From all of us here at The Wrigley Blog -
Just wanted to wish you all a Merry Old Christmas.
Go Cubs!
Go Cubs!
Happy Birthday Johnny
Happy Birthday to our old pal Johnny.
I reckon that being born on the shortest day of the year has something to do with your appreciation of summertime Day Baseball.
Well sir - we sure do appreciate all you have done over this last season to contribute to this here blog. You have done some dandy work here:
Candy Store
Ticket Available? Yessir
Ain't Happenin'
Tootsie's Of The Week
Hockey vs Baseball, Why Baseball Wins
I reckon that being born on the shortest day of the year has something to do with your appreciation of summertime Day Baseball.
Well sir - we sure do appreciate all you have done over this last season to contribute to this here blog. You have done some dandy work here:
Candy Store
Ticket Available? Yessir
Ain't Happenin'
Tootsie's Of The Week
Hockey vs Baseball, Why Baseball Wins
Wrigley Field Drive GoodBye
AP Photo/Warren Wimmer
Fans of all ages gathered outside the Friendly Confines this afternoon to watch Ron Santo drive by for the final time. I wish I had the words handy to express the sorrow we here at this blog are feeling today. Ronnie was such a happy guy, and losing him - well sir - it just makes us truly sad.
Only thing that made us feel a bit better was to get on the computer and donate to Ronnie's cause. If you would like to help out, please visit www.jdrfillinois.org and donate $10 for our number 10.
I know he'd appreciate it.
Fans of all ages gathered outside the Friendly Confines this afternoon to watch Ron Santo drive by for the final time. I wish I had the words handy to express the sorrow we here at this blog are feeling today. Ronnie was such a happy guy, and losing him - well sir - it just makes us truly sad.
Only thing that made us feel a bit better was to get on the computer and donate to Ronnie's cause. If you would like to help out, please visit www.jdrfillinois.org and donate $10 for our number 10.
I know he'd appreciate it.
Wrigley Turned Into A Santo Shrine
I'd say it is only fitting that the same place Ronnie Santo thought of as a shrine became a makeshift shrine to him following his passing.
The boys here at the blog sent me down to take some photographs these last few days, and I sure hope they capture some of the emotion around the park. A lot of folks made it down to pay their respects to old number 10. He certainly deserved it.
The boys here at the blog sent me down to take some photographs these last few days, and I sure hope they capture some of the emotion around the park. A lot of folks made it down to pay their respects to old number 10. He certainly deserved it.
Remembering #10 At Wrigley Field
Just a few photographs from around The Stadium on this sad, sad day.
I think it is safe to say that Ron Santo was an even bigger fan of Wrigley Field than we are. At numerous occasions - on the air, I have heard him recount the first time he walked onto the field in 1960 alongside Ernie Banks. He said there was a feeling of electricity that he'd never had - that it was like walking on air.
We here know just exactly what old #10 was talking about. And we are going to miss hearing his voice. And we are going to miss hearing him retell that story.
Hockey vs Baseball, Why Baseball Wins
Me and the kid - Jeremy took in a hockey game here recently. I haven't been to a game since the days of the old Chicago Stadium, so I was quite excited to go.
I had my trusty camera, of course, to try and capture some of the scenery. I can tell you, hands down, baseball is much more intriguing when compared to hockey.
As you can plainly see:
HOCKEY:
BASEBALL:
I had my trusty camera, of course, to try and capture some of the scenery. I can tell you, hands down, baseball is much more intriguing when compared to hockey.
As you can plainly see:
HOCKEY:
BASEBALL:
Lights and Cameras for Wrigley Action
Well sir, there is certainly more to see around the friendly confines this afternoon.
I found that this large operation has taken over the parking lot just west of Clark and Addison. My grandson tells me that this is the set up for ESPN Gameday, and that it is supposedly some big deal.
Also, they now have two giant trucks parked on Waveland Avenue that will help supplement Wrigley Field's lights for the game. I strolled by again this evening, and they have the field lit up like a candle. It is a beautiful site, and she is even more bright now that they have these extra lights.
Speaking of adding lights to Wrigley Field, let me just tell ya - you don't want to get my friend Hank going on the subject.
I found that this large operation has taken over the parking lot just west of Clark and Addison. My grandson tells me that this is the set up for ESPN Gameday, and that it is supposedly some big deal.
