Monday, Feb. 28
Rahula Strohl at 4:53 p.m.
Flyover flying under: The folks on Around the Horn discussed the shift in power in the Eastern Conference with Chris Webber crossing the continent, the Pistons starting to win and Shaq suiting up in Armani rather than No. 32. But not one mention of the Bulls.
Boston got a nod because Antoine Walker’s back in town, Philly was lauded as a team with two playmakers who complement each other and the Pistons have won seven in a row. Boston and the Sixers have worse records than the Bulls and the Pistons have lost twice to the Bulls. In Auburn Hills.
So despite having two columnists on the show from flyover land—including one from Chicago—they failed to mention a team capturing its city like few other teams. That’s okay. They didn’t mention LeBron, either.
Greg Gugger at 2:18 p.m.
And the reviews are in: Big moves by the Bears at the wide receiver position.
Let’s take a look at what Sports Illustrated’s Don Banks and Peter King have to say about the Muhsin Muhammad signing.
Don Banks: “Chicago’s move smacks of desperation and severe overpayment. Muhammad will be 32 in May, and there’s virtually no chance he’ll repeat his monstrous 2004 season for the Monsters of the Midway.”
Peter King: “I think, and I hate to say this because Muhsin Muhammad is a very good guy and a great football player, Chicago is where receivers go to die.”
We know quarterbacks die here. But receivers too?
Sunday, Feb. 27
Rahula Strohl at 2:42 a.m.
Like father, like son: So Jeff Jordan drained the game-winning shot for Loyola against De La Salle at the United Center on Friday. Jordan had 15 points in the game, all in the second half, and drained the winner with 6.1 seconds left.
If that wasn’t enough, Jordan proceeded to comment that the rims at the UC were too tight for his liking, a frequent complaint of his slightly more well-known father, Michael.
However, at the end of the story, Jordan the younger is quoted as saying he missed his team’s Thursday shoot-around because of migraine headaches. Wait, is this Michael’s kid or Scottie’s?
Friday, Feb. 25
Rahula Strohl at 9:52 p.m.
Insult to injury: With the Bulls up four in the closing seconds of tonight’s game, Wizards forward Michael Ruffin stepped to the free-throw line and airballed his first shot. With the crowd going nuts, Tom Dore and Johnny “Red” Kerr commented that, hey, at least he hit the floor.
Rahula Strohl at 9:32 p.m.
Chicago politics: NBA.com has voting on the best shot in NBA history. Only one Bull made the greatest shot, and it’s not Michael Jordan. It’s John Paxson’s three ball from Game 6 in 1993. Incidentally, that’s the only shot on the list that clinched an NBA finals victory, so by definition it should be the best shot of the list.
Michael didn’t make it because his 1998 shot is on the greatest finals moments poll. They incorrectly identify it as Game 7, one that was never played. Anyway, we’re Chicagoans, so vote early, vote often.
Chris King at 12:47 p.m.
Tourney talk: The field is far from set for the Big Ten tournament at the United Center, which begins on Thursday, March 10. Illinois and Michigan St. are the top two seeds, respectively. Seeds 3-10 are still up for grabs. The Illini will face the 8-9 winner on Friday, which looks like it will be Northwestern, Iowa or Michigan.
The Hawkeyes gave the Illini fits in both games this year. Michigan hung tough too, but that game was in Ann Arbor. If Illinois advances, they could play Wisconsin in the semis, unless they end up as the No. 3 seed (the Badgers and Indiana are tied right now). I think it would be tough to beat Iowa, Wisconsin and Michigan State over a three-day span. Oh yeah, since tickets are sold out, you can buy them at Stubhub.com. Or, you could always purchase standing-room-only seats.
Thursday, Feb. 24
Rahula Strohl at 12:41 p.m.
Diggin’ up dirt: Eric in Las Vegas requested the number of teams winning a World Series in the past 10 years without the help of a 20-game winner. Since we at “What’s Goin’ On” are all about reader service, here it is, Eric.
The 2004 Red Sox, the 2001 Diamondbacks and the Yankees of 1996 and 1998. Curt Schilling did it for the BoSox and D’Backs, Randy Johnson also for the D’backs, Andy Pettitte for the Yanks in ’96 and David Cone in ’98. The other six World Series winners since the strike did it without a 20-game winner. In fact, three teams did it with their winningest pitcher at 17 or fewer wins. The 2003 Marlins had three 14-game winners and that’s it.
Furthermore, only three World Series losers had 20-game winners: The 1996 Braves and the 2001 and 2003 Yankees. Five teams made it to the World Series with their winningest pitcher at 16 or fewer wins.
Since the strike, five of the 10 World Series have failed to feature a 20-game winner. Also notable is that the 2001 Diamondbacks were the first World Series champ to feature two 20-game winners since the 1978 Yankees.
Chris King at 11:56 a.m.
Not so fast: In a story about the Illini in the Daily Herald, NCAA Tournament committee chairman Bob Bowlsby says the Illini are not guaranteed to play the first two rounds of the tournament in Indianapolis, even if they are the top seed in the entire tournament. Gimme a break. This team has earned the right to play in Indy and at the Allstate Arena (assuming they advance). Even if the Illini lose a game before the NCAAs, they deserve to play in Indy. The again, you have to consider the source: Bowlsby is the athletic director at Iowa.
Greg Gugger at 10:45 a.m.
My husband is a Cub: The Cubs today announced that they will have a “Tribute to Mia Hamm” day at Wrigley Field. It will take place July 3 at Wrigley Field. Hamm, the wife of Cubs’ shortstop Nomar Garciaparra, will be recognized for her accomplishments on and off the field by throwing out the first pitch and accepting a charitable donation to her foundation from Cubs Care.
The Cubs will give away 100 authentic Mia Hamm U.S. Women’s National Team soccer jerseys through a scratch and win lottery card. Lottery cards will be distributed to the first 20,000 female fans (18 and under) who pass through the gates.
