Breaking Down The Buccos

CF Chris Duffy - reminds me of Lenny Dykstra, without the steroids or car washes
SS Jack Wilson - will bounce back to '04 numbers; appendicitis derailed '05
1B Sean Casey - about 1/4 of the power of Brad Eldred, 4 times the contact
LF Jason Bay - .300-30-100
RF Jeromy Burnitz - why the "O"in Jeromy? It stands for "O" - 4.
3B Joe Randa - why is he always smiling? Because he got $4 mil from the Buccos
2B Jose Castillo - look for big jump here .280-15-70 is not out of the question.
C Ryan Doumit - plenty of power; should practice RF to make way for Neil Walker

RF/1B Craig Wilson - probably just got traded for a SP
IF Freddy Sanchez - not enough power for 3B? Randa hit 8 in '04....
IF Jose Hernandez - strikes out more than me at the Frog Pond
C Humbeto Cota - can't hit
OF Nate McLouth - better hitter than Duffy, might take the job from him soon



SP Oliver Perez - velocity improving?; either way, ERA will be at least 1.50 lower
SP Zack Duke - "Soph Slump" is played-out and cliche...I still think he'll have one
SP Paul Maholm - like Snell, will struggle at times; will take anything close to 4.00
SP Ian Snell - Ian Oquendo was a good pitcher, but Ian Snell is better.....
SP Victor Santos - waiting to get reassigned once Craig Wilson gets traded

CL Mike Gonzalez - at least Joe Table isn't closing anymore, he killed PA for 5 years.
RP Matt Capps - 6'3" 230lbs and and a 95mph heater...my new favorite Bucco
RP Solomon Torres - 2 year, 6.5mil extension....35 years old.....shoot me.
RP Roberto Herandez - good last year; look for '04 Phillies numbers this year though
RP Demaso Marte - will probably be traded at the deadline
RP Ryan Vogelsong - 3 stright years of ERA >6.5 before last year; dependable long relief

Assessment/Prediction - Not much power except for Jason Bay, which is why I think Brad Eldred at first with Sean Casey platooning with Craig Wilson in RF would be a better opton than Casey/Burnitz. And why Joe Randa? Jose Bautista should be playing 3b. The loss of Kip Wells hurts. Plug him into Santos' spot and it is a much more impressive staff. Bullpen is decent mix of youth and experience, Gonzalez is the real deal. Overall, plenty of young talent and getting rid of master game strategist Lloyd McClendon is worth at least 5 wins; I'm predicting 80-82 in the Central.

Corey