By Roger Wallenstein

I didn’t want to fall for the hype, but when the succession of convertibles carrying members of the 2005 World Champion White Sox rolled in from center field on Saturday, my interest was piqued.
I mean, that was a decade ago, a piece of history. I’m mired in the present, trying to digest this latest dismal edition of the South Side team. The short speeches by Aaron Rowand, Jermaine Dye, Orlando (El Duque) Hernandez, Jon Garland, Scott Podsednik, Paul Konerko, and Ozzie Guillen were not particularly unique. All of them thanked the fans for their support and said how happy they were to return to the scene of their greatest success.
I watched on TV, including the ensuing 7-6 13-inning loss to the front-running Royals. The Sox made a gallant effort, staging a ninth-inning rally after two outs to tie the game at 6 on J.B. Shuck’s two-run double, before Lorenzo Cain’s home run decided things.
But evidently Saturday’s scene made an impression because Sunday morning I was glued to the video highlights of the playoffs and World Series from 10 years ago. A.J. “stole” first base; Paulie smacked the grand slam; and Scotty Pods’ walk-off sunk the Astros. Geoff Blum lined an unlikely homer in the third game in Houston, and Juan Uribe flew into the seats to snag that pop-up. All were delicious moments, hurling me back in time to when it felt really special and good to be a Sox fan.

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Posted on July 20, 2015

By Jim Coffman and Steve Rhodes

Damn Cardinals. Plus: Duncan Keith In The Pantheon; Blackhawks South; Elena Delle Donne, Superstar; and The Chicago Fire Actually Did Do Something This Week.

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Posted on July 17, 2015

By Thomas Chambers

The good news is that California Chrome is still alive.
There is no bad news, thankfully, but there’s a lot of sad news, all centering around a group of people – Dumb-Ass Partners Stable – who were and are ill-equipped to have been given a horse as magnificent as California Chrome. And a racetrack that I am glad did not get the chance to exploit this horse and the fans who would have come out to see him.

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Posted on July 16, 2015

By Dan O’Shea

The second half of the baseball season is a few days away, and without any roster changes to busy myself with during the All-Star break, I thought I’d make a few predictions on what the rest of the season holds:
Player Most Likely To Produce Second-Half Value Who Currently Has 0% Ownership in Yahoo! Leagues: Jonathan Herrera, 2B/3B/SS, Cubs.
He’s 7-for-18 in the last two weeks with one HR, four RBI and four runs scored. He seems destined for more playing time with the Cubs for a variety of reasons: 1) Addison Russell’s development at the major league level has stalled. He either needs rest or more time in the minors or both. Barring a trade Herrera appears most likely to benefit. 2) Kris Bryant needs rest. 3) Starlin Castro is either headed out of town or needs competition for starts. Herrera won’t hit many more HRs, but he is a big SB threat waiting for a bigger chance.

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Posted on July 15, 2015

By Marty Gangler

If you have kids in this day and age, you know the power of the DVR, on demand, and Netflix. Parents can play tantrum-saving cartoons at any second of the day.
I have boys seven and almost four, and we’ve found a good overlap with a show called Teen Titans. It’s a cartoon that has superheroes at its core, but it’s more about the day-to-day interaction of the teenish superheroes than actually stopping crime. And it’s silly and clever enough to not be horrendous to watch as a middle-aged man.
Okay, I’m getting to the Cubs tie-in. One of the characters is called Cyborg and he is, um, a cyborg – part machine and part man/boy or whatever. And Cyborg was feeling bad about not having a pet, so he befriended a machine that was once an enemy called Pain Bot. And as much as he tried to reform Pain Bot, it just didn’t work; the only thing Pain Bot knows how to say is, “All I know is pain.” And that’s what it felt like to be a Cub Fan this week. All we know is pain. How about that ninth-inning loss to the Cardinals when they were down to their last strike? All I know is pain. Or how about losing that game to the White Sox despite drawing seven walks by not scoring a single run to lose 1-0? All I know is pain. And while we are at it, how about all those years you’ve been alive as a Cub fan? All I know is pain.

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Posted on July 13, 2015

By Roger Wallenstein

Are we to believe that the White Sox recent streak of nine wins in 12 games, including taking two of three at Wrigley Field over the weekend, is a portent of a drive to postseason contention? Improbable but not impossible. This puzzling group has shored up its defense while the pitchers have led the charge in close, low-scoring, nail-biting games. Meanwhile, hits still are few and far between, let alone runs.
But we must remain calm. This is not the time for hopes to rise because most teams continue on a similar pace in the season’s final 80 games like they performed in the initial 80. Lest euphoria reign, let’s pause this week for the four-day All Star break. It comes at an opportune time. We can relax along with the entire Sox roster sans Chris Sale, who will be the team’s lone representative Tuesday night.
It’s also a good time to take a peek at history.

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Posted on July 13, 2015

By Jim Coffman and Steve Rhodes with Noahbattacola

One is not a wave. Plus: The Crushingly Boring Crosstown Classic; Jeff Samardzija Vu; Patrick Sharp Is Still No Longer A Blackhawk; World Cup Carli; and Elena Delle Donne Deserves More Stardom.

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Posted on July 10, 2015

By Dan O’Shea

The “Crosstown Cup” rivalry between the Cubs and White Sox lacked any real tension the last few years as both teams scuffled. This year, the Cubs have been both good and lucky, while the Sox have been just plain bad, but I sense a comeback. Here’s why:
1. The Cubs have been better than expected, currently sitting nine games over .500 and in the lead for the second wild card spot. They’re coming off a couple motivational victories against the Cardinals, and are primed to go on a run. Having said that, given their wild card position, every game is important. The Cubs’ bats have gone quiet lately, and I wonder how many runs total they can manage against this weekend’s likely Sox starters – Carlos Rodon, Chris Sale and Jose Quintana. If they come out on the losing end in their six-game North Side-then-South Side series, it could very well make the difference in their potential to make the postseason.

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Posted on July 8, 2015

By Marty Gangler

Remember when the Cubs had all these great young position players who were really good? And these kids were leading the team to a great bounce-back season after a handful of years of losing on purpose? Well, you shouldn’t believe what you kind of think. Because the Cubs are having a solid year and it has close to nothing to do with these great young position players.
The Cubs are 12th (out of 15) in the NL in runs scored, yet have the fifth-best record in the league. It’s all been the pitching, which is fourth in the league (still 15 teams) in ERA. And there are a ton of other fancy stats to tell you in every conceivable way that the Cubs have pitched their way out of the mess they were in a few years ago.

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Posted on July 6, 2015

By Steve Rhodes

It’s not what you think. Plus: The White Sox Meet Their Past; Old White Men vs. Soccer; Bulls Media Madness.

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Posted on July 6, 2015