Chicago -
By Dan O’Shea
Catcher is often one of the shallowest fantasy baseball positions. This year, it’s not only shallow, but completely vexing. The only player you could call a sure thing, Victor Martinez, is out for the year. One of the best young catchers, Buster Posey, is coming back from a terrible injury and no one knows what to expect. Joe Mauer has fallen out of favor. Alex Avila is – who is he again?
My top 10 catchers:
Posted on March 7, 2012
By Adam Grosch/PR
Chicago boxer Alex Martin has won the 2012 USA Boxing Welterweight (152 pounds) Silver Medal. Martin lost to Patrick Day of Freeport, NY 24-16 in the championship bout Saturday at the Special Events Center in Fort Carson, Colorado.
“I didn’t fight my fight today; I wasn’t quite myself in there, but I am proud to bring a medal back to Chicago,” said Martin.
Posted on March 6, 2012
By Jim Coffman
The Bulls rolled on and the Blackhawks bounced back in a big way again on Sunday. It was great to check out the highlights and read the gamers early this morning. But the highlight of the first few hours of my day was the first box score of the spring, the one that detailed the Cubs’ exhibition opener.
The North Siders suffered a 12-10 defeat against Oakland at good ol’ Hohokam Park in Mesa. The classic top line of the box showed the A’s pulled it out with two runs in the top of the ninth.
Posted on March 5, 2012
By The Beachwood Consumer Affairs Desk
“Coming off their fourth non-playoff season in the last five years, the Bears are raising ticket prices for the ninth time in 10 years since the opening of new Soldier Field in 2003,” the Sun-Times reported this week.
So we paid to build the new stadium, which delivers more revenue to the privately owned football club than the old one; we pay to cover any shortfalls the stadium experiences, and then we pay increasingly more to attend the stadium we’ve already paid for and keep paying for – to watch crappy teams. Nice!
As a public service to both fans and the Bears, we’ve run the numbers and determined the only possible ways this season’s ticket price hike can be justified.
* The purchase of an additional second of protection for Jay Cutler.
* Bus leaves training camp without Roy Williams.
* Tuition now covered to send Lovie Smith to that red flag penalty review seminar.
Posted on March 1, 2012
By Dan O’Shea
The most shocking baseball news since 2011 MVP Ryan Braun tested positive for a banned substance was announced last week: Ryan Braun will not face a suspension for testing positive for a banned substance.
We’ll let others debate whether this stinks to high heaven (it does, thanks for asking). The only thing that matters to us in the fantasy world is that we can draft Braun where we originally planned: No. 3 overall and No. 2 among outfielders.
Posted on February 29, 2012
A Rare Combination Of Athletic Talent And Comedic Genius
“The story of Reece ‘Goose’ Tatum, arguably one of the most influential athletes of all time, yet unknown to most basketball fans today, comes to life in a new documentary called GOOSE,” TeamWorksMedia says. “As the leader of the Harlem Globetrotters, the most skilled squad in the world, Goose was more than just the architect of some of basketball’s most iconic shots. A true sports icon, he possessed a rare combination of basketball talent and comedic genius, which made him a household name around the world. GOOSE celebrates the basketball legend, who was posthumously elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in the Class of 2011.”
Posted on February 28, 2012
By Jim Coffman
There is still a ton of basketball to be played. Make that 10 tons. But it is already clear that this NBA season will come down to one thing and one thing only:
Can LeBron make clutch plays?
Even the All-Star Game came down to that; Mr. James’ ill-advised, last-second, cross-court pass was intercepted by Blake Griffin.
Posted on February 27, 2012
Another Beachwood Exclusive!
“Chicago Cubs baseball president Theo Epstein emphasized a new organizational philosophy as camp opened on Saturday, saying it will all be part of a manual called The Cubs Way,” the Tribune reports.
“Everything from what foot you hit the bag with when you’re making the turn to how we run bunt plays,” Epstein said.
The Beachwood has learned, however, that Cubs fans will also be expected to abide by a new set of rules, including:
Posted on February 23, 2012
By Dan O’Shea
When you look at preseason fantasy baseball rankings, you are not going to see a lot of Cubs or White Sox near the top of the list for most positions. The exception, of course, is shortstop, where a couple guys named Starlin and Alexei will be worth watching. My top 10 at SS:
Troy Tulowitski, COL: Probably the easiest call at a position with a variety of talent. He has every offensive tool, and should have another 30+ HRs and 100+ RBIs.
Jose Reyes, FLA: He just seems like an Ozzie Guillen type of player, and can deliver on this ranking with a season looking something like this:.330, 100 runs, 40 SBs, 17 triples, 35 doubles.
Hanley Ramirez, FLA: Probably ripe for a comeback and will have the 3B eligibility to go with SS, but it remains to be seen how he’ll respond to Guillen’s tough love.
Posted on February 22, 2012
By Jim Coffman
Derrick Rose came back and all and he busted out a few ankle-breaking crossovers and high-flying, death-defying layups. But that didn’t make a severely disappointing Bulls performance on Monday any easier to swallow.
For a team to come up short like that in front of a holiday matinee crowd of 22,033 (I remember it exactly because I won the guess-the-attendance game – thank you, thank you very much), well, it wasn’t just devastating to me, it was devastating to my two daughters, who joined my wife and I at the game.
Posted on February 21, 2012
