Gapers Block published from April 22, 2003 to Jan. 1, 2016. The site will remain up in archive form. Please visit Third Coast Review, a new site by several GB alumni. ✶ Thank you for your readership and contributions. ✶
The 2009 trade deadline has come and gone and a lot of big names were moved. It was a very active deadline with trades a plenty taking place. The Minnesota Twins and Detroit Tigers both made deals to improve their respective clubs. The Twins acquired Orlando Cabrera from Oakland and the Tigers picking up Jarrod Washburn from Seattle. It appeared that the White Sox and Kenny Williams were going to stand pat with what they have.
Well if you think that is the case with Kenny Williams, think again. While everyone was looking at Roy Halladay to be the big name moved during the deadline Williams pulled off a shocker by bringing the 2007 National League Cy Young Award winner Jake Peavy to the South side of Chicago.
The on again/off again Jake Peavy-to -White Sox deal is apparently really on this time, as reports are coming out that the Sox and the Padres have agreed to terms on a deal that would send the sought-after righthander to the South Side in exchange for four minor league pitchers: Aaron Poreda, Clayton Richard, Dexter Carter and Adam Russell. The announcement of the deal came minutes after the trading deadline had officially passed.
In May, Peavy exercised his no-trade clause and rejected a deal that had been hammered out by the Sox' Kenny Williams and the Padres. But a strained right ankle tendon sidelined him soon after that and his stock took a dip as would-be suitors lost interest. That injury may have had something to do with his new-found willingness to accept a move to the AL, where he won't have to step to the plate or run the bases.
Peavy is 6-6 this season with a 3.95 ERA with 92 strikeouts in 81 innings. He will earn $11 million in 2009, $15 million in 2010, $16 million in 2011, $17 million in 2012 and a $22 million option for 2013 with a $4 million buyout.
The Red Stars host their last match of the season this Sunday when they face the L.A. Sol at Toyota Park, and thought their inaugual season didn't result in a playoff appearance, it did include the record-setting play of Christiane (yeah, one name) who recorded the first hat trick in Women's Professional Soccer history. Relive the history below.
While Kevin Hart was on the mound Thursday pitching, a deal trading him to the Pittsburgh Pirates was being finalized somewhere in the Cubs' front office. According to ESPN, Hart, along with relief pitcher Jose Ascanio and minor league player Josh Harrison are part of a deal to recieve left handed pitching from Pittsburgh. The Pirates, who have been in full fire sale mode for most of the year, will send John Grabow and Tom Gorzelanny to the Cubs. It is a move that will add much needed left handed pitchers to the Cubs bullpen. Ever since Neal Cotts was optioned to Triple A Iowa , Sean Marshall has been the only lefty available for the Cubs in relief. Marshall has been so good as a relief pitcher, sporting a 1.31 ERA, that to use him only as a left handed specialist would be a waste at this point. Grabow and Gorzlanny are now options to go to when the Cubs need a big out against a left handed batter. With Hart gone, there is no word yet who will fill the last spot in the rotation while Ted Lilly is injured.
Outside of his few starts this season, Hart is probably best remembered by Cubs fans for his work as a call up reliever during the end of the 2007 season. In the midst of a tight divisional race with Milwaukee, Hart posted a 0.82 ERA over the last few weeks of the season to help The Cubs reach the playoffs. His last start with the Cubs was a win, 12-3 over the Houston Astros as the Cubs took three out of the four games in the series. The Cubs will start a 10 game road trip Fridayversus the Florida Marlins. Rich Harden will start while the Marlins starter is Chris Volstad.
Boy, you have one inter-team spat... Even though the Bears are denying any rift between Brian Urlacher and new QB Jay Cutler, USA Today has concluded that the team is the new Dallas Cowboys.
Can we leave the poor guy alone? A documentary is being planned on Steve Bartman and the "incident".
Speaking of the Cubs, the middle of their lineup (Alfonso Soriano, Derrek Lee, Aramis Ramirez and Milton Bradley) are heating up at just the right time.
If the Illini make it to the Rose Bowl again, they can thank... Donovan McNabb?
If you join up with the Fork In The Road biking and dining group, will you be having a well-rounded meal?
The Chicago Huddle, a weekly Bears preview and recap show, is looking for a spokesperson to open each program. Looking at the photo on the front of the video, I can't for the life of me figure out what they're looking for.
The Chicago Women In Baseball League and the Chicago Gems baseball club will take their skills to a bigger audience when they conduct and exhibition prior to the start of a Schaumburg Flyers game during Women In Baseball Day
Bears training camp kicks off this week and Brian Urlacher will likely be having an entirely comfortable and reasonable discussion with Jay Cutler pertaining to what the Bears linebacker, allegedly, called the wunderkind qb. From the mouth of the washed up, former-Bear, Bobby Wade, Urlacher referred to Cutler as a "[redacted*]." You stay classy, Brian!
Tomorrow marks the official opening of the Bears training camp and with it, the kickoff of the Jay Cutler Watch, an intensive, potentially season-long dissection of the first Bears quarterback in decades to arrive in these parts not as a shell of his former greatness or a package of potential but an actual, functioning Big Time Quarterback.
Without even throwing a pass while wearing the blue and orange jersey yet, Cutler has excited local football fans like no other Bears quarterback since... well, since this guy...
It was looking like Buehrle would pull off the unthinkable and pitch back to back perfect games. However, it was not to be. He lost the perfect game in the sixth after walking Alexi Casilla. That is where things began to unfold for Mr. Perfect.
