School in session, what's your grade?

So the Ricketts family purchased the Cubs 3 short years ago and Cubs fans rejoiced in the fact that fans now own our beloved team. We praised the family that was to bring a championship to the Northside when they shook the hands of Cub fans on opening day. Where has that praise been lately? How would you grade the first 3 years of Ricketts ownership?

After purchasing the team, the Ricketts have really done little to get results on the field, and it has seemed like they struck out off the field a much as they have on it. Failing to up the teams budget was a huge mistake in a lot of Cubs fans' minds, and their overestimation that the City of Chicago and the State of Illinois would hand over as much tax dollars as they have asked for was a large business error in others eyes. For a family that grew a large corporation in TD Ameritrade with tactical and business savvy decisions, they have really put a sour taste in a lot of people's mouths.

Cubs fans thought the offseason of 2011 would promise to be fulfilling. The team had free agent options to solidify the club, and big decisions on the future of Jim Hendry and the hiring of a new on field manager, this would finally determine how Cubs fans would think about the ownership team. Again, in a lot of fans eyes they struck out again. Failing to land a big named free agent, keeping Jim Hendry, and allowing him to hire the wrong manager (Mike Quade as opposed to Ryne Sandberg), this ship was sinking fast. What a lot of Cubs fans didn't realize is the team achieved one of its best drafts ever, with some of the highest ceiling players the Cubs system has.

Midsummer 2011. The Ricketts had decided to part ways with Jim Hendry. This was the first time Cubs fans thought this organization might move in the right direction since the family bought the team. The team had shipped off payroll as well, sending off players like Fukudome, and finally getting Milton Bradley/Carlos Silva cash off the books. The team also sent Carlos Zambrano home after his tirade in Atlanta, and were in a position to drop additional payroll in Aramis Ramirez and Carlos Pena. The biggest question... Who would be in charge of the next decisions?

Offseason of 2012...

The Cubs hired Theo Epstein to be the President of Baseball Operations, and then turned to San Diego for Jud Hoyer to be the next General Manager. These 2 Moneyball/Sabermetrics students have had success in other places, relying on statistical numbers and equations that 10 years ago had no place in the game. One area a lot of people overlook is Theo and Jud's ability to build an efficient and productive minor league system.

The Cubs again have spoken about new stadium improvements, which would surely need tax payers money. We have yet to see or hear the full details, but will this be the same as the last bid they put in? We are also hearing that a TV deal for a Cubs Network could be in the works. Sounds like an additional $150-$200 million a season would pull into the Cubs organization.

After just a couple of short years I see this organization with a bright future. Lots of young talent in the minors, lots of revenue with promises of a lot more in the future, and a couple of executive that are primed to lead them ball club for years to come. Sure class is in session, but sports is a tough game to grade, what is gold one season is fool's gold the next. whatever this turns into, I sure hope it's a fun ride.

Once Touched

It would be the trip of a lifetime, a couple of lifelong Chicago Cubs fans driving to Cooperstown to witness the induction of their favorite player, Ryne Sandberg. I vividly remember the drive, often times along side other Cubs fans making this same hike. I also remember the tire on my car blowing and we needed to buy a new one. I remember so many things about this trip, but one thing continues to stick out. Buck O'Neil.



I honestly knew very little about Buck before this trip. I knew he was a player from the Negro Leagues, and I had an inkling that he was pretty good. I didn't know however, who he really was.

You see, induction week at the Baseball Hall of Fame is unlike anything else. The sport that immortalizes it's greats more than any other sport, one walk down the short 3 or 4 block town that is Cooperstown one can easily become overwhelmed. You see Cooperstown, NY isn't unlike any other small town in America, there is the town Post Office, a General Store, a couple of nice Bed and Breakfast's, and oh yeah, the Baseball Hall of Fame. Induction week however, this town is also littered with baseball fans, media, and Hall of Famers.

The first time I walked up the street I looked at a nice table with groups of people standing around and Yogi Berra just happened to be sitting down with... Willie Mays. It really doesn't take much for one to understand that this is Baseball's heaven, and I was instantly in awe.

I visited Cooperstown for the induction of my favorite baseball player, Ryne Sandberg, the last great player I can remember that displayed class day in day out, as well as never put himself above the base of baseball. He would later that week give one of the best Hall of Fame induction speeches ever given, but there is another event I remember as more rewarding.

