For the Cubs, nothing’s been accomplished yet

On this day off between the end of the regular season–where the Cardinals played all 162 games–and the postseason–where the Cardinals will watch it on TV like the rest of us–a few thoughts are in order. That dig at the Cardinals sounds a bit petty, but the truth is I’m glad the teams will not

A lifetime of following the Cubs

I recently had an opportunity to take in a beautiful view of the Chicago skyline, Lake Michigan, and Wrigley Field at the same time. I enjoyed them all, but the one shot that I wanted to have with me in it was the Wrigley Field vista. That speaks volumes as to who I am, really.

An unexpected payoff

Being a Cubs fan is never an easy thing. After spending almost forty years in that fold, I can make such a statement with complete confidence. The good years–as measured by when the team makes it to the playoffs– can be counted on one hand, or two hands at the very most. And every one

Link to a ThroughTheFenceBaseball piece

Earlier in the week, I wrote the first piece I’ve done in a while for ThroughTheFenceBaseball.com. I started writing for them earlier this year, and I enjoyed having an outlet for my baseball-related thoughts. I plan to continue with this in the spring, once the season kicks into gear again, but for now I need

Best of luck to Tito and the Tribe

When the Red Sox came apart last year, I called for the Theo Epstein/Terry Francona pairing to be transplanted into Chicago. What I got instead was the proverbial half a loaf: Epstein, with all of his cohorts, but not Francona. And the results haven’t been great, so far. But the Cleveland Indians have hired Francona

The Virtual Sammy Sosa

I was recently at a place called WonderWorks in Orlando, Florida. It’s the type of a hands-on science workshop that I wish existed when I was a kid. Maybe then I wouldn’t have such an aversion to science, or at least I wouldn’t keep my distance from it quite so much. One of the exhibits

“Next year” never came for him

Today I went to an estate sale with a friend. I’ve written about them before, and being at one is different from going to a yard sale or a garage sale. As I get older, and realize that everyone’s time on this earth is limited, I also appreciate the opportunity to take a peek into

Here we go again

Not that I’ve ever been asked to do so, but I would use today’s Cubs game as the perfect example of what being a Cubs fan feels like. They gave up the tying run late in the game, and then gave up the winning run in extra innings. I tapped into my frustrations for a

Even the throwbacks didn’t work

The Cubs have worn “throwback” uniforms–which are designed to recall earlier eras in their history–five times prior to last night’s game against the Giants in San Francisco. They won each of those games, including last summer in Fenway Park (shown above), and for the first interleague game against the White Sox back in 1997. And

Now I understand

Since last September, I’ve been excited at the prospect of Theo Epstein coming to Chicago. I suggested that it happen almost immediately after the Red Sox collapsed in Baltimore on the final night of the regular season, and I’ve written about it here and here and here. And it’s always been with the assumption that

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

I think I have the Cubs’ answer

Call me insane, but I think Johnny Damon would be a perfect fit for the Cubs, provided they can move Alfonso Soriano or Marlon Byrd in the coming days or weeks. With Soriano’s hefty contract, Byrd would be the easier one to move, and then David DeJesus or Reed Johnson could play center field, and

First things first

Yesterday morning I was awakened by my alarm clock, which makes all sorts of noises but can also play the radio. Since I had the radio function set, Queen got me out of bed with the familiar stomp stomp clap that begins “We Will Rock You.” It was as good an entry song as any

What’s different now

After a slow start, when hiring a new manger was the main focus, the Theo Epstein braintrust has kicked into high gear recently. The Zambrano trade received the most notice, but the turnover has affected the starting rotation, the bullpen, the outfield and the corner positions of the infield. No player seems to be off

No more Zambrano

I was listening to a press conference on the radio this afternoon, where Theo Epstein was taking questions from local media types and fans. He was asked about “changing the culture” of the Cubs organization, and how Carlos Zambrano could fit into such a new culture. The audience laughed at the Zambrano reference, and Theo

2011 in review

The year is coming to a close, and everyplace you can think of seems to take this opportunity to do a retrospective on the year gone by. I’ll join the crowd for this one time, and look at what happened in 2011 for the subject that I write about the most: Cubs baseball. The biggest

Disrespecting Albert no more

When it comes to Albert Pujols and his willingness to leave St. Louis, it turns out I was right. I’m not always right, but on this one I was dead on. There really wasn’t any chance that Albert was going to sign with the Cardinals again, World Series or no World Series. After all those

Trading for PIDLs

If you’ve read any of these posts before, you know that I’m a long-time (though not life-long) Cubs fan. And one of the ways I manifest this is by collecting baseball cards from years gone by. It started when I was six or seven, and went away until I was in my thirties, and then

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,

Change, nothing stays the same

As I indicated in a post from yesterday, I was able to get to Wrigley Field today and confirm that the ivy has indeed turned red. We have achieved the state of RIO (Red Ivy in October), just in time for the end of the World Series. I wish I had a picture, but as

From the Red Sox to the Red Ivy

The Theo Epstein signing is official, and the press conference to announce it will be held at Wrigley Field tomorrow. The Red Sox have indeed let the only winners they’ve ever had go, just as I dared them to do. So now we have our guy, and he’s getting his guys into place, and the

The curse of Terry Kennedy

It’s an off day in the World Series, and no matter what happens on the field, this will be the last weekend of baseball for 2011. And the NBA isn’t going to be taking up any of the slack after baseball goes away, either. Not that it ever really could. I usually give deference to

The pendulum swings toward Texas

When the FOX announcers began talking about how the Cardinals had never been involved in a 1-0 game in their previous 100+ games of World Series play, I knew the final score wouldn’t be 1-0. I’m going to suggest that jinxes do exist, and talking about a 1-0 game is the quickest way to make

And the Theo watch continues

As the World Series gets going, the big story in the rest of baseball is what’s going to happen with Theo Epstein and the Cubs. The Red Sox apparently want some things, and the Cubs are going to have to cough some prospects up. Maybe they’re close to getting it done, any maybe they’re not.

UPDATE: An open letter (with thanks) to Theo Epstein

Hello Theo, I hope it’s OK if I call you by your first name. I actually don’t even know if it’s short for Theodore or something else. For all I know, you may not even like to be called that. If there’s something else you’d rather go by, please accept my apologies. I must tell