Carlos Boozer
What we said then:
The Bulls do well without him, but even better with him.
What went right:
Bulls finished with the best regular season record and went 9-2 in their first eleven playoff games.
What went wrong:Bulls lost four straight to make a speedy exit in the conference championship. Boozer/Noah failed to outplay Bosh/Haslem/Anthony - the match up that most considered the Bulls' biggest advantage.
What to expect:
Chicago fans are more patient than many other fan bases, but Boozer is in danger of being on the hot seat. Injuries are one thing, but subpar play at his salary is a whole other issue. When your highest paid player ($13.5 million) is sitting during crunch time, now you have a serious problem. Boozer will get a chance to prove himself this year. If anything, extra time off may be good for his injury-prone body. He is getting older and he must realize that he might never have a better opportunity to win a title as one of the key members on the team. I expect Boozer to come back strong, and surpass Deng as the second leading scorer on the team.
Carlos Lee
What we said then:
Good player who transforms into Albert Pujols against the Cubs.
What went right:
Hit .308 against the Cubs as the Astros won 4 of 6 matchups (their best record against any team). |
| The long-time Cubs nemesis and his Astros are having a season to forget. |
What went wrong:
Astros are the worst team in baseball, and Lee's on pace to have career lows in Home Runs and RBI's to go with his .264 batting average against non-Cubs.
We've probably seen the last of Carlos Lee as a dangerous hitter. Let's hope Hendry doesn't sign him this off season.
What we said then:
Potential stud who can't get past the injuries.
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| Not everyone on this list is a loser. |
The lone Carlos who over-achieved. The White Sox' only all-star (even though Konerko was much more deserving) is on pace for 33 home runs.
He probably would like to improve upon his .260 average, and even his .860 OPS, but he's moving in the right direction after the last two years.
The Sox are still in contention and GM Kenny Williams has demonstrated he is willing to make moves. If the Sox add a bat, and Adam Dunn remembers how to play baseball, then Chicago could have a very potent line up. This bodes well for Quentin, who would have less pressure and more opportunities with guys hitting around him.
Carlos SilvaWhat we said then:
The promise he's shown makes him an above average number 5 starter.
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| Why is that drunk fan carrying a mitt? |
What went right:
Um . . .What went wrong:
In short, everything. Played poorly in spring training. Demonstrated serious immaturity. Got into a dugout fight. Cut before opening day. At least he didn't injure himself sneezing or jumping out of the dugout.
What to expect:
Silva will probably never be a full-time starter at the major league level. Let Jim Hendry take it home:
"Obviously we're dealing with a man at this stage of his career who's not willing to face the facts. What he's done for the last few years in his career, except for a two-month period, is way below major league standards. And he seems to have the continual problem [of] blaming everybody but himself."
Ouch.
Carlos Peña
What we said then:
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| After a homerless April, Peña has 20 home runs in 63 games. |
His upside is great (2007). His downside can get ugly, but worst case scenario is that we have him for a year before taking a run a big-time free agent.
What went right:
He leads the Cubs in home runs, and his season resembles his efforts in '08 and '09, which is much better than last year's urinal puck.
What went wrong:
He's still hitting a deplorable .227, and if he stays healthy, has a change to set a new PB for most strike outs.
What to expect:
The Cubs will take a serious run a better first basemen, and only sign him if they can't get any other deals done.
Carlos Zambrano
What we said then:The ultimate lightning rod and polarizer in recent Cubs' history. His highs keep sucking us in, which makes his meltdowns sting even more. Statistically, he's shockingly consistent from year to year.
What went right:
Started out 4-1. Only Cubs starter with a winning record. Absolutely brilliant against San Diego early in the year.
What went wrong:
He has as many games allowing 5+ runs (6) as he does 1 or less runs (6).
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| Zambrano practicing his meltdowns during pre-game warm ups. |
What to expect:
It would seem that the Cubs are so far gone this year that there wouldn't be many situations left that could set Zambrano off, but let's not count it out. For some reason, Zambrano seems like he wants to stay in Chicago despite the spotted past here. Big Z and Chi-town are like a couple that's been in one too many fights. No matter what happens moving forward, the magic is gone.
That being said, Zambrano's best bet is to keep his mouth shut so that he's desirable to contending teams come the trade deadline. If Z does blow up, it will be after that date has come and gone with him still wearing blue pin stripes.
Carlos Marmol
What we said then:
Success as a set up man and one year as a closer bodes well for Carlos this year.
What went right:
19 saves at the break for a team that had only won 38 games.
What went wrong:
Major league-worst 7 blown saves. From May 29th to July 15th, his E.R.A went from a miniscule 1.17 to a bad-for-a-closer 3.80. That's difficult to do in only 19 2/3 innings.
What to expect:
Quade has said he will stick with Marmol. It's can't hurt. Expect to see Marshall from time to time, but Marmol will most likely still see most of the closes.
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| Thinking about the good old days. |
The Rest
Carlos Gonzalez (COL) is nowhere near his MVP-caliber season last year.
Carlos Fisher (CIN) is not much of a factor for the Reds.
Carlos Gomez (MIL) may end up in the minors before the year's done.
Carlos Beltran (NYM). He's numbers may not be flashy, but it's been 5 years since he's had this kind of production while staying off the DL. If you had said two years ago that "the Pirates may pick up Beltran at the trade dealine," I would have fallen out of my chair. Now it seems like a possibility. Beltran would be the eighth Beltran in the NL Central, leaving only the Cardinals Carlos-free. With the way things are going for the rest of them, I guess that makes St. Louis the favorite.
