Chicago Sports Blog

Bulls Greats

2009-02-27T14:15:00.002-06:00

RIP Chicago Bulls greats, "Stormin' Norman" Norm Van Lier and Johnny "Red" Kerr.
Both, longtime affiliates with the Bulls both passed away yesterday. Norm was often seen on the Bulls pre-post game shows, giving critiques and commentary about the games. He was very knowledgeable, and was known for not pulling any punches and telling it like it was. Red Kerr was a longtime announcer, and one-time coach of the Chicago Bulls. Michael Jordan used to play with him before the game, tossing his chalk powder into the air right before tipoff, just in front of Red Kerr...trying to throw him off his game, which rarely happened. It was good to see Kerr get the recognition from the Bulls for his longtime dedication to the team just a few weeks ago, giving Jordan, Pippen and crew the time to talk to Kerr once again.

Steroids - baseball

2009-02-09T15:47:00.004-06:00

It has become tiresome to keep hearing of all of baseball's stars admit, or not admit, to steroid use. Gone are the days of the fun game, playing with heart. Today, the game is riddled with manufactured results. It makes it hard to spend hard earned money watching a bunch of cheaters destroy the game we love. I miss those HBO specials..."When it was a Game" kinda says it all.

Go Illini

2009-02-09T09:38:00.004-06:00

Illini have been playing up and down ever since they cracked the top 25 in the NCAA.
Big Ten Road games are always tough, but they skunked it at Wisconsin last week. However, they played bigtime ball yesterday at home vs Perdue. It is nice to see the Illini come back after having a couple of down years since they lost in the title game in 2005. The win gave Illinois head coach Bruce Weber his 250th career victory (250-106). The team decided to take their names off the jerseys this year, focusing on the name on the front, the TEAM concept. Looks like it is working. Outside of Champaign, most are not familiar with the teams big named players - Demitri McCamey and Mike Davis.

Congrats Steelers

2009-02-02T11:00:00.005-06:00

Congratulations go out to the Pittsburgh Steelers. 6 time world champions in the NFL.
It was a great game. I was rooting for the Cardinals. They looked flat the first half, but turned it on and almost took the lead at halftime. Man, couldn't tackle on that TD interception return! They played well in the 2nd half, drawing the holding call in the endzone resulting in a safety. Nice run after catch by Larry Fitzgerald looking to seal the game for the Cardinals by scoring late in the game. Then, Steelers marched down to win the game. Did the Cardinals have only 9 guys on Defense? They couldn't stop the Steelers when it counted the most. Hats off to Santonio Holmes...spectacular catch and toes down to score the winning TD. Truly spectacular.

My beef with the Cards...why didn't Warner toss the fade to Fitzgerald at the half, instead of trying to hit Boldin on the quick slant? Fitzgerald grabbed the TD in the 2nd half, one just like it at halftime would have won the game for them.

Speaking of halftime...Bruce put on a great show, sounded great...cracked me up when he yelled "Back away from the guacamole. Put the Chicken Fingers down!" then later, sliding into the camera, crotch first into America's HD tv's.....classic. Great song choices, great 12 minutes.

Bears Notes....Boldin to Bears? that would be sweet.

NFL Draft

2009-01-23T20:54:00.002-06:00

ESPN's Mel Kiper likes Tyson Jackson, DE from LSU at the 18th Pick for the Chicago Bears. DO you think we need a Defensive end?

I think we need a WR. Brandon Lloyd (go Illini) Marty Booker, Rashied Davis and Devin Hester just can't cut it. They are all, at best #2's, but more likely #3s on a good team. Whaddya think?
http://chicago-sportschat.blogspot.com

Wrigley in January

2009-01-04T17:56:00.004-06:00

Followup from New Years.
Much better perspective than I would have paid for in the stands.
and it was for charity so that was cool too.
Great news. I didn't fall!

