Well, maybe you heard it somewhere else first, or maybe you figured it out on your own.

The Cardinals are terrible. They did a lousy job building a team to compete their first year in a new stadium. Their ownership, which has always been very aggressive and willing to reinvest profits in player salaries and team improvement, apparently has decided that the bottom line is all that matters anymore.

The Reds will win the NL Central, and they will do so with considerable ease (4 games or more). One of the teams from the West or the Phillies or Braves will win the Wild Card. The Cardinals will go home disappointed, where they deserve to be with a sorry pitching staff like the one they have.

This is not me being a naysayer. It's not me trying reverse psychology. It's not even me trying to prepare myself for the heartache. Any reasonable observer would draw the same conclusion.

Congratulations to the Reds, whose new ownership, as I feared, will embarrass Walt Jocketty and the boys for years to come. What a shame for Pujols.

When the Redbirds leave Cincinnati next Thursday, they'll be comfortably in second place. And they'll be lucky to stay there.