Rain-Out Rain-Delay Meanderings

Well, Destiny, I'm not sure what you have in mind, so as WGN airs "The best of the seventh inning stretch," while Len & Bob discuss more ways to kill time, I've decided that I should write Rain-out Meanderings just in case. (WGN: what, like you don't have dozens of Fresh Prince or Cosby Show episodes waiting to air, just in case?) Today we're going to wander from the NYPD to the status of American cities before finally getting to some differences between Austin and Chicago. (continue...)

Outside The Script

Well, like everyone else these days who follows the Cubs, I have no idea what to expect anymore. Things just aren't following the patterns lately. It's all just wackiness, and yet the Cubs have suddenly won three in a row again. (continue...)

Best Of Game Notes Vol. 8

What a series!

Anyway, once again it was a two-week roller coaster ride. In case you weren't following along, here are the Game Notes highlights from the last two weeks. (continue...)

Breakdown

I almost logged in yesterday to vent. I could have probably fired off a few thousand ranting words about all the reasons I was pissed off. I figured I should wait, cool off, and then put things back into perspective. Then this morning, as I went back to my Game Notes for yesterday, I became just as pissed off as I was yesterday. I might even be more pissed off. All the momentum that the second half of the season started with is gone. (continue...)

I Can't Help Looking Ahead

Everyone can talk ad nauseam about taking it one day at the time, and they'll be right. The Cubs must take care of business against a weaker team, keeping their momentum. Still, there's this: the Reds blow, and the St. Louis series is this weekend. I've been looking forward to this series all year. (continue...)

On Mark Prior

I wonder, is Mark Prior ready to throw a no-hitter? I'm not talking about his health, because he looked darn close if he wasn't 100% yesterday. (Plus, his stuff is good at 85%, and the Pirates are only like 85% of a major league lineup anyway, so it balances out.) I'm not talking about his stuff, either, because his stuff has always been good enough. I'm talking about his career trajectory. (continue...)

Competition In The All-Star Game

Alasdair MacIntyre recounts an anecdote in After Virtue, his book arguing for a return to a sort of Aristotelian ethics:

“Yet perhaps explanations are not needed, for perhaps the failure that the dominant tradition tries to explain is like King Charles II’s dead fish. Charles II once invited the members of the Royal Society to explain to him why a dead fish weighs more than the same fish alive; a number of subtle explanations were offered to him. He then pointed out that it does not.”

I bring this up because I’m still trying to figure out why in the hell the All-Star game will decide who gets home field advantage in the World Series. (continue...)

Best Of Game Notes Vol. 7

They can't do anything the easy way, can they? They had to dig themselves deep into a hole again before getting back on track. Still, we feel good about this team heading into the break, don't we? Anyway, here are the Game Notes highlights from the last two weeks. (continue...)

Storms Are Brewing (And Why It's A Good Thing)

A popular question during last week’s skid was whether the Cubs were falling out of contention, and if so, whether they would become ‘buyers’ or ‘sellers’ as the trade deadline approached. Frankly, I just don’t see how this question makes sense for the Cubs in 2005. They’re in too weird of a situation. The Cubs cannot be sellers. (continue...)

Futility & Frustration

At this point, I wonder: in February, would the Cubs have been better off buying a lead-off hitter or an MRI machine? I mean, they've pumped enough money into MRIs at Northwestern Memorial and other hospitals that it would have paid for itself by now. Yet, while there was no way to see the vast accumulation of injuries coming, there have been plenty of vulnerabilities on this team that have been clear every step of the way, and the Cubs have yet to act with foresight to compensate for them. (continue...)

Rain-out Meanderings

Well, Destiny, we got you tonight: even the Cubs can’t lose when it rains. (continue...)

Can They Do Something About The Walks?

Regarding yesterday's game, I'm left feeling hollow. The Nationals blew two saves in one game, yet the Cubs couldn't win. Now they're right back at .500 with tonight's being the 81st game of the season. More than anything, I can't shake the feeling that they're making these winnable games harder than they have to. (continue...)

Batting Titles Still Matter

I used to think, just a few years ago, that one day I would try to write an essay about Sammy Sosa in the vein of John Updike’s famous essay about Ted Williams for The New Yorker. There can be no argument that Updike’s essay, “Hub Fans Bid Kid Adieu,” stands atop the collection of literary baseball journalism. To write this way is to freeze a moment that stands on its own merits but is yet framed -- enhanced -- by its place in baseball’s tradition. It is to be aware of when a moment is soon to become part of History, and as such to dwell on it longer than usual while it remains fresh. (continue...)

The View From Wrigleyville
Tuesday Night Memories
What a strange yet special night. I had made advance plans to attend Tuesday night's Cubs-Giants game with an old friend from Scotland and his two youngsters, 12 and 14. They were quite "keen'' on the occasion, but then the weather hit and it was clear there would be a long delay, maybe a washout. (continue...) Mid-season Appraisal From Wrigleyville
Living within 5 blocks of the Wrigley bleachers you are surrounded by all things Cub -- banners, sign cards, souvenirs, posters, people in uniform and my personal favorite, a Mona Lisa painted on the wall of Panino's, a nearby pizzaria I favor just a few blocks east of Wrigley. She is not sporting her usual, cryptic smile but a Cub hat instead. (continue...)

The Eye Of The Beerholder
Chicago Skyline
North Avenue Beach (continue...) 07.16.05 Hot in Here
Cubs versus Pirates at Wrigley Field
Section 527 Row 8 Seat 104 (continue...) 07.03.05 Independence Day
City of Chicago Independence Day Fireworks
Chicago Yacht Club Pier (continue...) 06.24.05 JCB Going Away Party
Wicker Park
Standing Room Only (continue...) 06.24.05 Crosstown Classic
Cubs versus White Sox at US Cellular Field
Section 527 Row 8 Seat 12 (continue...)

Westside Wavelength
Leaving Wrigleyville
Moving from Wrigleyville to Wicker Park this past month reminds me in many ways of moving to a different part of the country. Everything is different, fresh, not quite familiar, and there’s something adventurous about discovering it all for the first time. People look different, act different, care about different things. (continue...)