Chicago Cubs - The Bush Era (2000-2009)

Cubs
Home
Click
on Logo

2000

Decade

Click

on Logo

Titles:

Top Cubs Players of the Twenty Oughts

2003 - Won Division, Lost NLCS to Florida

2007 - Won Division, Lost NLDS to Arizona

Pitchers:

2008 - Won Division, Lost NLDS to Dodgers

Carlos Zambrano (34.34) - 72

Kerry Wood (21.71) - 41

Ballpark:

Ryan Dempster (12.48) - 39

Wrigley Field

Ted Lilly (13.06) - 30

Jon Lieber (10.55) - 29

Team Name:

Greg Maddux (7.39) - 27

Cubs

Mark Prior (15.76) - 25

Matt Clement (11.02) - 22

Owners:

Jason Marquis (3.23) - 13

The Tribune Company (2000-2008)

Kevin Tapani (2.3) - 11

Thomas Ricketts (2009)

Randy Wells (4.46) - 9

Rich Hill (4.48) - 7

General Managers:

Rich Harden (5.06) - 6

Ed Lynch (2000)

Carlos Marmol (6.04) - 6

Andy MacPhail (2000-2001)

Jim Hendry (2002-2009)

Catchers:

Michael Barrett (5.98) - 25

Managers:

Geovanny Soto (4.34) - 15

Don Baylor (2000-2002)

Rene Lachemann (2002)

First Basemen:

Bruce Kimm (2002)

Derek Lee (22.01) - 46

Dusty Baker (2003-2006)

Lou Piniella (2007-2009)

Second Basemen:

Eric Young (4.55) - 18

Hall of Famers:

Todd Walker (2.3) - 16

Greg Maddux

Mark DeRosa (3.97) - 14

Rookie of the Year:

ShortStop:

Goevanny Soto (2008)

Ryan Theriot (6.23) - 27

Alex Gonzalez (1.33) - 15

MVP

Ricky Gutierrez (3.88) - 12

None

Neifi Perez (4.02) - 8

Cy Young:

Third Base:

None

Aramis Ramirez (21.99) - 52

No Hitters:

Outfield:

Carlos Zambrano (2008)

Sammy Sosa (25.74) - 59

Corey Patterson (3.72) - 30

Notable Events:

Alfonso Soriano (4.66) - 27

Moises Alou (5.29) - 19

2000 - Chicago enters the decade coming off of a last place

Kosuke Fukudome (2.65) - 12

67 win season in '99. They are an aging team with seven of eight

Jacque Jones (1.57) - 12

starting position players, two starting pitchers and their closer all

Juan Pierre (1.99) - 10

over thirty years old. The Cubs then proceed to win only 65 games in

2000. Not a very promising scenario movng forward for the Oughts for

Notable Events:

Chicago. Players on the 2000 roster that could be considered keepers

(barely) moving forward:

2004 - First Baseman Derek Lee is obtained from Florida

□ Corey Patterson, 20, centerfield

in exchange for first baseman Hee Seop Choi

□ Kerry Wood, 23, pitcher

□ Kyle Farnsworth, 24, relief pitcher

2004 - the Cubs gain one game on 2003 but drop to third in

the standings. Greg Maddux returns and Aramis Ramirez

2001 - Righthander Carlos Zambrano, 20, joins the club. He

and Moises Alou have big years, but an injury to Mark Prior

was signed as an International Free Agent from Venezuela

and Joe Borowski's return to reality offset the gains.

as a sixteen year old in 1997. Carlos will be the Cubs ace for

most of the decade and will win 125 games in eleven seasons

2006 - Starlin Castro is signed as an International free agent

with Chicago.

from the Dominican Republic at the age of 16. The second

baseman will join the Cubs as a twenty year old rookie in 2010

2002 - Twenty one year old righthander Mark Prior joins the

club. Similar to Kerry Wood four years earlier, Prior is a must

2007 - Outfielder Alfonso Soriano is signed from Washington

watch prospect with electric stuff. And, unfortunately for

as a free agent. He'll hit 215 home runs in his seven seasons

everybody once again, Prior will hurt his arm (in 2004) and his

as a Cub. He is thirty one.

big league career will be over by the time he is twenty five.

Prior had been a first round draft pick in 2001.

2007 - Lefthander Ted Lilly is signed as a free agent from

Toronto. He is a key performer in Chicago's two Division title

2003 - Stud third baseman Aramis Ramirez, 25, is acquired

runs (2007, 2008) going 32-17. He is thirty one.

in a trade from the Pirates for three nobodies. A bizarre trade

in that it wasn't a salary dump as one might suspect at first

2007 - Lou Piniella hires on as manager

blush. Instead, the Pirates apparently thought that Ramirez

was no longer a prospect because he hadn't yet completely

2007 - After a two year lapse into the depths of the standings,

bounced back from a severe ankle injury the previous year.

the Cubs are back, gaining nineteen games in the standings.

The free agent acquisitions of Soriano and Lilly are the main

2003 - the Cubs gain twenty one games in the standings

reasons for the improvement. Plus you can never

and win the Division. This is becoming a bizarre habit for the

overestimate Piniella's affect on the clubhouse.

Cubbies. Lose, lose, lose and then Boom, win the Division. The

mid to late Oughts break this pattern a bit as now they actually

2008 - Piniella switches Ryan Dempster's and Kerry Wood's

have back to back winning seasons (2003-2004) before sinking

roles. The man is a savant for sure. Dempster is now a

back into the abyss. Anyway, it's pitching that accounts for

starter and goes 17-6, Wood saves 34 games out of the pen.

the difference between 2002 and 2003. Twenty two year old

righthanders Carlos Zambrano,13-11 and Mark Prior, 18-6

2008 - Another Division title. And since when do the Cubs win

have breakout seasons. As does thirty two year old journeyman

titles back to back? Since 1908 (a hundred years earlier),

closer Joe Borowski who comes out of nowhere to register 33 saves.

that's when.

2009 - Chicago is over .500 for the third year in a row! Since

when do the Cubs finish over .500 three years in a row?

Since 1972, that's when.