Also, they now have two giant trucks parked on Waveland Avenue that will help supplement Wrigley Field's lights for the game. I strolled by again this evening, and they have the field lit up like a candle. It is a beautiful site, and she is even more bright now that they have these extra lights.
Speaking of adding lights to Wrigley Field, let me just tell ya - you don't want to get my friend Hank going on the subject.
More Football Clutter At Wrigley Field
Seems like the more I stroll by Wrigley Field, the more junk they have come up with to clutter the place.
I was quite upset to see that after spending the day painting the marquee purple they went ahead and slapped a logo up there. I'm not too fond of advertisements around the park as you might have heard, but to put one up here on the marquee - well sir, temporary or not I don't like it.
And I may be crazy and half colorblind, but the top and the bottom of that marquee have different purples to them, don't they?
Then I walk around the corner and find this gigantic "U" standing right there behind Ernie Banks' statue.
That thing makes the old macaroni and cheese noodle from this last summer seem small and tactful. I tell you what, if a stiff breeze was to make its way down Clark Street I wouldn't be surprised to find that we'd have ourselves another broken statue on our hands.
I reckon seeing the marquee and that "U" shook me up a bit, because when I came home and took a gander at this photograph I took of the Northwestern University equiptment truck, it sure is a bit shaky.
I apologize.
Lord knows what I'll find around The Stadium tomorrow.
I was quite upset to see that after spending the day painting the marquee purple they went ahead and slapped a logo up there. I'm not too fond of advertisements around the park as you might have heard, but to put one up here on the marquee - well sir, temporary or not I don't like it.
And I may be crazy and half colorblind, but the top and the bottom of that marquee have different purples to them, don't they?
Then I walk around the corner and find this gigantic "U" standing right there behind Ernie Banks' statue.
That thing makes the old macaroni and cheese noodle from this last summer seem small and tactful. I tell you what, if a stiff breeze was to make its way down Clark Street I wouldn't be surprised to find that we'd have ourselves another broken statue on our hands.
I reckon seeing the marquee and that "U" shook me up a bit, because when I came home and took a gander at this photograph I took of the Northwestern University equiptment truck, it sure is a bit shaky.
I apologize.
Lord knows what I'll find around The Stadium tomorrow.
This Might Not Be Such A Good Idea
Um... While Grandpa and the rest of Illinois have focused on purple marquees at Wrigley and purple banners at Wrigley and purple... well, everything at Wrigley; I happened to notice this photo that showed up from our pal: @clubhousecancer.
I mean . . . where do I begin on this?
1. (shout out to my Grandpa) Fake Ivy. Yeah, there is fake ivy around the wall and on that fake ivy are lots of ads. Grandpa and his pals are pretty much anti-ads by the way. Me? I don't really notice them. I mean, am I going to start paying for insurance just because I saw this ad? Nope!
2. The Goal Post. It is attached to the brick wall! Do I have to repeat that in some other way? It is attached to a very very old wall. Last time I watched a game, the goal posts were attached to the ground.
3. Clearance. Um.. also, the last time I watched a game: There Were More Than 3 Inches Of Clearance Outside of the Endzone! ! !
I mean... I'm definitely pro-Wrigley and I am (I guess) pro-football at Wrigley, but this appears to be not such a good idea. I'll let Grandpa and my Uncle Harold get into the details of the whole past vs present deal, but presently: it just seems like a really, really bad idea.
UPDATE: It looks like the Big 10 agrees with me on this one. They ruled that they will only go towards the West end zone. No love for the East Side!!
Milking Wrigley Field and Painting it Purple
Today proves once again that the brain-trust over at Cubs Marketing doesn't believe in being subtle and they never miss out on an opportunity to milk Wrigley Field.
I believe you would agree that The Stadium has already been sufficiently "Northwestern-ized" for this Saturday's game. What with the Purple and White flags flying on every pole, oversized Northwestern banners hung on the West and to the South as well as eight more cluttering around our beautiful Wrigley Field Marquee. Dang heck, they even painted the right field wall window off of Sheffield Purple.
Well sir - apparently that wasn't enough, because they have decided to also paint the Wrigley Field marquee Purple. Not only are they temporarily defacing the landmark, they are also making sure they do it loudly; promoting and sponsoring it, complete with MasterCard billboards and Valspar paint cans. Because, you see - Wrigley Field isn't just a dandy place to watch a game, she is also a money making machine.