If you didn't know, Palos played a part in the Manhattan Project and in the woods, demarcated by signs, are some spots that are well, a little hot. That's where the meltdown in the name of the race comes from, but that day the only things burning up will be the lungs and legs of hundreds of cyclists careening down the hills and through the trees.
The course will be a variation of last year's -- Three Ravines will play a part, along with the Bullfrog Slough loop. I'm not entirely familiar with the park's trail system, having only raced last year and ridden it twice this year, but the terrain will split things up nicely according to fitness, skill level, and bravery.
There are three races: Beginner (one lap at 8 miles); Sport (two 8 mile laps); and Expert (three, of course). Unlike last year, the beginner race is on the same course as the rest of the classes -- and unlike last year, in which one could race a cyclocross bike or even a stout road bike with knobbies, the course now demands an off-road only machine.
The cost to register is $35 and includes a t-shirt and assorted swag.
Perfect game been "berry berry" good to him: Fresh off his appearance on David Letterman, the White Sox Mr. Perfect Mark Buehrle gets the cover of the latest Sports Illustrated. Will Buehrle, who pitches tonight against Minnesota, fall victim to the alleged SI cover jinx or the struggling reliever Jenks? (And yes, we know that it's really pronounced Bobby JANKS.)
Ending a conflicted relationship, the White Sox have dealt (underachieving?) outfielder Brian Anderson to the Boston Red Sox for first baseman Mark Kotsay.
Anderson, batting .238 with two homers, was earlier sent down to Triple-A Charlotte when Carlos Quentin rejoined the team. It was a move that, for all intents and purposes, signaled the end of his association with the team after a lengthy tenure in which the White Sox would happily utilize his glove in centerfield for defensive purposes but cringed when he stepped to the plate. Anderson is a career.225 hitter with 20 home runs and 75 RBIs over four years.
It's not known whether Anderson will immediately join the Red Sox roster or be sent to their Triple-A Pawtucket minor league franchise.
Kotsay, meanwhile, is yet another aging first baseman on the White Sox roster (how many do they really need?) who, rumor has it, can also play a bit of outfield at the age of 33. He's batting .257 in 74 at-bats this season with one dinger.
If nothing else, Anderson gets his wish after expressing his desire to be traded a few days ago. Once again, don't cross Kenny Williams.
And now the question becomes who goes down or gets traded to make room on the roster for Kotsay? Or is he part of some bigger trade just down the road?
This weekend in Grant Park, Red Bull FMX rider Ronnie Renner broke his own Guinness World Record for quarterpipe air, setting the new height mark at 63' 5". It only took him three tries.
Turns out pitching a perfect game is a great career move. It's earned White Sox pitcher Mark Buehrle a spot on David Letterman's "Top Ten List". Buehrle will shoot a clip for the Letterman's show's signature segment today in Minnesota prior to the team's game with the Twins. Joining him in high-profile spot will be outfielder Dewayne Wise, he of the game-saving catch, and third baseman Josh Fields, whose grand slam helped the cause.
The idea for the diamond clash between the baseball-playing Flyers (members of the Northern League of Professional Baseball) and the fast-pitch-tossing Bandits (of the National Pro Fastpitch softball league) was reportedly cooked up by Bandits owner Bill Sokolis, who insisted to Flyers Managing Partner/President Rich Ehrenreich that the Bandits women could beat the Flyers at their game (meaning softball).
Forget the image of underhand tosses and slightly overweight players circling the bases. If you haven't seen fastpitch softball before, know that pitches typically travel to the plate around 60-75 MPH, meaning the match-up isn't as lopsided as it might originally seem.
The game will be played tonight, 7:30 p.m. at the Flyers' Alexian Field, with tickets still available.
The Chicago Fire held onto their first place spot and increased their winning streak to 5 last night with a 0-0 tie against Seattle. Both teams displayed a strong defensive effort, and kept the game scoreless despite the Sounders having the third-largest home crowd at Qwest Stadium behind them. Throughout the match, there were a couple close calls from Seattle, including a corner kick in the 85th minute started by Sebastien Le Toux and headed by Patrick Ianni. Luckily, a goal was avoided with the help of Chicago midfielder Chris Rolfe.
Chicago and Seattle played with 10 players each most of the second half when Chicago's John Thorrington was ejected from the game in the 54th minute after receiving his second yellow card. Seattle held onto a one-man advantage for only a short while until Freddie Ljungberg was ejected in the 59th minute for colliding with Chicago's C.J. Brown and then arguing the call.
Chicago, now 7-3-8, gained another point with the tie and are holding strong at the top with 29 points. Now the Fire have to prepare for their next home match this coming Saturday, August 1, against Real Salt Lake.
Sunday was a good day for the Cubs. An afternoon 5-2 win over the Cincinnati Reds completed the three game series sweep while losses by the Cardinals, Astros and Brewers helped the Cubs sneak into a half game lead in the NL Central, the first on top the division since April 21st. Rich Harden pitched another strong outing, allowing one hit and one run in six innings while striking out eight. After posting a 5.47 ERA in fourteen starts before the All Star break, Harden has a 0.95 ERA in the three games since and is showing the dominant fastball/change up combination that the Cubs expected to see after trading for him mid season last year.
