Scripting News (Free subscription) | 11/27/2009
Well our family Thanksgiving feast is over, and it was a major success. Everyone got along, though there were a few moments where, in the past, things might have flamed out. There are two reasons why this year was special. 1. We learned this year how important we are to each other. 2. The advent of Shea Stadium Rules. Maybe I don't even need to explain them to you. I think baseball people get this....
Click World News (Free subscription) | 11/27/2009
Well our family Thanksgiving feast is over, and it was a major success. Everyone got along, though there were a few moments where, in the past, things might have flamed out. There are two reasons why this year was special. 1. We learned this year how important we are to each other. 2. The advent of Shea Stadium Rules. Maybe I don't even need to explain them to you. I think baseball people get this....
Bleed Cubbie Blue (Free subscription) | 11/27/2009
There's not much baseball front office activity on this holiday weekend, so I thought I'd post another bit of history. A couple of weeks ago in this post, I commented on this Chicago Tribune article from October 30 (finally found an online link!) in which the photo caption read "The grounds crew at Wrigley Field installs new sod for the beginning of the 1962 season". In that photo, the sign...
Fake Teams (Free subscription) | 11/22/2009
Back at it after a day away from it all yesterday. Should have a few more posts today. Today's post is courtesy of Dan Turkenkopf from The Hardball Times. Do you consider this datapoint when drafting hitters and pitchers on draft day? http://www.hardballtimes.com/main/blog_article/hr-fb-park-factors/ Team Park 2009 4 Year Angels Angel Stadium 110 96 Astros Minute Maid Park 104 108 Athletics McAfee...
The Hardball Times (Free subscription) | 11/21/2009
Just a quick hit to share park factors for HR/FB rate. I used BIP data and the methodology from Baseball Reference to determine simple HR/FB park factors for 2009 and 4-year weighed factors (weights are 5,3,2,1). Without further adieu, here's the list: Team Park 2009 4 Year Angels Angel Stadium 110 96 Astros Minute Maid Park 104 108 Athletics McAfee Colisuem 95 92 Blue Jays Rogers Centre 105 108 Braves...
Bleed Cubbie Blue (Free subscription) | 11/15/2009
... it was the name of a popular restaurant about a mile from Wrigley Field that used to advertise on the building on Waveland where you now see an ad for an Indiana casino and where, for many years, there was an ad for a national beer brand. When those of us "of a certain age" were kids, that building had, for decades, an ad for WGN radio and television, the perfect ad for the stations that...
Chicagoray (Free subscription) | 11/12/2009
How weird can this Sammy Sosa get,? It's just too bad the late and great Michael Jackson is no longer with us to make some badly needed money on this face whitening deal.... while Jackson had Lupus and Vitiglio (which was confirmed after his death even though he always claimed the latter but no one believed him) which contributed to his skin discoloration which was likely exacerbated by his attempts...
Ivy Chat (Free subscription) | 11/11/2009
It's been like the 1980's around here. The Cubs have new ownership and there are real, honest-to-goodness leveraged buy outs to work on. The latter has taken up the bulk of the time of this writer. Regardless, everything seems like a replay of decades ago. Speaking of replay, it's interesting how much instant replay has been the focus of the sport world of late. The Major League Baseball playoffs were...
Greg Laden's Blog (Free subscription) | 11/08/2009
The Chicago Cubs have become the first major-league team to have an openly gay owner according to the Windy City Times. On Oct. 30, the Ricketts family became the new owners of MLB team, the Chicago Cubs. The family bought the team and Wrigley Field for $845 million. Laura Ricketts, one of the purchasers, is an open lesbian who serves on the board for Lambda Legal, the nationwide advocacy organization...
knuckleheadnyc (Free subscription) | 11/07/2009
Late in the summer of 1980 I was playing guitar in this band with this girl and her manager suggested that it would be a smart move for us all to move to New York so we did. The first week we were here we played a gig at the Ritz (now known by it's original name Webster Hall) that was filmed for the movie " Urgh-A Music War "). That was quite an event but another event from the end of that...
Mizozo (Free subscription) | 11/03/2009
The Chicago Cubs may not have won a World Series since 1907, but they accomplished a first when they completed the team's purchase by the Ricketts Family. That sale was finalized on Oct. 27th, and with that, the Cubs are the first Major League Baseball team to have an openly gay owner. Among the purchasers is Laura Ricketts, an out lesbian who is also on the board of the gay rights organization Lambda...
Serious Eats (Free subscription) | 11/02/2009
"I don't need much in my life, just a 100% all-beef natural casing Vienna Beef hot dog with freshly fried French fries." [Photographs: Nick Kindelsperger] 35th Street Red Hots 500 W 35th Street, Chicago IL 60609 (map) The Short Order: Bare bones hot dog stand serving minimalist dogs with handfuls of handmade fries. Want Fries with That? The nearly perfect fries come lovingly heaped onto every...
Bleed Cubbie Blue (Free subscription) | 10/31/2009
More photos » by Rob Carr - AP The World Series moves to Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia tonight. Browse more photos » With the new hope engendered to Cubs fans after the Ricketts family was introduced as new owners yesterday, perhaps we can be forgiven if we dream -- just a bit -- about the potential for the Cubs to be in the World Series a year from now. Meanwhile, there's a chance...
The Sporting Blog (Free subscription) | 10/31/2009
It's understandable for consumers to be happy about and test out their new purchases: Porsche drivers would want to take a spin in a new ride, new homeowners have dinner parties, and kids with new toys play with them until their parents snap. But there's a fine line between enjoying something new, and going overboard in praising it. New Cubs owner Tom Ricketts lost sight of that line . “I’ll...
Cubbie Nation (Free subscription) | 10/30/2009
Filed:October 30th, 2009 Chicago Cubs chairman Tom Ricketts And with one 20 minute press conference this morning, a historic event has come and gone, with the Ricketts family officially announced as the Cubs owners. The new group, fronted by Tom, with a board led by family members Peter, Todd, and Laura, promised first and foremost a World Series championship, and a legitimate commitment to establishing...
Videos