The Bastards Broke Harry Caray
A lot was made by us and by others about moving Harry Caray's statue. Harry's widow -Dutchie was against the idea, and we were against the way they handled the re-dedication.
Well sir, it appears that we were all correct in our assertion that the whole thing was just a bad idea. Because, you see - the bastards broke the statue.
According the Paul Sullivan of the Tribune, the crack came about when a vehicle that was a part of the football work hit the corner of the base. He also said that they supposedly ordered a new piece of granite to fix this fiasco. I'll be interest to see if they have the original date etched in there or if they pick the September 1, 2010 re-dedication date. Regardless, I think it is just a darn shame - he never should've been moved in the first place.
Well sir, it appears that we were all correct in our assertion that the whole thing was just a bad idea. Because, you see - the bastards broke the statue.
According the Paul Sullivan of the Tribune, the crack came about when a vehicle that was a part of the football work hit the corner of the base. He also said that they supposedly ordered a new piece of granite to fix this fiasco. I'll be interest to see if they have the original date etched in there or if they pick the September 1, 2010 re-dedication date. Regardless, I think it is just a darn shame - he never should've been moved in the first place.
Turning Wrigley's Field Into A Gridiron
The Cubs season came to a end the first week of October and ever since laborers have been hard at work transforming this beautiful baseball field into a football gridiron. All this here effort for one game on November 20th matching the Northwestern Wildcats and the Illinois Illinis.
We here have been documenting the process and figured it was close enough to completion to give all of you a gander. A lot has gone into this event so far but I'll start with the field itself.
They started by bring in sod, you see. Can't have much of a football field with a dirt infield.
They tackled the diamond first,
then they covered the warning track.
The field really transformed when they painted on the numbers and lines. If you look close enough you'll see the Northwestern "N" at the 50 yard line.
Now, as of this afternoon - they have the painted purple around the sidelines, and added the base to the field goals.
I reckon that this is most of what they will have to do for the field, but I'll be back tomorrow to see if they have made any more progress.
Thank you kindly
They tackled the diamond first,
then they covered the warning track.
The field really transformed when they painted on the numbers and lines. If you look close enough you'll see the Northwestern "N" at the 50 yard line.
Now, as of this afternoon - they have the painted purple around the sidelines, and added the base to the field goals.
I reckon that this is most of what they will have to do for the field, but I'll be back tomorrow to see if they have made any more progress.
Thank you kindly
Our 2010 MVP
Now that the 2010 baseball season has come to an end, we here at The Wrigley Blog put our collective heads together to decide our MVP.
Well I'll tell you one thing - the Cubs didn't play worth a hoot this year. So, we decided not to give it to a Cub. Harold voiced an opinion for Mike Fontenot - after-all he was the only Cub on the World Series winning team. And I could see Sloop's point that Marlon Byrd should get the nod - seeings as how his stellar play during the All Star Game gave the Giants home field advantage in that series.
But after some heated exchanges around the card-table we decided to give this years MVP to:
The FBI.
The FBI.
You see, it was the FBI who foiled a plot to detonate a bomb right near Wrigley Field. A fella by the name of Sami Samir Hassoun put what he thought was enough TNT to blow up a city block in a trash can less than a block from Clark and Addison.
This here trash can would have been the epicenter of the explosion
Now, I can't tell you how life would have changed around these parts if the long arm of the law hadn't prevented this tragedy. I can tell you that whining about how we haven't fielded a World Series team for over 100 years would have seemed a tad less important.
And even if the damage wouldn't have reached the glorious red marquee that proudly hangs on our beloved Stadium - the innocence of heading to watch a baseball game would have never been the same. I can't even imagine how security in and around would have changed. You'd have heavily armed police patrolling the aisles with bomb sniffing dogs. You'd have idiots calling in bomb threats clearing the stands mid-game. Who knows if people would even show to watch. One way or the other, this event would have spelled the end of something special or just maybe it would have been the very end of Wrigley Field herself.
This here trash can would have been the epicenter of the explosion
Now, I can't tell you how life would have changed around these parts if the long arm of the law hadn't prevented this tragedy. I can tell you that whining about how we haven't fielded a World Series team for over 100 years would have seemed a tad less important.
