WHO SHOULD I ROOT FOR? Part 5: THE NL CENTRAL (amendment)

A month ago I broke down the NL Central between the Cubs and the Brewers and used my typically faulty logic to root for the Brewers.

The Cardinals have to be included in the equation now. Hell, they are only 1 game back!

What are the circumstances that would make a Cardinals Division Title Cool?

1) The Rick Ankiel Factor:
It would be awesome if Rick Ankiel hit some big homers down the stretch... complete the Roy Hobbs circle and give his movie a great ending!

Extra credit if he knocks out the light tower!












2) The Dave Duncan Factor

Last year his pitching staff won it all without a closer and he turned Jeff Suppan, Anthony Reyes and Jeff Weaver into post season studs.

Yes... that Jeff Weaver.

For an encore he has Adam Wainwright and Braden Looper in the rotation, has turned Joel Pinero into an effective starter and has been winning despite Chris Carpenter and Mark Mulder spending most of the year on the DL, Kip Wells and Anthony Reyes going a combined 8-29 and one of his relievers dying.

Some wonder if he should go into the Hall of Fame.
I say award him the Nobel Prize.













3) The strangest dynasty ever factor

How will the Cardinals of the 2000s be remembered?
This has been a strange glorious decade for St. Louis.

They've only missed the playoffs one year this decade (2003) and have played in 5 NL Championship Series, 2 World Series and winning it all last year.

Yet their truly terrific teams underperformed (the 2002 team should have crushed the Giants, the 2004 team was embarrassed in the World Series by the Red Sox and the 2005 team was beaten by an inferior Astros team.)

And their weakest team won it all... and this team is worse. Why not give them a chance to be the worst back to back champ ever!










4) The Anarchy Factor

The race is so tight and filled with such uninspired baseball, that there could be that chance for the anarchy I so craved at the end of last year!

A chance for Milwaukee, Chicago and St. Louis to all end deadlocked... the panic that would create schedule wise... the "what ifs" that two fan bases would have all year...

It's too delicious. Like a plate of Linguini Carbonara...
I can't resist it!

I'm changing my vote!
I VOTE FOR ANARCHY!

Which ever team is behind, I'm rooting for.
I want a three way tie!

I want to see it once, just to see what will happen.
And they can't award a Wild Card to one of them... so this will be a pure 3 way, 1 goes on, 2 go home post regular season but pre post season conumdrum!

And that might be even more delicious than my mom's carbonara!