Harden has not been the only Cub showing signs of improvement recently. Since he was moved to the front of the line up, a formerly struggling Kosuke Fukudome is batting .333 with a .404 OBP in the lead off spot. Alfonso Soriano is hitting .429 since the Break, having a hit in all nine games he has played in. Even Milton Bradley is showing signs of improvement. He is still hitting for a lower than expected average but his .448 OBP in July is nothing to scoff at. Any player who gets on base as often as Bradley has recently is worth value. Not coincidentally, the Cubs have won 10 of their last 13, the first impressive streak in months.
In order to stay in first place, the Cubs will need more improvement and steady play from the offense. They also need to do a better job staying healthy. With the Cardinals acquiring Matt Holliday last week, making the post season became an even more difficult goal to reach. Not many rumors are surrounding the Cubs during the last week before the trade deadline. They may try to pick up a lefty reliever, and possibly an extra bat, but no big names are expected as of now. On Monday, the Cubs start a four game series in Chicago with the Astros, who are currently two games behind them in the standings.
No, that's not Brian Urlacher passing the biscuit to Patrick Kane. It's merely your routine video of BEARS!!??!! playing hockey. I'm somewhat dubious of this --I mean, it's gotta be a fake, or from Russia, or a Russian fake-- but, c'mon! it's BEARS!!!! playing hockey. Hello, weekend!
On Sunday, Grant Park and the surrounding streets will be full of riders as the Chicago Criterium returns for its second year. A real crowd-pleaser last year, this race is already a crown jewel in the Chicago road racing scene.
The schedule is as follows:
7am Juniors
7:35am Cat 5 Heat 1
8:10am Cat 5 Heat 2
8:50am Category 4
9:40am Category 3
10:35am Masters 35+ 4/5
11:20am Women Cat 4
12:05pm Masters 35+ 1/2/3
1pm Women 1/2/3
2pm Big Wheel Race
2:15pm Pro 1/2
Professional cyclist Chris Horner of the Astana squad will be racing in the P/1/2 race to shake things up. While he was disappointed to be left off the Tour de France roster this year, let's hope he shakes off his disappointment with a brave effort or two. And what do you know, but you can meet Horner at Turin Cyclery (1027 Davis St., Evanston) on Friday night to shake hands, get an autograph, and ask if he still likes eating a Whopper before a big race.
Powered by a Josh Fields grand slam in the fourth inning that would be all Buehrle needed to complete his masterpiece. With his gem he becomes the second pitcher in Sox's history to pitch a perfect game. Charles Robertson was the first to pitch a perfect game on April 30, 1922 for the Southsiders. Buehrle's effort was almost all for nothing if not for a game-saving catch by defensive replacement DeWayne Wise.
Around again for the ninth time this year, the touring Bicycle Film Festival's coming back to Chicago from Tuesday, August 11 to Sunday, August 16 to celebrate and appreciate the velocipede in a variety of films. Judging from past year's content, the topics range from examinations of the messenger scene, reportage of Critical Mass altercations, and the occasional expose on the life of the professional cyclist. A flavor for all points in the cyclist spectrum. Last year's Road to Roubaix was especially good; hopefully, another race-oriented film is in the quiver this year.
The Chicago schedule, available here, doesn't yet list the films to be shown. However, it seems as if a fair number of ancillary events are planned, featuring music at the Metro and Smart Bar, an art show, Goldsprints, and a massive block party on Sunday, August 16.
Are the good times over (or at least stalled) for the Blackhawks before they even start? The Daily Herald is reporting that highly-touted new Hawk aquisition Marian Hossa, formerly of the Detroit Red Wings, might miss a good chunk of the season because of a shoulder or rotator cuff injury that may require surgery. While the Hawks have great young scorers that will more than make up for being with out Hossa, the injury does put them in a bind with regards to trades for additional talent. And Hossa's potential to score 40 goals, as he did last year, will sting a little as well.
It's been a good week for the Fire's Cuauhtemoc Blanco. His goal and assist earned him MLS Player of the Week honors, the second time he's earned the accolade. The win boosted the Fire to first place in the Eastern Conference with a 7-3-7 record. Blanco, meanwhile, has four goals on the season, along with seven assists. Here's his extra time goal here, while his slick assist is attached below.
If only the Cubs could have played the rest of the season in Washington DC. After their all too short, four game sweep over what is essentially a quadruple A baseball team in the Nationals, the Cubs had a rude awakening of what competitive baseball is like on Monday night. The world champion Philadelphia Phillies routed the Cubs 10-1 in one of the most lopsided losses of the year. The Phillies had been riding an eight game win streak coming into the series and the difference between playing them and the Nationals, who sit 27 games behind the Phillies in the NL East, was clear to the Cubs on Monday night. Raul Ibanez hit a three run home run in the first inning; during the second inning, Carlos Ruiz hit a two run home run to make a 5-0 lead as the game entered laughable territory early. Ted Lilly, coming back from a missed start due to a sore knee, gave up a season nine runs, seven of them earned, in just four innings pitched. On Tuesday, the second game of the series starts at 6:05 CT with Rich Harden (6-6) facing off against Joe Blanton (6-4).
For sure, there have been some strange moments in White Sox history, and not just the whole Black Sox Scandal thing. No, more like just...weird. The Disco Demolition riot, the anniversary of which has just passed. Former Bears all-arm-no-aim quarterback Bobby Douglass getting a brief tryout with the team in the 1970s. Hawk Harrelson coming down from the booth in 1986, making a mess as GM and then retreating back to said booth. An unpaid clown roaming the stands for decades until he was told not to show up anymore. And almostanything Bill Veeck did.
