Yes folks, it's true. Albert Pujols was once again screwed over in the Most Valuable Player votings. Ryan Howard has become the new Barry Bonds (except Howard doesn't use steroids, is not a jerk and the world's biggest ####): stealing the MVP away from the real Most Valuable Player. Not getting your team in the playoffs and just having an offense kind of year. What did Albert Pujols do? He led his team to the playoffs while having a career year and winning a gold glove. Don't let me just opinionate you away, let me provide you with some cold hard facts.
     Pujols had an oblique injury in the middle of the season and that prevented his numbers from being better, but that has nothing to do with the voting. I'm just letting everyone know that before I tell you this stat: Howard played in 16 more games than Pujols. In fact, this was the first year Pujols was on the disabled list..and that's in 5+ years. Ok, so here's the breakdown of the numbers:
Howard had 58 homeruns, 149 RBI, 108 walks, 181 strikeouts and had a .313 batting average.
Pujols had 49 homeruns, 137 RBI, 92 walks, 50 strikeouts and had a .331 batting average.
Howard's slugging, on-base and OPS (On-base + slugging) percentages were: .659/.425/1.082.
Pujols numbers for those categories were: .671/.431/1.102.
Howard led his team to a second place finish in both the East division and the Wild Card.
Pujols led his team to a first place finish, ended a possible third eight game losing streak and to a World Series championship (although, the post season doesn't get involved in the voting).
     Now who's valuable? Is Howard more valuable because he didn't carry his team to the playoffs while only leading Pujols in three categories: walks (16), HR (9) and RBI (12)? I mean, those numbers aren't really far apart. Howard also led Pujols in strikeouts with 131 more, whereas Pujols had 42 less strikeouts than walks, and thats hard to do. Just look at these blatent facts folks, Pujols was once screwed out of the MVP. Last year, most Cardinals fans thought he would be screwed out of it again because Jones had over 50 homeruns and Derek Lee had the batting title. He won last year, beating out a 50+ homerun guy. He should have done it this year. Heck, I would have rather seen Lance Berkman get the MVP rather than Howard. At least Berkman led his team on a charge to the central title. What did Howard do? Keep a team that was still in tact together? Everyone says he took over the team when Bobby Abreu was traded. Hate to break it to you folks, Abreu wasn't leading the team BEFORE he was traded, it was Howard all year long. Just remember these numbers. The evidence is clear: nuts and bolts, nuts and bolts, Albert got SCREWED!

***I know MVP voting was a while back, but I have been swamped with homework lately, so I never had time to write this. Enjoy and leave comments***

