Can Cubs Cajun Connection Carry Chicago to Championship

By: kevinhill

A couple years ago I made the mistake of saying I would take Ryan Theriot over Alex Rodriguez as my shortstop. I have a thing for hard nosed little guys that play hard. I was one in college, admittedly with much less talent than Theriot. I was harassed to no end, because at the time Theriot was average at best. Last year was really his breakout year. So my prediction was a little early. But today, it is looking pretty good.

As a role model, Theriot is much better than Rodriguez who recently admitted to steroid use. As a player, well he is playing and hitting .400 while Rodriquez isn’t in the lineup. I am sure when Alex returns, his power numbers will exceed Theriot. But taken in perspective, Theriot produces so much more when considering the salary he leaves available to sign guys like Soriano.

When Fontenot started getting time in the big leagues I dreamed of a day when the former LSU middle infielders, College World Series Champs in 2000, could make it to the World Series stage for the Cubs. Now this year, we are set for that to happen with both of them starting on a regular basis. <a href=”http://nationalsportsreview.com/sports/us/kevinhill/2009/03/02/former-lsu-tigers-hot-even-in-cubs-loss/”>Isaw hints of it early this year in spring training</a>. Now the mainstream press is catching on. CBS Sportsline did a <a href=”http://www.cbssports.com/mlb/story/11663477″>nice article on the two of them</a>, tracing their connection back to LSU and highlighting what good guys these are.

I had no idea Fontenot was a first round draft pick out of LSU until I read this article. These two guys will keep getting their hits and playing solid defense up the middle. While the power guys will go hot and cold, the Cubs get some stability from this duo. That could go a long way towards making Chicago the ‘09 World Series Champs.