Well its finally the All-Star break. Normally it seems like the break comes too fast, I can never believe that baseball is already more than half over. This year has been a little different though. The Cubs have made this first half seem like an eternity. Of course we all thought this Cubs team would easily head back to the postseason. The only question we had was can they finally win a game once they get there, but oh those tricky Cubs..... they decided to suck. Amazingly despite all their suckiness they are still in pretty good shape. Here are a few of my thoughts about this first half and what I expect in the 2nd half.

Things I have learned about the 2009 Cubs

First the bad.....

- Mike Fontenot is not an everyday player. This one is hard for me and I think Clapp may even still disagree, but I really now believe he isn't. I was a huge Fontenot fan last year, I was pissed he didn't start the first 2 games of the playoffs and I was very confident he would have a big 2009. I was wrong. He has shown brief spurts of hitting well and has swung the bat better lately but he was awful for months and not just against lefties. I don't blame Hendry for trying to make Fontenot an everyday player, but I think now is the time to stop the Fontenot everyday player experiment. Pinch hit him a lot, give him a couple starts a week and hope he finds the magic of last year. Andres Blanco and Jeff Baker can share time at 2B and maybe, somehow the Cubs will add a 2nd baseman before the break.

- Ryan Theriot is a dumbass. I already knew he was a dumbass base-runner, but he has now convinced me he is a dumb ass all the way around. He makes bad decisions on throws on defense, is a poor infield captain on pop ups, continues to be a horrendous base-runner and now thinks he is a slugger. After his brief power spurt in May, it took him about 6 weeks to stop trying to hit every pitch out of the park. Don't get me wrong, I think Theriot is a hell of a hitter and a decent shortstop, but with the good will come a whole lot of dumbass mistakes.

- The Cubs suck. I don't necessarily mean these Cubs or the players on the Cubs or the management of the Cubs, but the whole idea and franchise of the Cubs. I used to think it was bad front office, no payroll, bad players etc. that made the Cubs bad, but nope it's just the fact that they are the Cubs. Call it a curse or fate or pressure or whatever you want, but the Cubs franchise sucks. I'm not sure it will ever stop sucking, at least until they win a world series. We will continue to bring on talent, spend money and put good teams on the field and the Cubs will continue to suck. Someday maybe things will change.... but I'll believe it when I see it.

Now on to the good......

- Jake Fox and Randy Wells are the real deal. Now I'm not saying Wells is really a 2.50 ERA pitcher or that Fox will be a career .330 hitter, they may both be having career years, they may both fade a little in the 2nd half, but *right now* these are two great players the Cubs need to rely on.

- Ted Lilly is a stud muffin. I kinda already knew this, I mean, Clapp and I have been saying ever since October that had Lilly pitched in the playoffs, we may have won a game. Yeah he struggled against the D-backs in 07, but this guy is nails. He doesn't give a shit about the Cubs pressure, he just goes out and pitches well every single time.

- Derrek Lee still has it. Now I was never one who was crying for Lee to be benched or traded, but I was convinced he had declined into a .275, 15 homer player. Boy was I, and so many others, wrong. Lee has been amazing for over a month and is showing no signs of slowing down. Lou can feel comfortable sticking him in the 3 spot in the order and leaving him there.

Pieces of Advice for Lou Piniella about the 2nd half.

1. Play Jake Fox as much as possible. I don't care if it means giving Soriano, Bradley and Ramirez more days off, I don't even care if it means playing him at catcher. Get him in the lineup. I'm sure Bob Brenly would disagree, but what Fox brings offensively far outweighs, how much better Koyie Hill might be defensively. This is a guy who played catcher in college and has played 300 games behind the plate in the minors, he can catch. On most teams I might never suggest this, but this is the 2009 Cubs, we need runs, play Jake Fox.

2. Move Milton Bradley to the top of the order. Milton Bradley is not a run producer, he just isn't. This is a guy who had never even reached 20 homers or 70 RBI in a season until last season. His best attributes are batting average and on-base percentage. He is finally starting to hit the ball hard. He told the papers he is back, and I believe him. Bat him second, watch him get on base a ton and get driven in by Lee, Ramirez and company.

3. Let your starting pitchers carry the team. Far too many times Lou has pulled Lilly, Wells and Zambrano too early and watched the bullpen walk a million guys. I'm not saying to go Dusty Baker on them, but the starting rotation is our best piece of the team. If a guy is cruising and has only thrown 90 pitches, leave him in. Kevin Gregg has been very good at the end of the game lately, but getting to him has been quite an adventure at times.

What I Expect From the Cubs in the 2nd Half.

I expect this team to turn it around. I really do. I may not have given that same answer a month ago, but there are too many signs for me not to believe it now. I won't go as far as predicting a division title, but I firmly believe the 2009 Cubs' best baseball is in front of them. I believe Milton Bradley will hit the rest of the year, I believe Soriano has a big time hot streak yet to come, I believe we will score more runs and I believe the rotation will continue to be good.

The Cubs have too much talent to not outlast the Astros and Reds and I still firmly believe this team is better than the Brewers. The team I am still worried about is the Cardinals. Ludwick is finally hitting, Franklin has been ridiculous out of the bullpen and of course Pujols, Carpenter and Wainwright are all better than anyone the Cubs have. If somehow, someway the Cardinals really do trade for Roy Halladay, the Cubs might as well start watching the wildcard teams on the scoreboard instead of the Cardinals. I still don't believe they have the money to do so however, so I expect a great 2nd half race.


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