But in recent years the strangest occurance involving the South Siders had to be the night in 2002 when the Ligues showed up. You remember the Ligues...father and son duo? Shirtless? Leaping over the box seat wall to pummel 54-year-old Kansas City first base coach Tom Gamboa? If the South Side fans had a reputation for being brain-dead thuggish oafs, well, the actions of William Ligue, Jr and his then-15-year-old son did nothing to dispel that myth (Note: I, myself am a White Sox fan, regularly wear a shirt and have only occasionally laid into a coach of any base. And none in the last 12 years.)
The ol' reliable Deadspin sports website recently updated the saga of the Ligues by locating the younger Ligue's MySpace page, and you'll be happy to know that he appears to be just as...socially aggressive, let's say, as he and his dad were that day. According to Deadspin, he doesn't appear to regret his actions that day and, in fact, seem to be quite proud of it. And he allegedly is expecting the birth of his own child, offering the world the promise of a third generation of Ligueish behaviour at the ol' ballpark.
Even with one of Chicago Fire's star players, Brian McBride, out due to shoulder surgery on Friday, the team pulled off a win against San Jose last night to hold on to their first place spot in the Eastern Conference. The defensive play of both teams limited the scoring to 0-0 for most of the game. In the 82nd minute, forward Patrick Nyarko, who took McBride's place in the starting lineup, scored the game winning goal with an assist from Cuauhtemoc Blanco. As the match went into stoppage time, Blanco came through for the Fire again with an additional goal chipped over San Jose's goalie. Thanks to Nyarko's goal, the Fire broke their three game scoreless streak at home. The win also gave Jon Busch his 5th shutout of the season.
The Fire's next game will be against the Seattle Sounders on July 25. Even though McBride will be unable to play again as his labral tear surgery is keeping him off the field for 4-6 months, the team appears to be maintaining a strong intensity without him. If the team can keep the momentum in their next game, first place will stay in Chicago.
Buehrle was down early after surrendering his lone run of the game, but Jermaine Dye bailed him out with a two-run homer (21). The Sox are now 7-0 at home on Saturdays and 12-0 when they play on Saturday afternoon.
Alfonso Soriano and Ted Lilly have become the latest Cubs to be sidelined with injuries during an injury plagued 2009 campaign. Soriano, who had never been put on the disabled list before joining the Cubs, is starting to expect that all his injuries as a Cub may be more than just coincidence. Lilly is out sore knee and can be considered day to day for now. He had started 34 games in his two previous years with the Cubs and could be considered the workhorse of the staff. Frankly, it's a little scary that injuries have gotten so bad for the Cubs that even Lilly, a player known for his extreme durability through out his career, is now missing starts. Randy Wells will fill in Lilly's place for Saturday's game against the Nationals.
The soldout Blackhawks convention kicks off today and once more the buzz surrounding the event gets even louder than the year before. Much of that buzz this time is centered around the recent firing/demotion/whatever of Dale Tallon, replaced by Stan Bowman. Add to that the recent acquisition of high scoring Marian Hossa and Tomas Kopecky, both from the much-despised Detroit Red Wings, and there's more than enough to keep fans chattering. And as they say on those late-night commercials, "But, wait, there's more!..." For instance, is a trade needed to keep the Hawks' young stars Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews and Duncan Keith in the fold, financially-speaking? And did the front-office shake-up really disrupt the "We Are Family" feel the team has been trying to build (and we think we know Martin Havlat's opinion)?
The semifinal match took place last night at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, MA. This is the first year that the Chicago Fire has participated in the SuperLiga tournament, but they are extremely familiar with New England. The Fire have played the Revolution in 35 regular season games and 13 post-season matches. And while the Revolution had the upper hand at home last night, holding a 15-8-2 record against the Fire when playing at Gillette Stadium, Chicago showed no sign of intimidation.
The Chicago Cubs aren't the only local sports commodity that are involved in a possible sale. The cultish Windy City Rollers are reportedly in negotiations to be sold to William Kelly, a local sports personality who is the host and executive producer of two shows, one airing on Comcast SportsNet and the other on Me-TV. With those connections, should the deal go through, might the Rollers have a regular TV outfit? More info can be found in the press release below:
(CHICAGO) - While the Ricketts family's $900 million winning bid to buy the Chicago Cubs has hit a temporary snag, another sports franchise is in the process of being sold. Broadcast personality and producer, William Kelly, is in negotiations to buy the nationally ranked Windy City Rollers, Chicago's all female roller derby league.
"Negotiations are very positive and continuing with Mr. Kelly," said Ruth Enasia, a media rep for the Windy City Rollers league. "We hope to have an announcement shortly."
Before our local baseball teams get back to action, including the apparent struggle to remain mediocre, one final look back at Chicago's involvement in the Mid-Summer Classic:
The New York-based Gawker wonders if Barack Obama muffed his first All-Star Game opening pitch attempt? Here, judge for yourself.
Meanwhile, yeah, we know it was a Chicago Cub being introduces in St. Louis Cardinal country, but the reception Ted Lilly got?... Ouch.
If it's any consolation for Lilly, a team of Cubs' "all-stars", including Keith Moreland (!) beat a team of White Sox "all-stars". Nah, it's probably not any consolation.
