At si.com, Tom Verducci identifies 10 players primed for "breakout seasons," and there at #4 is our very own Rich Hill.

Says Verducci, "Chicago pushed Hill to 199 1/3 innings between Triple-A and the majors last season -- way beyond his pro high -- so a potential breakdown looms. But if Hill stays healthy and gets a regular turn in the crowded Chicago rotation, he has the stuff to win 15 games."

On a completely unrelated and wholly self-gratifying note, this blog is now listed on the Blogroll at what I have long considered to be the finest of Cub blogs, The Cub Reporter. Only 26 sites are on the roll and these include most of my other favorite baseball blogs, including Dodger Thoughts, Batgirl, Baseball Prospectus, The Hardball Times and the penultimate achievement in the history of written language, baseball-reference.com.

Good company, I would say.