The question has to be asked if this is just a cheap stunt in the quest to lure Nomar back. Then I got really confused when reading the Cubs are distributing the lotto cards to the first 20,000 female fans who enter Wrigley. Will these female fans be getting more than one lotto card? Or will there be a big clamoring for these jerseys and half the stadium is filled with females 18 and under? Somehow I think the winning tickets will be in the first few thousand tickets given away.
When it comes down to it, I’m just bitter I can’t get a lotto card.
Wednesday, Feb. 23
Rahula Strohl at 11:55 a.m.
20/20 vision: Eric of Las Vegas suggests that Cubs and Sox fans not get too excited about their rotations because the only 20-game winner among them is Maddux, and he hasn’t accomplished that feat since 1993. So I did some research on Hall-of-Fame pitchers.
Jim Bunning had one 20-win season, his third season in the league. Don Drysdale had two, and it took him seven seasons to get his first one. Whitey Ford pitched for Mickey Mantle’s Yankees and still needed 10 seasons to reach the 20-win milestone. Coincidentally, that first 20-win season was 1961, when Roger Maris hit 61 homers and Mantle was chasing the record until he broke his leg.
But the kicker was Nolan Ryan. He had two 20-win seasons in his 27-year career, and they came in years seven and eight. And if this isn’t enough to denounce the 20-win season as the be-all and end-all of pitching milestones, Rick Helling won 20 games in 1998.
Chris King at 10:34 a.m.
In the dark: If you’re stuck at work during the NCAA tournament and you don’t have access to a television (as we do here, but the CBS feed is awful), you can watch the games on your computer for a mere $19.95. There are a number of system requirements, but what an awesome deal (games from the Final 8 to the end will not be available). But then you see the asterisk at the bottom: “Local telecasts subject to blackout.” So if you’re in Chicago and you want to watch No. 1 Illinois, guess what?
Rahula Strohl at 10:00 a.m.
Numbers game III: We discussed the retired number situation at the beginning of the month, and one of my desired retired numbers will happen this season. Ryno’s number is going to be flying from the foul pole.
That still leaves the glaring omission of Ferguson Jenkins. His number is being worn by Greg Maddux, but as soon as Maddux hangs ’em up, No. 31 should immediately be flying from the foul pole with Fergie’s name on it. No questions asked.
Rahula Strohl at 9:20 a.m.
Job description: Barry Bonds scolded the media at his press conference, telling them, “When your closet’s clean, come clean somebody else’s. But clean yours first.”
It’s the job of news media to clean other people’s closets. Bonds is allowed to do what he will to his body without being lectured on right and wrong. But he is a public figure and role model to young ballplayers, no matter whether he likes it. Part of being a role model is sharing your path to greatness.
As a young journalist, I’m constantly asking established journalists how they have gotten to where they are. I ask this because I want to know all possible avenues I can take to get where they are, and figure out the best one for me.
Bonds owes it to the fans (whom he credited for supporting him) who look to him as a role model to share his path. If it was a clouded path, he should say so. It is not fair to those for whom he is a role model otherwise. If he doesn’t want to share his path, it is the job of journalists to discover that path and share it with the public.
The first amendment to the constitution provided the power of free press so we can mind the public’s business. We tell happy stories as examples, we tell sad stories as cautionary tales. It’s our job.
I’ll leave Barry with journalists I’m glad minded other people’s business rather than their own:
Rahula Strohl at 8:55 a.m.
Back-loaded season: The Bulls played their 50th game last night, the last team in the NBA to get there. For contrast, last night was the 55th game for the Heat. While the Bulls are looking strong, they’ve got a harder schedule than other teams in the league if for no other reason than they have to play more. No. 51 tonight against second-place Cleveland. Stay tuned.
Tuesday, Feb. 22
Greg Gugger at 6:55 p.m.
Stick a fork in it: Illinois is undefeated and ranked No. 1 in the country. And Deron Williams and Dee Brown are talking about turning pro?
There’s nothing wrong with Williams getting drafted mid-to-late in the first round and becoming another Frank Williams. Take the money and sit on the bench. It’s a great living if you can get it. But let’s not talk about this until after the season is over.
Brown says that the probability of his return is 90 percent. Enjoy his senior year next season because it will be hard to track him overseas.
Rahula Strohl at 4:48 p.m.
Local boy makes big: Bruce Weber was on Pardon the Interruption, talking about an undefeated season being well within reach now that the Illini survived at Iowa.
Other than that, he said nothing he hasn’t already told the local media. This seems to be an emerging pattern. The national media very occasionally recognize something happening here in flyover land. When they do, they say nothing we haven’t heard for a month or two already.
Chicagoan Michael Wilbon is forever trying to get New Yorker Tony Kornheiser to talk about the Bulls, Cubs, Bears, anything non-coastal. But the subjects remain Kobe vs. Shaq, Yanks vs. secondary Sox and assorted other oceanfront issues. Stick with the coasts, national media, we’ll cover our own sports.
Rahula Strohl at 4:12 p.m.
I know you are, but what am I? Washington Post columnist Thomas Boswell writes about members of the Washington Nationals not knowing much of anything about their new home. The first example is funny, but the kicker is former White Sox pitcher Jon Rauch a couple of paragraphs down.
I couldn’t necessarily succeed where Rauch failed, but I don’t think I could fail quite as spectacularly, either.
Rahula Strohl at 3:10 p.m.
Creative nickname of the day: Scott Van Pelt of ESPN referred to golfer Charles Howell III as “Ol’ Chucky Three-Sticks.”
Rahula Strohl at 1:58 p.m.
Come on without: The Bears waived Jonathan Quinn. I know I’m jumping on the joke bandwagon a little late, but here’s hoping we’ll “not see nothing” like this guy for quite some time.
Sorry about that. But anyway, the only positive thing I ever heard said about Quinn (other than the blathering that came out of the Bears’ brass) was from one of the press corps members up at Halas Hall.
After Quinn and Mark Brunell put on the worst showing by opposing quarterbacks in who knows how long, the comment came the following Monday: “As bad as Quinn was, at least the Bears aren’t paying him $6 million to be that bad.”
