Where They Need To Be

While it looks like the Jim Hendry extension will be pushed back to Saturday (presumably so no nasty questions like, "Why did you deserve this extension now given your teams have fewer wins each of the last three years?" are asked on Home Opening Day), it seems fair to set expectations for a team that thinks it is capable of winning a division in 2006.

Looking at the April schedule, the Cubs have it pretty easy. With 12 home games this month, only three of them are against a team projected to have a winning record (Cardinals). The road schedule is a little tougher with three games against the Dodgers and three against St. Louis. The Cubs have 11 games against teams that won't likely sniff .500 (or even .400 for Florida).

A reasonable expectation would be for a contending team to take 14 of these 23 games. Last year, this team rarely played to expectations, much less exceeded them. Winning today would be a nice way to start exceeding expectations, especially with Sean Marshall having to face the Cardinals on Saturday.