As my friend and I were walking the Cooperstown streets one day, an elderly gentleman pointed at my hat and mentioned that we must be here to see Ryno. We replied we were, at which point he went on to talk about baseball, his role in the Cubs organization, and why we were all here. I have heard people talk about baseball before, and they may have been more eloquent when doing so. I have never heard someone talk about baseball with the passion in which Buck O'Neil talked about baseball. Every word spoken, every glance away, this man truly loved this game. Everything that was buck O'Neil, was baseball.

Our conversation and meeting was extremely brief, but it has lasted within me for six and a half years. I walk away from that week with a lot of memories, some of the best times I have ever had. Most importantly I walk away knowing that I spoke to a true legend of the sport. One that has impacted so many others players and others alike. Reggie Jackson once said, "He was a blessing for all of us. I believe that people like Buck and Rachel Robinson and Martin Luther King and Mother Teresa are angels that walk on earth to give us all a greater understanding of what it means to be human." 

I leave you with one last quote, from Buck himself, "I can't remember a time when I did not want to make my living in baseball or a time when that wasn't what I get to do."

Buck and I met but once, for a brief moment, but my take away from him is if you have a dream go after it with as much passion as humanly possible. When you think you've run out, reach back for more and continue to attack.

Glory Days

Do you remember sports when you were little? I mean really, really think back to when the game was special, magical if you will. Those days when if you were lucky enough to go to a game it seemed as though the air was electric, and the field was sparkled with mysticism. Not only that, the players were larger than life. Ryne Sandberg, Andre Dawson, Rick Sutcliffe, I didn't even have words to explain them.

The game was still a game then. It wasn't about the players next multimillion dollar contract, or which national sponsorship they could gain. It wasn't about pointing to the camera, or showing up another team or player. This was a time when the game was played for the game.

Recently I was talking with a friend about old days and nowadays, and how everything is so much more different and magnified. We talked about how we would take John Elway's comeback wins over any performance Aaron Rodgers has given us. We would take Joe Montana's Super Bowl wins over Tom Brady's, and I would take Ryne Sandberg's play over Alex Rodriguez everyday of the week.

It might be due to the over hyped and over-analyzed sports stars of today. It could be due to the 24 hour sports networks and constant criticism on sports radio. It could be the over abundance of "dirty" stars, constantly getting into trouble. It could be the fact that we are just older now, and have other things in life more important to us.

Either way, I find myself constantly longing for the days of old. The days when the game meant something more, if not to the players, but to myself. The days when just walking into Wrigley Field would send chills down my spine, and they wouldn't go away until we were long on the tollway home. I mostly want this feeling to be passed down to my children, and to their children. I want that love to be passed along, felt, developed, and kept.

I want sports to mean more again.

Chasing that feeling

It has been 8 years since I have felt the worse pain I, and possibly all, Cubs fans could have felt. For some of us, that pain ran deeper than others, and I think this is why I've let the documentary on that day sit on my DVR until tonight. I'm not going to stand atop a soap box and say my experience was worse than someone else's, but I will tell my story.

Earlier in 2003 we lost two friends from our group. These weren't just two friends, they were really the life of our party. A strange thing happened after that tragic night, we all seemed to grow closer, if only for a year. Everything one of us did, we all did. We had our long painful nights, and we had those nights where our family became closer than ever, sharing things, and thoughts, and feelings. This would be an experience which at the time we didn't really know it, but looking back caused us to grow as individuals as well as within each other.

Soon after the tragic night, started the 2003 baseball season. The Chicago Cubs had just hired Dusty Baker, and within our group we had a feeling there would be something special with this team. With Sosa belting home runs and Alou playing so well. The additions of Eric Karros, and later on Aramis Ramirez and Kenny Loften. Finally, the best pitching staff in the league. Anchored by Kerry Wood and the phenom Mark Prior, they also had the electric Carlos Zambrano and the goatee'd Matt Clement. This was certainly the year, and our angels from above would make sure of it.

Game 6 of the NLCS. We ha decided to go out to Wrigley for the celebration, and if all went well we would repeat this for the World Series. That night there were what seemed like thousands of buses running the same lines, expecting much more people in Wrigleyville than normal.