In the end, the Redskins finished with one more win and nine more points scored on the season than the Bears. And they shelled out a lot more money. So while things are not so good, it could be a lot worse in the Windy City.
Flounderin’ around: I don’t know who of you out there considers fishing a sport, but if you do, here’s a guy at the top of his game.
Monday, Feb. 21
Greg Gugger at 2:07 p.m.
We’ve got mail: We get all sorts of e-mails here at ChicagoSports.com. Some are nasty, others are inquisitive, a few tell us they enjoy our site and then there are the weird e-mails.
Here’s a strange one that came in this afternoon: “I was wondering if I could send a picture of myself to Bernie Temkin? We look strikingly the same, save for my salt and pepper hair.”
Wonder if they were separated at birth? By the way, the e-mailer is referring to prep columnist Barry Temkin (pictured), not Bernie. We left it up to Barry to contact this e-mailer.
Greg Gugger at 11:28 a.m.
Get out the credit card: The Bulls are rolling and Shaq’s coming into town Tuesday night.
A quick search of Ticketmaster showed that there are some tickets left. There’s nothing like bringing a date to the United Center and having her stand for three hours at the top of the 300 level. Those are the only seats left if you are bringing someone. They cost $30 each, and then Ticketmaster charges you $5.25 a ticket for the pleasure (cough, cough) of using its service.
If you want to sit by yourself, actual seats are available. We found some $100 seats in the lower level, $70 seats in the second level and $46 seats in the upper level.
Saturday, Feb. 19
Rahula Strohl at 6:28 p.m.
Hindsight is 20/20: Michigan vs. Illinois football from 1999 was on ESPN Classic this morning. The commentators kept talking about how Ron Turner, in his third year with the Illini, had really turned the program around. They commented on how “bare the cupboard was” when Turner got to Illinois. I guess he knows how to leave things as he found them.
They also commented on how, in Turner’s offense, you need both a strong tight end and a fullback. The Bears have two of the latter in Bryan Johnson and Jason McKie, who accounted for four of the Bears’ nine touchdown catches this past season. But Desmond Clark and Dustin Lyman had a few too many drops and only one meaningful touchdown catch between them. That’s not enough to consider the Bears’ tight end corps strong.
Friday, Feb. 18
Rahula Strohl at 3:26 p.m.
Burning down the house: Jim Rome unleashed on Cub nation because of Harry Caray’s Restaurant’s brilliant idea to soak the Bartman ball in beer and serve it up. The tagline across the bottom of the screen read: “The Whiny City.”
My immediate reaction was, “This isn’t the Whiny City. If anything, it’s Boston, yelping and moaning despite being the reigning champs in both baseball and football.”
But then Rome pointed out that it’s not a goat, it’s not Bartman, it’s the “gas can” in the bullpen, the “cork-spraying” former slugger and an overall shoddy organization. And he’s right. Cub fans do spend a lot of time on stuff that doesn’t really matter. Let’s just play ball, folks, and let the title of whiniest sports city stay in Boston, where it belongs.
Flip-flop: The Red Sox are considering postponing their ring ceremony. If they hold it per tradition at the home opener, it would mean holding it with the Yankees in the opposing dugout, and the BoSox don’t want to fan the flames any more than they already have.
ESPN’s Skip Bayless said the Red Sox shouldn’t reschedule and should rub it in the Yankees’ faces because, he said, “To the victor go the spoils.”
This is the same man who said T.O. stands for “Terribly Overrated” and that Terrell Owens is a self-impressed, non-team player who only cares about his next touchdown celebration. Wait, doesn’t the victor get the spoils?
Rahula Strohl at 1:32 p.m.
Eat less, exercise more: Ozzie Guillen said he wants Mark Buehrle and Freddy Garcia to log fewer innings this season than they did last season. He’s a major-league manager and I’m not, but this sounds contrary to all baseball thinking I’ve ever heard.
Baseball is full of mediocre pitchers receiving better deals because they are “innings eaters.” Shawn Estes was brought to the North Side in 2003 because he supposedly was one (pause for incredulous laughter).
But the Sox have two well-above-mediocre pitchers who are proven innings eaters, both of whom had solid Septembers in 2004. Garcia (210 innings last year) was 3-1 in five starts. He had two shaky outings and three strong ones (the three wins). He tossed seven shutout innings in his last start of the season. Buehrle was 4-2 in September with three complete games. He finished the season with back-to-back, complete-game victories in which he gave up a total of two earned runs.
With the back end of the rotation loaded with question marks in Jose Contreras, Jon Garland and Orlando Hernandez, Ozzie would be wise to let Buehrle and Garcia loose and save the revamped bullpen for when he needs it. These guys have proven they won’t tire.
We have a winner: As originally reported in What’s Goin’ On, the Schaumburg Flyers were auctioning off the opportunity to play them in a game. Well, congratulations to ross4831, who held off early bids by pizzagoose and a late surge by pdubbsndame1 for the honor to play the Flyers.
Thursday, Feb. 17
Rahula Strohl at 4:14 p.m.
Beating PTI: Today should be a civic holiday. Everyone who works in the Chicagoland and northwest Indiana area should wake up late and spend the day watching complimentary DVDs of the Bulls’ title runs. Y’all guessed it.
Today is Michael Jeffery Jordan’s 42nd birthday. In honor of that, let’s open the lines. What’s your favorite MJ memory? E-mail us or use the comment board on the right. Mine is probably watching him backpedal after draining his, I don’t know, 50th three-pointer against the Blazers in Game 1 of the 1992 finals and just give a shrug like, “Yeah, I’m the best ever. What can I say?”
Greg Gugger at 3:01 p.m.
Next topic please: Hopefully there is a day soon when one can open up the sports section or hop on a Web site and not see the word “steroid.” Enough is enough.
It’s not that I don’t care about the scandal, but it’s got to the point when seeing an article I skip over it. We are able to track the page views on the stories you read. And the lack of your interest in the steroid stories is quite clear.
By the way, congrats if you got this far after reading “steroid” in the first sentence.
Adam Caldarelli at 1:22 p.m.