     The St. Louis Cardinals have Albert Pujols and Chris Carpenter. That's what most people say. For us Cardinal fans, we say differently. Sure, we have the reigning MVP and Cy Young Award winners, but we also have Scott Rolen, Jim Edmonds, Yadier Molina, David Eckstein and Juan Encarnacion. There is, however, one more thing that has been added to that list and that is the bullpen. The past two years we've had the best bullpen in the majors. This year, everyone knew the Cardinals bullpen wasn't as good as it has been. Without Ray King and Julian Taverez, it shouldn't be. Instead, the Cardinals started from scratch. They started with Jason Isringhausen, Randy Flores and Brad Thompson. They filled the spots with Ricardo Rincon, Josh Hancock, Adam Wainwright and Braden Looper. Now, Rincon and Isringhausen are gone because of injuries. Now, they filled those two roles with Josh Kinney and Tyler Johnson, both rookies. Lets break down the young pen and show you how they are doing it.
     First, lets start with the guy that was there last year and did great, started bad this year and finished good: Brad Thompson. Thompson has got a sinking fastball, groundball pitcher. He doesn't over dominate you, but he'll get the job done. He gets mostly grounders to get you out, and he does it well. He started the season good but in the middle became really rocky when the bullpen fell apart. He was sent to Triple A Memphis to be a starter and work out the kinks, which he did. Since coming back up, Thompson appeared in 10 games in the regular season (the end of August and all of Spetember and October) and had a 1.13 ERA. In the postseason so far, he's appeared in two games and pitched one inning combined for a 0.00 ERA and one strikeout and one walk. Not bad. Thompson, before last year, was thought of as a future number 5 starter come 2007. Now, I don't think Tony La Russa and Dave Duncan want him pitching every fifth day because he's become so good out of the bullpen. This is one pitcher that has the bright lights of fame in front of him.
     Adam Wainwright is the new closer for the Cardinals. He started the year in Spring Training competeing with Sidney Ponson and Anthony Reyes for the fifth starter job. Wainwright was considered a long shot. At the end of Spring Training, Ponson was the number five starter, Reyes was at Memphis and Wainwright was in the bullpen. The bullpen? Wasn't this guy considered a long shot? He was a long shot, but the Cardinals needed help in the bullpen, and Wainwright got the job over Reyes because of Reyes' lack of warming up in a hurry and if the Cardinals needed Reyes for the rotation, he'd be ready by starting at Memphis. So, Wainy was in the pen working some good innings and pitched great. He pitched in 51 games before Spetember and had a 2.84 ERA. Thats impressive. E####ally for a guy who'll be in the starting rotation next year. When he was still pitching in relief, then moved to being a setup man then moved into the closer's role in September, he posted a 2.79 ERA over 10 games and was 2 out of 2 in saves. In the postseason, he's gone four and a third innings over four games and is 1 out of 1 in saves and has yet to allow a run. Way to go Wainy!
     Tyler Johnson was a nasty lefthander that was taken in the Rule V draft in 2004 by the Oakland Athletics. The Cardinals knew he would taken because he was so good, but they didn't have room for him on their 40 man roster. The Athletics though returned him and the Cardinals then added him to thier 40 man roster because they didn't want to lose him again. When Rincon went down early, it was Johnson that got the call, not Carmen Cali (who is now basically done in the Cardinals organization). Johnson pitched ok to start with, then got rocky and then pitched amazing. He ended the year with a 4.95 ERA over 56 games. In the postseason, he's showed why he's so good. Todd Walker of the San Diego Padres said his slider (his best pitch) is the nastiest thing he has ever seen. He also has a very good fastball and can get the lefties out in a hurry. He can also dominate the right handed batters if he comes in with that slider. He is key kog to this revamped bullpen.
     Last, but certainly not least, is Josh Kinney. First off, let me say Kinney pitched at Quincy Unniversity during his college years and QU is my hometown's college, so I like Kinney more than anyone else (Josh Rabe of the Minnesota Twins also played at QU). Kinney was pitching with an independent league team a few years ago when the Cardinals found him. They persuaded him to come into their organization. He did, and he's flourished. He wasn't at Spring Training and he has bounced around all over the Cardinals organization, but has finally made it. He is the setup man to the new closer Wainwright and has pitched well since his recall from Memphis. When he first came up, he had a 4.97 ERA over his first 10 games and was sent down. When Spetember came along, he got recalled and proved he was better than what he showed in July. He pitched in 10 games and had a 1.97 ERA in Spetember and October and has pitched extremely well in the postseason so far: 3 games, 0.00 ERA, 2 Ks, 2 BB in 3 innings. Not bad at all.
     Now that you know how good these four have been, think about next year. Hancock and Looper will be back and Isringhausen will be healthy. Johnson and Flores will still be the dynamic duo against lefties and Kinney will be out there as well. Wainy will be in the rotation. That's six guys. Know what that means? They can either sign a veteren (maybe Kerry Wood? Great fastball, former starter. He could be a good setup man) or callup Mark Worrell. The possibilities are endless right now.

     Now that the season is over, we can finally start making real predictions for all of the awards. Now, there are so many hard picks, this will not be easy; however, I'll do my best. Before I start though, I will only say who wins and why they do. Then I'll do a little blurb after the winner on who was passed up with the place they finished in after their name in (). Ok, MVP time. The National League goes first because obviously the National League is better than the American League.

