Signs of Arrival

The New Yorker’s annual baseball cover edition arrives in my mail (picture from their site) -- this year the art is entitled “Double Take” by Bruce McCall -- and it signals opening weekend. Hey hey! Meanwhile, Cub fan and host of NPR’s Weekend Edition Saturday Scott Simon this morning introduces his brief interview with Howard Bryant, author of Juicing the Game, by announcing its arrival: “The promise and heartbreak – or if you’re a Cub fan, the promised heartbreak – of yet another major league baseball season.”



Probably so. There will probably be heartbreak. But maybe not, right?



They chat about a few things. The DirecTV exclusivity deal. Barry Bonds approaching the record, and the sadness surrounding the event. Tom Glavine (and maybe Randy Johnson) reaching 300. Lou Piniella. Bryant says for the Cubs it’s been “A hundred years without winning,” at which point Simon interjects, “Ninety-nine! Let’s not exaggerate.” And then he says the Cubs two best pitchers, Prior and Wood, are again not starting the season with the club, “And so, once again, it’s the Curse of the Cubs.”

It makes for good casual radio banter, but who’s buying it? Not me, anyway. Not before the season even starts. But am I alone here?



I mean, Paul Sullivan’s latest column is about the negativity among Cub fans and Wrigley crowds, a subject some of us have long decried. And it’s not that Sullivan is wrong. He asks a great question: “Has the fans' impatience begun to hurt the team as they vent their frustration on struggling players?” It’s a column I’ve wished he would write for a while. But the timing... why now? Why not let us bask in the possibilities of a new season before writing about the problems in Cubs Nation?



Although I think I’m overreacting. After the first game, all people will be talking about is the first game. And then the first series. And then the standings will start to take shape, and we’ll see where they stand, and go from there.



Elsewhere, though, an offer for the TribCo could be accepted any day now. The announced day for deciding whether to accept an offer was today, actually, but like everything else – who knows. Chicago magnate Sam Zell made a big time offer, but now there’s reports that a couple of other billionaires have topped it. That would at least avoid the headache of what might be forced to happen with the Cubs since Zell is part of a group that partially owns the White Sox. Still, there may be some real news on that front any time.



The other thing I’ll say is that I’m disappointed that Prior couldn’t get it going this spring. But there’s no way for him to be effective with the stuff he has right now, at least from what I read. The reason he was so effective in 2003 was because he was able to blaze a 4-seam fastball past a hitter up in the zone at 93mph, which the hitters said seemed faster, the sort of pitch that had a little extra jump and deception because of his delivery. That was the difference-maker pitch, the one that set the table for the breaking ball. Without it, I don’t see how Prior can be the same pitcher. So here’s hoping he finds it again.



Anyway, as I’m writing this, I’m streaming the Cubs / Mariners last spring training game, and I’m reminded how lucky we are to have Len & Bob. They’re not perfect, but they’re good, especially relative to some of the other pairs around the league, like the Mariners’ guys.



Only two more days...