[Fox Sports] Early power rankings

I like how ESPN baseball expert Steve Phillips keeps talking about Berkman not being available until June. Facts are fun.

 

Power Rankings are completely worthless. Anyone picking the Cards to finish 3rd again?


Off Topic but... looking forward to the game tonight. I managed to get seats behind home plate. An added bonus, Roger Clemens will be on the mound. I've never seen him pitch in person, definitely looking forward to that.

 

Holy crap, at #4 for all of MLB, drumroll please....

Phillies

"Parted ways with Larry Bowa's "management by jerkdom" act, replacing him with the Charmin-soft Charlie Manuel. Expect this team to finally live up to its potential. If they don't , I promise to stop picking them."

Yeah, when pigs fly.

 

This was exactly what I was going to post earlier this morning. Last year, publications had them 3rd, all the while acknowledging that they have great hitting, but bad pitching.

Now, we're third with supposedly bad hitting, but good pitching. Its ridiculous.

Honestly, tracing back to 1998, predicting the NL Central has always been about what the team did the preceding year. If the Astros win the division, they are the favorites the following year. If the Cards win, they are the favorites again. If the Cubs win, however, pandemonium breaks loose and everybody picks them to go to the World Series...

 

What else would you expect?

It took an absolutely amazing comeback to even make the playoff last year.... and we had a horrible offseason...

I wouldn't expect people to predict us to make playoffs

 

Although 21st does seem a little worse than it should be... but I'm not surprised that people have us out of to 15

 

I can appreciate everyone's skepticism about these predictions...BUT, where would you guys predict them given our offseason and the fact that we might have 3 rookies in the opening day lineup and our best hitter out for a month after knee surgery?

Be fair...predict us in comparison with the other teams and how they have fared in the offseason. Thats all these guys are doing....they are calling them as they see them...with a non-fan point of view. I happen to think we will finish closer to where they think we will then to where some of yuo think we will. Of course, I'd love to be wrong.

My prediction would be.........I'd have to say that 2nd place in the division isn't far fetched....but winning the division is. That coupled with the Marlins and Braves both being better than us, means that our chances of making the playoffs aren't great....not impossible, but not probable either. Granted, if we are close in July, perhaps we swing a Beltran-type deal and are in it for the stretch...but looking at the squad right now, its going to be an uphill climb.

 

You have to keep in mind that this is the same writer that predicted the Astros to finish 5th in the division and said that there is a huge dropoff after the Cardinals, Cubs, & BREWERS.


http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/3473726

 

Olney has us ranked at #11... and I would probably agree with that.

We're a borderline wild-card team right now... but our strengths are in the right place (starting pitching).

I still say injuries will play the BIGGEST role this year on whether or not we're contenders... and unfortunately, that's the fear you have when your team has a lot of big-name players on the bad side of 30.

In a lot of ways, that's why I'm kinda excited about the youth movement... get some fresh blood in there, and see if they can play.

 

I wouldn't even say were a borderline wild card team right now. We have a complete 4A outfield.....i guess that's what you would call them.

Everyone talks about our pitching getting us there, but there's alot more NL teams with good pitching staffs now. The Cards picked up Mulder, A's got Hudson, Met's got Pedro. All of those pitchers haven't been seen by the NL to much which gives them an advantage. Then you already look at the staffs of Chicago and Florida.

As much as i root for team through up's and down, i'm still a realist. I see the wild card coming from the NL East. We either win the division or go home.

 

wow..the story is entirely different now! now we have a rookie of the year candidate in our rotation and Berkman will be back this month!! after 2 games, the complexion of the whole 162 game season is different.

do these guys even watch baseball? is this their first season covering it?

 

LOL, so true.

 

Short answer: No.

Stupid experts.

 

continued neglect of Jason Lane

I suspect that Mr. Lane would disagree.

 

just wait until his own fans start calling him an overpaid POS

 

I cant wait until houston fans can do the same.

I will be by the gas pump screaming at him in CF when he comes into town. I need to go to Radio Shack and grab some big ass batteries as well.

 

amen to that

the more bruises I can inflict the better

bring on the car batteries!