Blackhawks v Red Wings

2009-01-01T16:51:00.003-06:00

Great presentation, not so great outcome. The Chicago Blackhawks have shown some drastic improvement this year. The team is playing well. The Red Wings just got the right bounces of the puck today. The weather wasn't a factor in the game like it was in the Buffalo - Pittsburgh game was last year. There was some wind, but it didn't seem to come into play. The snow held off, as did the sunshine, which some of the players were complaining about last year. It was nice to see the Cubs play host, bringing our Ryno, Billy Williams, Fergie Jenkins and crew to meet Hull, Mikita, Esposito for this event. Chicago celebs like Vince Vaughn were there too.
It was an interesting rendition of 'Take Me Out to the Ball Game' too.
I liked how they put up a banner around the ice rink that looked like the Wrigley Bricks. Pretty Cool. The throwback jerseys were nice, sure to be a top seller, at least in Chicago...Detroit's were pretty weak with the fancy English D.
The ice seemed to get beaten up faster than in the indoor rinks though, with snow/shavings piling up by the end of the periods. The camera views were a little off too, slightly too far away for my taste. Otherwise this was a great game.

Peavy deal, dead

2008-12-12T15:09:00.003-06:00

Just turned out to be too expensive for the Cubs.
While that caliber of pitcher would have made the Cubs rotation that much deeper, the Padres wanted to much youth in return. Talks of Pie, Marquis, Derosa abound, plus who knows how many minor leaguers too.
Also, with the Trib in BK, as well as about to be sold, Hendry couldn't pull the string on that huge contract.
Who will we get now? Randy Johnson? that's a rental at best, as he's ancient, and will draw a decent salary based on his prior stats. If they do, that would help the Cubs, since he has been dominant against them.

The Sale of the Cubs is mixed up in the Blagojevich mess

2008-12-09T16:11:00.002-06:00

We have all heard that the governor has been arrested for various corruption charges.
Now it comes to show that the Feds claim that he has been auctioning off Obama's Senate seat while at the same time he tried to use the Cubs sale as leverage in getting positive press in the op-ed pages of the Chicago Tribune. The federal complaint alleges Blagojevich was seeking to use the Illinois Finance Authority, an Illinois state agency that provides financing for real estate deals, and grants of other state funds to persuade the Current owner of the Cubs, the Tribune Company,who actually just filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, to end its editorial campaign for Blagojevich's impeachment. There are tapes of Rod & Co. trying to run the editor out of town in exchange for the funding. Bribes. Bribes. Bribes. Corruption, Corruption, Corruption. Welcome to Chicago.

Tribune files for Bankruptcy

2008-12-08T13:33:00.003-06:00

Here is a switch, I'll be mentioning bankruptcy in my sports blog.

Tribune Co.has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in Delaware.

They have said in a news release, that the Chicago Cubs, including Wrigley Field, were not included in the bankruptcy filing. Efforts to sell the Chicago Cubs will continue, the company said.

Sorry Ronny

2008-12-08T13:07:00.002-06:00

Ron Santo did not get elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame today. The Veterans committee voted. Santo only received 39 of the 48 votes needed for election.
The committee votes every two years. The other big names, Joe Torre, Gil Hodges, Dick Allen, Jim Kaat, Tony Oliva, Al Oliver, Vada Pinson, Luis Tiant and Maury Wills also fell short.

Bears v Vikings

2008-11-25T10:52:00.002-06:00

Can the Bears get over the hurdle?
They are sitting tied for 1st place in the NFC North with the Vikings.
But, we get to travel this weekend to Minn to play them up in the Dome.
Chicago's ground game opened up last week with Matt Forte, but can our D stop their running back threat with Adrian Peterson? This week will come down to Defense....lets hope the Bears keep up their sacks like they did 5 times vs STL.

offseason Cubs banter

2008-11-18T17:48:00.005-06:00

ok. First off, I want to wish a warm thanks and farewell to the Chicago cub with the longest tenure, Kerry Wood. He had a brilliant start, hampered by injuries. He esurected the career after Tommy John surgery to become a pretty good closer! Now, the cubs have basically said no more, knowing he wants a long deal which they cannot afford. Goodbye Kid K, seems like just yesterday that you mowed down 20 Astros in May 1998.

Signings: Dempster- good move, but expensive.
Kevin Gregg - good talent on the cheap, to replace Kerry Wood. Will take some time to win over fans.

Prospects: Jake Peavy? Would be awesome to strengthen the pitching staff.
Imagine - Big Z, Peavy, Dempster, Ted Lilly, Rich Harden....that would be impressive. Improves the bullpen too by pushing Marquis to the pen.
Randy Johnson? would be a fix, 1-2 years tops. He's been amazing vs Cubs, but he's in his mid 40's....but he can still bring the heat. Not sure what the price will be...