Let’s playpal! A fierce bidding war has broken out on Ebay for the right to take on the Schaumburg Flyers.
We told you about this auction last week. For a few thousand dollars you and a group of friends can play the Flyers and someone on your team possibly can earn a one-year Northern League contract. Two people, pizzagoose and ross4831, determined to live out their dream of playing low-level, independent minor-league baseball have been trading blows since last week like they were Ali and Frazier.
As of this writing pizzagoose is on top with a bid of $4,650.00 with one day left. May the best username win.
Business, however, isn’t so brisk for this handy, if not dated, Flyers item. Get it now before it ends up in Cooperstown.
Wednesday, Feb. 16
Adam Caldarelli at 3:46 p.m.
They’re back: People in Chicago are watching hoops again. OK, let me rephrase that since I haven’t talked to every basketball fan in town. I’m watching hoops again. It’s been a while and I’ve missed you.
I’m talking about the Bulls, of course. Granted last night’s win over the Kings was one of those classic count-the-minutes-before-the-All-Star-break losses for the Kings–the kind of games the good Bulls used to lose routinely. But the thing is, these Bulls weren’t looking ahead to their weekend off, they were playing hard the entire game just like they’ve done all season. People are paying attention to basketball in this city because the Bulls are playing watchable basketball the way it’s meant to be played, just like the Illini are doing down South.
We’re fortunate that Jerry Krause got out of the way when he did and that John Paxson appears to know what he’s doing. He’s assembled a team made up of real players to surround what Krause left, mainly Eddy Curry and Tyson Chandler.
Michael Sokolove wrote a interesting piece that ran in the New York Times Magazine this weekend that in part blames the erosion of fundamentals in the NBA on the culture of youth basketball.
Tyson Chandler, one such former prodigy, has taken a less-traveled route than the norm: He’s not whining about how he should be starting or the huge contract he thinks he deserves next year. No, Chandler is accepting his role as a late-game defensive stopper. His offensive game resembles more Dikembe Mutombo than Kevin Garnett, to whom people used to compare him. But coach Scott Skiles has put him in situations to succeed and Chandler has flourished.
Chandler and Curry have been helped no doubt by the real young nucleus of this team, Kirk Hinrich, Ben Gordon and Luol Deng, players from winning college programs who know how to play the game. Players like this are a rare commodity. That two of them are American-born is even more rare.
Look at the starting lineup of the Spurs, the best team in the NBA. One of the five players, Bruce Bowen, was born in this country, and he’s just a borderline goon of a defensive specialist.
Sports Illustrated (subscription), meanwhile, takes up the argument with a point-counter-point. In a story accompanied by a picture of Darius Miles, the no-skilled poster child for what’s wrong with the NBA, Ian Thomsen dishes about why no one in the heartland watches the NBA. Miles, for example, has absolutely no game, couldn’t knock down 10 straight 17-foot jumpers and yet makes $8 million a year. Jack McCallum, on the other hand, points out the good things about the league, among them the Baby Bulls.
Rahula Strohl at 3:24 p.m.
Comedy of errors: NHL Players Association executive director Bob Goodenow and Blackhawks brass are being streamed live over our televisions in the office. I really don’t know where to begin, but this is a riot.
It started with Goodenow on ESPN hammering the owners and commissioner Gary Bettman, basically saying it was their fault for the season being cancelled. Because NHL ratings and attendance figures support hockey salaries rivaling the salaries of the three major sports.
Then Adam let us know Comcast was carrying Bill Wirtz and his cronies. So I switch over, and Bill Wirtz is gravelling away. Among other things, he complained about the benefits package and talked about how magnanimous the Hawks were in their season ticket package. Vice president Peter Wirtz made sure that Bill mentioned the two percent interest the team paid on season ticket holders’ deposits. Those poor guys.
Bob Pulford then said that players used to drive Chevies, and now they’re driving “MAR-saydees.” If only people would buy American, we wouldn’t have to put up with this nonsense.
Adam Caldarelli at 1:22 p.m.
The final word: There was an NHL lockout? Who knew?
Tuesday, Feb. 15
Adam Caldarelli at 5:39 p.m.
Rage against ‘roids: I never bought the argument that fans don’t care if baseball’s sluggers are juiced up. All fans care about, they say, are home runs. I’d like to meet some of these fans.
Someone has to care about the history and the integrity of the game. If Hank Aaron can hit 755 career home runs skinny as the handle of a Louisville Slugger, it means something.
Hitting 73 home runs in a season looking like something Vince McMahon would love doesn’t.
Remember all the talk about expansion and watered down pitching staffs, about new homey bandbox stadiums, even about the balls being juiced? To anyone who cared to look it was so obvious after the 1994 strike that something was going on. Prior to the work stoppage two players in my lifetime hit 50 home runs—George Foster in 1977 and Cecil Fielder in 1991.
Afterwards, everyone was. Players like Brady Anderson, a previously light-hitting lead-off man for the Baltimore Orioles, hit 50.
Before 1996, Anderson had never driven in more than 80 runs in a season. That year he knocked in 110, a number helped immensely by his 50 home runs in the lead-off spot. If this guy’s career numbers aren’t a big enough indictment of a juiced era, look at Bret Boone, whom Jose Canseco suspects of chemical help in his book.
Boone went from a decent but light-hitting second baseman, to a bloated, bat flipping slugger in 2001. He knocked in 141 runs. We’re talking Willie Mays territory here. And no one would ever confuse the two. Mays, the greatest living baseball player, knocked in 141 runs once in his Hall of Fame career.
These numbers are as inflated as Barry Bonds’ hat size.
So far we know Canseco, Ken Caminiti, Bonds and Jason Giambi have admitted to taking steroids. That’s 10 MVP awards right there in the last 17 years. And that’s not including suspected users/former MVPs like Sammy Sosa, Juan Gonzalez, Mark McGwire and Ivan Rodriguez. Think about that.