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER 2006
NATIONAL LEAGUE: ALBERT PUJOLS, ST. LOUIS CARDINALS
This is a no doubter folks. Who lifted the St. Louis Cardinals into the playoffs? Albert Pujols. Who didn't? Ryan Howard. Who ended a possible third eight game losing streak for the Cardinals? Albert Pujols. The guy is obvious pick. Sorry Philly fans. Ryan Howard does deserve the Most Outstanding player, no doubt; however, the Most VALUABLE Player is the guy that carries you into the postseason, not carries your luggage to the terminal for a flight home.
SORRY TO: Howard (2nd), Carlos Beltran (3rd)
AMERICAN LEAGUE: JUSTIN MORNEAU, MINNESOTA TWINS
There is no denying that Morneau wins the MVP for the AL. Without him, the Twins never would have won the division (or go to the postseason for that matter). The guy made the Twins go. Sure, say Johan Santanna made them go, but he led the pitching staff. He led the pitching staff last year too and and "made them go" home. So, obviously Santanna can't do it alone. This is where Moneau came in and won the MVP award and stole it from other deserving players.
SORRY TO: David Ortiz (2nd), Derek Jeter (3rd), Frank Thomas (4th), Santanna (5th), Jim Thome (6th), Jermaine Dye (7th)

CY YOUNG AWARD 2006
NATIONAL LEAGUE: CHRIS CARPENTER, ST. LOUIS CARDINALS
Yes folks, it's a clean sweep for the Cardinals again. Carp was very dominate all year long. Sure, he had some struggles along the way, but he did towards the end of the year last year. This year, though, can be blamed on a inconsistent bullpen. Because of that pen, Tony La Russa was forced to leave Carp out there on an empty tank at the end of the year and his numbers suffered. Although, a 15-8 record and 3.09 earned run average is pretty damn good.
SORRY TO: Roy Oswalt (2nd), Brad Penny (3rd), Carlos Zambrano (4th)
AMERICAN LEAGUE: JOHAN SANTANNA, MINNESOTA TWINS
Another sweep, this time for the Twins. Santanna carried the Twins pitching yet again. He was the MLB leader in all three pitching Triple Crown categories (ERA, Wins and Ks). This guy is dominant and when he took the mound, you know you were gonna win.
SORRY TO: Barry Zito (2nd), Justin Verlander (3rd), Kenny Rogers (4th)

MANAGER OF THE YEAR
NATIONAL LEAGUE: JOE GIRARDI, FLORIDA MARLINS
It's a shame what happened to Girardi. Get stuck with a bunch of rookies, be predicted to win less games than the Kansas City Royals and end up with a 78-84 record then get fired because he strained relations with the front office? Thats gotta blow. Girardi, though, gets the last laugh. He'll be interviewing for jobs left and right and has the Manager of the Year award for 2006 to put on his resume. The Marlins were foolish to let him go, and they'll more than likely regret it. The question is though: How long will Gonzalez last in Florida?
SORRY TO: Charlie Manuel (2nd), Grady Little (3rd), Bruce Bochy (4th), Phil Garner (5th), Tony La Russa (6th)
AMERICAN LEAGUE: JIM LEYLAND, DETROIT TIGERS
In his first year in Florida, he won a World Series. In his first year with Detroit, he almost pulled of the greatest upset: win the division and knock out the White Sox. Part 2 came through, but they didn't win the division. Thats ok though. Mr. Miracle came through and guided the Tigers to their first playoff berth in 19 years and did it while everyone was telling him his team wasn't good enough. Who's laughing now?
SORRY TO: Ron Gardenhire (2nd), Ken Macha (3rd)
NOT SORRY TO: Joe Torre (30th)

And there you have it folks, your 2006 awards. I only did these three because they are the most important, and the MVP has had a lot of debate behind it this year. So, there you go and I hope you enjoy!

