Chicago -
By Jim Coffman and Steve Rhodes
Splitsville. Plus: Nick The Stick; Bullpenmanship; Dave Roberts Abused Brandon Morrow, Then Joe Maddon Finished Him; Ben Press; Cards > Brewers; Luke Box; Rickey Rentamanager; and The Kick And The Dead.
Posted on August 23, 2019
By Steve Rhodes
One in an occasional series tracking the movements of former Cubs.
1. Jeff Samardzija.
Remember the hype? The $16.5 million signing bonus? The nickname (Shark)? The former Notre Dame All-American wide receiver was gonna anchor the Cubs’ rotation for, well, life. And then baseball, and business, interceded.
“On June 18, 2014, the Cubs offered Samardzija a five-year, club friendly deal that included multiple option years, which he rejected,” his Wikipedia page notes.
“On July 6, 2014, he was revealed as a National League All-Star, but was not eligible to play because he was traded to an American League team.”
And that was the end of the dream.
Posted on August 20, 2019
By Jim Coffman
Dude, the Bears play a game that matters in a little more than two weeks!
Season-opening Thursday night football (Sept. 5)! Hosting the Packers! And . . . let’s dial it down a bit. Three exclamation points is the charm after all.
Posted on August 19, 2019
By Roger Wallenstein
Had Twitter existed in 1949 when the Yankees hired future Hall of Fame manager Casey Stengel, the tweets would have lambasted the hallowed franchise’s management.
However, the world apparently was gentler and more polite 70 years ago, as exhibited by legendary sportswriter Tom Meany, who wrote in the Saturday Evening Post:
“There has been considerable speculation over the reaction of the old-line Yankees to the appointment of Stengel. It will be novel, to say the least, for them to be directed by a manager who thus far has gained more fame by his humor than by winning pennants.”
Stengel contributed mightily to his reputation by saying things like, “The secret to managing is to keep the five guys who hate you away from the four guys who haven’t made up their minds.”
But the consternation about Casey emanated from his record as much as from his behavior. In nine seasons guiding the old Brooklyn Dodgers and Boston Braves, his teams never finished higher than fifth in the eight-team National League and topped the .500 mark just one time. His winning percentage was .455.
Posted on August 19, 2019
By Jim Coffman and Steve Rhodes
Philadephia Phreakout.
Plus: White Sox Almost Sweep Astros.
And: Bears Kick Camp.
Posted on August 16, 2019
By Jim Coffman
Winning is hard.
Always remember that as the Cubs battle through the dog days hanging on to a slim lead in the division (two games over the Cardinals, 2.5 over the Brewers) heading into Monday’s action.
I opened the Tribune sports section this morning (yes, I am a dinosaur, although I will try to provide a link or two herein) to read the jump portion of Paul Sullivan’s column on the Cubs’ Sunday comeback victory and found another couple of stories of note.
Posted on August 12, 2019
By Roger Wallenstein
As the sweet music fills the background at the very end of the story, Kevin Costner says, “Hey, Dad, you wanna have a catch?” After seeing the movie at least 10 times, I’m still a basket case at this point.
Field of Dreams isn’t my favorite baseball movie. It’s my favorite movie, period. Sure, there are some close seconds like To Kill a Mockingbird, A Few Good Men, and any of the Godfather flicks, but the adaptation of W.P. Kinsella’s Shoeless Joe hooks me, reels me in, and consumes me regardless of how many times I’ve seen it.
Posted on August 12, 2019
By Jon Queally/Common Dreams
A gold medalist hammer thrower and a member of the gold medal-winning men’s U.S. fencing team staged individual protests during ceremonies at the Pan Am Games over recent days to call attention to their country’s racism, mistreatment of immigrants, and ongoing gun violence epidemic.
and a president who spreads hate are at the top of a long list.
I chose to sacrifie my moment today at the top of the podium to call attention to issues that I believe need to be addressed. I encourage others to please use your platforms for empowerment and change.— Race Imboden (@Race_Imboden) August 10, 2019
Posted on August 12, 2019
By Steve Rhodes
He doesn’t suck, but he does seem to grind up bullpens and talk a lot of shit. Plus: Cubs Media Meatheads Set The Tone; Cubs Hunger Games; Time For Theo To Move on?; Rickey Bunteria; Missing Trubisky; Boynton Beach Bingo; and Schweinsteiger!
Posted on August 11, 2019
By Thomas Chambers
Saturday was Arlington Million Day at beautiful Arlington Park.
Not really anywhere near, in location or spirit, to Buckingham Fountain.
If you saw it, form your own opinion. If you saw it, kudos to you for finding it on TV, which also means you’ve ponied up, no pun intended, for the full sports package. It was also on Altitude TV, which ran Colorado Avalanche feel-good spots.
“Veni Vidi Vici,” Chad Brown said. I can speculate that because I took Latin in high school and it was one of the best things I ever did, not that I wasn’t already a whiz speller.
Brown was effusive in his praise for Arlington Park and AP’s godfather, Dick Duchossois, and why not? Brown swept three very important turf races in a country that values dirt much more, and it sets up Brown to cash in on the grass races in the rich Breeders’ Cup, November, Santa Anita. Money is where you find it.
Posted on August 11, 2019