As we approached Wrigley all of a sudden squad cars are rushing all over, surely for the thousands of Cubs fans in the streets drinking. As we get to the ballpark it's the 7th inning and the Cubs are up 3-0, oddly we had a Sox fan bus driver who gave us some not so nice words of encouragement as we left.

Walking down the street I am watching street vendors opening boxes of brand new shirts, Chicago Cubs National League Champion shirts. I will not name names, but some of them weren't hiding the fact that they had them already, and were promising that these will be the locker room shirts. I'm convinced that if I wasn't in a rush, I could have bought one.

As we are standing outside, enjoying what will soon become the greatest party of our lives, a hush came across the crowd. One of our friends that had a portable TV said, there was some fan that interfered with a ball, but wasn't sure of all the events. Then soon everything started getting out, as well as the air all around. The electricity was leaving, and excitement was turning into anger.

We all know what happened that night, the details on Bartman, and the blown lead and game. What some don't know is the pain that was felt. This was a kick in our gut, and was the night that some of our group began to fade away.

That night was a horrible night. We, seemingly walking aimlessly, went off in strange directions and ended up nowhere near a train station. We walked for hours and hours on end, stopping for misleading directions here and there while going off further and further into the abyss in the night.

Tensions, tiredness, hunger, thirst, disappointment, and everything else started to reach the surface that night. It was, needless to say, a very bad night. Arguments and tensions grew, an finally we hitched a ride from a paddy wagon from one train station to another and eventually made our way home when another friend can and grabbed us.

We all watched game 7 at one of our adopted parents homes. I think part of all of us knew our friends will make this one happen for us, and if you knew our friends you would have agreed they could get God to change an outcome of anything. Watching the game we just knew something wasn't there. The electricity just seemed to be missing, and 3 hours later the Florida Marlins were going on to face the Yankees in the World Series.

The turn of events made me despise Steve Bartman. He after all started the chain of events that caused the wheels to come off the whole thing. I couldn't stand his turtle neck or his Renegades sweater. I wanted to break his glasses and step on his headphones. After all, these were the only things I knew about Steve, and I hated them all.

Time went on and my anger towards Steve had calmed a little, and I looked at things more from the baseball perspective. Why did Alou act that way? Why haven't we yelled at nauseum about the error on Alex Gonzalez? Why did Dusty Baker leave Prior in for 120+ pitches?

You can't change what happened, and here I how I came upon this.

Years later I was working in Deerfield at a cellular store where I managed. It was a Sunday afternoon, and getting late when a couple had just walked in. They were older, but seemed very approachable (something odd for this area) so we began talking. Right away I noticed their shirts, they were both wearing shirts that had Baseball Tours printed on them. I really wanted to inquire more about these shirts, so eventually I asked.

They went on to tell me some of the greatest baseball stories from a fans perspective I have ever heard. Our conversation lasted about 2 hours after we talked baseball and I had long let the rest of the staff go home as we ha been closed for an hour or so. They had talked about the tour that they went on, and encouraged me to do the same, they talked about growing up here going to Cubs games, and talked about how much their son loved the sport a well. We had talked for hours about stories of old and what the chances were for the most current Cubs team. Which is where I began to get confused.

See they still watched baseball, and the Cubs, but they watched for another reason it seemed. This was 2008, and this Cubs team looked very good on paper, but it didn't seem like they were as excited about this as I, or other Cubs fans were. This was puzzling, and I soon found out why.

I was sitting here talking to Mr. and Mrs. Bartman. They had brought this up like follows...

Speaking about the Cubs, I'm surprised you haven't kicked us out of here by now.

As I asked why, it dawned on me, I haven't even asked their names yet. We had been talking for hours and I beer asked their names. This also happens to be the exact time they told me their names.

I went on to joke and said get out, but was still interested in them, their story, and of course Steve. It turns out I had talked to Steve just minutes earlier without knowing it. He was golfing in Northbrook, and his parents wanted to try out a Bluetooth device they had purchased online. He was nice and polite, and wanted to get back to his golf game. I had no idea who he was, and he of course had no idea who I was.