The White Sox' Mark Buehrle no doubt felt a pinch of pride after pitching a perfect inning in front of his "home town" crowd.
The Bulls management has gone ahead and bought out the remaining season of NBA journeyman, Tim Thomas' contract. Thomas, who came over from the Knicks in the Larry Hughes trade, "contributed" in 18 games for Chicago last season; by buying out his contract the Bulls remain juuuuusst below the luxury tax level, which would have been a tremendous move for the franchise, except for the unfortunate fact that some of that money that Tim Thomas would've been getting is, instead, going into the hands of Lindsey Hunter and Jannero Pargo. I'm no fan of Timmy Thomas, but, really, Paxon, Forman? Signing Pargo and Hunter? Replacing Thomas with those two is, I don't know, sorta like fixing a leak in a dam by removing one sorta leaky and ineffective brick with two smaller and even less effective bricks. Ugh. Look, I'm sure Pargo is a perfectly decent dude: probably he loves dogs, goes to church, kisses his wife before he leaves the house, respects the game, et cetera ... BUT ...
(The Chicago Force fell short in their bid to return to the championship game in the Independent Women's Football League, falling 40-16 to the Kansas City Tribe. Force PR chief George Howe gives the sad details.)
KANSAS CITY - The Chicago Force post season travel odyssey and the 2009 campaign came to an end last Saturday night, falling to the Kansas City Tribe 40-16 in the Western Conference Championship game. After a successful first round win over the Majestics in Seattle Washington two weeks earlier, the Tribe denied the Force a second straight trip to the National Championship game.
Heart, emotion, and effort, although never questioned and certainly vital, can only carry a team so far. The Force just never seemed to get over the hump. A lack of execution, missed tackles, and not capitalizing on opportunities played a key role in this outcome.
In a surprising move the Blackhawks have fired their General Manager Dale Tallon.This coming after the Blackhawks reached the Western Conference Finals. It was the first time they reached the Conference Finals since '92. The Hawks are expected to make a formal announcement Tuesday.
The Smithsonian Institution, Baseball Hall of Fame and the Chicago History Museum apparently each have one of the signs in their archives. Hopefully the Hall of Fame gets around to adding Dunston himself one of these years.
The Chicago Red Stars' forward Christiane (yeah, that's right, one name) made Women's Professional Soccer league history Sunday night when she recorded the first hat trick ever in the WPS.
Christiane, who hails from Brazil, also recorded the first penalty kick goal in Red Stars franchise history. Her stellar efforts lifted the Red Stars to a 3-1 victory over FC Gold Price and raised their record to 4-6-5. It also marked the first back-to-back wins for the Stars in their young history.
The Red Stars hit the road for two games before returning to Toyota Park on Sunday, July 26 to take on the Washington Freedom.
(Photo by David Durochik from Chicago Red Stars website)
Remember the proposed three-way trade between Chicago, Utah and Portland last week? The one involving Carlos Boozer to the Bulls, Tyrus Thomas to the Utah Jazz and Kirk Hinrich to Portland? Well, the Blazers decided to nix that by outright offering a sexy contract to Jazz forward of the future, Paul Milsap, Utah which is already strapped financially after reupping with Mehmet Okur, et al, now has seven days to match Portland's offer to Milsap.
Meanwhile, this puts the Bulls components: Tyrus and Kirk on the back burners of both Utah and Portland respectively. However, Utah is still expected to try and trade Boozer so there's a glimmer of something for Tyrus (sadly) being shipped to Salt Lake City for the Booze Man. Which isn't a terrible deal. The Bulls would essentially be "renting" Boozer for next season, it's just, y'know, Tyrus is pretty rad. And speaking to the radness of Tyrus, behold the people's champ's twitter site!, replete with "LMAO," complaints about babies on planes, people farting on planes, and, indeed, even well spoken notions re: trade scuttlebutts:
t_time24: "No I'm not traded. Just switching locations for the weekend!"
or this gem,
t_time24: "To clear the record, I never commented on playing with D Will [Utah's pretty awesome point guard]. And I am a BULL. Let it go people!"
On a beautiful Sunday in Chicago, the type of day baseball was made for, the Cubs hosted a double header with the St. Louis Cardinals and completed the four game series heading into the All-Star break. Carlos Zambrano got his first win in six starts during the day game, allowing three runs over six innings. Zambrano helped his own cause by hitting his third home run of the season. Micah Hoffpauir also hit a three run home run in the first inning off Cardinals' starter Kyle Lohse. The Cubs managed to drive in three more runs in the seventh inning off a series of errors by the Cardinals defense, culminating in a 7-3 Cubs win.
In front of the largest crowd this season at Toyota Park, 18,123 people, the Chicago Fire battled the Columbus Crew to a 0-0 tie. Though neither team scored a goal, both came away with a positive outcome. Chicago surpassed D.C. United by one point, and now stands in the first place position in the Eastern Conference. The Crew also gained a point for the tie.
Despite strong offensive attempts from both teams, neither could finish off their shots. Goalies William Hesner and Jon Busch held their opponents to a shut out, the fourth one this season for Busch. The Fire's defense stepped up allowing the Crew only 4 shots on target. Although the Fire had 11 shots on target, they could not manage to put the ball past Hesner, who had a career high in saves.
