INFIELD
Derrek Lee: A. He's doing exactly what I expect him to do, and the power has returned.
Daryle Ward: C. He's not hitting like we need him to, but he drew more walks this month than any other month of his career.
Mark DeRosa: A. Like Lee, he's doing exactly what we need, and as always his best attribute is his availability.
Mike Fontenot: C. Like Ward, he's not hitting like we need him to. I suspect we may be seeing the real Mike Fontenot.
Ryan Theriot: A-. I agree with Bob that he's not the right choice at SS, but it's hard to argue with his numbers.
Ronny Cedeno: A+. I never expected to like him, but he's showing us a lot right now.
Aramis Ramirez: B+. He's doing what he does every year: start slow, then bring the power while providing questionable defense. I wouldn't have it any other way.
OUTFIELD
Alfonso Soriano: D. Hitting poorly, very little plate discipline, and injured, as per usual. His defense is okay, but otherwise he looks a lot like Randall Simon. Ouch. Lou, bat him 5th.
Matt Murton: D. He's still my favorite, but he really didn't deliver.
Reed Johnson: B. I'm probably unfairly critical of the guy because he replaced my favorite outfielder. I don't care much for his defense, but he delivers offensively.
Felix Pie: C. He's starting to show some plate discipline, and of course his defense is stellar. Maybe he'll turn the corner like Ronny did this year.
Kosuke Fukudome: A+. Not much to say here. He's perfect.
CATCHER
Geovanny Soto: A+. Despite those eight consecutive strikeouts, he's definitely the best offensive catcher we've had in recent history as well as the best balanced. That he threw an entire game without being shaken off once says everything.
Henry Blanco: A+. Still the best defensive catcher in baseball, and he's posting a line of .333/.429/.333, and he's remembered to zip his fly for every game thus far.
ROTATION
Carlos Zambrano: A+. Stunning ERA and WHIP, and he just hit his first HR of the season.
Ted Lilly: D. I'm surprised he has even one win. I almost hope he's hurt, just so there will be some justification for our most consistent pitcher of last year burying us in four of his six starts.
Ryan Dempster: B+ BBs are too high, but otherwise his numbers are incontestably solid.
Rich Hill: C. He's young, so I give him a pass for his slow start. He has successfully pitched himself out of a few really bad situations.
Jason Marquis: B-. I give him a pass for some of his errant starts as well because he was sick and fought through it to avoid missing starts. His stats are average all around, but he's playing on pure testicular fortitude. As much as I didn't like him in spring training, I think he's okay right now.
BULLPEN
Kerry Wood: A. Aside from his two missed save opportunities, he's lights out and posting a stupidly low WHIP.
Carlos Marmol: A+. Our best reliever, hands down.
Bob Howry: C. I just expect him to start slow anymore. He'll come through.
Michael Wuertz: C. He'll come through too.
Jon Lieber: A. I wonder how long it'll be before he replaces Lilly. After a couple of years of Glendon Rusch as the long reliever, it's nice to have a guy that can actually do the job.
Sean Marshall: A. Still great. I hope we get him back in the rotation at some point.
Carmen Pignatiello: D. Just didn't get the job done. He's young though. I think he'll do better next time he's up.
Kevin Hart: No Grade. He seems to pitch a lot on days when I don't see the games, so I can't evaluate him fairly. By his stat line alone I wouldn't give him a particularly high grade, but I can't evaluate a guy I haven't really seen.
Derrek Lee: A. He's doing exactly what I expect him to do, and the power has returned.
Daryle Ward: C. He's not hitting like we need him to, but he drew more walks this month than any other month of his career.
Mark DeRosa: A. Like Lee, he's doing exactly what we need, and as always his best attribute is his availability.
Mike Fontenot: C. Like Ward, he's not hitting like we need him to. I suspect we may be seeing the real Mike Fontenot.
Ryan Theriot: A-. I agree with Bob that he's not the right choice at SS, but it's hard to argue with his numbers.
Ronny Cedeno: A+. I never expected to like him, but he's showing us a lot right now.
Aramis Ramirez: B+. He's doing what he does every year: start slow, then bring the power while providing questionable defense. I wouldn't have it any other way.
OUTFIELD
Alfonso Soriano: D. Hitting poorly, very little plate discipline, and injured, as per usual. His defense is okay, but otherwise he looks a lot like Randall Simon. Ouch. Lou, bat him 5th.
Matt Murton: D. He's still my favorite, but he really didn't deliver.
Reed Johnson: B. I'm probably unfairly critical of the guy because he replaced my favorite outfielder. I don't care much for his defense, but he delivers offensively.
Felix Pie: C. He's starting to show some plate discipline, and of course his defense is stellar. Maybe he'll turn the corner like Ronny did this year.
Kosuke Fukudome: A+. Not much to say here. He's perfect.
CATCHER
Geovanny Soto: A+. Despite those eight consecutive strikeouts, he's definitely the best offensive catcher we've had in recent history as well as the best balanced. That he threw an entire game without being shaken off once says everything.
Henry Blanco: A+. Still the best defensive catcher in baseball, and he's posting a line of .333/.429/.333, and he's remembered to zip his fly for every game thus far.
ROTATION
Carlos Zambrano: A+. Stunning ERA and WHIP, and he just hit his first HR of the season.
Ted Lilly: D. I'm surprised he has even one win. I almost hope he's hurt, just so there will be some justification for our most consistent pitcher of last year burying us in four of his six starts.
Ryan Dempster: B+ BBs are too high, but otherwise his numbers are incontestably solid.
Rich Hill: C. He's young, so I give him a pass for his slow start. He has successfully pitched himself out of a few really bad situations.
Jason Marquis: B-. I give him a pass for some of his errant starts as well because he was sick and fought through it to avoid missing starts. His stats are average all around, but he's playing on pure testicular fortitude. As much as I didn't like him in spring training, I think he's okay right now.
BULLPEN
Kerry Wood: A. Aside from his two missed save opportunities, he's lights out and posting a stupidly low WHIP.
Carlos Marmol: A+. Our best reliever, hands down.
Bob Howry: C. I just expect him to start slow anymore. He'll come through.
Michael Wuertz: C. He'll come through too.
Jon Lieber: A. I wonder how long it'll be before he replaces Lilly. After a couple of years of Glendon Rusch as the long reliever, it's nice to have a guy that can actually do the job.
Sean Marshall: A. Still great. I hope we get him back in the rotation at some point.
Carmen Pignatiello: D. Just didn't get the job done. He's young though. I think he'll do better next time he's up.
Kevin Hart: No Grade. He seems to pitch a lot on days when I don't see the games, so I can't evaluate him fairly. By his stat line alone I wouldn't give him a particularly high grade, but I can't evaluate a guy I haven't really seen.
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