Jose can you see it?

Jose Cardenal played in many cities over the course of his big league career, and I’d be surprised if he had a special affinity for any one of them. But he was a Cub when I started following the team in the mid-1970s, and for that reason he’ll always be a Cub to me. He

Bidding Popeye adieu

I loved Don Zimmer for being a baseball man. He played the game, coached the game, and he even looked like a baseball man should look. The fact that he played for, coached, and managed the Cubs practically guaranteed that I would have something to say about his passing, and sure enough I had two

An inglorious ending

Dateline: June 7, 1968. One week before the author of this post was born. The country is reeling from the shocking assassination of New York Senator and potential Democratic presidential nominee Robert F. Kennedy, who had died the day before. By some strange and spectral coincidence, the Baltimore Orioles used their first pick in the

F/U/S/G

Of all the many seasons I’ve been a Cubs fan, 1984 ranks as my favorite one. The year 1984, all by itself, was an important year in my life. It was the year that I learned how to drive a car and, when my birthday came around, I got my license to drive. And whoever

A journey back to 1985

Thanks to a recent trade with someone online, I have come into the possession of a pack of Chicago Cubs playing cards from 7-Up, with a copyright date of 1985. The cards are still in their original shrinkwrap, meaning that for the last quarter of a century, they have been in a state of limbo,

A contrarian’s view on Kerry Wood

The annual Cubs Convention started today in Chicago, and the team made a big splash by signing (re-upping, really) Kerry Wood for a one year, $3 million deal for 2012. There’s a club option for another year, not a player option like the kind Ryan Dempster was given, so at least that’s progress. And it

Trying something new

Budweiser was my gateway into alcohol in general. Over time, I developed a preference for Corona with a lime wedge, but Bud was like an old friend to me. I could dabble in other beers, or harder drinks on occasion, but Bud was always there to welcome me back. And I never strayed too far

You’ve gotta put the ball in play

When I was a kid, I played organized baseball for a total of six years. For the large majority of these years, I sat on the bench and watched the other kids play. The reason was simple enough: I couldn’t put the bat on the ball with any regularity. To put it bluntly, striking out

Quade out, and Sandberg too

It was an interesting day on the Cubs front. Who didn’t see Quade being fired, as soon as the news about Jim Hendry’s ouster was announced? The Quade hiring shows how much Hendry was in over his head.  But at least it’s been corrected now. Farewell, QBall. The list of qualifications for the new manager,

A memory of Sandberg (and Sundberg)

The first of my mini blue helmets goes to reader Chris, who indicated that he wanted to hear a story about Ryne Sandberg. He didn’t say that in so many words, actually. He just gave me Sandberg’s name, and I’m taking it from there. You might think that there’s not a lot that can be

Taking another chance on Robin Ventura

I am not a White Sox fan. I’ve written about how much I like their park, but it’s always been Plan B when it comes to baseball for me. Actually, it’s more like Plan C, since going to games in ballparks I haven’t seen before is Plan B. But it is still baseball, and I

Bring Ryno back

The Cubs have already righted one of their wrongs by letting Jim Hendry go, but they need to go further than that. And repairing the damage done to their relationship with Ryne Sandberg is the next step they need to take. Sandberg was a great player, no question about it. From the first game I