Apart from the impressive soccer played, the crowd was another sight to be seen. Not only was it the biggest crowd this year, it was also the craziest. Fans chanted "Chicago Fire" for what seemed like the whole game, as various people in the crowd waved flags and lit flares. Though it was disappointing not coming away with a win, the Fire hope to draw the same enthusiasm to their next home league game July 18 against the San Jose Earthquake.
The Bulls, Utah Jazz and Portland Trailblazers are involved in a verbal menage a trois, so to speak, that would --and this is all hearsay-- send power forward, Carlos Boozer to Chicago, Tyrus Thomas to Utah and Kirk Hinrich to Portland. For Chicago the speculative trade talks suggest that the front office is growing weary of waiting for Tyrus to grow into his potential and truly flourish; Boozer is an elite offensive force in the paint and would be a (relatively slight) defensive upgrade over Thomas as well, sans Tyrus' explosive shot-blocking talent and apocalyptic athleticism. With only one year left on his contract the trade for Boozer should be seen as essentially a one season rental before, inevitably, Boozer heads for greener pastures in the 2010 free agent bonanza. However, this isn't even close to a bad thing as Boozer's expiring contract will give Chicago a great position to go out and grab a Bosh or Wade...
Give credit to the Sox offense for making a game out of it. Down 9-2 by the third inning the Sox offense drew closer by putting up a four spot in the bottom of the third inning. The closest they would get would be one run. They wrapped up this short home stand by going 2-1 and they are now headed to Minnesota to take on the Twins.
This week a minor kerfuffle has surfaced south of the Mason-Dixon, in the state of Georgia to be precise, over a minor incident last fall involving Chicago's shiny, new quarterback, Jay "Better Than Rex Before I Take a Snap" Cutler. Seems that with Jay's then team the Denver Broncos rolling into the ATL for a November 16 matchup with the Falcons; Jay handed off (zing?) four $40 tickets to then active Georgia Bulldog quarterback and future NFL overall number one draft pick, Matt Stafford along with three other Bulldogs. The incident has raised very few hairs and even the typically Draconian NCAA has given the players and the University of Georgia a slap on the wrist, content to say, "Boys will be boys and wanna watch pro football games for free." True that!
The Bartolo Colon mystery is over. The rather robust starting pitcher for the White Sox has resurfaced Moby Dick-like after going AWOL from his scheduled rehab stint with the Charlotte Knights,the Triple-A affiliate of the Sox. Well, to be truthful, he's not actually IN Charlotte yet. The Knights expect him to start tonight, but have pitcher Carlos Torres penciled in just in case.
Colon was supposed to report to Charlotte Tuesday to prepare for tonight's start, but failed to do so, leading to the APB that extended all the way to his home in the Dominican Republic. So why did he pull the disappearing act? Well, according to Ozzie Guillen, it might have something to do with Michael Jackson. Seriously.
Haven't had enough roller derby yet? The Windy City Rollers All-Stars travel team took second in the nation last year, and they're revved up for their 2009 season. The following dates have been announced. All the games take place on a Saturday, except for the tournaments.
Space is running out to register for the 27th annual Chicago Triathlon held on Sunday, August 30, 2009. While you probably know by now whether you're in good shape to compete in a triathlon (the training program puts my cycling-specific program to shame), if you're into seeing what you can do with a minimum of time, or if you were fence-sitting, now is the time to register.
The international-distance Chicago Triathlon consists of a 1.5-kilometer (.93 mi.) Lake Michigan swim, a 40-kilometer (24.8 mi.) bike on Lake Shore Drive, and a 10-kilometer (6.2 mi.) run along Chicago's lakefront. For those aforementioned fence-sitters and those interested in a shorter test of endurance and will, a "Sprint Distance" race, approximately half the distance of the international distance is the ideal choice.
Two is a magic number. The Chicago Fire and Columbus Crew have played to 2-2 ties their last three regular season meetings, and both sit at the top of the Eastern Conference standings with first place in their sights. This Saturday, July 11, the Fire take on the Crew at home to determine who will surpass D.C. United and take first in the East.
The Fire are coming off an incredible 2-1 win against the Colorado Rapids, which gained them a win and three points leaving them tied with D.C. United. Columbus sits just one point below Chicago, and will be hoping to add another win to their season (5-3-8). The Crew have won 9 of their last 10 games, dropping one to Dallas in mid-June. Before the win over the Rapids, Chicago had lost three games in a row. However, after a strong performance in Colorado, breaking a 10-year losing streak to the Mile High team on the road, the Fire have a real chance to defeat the Crew and reach #1.
The Fire will be playing at home at Toyota Park, where they hold 9-5-5 record against the Crew. Home field advantage will come in handy this Saturday. The game is scheduled to start at 7 p.m. and will air on ESPN2.
Something of a late notice, but if you have nothing to do tonight from 6-8 p.m. and have an urge to work up a sweat, Moonshine Bar (1824 W. Division) is hosting a Opensprints tournament to celebrate the arrival of the 42Below crowd. Click here for the flyer.
42 Below's mission states "Through our country-wide 42Ride, along with a partnership with the Bicycle Film Festival, we aim to provide bike enthusiasts (21+) with an experience they will never forget and act as a catalyst for cities around the world to improve their bicycle infrastructures, raise bicycle awareness and just plain get with the program."
With their arrival today of the scrum of cyclists, a little something of a sprints tournament will go down. Go! And get sweaty!
Like to shout, wear stupid hats, throw things at people and wear the color red? Have you longed to be the center of attention during NBA timeouts? Your time has come.
