By Dan Sheahan

Here stands baseball’s perfect warrior. Here stands baseball’s perfect knight.
-Ford Frick
The above phrase is etched into the stone base of the statue of one Stanislaw Franciszek Musial, known here in St. Louis simply as Stan the Man. The statue stands guard outside of the newest Busch Stadium here, and serves as yet another reminder of the Cardinals’ impossible good fortune over the last century. For a Cubs fan in exile like me, trapped in St. Louis, this serves as yet another reminder of 100-plus years of suffering . . .
Bear with me while I take a look at just what made this man special. Let’s start – but not end – with the statistics.

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Posted on February 7, 2013

Guests Asked To Be Patient With 105-Year Remodeling Plan

“More than a year after the Ricketts family paid $20 million for the McDonald’s lot across from Wrigley Field, the Cubs ownership group announced an agreement . . . to develop a boutique Sheraton hotel on the Wrigleyville site,” Crain’s reported last month.
Sources tell the Beachwood the hotel will include the following features:
* Bathrooms will look like Wrigleyville alleys. Or just go in the hall.
* Troughs on each floor for guests who would prefer to urinate as a group.
* Guaranteed drunk, vomiting neighbor.
* Bellhop guarantees successful delivery of luggage to your room .286 of the time.
* Spoken word poetry by Lee Elia at the coffee shop.
* To simulate sitting deep in the 200s section, windows 25% the size of other rooms.

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Posted on February 6, 2013

Here Comes Sochi

“With all the attention Olympic track stars Lolo Jones and Tianna Madison attracted when they tried bobsled pushing this winter, it was easy for last year’s breakout athlete, Katie Eberling, to be pushed into the background,” Phil Hersh wrote in the Tribune recently.
“That didn’t bother the former Western Michigan volleyball player from Palos Hills, who had won a World Championship bronze medal in 2012, her rookie season as a sled pusher.
“As the coaches tried different pairings throughout the World Cup races this season, Eberling just kept quietly going about her work and wound up back in the top USA sled with driver Elana Meyers for this year’s world championships in St. Moritz, Switzerland.”
Let’s take a look.

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Posted on February 5, 2013

By Jim Coffman

The Bears’ loss to the 49ers in the middle of the just-concluded NFL season wasn’t just another setback for the locals. It was the beginning of Colin Kaepernick’s amazing run to the cusp of Super Bowl glory.
He may have fallen just short of a world championship in his just his 10th professional start, but he went a long way since his first start in that game against the Bears – a 32-7 win that wasn’t close to that close.
More importantly to folks around here, Kaepernick’s immediately dominating performance couldn’t have made it more clear how far the Bears had to go to be competitive with the Niners. Sure, Jay Cutler missed that contest due to a concussion and the Bears had to go with backup Jason Campbell. Kaepernick, though, was also starting because the 49ers’ starter, Alex Smith, was out with a concussion. See what I mean?

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Posted on February 4, 2013

By The Illinois Department of Agriculture And State Senate Republicans

To help boost the state’s economy, the Illinois Department of Agriculture is encouraging consumers to shop local when they stock up for Sunday’s big game.
“Illinois food companies make everything a fan could possibly need to throw a great party, from chili and pizza to chips and salsa,” Jennifer Tirey, bureau chief of Marketing and Promotion said. “For a sample of the many products available, visit our Facebook page and browse through the listings.”
To get the Super Bowl party started, on Feb. 1 – Feb. 3 the Dept. of Ag will select one lucky person each day from the agency’s Facebook friends and Twitter followers who will score free Illinois products.
The winner of the first drawing will receive a one-year supply (52 cans) of Ray’s Brand Chilli, located in Decatur. A $50 gift certificate to Lou Malnati’s Chicago-Style Deep Dish Pizza will be awarded the second day and a “Game Day” gift pack of Uncle Joe’s Sauces and Rubs, located in Ina, is the third day prize.

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Posted on February 1, 2013