, the Red Sox in 2004, and now, after a century of futility, it is the Cubs turn for glory.

Consider that the Cubs will likely win Game 7 less than a week before Barack Obama (despite his Sox allegiance) is elected President, and the whole city of Chicago will be a week-long celebration of historic proportions.

The Cubs need another starter, but they are hitting up and down the order. It troubles me that the Cards are still on our heels, but that can’t last and Ozzie is about to talk himself out of a job.

Obama and the Cubs. 2008. You heard it here first.

Comment by 47th Ward Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 1:19 pm
If the Cubs and the White Sox were in the World Series; would it be the end of the world as we know it?
What next honest government in Illinois?
Go Cardinals we must save the status quo.

Comment by decaturvoter Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 1:24 pm
cards will win most games. Sox will win the pennant

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 1:25 pm
psssh, can’t wait for the cubs/ sox series to start

Comment by Kevin Fanning Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 1:27 pm
Kevin, you will be a great grandpa before that happens. As a Cards fan though, you could celebrate while you’re still young enough to enjoy it to the fullest!

Comment by A Citizen Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 1:32 pm
Haha fair enough, I meant the Cubs/ Sox series this week. Things may get ugly here in Chicago.

Comment by Kevin Fanning Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 1:34 pm
The Cubs, and its not EVEN close. If you dont agree, your opinion is biased or you really dont watch/follow baseball.

The Sox and Cards have holes EVERYWHERE-Line up, bullpen, rotation.

The Cubs only hole is a proven #2 starting pitcher.

They are not only vastly superior in talent and overall depth than the cards and sox, they currently lead about EVERY MLB stat category and are nationally recognized as the #1 team IN ALL of MLB, period.

cards and sox will be playing golf in October.

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 2:25 pm
Last time I made a prediction was the Anita Alvarez victory which few saw coming. This time I will try baseball:

The White Sox will win 92 to 94 games and win their division by 7 games.

The Cubs will win their division over the Brewers by 2 games.

The Cardinals fade into third (too many injuries).

White Sox beat the Red Sox and Angels (just like 05) in playoffs and then beat the Phillies in the World Series (Cubs lose in Round 1 to Diamondbacks)

Remember the last 2 times the Red Sox won the World Series, the White Sox won it the year after–this year will hold true to form!

Comment by Dark Horse Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 2:32 pm
Cubs, they are a complete team (if their bullpen holds up) and supposed to be here. The Sox hitting will not do well against decent pitchers and the Cards are playing way above thier heads.

Comment by Wumpus Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 2:34 pm
Budget Watcher - Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 12:39 pm:

Dan S coined the term “Cubby Swagger” and I almost choked on my lunch. Cubby Swagger???? Is that a combination of swoon and stagger?
I did not coin the phrase “Cubby Swagger” Lou Pinella did and it has a lot to do with why they are 20 games over .500 and have the best record in MLB to this point. Now choke on your afternoon snack!! LOL

Comment by Dan S, a voter and Cubs Fan Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 2:35 pm
- Rich Miller - Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 1:25 pm:

cards will win most games. Sox will win the pennant
Rich, I understand fully this is your blog but you did say “explain” at the begining.

Comment by Dan S, a voter and Cubs Fan Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 2:41 pm
Da Cubs! No explanation needed b/c they are the great team to beat this year.

Comment by Sinister Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 2:55 pm
Dan S, no explanation is required. So let it be written. So let it be done.

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 3:02 pm
lol, again can’t wait for the cubs/sox series this weekend

Comment by Kevin Fanning Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 3:03 pm
Mr. Adams, we shall see who is laughing come October.

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 3:08 pm
Da Cards!

Comment by Highland, IL Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 3:18 pm
I’m a Cardinals fan, but I have to say Cubs. If there is any justice at all left in this world, after 100 years, it should be the Cubs.

Comment by Crafty Girl Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 3:22 pm
RE:Da Cards

They play football and were owned by Al Capone. Once they left Chicago, they simply became “the” Cards. Just fyi.

Oh, and the Cubs hands down. They are 1 pitcher away from having the most complete and talented team in the league.

Didnt the sox lose 4 straight in Toronto a few weeks back? The Cubs dominated that team. They will sweep the Sox and we know what typically happens to the loser of that series in the second half.

