I do see Dempsey moving up top with Altidore, leaving the right wing open for someone like Stuart Holden with Donovan on the left. I also see Benny Feilhaber and Robbie Rogers being substitutes on the left should Bob Bradley decide to move Donovan from the left to the right.In the defense, injuries abound and questions remain other than Tim Howard as the stalwart in goal. Who will play left back It seems Jonathan Bornstein is the starter in Bradley's mind, but you get the feeling Edgar Castillo (who got his first minutes with the team against Denmark at left mid) will get an audition there.I would not discount Carlos Bocanegra moving there and using DeMerit and Onyewu in the middle, which was the lineup in the Confederations Cup in June. Otherwise, we'll see Bocanegra and Gooch in the middle, presuming the latter is healthy.On the right, it appears Steve Cherundolo is the starter right now, but I can envision Bob utilizing Jonathan Spector off the bench or as a starter depending on the matchup, as Spector is a a better crosser of the ball than Cherundolo.Here's my projected 23 right now assuming everyone is healthy:Forwards: Jozy Altidore, Landon Donovan, Robbie Findley, Conor CaseyMidfielders: Michael Bradley, Clint Dempsey, Jermaine Jones, Benny Feilhaber, Jose Francisco Torres, Stuart Holden, Maurice Edu/Ricardo Clark, Robbie RogersDefense: Carlos Bocanegra, Oguchi Onyewu, Steve Cherundolo, Jonathan Spector, Jonathan Bornstein, Edgar Castillo, Jay DeMerit, Chad MarshallGoalkeepers: Tim Howard, Brad Guzan, Troy PerkinsHope it all comes together and sprinkle in some luck. 
to do well in an international tournament.If you recall, the U.S. started the tournament off playing poorly, but then started catching fire playing a combination of a counterattack/possession game, finishing off most of the few scoring opportunities it had. Players like Altidore and Davies proved to be menacing in the scoring third, while Donovan was an effective playmaker. Bradley and Ricardo Clark broke up plays in the midfield and the back was solid, if not spectacular. The team played hard and for each other.If this team can get healthy and get on the same page between now and June, it has a chance to advance out of group play in South Africa. If players can emerge in this interim, like Davies before them (Robbie Findley, Edgar Castillo, Jermaine Jones, Maurice Edu or someone else), the U.S. Men's National Team might catch lightning in a bottle and reach it's potential.It all begins with some luck at the draw on December 4th..

If Joe Mauer was a lock for the American League MVP, then Albert Pujols is a lock, deadbolt, and steel reinforced wall to win the National League honors. CHICAGO, IL, Jan 08 (MARKET WIRE) The Appleseed Fund (NASDAQ: APPLX), a no-load mutual fund investing insustainable, undervalued companies, has been ranked by Lipper, Inc as2008's top-returning U.S. midcap value fund.Lipper ranked the total return performance of 353 midcap value funds,which returned a category average 38 decline compared with The AppleseedFund's 18 decline The overall stock market in 2008 declinedapproximately 37 In addition, Morningstar, Inc. ranked The AppleseedFund as the best-performing socially responsible mutual fund of 2008."Since the Appleseed Fund's inception, we've shown it's possible tooutperform the market by investing in companies with strong sustainabilityrecords and which are significantly undervalued by the market," said AdamStrauss, one of the Fund's portfolio managers. "A key factor protectingthe Appleseed Fund from the steepest declines and losses in 2008 was ourreluctance to invest in companies with opaque balance sheets.
Largefinancials, in particular, demonstrated in 2008 the problems that canoccur with excessive leverage and lack of transparency."Also, because we are significant Appleseed shareholders ourselves, ourinterests are well-aligned with the Fund's outside shareholders. As aresult, we are very careful about the prices we pay for each and every oneof the Fund's investments."Although we sold some of our winners during 2008, we continue to maintainmost of our long-term positions. We weighted our portfolio towardhealthcare and consumer staples in anticipation that the economy wouldweaken in 2008, although no one anticipated the dramatic market downturnthat took place. During the market swoon, we initiated several newpositions in outstanding companies with strong management teams and veryattractive valuations. Despite tough economic conditions which weanticipate will continue in 2009, we think the Fund's portfolio iswell-positioned today."Strauss concluded: "As always, finding value in 2009 will be aboutextensive due diligence and fundamental evaluation to distinguish betweena strong value and a devalued stock with limited upside.