You used to be able to measure players from one era to another. As Steve Stone pointed out during a broadcast last season the dimensions of the game have remained constant over time. No matter what changes a routine grounder to short will always result in an out by a step at first, whether it’s Ty Cobb running down the line or Ichiro. But a partial mistake by a pitcher no longer finds the gap but the parking lot.
But now 500 home runs means nothing. Sosa has 574, 50 percent of which were hit in a six-year stretch between 1998 and 2002, and will reach 600 next season. And who peaks physically near age 40 like Bonds no matter how much you work out? Sosa will have his name next to Mays and Aaron on the career home run list. Bonds will lead them all. And it’s just not right.
Rahula Strohl at 4:25 p.m.
Ugliest person ever: David DuPree of USA Today appeared on Pardon the Interruption and said that Yao Ming’s game reminded him of a combination of Rik Smits and Gheorghe Muresan.
While the game isn’t necessarily ugly, could you imagine a child that was a combination of Smits and Muresan? Holy geez, man, I’m not gonna be able to sleep tonight.
Rahula Strohl at 4:25 p.m.
Rippin’ from the headlines: NBC’s Law & Order is running an episode Wednesday where a loner is found dead in his rent-controlled apartment, and the No. 1 suspect turns out to be an NBA player with whom he had an ongoing feud.
The Indiana Pacers did not comment on the show. Somehow, I doubt Ron Artest will be watching. The Bulls are on, so I probably won’t be, either.
Chris King at 3:00 p.m.
Please, stop: This Bartman ball thing is getting waaayyyy out of hand. Now Harry Caray’s Restaurant is going to take the blown up ball and make it into spaghetti sauce. This story is so old. That’s not why they lost that game. I’m sure Harry’s is just trying to have fun with the whole thing, but it’s time to move on.
George Knue at 2:03 p.m.
RPI update: Illinois fans, who tend to be the worrisome sort, may have a little less to fuss over. The Illini have moved up to No. 2 in the unofficial RPI ratings behind Kansas. And that was before Kansas lost to Texas Tech Monday night (and who said Bobby Knight never did anything for Illinois?). All of which means that maybe, just maybe, Illinois gets a dream placement in the NCAA tournament–first-round games in Indianapolis and maybe regional games in Chicago.
Chris King at 1:44 p.m.
That guy from ESPN: Following up on George’s entry below, the Daily Southtown’s Paul Ledewski found someone who really loves the Illini.
George Knue at 1:22 p.m.
One game at a time: Twenty-five games into this undefeated season, you’d think the negatives and positives for Illinois’ basketball team would have been beaten to death. Great guards. Their big men aren’t good enough. The bench is weak. The bench is strong. The Big 10 is weak. The ACC is the greatest thing to happen to basketball since James Naismith did away with peach baskets.
Then Carol Slezak of the Sun-Times decided to weigh in this morning. The headline on the back page promoted the column this way: Unbeaten but still untested. Guess those victories over Wake Forest, Gonzaga and Cincinnati didn’t mean anything, not to mention winning at Michigan State and at Wisconsin–though Maryland, which must be tested because it plays in the ACC, wasn’t able to manage a win in Madison.
Slezak even took a little shot at Illinois fans: “They have adopted the tiresome ‘we don’t get no respect’ as their motto this season…”
Hey Carol, it’s pretty tiresome to keep reading all these stories about what’s wrong with Illinois too. And as much as you dis the Big 10, the Illini have played under pressure: On the road at Purdue, Michigan State, Wisconsin and Michigan, at home against Wisconsin and Iowa … all were close games that required Illinois to step up its game to win. And you can get ready for the postseason, even against “undermanned” Michigan, because the Wolverines chose to play a different style of game that Illinois is likely to see again.
Slezak also suggests that while the Illini seem to be growing in confidence, “…an undercurrent of doubt remains. They, too, must be wondering if they really are the best team in the country.”
Seems a little presumptuous to make that assumption, and I bet they aren’t wondering that at all. Instead, I bet they’re thinking how they can beat Penn State Wednesday night. And after the Penn State game, I’m betting they’re worrying about how they can win at Iowa Saturday.
And so on. One game at a time. Because even if they are unbeaten and ranked No. 1 in the country, this Illinois team seems to have learned what is behind one of those all-time sports cliches: One game at a time.
The last game doesn’t mean anything today–and the game after next doesn’t mean anything today either. Today’s game–that one means something. The Tribune’s Rick Morrissey got it right in his column after Illinois won at Michigan State:
“This is a team that plays with as much effort and pride as talent. If you saw the way the Illini moved the ball and played defense Tuesday, then you know they have no problem concentrating on the task at hand. If they lose this season, it will be because they were outplayed and not because they were wondering if they had turned off the coffee maker at home.”
Unbeaten season? That’s not the right question. Right question: Can the Illini win their next game? They’ve given no one any reason to believe they can’t.
Monday, Feb. 14
Greg Gugger at 12:56 p.m.
Have to stay dry: It was raining Sunday at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am on the Monterey Peninsula in northern California. And Bill Murray was unprepared.
A spectator gave him a University of Illinois windbreaker to wear around the course. In case you were wondering, Murray and longtime partner Scott Simpson finished fourth in the pro-am portion of the tournament behind Joel Kribel and Barry McCollam.
For your enjoyment, here’s a story about Murray teeing off on a TV reporter.
Greg Gugger at 10:46 a.m.
It’s not the ball: One of my colleagues made an interesting recollection of baseball and the whole steroid mess. He asked if I remembered when people were saying it was the balls that were juiced.
Back then this made some sense. It had to be the balls not the players. Right? After going through the Tribune archives, I came across a column in June 2000 by Skip Bayless titled ” ‘Juiced’ players, not baseballs, the real problem.”
And here we are four and a half years later.
Saturday, Feb. 12
Chris King at 7:01 p.m.
In the clutch: It seems like every time Illinois looks to be in trouble, they get bailed out by some amazing play or series of plays. Last Tuesday against Michigan, it was Dee Brown, making two steals in a row that led to baskets, followed by a three-point play. Today, it was Brown again, but this time it was on the offensive end as he drained two NBA-length bombs late in the game to seal an 11-point win over Wisconsin. And he did it while playing with four fouls. Unreal. For 25 games now, this team has figured out a way to win. Illini fans hope that trend will continue for another 14 games.