     Let this be known right away, I am not a Red Sox fan or a Yankee fan. I cannot stand the American League East, or the American League for that matter. So don't think I'm a homer. Since that is now known, I can finally type my story. Theo Epstein has an ok team in front of him, but he really needs to do something else. He needs to address about every part of his roster this offseason. Here's what the Red Sox need to do in order to keep pace with the Yankees next season. Some of these moves probably won't happen, but they can work.
     ANDRUW JONES: The Braves want to resign. Jones wants to stay a Brave. Does this mean this will happen? No. Could it? Yes. The Braves don't really have enough money to reisgn Jones after this season, and if Jones goes to Beantown, he could make a lot of money. Plus, the Braves could benefit a lot from a trade of Jones. They could trade Jones to Boston for Coco Crisp (to play left field and leadoff), Mike Lowell, Kason Gabbard and Manny Delcarmen. Now, you ask why trade a center fielder for a left fielder? Simple, the Braves need someone out in left that is good. Also, Crisp could be their leadoff man (or Edgar Renteria could take that spot). They just need to bump Marcus Giles from the leadoff spot. He's not comfortable there, and everyone knows it. This could also be beneficial because that will allow the Braves to sign Torii Hunter (if he's a free agent) to play center. Their lineup would get a big boost. Gabbard could be in the rotation for the Braves in the second half of next season (starting at Triple A) and all of 2008. Delcarmen could be out in the bullpen and help out their to bridge the gap to Bob Wickman. Lowell would be good for Chipper Jones. Jones and Lowell are getting up there in age and their play is starting to show it. If you platoon these two, their injuries could be done and both could impact the club.
     For the Red Sox, they get a great hitting center fielder whose bat has finally come alive in recent years. Jones is also a super defender and is a big boost over Coco Crisp and anyone else that they put out in center.
     BARRY ZITO: The Red Sox have an ok rotation. They'll have Josh Beckett (inconsistent), Curt Schilling (old and inconsistent), Jon Lester, Jon Papelbon, Matt Clement and Tim Wakefield. All of those pitchers are either young, old, consistent or a combonation of some. Thats not good enough to compete with the Yankees offense (they have a pitching staff other than Wang and Johnson?). They need to add a boost. That's where Zito comes in. Zito can fit in nicely in this rotation as the number one starter. That'll put these pitchers following Zito: Beckett, Schilling, Paplebon and Lester. This lets the pitchers know where they stand in relation to their peers so they can pitch better. If you're told you're the ace of the staff, that can mess with your head if you've never been one before. Schilling can't carry this staff anymore and Beckett is Beckett. Zito is needed to keep this rotation together. This also makes Wakefield and Clement expandable to trade off for some pitching help. They really don't have a closer, unless Keith Foulke or Craig Hansen and take the duty. Look at this bullpen: Foulke, Hansen, Mike Timlin and Julian Taverez. Is that threatening? Not really. They really need to add some people. They can look to teams that have a lot of youth coming up, that way they don't care if they give up some veterens. They could also look to signing Joe Borowski to help build a bridge, maybe even be the closer. Eric Gagne will be available, maybe they could go there. No matter what they do, they need to stock the bullpen along with adding Zito to help improve this offense.
     GARY SHEFFIELD & MARK LORETTA: Yes folks, Gary Sheffield. Sheffield is getting old, but based on the other night, the guy can still hit when healthy. To help keep him healthy, the Yankees moved Sheffield to first. Well, the Red Sox just traded off Lowell. Remember? The Red Sox really want to move Kevin Youkilis back to third, and thats why they traded Mike Lowell. This allows them to move Youkilis to third and sign Sheffield to play first. Look at that, their defense is almost completed. They just need to resign Loretta. They did have a middle infield combo coming up in Hanley Ramirez and Dustin Pedroia, but they traded Ramirez. This leaves Pedroia, who has and can play second and short. This is big. They can move him to short and keep Loretta to play second and their defense has taken a big leap. Also, their offense has as well. We have one more move, then I'll show you the updated lineup.
     GEOFF JENKINS: Yes folks, Jenkins. Sure, he's not great anymore, but neither is Trot Nixon. Thaats why I'm letting Nixon go and I'm trading two Single A players to the Milwaukee Brewers for Jenkins. Jenkins, en turn, will play in a platoon with Wily Mo Pena and Manny Ramirez. Pena is good enough to play everyday, but he needs to be kept fresh. With this platoon, he'll play about 100 games (three out of five games he plays) and Jenkins would play about 62 games in right. Then, he'd also be used to give Ramirez a day off. Meaning, he'd play about 20 games in left. He could also be used in the DH spot as well, once in a while.
     Ok, so here's the new lineup that I would put out there everyday:
SS  Pedoria
RF  Pena/Jenkins
DH  David Ortiz
LF   Ramirez
CF  Jones
 C   Jason Varitek
1B  Sheffield
3B  Youkilis
2B  Loretta
Thats a pretty good looking lineup right there. Speed and on-base percentage at the top, then comes a very good power supply with the 2-5. Then comes some good hitters with the 6-8. Then, it's your second leadoff man in the ninth spot to get it back to the top of the lineup.
     Now, that sounds like a very productive offseason. What do you think?

