Snakester's Cubs Dream Team

Big Red & I have been racking our brains trying to figure out a way to do an interesting list or post on sports. Big Red, being the creative one, decided we should fill out our all time Cubs teams. The rule was that it had to be players we saw play, so basically mid 80's to present. We will also follow with our nightmare teams. This was an incredibly fun list to make that brought back alot of memories. Hopefully I do these guys justice.

C: Joe Giradi - I don't remember him doing anything too spectacular but he was a good hard nose player. I guess the stereotypical catcher of the day. He played hard and did the right thing. Maybe 5 - 10 years from now this could likely change to Geovany Soto, but it is a little soon for that.

1B: Mark Grace - He was my hero through most of my youth and I always tried to wear #17 in honor of him. I even named my daughter Grace. I played first in high school and spent every game watching how he fielded and trying to emulate his swing (despite being right handed). As much as he was Mr. Cub in his day, he probably was a big reason they never won big either. It is hard to have a corner infielder with no power numbers but he was a lock for .300 BA and 50+ doubles. Hard to turn that down.

2B: Ryne Sandberg - This was going to be my son's name until I found out we were having a girl. Most of my memories are from later in his career but he could still play. Although I remember our high school coach yelling at our infielders to quit trying to Sandberg ground balls off to the side. Really there hasn't been another second basemen that lasted much more than a year since.

3B: Aramis Ramirez - Third base has been a sore subject in Cubdom for many years. I remember Vance Law for some reason. But I have seen Aramis mature into a good fielder from the time he came over. Aside from his recent playoff struggles he seems to get the big hits and I just like his look out there.

SS: Ryan Theriot - I have been a huge supporter of The Riot since I first saw him playing a couple years ago. Shawn Dunston was a great player but really Theriot is the kind of short stop a winning team needs. He goes to right field, plays great D and hustles. I would have loved to see him turning DPs with Ryno in his heyday!

RF: Sammy Sosa - For everything he did wrong, he did alot of stuff right. Sosa was my hero for a long time. I will never forget June of 1998. I still feel bad for how sour things got at the end of his stay and was glad to see that he could come back and play with the Rangers a few seasons ago. He carried them to the playoffs in '98 and was a big force in 2003. Plus you gotta love the sprint out to right field. Sorry Andre.

CF: Jerome Walton - This was probably the hardest position to work on. IMO the Cubs have never had a good center field, at least more than a year. I remember when Jerome won Rookie of the Year so I guess that puts him #1. Doug Glanville, Doug Dacenzo, Brian McRae etc all seemed to have like 1 decent year and that was it. Juan Pierre was better than people gave him credit for too. Maybe I should have put Kenny Lofton in here for his work in '03. Obviously this is and continues to be a weak spot for the Cubs.

LF: Moises Alou - Despite being an asshole (IMO), he is probably the best to cover left field in Wrigley. Soriano is good but Moises is better in every category except maybe speed. He has always been a professional hitter and good in the clutch. Henry Rodriguez almost snuck into this spot but really it is hard to say anyone is better than Alou.

Starting Pitchers: Kerry Wood (98 to 03), Greg Maddux, Rick Sutcliffe, Steve Trachsel & Carlos Zambrano - The Cubs all had these guys in some of their prime. Sutcliffe might have been a little old by the time he got to Chicago but he still put in alot of good years. Trachsel could be frustrating at times but I am giving him a nod for alot of pretty years through the '90s on some really bad Cubs teams. Kerry Wood is probably the best of all of them during his prime. I often wonder though if Maddux would have ended up as good as he was if he stayed in Chicago.

Relief Pitchers: Hecliffe Solcumb, Paul Assemacher, Chuck McElroy & Carlos Marmol - This is a rough position. You really didn't have like bullpen specialist until maybe the mid '90s really. I kinda went with names that I really remember being good. McElroy even had a brief stint as the main closer too (or stopper as they called them). I think if you were to look at their Cubs stats, this would be a good grouping.

Closer: Joe Borowski - Here is where I really go out on a limb. I remember lots of stressful 9th innings with Joe on the mound but he got the job done despite having like no stuff. I really don't remember the Cubs ever having a lights out closer. Wood is probably the closest to that right now if he can keep it going. So I pay my respect to a guy that has gutted out his career and really defies the odds. Which when you think about it that is what any winning Cubs teams really is doing, defying the odds.

Utility Outfielder: Glenallen Hill - I always loved watching this guy hit, it was so effortless. A quick snap of the wrist and the ball was gone. He hit the longest home run I have ever seen @ Wrigley, onto the rooftops across Waveland Ave. He was always a threat anytime he came to bat and was serviceable in the outfield for the most part.

Utility Infield: Randal Simon & Mickey Morandini - Mickey might have started quite a few games but I always thought he was better suited to be a fill in guy, he seemed scrappy. Both of these guys are lefties which is good off the bench. Randal is a hacker. I never really saw him strikeout. It seemed like he battled every time he came to the plate. I seem to remember like a 10-12 pitch at bat against one of the Marlins top pitchers in '03 during a tight situation where he finally came through with a hit to right field. I was just always excited when they let him play.

Manager: Don Zimmer - The late '80s was when I got old enough to understand what was happening with the Cubs and they were Zimmer's crew then. To me he will always personify the Cubs and a good baseball mentality. I found myself rooting for the Yankees just because he was a bench coach and I wanted him to win.

Pitching Coach: Larry Rothschild - It is hard to think of a better one out there. He is reserved in the manner that you look at him and know that he knows what he is doing. He survived some horrible years for a reason. The current staff has made the transitions that they did for a reason. I would want him on my side.