[ThePundit]

Ken Davidoff of Newsday agrees with me on the Brew Crew.

It's arguably baseball's worst division, yet it has the defending world champion. Gotta love small sample sizes. In any case, those reigning champs, the St. Louis Cardinals, lost a significant amount of talent after the celebration, and they'll be facing challengers to the west, east and north.

In this division this season, 83 victories could get you the title (as it did last year for St. Louis), and 75 wins could place you fourth.

The Cardinals are masters at reloading, with general manager Walt Jocketty, manager Tony La Russa and pitching coach Dave Duncan turning over personnel the way Paris Hilton goes through significant others. This season, nevertheless, promises to be particularly challenging. Seven pitchers made at least 13 starts for the 2006 Cardinals, and only three - Chris Carpenter, Mark Mulder and Anthony Reyes - are on the 2007 roster. And Mulder, recovering from rotator-cuff surgery on his left shoulder, might not be back until the second half. Albert Pujols might have to carry an even greater load this season.

The NL Championship Series Most Valuable Player, Jeff Suppan, stayed within the division, signing with Milwaukee, and the Brewers seem poised for a breakout season. They have starting rotation depth, even if Ben Sheets endures another injury-plagued campaign, and they have an experienced catcher in Johnny Estrada to handle that rotation. There's enough here to make you think the Brewers finally could become relevant again.

The Astros lost Andy Pettitte back to the Yankees, and they'll once again wait patiently on Roger Clemens. But they backed up ace Roy Oswalt with a pair of veterans in Jason Jennings and Woody Williams, and just as important, they upgraded their long-dormant offense by signing Carlos Lee to a six-year, $100-million contract. It would help Houston if it finally produced a respectable first half so it wouldn't have to rely on a trademark late surge.

The Cubs made the most noise in all of baseball during the winter, spending nearly $300 million on talent. New manager Lou Piniella brings so much energy to the party, and Alfonso Soriano is bound to win a few games with his bat. Nevertheless, the pitching staff is thin, which means the forecast calls for periodic Sweet Lou eruptions.

The Pirates and Reds are afterthoughts, for good reason. Give the Pirates the edge because they seem to have better young talent.

STATLINE: The Cubs; all-time home run leader is Sammy Sosa with 545. "Mr. Cub", Ernie Banks, is second with 512.

NL Central: Perhaps Brewers finally can rise - Newsday.com

[Lefty Noob]

Originally Posted by Lefty Noob

NL East
1. Braves
2. Mets -- Wild Card
3. Phillies -- Most Overrated
4. Marlins
5. Nationals

Well, I know it's still early... but they Phillies sure are proving me right thus far.

According to the AP, "The team to beat in the NL East was simply beat up. Chuck James pitched five solid innings, Kelly Johnson hit a two-run homer and the Atlanta Braves completed a three-game sweep with an 8-4 victory over Philadelphia Phillies on Thursday... When Jimmy Rollins boldly proclaimed in January that the Phillies should be favorites to win the division, the three-time All-Star shortstop certainly didn't expect an 0-3 start at home."

[EmpireWF]

How about your Buccos there Lefty? I know the Astros aren't as strong as they've been in the recent past but a three game sweep?

[Lefty Noob]

Originally Posted by EmpireWF

How about your Buccos there Lefty? I know the Astros aren't as strong as they've been in the recent past but a three game sweep?

Call me 'cautiously optimistic"... they're playing a lot better than I expected, but I'm not ready to get all too fired up just yet. The young guys on the hill are further along than I expected, that's for sure. First time in 4 year's we've been 3-0, so here's hoping they prove me wrong!