His parents went on to tell me more about his story. The story that always had the game of baseball front an center. He grew up playing the game, as well as going to Wrigley. It seemed his parents were blessed with a comfortable income, so I assumed he made it to more games through his childhood than I had gone to. They talked about his love for baseball, how we had actually played in a similar men's baseball league around the same time, and how that one moment changed all of it.

I don't know how to explain the pain I heard in their voices on their disappointment in how fans reacted, and how long it took for the Cubs to react. I especially do not know how to explain that pain to Cubs fans who went through that day, but I assure you it has brought more pain on him than it has the rest of us.

In one moment, a moment we all say we would have done differently, but I can guarantee most would have done the exact same thing. That one moment stole his first love away from him. The saying, it's better to of love and lost than to never of loved at all, was not the case with Steve Bartman. His life had change forever. The love of his life was lost.

That day I learned that Steve's life before that moment revolved around baseball, an the Chicago Cubs. Since that moment he has watched minimal moments here and there and has never gone to a game since.

I got the feeling coming away from my conversation that his parents went on the baseball tour which started our conversation to allow that love to continue on somehow. Like they had to continue his love for the game through themselves for some reason. Maybe it's a parental thing, or something that lives on through the Bartman family, but their stories hit home.

I felt a need that day to apologize for the acts Cubs fans had that day, and since. I know what some of you would say, he doesn't deserve an apology, if I was there I would have told them to you know what in you know where, etc. the thing is, none of you were there, an none of you were in his position that day in 2003. I let them know how disappointed I was in sane down to earth people acting the way they did, and saying the things they did. There was no reason for the reaction that Cubs fans had that day, honestly giving death threats and wishing some of the worse things you could wish upon a person.

They took the apology, but did mention that the blame was placed on the wrong person, then quickly mentioned Alou an Gonzalez.

So I finally turned Chasing Hell on today, not sure what to expect. It felt like a lot of the documentary was skewed towards a continued blame of Bartman, but also pointing out that others were doing the same. I however didn't find a new found distaste for Steve, but remembered the pain felt when the Cubs lost, as well as that summer that was. I remembered Steve's parents, an their stories. I remembered how much grief was put on Steve's shoulders, but nothing was given to the players who were playing.

Mostly I remember that as many 2003 Cubs players or organizational apologies that are forwarded to the Bartman family, it will not change the fact that Steve lost the love of his life that day, and will never be the same again.

Have you Hurd?

Well by now you have heard that Sam Hurd, WR and Special Teams contributor for the Chicago Bears has been arrested on suspicion of felony drug charges. Reports are saying that he was purchasing up to 10 kilos of cocaine and around 1,000lbs of marijuana a week.

There are also reports that Hurd had roughly $1,000,000 worth of drugs. We are also seeing that by the amount of drugs that are being reported Hurd would rank in the top 3 drug cartels in the city of Chicago. We also have learned that Hurd has given authorities a double digit list of NFL players that were his customers.

Fans are going to scream out to the Bears, "You should have known better!" or "Just another example of Jerry Angelo not being able to recognize good players!"

That is wrong and unfair. It's true, I have never skipped an opportunity to criticize Jerry and his ability to build teams. Face the facts, we have no backup quarterback, and our offensive line stinks. That said, Angelo and the Bears are not responsible for this mess. Sam is the only person responsible for his mess, and should be the only person the fans, and the court of public opinion should blame for this.

This is something that the NFL should be fearing however. If it is true, and I can't imagine it's not, that Hurd has a list of NFL players that purchased from him, the league is in for a nightmare of backlashes. I would imagine that there will be a number of teammates, old and new, as well as others throughout he league that will be named. This will not look good for the NFL player.

Heck, this will not look good for the African American athlete. I myself, personally do not breakdown between races, however there are hundreds upon thousands that do. I fear this becoming something that becomes political, racial, and becomes something which continues to divide the fan from the athlete.

Will 2011 be the year known for destroying sport? I sure as hell hope not.

Bears break.... down?

So you want Caleb Hanie as your quarterback? I get it, sports fans always love the backup thinking, "hey he did so good in preseason/end of that one game/that one time in college." Let's face the facts here, Caleb just isn't capable of winning in the NFL.

"Well the offensive line isn't helping him!"

And it helped Jay Cutler?

