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What a great month June turned out to be - and it could have been so much better if they could hold some 8th / 9th inning leads. Onward...

July will see a much better balance on the schedule. 14 home, 13 on the road. Only 10 games against winners (Cubs, Phillies, Milwaukee) but 7 against the two teams the Cardinals are sandwiched between at the top of the Central Division. And of the losers, none are named the Royals which bodes well (Mets, Pirates, Padres, Braves).

Albert's back, the starters continue to surprise, Lil' Tone hitting .463 ( and raising his OPS 80 points) in the last 10 games, and Mark Mulder looking good.

My June 13-14 turned out conservative. This month, they average a game better over each of the 5 weeks:16-11 and - dare I hazard to believe - at least a share of 1st place in the Central.

What a long strange trip it's being...

27-oh.

17-10 I expect big things to happen this month and maybe a trade for a good lefty in the pen. I expect Mulder to take over after All-Star Break, Clement in the pen & Izzy to return to TOP form. Some other stuff that Im hoping for but will keep in until it gets closer.

I'm with you on the record. I think 17-10 will end up being a good guess. The Break will give AW a chance to get back into the rotation. I like the way that our pitchers are throwing right now. I like the way Ankiel's hitting. Even Duncan is showing signs of life. Pujols is going to have a month where he hits 10 hr's. July is our month. I'm feeling it. I think that we're right on the verge of putting together a good run.

17-10 and we'll be tied with the Cubs at the end of the month.

Oh, and the NL will win the All Star Game.

17-10 for the month, as well. But I'll go you one better: The Cardinals will have sole possession of first place in the NL Central, and the best record in the National League, at the non-waiver trade deadline.

I'm loving the optimism, but do the Cubs have a tough schedule this month?

Any reason to believe they'd have a poorer record than us other than we play them?

17-10 sounds good to me, but I think maintaining wild card first place is more on the mark. I know we all think the Cubs will falter at some point but the further they get into the season playing like they have the less likely that seems. I'd think it would take more of a 20-7 month to catch/pass them.

Big month. Really need to do well in the 7 games at home against the main competition--Cubs and Brewers. If we can hang tough and go 4-3 or better in those 7, I like the chances for the division and the Wild Card.

Tough games against good teams from the East too. 13 against Mets, Braves, Phils, with 10 of them on the road. Again, I'd like for the Cards to go about .500 in those games--7-6, or 6-7. That puts us at 11-9 in an optimistic world. Let's shoot for 5-2 against the Padres and Pirates. That's 16-11 overall.

.500 will be an alright month. That 16-11 record or better, I would be pleased with. Below .500, and I think it's time to start planning for '09.

17-10 would put us at 65-46. I think I can handle that.

My Expectations are 16-11 (based on no serious injuries)

Cubs have 10 games at home and 16 on the road (where they are under .500).

Home Series: 3 vs. Cin, 3 vs. SF, 4 vs. Fla
Road Series: 3 (more) @ SF, 3 @ StL, 3 @ Hou, 3 @ Ari, 4 @ Mil

StL, Hou, Mil, and Ari are above .500 at home (Ari is 25-15 at home; Mil 25-13), and SF is a much better road team (22-22) than they are a home team. Fla is playing good ball. It could be a tough month.