Also talks are in trading Lee- expensive contract though. Hoffpauir looks like the real deal though in the minors lining up behind him.

Other talk is Furcal, always Brian Roberts, Renteria....

Hot Stove, heating up!

Congrats Philly

2008-10-29T20:59:00.001-05:00

Good Job Phillies
You played a hell of a game.
Really wish it was my Cubbies out there though.
Did you see Ryan Howard tackle Brad Lidge? Lidge had fear in his eyes with that $5 footlong Howard coming right for him

Rain Rain Go Away...

2008-10-28T09:34:00.003-05:00

Who was a little disappointed in the rain delay last nite?

It was the first time a world series game was ever delayed.
I have these issues with it....
1. Why didn't they try to wait it out? It was a travel day, now, if it rains all day, and they don't get the innings in today...then the whole schedule is pushed back, Tampa gets to go home to their beds, and Philly has to go to a hotel with short timing if they play on Tues, then again on Wed.
2. Starting pitchers...favors Tampa, as Cole Hamels won't be able to go back out there (he could, but not wise decision since he's 1st up when the game resumes)
3. Philly's argument is why was it called in the bottom of the 6th, and not the top of the 6th? They claim the run was scored by Tampa because of the bad conditions.
4. Home Crowd...now, this would be interesting, people get to go back for just 3 innings? I guess the stadium and MLB win here as they will get all new beer sales!
What do you think? let me know.

Shouldn't the Bears be 5-0?

2008-10-08T11:11:00.001-05:00

Hey all you Bears fans....aren't you a little disappointed? We really should be 5-0 right now, but we gave up a couple weak, late scores against Carolina and Tampa Bay.
Also, it is not entirely the defense's fault. Several late drives, we needed to just get 1 more 1st down to run out the clock.....Partial blame goes to Orton for some bad audibles/execution, and some to Ron Turner for play calling. Couple of first downs and we'd be 4-0. And don't get me started on Peanut Tillman's roughness penalty in OT inside the 10 yard line!

0-1

2008-10-02T13:03:00.003-05:00

Well, that was a letdown. The Cubs stormed to a 2-0 lead, then Dempster fell apart. Walked 7 batters in 4 1/2 innings, including the pitcher, then gave up a granny to give away the lead for good. Cubs scraped out a few more hits, Manny golfed a HR too.
Let's see what Big Z can do tonight.

When was the last time both the Cubs and the White Sox won their Divisions?

2008-09-17T11:10:00.002-05:00

This year can be something truly amazing in sports history, at least Chicago Sports History. I'll do some research, but it was definitely a long time ago, perhaps in a galaxy far far away. This town is going to be whipped into a frenzy. Is it fate? 100 year anniversary since the last Cubs World Series victory!

Cubs Skybox

2008-09-17T11:06:00.002-05:00

Hey all. My friend Mark scored us some Skybox tickets for tonight's game vs Milwaukee Brewers. Cubs have rebounded from their bad losing streak the last couple weeks.
How about Big Z's no hitter! Follow that up with Lilly who no hit the Astro's thru 6 the following day. 1 hit in 2 days. Lovely!!

If the Cubs win tonight and tomorrow, the division is theirs and we're into the playoffs again. They look tough to beat....not as tough as World Series tix will be.

CUBS WIN...MAGIC # is 11

2008-09-12T15:13:00.002-05:00

I'm stuck here holding useless tickets to tonights Cubs -Astros game.
I also had tickets for tomorrow.
Woe is me. Damn you IKE

CUBS' MAGIC NUMBER

2008-09-11T13:41:00.003-05:00

Sorry I've been away, but the Cubs are in the heat of a pennant chase.
Here's a link to a very important site.

http://www.cubsmagicnumber.com/

Currently, magic # stands at lucky #13

Dan Uggla....Let's rename him to just Ugh.

2008-07-16T07:57:00.006-05:00

Wow. What a game. Longest All Star game ever! Too bad the National League lost, because there were some great plays. I felt the best play was when Nate McLouth nailed Dioner Navarro at the plate in the bottom of the 11th.

It was almost disaterous, as both clubs were on their last pitchers. Who knew who would have picked up the ball. This is just great. The American League wins yet again and get home field advantage in the World Series yet again. Too bad, because the Cubs look great this year, and they are FANTASTIC in Wrigley. If they make it, let's hope it doesn't go to seven.