The Chicago Bulls will hold tryouts today for 2009-10 IncrediBulls squad. You know, those guys and gals who try to keep your attention focused on the court when the Bulls are down by 12 to the Cavaliers with 1:20 left in the third? If you're interested, bring your lungs and enthusiasm to the McDonald's at 3200 W. Roosevelt Rd. between 2 and 4 p.m. TODAY. You have to be at least 18, live in Chicago, be in decent physical shape and be "a BULLS fan." Cause nothing puts a damper on a TV time out than a guy dressed in Bulls warm-ups shouting "Let's go Knicks!"
There's no way of verifying it (unless someone makes an admission), but an anonymous text message to a website claims that Bulls' forward Joakim Noah was spied once again enjoying a little... um... herbal therapy, as reported on Deadspin (via "Texts From Last Night"). It's not the first time the Noah has been allegedly imbibed. And depending on your views on marijuana, this is either a major problem for the Bulls to deal with or a whole lot of nothing.
For only the second time during the 2009 season, the Cubs were able to start their original projected lineup. That's right, with Aramis Ramirez's return on July 7, the Cubs were able to to start Geovany Soto, Derrick Lee, Mike Fontenot, Ryan Theriot, Ramirez, Alfonso Soriano, Kosuke Fukudome and Milton Bradley together for only the second time this year. The only other time this season the Cubs were able to start all nine players together? Opening Day, making it a 78-game stretch in which they could not field their original lineup. Certainly this team has struggled on the field at times during those 78 games, as we have struggled to watch the, at times, painful performances of a should-be talented team. But if you need reason to hope, think of of it this way: with yesterday's 4-2 win, the Cubs are undefeated with their full lineup. Two games over .500 is not very good but only two games out of first in the division is not very bad either. They've won six out their last eight games, Aramis is back, Soriano is finally out of the leadoff spot and it looks like the sale of the team may finally go through so they may be able to make some mid-season moves. Who knows, maybe in a week they will be back to struggling on offense and consistently losing games 3-1 all over again, but maybe things are coming together. Maybe, for the first time in a long time, they've put together a streak of good fortune.
The Taste of Chicago is an odd place to spy a jointly run NBA/Kia Motors "NBA FunLand" loaded with hardwood-themed booths like: "Test Your Wing Span Against Yao Ming's" and "How Do You Measure Up With Chris Paul?"; while Chicago Luv-a-Bulls shower the throngs of sweaty youths with NBA tchotchkes, like T-Mobile sponsored sweat bands and Kia Motors (of course!) tote bags; next to the Luv-a-Bulls are interactive video displays allowing you to see how Kobe drains his impossible fade-aways; and next to that is a display of star NBAer's shoes to see you measure up -- Me: size 12, LeBron James: size 16.
Along with all of this bluster and hoopla, an emcee reigns over all with his swaggering voice: "Man, this jersey is a double XL, you gonna where it as a set of pajamas or what? You don't even look like a Lakers fan." (The crowd boos at the mere mention of the purple and gold of the Lakers.) As misplaced as it may have seemed with the sickly, blended odor of garbage and Indian food, tucked behind stacks of discarded produce boxes, and amidst the fried funnel cakes of Harry Caray's booth and the gator-on-a-stick of Blue Bayou, there sat the NBA's testament to corporate synergy.
Depending on your point of view this could be some good news to break the monotony of the Cubs' lackluster season; the Tribune Company has finalized the sale of the team and Wrigley Field.
(Editor's Note: With a 16-4 record, the Chicago Bandits are pretty much running away with the National Pro Fastpitch women's professional softball league. That they have one of the most recognizable faces in the history of women's fastpitch softball, Olympian Jennie Finch, only adds to their stature as one of top teams in the league. But as in every other sport, there eventually comes a time to bring in the next generation of star. Bandits' media relations staffer Tim Miller fills us in on the next face of Bandits. Hint: She's the one with the goth-style eyeliner.)
Long after the night game has concluded the glistening stadium lights power down, flooding the field with darkness. Fans settled safely in their homes, the rakes and bases put away - a star pitcher hoists her bag onto her shoulders and exits the dugout on a serene summer night.
The murky Fox River runs alongside the Bandits stadium, and for a while I thought the solution to the popularity woes for the Chicago Bandits was the mysterious water that runs perpendicular to the field.
What if the Fox River is the fountain of youth-relocated?
Think about it, imagine if they could bottle a few ounces of it and immortalize the face of the organization, let alone the face of softball. Can you picture a 200-year old Jennie Finch in the circle, still hurling the high heat? Post-game autograph sessions after the fireworks on Fridays would last to the wee hours of the morning.
Helen of Troy? More like Jennie of Elgin.
Then suddenly it dawned on me. Not only is that neither plausible nor eco-friendly, it also would spoil the spirit of the sport itself. How would Finch's motto "dream and believe" sink in if she was around forever? Young girls with high hopes of becoming someone, working tirelessly and overcoming adversity would simply find themselves heads hung low strolling through an obscure shadow cast from a giant star. Isn't that the end goal of athletes - to have their time to eventually become a role model for the younger fans?
Two. That is the grand total of All-Stars representing Chi Town in Major League Baseball's 80th Midsummer Classic. Mark Buehrle will make his fourth All-Star team after starting the year off 6-0 for the Southsiders. He is 8-2 with a 3.09 ERA. He was the starter for American League in the 2005 All-Star game in Detroit. He would be the winning pitcher in that one as well.
