Add USA Today Sports Weekly's Bob Nightengale to the list of mass media pundits who think the Cubs will be just fine this year ("Things could improve for remade Cubs," 2/9/2005). (See also here.) Nightengale's column has this interesting quote from Mark Prior:

"I think it was best for everyone that Sammy is gone," Prior said. "You could see where it was headed. Everybody thinks that we hated Sammy and Sammy hated us all year. It wasn't that at all. It was just a culmination of things."He had an unbelievable career in Chicago that ended on a sour note. But instead of the focus being on Sammy, the focus can be back on us, and what we're going to do to start winning."

There seems to be a feeling of relief underlying that statement. Relief of being done with all of the external things that came with playing on the same team as Sammy Sosa. Whether that relief, if it does exist, translates into additional wins is impossible to say. But it may mean the Cubs have more fun this year.