Baseball predictions pan out

Think back to what you were doing April 2. You probably had either college basketball or Prom on the mind and pepper spray in your eyes. I, however, made predictions on the baseball season in that day's IDS. Not to be self-serving, but let's see how they turned out.\nWhat I said: "Whenever the Phillies feel optimistic about themselves, they usually go in the trash bin."\nWhat happened: They didn't finish in last like I thought, but they did drop from 86 to 80 wins.\nWhat I said: "The Rockies, who seemingly make a trade a day, will go from worst to first as the moves will pay off."\nWhat happened: I should have been put under restraints and kept far away from a computer keyboard. They finished fourth, and even the Cubs had a better road record.\nWhat I said: "[I]f I am sure of one prediction, it's that the Jays will finish third."\nWhat happened: Toronto finished third in the AL East.\nWhat I said: "The Cardinals aren't a sure bet because Woody Williams and Albert Pujols aren't that good, but they'll pull through."\nWhat happened: St. Louis won the NL Central as I thought. Williams was hurt much of the year but was tremendous when healthy. Tony LaRussa could dig Satchel Paige out of the grave and get him to pitch well; he's that good with old pitchers. Pujols' year was only slightly worse. Question: Is he really 22?\nWhat I said: "Jon Lieber will win 20 games again about the same time I digest my hat."\nWhat happened: Lieber won six games and underwent elbow surgery. I am looking for other fiber sources in my diet.\nWhat I said: "The Cubs will hang around .500."\nWhat happened: The Cubs went 67-95. For the record, my Cubs prediction of third place was one of the more pessimistic predictions about the Cubs. I'm not sure even the world's biggest Cub-haters could have predicted what happened.\nWhat I said: "The Giants will fall just short like they usually do."\nWhat happened: They did finish second in the NL West like I thought, but I didn't think they would fall just short of winning the World Series. In fact, I didn't think they would make the playoffs. After so many years of being good but not winning a playoff series during the Dusty Baker era, they finally broke through this year and won the pennant. Baker cannot be considered the best manager in baseball until he wins a World Series.\nWhat I said: "Here's guessing the Marlins make the playoffs behind Cliff Floyd and a pitching staff with filthy stuff."\nWhat happened: They finished 23 games out in the NL East race and 16.5 games out of the Wild Card. Floyd was traded around the All-Star Break to the Expos. The pitching was either hurt or bad. If they are going to trade Brad Penny in the offseason, somebody should jump at it and turn him into a closer. He was throwing 98 mph by season's end. \nWhat I said: "Mo Vaughn. . .is already on the downhill side and the pitching is average."\nWhat happened: I picked the Mets to finish in third. Did anybody pick the Mets to finish in last? That's where they finished. As for Vaughn, he had his worst year since 1992, and while the pitching was better than average, other offensive players like Roberto Alomar and Jeromy Burnitz had bad years too. You could say the season went to pot.\nWhat I said: "The Padres should stay over .500 because of a terrific offense."\nWhat happened: The Padres finished in last place, and in the National League, only the Brewers were worse. The main reason why was their offense, as they were No. 14 (out of 16) in the league in runs scored. They were last in homers, and only the Cubs had fewer stolen bases. When they traded D'Angelo Jimenez to the White Sox, he started hitting again. So, in other words, who knows?\nWhat I said: "The Dodgers have 17 starting pitchers but few offensive weapons."\nWhat happened: The Dodgers got great pitching and won 92 games, finishing nowhere near the last-place finish I surmised and that was with Kevin Brown pitching only 63 innings due to injuries. Their offense was a respectable seventh in the league in runs. If they stand pat, I'm guessing they won't score nearly as many runs next year.\nSpeaking of which, here's hoping I can be more clear-eyed for next year's predictions. Assuming I get the pepper spray out.