Year of the toothpick in Chicago

By Marco Santana Sports Central Columnist

The 2003 Major League Baseball season is about a quarter of the way through and there have been a number of surprises that have reared their head. The Kansas City Royals started off on a tear, but have since returned to reality. The Atlanta Braves pitching staff began the season in a ridiculous and unforeseen funk. But they too have returned to form and have been the key to the Braves returning to the top of the National League East. One surprise team, however, has not returned to their more familiar form. That team is the Chicago Cubs.

Heading into Wednesday night's action, the Chicago Cubs held a 1.5-game lead in the National League Central over the Houston Astros. Many "experts" picked the Astros to take this division, but in mid-May, they find themselves looking up at the Cubs.

The St. Louis Cardinals was another team that was pegged as a possible division winner. This judgment was not very farfetched as the Cardinals are the defending NL Central champions. But they are currently three games behind the Cubs.

Ken Griffey, Jr.'s resurgent season was going to lead the Cincinnati Reds to the top of the heap in the Central division. With an early injury keeping Griffey out of the lineup for the past six weeks, the Reds have done a fine job of staying afloat and are just 2.5 games behind.

But they all have one thing in common. They are chasing the Chicago Cubs.

On May 15th of last season, the Don Baylor-led Cubs were just 13-25 and on their way to a horrendous 65-97 season. They let go of Baylor near the end of the season and followed that by firing interim head coach Bruce Kimm.

Meanwhile, on the West Coast, Dusty Baker was watching his son almost get trampled at home plate in the World Series. Baker's San Francisco Giants were beaten in the seventh game against the Anaheim Angels. What a coincidence that the last time the World Series was at Wrigley Field, the Cubs were getting shellacked by Hal Newhouser and the Detroit Tigers 9-3 in the seventh game of the 1945 World Series.

One of the overlooked occurrences of the past offseason was the Cubs' front office patiently waiting for Baker to become available. As Art Howe went to New York to coach the Mets and Ken Macha chose to stay with the Oakland A's to take over for Howe, the Cubs were taking public criticism from the local media for letting these fine candidates go to other positions. But general manager Andy McPhail knew what he was doing. Not long after Baker lost the Series, he was approached by McPhail and soon after, Dusty Baker was named the Cubs' eighth manager in the past 13 years.

At first glance, Dusty Baker's arrival looks like just another coaching position being filled. But if you take a deeper look at the factors behind the Cubs' strong start, you will notice a recurring theme.

With Sammy Sosa struggling at the plate by his standards, it has been up to the other players to produce. One of the former major league ballplayers Baker has brought back to help out is Gary Matthews. The Sarge -- which was what he was called in his playing days with the Cubs -- has taken it upon himself to tutor center fielder Corey Patterson.

Patterson had been plagued by years of ineffectiveness before this season. That had led many to question whether or not he was a wasted first-round pick in 1998. But he has quickly turned into the Cubs' new go-to guy at the plate as he currently holds the team triple-crown.

Another former player that was brought in by Baker was Will Clark. While many Cubs fans will remember Clark as the villain in the Giants' 1989 League Championship Series victory over the Cubs. The former Giants first baseman has been integral to the maturity of Cubs rookie first baseman Hee Seop Choi.

Choi was a part of a widely-criticized move that has turned out to be a positive one. Last season, the Cubs decided to stay with Fred McGriff at first base. That forced Choi to stay in the minor leagues for another season. But that extra year of grooming is paying off this season as Choi earned the Rookie of the Month honor in the National League.

During the spring training, Baker had a dilemma. He had no No. 2 hitter. Shortstop Alex Gonzalez had batted there in 2001 with the Toronto Blue Jays, but with only one at-bat in the No. 2 slot in 2002, Baker threw caution to the wind and chose to throw him out there. It turned out to be a stroke of genius as much as a stroke of luck. Gonzalez started off red-hot as he benefited from batting in front of Sosa. Although he has cooled off, four of his eight hits in May have been homeruns that have directly affected the outcomes of three games.

Yet another big decision that had to be made by Baker concerned his second baseman. Bobby Hill was coming off his first full season in the major leagues and was the prohibitive favorite to win the job over veteran newcomer Mark Grudzielanek. But Hill disappointed in spring training and Grudzielanek was given the job. Although not a prototypical lead-off hitter, he has provided a spark at the top of the order and has made the Cubs' offense a surprising strength.

With all of these moves, it is strange that a non-move may have been Baker's best. When new coaching staffs come in, it is common for the new manager to bring in his guys. However, Baker knew that one of the strengths of last season was the pitching staff. So he retained pitching coach Larry Rothschild to work with one of the best young staffs in the major leagues.

Mark Prior may soon develop from the best young pitcher in baseball to the best pitcher in baseball. Kerry Wood has finally recovered completely from past injuries and the Cubs are benefiting. Both of those pitchers will be stars for years to come and could possibly finish 1-2 in the Cy Young voting as early as this season. Carlos Zambrano is an oft-overlooked No. 5 starter whose talent is just a notch below the other two while Matt Clement and Shawn Estes are solid to round out the rotation.

Many factors go into a team winning a division and many factors have gone into the Cubs beginning the season as they have. But deeper analysis of these factors will invariably point to one conclusion: Dusty Baker was the Cubs biggest acquisition in the off-season. And he may prove to be the biggest acquisition in the division race.

Article courtesy of Sports Central.