Here is the list, with a description of why some of the guys are where they are.
30- Michael Barrett---Yeah, he was traded on June 20 to San Diego, so it makes it kind of tough for him to make a big impact. And while he was on the North Side, he was hitting a Paul Bako-esque .256, which wasn’t really helping the team too much. But the reason M.B. makes this list is because his fight with Carlos Zambrano on June 1 was the turning point for the entire team. Before he called Big Z out for throwing the wrong pitch, the Cubs had no fire, no energy. Since then, they have played with a new purpose. So I give the credit to Barrett, who may be facing the team if the Cubs and Padres are matched up in round one.
29- Will Ohman
28- Sam Fuld---The guy has exactly one more Major League at-bat then I do yet he is quickly becoming a Wrigley fan-fave. His base-running has already won a game-- last Monday versus the Reds-- and his fielding has been spectacular. (If you haven’t seen his catch from Saturday’s game, do yourself a favor and find it. One of the best plays Cubs fans have seen in a long while.) I don’t think he is going to make the playoff roster, but look for him on the team next season.
27- Billy Petrick
26- Geovany Soto
25- Angel Pagan--- A forgotten man, because he’s been out the last five weeks or so and isn’t going to make the post-season roster. But when he was a member of the Cubs out-field rotation, Pagan played a key role, because he’s a switch-hitter, very fast, and can play all three outfield spots. Remember, Jacque Jones couldn’t hit a beach ball before mid-July, Cliff Floyd was getting hurt every other week and Alfonso Soriano was injured and inconsistent in the first half as well, so Pagan’s stability was huge.
24- Michael Wuertz
23- Koyie Hill---Another catcher no longer on the roster, Hill played a huge part to the teams success during the middle of the season. With Hank White (Henery Blanco) hurt and the Michael Barrett/Rob Bowen duo not doing too much, Hill was in there for some of the most important games of the season. Plus his opposite field single in the ninth inning of the June 25 Colorado game, which the Cubs won 10-9, was quite clutch.
22- Felix Pie
21- Scott Eyre---In the first half of the season, I don’t think Eyre could have gotten me out. He was just that bad. (Check my July 10 piece, ‘Semester Exams’, whrere I gave the Cubs mid-season grades. Eyre wouldn’t have passed) But since Lou Piniella started calling him Stevie Ire, the lefty has been un-touchable. In the first half, which consisted of 27 appearances, Eyre was 0-2 with a 6.60 ERA. In half number two, Eyre pitched in 25 games, has a record of 1-0, and his ERA is an amazing 0.86.
20- Daryle Ward
19- Kerry Wood--- To be honest, I wasn’t too excited for Kid K’s 54th (or something like that) career comeback. So many questions surrounded Wood that I didn’t think it would make sense. Can he stay healthy? Can he still throw the heat? How will he handle the move to the bullpen? Would he ruin the teams chemistry? But to his credit, his pitching has been fantastic and I am confident that he can get big outs if needed in October.
18- Mike Fontenot
17- Sean Marshall
16- Matt Murton
15- Ryan Dempster--- There is no doubt that my heart starts beating about five times faster when number 46 enters the game. Dempster has been known to give up every insurance run available, load up the bases, and then somehow get out of the jam. But there is also no doubt that he has recorded 28 saves, and he has the confidence of Piniella and his teammates. I would obviously rather have a Mariano Riviera or Trevor Hoffman, but Dempster will have to do.
14- Cliff Floyd---- When the Cubs signed Floyd in the off-season, I wasn’t sure what to expect. When healthy and in a groove, he is one of the best hitters in baseball. But the thing is, he is not healthy and in a groove to often these days. This season, Cliff played in over one hundred games--which was a present surprise--and hit a solid .283. His power has been slacking, with only nine homers and 45 RBI, but that’s all right. He still provided a nice boost to the lineup, and didn’t cost the team too much in the field.
13- Jason Kendall
12- Rich Hill
11- Jason Marquis
10- Ryan Theriot
9- Jacque Jones---Like Scott Eyre, I gave Jones a failing grade at mid-season. He wasn’t hitting a lick, his fielding was in-consistent and the base running was just down right horrible. I said at the time I would have traded him for a bag of baseballs, and I was serious about it. Looking back at it now, and I don’t thin there is any way we are up in the division without Jacque. He was the teams best hitter in July and August, and his fielding has made the difference in quite a few games. A prime example of this was the August 17 Cardinals game, where Jones made a game-saving catch in the top of the fifth, then hit a two-run homer the following inning as the Cubs won 2-1.
8- Carlos Zambrano--- When he was real bad (5-4, 5.21 ERA in April and May), the team followed. And when he was good (9-3, 1.81 ERA in June and July), the team again followed. So it’s not a stretch to say that Big Z has been the catalyst for the entire team. His fight on June 1 turned the season around and he will be counted on heavily to get the franchise their first pennant since 1945.
7- Bob Howry
6- Derek Lee
5- Alfonso Soriano-- If somebody is getting paid $115 million, they need to come through in the clutch. And Soriano has. In September, Alf is hitting .307 with 12 home runs and 22 driven in, the last two stats being his highest single-month totals of the season. His defense has been great as well, and even though he battled through some injuries, I would say he has been well worth the money this year.
4- Ted Lilly--- In a recent TV poll on the Cubs television network, fans were asked which Cubs starter they would most want to start a one-game playoff if the season came to that. And the runaway winner was Lilly. Is this a surprise? Probably, considering Zambrano has been the number one starter all year long and the team just gave him 91 million bucks. But the fans got it absolutely right. Lilly has been fantastic this season, going 15-7 with an ERA under 3.8. He’s pitched 200 innings, has only lost back-to-back starts twice this year, and in one of those occasions, it was only because he got no run support. At the start of the year, I was confused why we gave this guy a four-year deal. Now I’m upset that its too short.
3- Aramis Ramirez---Not to sound like an arrogant guy or anything, but it takes a lot to impress me, especially in sports. I still don’t have Tim Tebow mania, even though I’m a huge Gators fan and he’s the Heisman Trophy favorite right now. Loul Deng was nothing special to me up until the end of last season. And for some reason Aramis Ramirez always somewhat disappointed me, even though that was really never deserved. Well this season, he’s impressed me. A lot. It seems like every time A-Ram is up in a big spot, he’s come through with a hit. And his fielding has gotten so much better compared to when he first put on the uniform. Just a great all-around season for Ramirez.
2- Carlos Marmol---Another guy who has impressed me so much that now #49 might be my favorite Cub. His 95-mile an hour heater mixed with his upper 80’s slider means that hitters have almost no chance when facing him, one of the reasons that he has the best inherited runners percentage in the National League. (Marmol’s allowed only four of 39 inherited base-runners to score and has allowed a mere nine runs in over sixty-six innings pitched.) Pinellia has been very smart using him this year, not only limiting to one specific inning. If there’s a jam in the sixth, Marmol will pitch the sixth. If it’s in the eighth, he can come in then as well.
1-Mark DeRosa---
What can you say about this guy? He’s a few hits from hitting .300 (.295 right now), has more RBI than Alfonso Soriano, and has played five positions for the Cubs this season. When D-Lee was hurt, he played first. When Ramirez went out, he moved over to third. Cliff Floyd was banged up, so DeRosa got an out-fielder’s mitt and played right. I’m sure if one of the pitchers got sore, MD could probably fill in for them as well. And he’s been clutch as well. I don’t want to guess where the Cubs would be without DeRosa, but I’m sure it wouldn’t be first place.
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