My 2009 Predictions

Let's jump right into it and start with my bold Cubs predictions for this year:

• Carlos Zambrano will throw a perfect game.
• The Cubs will have three 20 game winners: Z, Demp, and Lilly.
• The Cubs will have three guys that hit 30 homers: Rami, Sori, and DLee.
• Kosuke will be the comeback player of the year.
• Alfonso Soriano will become the 16th player in MLB history, and the first since 2003, to hit 4 home runs in one game.
• Rich Harden will have a 20 K game.
• Ryan Theriot will win the batting title.
• Mike Fontenot will be the team MVP.
• Kevin Gregg will be a remarkable closer and stay in that role all year long.
• Marmol will have the best team ERA.
• David Patton will be the NL Rookie of the Year.
• Jeff Samardzija will be brought up from AAA and stuck in the rotation by the end of the year, and he won't leave that Cubs rotation for many years to come.
• Kerry Wood will spend most of the year on the DL.
• Mark DeRosa will destroy the Cubs in the 3-game set with the Indians.
• Milton Bradley will play 140 games in the outfield, and lead the league in OBP.

Well, I might be dreaming, be some of these bold predictions have a good chance of being correct. We can only wait and see.

Now for some more realistic predictions. Here is an over/under of last years stats for each Cub, starting with home runs.

• Derrek Lee (20): Over
• Ryan Theriot (1): Over
• Aramis Ramirez (27): Over
• Kosuke (10): Same
• Soto (23): Under
• Soriano (29): Over by 1 or 2
• Johnson (6): Under
• Fontenot (9): Over
• Zambrano (4): Under
• Hoffpauir (2): Over
• Hill (0): Over
• Bradley (22): Over
• Miles (4): Under
• Gathright (0): Same

Now Wins for the starting rotation:

• Dempster (17): Over
• Lilly (17): Under
• Zambrano (14): Way Over
• Harden (10): Same
• Marshall (3): Over (we hope)

Batting Average:

• Lee (.291): Under
• Theriot (.307): Over
• Ramirez: (.289): Over
• Kosuke (.257): Over (we hope)
• Soto (.285): Under
• Soriano (.280): Over
• Johnson (.303): Under
• Fontenot (.305): Under
• Zambrano (.337): Over
• Hoffpauir (.342): It'll have to be under that with more ABs.
• Hill (.095): Over or else he'll find himself on a plane to Iowa.
• Gathright (.254): Over
• Bradley (.321): Just a bit under
• Miles (.317): Under

ERA:

• Dempster (2.96): Over
• Lilly (4.09): Under
• Zambrano (3.91): Under
• Harden (1.77): Over
• Marshall (3.86): Over
• Marmol (2.86): Under
• Cotts (4.29): About the same
• Samardzija (2.28): A bit over
• Gaudin (6.26): Same
• Guzman (5.59): Under
• Heilman (5.21): Way Under
• Gregg (3.41): A bit under
• Vizcaino (5.28): Over, will end up traded or released

Let's move on to the MLB Division picks. Some of my picks have changed since a made them before Spring Training:

NL Central:

• 1. Cubs
• 2. Reds
• 3. Cardinals
• 4. Brewers
• 5. Astros
• 6. Pirates

NL West:

• 1. Dodgers
• 2. Giants
• 3. D'backs
• 4. Rockies
• 5. Padres

NL East:

• 1. Phillies
• 2. Mets
• 3. Braves
• 4. Marlins
• 5. Nationals

AL Central:

• 1. Indians
• 2. Twins
• 3. White Sox
• 4. Royals
• 5. Tigers

AL East:

• 1. Yankees
• 2. Red Sox
• 3. Rays
• 4. Blue Jays
• 5. O's

AL West:

• 1. Angels
• 2. A's
• 3. Rangers
• 4. Seattle

One last bold prediction:

• World Series: Cubs VS Indians
• Game 6- Cubs up by 3 in the 8th, leading series 3-2. Mark DeRosa Grand Slam off Marmol gives the Indians the lead, and the curse lives of for one more day.
• Game 7- Zambrano goes 7 innings give up just 1 run. Bottom of the 9th, Theriot on first, one out, pitchers spot is up against Kerry Wood. Micah Hoffpauir ends the 101 years of waiting with a pinch hit 2-run, game winning, World Series winning, homer!

But first things first, a 162 game season.

Feel free to comment and tell me what you think of my predictions or make predictions of your own. Or you could email me with your predictions and I will post them on the blog cubsblogmailbag@aol.com.

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More posts to come!