Chris King at 6:50 p.m.
Cubs or Sox? Sun-Times baseball writer Chris DeLuca predicted on WGN radio that the White Sox would finish with a better record than the Cubs this season due to their pitching depth. Let the debate begin.
Thursday, Feb. 10
George Knue at 2:58 p.m.
Taking a closer look: Read a lot of postings on our Chicago Cubs message board — not to mention the stories by Tribune writers like the one by Paul Sullivan on Kyle Farnsworth — and everyone is talking about how Jim Hendry is making this big move to rid the Cubs clubhouse of problem children.
And while the chemistry issue may be behind this, we’re thinking what Hendry has done is to decide that he wasn’t going to win with those guys … so he’d try to win with some other guys. And he did it without sacrificing the most important thing from the Cubs division championship team in 2003.
Sure Sammy Sosa is gone, and Jeromy Burnitz, his replacement, doesn’t set anyone’s heart afire. But when you compare 2003 to today, Derrek Lee’s offense can replace what Sosa did then — and Burnitz doesn’t look quite so shabby when compared to Eric Karros/Randall Simon/Hee Seop Choi, the first basemen back then.
And Moises Alou is gone, with some not-so-glitzy combination of Jason Dubois, Todd Hollandsworth, and Jerry Hairston Jr. out there instead. But, again, when you compare 2003 to today, the team can replace Alou’s offense with catcher Michael Barrett and/or shortstop Nomar Garciaparra — and the Dubois/Hollandsworth/Hairston triumvirate doesn’t look that bad when you’re asking them to fill the batting gloves of Damian Miller or Alex Gonzalez.
You can argue about Mark Grudzielanek vs. Todd Walker … or Corey Patterson vs. Kenny Lofton. And you can fight over which team was better defensively too.
But the bottom line is that the Cubs didn’t win in 2003 because of Alou or Sosa. They won because of their starting pitching. Two of those pitchers are gone — Matt Clement and Shawn Estes — but Kerry Wood, Mark Prior, and Carlos Zambrano are all back. And Greg Maddux and Glendon Rusch, Sergio Mitre or whoever compare pretty well to the guys that are missing.
And they won because Joe Borowski got guys out in the ninth. And that is something that Hendry hasn’t addressed. If the Cubs find that guy, there’s no reason they won’t be just as good as they were in 2003 — and that was good enough to be five outs away from the World Series.
Greg Gugger at 1:44 p.m.
Comments: You tackled the question, “Are you proud to be a Chicago sports fan?” And most of you are glad to be a fan of Chicago sports even though times have been lean recently. Thanks to everyone for their responses.
George Knue at 11:15 a.m.
No. 11 or No. 21? The discussion about what number Sammy Sosa wore during his earliest days as a Cub inspired a trip through Tribune archives.
Couldn’t find any story references to numbers or number changes. But a look at the microfilm did show that Tribune photographer Ed Wagner Jr. shot photos of the Cubs’ April 4, 1992 exhibition against the Brewers at Wrigley – and a little more digging showed that there were photos of Sammy Sosa shot that day.
Tribune photo editor Keith Swinden found both a scorecard and a photo of Sosa in uniform that day in those negatives. And Sammy was wearing No. 11.
The Cubs played an exhibition in Milwaukee the next day, but we couldn’t find the same kind of visual evidence from that game.
The next day, the Cubs opened in Philadelphia. The Tribune microfilm included a graphic that ran with a story previewing the opener – and it showed Sosa as No. 21. The Tribune didn’t send a photographer to the game, and the Associated Press photos the paper used didn’t include any of Sosa with his number visible.
What does all this mean? As indicated by earlier posts on this topic, it seems Sosa did wear No. 11 in at least one exhibition game – but switched to the now familiar No. 21 once regular season games began.
Now can we let this thing rest? Though we do admit it was amusing to look at that 1992 lineup card and relive the whole Gary Scott episode.
Rahula Strohl at 8:43 a.m.
Comedy hour: SportsCenter examined the curse Chicago has suffered since Michael Jordan left. They talked about the Cubs heartbreak, the Sox getting swept by the Mariners, the Bears with only one winning season and the Blackhawks ending a 28-year playoff run.
What the folks on the show failed to mention was that the Cubs went to the playoffs as many times since Jordan left as they did in the entire time he was here. Same with the Sox.
National media misses the point so often it’s usually not even worth paying any attention (see nobody understanding that Freddie Mitchell was joking). It’s not that the Sox, Cubs and Bears have been cursed since Jordan left, it’s just that the Bulls weren’t cursed for the time he was there.
The spot did provide a moment of entertainment when they played the Brant Brown drop and Ron Santo “NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!”
Rahula Strohl at 8:19 a.m.
It won’t die: Sammy: No. 11 or No. 21. Here’s the latest, Kasey Ignarski’s scorecard from their 1992 home opener. Is this it? Is this story over? We shall see.
Wednesday, Feb. 9
Greg Gugger at 6:02 p.m.
Pride or brown bag?: I was reading Charlie Madigan’s blog over on ChicagoTribune.com about a gallup poll on whether or not you are proud of America.
Let’s switch that around a bit and ask, “Are you proud to be a Chicago sports fan?” Use the e-mail form on the right and I’ll put your thoughts in the blog tomorrow afternoon. And by the way, if you didn’t click on that link, it’s a poll if you want to vote.
Rahula Strohl at 9:25 a.m.
Good news, bad news: So the Illini are the last undefeated team in college hoops. In the past five seasons, the last undefeated team failed to make it to the Final Four. But the season before that, 1998-99, Connecticut was the last undefeated team and won the national title.
So Illini haters, go with the first stat. Fans, take the second.
Rahula Strohl at 9:10 a.m.
Accidental research: In trying to help the Sosa No. 11 debate, George Knue (see right) came across the opening day game story from 1992, Sosa’s first game with the Cubs. In the game, Sosa “doubled home the tying run in the fifth inning and made three spectacular catches in center field,” according to then-Tribune writer Joey Reaves.