The Cards, holes everywhere. The pitching wont hold up, they have a bullpen that scares nobody but their own manager and fans, injuries and lack of depth everywhere. They will be behind the Brewers by the All-Star break. They will come back to Earth as they are playing WAY above their heads. They finish 10 games back in the NL Central.

Its a silly question of the day considering every major baseball publication has the Cubs ranked either #1 or #2 in MLB.

The cards arent even top 10 and the sox are anywhere from 9 to 13.

They have it all and once they aquire AJ Burnett or Sabathia, everyone here will realize the ridiculous premise that either the sox or cards could finish better than the Cub.

They lost a 136 Million dollar player and havent missed a beat! Its called depth. The sox and cards simply dont have it. Sorry. That will be proven with Pujols out.

No Longer:

C-Crying
U-Until
B-Bears
S-Season

Its gonna happen, so get ready all you bashers. You’ll need some new material when slamming the Cub.

The Great Recreate of 1908 is on! Like it or not.

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 3:40 pm
Just remember, anonymous, I have your IP address, so come October I’ll be flinging this in your face.

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 3:48 pm
Cardinals, of course!

In a true ‘re-building’ year the Cards are 13 games over .500.

Pujols, Wainright, Molina etc. all out and the team has still won EVERY series this season except 2.

No less than 6 pitchers have made their major league debuts.

TLR has this team believing in themselves. No more whiners (Rolen, Edmonds etc.)!! These kids come to play and they bounce right back. For example, over the weekend they get the snot kicked out of them on Friday night (20-2 loss) and bounce right back and take 2 out of 3 from the Phillies.

Yes, I know the Cubs have spent $200 million on payroll but they have not been hit by the injury bug yet. This is a long season. The bug will hit and the Cubs will be completely useless by September as usual.

Comment by BIG R.PH. Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 3:57 pm
Im a lifelong die-hard Cub fan, Rich. Ive dealt with heartache, misery, and especially flinging facials from both sox and card fans my whole life.

Ive also never seen a more complete and better Cubs team in that time also. The convenient fact of the matter is the leaugue itself is really watered down with no real dominant team. Except of course my Cubs.

I’ll except any flinging in October if due, but also committ to a congratulatory correspondence to me and Cub Nation, should it happen.
Thanks,

Brett

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 3:58 pm
Cub Nation.

Comment by Kevin Fanning Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 4:01 pm
RE:Injury Bug

Did the Cubs not lose Soriano and Ramirez to DL stints? Get your facts together!

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 4:05 pm
Please, no Cub Nation. Let’s leave the “Nation” handle to those New Englanders who have the bizarre need to sing along with Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline” during the seventh-inning stretch.

Now, if you could get Coach Ditka to sing “Sweet Caroline….”

Comment by wordslinger Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 4:09 pm
“the team [cards] has still won EVERY series this season except 2.

Who beat them? The Cubs.
Thanks for play’n

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 4:14 pm
As I recall the Cubs did pretty well against the White Sox in 2005.

Just sayin

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 4:16 pm
That was an anomaly, Rich.

Tradition says the cross-town loser tanks in the second half. It’s been the norm. We Chicago fans, Cubs or Sox are well aware of those stakes.

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 4:22 pm
Except the Cubs always tank, so whatever.

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 4:23 pm
Just to be clear, what I tried to point out is that it doesn’t really matter how well the Cubs are doing against the Cardinals. I used as an example a point of history. What matters is the end.

Anonymous retorts with goofy superstition, which is, of course, the Cub tradition.

Go believe in your ghosts, your goats and your curses. I’ll believe in a winner.

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 4:26 pm
8 reasons they wont tank.

-They didnt last year and won the division. AZ just had better pitching in the playoffs and beat the Cubs straight-up in the series. The Cubs didnt tank, they got beat by a better team.

-Kosuke Fukudome

-Geovanny Soto

-Carlos Marmol

-Aramis Ramirez has yet to even hit a hot streak.

-D. Lee is hitting HRs

-Lou Piniella

-Dominating home record (Finally!)

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 4:29 pm
“What matters is the end.”

Very well put!

Brett

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 4:31 pm
Cubs because it’s been 100 years since they won a World Series and because it’s my birthday today and I say so.

Comment by kimsch Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 7:12 pm
If it weren’t for cubs secret weapon they do it ya know Blagoof will drag them the sewer
Looks like a Cards v. Sox WS.
Capt Fax A the Byrd will be happy

Comment by reddbyrd Tuesday, Jun 17, 08 @ 9:27 pm