NL Central: Second in a series of 6 divisional previews.

1. St. Louis. Naturally, the Cards will miss the presence of Mark McGwire in the lineup. They know that. But they have two potentially superstar hitters in (the still-vile) J.D. Drew and (barring a sophomore slump) Albert Pujols. The only starter that’s a household name is Rick Ankiel, and more for his emotional issues than his pitching, but they have a real solid staff. Oh, yeah, that guy they got to replace Big Mac? Tino? Do you think he has something to prove to his old boss?

2.Houston. A new beginning of sorts for the Astros, the Minnesota Timberwolves of baseball (a first round exit every year). Gone are the presence of Enron and the stormy tenure of Larry Dierker; in are the loopy Jimy Williams and a pitching rotation to keep an eye on. It’s hard to get my mind around the fact that Jeff Bagwell and Craig Biggio are now officially Old Vets. But a young outfield of potential stars Richard Hidalgo, Daryle Ward, and Lance Berkman should give the grizzled vets some help in the lineup. Someday these guys will win a playoff series. But not this year.

3. Chicago. The Central really is a tale of two divisions. I don’t really think the Cubs will contend for a playoff spot, but they’re years ahead of the weak sisters to follow. There’s some stuff to watch; Sammy Sosa wants the home run record, Kerry Wood might actually last a whole season, and rookie pitcher Mark Prior is touted as a real prospect. But I just don’t see it happening for some reason. The Cards and Astros are too good; the rest of the division is hopeless. The Cubbies will comfortably settle in 3rd by Memorial Day.

4.Cincinnati. Out of the three Central bottom-feeders…why not? They do anticipate that Junior Griffey will be healthy, and slugger Adam Dunn is predicted to hit anywhere between 50 and 3,000 home runs, depending on who you ask. But, oh, that pitching! Joey Hamilton was named the Opening Day starter last week; I wonder if that announcement sold any tickets to any fence-leaners. The bullpen looks adequate. They’ll need to be, since it’s hard to imagine Hamilton, Elmer Dessens, or Jose Acevedo going 8 innings regularly.

5.Milwaukee. It’s a common sports-ism to say that a good, but flawed, team is "one player away" from contending. Well, the Brewers are about six players away. You look at some of the names on their roster – Ben Sheets, Richie Sexson, Eric Young, Geoff Jenkins – and you start to imagine they might all be All-Stars in three years. Maybe, but they’ll be playing in New York, L.A., and Arlington at the time. But the Brewers did make money last year. And in Bud Selig’s America, that’s considered a successful season.

6. Pittsburgh. What’s the point of buying a million-dollar mansion if you’re going to just throw your thrift-store furniture around the place? The Pirates opened up spectacular new PNC Park last year and it vaulted to the top of my must-see park list. Fortunately, the view and the amenities kept Pittsburgh fans from focusing on the dismal product on the field. The most fun activity at the Confluence this year might be trying to figure out who’s gone into Operation Shutdown and who just sucks. Gamers Brian Giles and Jason Kendall deserve better; don’t be surprised to see them traded before long.

Next: The NL West.