The Chicago Cubs are the odds on favorites to win the National League Central Division title for the upcoming 2008 Major League Baseball season according to the sportsbooks in Las Vegas.

The Cubs currently are 9/2 odds to win the NL Central Division championship in 2008. The Milwaukee Brewers are second at 8/1, followed by St. Louis (10/1), Houston (20/1), Cincinnati (25/1), and Pittsburgh (60/1).

The bookies must’ve been reenacting the 1998 film “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas” when they came up with those odds. Their brains must’ve been fried on some illegal drugs because their is no way the  Cubs are going to beat out the Brewers this year for the divisional title. 

The Pirates are already eliminated from the equation before the season begins. Pittsburgh has some good young talent but they are going nowhere until the owner decides to open up his wallet and spend some money.

Cincinnati once again will have a powerful offense but their lack of quality starting pitching will eventually be the downfall for the Reds. They landed Francisco Cordero as a quality closer. Cordero’s signing is worth at least 10 more wins for the home team at the Great American Ballpark.

The Astros hit rock bottom last season and they will be down their for awhile. One of the worst trades of the offseason happened when Houston obtained Miguel Tejada from the Baltimore Orioles. Tejada’s best days are behind him and now so are the steriods. The Astros did however improve their bullpen as the acquired All-Star closer Jose Valverde from the Diamondbacks this week. 

The Cardinals are getting older and their clubhouse is in disarray. Manager Tony La Russa’s feud with third baseman Scott Rolen has been a major distraction this offseason. St. Louis is in the rebuilding mode, as evident by the trade of their gold glove center fielder.

Jim Edmonds’ reign as the longest-tenured Cardinals player has ended. The Southern California native, who joined St. Louis as its center fielder prior to the 2000 season, was dealt to the Padres on Saturday in exchange for prospect David Freese.

The Brewers came up two games short of ending their 25 year playoff drought last season. Milwaukee had a franchise record 8 1/2 game lead in mid-summer only to see Ned Yost and Derrick Turnblow flush it right down the toilet. The lose of Cordero will hurt but GM Doug Melvin has been able to upgrade the bullpen. If Gagne is 80 percent of the closer he was when he was the man in the pen in LA, Brewers fans will be tailgating this October at Miller Park.

The Cubs didn’t exactly win the NL Central Division title last year, they were handed it on a silver platter by their I-94 rivals to the north who call their home Miller Park. The Cubs landed Kosuke Fukudome, their main priority in the offseason. The highly touted Japanese outfielder had a wish list of his own and found the right match in the Chicago.

Fukudome’s signing will add strength to the offense which floundered most of last season before coming alive down the stretch as Milwaukee sunk faster than the Fitzgerald did in 1975 on Lake Superior. The Cubs will go as far as their pitching will take them. The Cubs finally cut ties with their talented but oft-injured starting pitcher Mark Prior this week.

Hookscenter will examine each team in the NL Central Division, starting with the Pittsburgh Pirates. This six week voyage thru the NL Central will examine each team’s chances of winning the division and advancing on to postseason play.