     Yes folks, it's true. The Cincinnati Reds are stacked up for the 2007 season. They made a real attempt to compete in 2006, but they knew it was a long shot. Now, they're looking forward to 2007. They have a real chance next year. Lets look at what the Reds have done this year to build for next year.
     First and most importantly, the Reds hired someone that knew what he was doing to run the club in the front office, General Manager Wayne Krivsky. Krivsky spent all of his years in Minnesota, a place where all they do is develop young talneted players. Krivsky came in and addressed the Reds needs as fast as he could. He added Bronson Arroyo, Brandon Phillips and David Ross. These three have been key aquisitions. Phillips has been spectacular at second, offensivly. On defense, he's been average with 14 errors. Ross has been hitting the snot out of the ball and has finally been named the everyday catcher for the Reds.
     Bronson Arroyo pitched great, in the first half. His season stats look this: 12-9, 3.33 ERA, 1.21 WHIP. In the first half, his stats were: 9-6, 3.12 ERA, 1.18 WHIP. Since the All-Star break, 3-3, 3.70 ERA, 1.25 WHIP. Those numbers since the break are decent, but not great (like before the break). This guy was suppose to be the ace of the staff. Instead, that has fallen upon Aaron Harrang, yet again. This guy has been the head of the staff for years. To make a long story short, Arroyo needs to step up next year and be the number guy everyone knows he can be.
     Kyle Lohse was a good pickup and can be a decent number four guy in the rotation. Eric Milton is a number three pitcher. Do you see something? There's no legimate ace of the staff here that can set the rest of the pitchers in place. I mean, look at the Marlins, Cardinals, Mets and Yankees. They all have that ace that can set the rotation in place. The Reds need someone like that, and I assure you Krivsky will be shopping for plenty free agent pitchers. Thats his basic need. His bullpen is pretty set. You, hopefully, have Eddie Guardado coming back next year to be your closer. You've got Dave Weathers and Todd Coffey to be the setup men in front of the lefty. Rheal Cormier as the lefty specialist and Ryan Franklin to be a long relief guy out of the pen. All they need is a guy that can face both lefties and righties equally and is a power arm (Kerry Wood?) to make this bullpen complete. Plus, yoiu have Gary Majewski and Bill Bray to make the bullpen better.
     The offense is together. All you need is a shortstop (because Royce Clayton SUCKS). You can entrust right field to Ryan Freel and make him your leadoff hitter. Another thing you can do is go spend money and add that ace for the staff and a power outfielder (to compliment Adam Dunn and Ken Griffey, Jr.). This of course means you move Dunn to first and LEAVE HIM THERE. He's a liability in the outfield. So, your order kind of looks like this: Freel, RF; Shortstop; Dunn, 1B; Power Left Fielder; Griffey, CF; Ross, C; Edwin Encarnacion, 3B; Phillips, 2B; pitcher. Thats a dangerous lineup (no matter what power left fielder they add). Then, all of the sudden, your team is rebuilt and refueled and ready to make a real run in 2007. The 2006 team was a good start, now they just have to build on it.

     That's right folks, the Detroit Tigers actually have something to build on for the coming years. They have an unbelieveable farm system, a great manager and a lot of talent at the Major League level.
     Lets first look at the youth the Tigers have. Of course, we HAVE to start with Justin Verlander. The kid is a BEAST. He can throw 100 mph and has great command. He has good offspeed stuff as well to keep hitters on their toes and fool them. Joel Zumaya is another flamethrower. The kid is destined for 400 saves. He throws 100 mph as well, with great offspeed stuff. He also has energy and makes you wonder where he's going to throw that 102 mph fastball: over the plate or in your ear. Andrew Miller is another one of those young studs. He'll probably start the year at Double A next year, but don't let that fool you. He has some nasty stuff and a great fastball. He was drafted this year out of North Carolina and helped carry the Tarheels to a College World Series victory. Here's another great young pitching stud: Humberto Sanchez. He has the Brad Lidge combo of the devestating fastball and the wicked slider. Also, he'll keep ya on your toes too with his changeup. Remember Jeremy Bonderman and Nate Robertson too folks, they're your 1-2 punch ahead of the young guns. That now leads me to this: Ladies and gentleman, I introduce to you your 2008 Tigers starting rotation and closer.
     Curtis Granderson, Marcus Thames, Brandon Inge, Craig Monroe and Chris Shelton are just the beginning. Cameron Maybin is one of the best center field prospects in the game. This gives the Tigers an oportunity to add athletisim to the top of their lineup and use Thames and Monroe as the LF/DH. Oh yeah, Maybin was taken in the 2005 draft, 10th overall. Thats right folks, maybe all those years of losing maybe helped the Tigers win? I think so!
     The Rule 5 draft is a great way to find talent. Ask the Florida Marlins. They plucked Dan Uggla away from the Arizona Diamondbacks and he is now the record holder of the most RBI ever by a rookie in Marlins' history. There was also Johan Santana. He was taken from the Houston Astros and added to the Minesota Twins. No more explanation is needed for that one. They snached Shelton from the Pirates, Wilfredo Ledezma from the Boston Red Sox.
     So, Tiger fans, rest easy. Your future is secure and nothing will screw it up.