“If I don’t do it hitting, I’ve got to do it on defense,” Sosa said that day. “In the batting order, they`ve got nine people and if I don’t do it, then maybe somebody else will do it. But in center field, I’m the only one. If I don’t do it, nobody can do it. I have to be the one.”
So there was some point in his career he thought that way, though there’s nothing about whether he hit the cutoff man.
Rahula Strohl at 8:01 a.m.
Fore! I was registering myself with the Dallas Morning News Web site and they asked me what my interests/hobbies were. “Golf” and “Sports” were separate options. I’m just sayin’.
“Word” of the day: As sports figures throw them out, I bring to you the words they invent. Today, it’s former Texas Rangers general manager Tom Grieve. He was commenting on Jose Canseco’s book “Juiced,” in which Canseco levels steroid accusations against several former Rangers teammates. Grieve, on SportsCenter, said that Canseco’s accusations threaten the “sanctimonity” of the game.
Gettin’ up there: SportsCenter froze a highlight of a LeBron James dunk at his highest point above the rim. The ball was in his hand, and it was 11 feet 6 inches off the ground. So, yeah, he’s real good.
The mediator: In my ongoing efforts to referee the Sammy Sosa “did-he-or-didn’t-he-wear-No.-11” fight, Mark Liptak of White Sox interactive responded that he saw a highlight of Sosa wearing No. 11 in a retrospective on Sosa’s career, hosted by Dan Roan on WGN’s Instant Replay:
“Among the highlights they used was Sosa hitting a double into the left center field gap at Wrigley Field. You could clearly hear Harry Caray’s mumbled screaching under Dan’s audio. That was a REGULAR SEASON game. I was immediately struck by the fact that Sosa was wearing No. 11 and did not remember that he had any other number then his No. 21. The ivy was in full bloom in the video which meant that it didnt take place in March or April.”
I ask Mr. Liptak to go to a neutral corner while I wait for a response.
Tuesday, Feb. 8
Rahula Strohl at 3:37 p.m.
Correction: Alert reader Kasey Ignarski corrected us about Sammy wearing No. 11 in his early days with the Cubs, as was asserted earlier this month. He has a Web site with all the Cubs numbers, and has a letter from 2002 from then-media information manager Chuck Wasserstrom that says Sammy only wore No. 11 in spring training.
Rahula Strohl at 2:37 p.m.
Going once, going twice: The Schaumburg Flyers are selling a chance to play against them on their home field May 11. No joke.
As our boss, George Knue, put it: “The Schaumburg Flyers will play anybody.” It’s officially true. If you got the cash (opening bid is $2,000), you and eight of your buddies can take the field against this independent minor league ball club.
If the Flyers lose, they will offer a 2005 Northern League contract to a player from the winning team. I think if the Flyers lose, it might be a good idea for them to start voiding some 2005 Northern League contracts…
Chris King at 11:10 a.m.
Good call: Have to give credit to my colleague Greg Gugger for picking the Super Bowl winner in this space back on Jan. 3. I had my reasons for doubting the Patriots: It’s tough to repeat; if the Steelers won out, the AFC Championship would be played in Pittsburgh; Peyton Manning looked unstoppable; the Eagles could win it. So much for those theories.
The oddsmakers have the Bears at 100-1 to win the Super Bowl on the 20th anniversary of their triumph in New Orleans. That good, huh?
Monday, Feb. 7
Greg Gugger at 2:53 p.m.
Flag the NFL: Referee Terry McAulay, the guy that ruled Bears receiver Bernard Berrian did not catch the game-winning ball against the Lions, was the head official of the Super Bowl officiating crew. How did that happen?
The crew put in a below average performance Sunday with three calls that were overturned by McAulay on instant replay. At least he can now admit mistakes. We’ll be nice and won’t mention the blatant pick play by Philadelphia that wasn’t called and the Patriots’ mugging of Terrell Owens that the refs somehow missed when the Eagles were in the red-zone.
It’s a shame the NFL didn’t consult Lovie Smith on the referee selections for the Super Bowl.
Greg Gugger at 11:30 a.m.
Supersize Chicago: The Cubs announced that their “Believe” bracelets are on sale for $2 each.
They can be purchased by calling 1-800-248-9467. There is a five bracelet purchase minimum, plus handling costs.
All proceeds from the sale of these bracelets will benefit Cubs Care.
Sunday, Feb. 6
Greg Gugger at 4:47 p.m.
Supersize Chicago: Forget these warm weather cities for the Super Bowl. Fine, it’s in Detroit next year, but that stadium has a roof so it doesn’t count.
Imagine if the big game was in Chicago tonight. It would be played in tolerable 45-degree weather. Were you out on the lakefront this weekend? Lots of activity going on and quite a few people in their summer clothes. For the record, I didn’t see any swimsuits.
Now this is football weather.
Of course it could easily be 10 degrees and snowing but that’s the weather. The NFC and AFC championship games seemed to go all right in cold weather. So fans and the media have to wear winter gear around—too bad.
Ok, it’s 30 minutes before kickoff and some country singers are singing and teenagers are jumping up and down on the field. Wonder how this pre-game celebration would fare in a blizzard?
Friday, Feb. 4
Rahula Strohl at 10:35 a.m.
In memoriam: I don’t follow boxing. It hasn’t produced a compelling story line in well more than a decade. But the stories used to captivate the world, and one of the most captivating figures died Friday.
German Max Schmeling fought Joe Louis twice, with a 1-1 record. It was as the Nazi regime was coming into its own and the fights were hyped here as the reviled Nazi vs. the American hero, and vice versa in Nazi Germany. But Schmeling hardly deserved the moniker.
He hid Jewish refugees in his house on Kristallnacht and actually didn’t mind losing to Louis the second time they fought. When Louis went broke after his boxing career ended and died an impoverished man, Schmeling paid for his funeral.
Stories like this one are why I got into sports. No matter what is going on in the outside (some call it “real”) world, a relationship built on sport, whether as teammates or competitors, transcends it all.
