Cubs will advance to NLCS
I'm wearing a Cubs cap as I write this column. Thoughts of Dave Kingman, Glenn Beckert, Dick Ellsworth, Billy Williams and Ernie Banks are filtering through my noggin.
The Cubbies may have cost me $10 -- and yes, Mr. Patsch, you will receive your money this Friday -- but I still believe the Cubs will defeat the Arizona Diamondbacks in the National League Division Series.
I'll go with the Cubs 3-1 over the Snakes from the desert. Both teams have above-average pitching. I just think the Cubs will prevail.
Like Dennis Green thought of the 2006 Bears, the Cubs are exactly who I thought they would be at this juncture. From Day 1, I believed they would win the National League Central Division. I was correct.
I just wish they would have won 87 games. That way, John Patsch would be 24-2 in our annual Cubs bet instead of 25-1.
I wonder who Mark Grace will be rooting for in this interesting NLDS? Gracey, the big league's 1990s base hits leader, was a great player for the Cubs. He started at first base on Arizona's 2001 World Series championship team. Grace is an announcer for Arizona.
Ironically, Bob Brenly, a former teammate of Joliet Junior College baseball coach Wayne King at Ohio University, was the manager on that 2001 Diamondbacks team.
Brenly is now an announcer for the Cubs on WGN-TV. Where does your loyalty lie right now, Bob?
Like most of the time in baseball, it all comes down to pitching. Both the Cubs and Arizona have solid No. 1s. The Cubs' Carlos Zambrano, who has pitched very well of late, and Arizona's Brandon Webb are both 18-game winners.
Zambrano, for some reason, pitches much better on the road than at Wrigley Field. Look for the moody right-hander to fare well in the opener.
Lefty Ted Lilly (15-8 record) has been probably the Cubs' most consistent starter. He will face the D-backs' Doug Davis (13-12) in Game 2 on Thursday.
Southpaw Rich Hill (11-8) gets the ball for the Cubs in the Wrigley Field opener in Game 3 on Saturday. His opponent will be veteran Livan Hernandez (11-11), who pitched on the Florida Marlins' 1997 World Series title team.
I give an edge to the Cubs' bullpen. Kerry Wood, Carlos Marmol, Bob Howry, Kevin Hart, Ryan Dempster and Will Ohman are OK. Bob Wickman, a little long in the tooth, closes things for Arizona.
Offensively, the Cubs are the superior team. They hit more homers.
I actually was singing "Go Cubs, go" while showering the other morning. Our dog, Stormy, looked at me in utter amazement. Or maybe that was sheer disbelief. Possibly disdain.
But if Chicago Mayor Richard Daley can wear a Cubs hat, so can I.
Regardless, the Cubs will be in the NLCS. Their opponent will be the red hot Colorado Rockies, who will beat Philadelphia.
Dave Parker can be reached at dparker@scn1.com
