The Cubs lost three games one to nuttin' last year. All three featured big-time pitching matchups:

• 5.2.2004 -- M. Morris vs C. Zambrano
• 5.18.2004 -- J. Schmidt vs M. Clement
• 7.5.2004 -- B. Sheets vs M. Clement

***

So Sammy Sosa says he'll retire before turning 40? The snarky jokes suggesting he's already past that age are pretty much too easy to write up.

I'm about to turn thirty in a few months. According to the Sosa Plan, this leaves me with almost exactly 10 years of work left. I'm thinking of retiring here, at my favorite beach in Thailand.

***

Mark Prior comes off the DL today to pitch, and his matchup is a doozy: Jake Peavy.

I don't know if I can watch the game. Not just because I'll be at work, and have foregone getting the MLB TV package that lets me follow broadcasts on my 'puter. But because I'm a freak, and my nervous energy might make me gnaw through my desk if I have to watch Prior pitch.

For those well-adjusted fans who like to watch, Will Carroll, in his Under The Knife column at Baseball Prospectus, had some nifty advice yesterday on what to look for in evaluating Prior:

Prior's riskiest inning will be the first. Watch his front shoulder and the location of his pitches. He'll also need to establish his curve quickly.