Rahula Strohl at 12:23 a.m.
Worm meets weasels: Dennis Rodman has found his post-basketball place in the world. Watching late-night television as one is wont to do while waiting for prep scores to come in, I was greeted with “Hi, this is Dennis Rodman.”
I look up to see the Worm and his technicolor ‘do in the picture frame of a $100 bill. He proceeded to tell me that if I’m in the middle of a litigation that’s taking too long and need some money now, I should talk to Preferred Capital Lending Inc.
I’m right on it, Dennis.
Thursday, Feb. 3
Greg Gugger at 10:27 a.m.
Thanks to all: In today’s Tribune sports section on page 9, there is a full-page ad taken out by Sammy Sosa thanking the fans, his teammates and the Cubs organization for 13 great years.
PR stunt? Maybe. But if so, it sure was expensive. The reality is that Sosa didn’t have to do this but he did and that has to count for something.
And thanks Sammy for providing us many memorable years. Too bad it ended the way it did.
Wednesday, Feb. 2
Rahula Strohl at 4:15 p.m.
Nostradamus watch: The “Around the Horn” crowd—especially host Tony “Stat Boy” Reali—were pretty rough on Jay “Nostradamus” Mariotti for incorrectly predicting an Illini loss for the second time in as many weeks. He was then booted from the show in its first elimination round. All this to a guy who was doing the show from Jacksonville in the rain. By the way, he’s still not on the Illini bandwagon, and Reali said Mariotti should jump on lest he not be allowed back in the state.
Rahula Strohl at 4:07 p.m.
A sight down under: Phil Jackson is reportedly vacationing in Australia, and will mull returning to the Lakers while swimming in the Indian Ocean with Luc Longley. I don’t really have anything to say, I just think it’s funny.
Rahula Strohl at 3:57 p.m.
Civic holiday: Happy 110th birthday to George Stanley Halas. He had 22 at-bats in 12 career games in 1919 with the New York Yankees, getting only two hits and striking out eight times. He played five games in right field and one in center.
In addition to being not very good at baseball, Halas had the added disappointment of watching the Yankees pick up a fine young pitcher from the Boston Red Sox who was making the switch to right field. He turned out to be pretty good.
But it seems that, despite his early frustration, Halas found his niche.
Chris King at 12:24 p.m.
Ready? Jump: How many folks will leap off the Bulls bandwagon once they lose their next five games? That’ll make seven straight losses and a record of 22-26. The current combined record of the five teams they face next is 141-84.
Chris King at 12:21 p.m.
1 will do: The Illini need to lose before the NCAA tournament. I don’t see them losing in the Big Ten tourney because they have a history of playing well at the United Center. So mark the game at Iowa on Feb. 19 as the lone loss. Regardless of what the players say, they need to lose one. Trust me. No one wants to enter the NCAA tournament without a loss. See UNLV-Duke in 1991.
Rahula Strohl at 11:11 a.m.
Stone scores: The Daily Herald’s Barry Rozner is reporting a return to Chicago for Steve Stone. A source at WSCR-AM 670, “The Score,” says that Stone will be a regular contributor to the station over the course of the season.
I wonder if Kent Mercker will stream it live online from Cincinnati?
Rahula Strohl at 10:36 a.m.
Nostradamus follow-up: The Illini won by 13. Just for the record. More on this between 4 and 4:30 p.m. when “Around the Horn” comes on.
Tuesday, Feb. 1
Rahula Strohl at 4:46 p.m.
Numbers game II: Just got an FYI from Mark Liptak of White Sox Interactive that Sammy Sosa wore No. 11 in 1992, when he played 67 games in his first season with the Cubs. Maybe they should retire that one and give No. 21 to Prior?
Rahula Strohl at 4:15 p.m.
Nostradamus watch: Self-titled “Nostradamus” Jay Mariotti said on “Around the Horn” that the Illini will lose to Michigan State tonight. Just for the record.
Rahula Strohl at 4:05 p.m.
Lose-lose situation: So I heard former Tribune columnist Skip Bayless say that the Eagles are better without Terrell Owens. I choose not even to comment on that statement. But it got me to thinking about how Sammy Sosa had become a cancer, the Cubs can’t win with a selfish guy like that, blah, blah, blah.
To say that Sammy was the reason the Cubs didn’t make or win a World Series is just wrong. Sammy is a large part of the reason the Cubs even came close. And here’s some statistical backup: Before the Cubs picked up Sammy in 1992, they had three winning seasons in the previous 20 seasons. In the 14 Sammy seasons, the Cubs had six winning seasons.
So he didn’t bring a pennant. No one of whom we have color photographs has brought a pennant to the Cubs. What he did is put on the best offensive show this city has ever seen while being the linchpin of the offense during more winning seasons than the franchise had seen in two decades.
Rahula Strohl at 1:52 p.m.
The numbers game: Chris asked on Sunday whether the Cubs would give Sammy’s No. 21 to anyone else. Retiring a player’s number after trading him is not without precedent in baseball. In fact, it happened in this very city in a trade involving Sosa, when the Sox dealt Harold Baines to the Rangers for Sosa, Wilson Alvarez and others. The Sox then retired Baines’ No. 3.
Meanwhile, the Cubs have been ludicrous about retiring numbers. Ernie Banks and Billy Williams are no-brainers, but then shouldn’t Fergie Jenkins’ No. 31 be flying from the foul pole? He’s in the Hall of Fame as a Cub. So is Ryno, but where’s No. 23?
I was confused enough when Williams and Banks were up there but not Fergie. Now that they have Maddux back, he’s wearing No. 31, so that makes it tricky. But how did Ron Santo slip by quality control before Fergie?
Santo has put so much time and obsession into the Cubs, but retiring numbers has always been an indication of one’s contribution while actually wearing the number. So with the performance bar set at Santo, the following players should have retired numbers in the interest of consistency: Banks, Williams, Sosa, Jenkins, Sandberg, Santo, Mark Grace.
And just as a P.S., Mark Prior wore 21 at USC.