One could make the argument that Scott Podsednik is deserving of a trip to St. Louis. Since rejoining the Southsiders on April 14 he has hit .312, .368, and .407. Not too shabby considering most of the experts in baseball believed his better days were behind him. This is no doubt a snub of Podsednik especially since he is not one of five candidates vying for the final American League roster spot.
Ben Gordon stopped by the ESPN 1000 studios on his way over to Mo-Town this morning and is claiming that the Bulls didn't even make an offer to him this off-season. Okay, but they did make an offer to you in each of the past two off-seasons, Gordon, for approximately $50+ mill. over five years in each offer. You did have your chances, and maybe (though I doubt it) the Bulls management realized that the team could be better without your 20 points a night, your mercurial FG%, your demand for star money when, in fact, you're not a star: you take entire defensive possessions off, you are a poor rebounder -even for a 2 guard, you have no concept of ball movement in a team-oriented offense...
Meanwhile, out in Las Vegas the odds have been released for the favorites to win the 2009-2010 NBA Championship. Not surprisingly, three of the NBA's final four this year: Cleveland, Los Angeles and Orlando take spots 1, 2, and 4 respectively, with Boston sliding in at 3. The Bulls are a little lower on the list at 14 with 50/1 odds, sandwiched in between Atlanta and Miami who are both at 50/1 as well.
When he left (was pushed out of?) the Sun-Times sports department, controversial sports columnist Jay Mariotti declared that the future of sports writing was "sadly, not in newspapers."
So would it surprise anyone that the often-contrary Mariotti could be heading BACK to newspapers, specifically the Chicago Tribune?
Semi-satirical sports website Deadspin is reporting (with a humorous assortment of derogatory terms) that Mariotti is expected to join the Trib soon, adding that the paper has reportedly even mocked up a page with space for his column. The connection between his return and space being made at the Tribune is one Bill Adee, Mariotti's former editor at the Sun-Times, now doing the same job digital editor at the Trib, and the force behind ChicagoNow.
The reaction by local sports fans to the news may range from a collective yawn to an assortment of expletives (OK, maybe with a few claps of approval thrown in. He may have one or two fans, but websites like "Jay The Joke" and "Fire Jay Mariotti" seem to suggest there aren't too many of those.)
The sports newspaper war between the Sun-Times and Trib columnist will no doubt ramp up again, picking up where it left off as we reportedhere. Heck, even betting on an in-house battle between Mariotti and Tribune sports writers, whom he has also ripped in the past, would seem to be a sure thing.
So will he actually be required to venture into a clubhouse this time around to get his stories firsthand? Time will tell.
After making a splash in last year's market by signing Brian Campbell and Cristobal Huet to pricey (or, more accurately, overpriced) contracts, Blackhawks GM Dale Tallon pulled off another shocker today by adding top free agent forward Marian Hossa to the Hawks. The move was out of left field as the majority of fans were waiting to hear whether the team would resign Martin Havlat and Nicolai Khabibulin (Havlat is headed to the Minnesota Wild, Khabi has moved on to Edmonton); even more shocking was the contract itself: 12 years, $62.8 million dollars!
The Blackhawks also signed Hossa's Red Wing teammate and friend, center Tomas Kopecky, to a 2-year, $2.4 million deal, and inked center John Madden from the Devils for a 1-year, $2.75 contract. During his afternoon press conference for the Hossa deal, Tallon also mentioned having tendered offers to the five restricted free agents to which the team holds the rights. Though none of these deals have been finalized, the Hawks will have the right to match any offers made to these players.
What Hossa's signing and the other deals mean for the Hawks next season and beyond after the jump.
Former Bull Ben Gordon surprised exactly nobody by signing with the Detroit Pistons for a reported $55 million over five years. Gordon had led the Bulls in scoring the past four seasons, rejected offers from the Bulls the past two off-seasons with each offer, reportedly, in the $50+ million stratosphere.
Without Gordon on the books, Chicago has much more salary cap space for the remainder of this free agency period and also, potentially, for the 2010 free agent market that includes LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, et al.
As four-time Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup winners, the Chicago Fire entered last night's third round game against the Wilmington Hammerheads (USL-2) with confidence. The Hammerheads had not played a Major League Soccer (MLS) team since they lost to the New York Red Bulls in 2006. However, that fact did not show at all as the Fire fell to the Hammerheads 1-0. Chicago dominated a majority of the game and was presented with plenty of opportunities to score, but none of their shots were able to get past the Hammerhead's goalie Daryl Sattler. The loss knocked the Fire out of the tournament, and now they must travel to the Mile High city this weekend to face the Colorado Rapids for their first league match in two weeks.
Chicago has done tremendously well on the road this year with 4-1-3 record in 8 games. Colorado, though, has historically been a difficult city for the Fire to dominate. This is the first encounter of these two teams this year, and both share the exact same record and hold the fourth place position in their respective conferences. The Fire hope to pick up three road points this weekend, which is something they have only accomplished twice in 11 years of play, and they have not won a game against the Rapids since 1999. Their record against Colorado is not the only thing the Fire has to worry about. After a long undefeated streak (11 games), the Fire lost three consecutive games in June. The team hopes they will not post a fourth consecutive loss this Saturday.
The 4th of July game will take place at Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colorado, and kick-off is scheduled for 8 p.m.
From 1989 to 1995, Cub fan 