***Information for this article was taken from Dayn Perry's Tigers Will Be Winners For Years to Come. Photos were taken from the Google search engine.

     Carlos Lee was involved in the biggest blockbuster deal of the summer. Danys Baez was traded to the Atlanta Braves. Both of these moves were great moves. The Milwaukee Brewers added yet another setup man in Francisco Cordero, he might even close if Turnbow continues his struggles and a new left fielder in Kevin Mench. The Braves added a utility infielder in Willy Aybar and a setup man in Baez for only Wilson Betemit. This is good news for the Braves, great news for the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Braves finally have a guy to pitch the eigth and get the ball to new closer Bob Wickman. The great upside for the Dodgers is, they have a future third baseman in Betemit and they can move Cesar Izturis to second base.
     The Texas Rangers have enough money to retain Lee, if they so choose. With the newly aquired outfiled prospect Nelson Cruz, they could devide to let Lee walk and save some money. No matter what happens, the Rangers added a huge bat for the middle of the struggling order and they didn't trade any of their prospects for Lee. Why is that good? They can now go out and maybe add a starting pitcher. Say, Livan Hernandez? No matter who they want, they can more than likely add a starting pitcher.

     Dayton Moore was hired as the new Kansas City Royals General Manager. He has taken many steps to turning this franchise around. In fact, the Royals might have an outside shot of being 20 games under .500 or better. Now, that doesn't sound big, but it is. It really is for the Royals. Moore traded off for a very good center fielder that never got a shot in Tampa Bay. His name: Joey Gathright. That move bumped David DeJesus over to left field. Do you know what this means? They have two center fielders in their outfield. <km>
     Here's another step the Royals and Moore need to take. There is no way they will make the playoffs with the Chicago White Sox, Detroit Tigers, New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, Toronto Blue Jays, Oakland Athletics, Texas Rangers and the LA Angels battling for the division titles and Wild Card. So, this season is a lost cause. Or is it? Who says it has to be a complete lost cause? Sure they can't get to the playoffs, but they can give the young guys of the future a look. They have some trade bait. Reggie Sanders, Matt Stairs, Mark Redman, Mark Grudzielanek, Scott Elarton, Tony Graffanino and Doug Mientkiewicz. They can trade these guys off within the next two weeks. They have a solid back of the bullpen to build on (Mike MacDougal and Ambiorix Burgos) and a good farm system. They can trade Mientkiewicz and Redman off for some young pitching to go along with Jimmy Gobble, Bobby Keppel (at Triple-A) and Zach Grienke (if he ever comes back). Also, if the Royals can sign their first overall pick, Luke Hochevar, that makes a fourth possible starter. Then if they can add another starter or two in some trades, they're in good shape. They also have Mike Wood. The depth is getting bigger.
     Basically, what I'm saying is, the Royals have a great farm system. They just never tapped into it. Now, they have to. Mark Teahen can move from third base to the designated hitters role. This opens a spot for Alex Gordon. They can also trade Sanders, opening a spot for Billy Butler. Another move, already stated, is to trade Mientkiewicz to open a spot for Justin Huber. Donnie Murphy, Angel Sanchez and Andres Blanco are waiting for Gurdzielanek and Graffanino to leave town so they can come up.
     Something else they could think of doing is adding a young catcher in a trade.
     See, when you think about it, the Royals aren't in horrible shape. They look like it, but with Moore running the show now, you'll see the Royals in contention in 2008 or 2009...maybe even 2007. People said the Florida Marlins wouldn't be in contention, but look at them.