When Epstein was hired as president of baseball operations for the Cubs, he eloquently and adequately laid out his plan for the Chicago Cubs. He stated the process would encompass an entire organizational change. He emphasized a new way of thinking and playing a new brand of baseball. A new GM, manager and a new way of building a team were to follow. Out was the old way of relying on the long ball to score runs and win games. In was the new way of small ball—getting runners on base then utilizing speed and smart, aggressive baserunning with sound ...
Singing "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" during the seventh-inning stretch is a tradition pushing 35 years. Coined by broadcaster Harry Caray, it has become a tradition unlike any other in baseball.Today, celebrities don a Chicago Cubs jersey and take their best jab at it, sometimes stumbling and mumbling, and other times landing in immortality.Either way, the Cubs cameramen have it down to a science. They start by filming the girls, then they move to a few couples, then pan to the little old lady with the white buzz cut behind the first-base dugout, then to the kid on ...
The season is quickly spiraling downward for the Chicago Cubs. With Tuesday's 2-1 loss to the Houston Astros, the Cubs' losing streak extended to eight games. That slide has pushed them down to the worst record in baseball at 15-28. Yes, that's correct: the worst record in baseball. Worse than the Padres or Rockies, even worse than the Minnesota Twins. No wonder Kerry Wood decided to retire. Shortstop Starlin Castro has been one of the few bright spots for the Cubs this season, batting .316/.326/.411 going into Tuesday night's play. But he was most certainly part of the problem in his team's ...
The Chicago Cubs haven't been much to watch this season, but first baseman Bryan LaHair has been at least one positive for the team this season.As of May 22, LaHair is batting .315 with 10 home runs and 21 RBI through 150 plate appearances this season. Those numbers are incredibly good for a guy who had only appeared in 65 games during his career prior to this season.Those numbers are not just reflective of his performance this past year.He had a strong year last year in the minors, batting .331 with 38 home runs and 109 RBI.Unfortunately, the team must consider moving the 29-year-old, ...
I know for most Chicago Cubs fans this may sound sacrilegious. Hell, when I mentioned this to a White Sox fan he said I was nuts, but hear me out. Ernie Banks is easily the best player in Cubs history. He earned the nickname "Mr. Cub" because he was a fan favorite and their best player. He played all 19 of his MLB seasons with the Cubs. However no one is around forever and someone will undoubtedly eventually inherit the moniker. So why not Kerry Wood? Since Banks retired in 1971, a few players looked like they could inherit the title. Ryne Sandberg ...
It wasn't long ago that the Chicago Cubs locked up their long-term closer solution to a lucrative three-year deal in Carlos Marmol. As is the case for every other long-term closer not named Mariano, it didn't seem to last very long. For now, Rafael Dolis is getting the ball in save opportunities that are scattered few and far between. Is he the reincarnation of Lee Smith walking through the door? Probably not. That's a lot to live up to. But as long as it isn't Joe Borowski, the Cubs have reason to believe he's prepared to be the next "guy". ...
The Curse of the Billy Goat may have just claimed another victim.Kerry Wood announced that he would retire from Major League Baseball the morning of May 18 and then made his last appearance against the Chicago White Sox.While it was a great moment in the history of the Chicago Cubs, one has to wonder what could have been if Wood had not suffered several injuries that have been attributed to overuse during the early seasons of his career.While there are logical reasons why Wood's demise happened, there is a more popular theory that Cubs fans will point to when thinking ...
As the Cubs whimpered to the finish line at their home ballpark on Sunday, there was a feeling "sweeping" over the Northsiders that the annual series between the Chicago rivals has become a joke. The Sox have now beaten the Cubs 18 out of the last 24 games.Some "classic," eh? A classic failure, maybe. Interleague play is annoying to begin with, but when even the best of the matchups—and the intracity rivalries are supposed to be just that—are this bad you have to wonder why they do it at all.Sure, I'll admit it. If the Cubs were putting a big ...
The talk when Theo Epstein came to the Chicago Cubs was that the culture had to change, so giving in to that, Epstein shipped embattled starter Carlos Zambrano to the Miami Marlins for Chris Volstad.It was thought of as a move that needed to be made, along with bringing back a cheap asset who might benefit from a change of scenery.Epstein looked like a visionary in Spring Training when Volstad was untouchable in Arizona. He won, or should I say was given a spot in the rotation when the Cubs decided not to give Randy Wells a legitimate shot.You could ...
Anthony Rizzo is far and away the most exciting player in the Cubs organization. Rizzo is hitting .353 with 14 home runs, has a .416 OBP in 150 at-bats and is getting hot again, hitting .350 in his last 10 games with seven home runs, 14 RBI, four extra-base hits and a K-BB ratio of 6-to-4. There is no doubt Rizzo will be joining the Cubs in the very near future. Their upcoming schedule forces the front office to consider the options.Should they call up Anthony Rizzo now with the Padres and Red Sox looming, or ride out Alfonso Soriano's little burst of ...
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