Does Anyone Want to Win the National League Central?
Embed:
Will the Chicago Cubs hold on in the National League Central division? Can the Milwaukee Brewers or St. Louis Cardinals comeback to win the division?At this point the division title is wide open and it seems that no team wants to take control of this. Here is the top 3 areas most important to each team to win this division.
Chicago Cubs- Current Record 70-67
1. Carlos Zambrano, Ted Lilly, and Rich Hill- The Cubs should have the best pitching staff of the three teams battling for top spot. Zambrano has been on a slide and will need to come through in crunch time in the month of September. Ted Lilly and Rich Hill have proven to be very capable 2nd and 3rd starters on the Cubs rotation. Both currently have ERA's under 4 and have over 145 strikeouts. The performance of these three pitchers will be a deciding factor in the Cubs chances of winning this division.
2. Alfonso Soriano- Soriano came back from injury on August 28th and should give the Cubs a boost down the stretch. If he stays healthy it gives the Cubs a much better opportunity to score runs. He is currently batting .297 with 20 home runs and 18 stolen bases. These numbers are not quite what the Cubs expected when they paid Alfonso but he still has one of the best bats in the league.
3. Ryan Dempster- In a race this close the closer position could very well decide this. I am sure having Dempster close games is still scary for most Cubs fans. He has been very sold as of late though. In the 10 games he has appeared in since August 16th, the Cubs have won each game. He has 8 saves and only given up two earned runs during this span. The five games remaining against the Cardinals will be vital for Dempster to not blow any save opportunities if the Cubs are to get into the playoffs.
Milwaukee Brewers- Current Record 70-68, 1/2 game back
You may also like...
- 2007 National League Central Preview
- MLB 2008 Preview: National League Central
- MLB 2008 Preview: American League Central
- A Basic History of the St. Louis Cardinals Baseball Team
- The Best St. Louis Cardinals Gifts and Stocking Stuffers for Under $10
- St. Louis Cardinals: Fantasy Baseball Team Preview 2008
- The Ten Best Players in St. Louis Cardinals History
- Grapefruit League Spring Training 2008: The Atlanta Braves Play the St. Louis Cardinals
- National League Central Preview
- Major League Baseball Preview 2008: National League Central
Comments
Type in Your Comments Below - (1000 characters left)
Most Commented On