Compare the two and it's painfully obvious these two are completely two worlds apart. Jay had the ability to escape the pressure, keep the play alive, still look down field and make something happen. Hanie on the other hand has zero pocket presence, gets those happy feet, stumbles around and throws it 4 feet offline to a check down receiver 3 yards away from him.

"Those are just isolated incidents and unfair to bring up."

Really? A 48.6 QB rating with a completion percentage just over 50% is isolated?

The guy was a great story in the NFC Championship game, and hey produces well in the preseason when facing players that aren't on NFL rosters once the regular season starts. I'm sorry to say, Hanie-Mania is over in Chicago.

So where do we go from here?

Well, we do need to continue to put him out there every Sunday Jay cannot go. Unfortunately he is the best option left, and that is a glaring statement which reflects how well, er, how bad of a job Jerry Angelo has done. There were multiple QBs which were starters in 2010 who had become available and Jerry didn't take a look at any of them. Jerry also said he did his best to fill the teams biggest glaring hole in their offensive line, and well we have Chris Spencer. Oh by the way, Chris Spencer doesn't even play the position we signed him to play...

The other hole on this team is still the lack of a big time receiver. For as bad as Hanie has been, a big receiver with the ability to get open on any and every play would have helped this team through this stretch. The beats have great complimentary receivers in Bennett and Knox, but if we had a clear number 1 receiver this offense might not have faltered as much these last three games.

Well the defense hasn't helped them much!

Yeah, your right... The defense who has allowed an average of 16 points over the last 3 weeks (down from their season average of 20.7 per game over the first 10 games) is not the reason they have lost. It is the clear ineptitude of the offense that has sunk this team.

The offense has come off of 3 straight weeks of scoring 30 or more points, 5 weeks of 24 or more. The only difference through the first two games was Jay Cutler, and in the last one was Jay and Matt Forte. I'm not even going to count Matt in the decision of the Denver game since Marion Barber rushed for over 100 yards with a touchdown. I will say though, Forte would have stayed inbounds, and wouldn't have fumbled though.

This is a very disappointing team now, and with Jay at quarterback it would have been something to see a rematch of the Bears vs the Packers in Lambeau Field in the NFC Championship game. Now unfortunately this team will miss out on the playoffs.

Bears down

I hate being pessimistic about sports, as it's suppose to be a distraction from the stresses of everyday life. Sports give you a chance to forget the troubling economy, distract you from overwhelming bills, build deeper bonds with your children. Sports, even though physically grueling by nature, are suppose to be a calm and relaxing time.

That being said, it is painfully obvious that the Chicago Bears season is just about over. In fact, it is so over I suggest they go out and sign Donavan McNabb just so his mother can sing, this ending the pain fans will have to endure watching Caleb Hanie fail and falter on the field Sunday afternoons.

It is clear to me, and it should be to anyone that knows football, that Hanie is pretty horrible. I'm not going to say he will never become a good player in this league, but I'm tired of watching him play pretend time out on the field while the playoffs slip through his hands. Again, maybe he turns into a serviceable guy over the years, he just isn't there yet. Hanie makes too many mistakes, too many times he misses a throw, and too many times he has cost the team games.



Let me get this straight, I do NOT want to see McNabb quarterbacking this team. There is too much to learn, too much at stake, and too little time to make it work. The Bears need another offensive ah ha moment. A realization that, although Hanie can play in practice, our system and the speed of the game is too much for him right now.

What I am calling for is, a vanilla offense. Run the basics of a West Coast offense. Crossing routes, slants down field. Take advantage of the fact you have an above average backup running back. Most importantly put Caleb in a position to succeed. Hanie doesn't have the ability to see how a defense really works against the Martz offense, and doesn't have the experience of delivering a ball in a time dependent offense with the defense baring down on him, and the receivers.



I do not want to see a "Tebow" offense, but I do want to see a standard I-formation, single back with 3 receivers, 2 tightend sets with the TEs running routes, medium and deep slant routes, crossing routes, swing passes, and lots and lost of handoffs.

Face the music, we will see a lot of 8 man fronts for the rest of the season, and honestly Marion Barber is the better suited back to run against that 8 man front. He can carry a load for remaining 4 games. Then we just ask Hanie to not put the ball in the other teams hands.

It can be a recipe for success, but I just wouldn't count on it.