And even if the damage wouldn't have reached the glorious red marquee that proudly hangs on our beloved Stadium - the innocence of heading to watch a baseball game would have never been the same. I can't even imagine how security in and around would have changed. You'd have heavily armed police patrolling the aisles with bomb sniffing dogs. You'd have idiots calling in bomb threats clearing the stands mid-game. Who knows if people would even show to watch. One way or the other, this event would have spelled the end of something special or just maybe it would have been the very end of Wrigley Field herself.
So from all of us at The Wrigley Blog - Thank you FBI for catching this hooligan. We owe you a cold one.
Brewer Fan Guarding Wrigley
Grandpa has sent me out recently to try and snag some photos of the work going on inside of Wrigley for the upcoming Northwestern football game. They have this opening in the outfield wall off of Sheffield that works like a charm... but you have to be willing to stand there like a tool and take shots while security stares you down.
Well guess what I happened to notice last time I was there... one of the security dudes was wearing a mother-trucking Milwaukee Brewers hat!
WTF??
Let's go Ricketts; Clean this situation up!
Well guess what I happened to notice last time I was there... one of the security dudes was wearing a mother-trucking Milwaukee Brewers hat!
WTF??
Let's go Ricketts; Clean this situation up!
From The Vault: Bodysuited Dude Asked to Leave
Check out this dude. He shows up to a Cubs game in a full bodysuit. I'm talking head to toe red spandex... can't even see his eyeballs.
First off, one has to question the timing of this stunt. It is an midweek, low attended game. That kind of a effort deserves a Friday afternoon against the Cardinals... in the bleachers.
And besides looking odd, the dude didn't do anything at all to cause a commotion. He was even kind enough to remove his helmet for the national anthem (see below:)
But apparently there is some policy against these types of shenanigans because an inning later... security showed up and escorted the dude out like he was Steve Bartman
Mike Quade Is The Man
(Image "borrowed" from www.thecubsbrickyard.com)
Mike Quade is no longer just the interim manager of the Chicago Cubs. In a few hours he will be officially named as the real deal manager. We have already posted a few gems about the new guy: Who's This Mike Quade? , The Cubs Skipper Search, and my personal favorite: Don't Make Mike Quade Angry!
We here at The Wrigley Blog wish him success. His success means Cubs success and Cubs success means pleasure for us and all of those Cubbie fans around the world.
Go get 'em Coach err Manager Q!
Cubs Skipper Search - Ignorance vs Incompetence
(image from http://www.mycubstoday.com)
I wouldn't say I'm a big fan of the Cubs new owner or their old General Manager. I'd say that the problem with Tom Ricketts is: He doesn't know what he is doing, and worse yet, he think Jim Hendry does.
And I believe this search for a new skipper is a good example of this battle between ignorance and incompetence.
I read a pretty interesting article this morning over at fanpeeps.com that talked about this very thing. The gentleman there argued that the skipper search has come down to Ricketts' choice: Ryne Sandberg vs Hendry' pick: Mike Quade. Mr. Ricketts did promise to that it was ultimately the decision of the General Manager, but that sounds to me like some sorta business-world jargon to cover his rear in case the decision goes south.
I guess my money would be on Quade at this point. Ricketts has to know that this is Hendry's last big decision as GM. If this new manager doesn't lead the Cubs to the promised land, somebody's going to have to take the fall. And you can't make Hendry the scapegoat if you take the decision out of his hands.
Well, actually Ricketts can and will make Hendry the scapegoat no matter what, but I'd still put a nickel on Quade.
I wouldn't say I'm a big fan of the Cubs new owner or their old General Manager. I'd say that the problem with Tom Ricketts is: He doesn't know what he is doing, and worse yet, he think Jim Hendry does.
And I believe this search for a new skipper is a good example of this battle between ignorance and incompetence.
I read a pretty interesting article this morning over at fanpeeps.com that talked about this very thing. The gentleman there argued that the skipper search has come down to Ricketts' choice: Ryne Sandberg vs Hendry' pick: Mike Quade. Mr. Ricketts did promise to that it was ultimately the decision of the General Manager, but that sounds to me like some sorta business-world jargon to cover his rear in case the decision goes south.
I guess my money would be on Quade at this point. Ricketts has to know that this is Hendry's last big decision as GM. If this new manager doesn't lead the Cubs to the promised land, somebody's going to have to take the fall. And you can't make Hendry the scapegoat if you take the decision out of his hands.
Well, actually Ricketts can and will make Hendry the scapegoat no matter what, but I'd still put a nickel on Quade.
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