Ahh, Dusty Baker....everytime the former Cubs manager and current Cincinnati Reds skipper comes to town, you can count on him saying something dumb.
Apparently, In Dusty We Trusty thinks the NL Central is a balanced, tough division. I about fell off the couch when I read the following comment in this morning's Tribune:
"There shouldn't be anybody that you just figure can come in and sweep the weekend, or the week," quoth Dusty. "If everybody is pretty good, they're all capable of beating anybody."
That statement is a bunch of droppings from a male cow. Once you get past the Cubs and Cardinals, there is nothing in the NL Central. Absolutely nothing. In fact, I predict that division will produce at least two 90-loss teams.
The Astros have an aging offensive core and no pitching to speak of outside of Roy Oswalt. They stink. The Pirates are off to an 8-6 start, but that's a mirage. Seventeen consecutive losing seasons is enough for me to feel comfortable saying they also stink.
I'm starting to wonder if the Brewers stink, too. They still have a lot of great young offensive players (Prince Fielder, Ryan Braun, Corey Hart, J.J. Hardy, et al.), but it's hard to win when Jeff Suppan is your Opening Day starter and Carlos Villaneuva is your closer. The offseason losses of C.C. Sabathia and Ben Sheets gutted that pitching staff. Milwaukee, a wild-card team last year, is off to a 4-9 start.
Maybe this Baker statement isn't as stupid as the time he claimed dark-skinned players perform better in hot weather, but it's still flat wrong. I think the Cubs and Cardinals are going to do a lot of "sweeping" against NL Central opponents this summer.
It looks like a two-team race, with the Cubs as the favorite. Sorry, Dusty.
Will someone please tell me what exactly have the Cubs done so far this month to earn any respect? I had to laugh when I saw about the Cubs being part of Chicago's feel-good success over the weekend in the front page of the Chicago Tribune.
Here's the deal on the Cubs. Their starting pitching has been medicore, and their bullpen is garbage. It's not like any team in the division let alone the National League should run for cover when they play the Cubs. I am not that impressed with the Cubs, and I never was. I said it few weeks ago, and I will say it now. The Cubs are not winning the NL Central. I expect the Reds to win it, and you know what, they ain't playing that bad. At 7-6, I see a team that is going to get better. I like their starting pitching, and I love their offense.
Now, I disagree with Dusty about the NL Central being a tough division. It's as medicore as the AL Central, but with that said, the Cubs are not a lock whatsoever. If anything, they are the least impressive team I have seen in the first two weeks of the young season.
It's anyone's division, and in the end, I expect another bad ending by the Cubs. This time, there won't be them getting swept in the first round since they won't make the playoffs.
Since we are into making fun of Dusty, let me remind his critics that Dusty at least took his team to the NLCS, and he could have taken his team to the World Series if Mark "I am too good to play in Minnesota" Prior and Kerry Wood would have hold the leads in Game 6 and 7 (No, Cubs fans, it ain't Steve Bartman's fault)
Of course it isn't Bartman's fault. The Cubs choked. It was Prior and Alex Gonzalez and the great Kyle Farnsworth who lost that Game 6.
But the Cubs are the favorites in that division this year because they are the two-time defending champs. I have no love for the Cubs, and I'd laugh if they fold the tents and miss the playoffs. However, I can't see anyone other than St. Louis making a serious run at them. The Cardinals need Carpenter to get healthy and stay healthy to win the division.
I don't think Dusty is anything more than an average manager. With the press, he comes off as a bumbling fool.