Jeers to Dan Uggla. This could be perhaps the worst baseball performance by any 1 player in All Star Game history. He committed 3 errors. He went 0-4 at the plate, including 3 strikeouts and a double play with the bases loaded.

Cubs players looked Good. Zambrano picked off Milton Bradley to top off his 2 inning, 1 hit 1 strikeout performance. Carlos Marmol shook off his horrible outing from Saturday vs the Giants...(I was there...it was disgusting) to pitch 1 inning in relief, getting 2 K's. Aramis Ramirez drew a walk in his only at bat of the game, the only fear Fukudome generated was in the anonuncer who pronounced his name, going 0-2 with a strikeout. Ryan Dempster showed he belonged on the Team by striking out the side in the 9th inning.

Can Rugby survive in the US?

2008-06-24T20:35:00.005-05:00

I recently attended the Barclay's Churchill Cup over the weekend, the tournament for Rugby. This was played at Toyota Park. There was a decent crowd to see the 3 matches...not sold out by far, but there were plenty there, despite being played at the same time as Game 2 of the Cubs - Sox interleague game (won by the Chicago Cubs.)
6 Teams Matched up at Toyota Park in Bridgeview, IL, with the following results:

Ireland A 33 - Argentina 8 to win the Plate championship
England Saxons 36 – Scotland A 19 to win the Churchill Cup
Canada 26 - USA Eagles 10 to win the Bowl Final

Ok, I don't know what the plate championship is, but I read online that Ireland got to keep the plate they won earlier....ok...must be like the College football rivalries where the winner keeps the trophy for a year...the little brown jug, the tomahawk, etc.

I think USA & Canada had a trophy made up, as rugby is not popular at all in the US...have you seen any highlights on ESPN?

The game is fun, and easy to learn, and they had a good crowd last weekend...although my hunch is that there were many European transplants in the stands....and ironically, it was all the Irish pubs and restaruants advertising at the matches!
Anyways, enjoy some of the photos.

Moment of silence for George Carlin...did he hear his two minute warning?

2008-06-23T10:35:00.005-05:00

Here's to you George.

Moment of Silence
by George Carlin.

TWO MINUTE WARNING
by George Carlin.

"Now, you might be wondering why I would even suggest that someone can affect the manner and style of his death. Well, it's because of a mysterious and little-known stage of dying, the two-minute warning. Most people are not aware of it, but it does exist. Just as in football, two minutes before you die you receive an audible warning: "Two minutes! Get your shit together!" And the reason most people don't know about it is because the only ones who hear it are dead two minutes later. They never get a chance to tell us.

But such a warning does exist, and I suggest that when it comes, you use your two minutes to entertain and go out big. If nothing else, deliver a two-minute speech. Pick a subject you feel passionate about, and just start talking. Begin low-key, but, with mounting passion, build to a rousing climax. Finally, in the last few seconds, scream at those around you, "If these words are not the truth, may God strike me dead!" He will. Then simply slump forward and fall to the floor. Believe me, from that moment on, people will pay more attention to you."

-From "Napalm and Silly Putty" (though orignially featured on "On the Road")

Aramis Ramirez 2HRs Finish the sox

2008-06-20T18:04:00.002-05:00

after getting drenched for 30min walking into Wrigley Field today, I saw the Cubs rally from a 3-1 deficit to win the opening game of the cross town classic. Double plays did the Cubs in for the first 6 innings, namely Lee grounding into a double play in the first with a man on first and third. The run scored but stymied an early rally. Danks pitched well. He was pulled in the seventh. Strangely, Ozzie let him warm up first, then pulled him at the start of the 7th before the first pitch, appearantly to let Dotel get a few more warmup pitches. He needed a few more, as Derek Lee and Ramirez went deep on him, back to back to tie the game. Kerry Wood pitched out of a self created jam, having given up a leadoff double. He pitched well, striking out AJ on an appeal to 3rd base umpire, who rung him up. Ramirez topped it off by blasting a 410 foot shot to center field. His teammates gathered at home, jumping up and down, clapping and cheering while the still packed stands, filled with throngs of wrigley faithful chanted - go cubs go, go cubs go, hey Chicago whaddya say, the Cubs are gonna win today.