Coming into the home opener on Monday, Cubs fans were showing a lot of angst. The team hadn't been hitting. Carlos Zambrano hadn't exactly induced a lot of confidence in his first start. The Cubs bullpen had already imploded a few times. More men had been left on base in Cincinnati than there were fans in the seats. Geovanny Soto looked lost at the plate. Ryan Theriot was still screwing up on the base paths. And Alfonso Soriano, this page's least favorite player since Corey Patterson, was doing everything possible to show how the $90 million dollars remaining to be paid to him might as well be dropped down a well with Desmond Hume.

On the plus side, Derrek Lee was off to a hot start. The starting pitching outside of Big Z's first start was very good. And it was only 6 games. A 2-4 record can easily be chalked up to small sample size.

So, why all the angst?

Probably for one big reason: Regardless if you are the kind of fan that treats the Cubs with blind optimism or open skepticism, we all know that this is a flawed team. Not only is it flawed, but it did little to improve its chances of winning more games in the off-season.

Now, the start of the baseball season is "Hope Springs Eternal," right? We all want to have some fun before reality sets in.

To see the team looking so sloppy right out of the gate threatens to have our hopes cast asunder even before the end of the spring allergy season.

We want to cling to the fantasy that 2010 will be a good year.

A strong dose of reality would be good for everyone.