Midsummer Classic Part II

Now that we have escaped the boredom of the American League we can excitedly turn our full attention to the Senior Circuit, our beloved sport of baseball, at its finest.   This is going to be a lot of fun, the depth of stars at multiple positions makes for a lively debate in my head, debate that is rarely resolved objectively so [read more...]

The Brain Leak

The Brain Leak (Week of 6/16/08 - 6/22/08) Another week, another seven days worth of sports-related drivel. With not much more than the yearly push towards the Mid-Summer Classic to bide my time, you'll notice I have instituted some fresh (some might say seedy) perspectives to the already multi-faceted Leak. In addition to serving up heaping servings of the usual BS, TBL [read more...]

Simply The Best

As the Cubs and Sox kick off their annual home and home series Friday at Wrigley, in honor of the six games here are six reasons why the Cubs have a better shot at the World Series than the Sox. DEPTH Since we are looking forward to October, let's look back at recent fall classics. Why did the Red Sox win [read more...]

What We Expected (And What We Didn’t)

While this baseball season is still in its infancy, this fact does not prevent us who follow the Cubs from forming opinions, rational or otherwise. Here are my initial thoughts on the first week of the 2008 season: WHAT WE EXPECTED; VALIDATED: *Derrek Lee is back. Remember the guy who wore out right and lefthanders in 2005? They guy who drove the [read more...]

Opening Day 2008

Is there a better hooky day than a Monday baseball opener? Never before have the Cubs opened at home in March. I was not about to sit this historic day out. 6:15 I rise with this thought dancing in my head- which do I wear to the game…my vintage Moonlight Graham jersey or the Cubbie parka? I have four [read more...]

Getting ready for fantasy baseball-Tommy John and Francisco Liriano

After watching the 2006 Francisco Liriano I want to say that last year was just a bump in the road--no big deal. I want to say 2008 will be the year he surpasses Johan Santana as the Twins top starter (if Santana is still a Twin, that is). I want to believe Liriano when he says he's 100 percent healthy. But, [read more...]

Maybe Baker Should Stay…

It could happen any day. Soon, Dusty Baker may no longer be the Cubs manager. But a case can be made, and will be made here, for keeping Baker. Granted, it goes against my nature to support a manager of the second worst team in the league, but I'll give it a try. A real effort. To start, let's review [read more...]

A Matter of Time?

Dusty Baker is frequently accused of ruining Kerry Wood and Mark Prior. The guilty verdict is not so obvious. Wood has a long history of arm troubles that predates Baker. As for Prior, there's no doubt Baker rode his best pitcher heavily in 2003. But if the team had managed to win it all, few Cub fans would care if [read more...]

Early Cubs, Sox Assessments

Assessing the virtues or fallibility of a baseball team after one week feels a bit disingenuous, as though we are giving a thumbs up or down guess as to whether a marriage will last based upon the success of the honeymoon. The Cubs marriage with winning may have just honeymooned with a killer deal at the Bellagio, whereas the White Sox [read more...]

Kerry Wood: For Cubs, Fans It’s Kerry When?

An annual rite of spring in Chicago is the speculation that this year will finally be the year that Kerry Wood puts it all together. A Cub since 1998, Wood has only 67 career victories, which works out to an average of fewer than ten per year. During that time, he missed the entire 1999 season and significant parts of 1998, [read more...]